It’s 2009 (or just about) and it’s time for resolutions. Most are made for personal change or improvement but if you are responsible for the marketing and advertising for your company in 2009, maybe it’s time for a business resolution.
Make sure your marketing and advertising messages are relevant to your customer. It’s tough out there. The economy is slow (or in some circles, maybe on life support). You can use this time to your advantage since one or several of your top competitors are cutting or even killing their marketing efforts. Leap ahead of your competition while they may be hunkered down in the bunkers and ducking for cover.
But, you need to grab your customer’s attention with relevant creative and copy. Buying is down, budgets are frozen, and growth is slow to stagnant, but companies still need to make purchases. So they are out there shopping. Are you getting noticed?
Now is not the time to be clever with kitschy creative, lofty cerebral branding initiatives and crazy concepts. You need to cut through the clutter, reach your buyers with messages that solve their problems and heal their pain. You need to be out there in the market, but do it smartly. Give your customers a reason to call not a bunch of fluff.
Build new relationships and strengthen your old now and you’ll find yourself coming out of the down economy on top!
Monday, December 29, 2008
Sunday, December 28, 2008
A New Year, A New Way to "Change"
"Change" was a pretty important topic in 2008. Change we can believe in, we are the change we seek.
A year's end is a traditional time for reflection. Whether we create formal "resolutions" or not, this is the time when many of us take stock and identify ways to change ourselves. Lose a little weight. Regain a little hair (??!!). Mend fences. Read more. Watch TV less.
I'm a foster parent. Well, I was until about a week ago when the children I've lived with for 18 months were moved to a new home to prepare them for reunification with their mother.
Foster parenting is tough. Parts of the child welfare system in Pennsylvania are antiquated and some private and public agencies are corrupt in spite of regulatory review and oversight. I could go on about what it's like to be within the system. Dear reader, your hair would stand on end if you knew what our state agencies did -- and didn't do -- on behalf of Pennsylvania's weakest constituents (foster children).
Today, that's not my point.
My point is change. Here's where you come in.
As a foster parent who is also a professional, a business owner, I often met other professionals who admired what my husband and I do, but said foster parenting was not for them. No judgments for people who correctly admit this is not their calling. It is grueling work.
But there ARE things people can do to help kids in need of nurturing homes. Little things. And each little thing helps bring about positive change for one child, or many children.
Some ideas:
Donate. Find an adoption/foster care agency and ask what type of financial support they might need. Gifts of all sizes are welcome. Agencies like Bethany Christian Services* have gift catalogs that assign specific dollar amounts to specific needs. Like $35 for a child's winter coat. Or $75 to help a family pay utilities for a month. Or $4 for 4 chickens for a family in Ethiopia. http://www.bethany.org/lancaster
Get Certified. Maybe you don't want to be a foster parent. How about a respite parent where you provide 2 or 3 day support for a foster child, while his "every day" foster family takes a breather. www.diakon.org and http://www.cobys.org are reputable organizations.
Advocate. Some counties, like York, have a CASA or Court Appointed Special Advocate who makes sure the child's needs are properly met in court decision making. This is a volunteer position. Believe me when I tell you CASA's are sorely needed ESPECIALLY IN COUNTIES LIKE CHESTER. Children need and deserve a voice.
http://www.pacasa.org
Ask for and support legislation. Did you know that it is legal in the state of PA to reunify a child with a parent who is using the child's social security number for personal gain? Yep. Learn the laws relating to child welfare. And advocate for positive change.
Raise awareness. Learn more about PA's foster children and our system. For example: There are more than 800 children awaiting permanent homes in PA. Now, talk about it. Talk to your friends, your minister, your hair dresser. Talk about PA's kids the way our newspapers talk about Puppy Mills (another important cause). Raise awareness about the need. Who knows who (whom?) you will inspire.
How are you going to change?
I have a few ideas in mind for myself. I'll be working with a state senator to change the ridiculous loop hole that makes identity theft a crime...but allows county agencies to overlook the crime and move forward with reunification. I'll be advocating for the placement of CASA in a certain county. And yes, I'll be foster parenting again.
Each of us does what we can, in our own individual way. My only goal is to get some people thinking about reaching out to PA's kids...Happy New Year and may 2009 bring you much health and happiness.
*In the interest of disclosure, I am a board member of Bethany, but use another agency's services.
A year's end is a traditional time for reflection. Whether we create formal "resolutions" or not, this is the time when many of us take stock and identify ways to change ourselves. Lose a little weight. Regain a little hair (??!!). Mend fences. Read more. Watch TV less.
I'm a foster parent. Well, I was until about a week ago when the children I've lived with for 18 months were moved to a new home to prepare them for reunification with their mother.
