Web Sites and Reese's Cups

by Steve Fodor

Remember the old jingle for Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups? “Two great things that go great together.”

We’ve embarked on a new client relationship here at Badertscher Communications that has made that jingle run through my head (aside from making me crave the taste of peanut butter and chocolate together).

We have an assignment to develop a new Web site for a new client. So what, you may say. Well, the reason this assignment is particularly sweet is because we’re working in seamless collaboration with the client’s network administrator. It’s almost like he’s a part of our staff on this new assignment. We’re able to do what we do best – create and promote a new Web site design and brand presence for a client. And the client’s network administrator can do what he does best – build a Web site platform with the latest content management tools. The result will be a new Web site that allows our client to be a curator of information and content…with the benefits of cost and time savings.

The reason we’re so jazzed about this relationship is because we see it as a prime example of the way client-agency relationships are evolving for the better. Agencies are content developers. Or, said another way, agencies are expert at bringing a brand story to life with words, pictures, sounds and designs. Though most full-services agencies (ourselves included) have Web developers on staff, an agency’s culture is usually driven by creativity and content development. Many clients, on the other hand, have invested in information technology and in people that can manage all the technological “back end” stuff of Web sites and content management. When an agency can marry its talents and expertise with the talents and expertise of the client’s people, a working arrangement develops where brand stories can be developed and told with more creative excitement.

Economically, times are still tough. Many companies have put off updating their online presence or have deferred new content development strategies because of costs. But, when an agency and client can work closely together and focus on doing what each does best, something pretty sweet can develop. Actually, that’s exactly the way we like to work here.

Flickr Photo Credit: kimberlykv

Politics as Unusual

by Steve Badertscher


I can’t wait for next Tuesday to come and go. And it has nothing to do with who wins or loses, but everything to do with ending the madness of political advertising for awhile. The sheer volume of political ads has been annoying, at best. But what I’ve noticed with each passing year is how negative, bitter and untruthful the messages have become. While watching a ball game the other evening I was subjected to dozens of consecutive commercials, none of which ever mentioned one redeeming quality about the candidate sponsoring the spot…only negative accusations and spins about their opponent’s shortcomings.

I started thinking, how different things would be if companies took that approach to their advertising? Instead of touting your safety advancements and track record as an auto maker, for example, Volvo might dredge up a compromising and unflattering photo of a top level executive at Toyota, and add a few strategic sound bites (taken out of context, of course) that when edited together proclaim “safety is an expensive proposition and cuts into our profit margins” and attribute it to him. That video might dissolve into a gruesome photo from a crash scene of their competitor’s car all mangled up with large graphics touting the number of drivers/passengers killed while driving the competitor’s car that year, etc. Taking the tone of current political ads, there probably would be some reference made to Pearl Harbor.

Sickening? Yes. Absurd? You betcha. But I guess that is the same way I feel about the vast majority of the current political “advertisements” (A better description would be propaganda).

What’s your take on this?

Flickr Photo Credit: Theresa Thompson

What’s Your Reputation Worth?

by Steve Fodor

When you get right down to it, all you have in life are your word and your reputation. Hopefully, both are seen in a positive light by people you associate with.

With all the Wall Street distrust and fallout, Tiger Woods and Toyota publicity in recent months, company reputation has become a popular topic in corporate boardrooms. I read recently that The Reputation Institute, a private consulting firm, conducted nearly 25,000 online interviews asking people their perceptions regarding the reputations of the nation’s largest (by revenue) 150 companies. The survey measured factors such as products and services, innovation, corporate citizenship and leadership. Respondents were asked to provide rankings on a scale from 1 to 100, with 100 being the highest or best score.

To be honest, the results were not too surprising to me. Brands like Johnson & Johnson, Walt Disney, UPS and Kraft Foods were at the top of the list. I’m not surprised because these are brands that invest heavily in promoting their brand image. I’ve also always had great experiences with these top brands. Also of little surprise, financial institutions and large banks were scraping the bottom of the barrel in terms of perceived reputation.

What I did find interesting, though, was a statistic put forth by The Reputation Institute regarding their study. “When reputations improve by five points, consumer recommendations hike by 6.5 percent,” according to The Reputation Institute. “Get more people talking about your products and company, and you can bet you’ll improve your bottom line.”

I’ve always believed in the value of brand investment, public relations, and developing strategies to improve how your brand is perceived versus only focusing on selling products and services at a price. And when combined with a social media marketing program, consumer recommendations that promote your company’s reputation can add even more to your bottom line. I’m just glad that The Reputation Institute did this study and put some quantitative support to what good marketers have always known to be true.

Flickr Photo Credit: Rob Young

Old Media Marketing for New Media

by Steve Fodor

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Media in any form is just a tool to deliver a message. Audiences, regardless of the medium, will not be persuaded unless your message is motivating in some way. New social mediums have such tremendous applications. But, I still think the marketing messages in these new mediums could learn some tricks from the “old dogs” like print.

Before you jump to the allure of a social media strategy, think about how you need to craft your message. Here are some thought starters:

Put a face on your brand – People do not relate to faceless bureaucracies. People relate to people with likable personalities. That’s how people relate to brands, too. Testimonials from customers or from employees can bring your brand to life in social media video applications and give your brand a unique appeal.

Demonstrations sell – If your product has some unique functionality or features, social media video applications can be almost like a trade show demonstration, 24/7. Think about production values, music, lighting and how to tell your story with words, pictures and entertainment. It’s usually difficult to hold a viewer’s attention for very long, so think about telling your story with multiple, segmented videos that are singular in focus.

