We live in a world of screens

The mom asked her son how he was going to watch Sponge Bob and her son replied I don’t know, why do you care?  She said I am trying to tell a group of marketers how a young boy will watch Sponge Bob, will you watch it on-line, from the DVR, your phone, the iPad or other source.  The boy replied, I still don’t understand – I am going to watch Sponge Bob.

It was a great example and the way that Judy Franks opened up her recent presentation(www.themarketingdemocracy.com/judy-franks) that I attended a couple of weeks ago.

We live in a world of screens and it’s all about the content on those screens.  No longer can we silo a demographic into a specific medium and focus all of our marketing budget accordingly.  We simply do not know how, when and where they are going to see our message.  In some ways it is similar to the AT&T U-Verse ADs that show a person starting a movie in the Kitchen, pausing then continuing to watch the movie in the living room, pausing and then watching the rest of the movie in their bedroom.  We may be reading a story in the newspaper then go online for a more in-depth interview on the topic or a video or keep up with the story via our smartphone.

To assume that I am going to reach my target audience in 1-3 places at 5-7 particular times is not realistic.  We need to hit on all levels that our budget allows.  The answer is not in single channel distribution, we cannot rely on only email or only direct mail, etc. we need to integrate our outreach.

One suggestion that Judy makes during her presentation is that it is all about the content.  If the content is good, relevant and well produced, and you make it accessible then it will get in the right hands.  Not only will it get into the right hands but it will come with a referral.  For example, you have relevant content for your target audience  and you know it resonates with them.  Now Joe in that audience views the content and shares that content with his friends within the targeted audience with his note that they have to check this out.  If we were to score the value of this touch it would be at the very top; qualified, referral validation and subsequent full attention to our message.

The challenge of course is the budget. We can create great, well produced relevant content and then get it out there – but can the customer afford to do it right.  Do we instead end up in the continual cycle of limited budgets that then back us into potential marketing avenues as opposed to results oriented campaigns that ask how much will it cost to get this result.

They just want to watch Sponge Bob, the vehicle is secondary.

There is nothing like a live concert

I recently went to a concert by Poi Dog Pondering, my second time seeing this band.

This is a great band with a rather interesting following.  The music and vocals are amazing and I frequently listen to their music in the car and while running.  A few weeks ago we heard that they were doing a concert locally in a small venue and we instantly purchased tickets. 

The show was on a Thursday night and with a busy work schedule and upcoming travel I was not exactly thrilled about attending and staying up late to attend.  When we arrived we were a little early and needed to wait in line for about thirty minutes in a brisk chilly wind but soon the doors opened and we were inside and were able to pick the seats we wanted as early arrivals.  I took a look around and my first thought was where are the young people, it was the first time I can remember, aside from a high school reunion, that I was around a bunch of people my age and the similarity was a little eerie.  But then again, if all these people can stay up late I guess I can can also.

Then the band walked on stage and the music began.  The same music that I listen to 2 to 3 times per week was totally different, it was live.

The lights dimmed, the music thumping against my chest, my feet tapping, a random arm in the air, the voices in harmony sounding as another instrument, the horns, the strings all coming together to create an amazing experience – it became emotional.  I couldn’t help but look around me and see the emotion being demonstrated by my fellow concert goers as part of the environment and the overall experience.  I started to notice the way people were dancing, the way they moved their hands in tandem with the music.  I also noticed the theater and its elegant dressings, the beautiful decorative ceilings, the elegant ceiling painting and velvet curtains.  All of the individual components came together to enhance an experience.  It is amazing to me that all of these individual items on their own are just ok but when they are working together they create this unbelievable, amazing experience.  I even got to the point that when I listen to their music now on my iPod I actually feel the emotion that I felt at the live concert.  The emotion of the experience stayed with me.

Our marketing campaigns work the same way.

