Build Your Brand Without Building An Ad

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It probably doesn’t surprise you that consumers aren’t big fans of the ads most marketers and ad pros spend their time and money creating. There is, however, a form of brand communication the majority of consumers prefer.

In a brief blog post quoting research from the Custom Content Council, brafton.com reports that almost three-quarters of consumers prefer to receive information from companies in the form of valuable content or articles instead of ads. And over 75% of that group still hold that view knowing the company providing the information is trying to sell them something.

The reason, although undocumented in the article, would seem to be that consumers increasingly want to be better informed as they make their buying decisions. That holds true, and possibly even more so, for business and industrial buyers as well.

What is valuable content then? It’s information that helps the buyer understand considerations like:

• the various options available to solve a particular challenge
• advantages and disadvantages of different choices
• sizing, selection and usage factors
• reasonable expectations
• dangers to avoid

And that’s just a few quick ideas. Adapt this to your industry and audience by thinking about the questions they seem to ask most often. Help them answer those questions and you’ll help yourself become a more valuable and respected resource.

In fact, in a second article from the same source, it’s indicated that 67% of consumers find custom content valuable and 61% say they are more likely to buy from brands or companies that provide that type of information.

So, am I telling you to stop developing ads? No! Ads are a valuable marketing tool with a specific purpose which I’ll address in a future article and blog post.

What I am saying is this: good information or content is desired by buyers of all types. And your usage of it as a business-building tool can be extremely powerful and influential in creating the positive brand perception necessary for prospects to prefer your brand over your competitors.

Brand Benefit #6: Better internal focus and guidance

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There are many good reasons why brand development can be a difference maker for your business. This is the sixth of ten posts highlighting those reasons for your consideration. Read the previous post.

One of the greatest challenges your company will face as it grows is to maintain a clear, unified focus of direction and priority.

Increasing demands for time and attention will test your leadership's ability to stay connected and coordinated with the core principles that produced success.

Divergent marketplace and departmental demands as well as an increasing number of new employees with new ideas can create a powerful wave of pressure to become reactive rather than proactive.

A strong brand can give your entire organization a reference point for unity.

Guiding leaders toward positive growth strategies and away from core conflicts. Keeping sales, marketing and manufacturing focused on compatible developmental opportunities. Recruitment and personnel targeted on employees with the right abilities to sustain excellence. And everyone operating with passionate purpose to deliver the brand promise of the organization to your customers.

Read about the other 9 brand development benefits now.

Let me know what you think. Leave a comment.

10 trade show traps to beware of

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More than a few marketing dollars are blown at trade shows and often with little to show for the expense. Carefully consider these 10 areas of potential waste to better manage the risk and maximize the reward.

While it’s true, conferences, trade shows and exhibits are key components in the marketing communications plans of many business and industrial brands, they also have the potential to be some of the most wasteful expenses too.

Just because an event exists doesn’t mean you have to participate. Even if all your competitors exhibit. A fear of conspicuous absence is not a good reason to get involved.

The presence of the right type of prospects, with the right type of business expectations and the right type of opportunity to engage and influence them is the key.

In an article recently published by cbsnews.com, Michael Hess outlines 10 important trade show traps that can make or break your budget and your results. Several of the topics he touches on include:

1. Going too big
2. Extras
3. Travel expenses
4. No advance work
5. No call to action

The read is certainly worth your time if exhibits and shows are a big part of your prospect contact program. It’s always good to review the reasons and rationale you use to select and then develop the communications conveying your brand promise.

That’s especially true when every decision made has such a big effect on someone's bottom line…yours or the exhibit organizers.

Can you spare a second? ...Or 15?

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Who else hates to wait online for a video ad to play before you can get to the digital content you really want to view? That’s what I thought, 46% of you.

I know this because I just saw a short news item on the BtoBonline.com blog that said 54% of internet users polled said video ads online are acceptable if they are no more than 15 seconds long. What is your maximum time limit?

Other choices given those responding to the research were 30 seconds, 45 seconds or 60 seconds. But the favorable percentages dropped steeply after those who admitted being willing to view a 15-second spot.

So while you can’t extend these findings to all online video content, especially when the video content is the reason the viewer selected a link, the takeaway for me is that online ads of all types have to be very simple and direct to generate any expectation of a response.

Just how simply can you convey your brand difference? Can you make your point in a good 30-word sentence? A simple 10-12 word statement? A tight 5-7 word thought?

Distill your brand difference into a message you can deliver with that much focus and it will improve your communications in every form no matter the length.

