"The ink never dries on the Internet." - Bill Dobbs, Animuse

Effective branding is the crossroad at which Art and Science meet.

Life isn't about the number of years, but the amount of impact. Thanks for all the well wishes, and, I'm appreciative of having had the opportunity for another year.

One (of many) key social media brand benefits garnered by those businesses electing to participate (most now days hopefully!) is driving offline connection and/or interaction. It has been shown frequently people (more than 50% in a recent survey) that initially connect online and like what they see, make "bricks and mortar" contact as the next relationship step.

Give the people what they want

From Google's Mobile Ads Blog: "Two thirds of consumers report they’re more likely to buy from a mobile-friendly site, and a little less than two thirds (61%) say they'll abandon a mobile site if they don't see what they want right away." 

As with any type of communication medium, I recommend there be a solid strategy behind your potential action prior to jumping in. That said, your strategy ("mobile" in this case) could be as simple as a welcome note and contact info, if that is what the audience you are communicating with most likely needs. 

As in any medium, audience needs should drive your strategy - simple or not - and, there is nothing wrong with testing the waters either way seeing how your customers respond. Thanks to "Google Analytics" and other online analytics tools, this is not "rocket science" either.

For an example of a basic "welcome" mobile site that we recently did and our client feels is working well please visit cinequipt.com.

The value of "thought leadership"

Becoming a "thought leader" and valuable information resource for your (existing and prospective) clients is an exceptional branding opportunity. Your website, social media, targeted emailing, public appearances, and more can all be great "self publishing" platforms.

"Every company has a unique culture, value set, and ethos that need be reflected in their brand." - Geoff

The best B2B copy writing is simple, with an emotional hook
Copy writing for direct marketing requires a good deal of humility, Christopher Ryan writes. That means putting the reader first instead of writing to please your own sense of prose, keeping the level between eighth and 10th grade, and bearing in mind the goal is to persuade, not write a masterpiece. Still, copy should lead with emotion to engage while remaining as short and simple as possible, Ryan writes.

- From today's BMA SmartBrief. This is great copy writing insight. Mr. Ryan hits the nail on the head, and his pointers are a perfect mindset for you if writing your own copy. People often misunderstand the art/talent of "copy writing", and the aforementioned is definitely one important component.

“ People buy the image and experience as much as the more tangible product or service benefits” – Geoff

“Your brand is something that's there when you're not.”

Why e-mail and social media are the perfect pairing
E-mail and social media make a great combination, says MediaWhiz President Ed Kats. Overlaying information from one medium onto the other can help make both more effective, Kats explains. "E-mail is a big driver of the beginning of the customer conversation, and social media is a natural channel for following up and continuing that conversation," he adds.eMarketer

A great way of thinking about the email initiated, Social Media follow-up conversation (engagement and interaction) relationship from today's BMA Smartbrief.

"Some days you are the windshield. Other days you are the bug." Father Dennis Dease, President, University of St. Thomas

Too Much Information?
"Online marketers are struggling to get a handle on all the analytic data available to them, according to Econsultancy and Lynchpin research. One in 10 marketers said that a significant majority of their analytics data was actually useful in making key decisions, and almost 6 in 10 said they got real value from half or less of their data. More than a third said their analytics were not at all integrated with their business plan." - eMarketer (8/7)

Online analytics are an exciting and valuable component of interactive branding. Like anything else, of course, they need be considered in context and taken with a grain of salt. That in mind though, there is a ton of useful analytical information available that never was before.  

As the above excerpt from a recently run eMarketer article shows, however, in order to make the abundance of information, numbers, and statistics useful you need to consider your objectives and determine the analytics that will logically assist you prior to jumping in.

"Fear of Bad Decisions" is a Powerful Message Driver

People frequently fear making the wrong decision more than taking a risk to make the right one. I've posted this thought as it illustrates a powerful brand communication messaging conceptual driver. That is, everybody wants to make the right decision - in fact, as many of them as possible. Ultimately that should translate to success, right? 

Equally if not more important though, is that nobody wants to make the wrong decisions. Despite the fact making wrong decisions (as long as you learn from them) can be invaluable for future reference, direction, and decision-making, as well as being the flip-side of "brilliant" decisions", they are something most people prefer to avoid.

Where this leads is to the fact that without being overly negative (which is always possible if you put some time and thought into "positive" alternatives) in your brand communication, positioning your business, service, or solution amongst the right group of people as "the safest bet", "a proven performer", or "the one to turn to when you can't afford go wrong" can yield extremely effective results.

"The emotion underlying a product or service is what you are really selling." - Geoff

"Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase." - Dr. Martin Luther King, JR.

Being There

From the Business Marketing SmartBrief:

"Good leadership starts with showing up"

The first thing any leader should do is simply turn up for work, says Marie Johns, deputy administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration. Putting in plenty of face time with workers, both in your office and by walking the corridors, is crucial to tackling big problems and keeping everyone engaged, Johns argues. "Part of providing leadership is 'walking the talk' and being available," she explains. The Washington Post (5/30)

From Geoff:

I don't personally believe this means one can't be empowered and enabled by today's amazing technology as per efficiently getting done much of what need be done, outside of the four walls. However, there is a time and a place. As I have stated before we leave in a virtual and real world, and need determine the task at hand and objective prior to selecting any communication message or medium.

