Cut to the Core

Marketing Messages that Clients and Prospects Consistently Identify as Unique to You

Are your clients’ perceptions of your brand a key factor in their decisions to purchase your product or service and to remain loyal customers?

Branding gives you the opportunity, over time, to associate your organization with the benefits and values that are important and relevant to your customer. In a fast-paced, ever-changing global marketplace, your brand represents the promise of service and the expectancy of future benefits. The expectancy of these future benefits motivates buyers to place a higher value on your brand and to be willing to invest in building a relationship with you and your brand. Therefore, maximize any opportunity you have to distinguish your brand. One way to do that is to identify and to clarify your marketing communications so that your brand stands out from among all the others.

Certain aspects of your brand, if updated or enhanced, can bring additional value to you and to your customers. Examine the following areas for potential improvement: 1) the promotion of core organizational values, 2) your writing style and tone, 3) the prioritizing of content messages and 4) the cultural relevance of your brand to your niche audience.

Checklist:

* Refine the details of the core organizational values your brand promotes. Does your brand convince buyers to choose your products and services over that of your competitors? How is your core brand identity conveyed in your marketing? Do your core values connect with customer needs?

* Select a writing style and tone that speaks to your niche audience. What writing style is appropriate? Formal? Conversational? Informative? Persuasive? What terminology does your customer group recognize? Are your customers experts? Or, are they new to their field?

* Choose content relevant to the challenges your audience seeks to solve. What do you want your audience/ideal reader to think or feel? What action do you want them to take? Does your core brand identity speak to customer attitudes, preferences and likes? Do your messages promote conviction and action?

* Develop messages in media that are culturally relevant to your customers and prospects. What is the culture of your organization? How does it compare with the culture of your customers? In developing messages and choosing media, consider the strategic importance of customer orientation, competitor positioning, length of marketplace initiatives and any other factor pertinent to your core customers.

Mindful Marketing Practices Are on the Rise

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do You Craft Meaningful Communications for Your Stakeholders?

Companies, once the vital backbone of our communities, provided opportunity, stability and security and were regarded as good citizens that would act in the interest of the communities they served.  However, no one can deny that customers no longer automatically confer to companies the trust they used to command. Much has been written about the breakdown in this trust, once such a very valuable goodwill asset. Regardless of the arguments of theorists, one way or the other, about how to fix the problem, the final analysis is the same. At the very least, customers must consider communications from your company credible in order for those communications to stir them to action. Therefore, restoring confidence in corporations requires a new approach. 

 

Is your company communication style outdated?

Long gone, in fact, are the ‘old school’ days of company communications. You can no longer market to customers solely on the basis of their status as consumers of your product and service. You can no longer generate public press exclusively for company shareholders. And you can no longer focus policy and performance communications toward employees only.  Especially long gone are the days where effective messaging included communications that were extensions of the old corporate paradigm. That paradigm used selected messages, such as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), conceived by the public relations department for the sole purpose of creating a positive “halo” around the company. The problem was that such messages did not always represent the fundamental core values at the organization, nor did they always represent true changes in company policy or purpose.

 

How do you need to communicate instead?

Remember that the availability of today’s technology can open all the “back doors” at your company. Such access can allow stakeholders to document and to share all kinds of information about your company over vast media channels. Therefore, it is only a matter of time before the core values of any organization are made transparent to the marketplace.

Mindful Marketing takes care of such concerns! As a first step, Mindful Marketing has you take stock of the core values that are the true cultural DNA of your organization. You will then use those values to craft your communications so that they document your core, i.e., the values that really count to you and to your company, the values that will connect your company to your clients and your customers in a very substantial and valuable way.

A Mindful Marketing Model of communications will sustain your brand over time. It will also build the trust level that is so necessary to ease transactions between your stakeholders and the communities in which your brand has impact and relevance.

 

Key Point – Once they are identified and established, a company’s core values facilitate the crafting of consistent communications across sectors, industries, markets and audiences that are authentic and credible stakeholders in that company.  Company communications about your core values help bridge any of the gaps between the various roles (i.e. employee, customer, investor) that stakeholders may have in relation to your organization.

