Planning an Integrated Marketing Campaign for the New Year

We're all connected to the businesses around us in a variety of ways: social media posts, direct mail flyers, advertisements in favorite magazines, commercials on television, and even ads pasted on the sides of buses. Many businesses, wanting to reach as wide an audience as possible, will advertise using a variety of channels. An integrated marketing campaign involves creating a clear, uniform message that will resonate across all of those channels, increasing name-recognition and driving sales. If that sounds like something your company is looking to do, here are some ways to start developing a plan.

Refining the brand message

Integrated marketing campaigns focus around building brand recognition. Take, for example, Apple. When someone views the Apple logo, they don't mistake it for an actual drawing of the fruit. They see the company associated with it and the crisp and clean nature of the technology it creates. The same goes for the Nike swoosh and the slogan "Just Do It." The logo actually inspires people to go out for a run. These brands have been immensely successful in determining their company message and sending it out uniformly across all channels.

It can seem overwhelming for a small business to compete with that level of success, but the key is to start simple. Determine what centralized message customers should draw from a commercial or ad. Summarize the top selling qualities of the business in just a few words.

Taking the message to the street

Remember that no one company can be everything to everyone. Instead, identify a central message and develop a targeted campaign that can be used across different advertising platforms. If a potential customer hears about your company on Facebook, they should come away with the same impression as someone who first heard your name on the radio. This will help them make the connection between the advertisements. Then, when they see a second ad on a bus while driving to work, they'll think, "Oh yeah, I've heard of those guys!" If the different ads had completely different messages, the odds of that prospect making the connection would be much smaller. For smaller and newer companies, this can be deadly.

Bring everything back

As you develop your message and the ads you want to use, remember to bring everything back to your website. For most companies, their website is a central point for attracting and engaging customers. This means that all advertising should work at steering people toward that site. Your website should provide contact information, more information about your products and services, and additional incentives to get prospects to buy from you.

Customers like things easy, though. Make sure your online ads provide a clear link that's easy, appealing, and straightforward. If customers have to look for it, chances are they won't. This part can be a bit more challenging with paper advertising, since few people are going to remember a long web address. To help these customers, consider adding a QR code or a simplified URL. Also try to keep the website address as catchy and easy to remember as possible.

Creating an integrated marketing campaign can be a fantastic business move. In the modern world, there are countless platforms for advertising and communicating with potential clients. A well-orchestrated campaign will not only reach a large audience, but it will also help increase brand recognition and drive people back to your website. The new year offers a perfect opportunity to get started with a bang by putting these marketing strategies to work for you.

Benefits of Bringing in the Experts

As business owners, we count on experts to save us time and money. On any given day, we might consult a financial advisor to help us with a major purchase or investment strategy. Or we might hire a sales trainer to oversee the development of our sales team or the implementation of a new sales strategy. Or perhaps we might engage a management consultant to look for ways to run our companies more effectively.

Whatever the need, it seems, an expert is there, ready to help.

One area where expert advice can be especially helpful is your company's marketing. Consulting an expert early in the planning process can not only save you time but also help you hone your campaign so it reaches just the right audience with a message they're ready to hear.

Unfortunately, trends in advertising and marketing can change at the drop of a hat. To make matters worse, what works well for one company or industry might not be right for another. Working with an expert who studies trends, yet also knows how to use more traditional means effectively, will help you decide which trends are worth your time and which to avoid. Their guidance can save you the time and effort involved in chasing bad opportunities.

So where can you find experts to help you grow your business? Start with your key suppliers. After all, helping you become successful is in their best interest, too. The stronger your company gets, the more opportunity your suppliers will have for future revenue growth. So tap their expertise whenever you can.

But how do you know who to turn to and who to avoid? First and foremost, look for experts who understand your goals and business requirements. Stick with those whose advice you trust based on previous experience. And make sure the expert is someone you feel comfortable working with on the project.