When we use any of the individual tools available to us we get our job done.  We get the email out, the direct mail gets dropped, the tele-marketing calls get made, the landing page gets done and the fulfillment gets completed.  But ultimately we do not create an emotion.

If we want to get their heart thumping, their toes tapping and an arm in the air, then we need to put it all together to create something special. 

We need to produce integrated marketing campaigns that create an emotion that lives within our prospects.  We need to hit on all aspects; email, direct mail, personalized landing pages, tele-marketing and good follow-up and fulfillment.  If we do our jobs well we can help sales walk into a situation that is already a positive emotional experience.  If we do it right, sales is not just following up on a piece the prospect received but on an experience of which the prospect was a participant.

Let’s do it right and get some hands in the air.

Kudos to the one who came up with this one

I must admit that I was impressed as I was checking out during a recent visit to Old Navy.  However first we need to start with how I ended up there on a Saturday afternoon with a lot of other shoppers. 

I have a teenage son that is growing crazy fast.  In addition he is the oldest, so when he out grows his clothes he gets to buy new ones.  So problem – boy needs pants that do not look like girls capri’s.  Where to go purchase was based on three factors; family loyalty based on previous experience with low pricing, a Special Coupon offer where all purchases during a specific time period results in a donation to a family preferred cause and finally location.

We have a relationship with Old Navy.  Generally all of the kids like the clothes that they offer and the consistency of their product and pricing.  I must also admit as a dad who does not like shopping that I was impressed with the store organization, cleanliness, staff and efficiency of check out to complete our purchase.  They have done a good job of earning and keeping our loyalty.

As a family we want to do our part where we can to support non-profit efforts.  In this case it was a win-win where we received a discount on our overall purchase on a flyer from a friend and the charity received a donation for all purchases made during this time period.  Frankly this was the deciding factor.  left to my own call he would have been shopping at the store 5 feet from the closest Starbucks. 

Lastly location did play a role since I had to run some other errands.  So I used my smart phone to find my current location and then locate an Old Navy in my area and then map directions so I could get their easily.

So here I am standing in line awaiting my turn to check out with my purchase and the next thing I know I am up.  The employee says “good afternoon, can I get you email”, and you know what I almost gave it to her, I was very close.  I have been so accustomed to “can I have your phone number or can I have your zip code” honestly I just did not think twice about the question.  Think about it, the intro question by the check out employee has become a normal practice.

The part that hit me as a marketer was “dang that was smart”.  I then went onto explain to my son as we got in the car how smart that really was.  First of all they recognized a pattern of behavior that they could alter slightly for better results.  Secondly, by giving them my email address I just opted in.  Lastly, think of what they can do with my email now.  Aside from basic email marketing they now know what I purchased so they can now tie my email address to specific types of purchases and therefore offers.  They could also use my address to sell to other marketers.  Think about the numbers – how many customers in that store per day, what % would supply their email address and then multiply that by market rates for email addresses, this could be a nice little revenue stream.

At this point you are probably thinking I need to get a life, but this is my life, I love this stuff. 

So some questions for you.  What do your clients need, are you staying on top of it and in front of it by anticipating their future needs as well.  Are you continuing to evaluate what offers, methods, incentive tie ins will get customers to purchase from you?  Is your product and customer service still good and are you continuing to build and honor the relationships you are building with your clients.  When it comes to your location are you making it easy for your clients to find and buy from you and are you in all of the right places in order to inform your clients how easy it is to purchase from you.

But here is the most important part – think about your customer or your customers customer buying behavior – examine it and think about how you can make that a better experience as well as how you can make this a better marketing experience.    What can you do at this last point to get them back to buy again soon, what can you do to collect more information to better assist marketing, programs and future plans.

Think about it, analyze it and make the change.  Soon someone will be writing about you saying “Kudos”.

Want to go to Dairy Queen?

