This post is a no-brainer. It's deadline week for me and I'm swamped. So, I'll just pass on this absolutely fabulous video I found online about truths regarding magazines.
Watch and Learn.....
Monday, October 26, 2009
Wednesday, October 21, 2009
Diversity Universitiy
In life, the saying often goes "don't put all of your eggs in one basket." It's true. And for good reasons.
Take a lesson from the Bernie Madoff scandal. Many of those investors trusted the majority of their money to one man. One man who stole it from them. They believed and trusted in one man to make them millions. Why? Because he talked a good talk and had a pretty good reputation. Everyone else invested with him, why not them? But, instead of putting all of their eggs in one basket, had they diversified their funds into multiple investment opportunities like stocks, bonds, high-yield accounts, CDs, IRAs, etc... when the Bernie -shit hit the fan, the end result might not have been so catastrophic.
Or what about the guy who made an entire move about eating McDonalds for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I think he gained 45 pounds in a matter of weeks, had trouble breathing, and experienced a variety of health issues all from eating the same thing... over and over again.
I could go on with more examples, but I'll get to the point: Just like your money and food, when it comes to marketing your business, you've got to diversify your brand across multiple streams of medias to capture each and every client. No two are alike and therefore each has different shopping habits. Relying solely on one advertising stream is simply not smart. And risky if you ask me.
Take a marketing lesson from the big guys. Here's an example.....If you live in Atlanta, I'm sure you've heard of the BODIES exhibit at Atlantic Station. It's an exhibit of all the parts of the human body. Widely popular across the world, the traveling show comes and goes in Atlanta at various times of the year. You can't live in Atlanta and NOT see one of their ads promoting the exhibit. They have billboards, bus wraps, newspaper ads, heck, I've even seen them on lamp posts. Why? Because their big expensive ad agency knows, they have to diversify their advertising budget and marketing campaign across multiple mediums to capture the highest return of impressions.
So because my expertise is in the wedding industry in Atlanta, I'll touch on that. I'm not saying you have the budget like BODIES does, but you can mimic the marketing plan of the pros at a level comfortable for you. It's simple: determine your advertising budget and allocate those funds across multiple streams of marketing to increase your chances. Include online placement, print ads, boutique-type opportunities like The Bridal Bar or Studio Wed, blogging, social networking and bridal shows. If you can't afford them all, pick the ones that lend you the highest return on impressions. Don't forget there are results and relationships attached to each option so you should consider those as well, but mainly remember it's called a marketing plan, not a secret recipe. The only tried and true way to gain more clients is to promote across multiple, TARGETED mediums at a level that is within your means.
It's all about filling your sale funnel. The more impressions, the healthier you're sale funnel will be. Although not all of those impressions will equal sales, they will increase the chances of those impressions actually turning into sales.
It's all about increasing the odds. Trusting one brand to do that, will only leave you disappointed.
I'll talk more in detail about the sales funnel next post...
Take a lesson from the Bernie Madoff scandal. Many of those investors trusted the majority of their money to one man. One man who stole it from them. They believed and trusted in one man to make them millions. Why? Because he talked a good talk and had a pretty good reputation. Everyone else invested with him, why not them? But, instead of putting all of their eggs in one basket, had they diversified their funds into multiple investment opportunities like stocks, bonds, high-yield accounts, CDs, IRAs, etc... when the Bernie -shit hit the fan, the end result might not have been so catastrophic.
Or what about the guy who made an entire move about eating McDonalds for breakfast, lunch and dinner. I think he gained 45 pounds in a matter of weeks, had trouble breathing, and experienced a variety of health issues all from eating the same thing... over and over again.
I could go on with more examples, but I'll get to the point: Just like your money and food, when it comes to marketing your business, you've got to diversify your brand across multiple streams of medias to capture each and every client. No two are alike and therefore each has different shopping habits. Relying solely on one advertising stream is simply not smart. And risky if you ask me.
Take a marketing lesson from the big guys. Here's an example.....If you live in Atlanta, I'm sure you've heard of the BODIES exhibit at Atlantic Station. It's an exhibit of all the parts of the human body. Widely popular across the world, the traveling show comes and goes in Atlanta at various times of the year. You can't live in Atlanta and NOT see one of their ads promoting the exhibit. They have billboards, bus wraps, newspaper ads, heck, I've even seen them on lamp posts. Why? Because their big expensive ad agency knows, they have to diversify their advertising budget and marketing campaign across multiple mediums to capture the highest return of impressions.
