marketing program

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Social Media – A Tool for Marketing or A Whole New Category?

June 16, 2011 in Marketing, Media Services, Social Media by Jill at Omni | No comments

I have noticed an uptick in some of the marketing forums I review, where debates about defining  social media are taking main-stage.  What’s interesting is how long we seem to have been talking about this “new trend”, although I would propose that this does not really qualify as a “trend” any longer; it’s part of our daily experience.

Consider it was only a few decades (and several questionable fashion trends) ago that there was no such thing as TV advertising. Today, TV advertising is not discussed as separate from marketing, it is discussed and evaluated, (along with all other promotional options), as one part in the potential marketing mix for a client. It seems time to make social media more like that.

Rather than create entire plans around only social media, or talk about it as an add-on, it would seem more beneficial to clients if  we simply treat social media as one more marketing tool, evaluated for how it can help the client along with every other marketing tactic. Social media, broadcast  tv and cable advertising, radio, outdoor, direct mail, e-blasts, websites, blogs, tweets, facebook, interactive, display – the list grows, the opportunities increase. The challenge is selecting what works best for clients, not just relying on the latest trend, which in the end, may very well be the right tool.

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A little creativity goes a long way.

May 2, 2011 in Creative Services, Graphic Design, Marketing by Jill at Omni | No comments

A friend sent these to me and they feature European product bags. I love how these are made to just be fun, attention-getting, but also used for cause-marketing. To whomever created these – great concept!

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Rantings on Super Bowl “Super Bad” Advertising

February 9, 2010 in Creative Services, Marketing by Jill at Omni | No comments

SuperBowl 44

I am among those who watch the Super Bowl for the commercials. (Sorry sports fans.) I am usually under-whelmed, and this year is no exception. The hype and dollars spent just don’t live up to the reality. What I found was an overwhelming percentage of spots devoid of any real creativity and meaningful marketing messages, instead giving in to stereotypes of men, women, and generally stupid behavior. Don’t even get me started on the bipolarity of Anheuser Busch doing ads about partying once Budweiser pops into the picture, and then flashing a tiny “drink responsibly” tagline on the screen at the end.  There were a few bright spots, namely the Google “Parisian Love” search ad; it told a great story while demonstrating its functionality and benefits of the product (brilliant marketing!).

 

Makes me long for the days of Apple computer’s unveiling of the Mac computer. That was ground-breaking, trend-setting, interesting, and actually made the audience seem a little higher up on the intelligence scale than ‘beer=party=stupid’.  And while I initially found the Doritos’s dog bark collar spot funny, it still ultimately poked fun at a stereotypical jerky guy getting his comeuppance after teasing a dog. The beaver ad for Monster.com was funny and cute, but don’t we always see ads with humanized critters? Nothing new here.

 

I’m not sure if it’s the large billion-dollar clients calling the shots and directing financially at-risk advertising agencies to do these commercials, or just a total dearth of real intelligent marketing by these firms.  But I have hope that a continuously challenging economy will actually make people turn away from cheap stereotypical advertising and do something smart and interesting. Like Google did. There’s always Super Bowl 45, right?

 

 

 

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Marketing Truths: It really IS about the customer!

November 17, 2009 in Marketing by Jill at Omni | No comments

images

I read an interesting article this past week by Matthew Boyle in Business Week (“The Accidental Hero“) about a Subway franchise stumbling upon a great sales idea and the process they undertook to take the idea to upper management for use in a national launch.

The intriguing aspect was the guerilla-style marketing approach of the franchisee to handle the challenge of a sagging economy and slow sales by simply reducing their footlong sub cost to $5…  For his insight, he and other franchisees who followed suit achieved record sales, increased profits, productive staff. Sounds good, right? An easy sell? For the public, yes. Long lines at the stores to get the sandwich.

It took a little more convincing of the franchise leadership before being rolled out nationally. Certainly the process defied many standard marketing protocols – no research to back up the program rationale, advertising campaigns that came after the launch of the sales promotion in many locations, not one that coincided with them. And yet, it has propelled the chains’ sales into the stratosphere. Partly because the franchisee was willing to take a risk, and while he did not conduct exhaustive studies first, he did comply with the first golden rule of marketing – KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE. He knew that an inexpensive sandwich you could share with a friend or save half for dinner later was a novel but realistic way that consumers are saving money in a slumping economy.