This past week I had the thrill of being dad for the day.  This is the once a year event where mommy goes to a retreat for one night and the four kids get treated to the way life would be if I were a 40-year-old full-time college student.  The large decisions over this two-day span center around what type of fast food we will be eating.  It is the running family joke, when mom goes away dad serves us Ding Dongs in a bowl covered with milk for breakfast.  It’s like Candy Land with movies all weekend long.

Well of course it is not that extreme and this time we did in fact stay home and made meals and yes they were healthy.  However I did tell the kids we could go out for something yet to be determined over the course of these two days.

Friday night after the kids were asleep I dove into the mail drawer to sort through the bills and direct mail.  About halfway through was a direct mail booklet from Dairy Queen.  I opened it up, as I do enjoy my DQ, and I found the holy grail of coupons.  This thing was some 14 pages of gold.  Two for one, $1.00 off, discounted sundaes, free cones, with about every product line covered.  I was a happy man.  That night I decided I was taking the family to DQ Saturday.

The direct mail did its job.  It hit the right audience at the right time with the right offer and it got me and my four kids into their store to drop at  least $20.00.  The rest was up to them, I have written about ‘the client experience’ in previous blogs, they needed to make sure all went well once we walked through the door, and they did.  The service was great, the food was great, the store was clean and the cashier was familiar with the coupon and how to use it, all was done very well.  My kids were happy and I was happy to save $8.00 while earning one more nomination for dad of the year.

What struck me about this piece is how infrequent they have become.  It seems to me that there is more of a push to online couponing and that is fine, but we need to keep in mind that the audience varies and the medium that they will respond to varies.  We need to hit on all fronts.

In this example, if they would have sent me an email it probably would have gotten deleted without even opening.  If it did manage to survive it would be gone after its first use.  In the DQ case they used direct mail to stand out to me and then gave me a booklet of savings which is sitting on the kitchen counter to be used again and again over a four month life span.

Although they did a nice job on this campaign – they could have done better with a couple small steps. 

I would have suggested that they add a url to the coupon book and integrate the campaign to the web.  This allows them to provide another form of tracking and collect more information that can be used in their future marketing efforts as well as bring together their online and offline efforts.

Simply adding a url to the cover with an incentive of further savings by going to www.gpimage.com.  Once they are there you can collect information on them such as an email address, birthdays, preferred store location, number of kids, etc.  They could show them a list of possible store locations in their area they may not know.  The key is to link their marketing efforts and get the most for their investment.  Use it all and reach your prospects in the right place at the right time.

A Birthday Clubbing

Imagine if you will a nice evening out with your family. 

Grandma and Grandpa invited our family of 6 to join them for dinner at a restaurant close to their home.  We drove the 45 minutes to arrive on time and made our way to our table of eight in its own private room.  We then were treated to excellent service and a wonderful meal.  I even remember the grace our servers and bus boys showed when one of my children spilled their full glass of lemonade on the table and carpeting.  All in all a nice evening out. 

Now imagine the bill arrives and my 8 year old is given a card to join their Birthday Club.  Well honestly my child is so excited about this evening that the thought of coming back here seems like a trip to Disney World.   So she eagerly fills out the card with her name, email, birthdate and address.  She addressed her own birthday rewards postcard, brilliant.

Several months later a card arrives in the mail, sure enough the same card she filled out announcing her opportunity to come back to this magical place, with family in tow of course, to receive her free birthday meal.  Only problem is that we received the card January 31st for her early January birthday.  So we read the small print, it is valid “during the month of your child’s birthday”.  Oops.  Basically we need to go to dinner there that night.

Reward Programs and Clubs can be a funny thing. While you can create brand loyalty and customer enthusiasm you can also weaken your brand and create unhappy customers.  You see the catch is that you have to follow through, there is no leeway.  Once you set the expectation, which you did set, you have to meet it.

One could argue that at least this chain was bold enough to set the expectation so my daughter was excited to attend this location and did not mention another, but when they didn’t meet that expectation they ended up losing a customer as well as the other three kids who were looking forward to the same treat.