Foster parenting is tough. Parts of the child welfare system in Pennsylvania are antiquated and some private and public agencies are corrupt in spite of regulatory review and oversight. I could go on about what it's like to be within the system. Dear reader, your hair would stand on end if you knew what our state agencies did -- and didn't do -- on behalf of Pennsylvania's weakest constituents (foster children).
Today, that's not my point.
My point is change. Here's where you come in.
As a foster parent who is also a professional, a business owner, I often met other professionals who admired what my husband and I do, but said foster parenting was not for them. No judgments for people who correctly admit this is not their calling. It is grueling work.
But there ARE things people can do to help kids in need of nurturing homes. Little things. And each little thing helps bring about positive change for one child, or many children.
Some ideas:
Donate. Find an adoption/foster care agency and ask what type of financial support they might need. Gifts of all sizes are welcome. Agencies like Bethany Christian Services* have gift catalogs that assign specific dollar amounts to specific needs. Like $35 for a child's winter coat. Or $75 to help a family pay utilities for a month. Or $4 for 4 chickens for a family in Ethiopia. http://www.bethany.org/lancaster
Get Certified. Maybe you don't want to be a foster parent. How about a respite parent where you provide 2 or 3 day support for a foster child, while his "every day" foster family takes a breather. www.diakon.org and http://www.cobys.org are reputable organizations.
Advocate. Some counties, like York, have a CASA or Court Appointed Special Advocate who makes sure the child's needs are properly met in court decision making. This is a volunteer position. Believe me when I tell you CASA's are sorely needed ESPECIALLY IN COUNTIES LIKE CHESTER. Children need and deserve a voice.
http://www.pacasa.org
Ask for and support legislation. Did you know that it is legal in the state of PA to reunify a child with a parent who is using the child's social security number for personal gain? Yep. Learn the laws relating to child welfare. And advocate for positive change.
Raise awareness. Learn more about PA's foster children and our system. For example: There are more than 800 children awaiting permanent homes in PA. Now, talk about it. Talk to your friends, your minister, your hair dresser. Talk about PA's kids the way our newspapers talk about Puppy Mills (another important cause). Raise awareness about the need. Who knows who (whom?) you will inspire.
How are you going to change?
I have a few ideas in mind for myself. I'll be working with a state senator to change the ridiculous loop hole that makes identity theft a crime...but allows county agencies to overlook the crime and move forward with reunification. I'll be advocating for the placement of CASA in a certain county. And yes, I'll be foster parenting again.
Each of us does what we can, in our own individual way. My only goal is to get some people thinking about reaching out to PA's kids...Happy New Year and may 2009 bring you much health and happiness.
*In the interest of disclosure, I am a board member of Bethany, but use another agency's services.
Friday, December 26, 2008
PPC -- Make sure it's worth it
We are believers in search marketing, especially when PPC is included in your overall marketing strategy.
But as with any marketing tactic, a PPC campaign should be well thought out before implemented.
What we find nowadays (nowadays??) is that small businesses or companies who are under intense pressure to deliver big results with small budgets are turning to PPC or SEO as the magic bullet.
Yes, paid search can extend your reach, bringing prospective buyers to your web site, expanding your footprint for a low cost.
But if you're a small business -- or prepared to only spend a small monthly amount -- be sure to consider the cost per click and how many people this will actually lead to your site before acting.
Let's say you have a budget of $500. Taking the cost of your keywords into account, how many people will this lead to your site?What realistic conversion rate can you expect? What is the net profit you expect from each sale...considering these dynamics, is this the best use of your budget?
Could a national (or regional) PR program reach more people? Yes, PR takes longer to take hold and show results. But when the difference in reach is thousands of eyeballs versus hundreds (or just dozens as may be the case with search), I think PR might be the better investment.
We're not steering clients away from paid search. Not at all. We're simply recommending that marketers carefully consider the potential for results with the budget at hand. And be willing to delay gratification if the budget can yield better results elsewhere.
If you determine PPC is right for you...make sure your web site is ready to handle the traffic. Put your best foot forward, be prepared to engage and maneuver prospects through your site, measure traffic and buyer behavior and set goals that you can measure and react to.
Just a thought...
But as with any marketing tactic, a PPC campaign should be well thought out before implemented.
What we find nowadays (nowadays??) is that small businesses or companies who are under intense pressure to deliver big results with small budgets are turning to PPC or SEO as the magic bullet.
Yes, paid search can extend your reach, bringing prospective buyers to your web site, expanding your footprint for a low cost.
But if you're a small business -- or prepared to only spend a small monthly amount -- be sure to consider the cost per click and how many people this will actually lead to your site before acting.
Let's say you have a budget of $500. Taking the cost of your keywords into account, how many people will this lead to your site?What realistic conversion rate can you expect? What is the net profit you expect from each sale...considering these dynamics, is this the best use of your budget?