 

A Change in Mindset on the Rise in Leadership

Why are Mindful Communications the Marketing Key to 21^st Century Success?

“Next to doing the right thing, the most important thing is to let people know you are doing the right thing.”  John D. Rockefeller

Where do opportunities for market leadership abound in the 21^st century? In the past, companies have created market leadership by relying on the 4 Ps of the marketing mix (product, price, place, promotion), but most heavily on the uniqueness of product, the competitiveness of price and the convenience of place. Historically, the 4^th P, promotion, has been subordinate to the other three.

Why then has promotion now emerged as THE competitive advantage – if one’s intention is to gain market leadership?

Today, access to global markets has evened out the playing field for many companies. They can now show that they also provide the product and service characteristics that created world-class standards and led to sustained market leadership for companies in the past. Promotion, the placement of your product or service, is about positioning your brand in a way that will demand or attract the attention of your target audience. Such positioning influences perception, and you gain market leadership when the perception you create confirms that the core values of your company are well aligned with the values of your target audience. Communications using this type of Mindful Marketing hit all the right notes with your target audience and stakeholders. They are, after all, the authentic voice of your core values: the beliefs and truths that guide your company’s actions in the marketplace.

The opportunity to use promotion to develop your market leadership presents itself in today’s world with more frequency and with more potential power because of the following reasons:

1. The number of communication mediums has increased – from a limited number of print and radio outlets to hundreds of channels over a multitude of communication platforms.

2. The entire globe is available, and it has become a self-serve, 24/7 marketplace.

3. The real-time use of such things as cell phones, texting and streaming video has made the immediacy of information exchange commonplace.

Therefore, the availability and flow of information between you and members of your target audience generate an ever-increasing potential for success as shown by the following:

1. You can now communicate constantly with your audience.

2. Your constant communication offers an opportunity to interact with your audience.

3. Your constant communication and interaction helps to clarify and strengthen your brand.

4. Your constant communication and interaction, as well as your powerful brand, creates your leadership role in the global marketplace.

 

Key Point – Everything in today’s marketplace is moving and moving fast. Positioning via promotion, therefore, is a daily challenge. However, as long as you take care to remain updated, muster the courage to seize opportunity ahead of the competition and provide feedback by mindfully addressing – through your communications – the concerns of all your stakeholders, you are acting in a manner that will gain and promote your market leadership.

Successful Social Media Marketers Measure KPIs

 
Are you minding your KPIs when making online social media marketing decisions?

Contrary to popular opinion, establishing KPIs (key performance indicators) to benchmark your online performance is possible and simple. In three easy steps you can 1) identify, 2) measure and 3) test the most crucial metrics for your online performance.

 

Step 1) Identify. Your first step is to identify the activities that you conduct online. These include, but are not limited to, tweeting, blogging and updating your Facebook entries. You should also identify the corresponding measure (such as click-through rates or number of retweets and shares) for each of these activities. Tie this metric as closely as you can to your end goals of more orders and/or more booked clients (i.e., the lead-to-sale conversion rate), in order to produce output that is as accurate as possible to use in your decision making. 

 

Step 2) Measure. In this step, take the particular metric you have identified and selected, and develop a plan to measure what you want to improve. As evaluation metrics, the KPIs (e.g., the number of visitors who complete a purchase) are used over time to benchmark your success toward a business objective (in this case, an increase in online purchases).

Quantitative measures such as these can relate directly to the goal. For example, a metric can measure lead-to-sales conversion rates, the number of Web site visitors who click on the buy button and finalize their purchases with a payment. At other times, however, the quantitative metrics are by proxy, as is the case when a measurement infers the value of the desired outcome. Engagement metrics (number of pages viewed per visit and time spent per visit) are an example of this type of metric. The inference is that the more engaged each visitor is with your content (visiting more pages, spending more time on the site), the more likely it is that he or she will buy.