So because my expertise is in the wedding industry in Atlanta, I'll touch on that. I'm not saying you have the budget like BODIES does, but you can mimic the marketing plan of the pros at a level comfortable for you. It's simple: determine your advertising budget and allocate those funds across multiple streams of marketing to increase your chances. Include online placement, print ads, boutique-type opportunities like The Bridal Bar or Studio Wed, blogging, social networking and bridal shows. If you can't afford them all, pick the ones that lend you the highest return on impressions. Don't forget there are results and relationships attached to each option so you should consider those as well, but mainly remember it's called a marketing plan, not a secret recipe. The only tried and true way to gain more clients is to promote across multiple, TARGETED mediums at a level that is within your means.
It's all about filling your sale funnel. The more impressions, the healthier you're sale funnel will be. Although not all of those impressions will equal sales, they will increase the chances of those impressions actually turning into sales.
It's all about increasing the odds. Trusting one brand to do that, will only leave you disappointed.
I'll talk more in detail about the sales funnel next post...
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Results, Relationships and Investing in your Business.
The other day I had a conversation with a local business owner who shall remain nameless. He was interested in finding out about advertising and as always I asked "what are you currently doing to promote your business?"
His first response "Word of Mouth." Of course! Everyone says all of their business comes from word of mouth. Moving on....
His second response was an online ad he was running on a competing site of mine but he said something interesting. "I've been advertising with {soandso.com} for three months and I haven't gotten one single booking. They have a leads system, but they're budgets are too low so I don't bother calling them." I asked "How much do you pay for that site?" He says "$55 a month."
CUT! Doing the math if he paid $55 a month for 12 months he would have invested $660 year to promote his business. Knowing what I know from the wedding photographers I work with, most of them charge anywhere from $2000 and up for a wedding. Chances are this wedding photographer charges more than $660 for any given event. Having put in more time, he may very well have booked a bride, covered his costs and then some. But yet, he couldn't see the value in spending $55 a month to potentially book said $2000 bride.
Before I go on, I've just got to say there comes a level of commitment and value you've got to place into you business before you can ever expect anyone else to invest in it. If you can't invest $660, how can you expect your client to pay you double or even triple that?
This photographer was ready to jump ship for the next best thing without ever giving the current advertising medium a chance. I bet if he called his account executive from {soandso.com} and explained his concerns they would have gladly given him some advice to boost his return or attraction to his ad.
But it goes even farther than that. Advertising is like dating.. you've got to give it time. If you're boyfriend didn't propose in the first few weeks of dating would you dump him?
When it comes to most medias, advertising is part results and part relationship. Don't go into an advertising agreement just thinking about the ad, think about the "added value" that comes along with it. The intangibles. Connections in an industry you may need, marketing advice you've always been looking for, networking opportunities, event sponsorships, a shoulder to cry on (you never know, it HAS happened to me) and so much more.
My plain and simple advice is this...Invest in your business far beyond what you expect your clients to and your returns will be plentiful. Utilize the relationships that come with those investments. Combine those together and you'll have a recipe for success.
His first response "Word of Mouth." Of course! Everyone says all of their business comes from word of mouth. Moving on....
His second response was an online ad he was running on a competing site of mine but he said something interesting. "I've been advertising with {soandso.com} for three months and I haven't gotten one single booking. They have a leads system, but they're budgets are too low so I don't bother calling them." I asked "How much do you pay for that site?" He says "$55 a month."
CUT! Doing the math if he paid $55 a month for 12 months he would have invested $660 year to promote his business. Knowing what I know from the wedding photographers I work with, most of them charge anywhere from $2000 and up for a wedding. Chances are this wedding photographer charges more than $660 for any given event. Having put in more time, he may very well have booked a bride, covered his costs and then some. But yet, he couldn't see the value in spending $55 a month to potentially book said $2000 bride.
Before I go on, I've just got to say there comes a level of commitment and value you've got to place into you business before you can ever expect anyone else to invest in it. If you can't invest $660, how can you expect your client to pay you double or even triple that?
This photographer was ready to jump ship for the next best thing without ever giving the current advertising medium a chance. I bet if he called his account executive from {soandso.com} and explained his concerns they would have gladly given him some advice to boost his return or attraction to his ad.
But it goes even farther than that. Advertising is like dating.. you've got to give it time. If you're boyfriend didn't propose in the first few weeks of dating would you dump him?