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How Steve Jobs Made Apple Different

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At the risk of re-posting just another glowing memorial for the accomplishments of Steve Jobs, I read something today about him that really resonates with my core beliefs. Being different is profoundly significant.

In a short article published on bnet.com, Margaret Heffernan outlined six lessons that she identified in Steve Job’s approach to business that heavily contributed to his success. It’s a good read.

In a point entitled “Style IS Content”, she begins the article by introducing what could be Jobs’ greatest success and certainly his biggest challenge – to lead a tech company to be just as focused on creating enriching user experiences as on extending the borders of electronic discovery.

Everything about Apple products and their interaction with customers from their visual appeal, physical design, usability, stylish promotion and support was cultivated to add a level of unique value technology alone can’t even approach. Instead of simply being used as a tool to accomplish a task, they have become an enabling expression of the lifestyle their owners aspire to lead.

That’s what makes Apple so different. Their brand so powerful. And Steve Jobs so visionary. Style, brand and uniqueness IS content. It’s not just extra, it actually is what customers want. It’s what they’ll buy. A lot.

Read the article “6 Lessons We Could Learn From Steve Jobs” for yourself.

When you’re ready to bring that type of value to your brand communications, contact me by e-mail or by phone at 903-534-5220.

Winning Strategies for a Sluggish Economy

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I’ve personally experienced the results of a company going into “survival mode” during an economic downturn. It begins with the “everyone’s got to tighten their belt” speech. Expense reports are put under the microscope and a moratorium is placed on purchasing sticky notes.

What comes next is always predictable. All of the brand developing activities that generate new business, and many that keep current customers happy, are deemed to be too costly when all you want to do is survive. So the company cuts back. Revenue dwindles. Margins shrink. Black ink turns to red, and heads begin to roll.

Winners can see the downturn coming, and they don’t panic. They view slow economic periods as a chance to gain focus and return to their roots. By defining and magnifying their difference, they see a chance to take market share from their competitors.

If you understand the principle of faith, then this is the time to use it. You will have to resist the urge to reduce your branding budget and step out on that proverbial limb. It is critical, however, that you maximize how your brand development money is used.

When examining how your branding dollars are spent, ask yourself these three questions:

· How does this help me gain and keep customers?

· What happens if I stop doing this?

· How can this be improved upon?

Every function and every person in your organization should be focused on gaining and keeping customers. Your quality control inspector becomes your first line of customer service by preventing warranty claims and returns. Your accountant who sends out invoices can’t afford to make a mistake and miss-bill a client. Your maintenance personnel keep the plant running efficiently so you can keep your pricing attractive to the customers. Branding must be a company-wide mindset.

Of course these three questions apply to your web site, advertising, sales promotion, and all of the areas that you normally associate with marketing and communicating your brand. You can read the full article, Winning Strategies for a Sluggish Economy, here.

Or, if you’d like to talk to us about maximizing your branding dollar, contact us today by e-mail or by phone at 903-534-5220.

Why It's Bad To Be Normal

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When we were all in high school who didn’t try to fit in? Wear the right clothes? Listen to the right music? Even use the right vocabulary? No one wanted to be the oddball. But recently I’m beginning to recognize more and more advantages in uniqueness.

Take for instance the packed new restaurant featuring an exotic flavor pallet not previously available locally. Better yet, consider hugely popular TV shows like Monk, Dirty Jobs or CSI-Miami created around interestingly unique characters, situations and environments. In every case, it’s the differences that establish the appeal.

Similarly, business seems to be designed to reward uniqueness too. What company wants to be known for following “normal” instead of “best” practices? Delivering “average” instead of “outstanding” customer service? Hiring “ordinary” versus “exceptional” employees?

An article recently authored by Steve Tobak and published on BNET.com cites 10 reasons it’s bad to be normal.

Here are his categories:
Best practices, customer satisfaction, recruiting, product specs and features, R&D, market share, leaders, vendors, growth rate and sales people.

It’s a quick read and I think everyone will clearly recognize that in many areas of business, average is just not acceptable.

So what about marketing communications? Why are so many companies satisfied to use the same short-term product and feature promotions, all-inclusive, vague copy generalities or purely literal visual imagery employed by many others to try to set themselves apart.

The result is competitive camouflage. The loss of the ability to set yourself apart from your competitors. And it makes achieving higher than average performance in the areas mentioned in the BNET.com article much harder.

But the camouflage can be removed. There is a better way to develop your marketing communications.

Watch our short video about the issue of competitive camouflage or read our article about communications mistakes that hide companies from potential customers.

Or to talk to someone about helping you create better than average communications, contact us today by e-mail or phone 903-534-5220.