Category: Marketing and advertising (general)

 

I had the opportunity to make a…um, site visit this past weekend.  I decided I’d take along a couple of old college buddies associates for the occasion.  And while the most important lesson learned from the trip was most likely that I’m not quite 22 anymore, I was also reminded that Las Vegas is easily the best practical case study for marketing in the world.   more

I must be starting to get it when it comes to writing on a quasi-deadline.  When challenged for time or ideas, make lists!   more

This may not apply to everyone, but I continue to be amazed at how many businesses look at marketing communications as a distant cousin to anything they deem “real business.” 

 

And that may just be the fault of too many of the marketing and PR “experts” out there.   more

 

For years, the good people of the title industry have lived and died by good-ole’-fashioned customer service and relationship-based sales.  I’ve often been a bit surprised by the number of executives referring to marketing and sales interchangeably, or even synonymously.  Many times I’ve sensed more than a bit of contempt for the concept of media relations or e-marketing.  For years, new business was a matter of knowing—and remembering—a customer’s birthday and having an idea of which red wine goes best with a porterhouse. (I kid because I care.)  more

It has become rather popular lately to offer up e-newsletters to prospects and/or customers.  And why not?  They’re cheap.  They’re  (theoretically) easy to produce and distribute.  And anyone can bang out a few golden  words on his or her own product right?

 

Right?

 

In prepping our marketing breakout presentation for the upcoming National Settlement Services Summit (www.octoberseminars.com/ns3), I had to compliment my co-presenters Rick Grant (www.rickgrant.net) and Chuck Cain (http://www.alliancesolutionsllc.com).   Both are, like me, small businessmen.  And both publish very good corporate newsletters.

  

You see, I’ve seen the inner workings of the corporate newsletter many times.  And it ain’t often pretty.  I’ve slumped at conference tables while copy was edited and re-edited and edited again by the client….to the point where the articles were dated and irrelevant.  I’ve been approached by prospects seeking ten-page newsletters to go out daily (Really?  Consider the publishing business if that’s your aim!).  And I’ve seen everything in between.

 

It’s true that newsletters can be an effective way to get your story out there and deliver some value to prospects.  That is, if you actually deliver some value.  So, with that in mind, here’s the blueprint for the corporate newsletter that nobody will read.

  • Make sure you don’t explain what the newsletter is, or why your recipient is getting it for the first time.  After all, nobody ever receives SPAM.  And it’s very likely that your prospect/recipient is just sitting around, waiting for your e-mail.
  • Make it long.  People like to read, don’t they?  So be sure there’s lots of scrolling required.  Add lots and lots of profound quotes, such as “We’re excited at the opportunity to be of service to our clients.”  Undoubtedly, the only thing better than finally getting the e-mail from you that your prospect has been waiting for is getting thousands of words from you.
  • Make it all about your product, and nothing else.  The only thing better than getting unsolicited e-mails from people you may or may not know is getting self-serving pitches from them.  Who needs to seek out marketing collateral when I can have it sent directly to my inbox?  And of course this differs from unsolicited Viagra ads—it’s about your product, so it must be valuable.
  • Use a lot of graphics.  Preferably stock photos.  Of models in suits shaking hands or making meaningful gestures as though they’ve just discovered and mastered cold fusion.  SPAM filters like graphics, and we don’t really care if our newsletter doesn’t even get to its audience, right?
  • Don’t worry about editing the text.  Just get it out on time!  Your reader will understand that, normally, your writers grasp the English language, and use it well.  They’ll get that you just didn’t have time to edit…when you send them an e-mail they didn’t ask for…which is really just an advertisement.  They won’t lose any respect for the brand at all when they see poor syntax, bad grammar and spelling mistakes that a ten-year-old version of Word (or, in some cases, a ten-year old) could have caught.
  • CAN-SPAM?  What’s that?  People secretly love it when, having received an unsolicited newsletter (especially a badly-written, self-serving pitch), they attempt to “unsubscribe,” only to get the 2nd, 3rd and 4th issues anyway.  And the FTC doesn’t mind, either.  They know that you’re not some overseas-based spammer.  You sell real products.  So your recipients should get the chance to see more of your Pulitzer-winning newsletter, whether they like it or not.
  • Make sure you only have one issue.  And then don’t ever do another newsletter again.  That says a lot about the brand.  It speaks to your strategic discipline, ability to plan and execute, and dedication to an idea.  So go ahead and send that first issue, and then don’t ever send one again.  That will undoubtedly bump sales immediately.

Pardon the slightly-sarcastic approach I’ve taken this week.  I think I got one too many pieces of bad “direct marketing” this week.  I do have a point here, though. A good newsletter—one that delivers value to the reader, looks professional, and is worthy of a stranger’s time—can do wonders for one’s brand.  But there are very few out there.  And believe me, there are a LOT of newsletters following my humble suggestions above as though they were religion.  Try not to be one of them.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whether you believe in social media or not, there’s a bigger trend at work here.  Maybe even a couple.

 

Social media has evolved quite a bit in the past few years.  Or should I say, “devolved?”  We’ve gone from the flashing lights carnival and dizzying variety of Facebook and My Space to the more professional look of LinkedIn.  Now, business people are discovering Twitter.  Instead of offering amusing/irritating applications that allow us to take and display quizzes ranging from our favorite brands of beer to our favorite insects, Twitter offers us 140 characters.  That’s it. more

 

Now, people who know me well will probably have a good laugh at the irony of this week’s posting.  You see, I’m not what you’d call a “smiler.”  Sarcasm tends to be my language, and I have…well, let’s just say I tend to have a lawyer’s perspective on much of the world. more

If you’ve been following my blog or know anything about me, you know I’ve become a convert at the altar of social media, particularly LinkedIn.  Now, the industry I serve has many strengths.  Its professionals are loyal, hard-working, detail-oriented, and tend to value traditional relationships.  However, it’s not always a cutting-edge industry when it comes to using technology. more

It’s simple, really. We marketing and PR professionals often get caught up in our toys, terms and tools. Twitter? Check. LinkedIn? Youbetcha. Metrics…vertical strategy…integrated media…webpresencewordofmouthreferralstrategyme diaopportunitycollateralsupport….

Check.   more

I do a lot of consulting for small to very small businesses.  Having been on the management side of a few small businesses, I understand that every expense is a difference-maker.  The margin for error (or, in some cases, the margin itself) is thin.  more