This chain delivered a birthday clubbing of a birthday dinner dream.

So why do you think this happened, was it some master conspiracy to get people into the chain that missed reading the small print, was it an easy way to save money for the chain by simply mailing the free dinner card late.  Probably neither, it was probably just an oversight by the vendor responsible.

My point is that every time you hire a vendor to assist in your marketing you put your image in their hands.  You can spend millions of dollars building your brand, developing integrated rewards programs and birthday clubs and with one decision by one vendor you can throw it all out the window.

When you make your vendor decisions for printing, direct mail, fulfillment and reward programs be sure to compare your choices based on performance, results and proven client positive experience and then hold that vendor accountable to your expectations.  Don’t let your club start clubbing your customers.

Bears – Packers Memorabilia

Well another NFL season has come to a close.  Well, at least it has for me as a Bears fan.  Our beloved Bears were eliminated at home against the #6 seed which we let into the playoffs the last game of the regular season.  The probability of the Packers meeting the Bears in the NFC championship game in Chicago was the longest of long shots, yet it happened.  The game kicked off a week-long look back at the storied history of these two NFL teams and their rivalry.

The Chicago Tribune did a great picture of years and years of Bears/Packers memorabilia, everything from program covers to ticket stubs and promotional products.  My first thought when looking over all of this history was what would we store away or share with others or for that matter take pictures of if all we had were digital archives.

Imagine the emotion that the digital memorabilia will awake in our mind.  The thrill of the search as we search our spam folder or unpack our back up hard drives from years past.  The feel of that cold metal and smooth keyboards as we point and click our way to that special memory.  The brightness on our screen of that saved jpeg of our favorite barcode from our smart phone ticket and a screen shot of the website program after the download.  Oh and I almost forgot, that smell of the heat blowing out the back of our computers, you know, that warm smell of overheated circuit boards.  I am almost choked up by the emotion.

In this push to go electronic let’s remember the real value of print.  The stored archive of the ticket from when you and your son, brother or father went to the game with you.  The feel of the thick and heavy card stock, the picture on the front, the smell of the paper.  Pull out the program and check out the stats, the images, the creases and stains.  Does it take you back to that day.  The sensations of touch, sight and smell bring us back to that moment in time and remind us of those same sensations.  There is power in print.

What do you have tucked away in a box someplace or is it framed and on a shelf in an area of prominence.  Have you thought about how you can use the power of print and the emotion it conveys in your marketing campaigns.  Have you considered adding scented inks to direct mail or high-end textured paper to a brochure.  Ask yourself the question on your next campaign if you can add a little sense of memorabilia to your piece.  Maybe the memorabilia is the offer that lives on the web through a personalized url which is mailed on request.  Imagine the power of print, you might enjoy the experience and better yet your prospect might remember the experience.

What do you not want to do today?

I was greatly enjoying my Sunday when I realized that I needed to attend an event at 2 pm that was not really on my list of things I wanted to do that day.  As it was I had lots of work to do around the house plus I wanted to spend a little time relaxing.  Yet, at 1:45, I grabbed my coat, got in the car and went to the event.  In all fairness, I had a great time.  It was an enlightening and inspirational event that also was very relaxing and I felt good that I attended and added one more person to the event.  The fact is that it is best just to do it and get it behind you and if you’re lucky you will have fun doing it and feel better afterward.

I started to think about work and those little things that we all know we should do but do not when it comes to our work.  I don’t know what your dreaded item is but I can speak to some items from a sales perspective.  You know the item I am talking about – you know you should do it, but when it comes down to it something else always finds its way in its place.

In sales it is the Thank You card, the Nurture Direct Mail or Email Campaign, the Personalized Summary document from the meeting or the ultimate personalized touch of a donation made in the name of your sales prospect to an organization they mentioned in your meeting.  There are so many ways to make the most of that initial meeting or conversation, what are you doing?  In the end it usually comes down to that being one of those dreaded items that you may not see any initial return on your investment of money and time – but it does make a difference.