Incorporating Static and Dynamic Sites

I am remiss in posting this work example, and must apologize to my client OATI. It is not my intent to blow either their or our agency's horn, but to share interesting "food-for-thought" with readers of this blog, and illustrate what I believe to be a successful outcome and result.

A while back, we sat down with our client OATI (oati.com) around their desire to keep their primary site "as-is", yet somehow incorporate or add a more dynamic content-driven component or presence.

They felt their current, HTML site worked well for both impactful positioning and basic educational and online engagement purposes, and were reluctant to change it. They did want to be able to engage and interact with their key audiences more, however, specifically around OATI products, business, and important industry topics and current news.

Creating, developing and launching a microsite (http://info.oati.com/) became the ideal solution. While maintaining the initial website with which they were well pleased, the microsite achieved OATI goal at hand by also providing a more engaging, interactive, and dynamic online experience. Furthermore having both sites expanded their online reach.

There are obviously different ways of achieving an objective like OATI's. After about a year of their dual online presence though, they are extremely happy with the results. We appreciate the opportunity to have served, and hope anyone with similar or other brand communication objectives will reach out. You can call me (Geoff) directly at 952-923-1081 if this is the case.

Beyond the Numbers

"The biggest mistake I have seen made in business is not looking beyond the numbers." - John Atwater, The Prime Group

A Valuable Combination.

A print and digital advertising tandem covers a valuable communication base, as those who don't read print often read online, and visa-versa.

Emotional Analytics

"Geoff - I Just wanted to let you know, I just got a phone call from a lady who saw our ad in the Minnesota Hospital Journal. She said the ad just grabbed her attention and she is super interested." - Minnesuing Acres Sales Manager

As much as I wanted to post this quote from our client (emailed to me yesterday by a satisfied client) just for the sake of blowing my own horn, I would never do that. After feeling great about it and prior to filing it away though, I realized there would be value in posting here for you to see. The quote is a great example of two things.

First, when it comes to print advertising one has to be somewhat creative in finding tangible results. There are millions of books written suggesting otherwise, as well as the flip-side school of thinking that "you just have to believe". As is usually the case though, I believe the truth lies somewhere in-between.

That said, albeit extremely rare for someone to actually call out and comment on your advertising without any kind of prompting, when they do it is important (aside from feeling great and or terrible) for you to take note. Because this type of sentiment expression and are centered on emotion (versus a number), it usually is just discarded or filed away.

If you pause and think prior to doing that though, you'll realize that this type of "analytic" is as meaningful relative to your assessing advertising value as any other metric, if not more. You really can't buy this kind of value!

Your takeaway for you is that when you are lucky enough to get such feedback, especially around emotionally driven communication, messaging, and connectors (if that's what your ad happens to be), make sure to incorporate it into your value measurement. When it comes to assessing brand communication results, you need to keep your eyes, ears, and mind open and be aware of metrics in all actions and formats.

Second, and I'll be very brief as this is a subject for another day, if you are so lucky to get such unsolicited feedback, or, even to take it a step further at the end of each job you start asking (good litmus test as to the value you provide by the way), pay attention and take advantage.

Nothing is more valuable to the credibility of a business than satisfied client testimonials. As long as you deliver, and I'm assuming you do, be sure to collect what is willingly passed along and share it on your website, Facebook, in your collateral, and other communication. It benefits all involved.

Beware of generalizing.

I was just reviewing a past whitepaper that had an article about the downfall of "Print Advertising". I do find the calls about "the collapse of (fill in the blank)" fairly entertaining in the first place by the way. That's for another post though. For now, back to the topic at hand, my thought is one should be very careful not to generalize when it comes to both brand communication and life. This article, rightly or wrongly, lumps "print advertising with newspaper advertising." In doing so, it fuses two things that in fact are quite different.

The value of exceptional creative.

Although platforms and mediums will come and go, exceptional creative (no matter the medium) will always command attention, connect, differentiate, and inspire people to act.

Achieving Business Objectives Using Email

First and foremost I need to put in a quick plug for marketingsherpa.com. I have no clue what their name means, but I am sure it makes complete sense relative to offering exceptional content and insight, which they always seem to do. Their site is well worth a visit and bookmark.

The catalyst for my endorsement (although there are many) is the chart they offer as this week’s “chart of the week.”

http://www.marketingsherpa.com/1news/chartofweek-01-31-12-lp.htm

The crux of the chart and meaningful takeaway I believe, is a clear statement as per the effectiveness email can have when properly aligned with specific business objectives.

The chart speaks for itself. I’m not a big “chart” guy truth be told, but this one does a fantastic job conveying substance. Viable objectives business can expect when Emailing is done correctly include:

• Driving website traffic
• Increasing lead generation
• Nurturing prospects
• Building brand awareness and reputation
• Improving customer retention
• Enhancing trust and Deepening relationships (my add on!)

All of the aforementioned (excluding the last of course) were perceived in the benchmark survey to be 70% and above in effectiveness relative to objectives Email can achieve.

An important caveat I may add is of course “not all emailing’s are alike”. Careful consideration and attention must be given to meaningful messaging, creative execution, and a good emailing list. All are key factors not to be underestimated.

When done right, however, one can see Email delivers significant results.

A time and place for SEO, social media and paid search.

Search-engine optimization, social media and paid search all have a time and place. However, connecting with and especially persuading audiences who are unaware you exist and/or of the compelling reasons they need to connect - is best achieved through other means (banner or print advertising, targeted mailing/emailing, etc.)