Marketing is about making connections.
Studies have shown that most people make purchase decisions emotionally and then sometimes rationalize those emotional decisions with facts.
So it stands to reason that if you are a marketer or a salesperson and you can get your target audience to respond emotionally to your message -- you make them laugh, or cry, or feel nostalgic -- then you have a better chance of making that connection.
It seems to me that a good strategy is to have a message that communicates the emotional impact and benefits of the product or service but with enough details that the potential customer is able to act on the purchase decision and enough facts for them to justify it.
Some other posts to my blog that you might enjoy:
Read the Label: Pay Attention to the Subject of Your Messages
Could I have a few moments of your time?
Saturday, April 7, 2012
Thursday, April 5, 2012
5 reasons to write a (nearly) daily blog
I recently participated in an online discussion on how frequently a blogger should post to their blog. There were a lot of very intelligent and insightful answers as to the optimal timing of posting blogs. Some people in the discussion has theories as to which days of the week and what time of day a blogger should post in order to optimize readership, rankings, etc.
It got me thinking about whether I was right to try to post to my blog so often. I realized that I had a whole different framework for why I post to my blog as frequently as I do. Here are 5 reasons I try to post to my blog daily.
It got me thinking about whether I was right to try to post to my blog so often. I realized that I had a whole different framework for why I post to my blog as frequently as I do. Here are 5 reasons I try to post to my blog daily.
- It focuses the mind. Trying to come up with something to write that is relevant to the topic of your blog on a frequent basis focuses your thinking on that topic. After a short while, you will be surprised where you get the inspiration for post ideas! I have gotten inspiration for blog posts from conversations, newspaper articles, books, other blogs and a tea bag.
- It is great writing practice. Writing every day is a great way to improve your writing. Writing every day with the knowledge that someone might actually be reading what you post is a great way to improve your editing.
- It forces you to read on your blog topic. I found that one of the greatest challenges in trying to write a somewhat intelligent blog about marketing is that I wanted, from time to time, to be able to cite some authoritative sources. I also needed to come up with daily topics. This has me becoming a more diligent reader of marketing articles, books and blogs. It also has me reading non-marketing materials and finding the marketing perspective.
- You discover new ideas. Partially because you are reading (or scanning) more, you are exposed to more opinions and thoughts. Sometimes those new opinions and thoughts are your own.
- It gets easier the more you do it. Really. It doesn't get easy, but it does get easier. Like any sort of exercise, after a while, you find your stride. You find your writing voice.
None of my reasons for doing this blog frequently have anything to do with search engine optimization or maximizing "likes." I am writing this blog because I enjoy it. I work hard at writing something that is enjoyable to read and occasionally insightful or inspiring.
If you want to stretch your wings in an area of interest, I would recommend writing a daily blog. Do it for reasons that are important to you. If you do, you find many benefits. And if you stick with it you will find your audience too.
The Timelessness of the Internet
Internet Curmudgeon time.
I know that the Internet is forever, but that doesn't necessarily mean that everything that everyone writes online is timeless.
Why does it seem to be so difficult for writers or search engines or web designers (or seemingly anyone) to attach a date of original publication on pages? All I want is to be able to tell the timliness of blogs and essays that I find in doing internet research.
I was recently doing some research and found a report that seemed to nicely meet my needs. Then, about 5 paragraphs into the document, there was speculation about how President Bush would react to the issue. A seven year-old document has much different relevance than one written in the last few weeks.
This doesn't seem like a hard thing to do.
Some other posts you might enjoy:
Primary Elections and Local Ads
After Midnight
Put a Stamp On It
I know that the Internet is forever, but that doesn't necessarily mean that everything that everyone writes online is timeless.
Why does it seem to be so difficult for writers or search engines or web designers (or seemingly anyone) to attach a date of original publication on pages? All I want is to be able to tell the timliness of blogs and essays that I find in doing internet research.
I was recently doing some research and found a report that seemed to nicely meet my needs. Then, about 5 paragraphs into the document, there was speculation about how President Bush would react to the issue. A seven year-old document has much different relevance than one written in the last few weeks.
This doesn't seem like a hard thing to do.