Adding follow-up to sales, in a meaningful and personal way, adds value to your organization, separates you from the competition and helps build and strengthen a budding relationship.

The good news is that there is a way to get your dreaded items done!  Outsource it to a partner.

When you outsource these items you know they will get done, you will have an accountable partner to make them efficient and effective and ultimately build value in your organization and help you sell more.

There are many automated programs that can be built to meet any of your needs.  Imagine this – Your sales rep makes a call and works into the conversation the question ‘so what is your favorite charity – or what type of events do you like to support’.  Imagine this rep logging into their resource portal and submitting a request for a follow-up piece for their new prospect.  The rep submits the details of the call and types a personal note to their prospect.  This submission is then submitted to your sales automation software, the note is sent to your partner that creates a custom variable data note card that is printed and mailed to the prospect.  Next a donation is sent to the charity mentioned in the meeting and the note card and finally a follow-up email is sent to the prospect with receipt of the donation.  This is all possible and can all be automated.  You can take several items off of your to do list, build your brand, support your sales force and sell more of your product or service with one phone call.

If you are interested in getting those dreaded things done, we can help.  We will listen and help you develop a solution to meet your needs and help you sell more.  Visit us today at www.gpimage.com.

Starbucks Wisdom

This last week as I was enjoying my venti half-caf from Starbucks I decided to read the cup sleeve.  It read “Stories are Gifts – Share” – good advice – and what does that say about our culture when we need to get our wisdom from a coffee cup, but it did get me thinking about marketing.

Stories are how we share the past, help carry on the memory of those before us and build a picture of what made us who we are today.  Stories also help others in many ways, some unseen.  Oftentimes your individual experience told through your stories help someone change a direction in their life,  become better at something, make informed decisions or simply provide comfort.  Stories also carry on history, I don’t know how many times I have told the Graphix Products and Serenity House story of my parents, but every time people are amazed at what they hear.  You never know – yes, it is good to share stories.

The question I have is how do you share your story?  Sure you can just tell someone, but how do you tell them.  Do you stand in an auditorium and tell the entire room “Here is My Story – Listen” or do you prefer to tell your story one on one and share in conversation throughout the story where you share each others stories and experiences while telling your story.  Do you share your story in a cold empty space or do you prefer to be in a warm comfortable place that enhances the moment and has the audience more receptive to sharing.

This question is good for us to consider in our marketing communications as well.  Remember that we are always telling a story.  That story helps people relate to your company, your product and ultimately you.  How are you telling your story?

A very important part of telling a story is the underlying message that you are sending through how you tell the story.  Think of the printed piece and how different papers can change the feel of the story.  I like the comparison of how we feel when we receive a hand written note on a nice textured felt or cotton finish paper such as a Cranes notecard versus a black and white copied form letter on copy paper.  Same holds true for your design, copy, direct mail, printing, mailing, promotional product and the web.  Within each of these areas there are many decisions that need to be made to be sure that your story is told the right way and under the right circumstances and that the underlying message that is delivered enhances your ultimate objectives.

As you think about your story ask yourself how you tell that story to others.  Think of all the different ways within your company that the story is told and then ask yourself is that how I want my story communicated.

As a nod to Starbucks Wisdom – take some time this Holiday Season to share your story, your testimony, your passions and your challenges with those around you and then sit back and listen to their story.  You never know what you might learn and what you might help someone else learn about you.  Your story might be the impetus of a new movement or inspiration.  Share your story.

The Secrets to Free Education.

I often receive direct mail, telemarketing and emails asking me to hire their respective company to train my employees in specific areas and make them better at their jobs.  The employee gains added training and skill sets which help in their own professional development and I as the employer get a skilled employee who is more efficient and effective at their jobs which makes my customers happy and ultimately makes me more money to grow my business.

Sounds good and in some cases it makes sense to hire out this service.  Although there is a way to get most of your education for free – through your vendor/partners.

