In this issue…
MARKETING
• Making the Most of Your Core Message
NEWS
• Paying too much for search ads?
• Good design, better sales
• Small firms unaware of available assistance
TRENDS
• Factoring gets a makeover
• Job hopping on the rise
TIPS
• How to improve a customer’s perceived experience
• Add power to your network with this idea
• Using case studies to their fullest potential
• Give praise immediately, but wait to criticize
• Do this when targeting large companies with direct mail
• Much more…
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MARKETING
Making the Most of Your Core Message
Most marketing bounces right off prospects. Develop a powerful core message that hits your target and sticks.
How much of your marketing is reaching your prospects where it counts? Are they acting upon your call to action? Are they thinking about your message - at least a little bit? Are they even reading it, at all?
Your messaging is impotent when it just isn’t saying anything anyone cares about. It is falling upon deaf ears and missing the mark by a mile. The following seven cost-effective steps will help insure that yours hits your target.
1. Personally revisit your core message with fresh eyes and ears. Do this even if you’ve done it recently. Think about what you are saying and make sure it is the message you want to communicate. Read it aloud to make sure it sounds the way you want it to.
2. Test your message on real live people. Make sure it gets across what you want to communicate. Have them feed it back to you, in their own words. Is it something they care about? Something they have a passion for? A need for? A desire for? Do this with a mix of existing customers and not-yet customers in your target market.
3. Look at the methods you’re using to communicate that core message. Focus on the benefits, and the benefits of the benefits. Often a lot of good communication gets lost in products, features and functions. Clarify and eliminate all distractions.
Use this tactic: Examine your website, one sheets and brochures - print them and yellow highlight the words that speak to your core message. Most people are shocked to see they don’t communicate that core message very well…or they do it almost as an afterthought, like a little phrase under the logo or something like that. Your core message has to permeate your documents. Don’t be too subtle!
4. Launch an assault on your marketing materials. Don’t change them all - focus on those that most frequently get used in your business. The marketing idiots who say “We have to redo all our literature!”? Fire them. Replace them with someone who says, “You know, I think that we can get our message across if we just re-work this one and that one, and leave the rest alone.”
5. Set up a system that gives feedback to let you know if your message is reaching home. The simplest way to tell is if people are “taking action on your call to action.” (If they aren’t pursuing you, you know you are not getting through to them.) This applies to any medium, even “in-store.” If you have a retail location, you have to test in your store, using whatever marketing you have available. Continually test and hone your message so that it does work.
6. Stay in contact via email. Create an email capability that lets you communicate with your clientele on a continual basis in a way they will value. And just as in “off-line” marketing, don’t send them self-aggrandizing garbage! Only send meaningful communications that provide something real for your clients and prospects.
7. Develop a customer communications calendar. A mixed media marketing calendar will ensure your audience is receiving your message often enough to keep you in mind. If your goal is to touch your clients monthly, every six weeks, or quarterly, maybe even weekly - make sure you are mailing, emailing, calling, visiting, throwing-a-party-for, even sending them flowers - doing something, touching them some way-on that basis.
By following these seven cost-effective steps, you can develop a powerful and meaningful core message that reaches your target market and impacts them in a way that gets results.
Paul Lemberg is the President of Quantum Growth Coaching, a business coaching franchise system built from the ground up to rapidly create more profits and more life for entrepreneurs. Paul is also Executive Director of the Stratamax Research Institute, specializing in helping entrepreneurial companies increase short-term profits for sustainable long-term growth. He is available for keynote speeches and workshops and can be reached via Lemberg.com
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NEWS
Paying too much for search ads?
Paid search advertisers who bid what they’re actually willing to pay end up paying more than they need to, according to research by economics scholars at Stanford Business School. The researchers blame both the naiveté of bidders and the “generalized second price” (GSP) auction mechanisms used by Google and Yahoo!
The problem arises when an advertiser bids the maximum amount they can afford. Under the current bidding system, advertisers are charged only a penny more per click than the next lowest bid, with some adjustments depending on the quality of the ad. This leads to a more volatile auction in which advertisers try continually to outsmart one another, rather than placing bids based on what makes sense for them.
“Position one is not always the optimal position to maximize search ROI. This is true in cases where incremental return from position one, such as traffic or sales, does not justify incremental investment,” said Andrew Levasseur, senior search manager of Avenue A|Razorfish Search. “Advertisers battle for top placement needlessly because they have not successfully defined search ROI, or do not have a way to track, report and optimize search ROI.”
