Can You Discount Price and Increase Brand Loyalty?

by Steve Fodor

That’s a balancing act marketers struggle with. Marketers struggle even more given today’s economy when discounting has become a means of survival to generate sales traffic. “If we discount, will we ever be able to raise prices (and our margins) again without sacrificing brand loyalty?”

If you’re wrestling with this question, think about this: Forget about price and think about your customer relationships. I’m of the belief that if you manage customer relationships…and your brand…responsibly, price becomes far less relevant.

I just saw something from Coldwater Creek that reaffirmed this belief. I got a mailer from Coldwater Creek announcing a discount. But instead of the usual “great deals to be had now” tone so many retailers are taking, Coldwater Creek did something different. Their mailer was a simple card with a personal message from the CEO, Dan Griesemer. The message simply said, “We know things aren’t easy. But they can get better when we all pull together. Since you’ve always been a good friend to us, we’ve just reduced many of our regular prices. Thank you.”

In that very simple and understated card, my perception of Coldwater Creek as a brand elevated to new heights. Instead of talking in terms of price, they talked in terms of empathy, understanding and like a real friend. The Coldwater Creek brand took on an even more likable personality in my mind.

I’ll miss this recession when it’s over. I’ve managed to get a lot of great buys on brands that I normally would not have considered because of price. And when the recession ends, so will my temporary relationships with those brands that chose to differentiate themselves on price rather than on brand relationships.

Flickr Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/rwp-roger/3186643427/

Increasing Your Odds of Winning New Customers

by Brad Smith

Every good poker player has a pretty good grasp of the odds. For example, if you make a bet, some of your opponents will fold. The fewer the opponents, the better your chance of winning.

A marketing example to increase your company’s or your product’s chance of winning is to create a blog (like the one you’re reading now). By doing this you are increasing the odds that potential new customers will find your Web site…and consequently learn more about the advantages your company and products have to offer.

Blogs add “content” to your site, increasing the odds that search engines will direct “word search’ inquiries to your blog/Web site.

“Content” on the Internet is exploding exponentially every day. You need more just to compete. So start a blog. Odds are you’ll have fun, too.

Flickr Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/strupler/

Hammer the Benefits

by Steve Badertscher

A wise advertising creative director once told me, “Nobody buys a hammer to own a hammer…they purchase a hammer to pound in nails.”

I’ve never received better advice to help shape effective advertising messages that really resonate with prospects and end-users. Simply put, it’s a great reminder to focus on benefits, not features. In other words, focus on what the product does for the end-user, not on what the product is.

For example, I love to take photos as a hobby. I particularly enjoy taking photos of sporting events, especially those involving my kids. But when I recently went shopping for a new lens, I didn’t do so with the intent of owning a zoom lens…I wanted to be able to see the grit and determination on my kids’ faces as they edge out their competitors at the finish line of their cross country races in my photos.

Likewise, my teenage son didn’t recently purchase a Jeep Wrangler so he could own a sport utility vehicle…he bought it to enjoy the “top-down, music-up” benefits when the summer weather arrives.

And clients don’t engage our agency’s services because they want to acquire beautiful brochures, advertisements and Web sites (although it is a nice added bonus)…they hire us because they want their sales to increase and the bottom line to improve. In other words, they don’t want tools, they want results.

So whether you’re responsible for crafting your company’s marketing messages or approving the messages that are created, always keep in mind the perspective of your target audience. Remember, your customers don’t want to own your product, they want the resulting benefit of what it will do for them. And once you clearly define and articulate the key benefit that is most important to them, all that’s left to do is hammer it home!

Flickr Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/justinbaeder/

Generating Sales Leads In A New World

by Steve Fodor

I’ve been in business-to-business sales for about 20 years. Recently, I’ve heard and read a lot of information about cold calling as an ineffective lead generation technique.

Given that I started my sales career before voice mail, the Internet, e-mail and social media, I’ve felt that anyone saying “cold calling does not work” was just lazy. It’s hard to pick up the phone and make a 30-second pitch to someone that doesn’t know you.

Lately, though, I’ve become a convert. But let me be clear. Picking up the phone still has its place. There are just so many NEW ways to generate leads.

Even if you live in the world of industrial products and business-to-business selling, here are a few thoughts on lead generation for today’s selling environment.

1. Don’t leave voice mail if you’ve not had a prior conversation – voice mail is mostly a screening tool today. If you can’t reach that person, send them a handwritten note saying you would like to get in touch. Put your Web site on the note. Then call. Now you have something specific to call about. And, a handwritten note gets noticed in today’s e-mail world.

2. Put your sales people on YouTube – If you have a national sales force, think about the presence you could make for your brand if you had all of them on YouTube with well-produced, two-minute videos of why they enjoy selling your product and working with customers. Google and other search engines are the way people find information today. And a strong YouTube presence with the right keywords will increase your brand’s search rate. And don’t forget LinkedIn, Facebook and other popular social media venues.

3. White papers instead of collateral – Sales used to be “here’s my brochure” or “I’ll drop a brochure off.” The world continues to evolve and industrial buyers and decision makers cite that white papers and case histories are far more valuable in making decisions than the good old brochure. Think about creating white papers for your products and services. Put them on your Web site. Announce their presence with push e-mails and search engine optimization strategies. Have your sales people use white papers as “send me something” pieces instead of brochures.

4. Blogging – Again, the Internet continues to replace the phone as a sales tool. Your sales force is an incredibly valuable information asset. Counsel them on how to use blogging as a marketing and sales tool. Set them up with individual blog destinations. Not only will this aid in prospects finding you through online searches, but your sales people will be seen as valued information providers rather than commodity product purveyors.

Yes, sales and sales lead generation techniques have evolved and continue to do so. Hey, I’m an old-school person, too. But there sure are a lot more new and effective ways for generating sales leads today…in addition to good old-fashioned cold-calling.

Flickr Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/markhillary/

Social Media -- Is It Time To Go "All In"?

by Brad Smith

Yep, I’m a poker player. My auto license plate reads PKRCHPS.

One of the most powerful plays in Texas Hold’em is the all-in move. It’s also one of the most dangerous. If you’re right, or lucky, you get to play on with more chips…more money. If you lose, you go home. Sometimes when you go for broke, that’s exactly what you achieve.

So is it a gamble to participate in the new social media?

FaceBook. LinkedIn. Twitter. Blogging. YouTube. Etc. Should you be there? Should your clients?

I view these as tools. Valuable tools that can connect you with prospects and drive increased traffic to your Web site.

But they are not the panacea or the answer to everyone’s marketing dreams. They should not receive 100% of your attention or your budget. Social media is not the silver bullet, but should be viewed as one of the many bullets in your marketing communications arsenal.

Like I said, I’m a poker player. That doesn’t mean I’m a gambler. I like poker because it’s a game where you assess and calculate the risks you take. If your chances of winning are too slim, or the rewards aren’t great enough (we call this “pot odds”), then you don’t gamble, you fold. If the potential rewards are in sight, you make an appropriate bet.

So place a bet on social media. But don’t go all in.

Flickr Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chaps/