First Out – Last In

Avoid the Fiscal Cliff for Your Business

 

Most marketers agree that “we” are the first group to be cut when an organization faces financial hardship. This is baffling as studies have shown that those organizations that continue to commit financial resources to marketing through tough times, even Recessions, are significantly faster to rebound than those who do not.

 

Likewise, when an organization is on its last leg, the leadership decides to  pull from the coffers and get marketing help to save their business. Although this is better than doing nothing, inevitably, the cry for help is too late. Even the best in the business cannot save a financially struggling business in under three months.

 

Although this is a short post. Please re-read if you are in a leadership position within a company. Too many businesses are failing and much can be attributed to the behaviors (mistakes) described above. To survive in this environment, you must be smarter than the rest of the pack. Don’t follow the same knee jerk reaction that most businesses do, be fearless and let the professional marketers save your business from its fiscal cliff.

 

Good Marketing = Good Business,

Mary

Article title:11 Reasons a 23-Year-Old Shouldn't Run Your Social Media

Article title:11 Reasons a 23-Year-Old Shouldn't Run Your Social Media

Ageism or sound advice? What are your thoughts?

http://www.inc.com/hollis-thomases/social-media-dont-put-intern-in-charge.html

Happy Marketing,
Mary

GREAT EXAMPLE: The New Rules of Marketing and PR

In his book, The New Rules of Marketing & PR , by David Meerman Scott, the author postulates that the introduction of the internet has changed the game for Marketing and PR Professionals like nothing be for it. (I’ll voice my opinion on that another time.) He especially points to the advent of Social Media. He poses much needed rationale, considering many large enterprises are running – not walking – away from SM, as to the importance of playing in this playground and as to its importance in intelligence gathering and interaction with (potential?) users/buyers/consumers. From what I surmised from his writings, we should all be using SM - at all cost - as it offers so many benefits.

Whether you agree with this as a tenet of your Marketing/PR Mix or not, one thing that is very clear and I believe to be true is the importance of content when using SM. I will state that I think that with many things, if you are not going to do it right, don’t do it at all and this is definitely my opinion on Social Media. And this is where Mr. Scott and I agree completely. Social Media MUST HAVE good content.

An example to follow –

The gist of this article on most pages would have been an announcement similar to: XXXX event on XXXX date at XXXX. Those X’s represent most people’s idea of SM. In this piece, however, Gordon Durich does a fabulous job of drawing the reader in with a question, answers and a (BTW) announcement. It is well done. It a perfect example of providing content to draw general interest and I bet many that read (and maybe attended the event) are not even really art/movie enthusiasts. But Gordon has intrigued the reader with the wonders of the art form. You feel his PASSION and KNOWLEDGE and it translates into interest. It is great content and I urge you to read it and to follow this example the next time you pen a post on your SM site.

Here’s Gordon’s piece: http://www.gordondurich.com/

Happy Marketing!

Mary  

More Important Than Ever - CRM

The top 5 tips to engage and deepen your customers loyalty

Today Customer Relationship Management (CRM) plays an immensely critical role in this hellacious business climate with increased competition, fewer consumer dollars to spread around and an ever increasing feeling by consumers of not being listened to.

If you aren't taking care of your customers - someone else will. Hence it is vital for companies to have strong CRM in place; otherwise it not only leads to losing customers but also creates a ripple effect of brand degradation and a bad image in the market.

Once a business is 'tainted' with a bad image, the cost of repair is great. You are much better off to invest in solid CRM tactics upfront and avoid the damage.

Think about it, it is just too easy to post negative comments about a business on SM sites. And, as the old saying goes, "People will tell one person about a good experience but will tell ten about a bad one." In today's world, they can tell thousands - even millions with the click of a mouse!

Whether you are talking about on or offline tactics, even though the vehicle is slightly different, here is my short list of "must have" CRM activities for any business:

1) Recognize customers' interactions with you. Thank and reward them - every time.

2) Don't set finite triggers that blast everyone at the same time in the buying cycle with the same message. Refine your analytics to determine the unique triggers of each customer and establish actions that are exclusively personal and meaningful.

3) Reward complainers. I know this sounds counter-intuitive, but if they take the time to complain, they are wishing that they had experienced a positive exchange with you and you let them down. Listen and learn. Complainers can very quickly be turned into your biggest fans and advocates.

4) Be consistent. DO NOT start a CRM Program and then abandon it or get lazy. This will backfire on you, big time. Give it time to impact your relationship with your customers.

5) Ensure that you have C-Level support for your Program and that means: make sure you are allocated the appropriate budget to do the job right (or don't do it at all) and create timely reporting to show the gains or losses caused by the Program. If you show losses, include swift remedies in the report and implement them immediately. Once you have turned the situation around, report your success (hopefully!) on the next report.

Happy Marketing!