When you augment your own staff with a group of trusted experts from other fields, you strengthen your business in the most cost-efficient way. You get expert advice without adding to your payroll or ongoing business expenses. And that's a win for everyone.

Words Your Customers Love to Hear

Next time you're creating a marketing promotion, you may want to include one of these "magic" words that customers most love to hear:

• Guarantee. Not only does a guarantee show confidence in your products, but it also removes the risk of trying your product, giving potential customers the added persuasion to purchase your product over another.



• Instantly, immediately, or fast. We all love fast results or solutions, so it's no surprise that people love instant gratification.



• New. Today's society is always on the lookout for the latest and greatest products available. However, be aware that the novelty of "new" can wear off. After a while, customers often fall back to their familiar, tried-and-true products again.



• Save. Saving money is something that everyone wants to do. Whether you offer an exclusive savings promotion, a discounted package deal, or even a money-saving coupon, your customers will be listening.



• Results. The word "results" also means success. It's a powerful word because of its inherent promise of a better outcome.



• Discover. The word "discover" offers a promise of something more to come. Like unwrapping a gift on your birthday, discoveries always bring a sense of excitement and adventure.



• Easy. People love to purchase things that are easy to figure out, easy to assemble, easy to manage, and so on. The less effort required by the customer, the better.



• Free. Although the word "free" is often overused, it continues to be the number-one attention-getting word. Use it sparingly and only when you truly have something free to offer with no strings attached, such as a free sample, free trial, free shipping, or buy-one-get-one-free deal.

Keeping Leads Alive and Healthy

No business can thrive without leads to drive sales. While finding quality leads is challenging enough, maintaining and converting those leads can be even more difficult. As you think about your sales strategy for the new year, consider these ideas for keeping prospective buyers interested and active.

Take Your Time
Nobody wants to feel as though they're being overtly sold a particular product or pressured into making a buying decision that might not be right for them. Yet many sales reps are very quick to launch right into a sales pitch or offer quick-fix solutions without fully understanding a prospect's needs. This approach tends to turn off a lot of prospects and quickly kill leads.

Instead of launching right into your sales speech, start the conversation without broaching the subject of sales at all. For example, if the lead came from a list of customers who are using an outdated software system, begin by asking how the current system is working for them. Some companies may not even realize that they should consider updating. Approaching the subject from this perspective can seem less pushy and help the prospective customer feel more comfortable talking with you. From there, you can gradually ease into a more sales-oriented conversation.

Build Rapport
Get to know your prospect and their particular needs before discussing budgets and product specifications. Then tailor your approach accordingly. Establish rapport and let your customer see that you have a genuine interest in solving their problem, not just making a sale. Even if you don't make an immediate sale, your prospect will leave the meeting with a more positive impression of your company and will be more likely to turn to you when they're ready to make a purchase in the future.

Follow Up
Don't make your first meeting with a prospect your last contact with that person. Follow up to remind them what you talked about and to keep your name top of mind. A poll conducted by B2B Marketing Magazine found that 69 percent of buyers preferred to have companies follow up with them through e-mail. Telephone follow-up finished a distant second, at 17 percent. SCi Sales Group found that 52 percent of buyers expected a call back from companies within one day, and another 36 percent said they expected to hear back from a company within five days. Failure to meet buyers' expectations on these issues can result in a variety of missed opportunities.

Resurrecting Dead Leads
Sometimes, despite the best of intentions, leads die. Some, however, can still be resurrected. Successfully generating sales from a dead lead requires tact and the right tools.

Once a lead has gone cold, it can be difficult to determine if the prospect still has a need for your product. Your first step should be to determine this potential. Remember again that prospects don't appreciate pushy sales tactics. Instead, try sending a brief, one or two line email to determine if they're still interested in your product. If the response is positive, follow up right away with a phone call, asking for a time to sit down and meet. In your meeting, steer the conversation toward the prospect's needs and solving their problems, rather than focusing on your product or pushing for a sale.