 

Step 3) Test.  Once you have established benchmarks and are tracking KPIs that impact business objectives, it is time to test the design elements that are most likely to influence each of the KPIs. Consider each step of the buying process you offer and experiment with changes in each of its element: e.g., the length of online forms, the size and color of buy buttons, the image content, and the font style of the test.  Examine and test also the surrounding marketing support activities such as e-mail campaigns, online advertisement and organic keywords. At times, even small changes can increase your sales numbers dramatically.

 

Key Point – When you identify and track KPIs that measure the success rate of activities that are closely tied to the success of your business objectives, you will make decisions that are well informed. You will also be able to manage and direct your progress in new and unique ways.

*To learn more about KPIs and online business benchmarking, send an e-mail message to Kore Access Marketing Communications Consultant Maria Pinochet. Make sure to indicate whether you just need more information or whether you would like a personal call.

Today’s Trend – The Hispanic Market in the U.S. Is Growing Fast

According to the last complete U.S. census (2010), the Hispanic growth rate, at 24.3%, is the highest of all ethnic groups. U.S. Hispanics, 44.3 million people, accounted for 12.5% of the country’s total population, and that percentage is expected to increase to 24.4% by 2050.

The Hispanic market, however, is anything but homogeneous. Country of origin, level of education, economic bracket, first- or second-generation status and many other factors influence each individual and help create distinct and marked differences among the many groups of Hispanics. Over twenty countries of origin are represented by Hispanics living in the United States:  e.g., countries in Central America, South America, and the Caribbean, as well as the countries of Spain and Mexico (the country that claims the majority at 64%). This much diversity makes the creation of culturally relevant messages a very complex task.

Although many Hispanics become fully integrated into the American culture, and may even have buy-in to many of the “apple pie” values that are at the root of our culture, most still adhere, as well, to values from their cultural heritage. These cultural values—which include such things as ancestry, colony of origin and religious beliefs—are harder to perceive but remain factors that can influence Hispanic citizens a great deal. You cannot simply depend, therefore, on a direct translation of your marketing materials from English to Spanish to serve as an effective means to cross these cultural barriers.

The good news is that if you take the time to understand each of the market segments you want to reach, you can be very effective in your marketing efforts. For example, if you know that bilingual Hispanics search online first in Spanish and then default to English, and that they prefer to speak Spanish at home, you will more likely seize the opportunity to differentiate your organization in a way that can serve these preferences. For example, you can provide the option of listing online information in Spanish, or you can send direct mailings in Spanish to certain markets.

Even if you do not target Hispanic consumers directly, consider the important fact that Hispanic business ownership is growing three times as fast as the national average. The question of the day, then, is this: Can you afford NOT to engage this niche audience?

Key Point – Because of its buying power and its population size, you need to consider how reaching out to the Hispanic market fits into the future plans of your organization.

Twitter Events Increase Individual Blog Traffic

On February 8th at 8 am EST I, along with several other marketing bloggers, published individual blog posts with the same title, “The Last Blog Post.” Most of us spread the word via Twitter and, over the next 48 hours, we observed and participated in an amazing event.

Daniel Burstein, Primary Research Director of Editorial Content of MECLABS, had invited me, as well as the other marketers, to participate and had suggested we all promote our posts using the hashtag #LastBlog on Twitter. To search all the activity we generated with our tweets, click here - #LastBlog. (Hashtags, defined as words or phrases prefixed with a #, make it easy for users to group posts together by topic or type.)

With my entry, which asks one question—In which instance have you used your skills to their best advantage in order to have a radical impact on a client’s outcome?—I was one among dozens who published on the day and time Burstein requested. A few hours later, though, I had become part of a blogging and tweeting wave that inspired many more to write and post their own version of “The Last Blog Post” and then tweet about it.