When it comes to most medias, advertising is part results and part relationship. Don't go into an advertising agreement just thinking about the ad, think about the "added value" that comes along with it. The intangibles. Connections in an industry you may need, marketing advice you've always been looking for, networking opportunities, event sponsorships, a shoulder to cry on (you never know, it HAS happened to me) and so much more.
My plain and simple advice is this...Invest in your business far beyond what you expect your clients to and your returns will be plentiful. Utilize the relationships that come with those investments. Combine those together and you'll have a recipe for success.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Analytics for all and for all a good night!
I'm just going to say it..... if there were a Google Analytics for print, maybe the industry wouldn't be the target of so much criticism. Not just print even... television, radio, billboards... they're all being made to be the bad guy because there's no fancy software to tell you EXACTLY how many people touched, looked, or listened to your ad.
Just because there's not doesn't mean that those forms of advertising aren't effective. Yes. It's more difficult to measure the traffic generated, but discrediting the effectiveness of them all together is just plain wrong.
Food for thought... When you look at your Google Analytics account, notice two things...
1. Direct Traffic: those are people who have directly typed in your web address. Ever wonder how they knew your URL anyways?
2. Search Terms: if one of your top search terms is the name of your business, chances are that person who was searching your business name found out about you from another form of advertising.
I'm just sayin'.....
Just because there's not doesn't mean that those forms of advertising aren't effective. Yes. It's more difficult to measure the traffic generated, but discrediting the effectiveness of them all together is just plain wrong.
Food for thought... When you look at your Google Analytics account, notice two things...
1. Direct Traffic: those are people who have directly typed in your web address. Ever wonder how they knew your URL anyways?
2. Search Terms: if one of your top search terms is the name of your business, chances are that person who was searching your business name found out about you from another form of advertising.
I'm just sayin'.....
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Knowing is Half the Battle
In my opinion, advertising and its purpose, are widely misunderstood. In the vast gray area between calls to action and brand awareness the average business person gets lost in the purpose, point and profound importance advertising brings to the growth of businesses.
The purpose of advertising is to expose your business to potential clients. Period. Be the town crier, bridge the gap, be your voice. Go without it, and you have a mute message.
Here's where the major misconception comes into play..... Companies that sell advertising don't sell customers - directly that is. Frankly, it would be impossible and probably illegal in some states. ;-) It's unfortunate, and because I sell advertising too, I would LOVE to be able to guarantee my clients and advertisers an exact amount of new customers they will bring in from their advertisements. It's just not the case. What advertising account executives bring to the table is exposure. Media avenues guarantee exposure to people that will either see, hear or touch your ads. Impressions, viewers, readers, traffic, visitors, and pageviews are a measurable guarantee. That is what you buy.
Your message and product that relates to the client's need is what turns those impressions into inquiries. Once the calls start coming in, it's now up the sales staff, customer service reps and you to qualify the client and close the sale. Not the ad. That ad's responsibility was exposure. And it delivered.
My suggestion? Quantify the advertising medium you choose. Doing so will increase your chances of turning those impressions into inquiries and then clients. You are buying exposure, not customers, so make sure the exposure is the right exposure for you.
If you choose the best medium for your business but still aren't getting the result, don't be quick to blame the vehicle. Take a look a your message. Revamp it. Change the image, wording, call to action, offer, etc. I'm sure your advertising executive would be happy to help make suggestions and adjustments. You never know, you may just get a completly different response.
Closing common sense comparison: Imagine if you only used YOUR word of mouth to deliver the message about your business to friends, neighbors and family, but not one came to buy or hire you. Would you stop speaking and blame yourself for not working? Probably not....
The purpose of advertising is to expose your business to potential clients. Period. Be the town crier, bridge the gap, be your voice. Go without it, and you have a mute message.
Here's where the major misconception comes into play..... Companies that sell advertising don't sell customers - directly that is. Frankly, it would be impossible and probably illegal in some states. ;-) It's unfortunate, and because I sell advertising too, I would LOVE to be able to guarantee my clients and advertisers an exact amount of new customers they will bring in from their advertisements. It's just not the case. What advertising account executives bring to the table is exposure. Media avenues guarantee exposure to people that will either see, hear or touch your ads. Impressions, viewers, readers, traffic, visitors, and pageviews are a measurable guarantee. That is what you buy.
Your message and product that relates to the client's need is what turns those impressions into inquiries. Once the calls start coming in, it's now up the sales staff, customer service reps and you to qualify the client and close the sale. Not the ad. That ad's responsibility was exposure. And it delivered.