Keeping leads alive and healthy is an important part of doing business. In the rush to get as many leads as possible, it's easy to let some leads die. These leads, however, can be a major source of revenue for your company. Learning how to keep leads alive or save those that have gone cold is an important skill... and one that can improve your company's bottom line.

The Art of Networking

Networking is a critical part of growing any business. It's through networking that people are able to make connections with potential customers and others in their field, which helps them grow their sphere of influence and get their name known. While many people understand the importance of networking, few people have the skills mastered that allow them to make full use of all its benefits. Here are some tips to allow even the greenest entrepreneur to master the art of networking.

Creating an Effective 30-Second Pitch
Once you've begun to develop your business, one of the most important marketing techniques you should master is the 30-second pitch. A 30-second pitch is a brief, easily understood summary of the business that you can give when you meet a new connection.

No one wants to listen to a long-winded explanation when they meet someone new. It will drive them away and make you seem less interested in forming connections and more interested in just selling. The pitch instead should be a brief introduction to what you do and intrigue the listener into learning more. Work on developing a pitch that's informative, but also informal in tone and easy to work into a conversation.

Mastering the Business Card
Like the 30-second sales pitch, the business card should be something that helps to capture a person's eye and tells them all they need to know about your business. Networking events typically involve exchanging countless business cards and speaking with numerous people. It can be difficult to keep track of everyone. Once the event is over, people will sit down and look at the business cards they collected. The ones they can connect with a face or that spark interest are the ones most likely to be remembered and entered into a contact list.

Make sure your contact information is easy to use and displayed prominently. The headline on the card should capture the essence of the business. Consider using a unique design that complements the card and represents you (or the person you're creating cards for). The more ways the card can stand out from the crowd, without being too crowded or distracting, the better.

Widening the Circle of Potential Connections
Networking is not just about meeting potential clients. It's also about meeting others within your own field. Others within the field can serve as advisers and mentors, helping new businesses to succeed. We all have different strengths and weaknesses. Developing a strong network within the field can lead to recommendations, partnerships on projects, and referrals from others whose strengths complement your own.

When working on creating this branch of the network, however, it's also important to reciprocate. Few people will be interested in getting to know and work with a person who doesn't seek to help others, too.

Forming Genuine Connections
The purpose of networking is not to offer a 30-second commercial that others will forget once it's out of sight. Networking is about developing genuine relationships.

When you take a person's business card, make sure you also take the time to follow up with them later on. Send cards for holidays and anniversaries. Make it a point to check in and make occasional conversations about topics outside of work to get to know the actual person.

People are more likely to want to do business with those they feel a personal connection with. Taking the time to develop these personal relationships can help improve your reputation and ensure you're viewed in a positive light by others in the business world.

Networking is an important part of developing a business. It's how many entrepreneurs gain mentors, friends, and business leads. Effective networking requires the ability to properly advertise your business while still maintaining an open and friendly demeanor. Keeping the above tips in mind will get you started on the exciting path of building a wide and complete network.

Branding on a Budget: Four Steps for Brand Consistency

All companies can benefit from developing a consistent brand image. The brand definition and features may encompass everything from logos to color palettes to fonts, but it must be maintained consistently across marketing collateral, presentations, correspondence, and proposals. Your brand image may even influence your office décor, if you have logos or product photos as part of your furnishings. Keeping everything in sync is difficult, especially as time passes and the company grows or expands its product line. Here are a few tips to help you keep your brand elements consistent.

1. Develop a logo.
In the long run, it pays to have a professionally created company or brand logo as the centerpiece of your company's identity. A custom logo doesn't have to be expensive, but it should be simple, eye-catching, and unique.

Unless you're a graphic artist or you already have a great one on staff, work with a designer for logo creation. While there are libraries of standard logos you can choose from, it's worth it to have a logo custom designed by an experienced graphic artist who can capture the essence of your business. Try to resist the temptation to design your own logo using PowerPoint or a similar program because it will probably always look amateurish. You also won't be able to generate all the different file types you need for various media.