Sometimes a good idea is just that – a good idea. While I am the first to promote marketing as a tool to grow business, and spending time making a strategy, you have to have a good product AND a good strategy to make it work. And no amount of scientific analysis will make a bad product sellable. No amount of creative, ground-breaking advertising will make a bad product succeed over time, especially if the ad concept is more intriguing than the product. (Think of most Superbowl ads — memorable ads, but what were they selling again?)

Kudos to Subway for coming up with a winner, despite the novel approach to getting there. And uber-kudos to the franchise owner (Stuart Frankel of Florida) who followed his marketing instincts without all the hoopla.

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Bear Markets, Budget Cutbacks, Marketing Malaise – Oh My!

June 24, 2009 in Client Services, Marketing by Jill at Omni | 1 comment

Recession, sell-offs, layoffs, closings, bailouts – is it a reason for businesses to despair or an opportunity for a second chance? It is often said that Americans are by far one of the most optimistic cultures on the globe, although it would not necessarily seem that way if you polled a few friends these days. But even with the prolonged negative news, at some point we just have to say, “Okay, enough of this, let’s pick up the pieces and get things back on track!” It does not mean instant success or magical profitability or zero unemployment. It just means putting on a new attitude and a creating a reason to keep plugging along.

Most business owners have experienced painful operational trimming and tough decisions in the past year. I have heard clients and other business owners discuss their tactics to refocus, shift their processes and alter methods for business development to keep up with the new dynamics of doom and gloom. It is hard to keep the proverbial stiff upper lip when you are bombarded with messages about the seemingly endless consequences of financial failures. Marketing, like all service businesses, tends to be a line item that is initially vulnerable to being cut. However, strategic-thinking clients see it as a tool to help them achieve stability and loyalty even in challenging times.

So, what does this mean for marketing and business? Absolutely everything. It means that once we recover from the constant barrage of this new world of cutbacks and lagging economic indicators, businesses have an opportunity to emerge stronger, more attentive, and more focused than ever before. Maybe budgets are being trimmed, but being cost-efficient and strategic in spending marketing dollars is always a good idea. Maybe it is a little harder to figure out what customers want now, but it is beneficial to determine what customers really need from you to help align your business and investment of time and resources.

Focus, strategic planning, consistent messaging and dedication to customers– these are all cornerstones of successful marketing.

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Writing White Papers Right

February 20, 2009 in Marketing by Jill at Omni | 1 comment

Writing White Papers RightWriting White Papers Right, By Jill Schuller

 The heart of marketing is strong branding, and building up credibility about your company creates a strong brand. One of the tools we often employ as part of a brand-marketing program is a “white paper”. A common definition is a report that discusses relevant problems and explanations on how to solve them. They are used to educate readers to help them make decisions. While more common in the political realm, they are a valuable tool in business and can be posted on a corporation’s website as well as included in prospecting materials such as mailings, presentations, e-newsletters, etc.

While it is considered an old-school method, it has high value when used in conjunction with other marketing tactics. For example, publishing a white paper for a company creates more search engine opportunities for that company – more views, more info, more hits, more awareness.

Let’s look more closely at what a white paper IS and IS NOT and steps to develop white papers.

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MOTHERLY MARKETING ADVICE

December 23, 2008 in Marketing by Jill at Omni | No comments

Mom knows best!Doing More With Less is not just good advice from your mom, it’s how marketing will and frankly SHOULD be addressed in the coming year. Yep, you heard it from a marketer – Do More With Less. Am I crazy? Asking clients to spend LESS? Actually no, at least not in this case.

Smart  marketing has never been about how MUCH you can spend, but how WELL you promote a client for the available budget. And with the advent of social networking and other web-oriented opportunities, there are more avenues for efficient use of dollars than ever before. 

Our advice is not to stop marketing (see our blog archives for more on that!) but to be smart and consider more creative solutions to the standard marketing program. Oh, and another gem of advice – be nice! Research shows that simply having your customer service program using good old civility and a smile goes a long way – mom would have called that “catching more flies with honey than vinegar.”

So this Holiday season, be happy, live well, market intelligently, and listen to your mom.

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