Some other posts you might enjoy:
Primary Elections and Local Ads
After Midnight
Put a Stamp On It
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Clear Away the Mist: Focus on the Clarity of Your Message
"If there is a mist in the pulpit, it's a fog in the pew."
Theologian Howard Hendricks
The idea of communications is to share a thought or a message from one person to another. Sometimes we do this one on one in a conversation; sometimes the message gets amplified through media or circumstance and becomes one to many communication. Sometimes the message is delivered TO the audience, other times it is part of a dialogue.
Regardless of the size of the audience, the media used, the goal of the communications (making a sale, presenting a point of view, finding out if you should pick up milk or orange juice) clarity of the message is the key. If your message is clear, you stand a better chance of your audience receiving it as you intended.
The thing about message clarity is that it is ALL in the eye, or ears, of the beholder. Just like customer service, it is the perception of the receiver that matters. Good intentions don't score points in football or in communications. Your message has to be clear to the receiver of the message for it to be a clear message.
This is where Mr. Hendricks' quote becomes relevant. One of the things that speakers CAN do is to be clear about the message they want to deliver. If there is confusion in the mind of the speaker as to what the message is, you can be guaranteed that confusion will be multiplied by the time it gets to the listener. Think of the children's game of Operator. As a message gets passed from child to child, it becomes more and more divorced from the reality of the original message.
There are many other things that a communicator can do to improve the chances that his or her message will be received with clarity. Those will be topics of future blog posts. For today, for the purposes of clarity, I am focusing on just one piece of advise: Be clear about the message you want to deliver and you increase the chances that you actually will!
Theologian Howard Hendricks
The idea of communications is to share a thought or a message from one person to another. Sometimes we do this one on one in a conversation; sometimes the message gets amplified through media or circumstance and becomes one to many communication. Sometimes the message is delivered TO the audience, other times it is part of a dialogue.
Regardless of the size of the audience, the media used, the goal of the communications (making a sale, presenting a point of view, finding out if you should pick up milk or orange juice) clarity of the message is the key. If your message is clear, you stand a better chance of your audience receiving it as you intended.
The thing about message clarity is that it is ALL in the eye, or ears, of the beholder. Just like customer service, it is the perception of the receiver that matters. Good intentions don't score points in football or in communications. Your message has to be clear to the receiver of the message for it to be a clear message.
This is where Mr. Hendricks' quote becomes relevant. One of the things that speakers CAN do is to be clear about the message they want to deliver. If there is confusion in the mind of the speaker as to what the message is, you can be guaranteed that confusion will be multiplied by the time it gets to the listener. Think of the children's game of Operator. As a message gets passed from child to child, it becomes more and more divorced from the reality of the original message.
There are many other things that a communicator can do to improve the chances that his or her message will be received with clarity. Those will be topics of future blog posts. For today, for the purposes of clarity, I am focusing on just one piece of advise: Be clear about the message you want to deliver and you increase the chances that you actually will!
Sunday, April 1, 2012
A Small Group of Thoughtful, Committed Citizens
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”
― Margaret Mead
― Margaret Mead
I want to tell you about a small group of incredible people. They are on the verge of doing something quite remarkable. In the spirit of full disclosure, I know some of this group quite well. Some of them are long time friends. One of those long time friends is my wife. Regardless, what this handful of people have done over the last 7 years is truly special.
About seven years ago or so, a group of friends started talking about their love of the natural areas around where they lived. Quickly, the thoughts of this group of conservationists, scientists, community activists and citizens coalesced around the idea of trying to get a national wildlife refuge dedicated in the area that they love. They called it Hackmatack National Wildlife Refuge, the native american word for the tamarack trees that grew in the area. The small group became larger as they started talking with people and sharing the dream. Then the group began to work their real magic.
What they did then was talk about their dream. They talked to everyone and anyone who they could. Altogether, I would not be surprised if this group gave over 1000 speeches to garden clubs and conservation groups, to municipalities and to Rotary clubs. They went pretty much anywhere and everywhere they had a few people who were interested in hearing their story.