Brand empathy – Brand loyalty comes from a demonstration of understanding. When a brand demonstrates that “it knows what you’re going through,” you’re more inclined to see that brand in a more credible light. This is especially true for B2B marketers, where selling propositions need to be framed into a business case. White papers on your Web site and blogs are great ways to provide branded content, demonstrate a focused customer understanding and add credibility to your brand proposition.

Promise a reward – Sweepstakes, trial offers, contests, free trials. All are great techniques for generating leads. Not only do these sorts of things promote sales, they provide ways to measure online banner advertising, Twitter and Facebook campaigns so you can learn and adjust your message and media over time.

For many, the allure of social media is that the media is “free.” That’s especially appealing in today’s economy. But “free” doesn’t mean that you can skip the thought process and generate messages without a strategic foundation or a brand vision. If you don’t give thought to your message strategy in the so-called “free” social media space, you’ll get just what you paid for.

Flickr Photo Credits: me'nthedogs

What's the Role of Advertising?

by Steve Fodor

I was participating in a discussion group on one of the social networks recently. The discussion was on B2B print advertising and a lot of good comments and points of view were shared. One participant’s question, though, kind of stuck out to me.

This participant was lamenting over the fact of how he never sees any good examples of print advertising in trade journals. He followed his comment with this question: “Is the purpose of a good ad to drive sales or increase brand awareness?”

Now, the reason I say this kind of “stuck with me” is because I would respond to that question with this question: Aren’t sales pretty much dependent on brand awareness? If your brand awareness is low or nothing, how can you expect to drive sales? Or, more specifically, how can you expect to drive sales that deliver a higher margin if your brand has no perceived value other than price, especially in B2B marketing where the purchase decisions are not simple “impulse” buys? And I would say this applies to any medium, not just print advertising.

What’s the role of advertising? I don’t even like that question. I’d rather ask, what’s the role of marketing? Because if you’re only looking at your marketing situation in terms of a medium, or a tactic, I’d suggest that you may not have a grasp on your brand’s position in the marketplace. How is your brand perceived? What is your brand’s awareness? What is your brand awareness and understanding relative to your competition? How does your target audience gather information to make decisions? What information sources do they trust? What branded content solutions can you develop to fulfill the unmet information needs of your target audience?

So, is the purpose of a good ad to drive sales or increase brand awareness? Yes to both. And I would also suggest that you better go back and do some homework on your marketing situation and your brand’s marketing and message strategy. Advertising alone is not a marketing strategy. It’s only a medium to deliver a message.

Flickr Photo Credit:Beverly & Pack

Don't Shoot the Messenger.

by Steve Fodor.

I’ve been participating in a lot of discussions lately on social media and its benefits to the marketing mix. I’ve seen and heard points of view ranging from “it’s a panacea to our marketing issues” to “it has no applications and it’s stupid” and just about everything else in between.

What also has intrigued me is how many people are saying that “traditional advertising simply does not work.” I’m not so sure about that.

Traditional advertising is just another tool in the marketing mix. Just like social media, direct mail, e-mail, outdoor, radio – whatever – it’s not necessarily the medium’s fault if you did not see positive results from your marketing effort. I would contend that it’s your message. Media in any form is simply the messenger that delivers your brand’s proposition to the intended target audience, regardless of their age, position or social class. How you craft that message within the medium will determine your success or failure.

I watched some of the Super Bowl last weekend. And like many of my colleagues in the communications business, I was rather disappointed with the quality of the advertising messages I saw. There were many that seemed trite, tried too hard to be funny and were just plain dumb. I see a lot more advertising messages in consumer and trade publications that try to “pound” a long list benefits into the reader's head without having any real or unique point of view.

Great advertising should make your audience feel about your brand the way you feel about your best friends in life. Advertising should connect with commonalities and shared interests. It should present useful information. It should talk “with” instead of “to” people. It should respect people’s intelligence. It shouldn’t be boastful or condescending. And, if done effectively, advertising should let the reader or viewer reach a positive conclusion about your brand without having to pound benefits alone into their heads.

If you’ve tried advertising before with disappointing results, I’d suggest that you may not have an advertising problem. Rather, I would suggest that you may have a brand problem.

Flickr Photo Credit: Sir Mildred Pierce

What's It Worth to You?

by Brad Smith

I recently had an experience I’d like to share. I got a call from the guy who mans the trade show booth for a small division of one of our clients. He wanted to get some new graphics done for his display. After I showed him that what he had in mind was way too much information for a small display, and how to simplify the messages and content, he said:

“Looks great. Get me a price we can live with and we’ll go from there.”

Wait a minute. Let’s put things in perspective here.

What’s the value of making a good first impression?

What’s the value of communicating a professional image?

What’s the value of standing out in a sea of small trade show booths?

What’s the value of having a potential customer stop at your booth, versus walking on by?

What’s the value of making a sale? And the future value of repeat business?

What’s the value of the lost sale? How do you put a value on business you don’t get?

What’s the value of the booth visual, versus the cost to the company to rent the space, send a person to the show, pay him, feed him and put him in a hotel for three days?

I’ll bet you’re thinking this client thought the price was too high. His boss, twice removed from the process but still the one making the ultimate buying decision, said “Sounds really out of sight for such a small project.”

Small?

Only in that it’s probably the smallest expense of attending this particular show.

Small? So’s the Nike swoosh.

Flickr Photo Credit: johnhallassoc