Marketers have a wide range of channels available to them in their efforts to reach potential customers. While some are general – i.e., TV commercials, billboards, radio ads – others are much more targeted and focused. Before the days of email, direct-mail marketing, in which a marketer mails marketing materials directly to a specifically identified group of recipients, was a great way to target likely customers, and it still is. But advances in technology mean that we can take this kind of marketing to the next level through email marketing. (more…)
Archive for the ‘Marketing and Branding’ Category
5 Steps for Creating an Email Marketing Campaign
Thursday, October 18th, 2018
5 Tips for Crafting Online Headlines
Tuesday, October 16th, 2018
In the newspaper business, the above-the-fold headline is a crucial aspect of grabbing a potential reader’s attention and enticing them to pick up the paper and read on. The same is true of online headlines – the hyperlinks that come up in a list when you search for something in a search engine. In addition to page ranking, an enticing headline is an important way to drive traffic to your site. Here are some tips for generating great headlines. (more…)
Pulling Together a Powerful Team
Tuesday, October 2nd, 2018
by Justin Grensing, Esq., MBA
While plenty of people start a small business from their basement or garage all on their own, most great successes start with a great team. Even start-ups that begin as a sole proprietorship typically need to bring others on board once they start to grow and need specialized skills and experience.
Putting together the right team can be challenging. But there are some tips that might help: (more…)
Leveraging Big Benefits From Loss Leader Pricing
Thursday, September 27th, 2018
by Justin Grensing, Esq., MBA
At first glance, it might seem like a ridiculous strategy to price a product below its cost. Wouldn’t you just be losing money? While this is true, many companies do just that, and they do lose money. On that specific offering. This is part of a strategy known as loss leader pricing. As defined by Inc., “loss leader pricing is an aggressive pricing strategy in which a store sells selected goods below cost in order to attract customers who will, according to the loss leader philosophy, make up for the losses on highlighted products with additional purchases of profitable goods.”
A great example of a loss leader is razors. (more…)
Leveraging Big Benefits From Micro-Influencers
Tuesday, September 11th, 2018
Marketing is key to not only getting the word out about your products and services but also for convincing potential consumers that your offerings provide the best quality, best value, are the trendiest, etc. Influencers can be a huge benefit in this respect. Influencers are individuals or organizations that have the ability to influence the beliefs, attitudes and actions of others. An influencer might be a popular professional athlete who touts the efficacy of a particular shoe, supplement or clothing brand. Or it could be a celebrity who shows up on the red carpet wearing a particular fashion brand—one that carries your label.
These are examples of large-scale influencers. Small businesses typically don’t have access to such individuals unless by pure good fortune. But in an article for Forbes, Dinah Wisenberg Brin writes that some businesses have found success using “micro-influencers” to achieve similar effects, albeit on a smaller scale. (more…)
Understanding, Managing and Communicating Consistently Across Customer Touchpoints
Wednesday, September 5th, 2018
In an article for Harvard Business Review, Adam Richardson discusses the concept of customer touchpoints, which he broadly defines as “any interaction point between the customer and your brand.” If we think about this definition, it truly is quite broad, not least because it invokes the concept of the brand, which is itself extremely broad.
Does an online ad reflect on your brand? What about a discussion with a billing agent over a discrepancy on an invoice? While the answer to the first question is probably obvious, the second might seem like a stretch at first. But in truth, both are examples of touchpoints. And touchpoints have a direct impact on consumer brand perceptions. (more…)
The Potential Perils of Tying Your Brand to a Real Person
Friday, August 10th, 2018
There are numerous examples of company names tied directly to an individual. That person is often the founder but could also be a key personality. Even our current president achieved a great amount of fame by attaching his name to everything from hotels and golf courses to steaks and an online university. Naming a company after an individual can add some personality to the brand and make potential customers feel a more personal connection to that brand. We know who the frontperson is; we know what they look like; and we know a bit about their personality and character.
But that isn’t always a good thing. (more…)
Companies Need to Make Sure Everyone, from the CEO on Down, Recognizes the Impact of Their Words
Wednesday, August 8th, 2018
In a highly publicized conference call, first reported by Forbes, Papa John’s founder John Schnatter used the “N-word” during a discussion between Papa John’s executives and marketing agency Laundry Service. What followed was weeks of turmoil where Schnatter first stepped down as chairman of the Papa John’s board of directors, then said his decision to step down was a mistake, and then filed a lawsuit against the company he founded for what he describes as the “heavy-handed” way he was treated. The company’s stock has (more…)
In Minneapolis/St. Paul, Bird is the Word
Monday, August 6th, 2018
by Justin Grensing, Esq., MBA
A few weeks ago, I was driving between work and home in NE Minneapolis along Marshall Street, a highly trafficked street running north to south through the heart of the Northeast neighborhood. While stopped at a stoplight, I saw four young people in their early 20s curiously inspecting four small, black scooters on the side of the street. The group looked fairly “trendy,” and I have to admit I was curious what they were looking at. (more…)
Get Results With These 10 Tested Copywriting Tips
Monday, July 16th, 2018
Whether you’re writing a brochure, copy for a newspaper ad, a script for a radio announcement or a page or blog for your website, there are some tried and true techniques that can help you make sure that your copy gets the results you’re looking for.
Think about writing copy as making a sales pitch to a customer. Your goal is to persuade that customer to do something – most likely to purchase your product or service. Here’s how: (more…)
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