My blog traffic increased by over 1000% in just a matter of hours, and my blog analytics tracked that traffic back to Twitter click-through rates. The results showed that Twitter posts that include links to pages on the Internet make tweeting an efficient way to promote an individual blog entry. In fact, Twitter is considered by many to be a microblogging service since posts (tweets), although limited to no more than140 characters, are text based. Once posted, the “tweet” is displayed on the user’s profile and is publicly visible. Twitter is estimated by eMarketer.com  and www.nielsen-online.com to have grown to the point that it has 18-20 million visitors per day in the U.S. alone (depending on the criteria utilized to account for users). These numbers indicate that “Tweeters” make up 7-10% of adult users on the Internet.  

Maybe my next question should be this: How can you engage this type of niche audience and stage your own Twitter event?

Key Point – When you participate in an event that is promoted via Twitter, you are immediately part of a conversation you can use to share your brand value.

Entrepreneurs Seek Ways to Save Time, Be More Effective

Time is a State of Mind: Find Your Sustainable Speed

Listen to Christine Louise Hohlbaum, time management thought leader and author, as she shares two very critical insights into how to make the most use of your time—and remain centered.

One of Christine’s reminders is that “sometimes ‘No’ is actually a ‘Yes’ later,” and any particular “No” may just mean “not now.” The “Power of NO,” then, is a great time management tool that not only allows us to retain control of our time, but through the exploration and negotiation of balance can lead to an even bigger “YES” down the road.  Hear the story of the “Power of No” in Christine’s own words!

Thepowerofno

In this second podcast (TimeCrisis clip) Christine shares what prompted her to change her relationship with time and what makes her able to redefine her success to include being a mom, wife, public relations consultant, author, blogger, actor, and more…!

Timecrisis

 

Christine Louise Hohlbaum, an American who currently lives in Germany, is the author of several books, including The Power of Slow: 101 Ways to Save Time in Our 24/7 World. She is a proven thought leader in the area of time management. With writing and acting as her passions, she dreams about changing the world through words.

Key Point – When you change your relationship with time, you will enhance the value and quality of the business experience you share with your customers.

Are you a self-proclaimed “Speed-a-Holic”? Do you feel you are always in a time crisis?  Are you ready to renegotiate your relationship with time?

GET The Power of Slow Today! Christine will share her insights all month long on the Cut to the Core Facebook Fan Page.  “LIKE” our page and get all of Christine’s upcoming tips.

Join the Cut to the Core Facebook Fan page.

Greenwashing - Summary of a Lively Online Debate

  A lively online debate, conducted by Ethical Corporation and sponsored by InterfaceFLOR on October 8^th, 2010 explored the practice of “greenwashing,” a means by which a company, especially through its advertising or public relations department, will proclaim a green image without truly dedicating its efforts to green practices. The debate was led by Ramon Arratia, director of sustainability for Europe at InterfaceFLOR, and Kristian Steele, a senior engineer at Arup.

The global participants discussed how setting standards that consumers could easily understand and that companies could correctly apply might be the best way to alleviate the problem of greenwashing. Such standards would help consumers to distinguish labeling that reflects true and appropriately earned claims about environmentally safe products from the claims that come from greenwashing efforts. 

The discussion continued on to consider the type of standards needed:  e.g., the GHC protocol and WRI/WBCSD PAS 2050 and 2060, along with 100% organic and other well-known labeling practices. Some voiced a concern that, even with good labeling, consumers would not understand what to choose. Do you buy a 100% organic shirt or a 100% carbon neutral shirt? 

The participants also discussed how a requirement of Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) for every component part of each product would impact businesses, especially if those businesses had to carry the full financial burden of the LCA. In addition, they addressed the question of which agencies would bear the burden of verification.

Read a summary of the debate - click here.

As I listened to the many partisans from the various countries and from different industries, I realized just how complex the labeling issue can become, even with the best of intentions by the noblest of business people.

As a marketing professional, with many decades of practice, my deepest concern is that green communications are being spearheaded by the public relations (PR) departments of companies. “Green” should not be simply a point of view that the PR department can use to communicate the ongoing organizational activities; rather, green must be a corporate value that is in alignment with the corporate mission.