“Companies would be much better off using such resources to enhance their products, improve customer service or what have you,” said Michael Ostrovsky, one of the authors of the research report. It would be possible to implement an auction model that eliminated this effect, but this would be less profitable for the search engines, he added.
Source: www.ClickZ.com, January 20, 2006
Good design, better sales
According to a report by Web development firm Questus, good website design is good for business. Price is the main determining factor, of course, but according to their survey, a number of design factors are also crucial in helping online customers make a purchase decision.
The survey found that a majority of the respondents felt that the appearance of a site affects the degree of trust they have in shopping on the site. “We find that websites have three seconds to make an impression,” said Jeff Rosenblum of Questus. (His statement is supported by a second recent study indicating that people make aesthetic judgments about a website in just one-twentieth of a second.)
However, while appearance is important, how a site actually works is what determines how well it sells. Consumers want clean, obvious site design coupled with simple choices. “Information overload is a consistent problem,” said Mr. Rosenblum, “and in this study we found that Web users were more likely to say that a site had too many links as opposed to too few links.”
Too many choices are likely to confuse shoppers, and confused shoppers do not become customers. Furthermore, respondents said they actually left sites because they didn’t want to go though the bother of registering.
Source: eMarketer.com, February 3, 2006 and CNN.com, January 17, 2006
Small firms unaware of available assistance
Many small-business owners might not know what they’re missing. More than nine out of 10 owners of small firms haven’t worked with any federal agency to receive support of any kind, according to a survey by Suffolk University and American Management Services.
The majority of owners said they didn’t contact federal agencies for assistance because they didn’t know which ones could help, what they could offer, or if their businesses would qualify for help. Less than a fifth of those polled said they had no need for help.
Others thought it would be too much trouble, with 18% saying they didn’t have the time or resources to apply, and 14% that there would be too much paperwork.
There are numerous services provided by the agencies that small businesses are simply unaware of - everything from finding overseas partners and loans to training for everyday tasks. Interested owners should start their research with the U.S. Small Business Administration (www.sba.gov).
Source: Wall Street Journal, Feb. 14, 2006
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TRENDS
Factoring gets a makeover
In years past, factors - which pay businesses up front for their accounts receivables and collect payments from customers when they’re due - were often thought of as one step above loan sharks. Today, however, many factors are behaving more like business partners than moneylenders.
Borrowing from a factor is more expensive than taking out a traditional bank loan. Unlike banks, factors extend credit to businesses without assets or proven track records. In exchange for taking on extra risk, they charge a premium. But competition from a new breed of small and midsize factors has forced the industry, once dominated by a few large firms, to focus on customer service. To that end, some factors now offer custom-tailored financing, flexible credit limits and advice on everything from global expansion to customer relations.
Before signing a factoring contract, determine how much of your receivables will be withheld; if you will be fined for breaking the contract early; if there are any hidden fees, such as wire transfers or administrative costs; and if you can increase your line of credit before the contract expires. To search for a factor, visit the International Factoring Association’s website (factoring.org).
Source: Inc. Magazine, February 2006
Job hopping on the rise
It’s more important than ever to keep employees satisfied. The risk of employee defection is rising, according to two recent studies. A Salary.com survey reports that 65% of employee respondents plan to look for a new job in the next three months. What’s more, the percentage of employees who describe themselves as “very likely” to leave their current job increased more than 50% in the past year, to 38% of employees.
According to MetLife’s annual Employee Benefits Trend Study, 22% of all employees changed jobs over the past 18 months, up from 17% in 2004. Among young families with children under 6, the churn is even greater - 31% of employees in this life stage report a change of employer over the past 18 months, up from 26% in 2004.
The two reports contain different lessons for how employers can hang on to talent. The MetLife study found that employees’ top consideration when deciding to join or remain with an employer is “the quality of co-worker and/or customer relationships,” followed by the opportunity for work/life balance and “working for an organization whose purpose/mission I agree with.” Salary.com, meanwhile, finds that inadequate compensation is the top reason dissatisfied employees cite for leaving. No opportunity for advancement is second, followed by no recognition for work.