Whether it is trying to protect natural land, launch a new product, or break into a new market, I think Margaret Mead had it right. Watch out for those small groups of thoughtful, committed citizens. They can work wonders!
If you are interested in learning more about the proposed Hackmatack National Wildlife Refuge, click on this link: Hackmatack or US Fish & Wildlife
If you want to show your support for this fantastic project, please click here: Send your support
Friday, March 30, 2012
Managing Expectations: Under Promise and Over Deliver
I recently wrote a post about problems I had with my phone line. What I didn't write about was the result of that call for help to the phone company.
Things didn't start out well. I called on Saturday afternoon and was told that the soonest they could send someone out was "Tuesday morning between 8 and noon." Less than thrilled to be without phone, and especially Internet service, for so long, I accepted my fate and made arrangements to take Tuesday morning off of work to be here when the phone company arrived. Trips to the library and to local restaurants that offer free WiFi allowed my wife and I to check email and take care of some work we had to do.
Imagine my surprise and delight when I got a call Monday afternoon from the phone company repair guy who said he was on they way to our house and wanted to talk about the problems we were having. My delight was doubled when he told me that the problem was most likely on the outside and that I didn't need to meet him at the house. In a final example of excellent customer service, this gentleman had the courtesy to call me back, tell me what he had done (most of which I didn't understand) and tell me that everything should be working again. This was a classic case of someone exceeding my expectations.
I think over promising has to be one of the most common mistakes made by marketers. More and more companies, in order to make a better first impression, are making claims and promises that are closer and closer to the best possible outcomes their consumers should expect for their products and services. While that might be effective in garnering more first tries, when the average customer experience falls below the marketing assertions, the majority of your first tries will also be last tries.
The company that under promises and over delivers is taking a long term marketing path toward building a strong customer base. While a company taking this approach might engage fewer customers early on, many more of their customers who do try their product or service, will continue to be customers if their expectations are exceeded.
If the phone company had told me the repairman was going to be there Monday, I would have gotten the exact same service, but my expectations would have been different. I would have been less thrilled with the outcome.
Things didn't start out well. I called on Saturday afternoon and was told that the soonest they could send someone out was "Tuesday morning between 8 and noon." Less than thrilled to be without phone, and especially Internet service, for so long, I accepted my fate and made arrangements to take Tuesday morning off of work to be here when the phone company arrived. Trips to the library and to local restaurants that offer free WiFi allowed my wife and I to check email and take care of some work we had to do.
Imagine my surprise and delight when I got a call Monday afternoon from the phone company repair guy who said he was on they way to our house and wanted to talk about the problems we were having. My delight was doubled when he told me that the problem was most likely on the outside and that I didn't need to meet him at the house. In a final example of excellent customer service, this gentleman had the courtesy to call me back, tell me what he had done (most of which I didn't understand) and tell me that everything should be working again. This was a classic case of someone exceeding my expectations.
I think over promising has to be one of the most common mistakes made by marketers. More and more companies, in order to make a better first impression, are making claims and promises that are closer and closer to the best possible outcomes their consumers should expect for their products and services. While that might be effective in garnering more first tries, when the average customer experience falls below the marketing assertions, the majority of your first tries will also be last tries.
The company that under promises and over delivers is taking a long term marketing path toward building a strong customer base. While a company taking this approach might engage fewer customers early on, many more of their customers who do try their product or service, will continue to be customers if their expectations are exceeded.
If the phone company had told me the repairman was going to be there Monday, I would have gotten the exact same service, but my expectations would have been different. I would have been less thrilled with the outcome.
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Repost: Even in Science, Everything is Marketing
"In science the credit goes to the man who convinces the world, not the man to whom the idea first occurs."
Sir Francis Darwin 1848-1925
(son of Charles Darwin and a recognized botanist on his own)
Even in science, everything is marketing!
Some recent posts you might enjoy:
4.6 Billion People Can't Read This Blog
Primary Elections and Local Ads
Sir Francis Darwin 1848-1925
(son of Charles Darwin and a recognized botanist on his own)
Even in science, everything is marketing!
Some recent posts you might enjoy:
4.6 Billion People Can't Read This Blog
Primary Elections and Local Ads
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