2. Pick a color scheme.
Once you've found a graphic designer to work with, ask him or her to create a corporate color scheme for you while they're working on the logo. The color scheme should include two or three colors that coordinate well together, and it should include light and dark shade variations of the chosen colors.

The experienced eye of a graphic artist will come up with fresh designs and color schemes that you'll love, even though you might not have considered them on your own. When you settle on your colors, you can ask the designer to provide the Pantone color code values and the CMYK equivalents to prevent inconsistencies that occasionally occur if people try to "eyeball" the correct shade on future documents.

3. Create a style set and templates.
If you use page layout or word processing applications, you'll want to create a custom style set that includes fonts, heading styles, margins, and spacing defaults so your documents always have a consistent look and feel. A graphic artist's expertise will come in handy here, too, by giving your documents an appealing look.

Consider installing the style set for new employees when they join your company, or have IT set them up for you, so employees automatically create consistently formatted documents and presentations. It's a huge time saver when you don't have to reformat every document before publishing it.

4. Post a branding "book" or style guide.
A style guide doesn't have to be complex, but it does need to make the guidelines for logo usage and other branding elements clear. To help ensure consistency, include the standards for color values, official product and company names, and links to corporate templates. It only makes sense to have a style guide if employees will use it, so try to keep it simple if you can.

Creating a recognizable brand requires consistency to avoid muddying brand identity. By following a few guidelines, you can help ensure that prospective customers will instantly recognize your brand.

Preparing a Sales and Marketing Plan for 2014

As the year draws to a close, many companies are preparing to review and develop their marketing plans for 2014. A solid marketing plan will articulate a vision for the company in the new year, including how the group is going to expand and what the revenue goals should be. Developing a solid plan requires quite a bit of forethought and planning. Here are the three steps that businesses should use to get themselves prepared for the upcoming year.

1. Determine where the company is going

It's not enough to simply say that the company is going to make a certain amount of money in the upcoming year. A good marketing plan will determine what markets, geographical areas, and populations the business can expand into and how that will affect revenue. There should also be estimations about how much the company is depending upon past customers returning and what percentage can realistically be expected to spend again.

2. See how the company is going to get there

This will encompass the company's plan to generate revenue and meet the goals described in step one. In 2014, there are a variety of marketing techniques that should be considered. A company can produce excellent copy or presentations, but without a solid, well-rounded marketing campaign, it will go nowhere. Everyone knows about the importance of working online, but many neglect the print world. Yet a stunning 73 percent of customers prefer to receive printed announcements rather than email announcements from their preferred brands. Consider some of the following marketing techniques.

Direct mail

According to Target Marketing magazine, direct mail had the highest rating for customer acquisition, contact, and retention ROI. One of the biggest problems companies face with direct mail is that few people are experienced with the medium and how to run a campaign. If this sounds familiar, work with someone who is used to this type of print marketing.

Print advertising

Customers have indicated that they prefer paper ads, especially when shopping. An estimated 69 percent of shoppers depend on newspapers for information about brands and deals.

Integrated marketing

Many people use their smart devices for nearly everything. While print advertising is effective, it often works best when integrated with online campaigns. For example, include QR codes on pamphlets to take people to the company website or ordering page. This will drive traffic and help you reach across demographics to include everyone on and offline.

3. Measure progress and revise when necessary

Schedule benchmarks throughout the year to see how well the company is reaching its goals. These benchmarks should be reasonable and take into account how much time marketing techniques require to be effective. For example, a new direct mail campaign may not be as effective when it is first launched. After a few mailings, however, customers may begin to recognize the brand and give it more recognition.

At the same time, the team must be willing to revise when necessary. If the company is falling short, examine the ROI of different lead generation and conversion techniques. See if revisions are possible or if the budget money would be better allocated elsewhere. If the company is surpassing expectations, revise expectations so as not to shortchange what the company is capable of producing.

Developing a successful marketing campaign is an important step in preparing a company for the upcoming year. Taking the time to research and create a practical plan will give everyone a clear picture of the expectations and will guide the business to the next level.