Your Marketing Communications Identity: Names and logos and tag lines, oh my!

Every business needs an identity -- a way of presenting itself to its audience.  Here are the basic components.

NAME
Leave the discussion of “what’s in a name” to the poets and philosophers. In business a name is selected early on and usually doesn’t change much. So choose wisely IF you get to choose. The best company names are easy to read, say and remember (usually short), are descriptive of what the company does, and evoke the company’s personality.

Examples: Thrivent Financial (financial services), American FarmWorks (agricultural products), Art of Copy (copywriting).

LOGO
This is the graphic signature of a company. It may be just a stylized type treatment of the name, or it may include a symbol.

A logo is used in a lot of places – ads, brochures, signs, trucks, letterhead, web sites, packaging, forms, products and more. Before developing a new logo, think of all the places it will be used. Your design needs to be adaptable for all uses.  A good logo works in black and white, but there may be 2-color and full color versions for different uses.

How often you need to change logo design and colors depends on your market. Companies whose markets are stable don’t need to change often. Companies who serve trend-conscious audiences may need to change  their look frequently.

TAG LINE
This is a brief line of copy that runs with the logo. Not every company has one or needs one. A tag line can blow your horn. Deliver a benefit message. Or explain what the company does. A tag line is a marketing tool that belongs on ads, brochures, web sites, direct mail pieces, trade show displays, etc. Use one tag line consistently for greatest effectiveness.

CONSISTENCY and REPETITION are what make any identity program successful. Pick a name, logo, colors and tag line. Then use them in the same way on everything.

In Marketing Communications, Persistence Pays

One of the most common marketing problems I run into is companies who drop programs before they have a chance to work. An ad or two will run. One mailer is sent. Response fails to overwhelm, so the plug is pulled. And the company goes off saying something like “We tried that, and it didn’t work.

AARGH!!

TRUE STORY: A manufacturer started a new ad series. Response the first month was lackluster. (Okay, it was bad!) The next two months weren’t much better; but things started to pick up in the fourth month.

What was going on? Two things: repetition and timing. REPETITION: The audience needed to be exposed to the message several times before it sunk in. TIMING: It can be hard to predict when someone will be ready to buy, so you need to be out there consistently.

Current wisdom is that it can take up to nine (yes, 9!) repetitions of a message for your audience to “get it.” Of course, you need to be reaching the right audience with a message that means something to them.

It’s a lot to think about, but help is out there. If you don’t have marketing expertise in your company, hire a marketing communications specialist to help you. Even if you have a marketing department, an outside perspective can be invaluable.

Be persistent! Stick with it! Take a long-term perspective! Don’t give up!

Picking the right marketing communications vehicle: Shows, expos, and events

You want to get the most out of every dollar AND every hour. Trade shows and expos can cost a lot – in time, energy and money. Networking events can waste time by pulling your focus in the wrong direction. They may cost real money also,  if you exhibit.

Don’t let this scare you away from these activities, though. There are ways to make sure your investments pay off. Start with these basics:

1) Are they right for you?

A trade show or expo is like a retail environment. If your products need to be seen, touched, demonstrated or otherwise experienced, trade shows and expos can work for you. Be ready to make the most of the opportunity to meet and greet your prospects.

Networking events attract a lot of solo-preneurs. If you want to meet this kind of person, networking events may work for you.

2) Are you going to the right ones?

Each event, expo, or show attracts professionals who may or may not match your target. Before going, determine if it’s your kind of meeting.

• Check with management. They may be able to tell you who’s come in the past.
• If it’s a conference, scan seminars and workshops to see if the topics will attract your kind of people.
• Look at who’s exhibited in previous years (and who’s coming back.) If someone you know has attended, ask them what they think.
• Attend the show or event as a spectator before committing to exhibiting.

3) Do you know what you’re getting from your show/expo/event investment?

Build evaluation of results into your activities so you know what you’re getting. Leads or inquiries are a concrete measure. Lead quality is usually more important than quantity though, so arm yourself with qualifying questions.

Participation in networking events, expos, and trade shows can be spendy. Do whatever it takes up front to get the most out of your investment.

Case histories – Compelling marketing communications

Have you heard the saying that it’s better to have someone else sing your praises than to do it yourself?  It’s true.  Someone else’s word is much more believable.

