Don't Be Scared

We just started the fourth year of Insight on Business the News Hour. For those of you who are not familiar with the concept it is the only daily (M-F), hour long business news broadcast in the Midwest. OK, WBBM in Chicago has a business broadcast but nobody else that we could find. We're on AM-940, FM-104.5 and in HD at 103.3 HD2 out of the Des Moines Radio Group.

The format pf the broadcast is pretty simple we offer up the daily business news from the nation, region and the Greater Des Moines Metro. We do the markets and then two long-form business interviews with established businesses to startups. Each interview segment runs 12 -15 minutes.

And, nope, we don't charge these businesses to come in and tell their story. Otherwise it wouldn't be...news.

The biggest obstacle we have is not finding sponsors. It's not writing and delivering the news. The biggest obstacle is getting guests to come on the broadcast to tell their story. No kidding. We give these businesses $1,000 worth of on-air broadcast time, social media boosts and give them the photos we take in studio along with the mp3 so they can use it in their marketing effort time. You would think that business people would grab the opportunity to share their story but, sadly it's like pulling teeth.

I moan about this from time to time and this week a client of our advertising agency said, "Michael, the reason they don't want to go on the air is because they are scared."

He's right. I get it that more people fear public speaking than death but really? We're offering an opportunity and so few take it.

I'm not complaining but I am hoping some of you will read this and consider that our goal is not to make you uncomfortable but to boost your brand and build awareness of what you do. It's called positive press.

So, when we call and leave a message...call us back? We would, honestly, love to help you tell your story.

 

Who Builds Your Brand?

I walked into a Kum & Go, hungry, at 1:00pm on a Sunday and went to the Go Fresh Market area looking for chicken strips. My personal favorite in a pinch. The guy behind the counter saw me checking the offerings and said, "How can I help you?" I told him I was looking for chicken strips but there wasn't any in the case. He says, "If you've got a couple of minutes I can fix those for you."

Really?

This isn't a fast food joint where you walk up, look at a menu and make an order. This was Kum & Go a convenience store chain with over 400 stores in eleven states.

I told my new best friend, "Sure, I've got a few minutes." Off Erich went to make it happen. A few minutes later he delivered.

I asked him for a photo and he agreed and I said, "I don't know if you realize this but this is called building a brand and you have just made that happen to the positive."

Know what he told me? "Hey, that's my job and I'm glad I could be of service."

BAM!

So the question is: Are you hiring folks that can be Brand Warriors for your business or are you just hiring bodies?

 

Never Mind We've Got This...

I recently attended a meeting of about 20 volunteers who had gathered to discuss communication efforts. The communication they desire is to build brand awareness and to share information critical to their brand and interested consumers. From what I could gather, from the brief introductions, I was the only professional marketer in the room.

In that two hour meeting there was plenty of discussion about social media, particularly Facebook. An hour into the meeting I asked a question about their existing website, "As with any brand the company website is often the first point of contact among consumers seeking more information about the product or service. It would seem to me that your first consideration would be to put up a website that is mobile friendly, easy to maintain and simple to navigate." I should note here their existing website has none of those qualities.

The response was, "The people we are attempting to reach do not go to websites they would much rather get their information from Facebook." In other words, "Shut up. We've got this."

I spent the next hour listening to minutia about Facebook. From posting to monitoring to limiting access of comments. It was an interesting insight on "group think" with the group having no clear understanding of marketing their message.

For those of you who are in business, and have an interest, allow me offer some simple marketing and advertising thoughts when it comes to building your brand. Ready?

Websites - In my professional opinion your website should be the foundation of your brand. It is your website that is accessible to the world. It is the repository of your brand message, contact information, blog, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter links. It must be mobile friendly. It must be updated on a regular basis and it must contain information of value to consumers. Ignoring that simple truth is putting your brand at jeopardy.

Blogging - Second only to your website should be your business blog. It is here where your "voice" can be shared in well thought out posts. For folks who want to know more about your business or non-profit your blog can be that gateway. Then use Social Media to share that message with a wider audience. Finally, when your blog becomes part of your Website Home Page you are updating content each time you post. And that is critical to Google Ranking and SEO.

Facebook - The potential universe for this particular non-profit would be roughly 300,000 people of various ages, ethnic backgrounds and lifestyles. Their existing public Facebook page has about 800 followers yet they believe this should be their main branding tool. They are talking to themselves. There is a place for Facebook but it should never be your primary marketing tool. Never.

Twitter -There seemed to be some confusion about how to best use Twitter. We find it to be an amazing news gathering and sharing tool that should, in our opinion, never be linked to your Facebook stream. They are two very different forms of communication and when your Twitter feed has a few words and then that Facebook link it tells those of us who use Twitter on a daily basis you're not really putting in the work to share your brand. We've got a blog post on that from several years ago. It will offer you "why".

YouTube - The world loves video. Here is a post from 2012 that speaks to the power of video for business THEN. Today the numbers are even more staggering. However, to gain traction the video that is produced must be well done, share valuable information and have the ability to capture the attention of the consumer in the first five seconds. This is a project best done by professionals otherwise it can be a waste of time.

Instagram - There was little talk about this social media tool that we've found to be fun, informative and growing in popularity. However, Instagram does have some limitations such as linking and we believe you must post to the platform at least three times a day to gain traction.

Just some of the things I would have shared with my friends however...they were not really interested. They've got this covered...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's Here and We Warned You

The First Quarter is here. For many businesses it's a sobering reality for others it is full of opportunity. Those businesses who remain aggressive in their marketing efforts will continue to build on past success. They know now is not to disappear from the consumer radar. So, how about some tips on how to better stay "top of mind" and turn the First Quarter positive:

Stay in the Game - I was visiting with a radio media professional last week who told me advertisers are starting to understand that taking the First Quarter "off" is a self fulfilling prophecy of doom. "I think the recession taught advertisers a lesson", he said. "Those advertisers who stayed in the game and continued to market their goods and services picked up market share from their competition. It used to be that, in our business, I could take a couple of weeks off in January. Today I'm at the office scheduling advertising and filling our radio inventory for January and February. These advertisers have learned that it's now a 12 month season."

Use Video - We are strong believers in video, always have been. Consumers eat it up like crazy and today there are dozens of ways to create and use video content. Studies show that consumers who view video are 1.81 times more likely to purchase than non viewers. And, because of social media your video can be viewed and shared across a wide range of channels. If you are doing email marketing you should also be aware of the fact that when the word "video" is posted in the subject line there is a massive increase in the open rate.

Visual Content Wins - We've said it for years, "Less is More" when it comes to marketing. Consumers don't have the time (or interest) in reading long pages of copy in your print ads, on your website, in your newsletter. Use images as often as possible to drive home the point of your message. And, if you can, use organic visuals rather than stock photos. It shows you have taken the time to tell your story rather than "buying" it.

Stay Connected - You already have a firm client/customer base. Stay connected to them through your blog, newsletter and an occasional hand written note of appreciation. Staying "top of mind" means that you need to stay connected to your best customers.

Start Your Referral Marketing Campaign - I recently wrote about how to get started in referral marketing. Once again, you already have "brand warriors" out there. Now is the time to weaponize them and allow them to help influence consumers who may not know how your product/service can benefit them.

While it may be the first month of the New Year it does not mean you are too late to capture more market share in the First Quarter but...you better get started.

Thanks for reading and for more on business check out our long-form business interviews from Insight on Business the News Hour our Monday - Friday 5:00 PM broadcast.