Could a national (or regional) PR program reach more people? Yes, PR takes longer to take hold and show results. But when the difference in reach is thousands of eyeballs versus hundreds (or just dozens as may be the case with search), I think PR might be the better investment.
We're not steering clients away from paid search. Not at all. We're simply recommending that marketers carefully consider the potential for results with the budget at hand. And be willing to delay gratification if the budget can yield better results elsewhere.
If you determine PPC is right for you...make sure your web site is ready to handle the traffic. Put your best foot forward, be prepared to engage and maneuver prospects through your site, measure traffic and buyer behavior and set goals that you can measure and react to.
Just a thought...
Friday, December 19, 2008
Email and the Road to Good Will (and positive brand image)
I'm on the email list for a regional HVAC contractor. I get a semi-designed email from them once a month, maybe more.
Yesterday I received the most interesting one of all. Instead of the "time to change your filter oh and by the way, we sell high efficiency heat pumps" it asked for my suggestion on a needy local family that the company can donate a system renovation to (sorry for the poor grammar here...)
Huh.
It was text only.
No design. No fancy wording. Just a simple plea: Our company is seeking to use planned down time to provide a free home heating system renovation to a local family in dire financial straits.
You, prospective customer, are invited to provide us with a suggested family.
What an excellent -- and interesting -- use of email. The gesture builds good will and positively builds the brand in my mind. It provides some means of engaging prospective customers and building future relationships. And certainly, measurement and trackability are built in assuming people respond.
Bravo to this HVAC contractor for thinking outside the box. And although we handle two competitive accounts, I have to admit, I'm rootin' for them.
Times like these call for tactics that build relationships. This was a good move.
Yesterday I received the most interesting one of all. Instead of the "time to change your filter oh and by the way, we sell high efficiency heat pumps" it asked for my suggestion on a needy local family that the company can donate a system renovation to (sorry for the poor grammar here...)
Huh.
It was text only.
No design. No fancy wording. Just a simple plea: Our company is seeking to use planned down time to provide a free home heating system renovation to a local family in dire financial straits.
You, prospective customer, are invited to provide us with a suggested family.
What an excellent -- and interesting -- use of email. The gesture builds good will and positively builds the brand in my mind. It provides some means of engaging prospective customers and building future relationships. And certainly, measurement and trackability are built in assuming people respond.
Bravo to this HVAC contractor for thinking outside the box. And although we handle two competitive accounts, I have to admit, I'm rootin' for them.
Times like these call for tactics that build relationships. This was a good move.
Thursday, December 18, 2008
Tough Choices in a Tough Economic Market
We met with a prospect this week and were excited to hear about their budget cuts. Okay. We weren't excited about the cuts themselves. Neither were they.
What excited us was what they did with their marketing program when they had to cut the advertising budget first in half, then in half again.
They increased their PR activities. The Communications Manager said, "We figured we had a lot of leverage left from our previous ad campaigns. So we went after PR with our magazines and got tons of coverage."
It's a smart move. Keeps the competition guessing. Competitors may notice the change in tactics from print ads to editorial placements (and great covers). But they're less likely to assume budget cuts are in play.
Even smarter from a prospective buyer's standpoint. The marketer stays in front of buyers at a different budget level and maybe, just maybe, hits the buyer when their advertising resistance is a little lower. Let's face it. Buyers are thinking different things when they are reading relevant editorial vs. skimming past an ad...
The economy is forcing marketers to make choices. Some are cutting budgets deeply or entirely. Others are looking for smart ways to leverage what they have to spend. Bravo to the manufacturer mentioned above.
We'd like to know how other folks are employing smart marketing in these crazy down times... and if you're keeping your marketing plans fluid enough to respond to changes in the market.
If you'd care to share what you're doing during the economic "crisis" we'd love to hear about it...
What excited us was what they did with their marketing program when they had to cut the advertising budget first in half, then in half again.
They increased their PR activities. The Communications Manager said, "We figured we had a lot of leverage left from our previous ad campaigns. So we went after PR with our magazines and got tons of coverage."
It's a smart move. Keeps the competition guessing. Competitors may notice the change in tactics from print ads to editorial placements (and great covers). But they're less likely to assume budget cuts are in play.
Even smarter from a prospective buyer's standpoint. The marketer stays in front of buyers at a different budget level and maybe, just maybe, hits the buyer when their advertising resistance is a little lower. Let's face it. Buyers are thinking different things when they are reading relevant editorial vs. skimming past an ad...
The economy is forcing marketers to make choices. Some are cutting budgets deeply or entirely. Others are looking for smart ways to leverage what they have to spend. Bravo to the manufacturer mentioned above.
We'd like to know how other folks are employing smart marketing in these crazy down times... and if you're keeping your marketing plans fluid enough to respond to changes in the market.
If you'd care to share what you're doing during the economic "crisis" we'd love to hear about it...
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