One way to present this praise is in a case history.  A case history story presents a problem and how it was solved.  These real life stories are customer and prospect favorites since they offer real world advice.

You don’t have to name names if getting a customer’s permission is out of the question, but it makes for a more compelling story if you do.  Good quality photos and other visuals are a plus.

You can use case histories in public relations (as brief features) on your web site, as printed sales tools, in brochures, and even as fodder for an ad series.

Be Direct! Target your marketing communications with direct mail.

Direct mail – whether surface mail or e-mail – is a great way to get response from a clearly defined audience.  But doing direct mail successfully means watching three things:

1.    LIST
Make sure your message goes to the RIGHT people. If you’re purchasing a list, ask to test a small number of names before investing in the full list.
When you send out a mailing, you can expect 1-3% wrong addresses.  These will come as returned mail or maybe phone calls.  It’s a good idea to keep track of the number of bad addresses.  If you get more than 3%, you may be able to get money back from your list provider.

2.    BREAK-THROUGH CREATIVE
Think of all the stuff in your in-box.  A mailer needs to break through that clutter.  Grab attention.  Beg to be opened and read.  So have some fun. Maybe take a risk.  Different creative approaches can be tested to find what works best.

3.    OFFER/CALL TO ACTION
Direct mail is all about response.  So offer something attractive to spur it – a trinket, rebate, coupon, or informational pamphlet.  Be creative here, too.  This is another variable that can be tested.

Other factors to think about are:

• REPETITION

For any communication program to succeed, you have to repeat, repeat, repeat. With direct mail you can send a series of mailers or send the same piece. Send pieces two or three weeks apart…and repeat the series in three to six months.

• FOLLOW-UP

Phone calls to recipients after they’ve received a mailing can help get maximum results.

• MEASUREMENT

Look at inquiry quantity and quality from your program.  Use the information to make your program better.

Fatal marketing communications detours on the road to visibility

Visibility.  Awareness.  Being known.  That’s where selling starts.  Most business people know this at least intuitively.  But they may stumble, fumble and not make headway due to these five common marketing communications mistakes.


1.        KEEPING IT A SECRET
This seems basic, but many business people either forget the need to get out the word or purposely avoid this step because they’re worried about the competition.  The usual outcome of not telling the world about your product, service or company is disappointing sales.  Your prospective buyers need to know about you and your offering before they’ll buy.  It’s up to you to tell them.

2.        GIVING UP TOO SOON
It can take nine or more (!) repetitions of a message before it sticks in a prospect’s brain.  Don’t be alarmed if a single ad, mailer or whatever doesn’t yield a phenomenal response.  Keep at it with consistency, and you’ll see results.

3.        NOT USING THE POWER OF THE MIX
Repetition is good.  But it can be expensive and hard to achieve if you rely on just one communications type.  A mix of tactics carrying the same message to the same audience is more effective and affordable.

4.        NOT BEING BUYER-ORIENTED
You know what YOU want to say.  But do you know what your prospects want to hear?  If you don’t, ask them! Prospective buyers will pay more attention to messages that speak to THEIR needs.

5.        BEING BORING
Truth is, an uninspiring presentation will get through if it’s repeated enough times.  A fun, intriguing, interesting presentation of the same message will cut through the clutter faster.  Why settle for boring?

How much marketing communication is enough?

We all agree that marketing communication is a good thing if you want to sell something. Right?

Once that’s agreed, one of the next decisions marketers face is: how often do I need to communicate?
There’s no pat answer, but a lesson in human learning might help.

Did you know we (people, that is) forget about 90% of the information we’re exposed to? Repetition is critical because the more times a prospect is exposed to a message, the more likely he or she is to remember it.

In the communications business this repetition is known as frequency. The rule of thumb is that an individual needs to see to a message a minimum of three times for it to sink in.  And remember, that’s the MINIMUM.
More is better.
 
It’s important to note that the three times rule refers to a messages actually being noticed.  In the cluttered media environment of today, that can mean frequencies of nine or more times.

To put it plainly, don’t run one ad or send a single mailer and then curse your lack of results. Even if the message and audience are right, you probably need to repeat yourself a few times for best results.

Using a variety of communications methods in combination can make increased repetition more affordable.  So mix it up by putting together public relations, direct marketing, web strategies, advertising and events.  These can all work together to good effect.