My suggestion? Quantify the advertising medium you choose. Doing so will increase your chances of turning those impressions into inquiries and then clients. You are buying exposure, not customers, so make sure the exposure is the right exposure for you.
If you choose the best medium for your business but still aren't getting the result, don't be quick to blame the vehicle. Take a look a your message. Revamp it. Change the image, wording, call to action, offer, etc. I'm sure your advertising executive would be happy to help make suggestions and adjustments. You never know, you may just get a completly different response.
Closing common sense comparison: Imagine if you only used YOUR word of mouth to deliver the message about your business to friends, neighbors and family, but not one came to buy or hire you. Would you stop speaking and blame yourself for not working? Probably not....
Monday, September 28, 2009
It Happened to Me again...
Tonight's a short but sweet message....
This weekend was a whirlwind of Bridal Events in Metro Atlanta and I spent the better half of my Sunday congratulating newly engaged gals on their upcoming nuptials. One girl, in particular, stood out. As soon as I handed her a magazine she said "Oh are you the creator?!?! I'm on your website almost everyday! I read about you in H Magazine... I live in Henry County too!"
It happened again. Right before my very own eyes someone admitted that they actually READ magazines and that she actually found out about me from a recent article that was written in H Magazine. Who would have thunk it? FYI.. I also had an ad in that same magazine, same issue.
Bottom line people. If they're reading articles, they're seeing ads. There's no way they can't. Period.
Here's my fabulous 15 mintues of fame that ran earlier this year.
This weekend was a whirlwind of Bridal Events in Metro Atlanta and I spent the better half of my Sunday congratulating newly engaged gals on their upcoming nuptials. One girl, in particular, stood out. As soon as I handed her a magazine she said "Oh are you the creator?!?! I'm on your website almost everyday! I read about you in H Magazine... I live in Henry County too!"
It happened again. Right before my very own eyes someone admitted that they actually READ magazines and that she actually found out about me from a recent article that was written in H Magazine. Who would have thunk it? FYI.. I also had an ad in that same magazine, same issue.
Bottom line people. If they're reading articles, they're seeing ads. There's no way they can't. Period.
Here's my fabulous 15 mintues of fame that ran earlier this year.
Wednesday, September 16, 2009
Just when you thought magazines were useless....
Let's get one thing straight: It's not my intention to use this blog to sell advertising. Yes, I sell advertising for a living, but rather than push my product, I'm just trying to bring light to an industry that always gets heat because people just don't understand it.
But today, I'm here to tell you that apparently advertising, more specifically print, does work. I experienced the results myself . ;-)
Well not directly myself, but indirectly of sorts. It was my magazine after all.
Each month, on the third Wednesday my company and fellow publisher friend Linda Surles of Atlanta Bride and Groom Planner co-host a networking luncheon for our advertisers and prospective clients in the Atlanta Wedding Industry. We meet A LOT of folks! Today was especially unique because I met a new woman, an event planner and she had an interesting story for me.
Last week she was in Priscilla of Boston in Buckhead and picked up OCCASIONS Magazine and was stunned because she'd never seen it before (I'm blushing). She explained that she had been looking for a rental company that had white leather furniture and hadn't been able to find one yet for an event she was planning for quite the demanding bride. She came across Event Rentals Unlimited in our section "An Atlanta Occasion" and low and behold... a picture of a white leather couch provided by Event Rentals Unlimited. She called. She booked. She told them she found them in Atlanta OCCASIONS Magazine. The End.
Client. Vendor. Gap. Bridged... all by a MAGAZINE.
But today, I'm here to tell you that apparently advertising, more specifically print, does work. I experienced the results myself . ;-)
Well not directly myself, but indirectly of sorts. It was my magazine after all.
Each month, on the third Wednesday my company and fellow publisher friend Linda Surles of Atlanta Bride and Groom Planner co-host a networking luncheon for our advertisers and prospective clients in the Atlanta Wedding Industry. We meet A LOT of folks! Today was especially unique because I met a new woman, an event planner and she had an interesting story for me.
Last week she was in Priscilla of Boston in Buckhead and picked up OCCASIONS Magazine and was stunned because she'd never seen it before (I'm blushing). She explained that she had been looking for a rental company that had white leather furniture and hadn't been able to find one yet for an event she was planning for quite the demanding bride. She came across Event Rentals Unlimited in our section "An Atlanta Occasion" and low and behold... a picture of a white leather couch provided by Event Rentals Unlimited. She called. She booked. She told them she found them in Atlanta OCCASIONS Magazine. The End.