Source: Workforce.com, February 22, 2006
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TIPS
- Improve a customer’s perceived experience by finishing strong. Behavioral science studies show that it’s not the beginning of the customer’s interaction with your business that is most important. It is the end of the interaction that leaves the biggest impression. For example, a consultant may want to save his big idea for last or repair personnel who leave a place cleaner than when they arrived. If you sell products, put a little something extra in the bag or box. The final customer interaction is what resides in the memory of your customer.
Source: sbinformation.about.com
- Add power to your network with this idea. Identify a party or two that you would like to have in your network and find a way to send them an unsolicited testimonial. You can point out what you like about their product, service, book or their contribution to the community. Of course, never hand out flattery in a way that is not genuine, but if you can honestly take this approach, it may help you get a person’s attention.
Source: www.ducttapemarketing.com
- Although providing case studies can be a great way to convince prospects of your company’s selling points, they are rarely used to their potential. To get the most out of this marketing tool, try the following: Write multiple versions (including an extremely long one), positioned to the job level of the prospect, so folks get the info they care about. Focus on marquee-name clients and forget the small fry. Take the golden-glow lens off your camera and write with more realism. No one trusts gee-whiz case studies. Give your sales reps a “Top 10 Questions Answered” cheat-sheet to use when presenting a case study to a prospect.
Source: www.marketingsherpa.com
- Give praise immediately, but wait to criticize. When you praise employees for their performance, avoid the temptation to tack on suggestions for improvement at that time. Psychologist William Deterline says the best time to offer a critique is just before the next performance. Consider the difference between two gymnastics coaches: During practice, one coach tells a gymnast after performing a vault, “That was good, but next time try to push off harder.” A second coach handles it differently. He immediately shouts, “Good!” but waits until the vaulter is ready to vault again before saying, “This time, try to push off harder.” This may seem like a minor difference in coaching technique, but Deterline says the second approach is much more effective for motivating people, whether in sports or business.
Source: Manager’s Edge, 1101 King St., Alexandria, VA 22314
- Targeting large companies with direct mail? Consider mailing to multiple contacts within the organization. This allows you to cover decision-makers along with influencers who may have something to do with the buying decision. This can be particularly useful when selling high-ticket items to a business market that, unlike a consumer audience, can typically spend a long time making purchasing decisions. The more people who receive the communication within an organization, the more impact it is likely to have.
Source: www.targetmarketingmag.com
- Increase the focus and impact of your next PowerPoint presentation, by applying the 10/20/30 rule. Most people can’t follow more than 10 concepts in a meeting, so limit your content to 10 slides. Then aim to give your 10 slides in 20 minutes, leaving plenty of time for discussion. And use no font smaller than 30 points. This limits the amount of text you can use on a slide, forcing you to find the most salient points and know how to explain them well. Plus, this helps you avoid the temptation to simply read text from the slides - a surefire way to hurt persuasiveness.
Source: The Marketing Report, 370 Technology Dr., Malvern, PA 19355
- Not finding the employees you need from those big online job sites? Consider niche sites instead. Recent research reveals that niche sites that specialize by career field or industry, and those that specialize by geographic focus, are favored by 78% of corporate employment specialists over the big sites or even their own company website. Examples include www.vetjobs.com for military veterans, www.netshare.com and www.execunet.com for senior executives, and www.retiredbrains.com for retirees who want to keep working. Also, look at www.constructionjobs.com, www.salesjobs.com, www.marketingjobs.com and www.computerwork.com.
Source: www.hermangroup.com
- Thinking of taking legal action against a customer for a past-due account? You might want to think again. A new study by Aceva Technologies finds that 90% of disputes are settled in the customer’s favor. Moreover, the average length of time to resolve each dispute is 4 weeks - time spent mostly on researching what went wrong.
Source: CFO, 111 W. 57th St., New York, NY 10019
- Sending a lot of proposals, but keep getting beat out by the competition? Chances are, your prospect already made up their mind prior to your first contact. Before investing more time in another proposal, uncover whether a competitor already has the inside track. To do this, inquire about similar or related purchases made in the past. Find out which vendors they bought from and why they were awarded the contract. Are those vendors bidding for this deal? If so, ask, “Why don’t you just buy from ABC Company? They did a good job last time.” This will allow you to uncover if there is a real opportunity for you or if they are just gathering bids to document that they have performed a competitive evaluation.
Source: www.industrialego.com
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