Mary

 

I will admit it. . . I FALL for E-Mail Marketing also!

This is a guest post from a top notch marketer with mad social media skills and creative concepts to unusual marketing challenges.
Please enjoy "I will admit it. . . I FALL for E-Mail Marketing also!" by Pamela Bernstein.

As a marketer, I find myself either completely falling for marketing tactics or ripping them apart, probably unjustly. I find myself doing this more so than ever as I am in the middle of planning my wedding. I was told by many in the beginning of my planning to go to as many wedding shows as possible, as vendors give great discounts just for coming to their booth. Instead of going to those awful shows I have been signing up saying I am going and never show up. Then I am on the vendors’ mailing list for doing nothing. Brilliant, but annoying, since the sheer number of emails I get is out of control! 

Case in point, I was lying in bed when an e-mail comes through thanking me for stopping by their booth at the Bride World Expo Woodland Hills Wedding show. I never stepped foot inside this show but signed up for it and now am on the email list. The email went on saying the first 10 people to respond to this email will receive 1 hour engagement shoot free of charge just for meeting with the photographer with no obligation to use her.

Check out the copy of the email  . . .

Just a quick hello and a re-introduction to myself and my business, I'm ******  and I am the Owner and photographer of **** Photography based in Los Angeles.

It was so nice to meet you at the Bride Word Expo in Woodland Hills. Thank you so much for your interest in my work and coming by my booth to meet me. I know that the expo can be hectic and a little impersonal, but I would love hear more about you, your fiance and your amazing love story that got you to where you are. Every wedding & couple are unique and beautiful and I have to tell you that this is my favorite part of the job, getting to know each couple and creating beautiful images together to tell your story!

If you were able to stop by my booth this past Expo, I was offering an amazing opportunity: a free Engagement shoot! The catch is, each couple needs to schedule a meeting with me...even if its just for coffee and in turn I give you a free one hour engagement session with printed proofs and 5 digital copies via Facebook.

I have already had an amazing response to these completely free E-sessions...but I'd love to offer a few more. The first 10 couples to respond to this mailer will receive a FREE 1 hour engagement session with me($250 Value).....no contracts, no deposits, just getting together to take some amazing photos!

Thank you so much for coming to my booth, and I look forward to creating beautiful images with you soon!

I sat up and responded quicker than you can say Wedding show! We were one of the 10 people to respond, and will get our engagement session for free! In fact, we met with this photographer, and fell in love with her work we booked her. I would never have found her if it wasn't for signing up for the simple e-mail list and responding to her message.

E-mail marketing does work when you send your message to the right list of people with an eye catching subject line, the rest as they say is history, however, I would highly suggest an incentive for people to respond, sign up, like your Facebook page, etc. Incentives are the best way to get people to interact with you and your company! 

More Views (and Data!) on Social Media...

I've written several posts and had guest writers post opinions on Social Media. Here's an interesting view--and it actually has some data to back it up.

Hope you take a moment to read it and let me know your thoughts:
http://www.forbes.com/sites/work-in-progress/2012/05/21/five-ways-to-make-people-hang-on-your-every-word/

Happy Marketing!
Mary

What To Do In A Recession –Get Help – A Consultation!

So many are struggling with how to hang on to their life’s dream – their business. Others are hanging in there but are seeing declines not growth.

Unfortunately, what most business people do in times of difficulty is cut back on marketing. There is a study that shows that businesses that continue to spend on marketing through a Recession rebound 30%+ faster in growth than those who do not.

Listen, I know it is hard, but try to use this time to take a deep breath and get some help. It might be time to focus more on customer service. It might be time to offer better pricing. It might be time to fine tune your product/service offerings. Or……

I have been doing this a long time and I can tell you that no one can assess your business, its niche and its shining and unique characteristics faster than I can. I can also spot the problems and solve them faster than anyone. So, take advantage of me, use me and let me help you. No one will be more honest with you about your business, your opportunities and your potential than I will be. And, (heaven forbid), if the hand writing is on the wall and it is too late to salvage, I will help you with an exit strategy so that you can remain as whole as possible.

For the month of May, I am offering a consultation to businesses that are really willing to put effort and work into making their businesses not just survive during the recession – but THRIVE! Hopefully, you will get some thoughtful insight from our time together and I can further help you through consulting to deliver your business into what it should be and what you dreamt it would be. We’ll discuss what tools and tactics you currently use and those that you should invest in (time and/or money). We’ll discuss what has worked and what hasn’t (and I can probably tell you why).

Feel free to read some of my other postings so that you understand my straight shooting approach to business. It is a competitive world and straight talk wins the game every time. I will give you that plus ideas and strategies to help your business beyond your existing thoughts and dreams.

I look forward to hearing from the brave ones! Contact me at mary.mussard@yahoo.com