When green is a core value that transforms the corporate culture, green becomes a heuristic for decision making and a valid reporting benchmark. When this is the case, communications about green initiatives will be viewed by stakeholders, not as a public relations effort to brand a company green, but rather as an honest communication about a truly green-functioning enterprise.

Today's Trend - Marketing That Targets All Stakeholders

After the much publicized problems with the unintended acceleration of some Toyota models, Toyota Motor Sales, USA, Inc., has recalled more than 12 million vehicles worldwide and 10.5 million in the United States. The company also has responded by creating a safer technology, The Star Safety System™, along with a marketing campaign to tell us all about the innovation.

Toyota Motor Sales (TMS) will run its Star Safety campaign well into 2011. The Star Safety System™ combines five safety technologies as standard equipment on all new Toyota models. The Star Safety System includes Vehicle Stability Control (VSC), Traction Control (TRAC), an Anti-lock Brake System (ABS), Electronic Brake-force Distribution (EBD) and Brake Assist.

The marketing campaign centers on the message of safety and focuses on conversations about safety and quality between Toyota owners and engineers. (See the advertising online at www.toyota.com/safety.) The critics of Toyota’s safety campaign take issue with the advertising, stating that Toyota has not spent a sufficient amount of time and effort to apologize for its problems and has jumped, instead, into “selling safety” too quickly.

 

Do you agree? If your company had a major setback, how would you communicate about the incident? 

This marketer remembers the shocking Ford Pinto Memo that openly disclosed the cost/benefit analysis performed in order to justify the decision not to fix a fuel system design element, known to be faulty, when that design increased the chances of an explosion. The decision not to act was made despite the fact that an explosion upon impact greatly increases the possibility of burns or death to both driver and passengers. In contrast, the actions and messaging in response to Toyota’s design fault, although it is also potentially life-threatening, seems commensurate with the inherent danger.

Unlike the Ford scandal of the 1970’s, Toyota’s response has been one of immediate action. The company has set about to fix the problems on the existing models by issuing massive recalls and, in a very timely manner, assembled a team of engineers to design the best automobile safety system on the market. Their goal was to begin, within the quickest timeline possible, the installation of the new system, The Star Safety System™, as standard equipment on all new Toyota models.

 

In order to communicate this action plan, one of the advertising spots highlights Toyota’s fundamental pledge to invest the time and the people needed to follow through with their renewed commitment to safety. View the spot.

 

In another advertisement, Toyota acknowledges that they have not lived up to the expectations of safety they, and their customers, have for Toyota products. The ad outlines their plan to restore their customers’ faith in the company. View the spot.

 

In yet another advertisement, Toyota states that “everyone deserves to be safe no matter what you drive.” The ad highlights the Star Safety System, Toyota’s answer to automobile safety. View the spot.

 

In order to give a backbone to their claims, Toyota is also running a spot that talks about the safety awards their new innovations have won during 2010. View the spot.

 

Key Point - An interesting element of this marketing campaign is that Toyota has promoted the idea that safety is an issue that involves all of Toyota’s stakeholders. The messaging contains language meant to create a strong emotional connection to the primary value of safety, a value that is certainly a priority for all of us. After all, even if we do not drive a Toyota, the person who drives down the neighborhood street near where our children play, or the person who drives our husband to work in the carpool, may well be a Toyota owner.

 

Thus, Toyota’s advertising has placed the company in the spotlight as one of the responsible citizens of our communities. As such Toyota will have to live up to the ethical and moral stand they have just created for themselves, their employees and their products.

 

Achieving “Top-of-Mind” Status

avew you  Have you noticed lately that you are not getting timely callbacks or feedback from clients? You know you provide excellent products and services. As a dedicated professional, you know you have the ability to solve your clients’ challenges. So why are your clients not calling back to discuss benefits and solutions? In today’s business climate, the answer may be that they are spreading themselves thin at work and can only find time to handle items of the highest priority. Therefore, even if you are a credible brand, your information will be filed away unless your clients have an urgent need for your solution. Read on for tips to achieve “top-of-mind” status with clients as you enhance their degree of engagement with your products and services.