We recently finished the tenth year of our Fall Education Series where we invite people to come into our office and receive free hands on training and a free lunch.  I also use my vendors/partners for supplemental training of my employees.  For free.

Think about this, if you were going to hire someone for training, you would hire the expert in the field, someone who specializes in that area.  As an example we have in-house mailing, CD/DVDs, fulfillment, integrated web services, digital, offset and flexo printing, marketing services and promotional incentives.  Each area with its own resident expert, some with over 30 years of day-to-day, hands on experience.  Some of these people are better prepared to train your staff than some of the highest paid trainers in the industry. 

So why give this education away for free?  Simple, because it is a clear win/win situation.

When the vendor trains the customer, the vendor gains a better, smarter and educated consumer.  Anyone with a good product and service wants an educated customer – no need for smoke and mirrors.  A good product can stand up to any scrutiny and in most cases a better educated consumer will be willing to pay a premium for a superior product.  But remember that they only know it’s a superior product when they are educated.

When the customer is trained by the vendor, the customer gains a better skilled and more efficient and effective employee.  Which as I mentioned above leads to happier clients and a better bottom line, especially because it was free.  Think about the benefits of your marketing manager knowing all of the aspects of their campaigns in  detail.  Keep in mind that they do not need to memorize all of those details.  The point is that when they know, they can anticipate and get ahead of a problem before it happens or if there is a problem be able to think of a solution.

I would encourage you to use your vendors for free education for your staff.  My guess is that they would be more than happy to oblige and you may even get a free lunch.

Graphix Products offers free training in several areas utilizing proven class formats.  You can register to discuss holding a class for your company at http://www.graphixproducts.com/training.asp

See you just got one more thing for free – The Secrets to Free Education.

What are you Passionate about?

The football games this weekend were great!  Players had huge games and racked up big fantasy numbers and some teams secured first place in their division, a big weekend.  I love this game and the NFL, especially when the Chicago Bears win or go on a five game winning streak.  I am a big fan and I can be passionate about the sport.  However I am not one to be so passionate that I keep track of my players throughout the games, pick game scores, predict stats and generally talk football all week until game day, there is nothing wrong with that it’s just not my passion.

So I was thinking this weekend, what am I passionate about?  I am passionate about my Faith, I am passionate about my family, I am passionate when I am in the midst of coaching football and honestly I am passionate about my job.  All of which I wear on my sleeve.  Anyone who knows me would tell you the same.  My question is, what are you passionate about?

I love working with people who are passionate about their work and the products or services they sell.  I walk into the meeting and they cannot wait to tell me all that they do and ask me to help them bottle their message and solution for the market.  They are enthusiastic, energetic and ready to take on the competition.  The reason I love this so much is because I am just as passionate about marketing and helping my clients produce results, and they know it. 

So are you passionate about your work?  Do you pull into the office thinking about all of the possibilities of the day?  Are you excited about your product and what you have to offer?  Do you look at your offering and say ‘everyone would want this?’  Here is the next part of the question, are your managers, employees and vendors just as passionate.

I know it is easy to get caught up in the operations of the day, the billing, the writing, the proposals the quotas but don’t forget what got you here, your passion.  When you interviewed for this job or started this company you had to exhibit a sense of passion to get people to buy what you were selling, you need to wear that on your sleeve everyday.  People can sense sincere passion.  They know after one meeting with you if you believe in what you are selling.  The same is true with your marketing vendors, they must be passionate about your offering, your company, your culture, your market and your results and ultimately your success because they are representing you to the marketplace.

As we enter the Holiday season remember why we celebrate the season, enjoy the time with family and friends and then get passionate about 2011 marketing.  Plan now for the relaunch of your message through integrated marketing campaigns, direct mail, email, personalized urls, data builds, telemarketing, promotional incentives or digital printing.  The key is to be passionate and work with passionate people then get to work.