Client. Vendor. Gap. Bridged... all by a MAGAZINE.
Monday, September 14, 2009
The Seed that "Word of Mouth" Stems from: Advertising
If you follow me on Twitter you know I've been bitching A LOT about AT&T lately. I am a small business owner which means, I have a small operating budget and fancy expensive phone service, just ain't in the cards. I've been on the prowl for new, less expensive phone service with no avail. I've heard Google Talk is the way to go, but apparently it's limited, and I need a solution now.
On a recent 12 hour road trip to Arkansas I occupied my time eagerly flipping through the September Issue of Inc. Magazine. (I have to admit, I'm an Inc. Mag virgin and now I'm hooked). Not only did I find myself immersed in the articles..... I ran across a double-truck (2-page spread for those of you non-advertising language speaking folks) ad for Grasshopper: a virtual phone service specifically designed for Entrepreneurs. It immediately hit me that this just might be what I was looking for and I dog-eared the page to go look it up later. Just like that... Grasshopper had made a connection with me.
Now, I'm not trying to sell phone service here, but this brings me to my topic.... Obviously I had never heard of Grasshopper before. Had I not been reading that September Issue of Inc. Magazine it may have been months before I ever found out about Grasshopper Virtual phone service. That ad answered a question, filled a need and look... now it's being transformed into word of mouth marketing through this blog.
Word of Mouth Referrals are great, but you can't discredit where the buzz began: with your ad. Yes, I'm a true believer in word-of-mouth marketing and referral business, BUT I ask, where did your first customer come from? Or maybe even your 10th or 100th?
I like to compare advertising your business to growing a garden. There are two steps. First Step: planting the initial seeds and then relying on nature to do it's thang. With a garden you want Tulips, you plant Tulip buds and you get tulips. Then comes pollination: the a necessary step in the reproduction of flowering plants that God invented bugs and wind for.... to multiply those plants.
In Business, you want customers, you place advertisements and you get customers. Then, all of your new happy customers tell their friends and thus produce more new customers for you.. etc.
Today's Lesson:
Seeds = Advertisements
Pollination = Word of Mouth
Have one without the other and all you get is a very sparse garden and a below average marketing campaign.
FYI: every hyperlink I created in this post I linked to http://www.grasshopper.com/inc. That's me giving credit where credit is due: The ad that ran in Inc. Magazine. :-)
On a recent 12 hour road trip to Arkansas I occupied my time eagerly flipping through the September Issue of Inc. Magazine. (I have to admit, I'm an Inc. Mag virgin and now I'm hooked). Not only did I find myself immersed in the articles..... I ran across a double-truck (2-page spread for those of you non-advertising language speaking folks) ad for Grasshopper: a virtual phone service specifically designed for Entrepreneurs. It immediately hit me that this just might be what I was looking for and I dog-eared the page to go look it up later. Just like that... Grasshopper had made a connection with me.
Now, I'm not trying to sell phone service here, but this brings me to my topic.... Obviously I had never heard of Grasshopper before. Had I not been reading that September Issue of Inc. Magazine it may have been months before I ever found out about Grasshopper Virtual phone service. That ad answered a question, filled a need and look... now it's being transformed into word of mouth marketing through this blog.
Word of Mouth Referrals are great, but you can't discredit where the buzz began: with your ad. Yes, I'm a true believer in word-of-mouth marketing and referral business, BUT I ask, where did your first customer come from? Or maybe even your 10th or 100th?
I like to compare advertising your business to growing a garden. There are two steps. First Step: planting the initial seeds and then relying on nature to do it's thang. With a garden you want Tulips, you plant Tulip buds and you get tulips. Then comes pollination: the a necessary step in the reproduction of flowering plants that God invented bugs and wind for.... to multiply those plants.
In Business, you want customers, you place advertisements and you get customers. Then, all of your new happy customers tell their friends and thus produce more new customers for you.. etc.
Today's Lesson:
Seeds = Advertisements
Pollination = Word of Mouth
Have one without the other and all you get is a very sparse garden and a below average marketing campaign.
FYI: every hyperlink I created in this post I linked to http://www.grasshopper.com/inc. That's me giving credit where credit is due: The ad that ran in Inc. Magazine. :-)
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