Posts tagged ‘Marketing Techniques’

April 16th, 2010

Create a Victorious Email Campaign

From BKV Interactive

Email marketing campaigns is a power horse of marketing techniques. Cheap, fast, and relatively time-efficient, email campaigns reach just the right audience at just the right time. But they need to be managed to be victorious.

BKV Interactive has a new white paper. Click 10 Easy Ways to Improve the Effectiveness of Your Next Email Campaign to download the whole paper, and get a preview of two of our favorites below.

  1. Ensure that your email addresses are opted-in – This will save you a lot of trouble. Why?
  • This improve your numbers such as click-through and open rates.
  • It will also keep you from getting the false impression that you have built a sufficient email list.
  • You want to be communicating with customers who wanted to receive your communications. It is up to you, the email marketer, to improve that relationship from there.
  1. Automate from the beginning of your campaign – Daily chores will take up an increasing amount of your time as your email campaign grows. You want to be prepared for your campaign’s success and growth, so invest some money in your campaign up front by automating it. You will have more time to grow other parts of your business or test new ideas and products.

Have any other email campaign tips? Let us hear from you.

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November 30th, 2009

To Improve Your Website, Click Here

HttpWe found a fun, cool website that provides some compelling A/B test results on website designs. Ann Holland’s WhichTestWon.com does simple website results testing. Visitors have the opportunity to choose which website design they think did better in test results, and then to read which page actually won in real life. Some test results are a little more scientific than others, but they still give some ideas for improving your websites.

Here are a few of their findings:

1. Click Here works better than hyperlinked words. They found that using calls to action such as “To visit our website, click here” was 72.5% more effective than “Visit our Website.”

2. Putting the add-to-cart option on the left side of the page increased purchases.   Simply by moving the add-to-cart button from the traditional right side of the screen increased sales by 16.7%. There was no definitive explanation for why this was so, but it worked.

3. Multi-page forms generally work better than single page forms.   Results from an application form page found that users were more likely to fill out more, shorter pages versus one longer page. It was pointed out, however, that audience preferences vary on different e-commerce sites.

If you are trying to improve your website’s design, this website is a good source to get you thinking.

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November 3rd, 2009

Tips from Coca-Cola’s Marketing Strategy: New Social Media Experiment Highlights Happiness Around the Globe

cokeOne year, three adventurers, 206 countries and a whole lot of happiness – that’s the gist of Coke’s new social media initiative.

As part of Expedition 206, a team of three young people will visit more than 200 countries where Coke is sold.

The Mission: to discover what makes people happy and to share that joy with the rest of the world.  The journey will bring Coke’s “Open Happiness” campaign to life as the travelers meet people from different cultures and share their stories online.

The  Guides: After an extensive search, Coca-Cola selected nine finalists. Fans around the world will make the ultimate decision by voting at http://www.expedition206.com/ through Nov. 6. Anyone can vote once per day throughout the three-week voting period. The winning team will be announced Nov. 16 at the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta.

The Adventure: The Expedition 206 journey will begin in Madrid on Jan. 1, 2010 and culminate at the World of Coca-Cola in Atlanta on Dec. 31, 2010. The expedition will make stops in cities big and small, visiting everyday people and marquee global events, such as the Vancouver 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Canada, the FIFA World Cup in South Africa, and the World Expo 2010 in Shanghai, China.

New Media: The unique social media experiment will play out online at http://www.expedition206.com/, as well as on platforms like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Flickr. As with other Coke social media initiatives, fans will drive the experience. In addition to selecting the travelers and following the journey, visitors to the Expedition 206 website and other online destinations can vote on where the team goes, what they do and who they visit in each country.

A Tradition of Happiness: “Coca-Cola has been inviting people around the globe to enjoy the simple things in life for more than 120 years, and that spirit of positivity and optimism is at the heart of Expedition 206,” said Cristina Bondolowski, Senior Global Brand Director at Coke.

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Here are some tips that you can use from Coke’s social media marketing strategy:

1. Pick an emotion that matches your product, and leverage it in your social media campaign. The marketing team at the Coca-Cola Company had lost its way for many years in the late 1990s and early 21st century. But they have their marketing mojo back and are leveraging it with their “Happiness” campaign. You can do the same thing Coca-Cola does — that is, pick an emotion that matches your brand essence and promote it vigorously via social media.

2. Match your marketing vehicle to your target market. Millennials love social media. They’re also a primary target market for Coca-Cola. When you match the two together, you have a winning combination. The same holds true for the other end of the spectrum — if your target market is age 55+, you’ll want to run something like a direct mail campaign rather than a social media campaign. By matching your marketing vehicle to your target market, you’ll have a better ROI.

3. Get your consumers involved. A brand isn’t defined by positioning anymore. It’s defined by how people engage with your product or service. The Coca-Cola Company gets that and, as such, allows consumers to vote on the team, track their progress and engage with them in other ways, too. When you’re thinking about your brand, be sure to get your customers and prospects involved. The more involved they are with the campaign, the more successful your program will be.

4. Think really big. Really big. You don’t have to be Coca-Cola to leverage the world wide web. Anybody can do it, and that includes you. So be sure to think big and to think global — it’ll help you grow your market share and your revenue. Better still, you’ll be able to tell your CEO that “We’re using the same marketing tactics that the Coca-Cola Company does!”

Visit http://www.expedition206.com/ to learn more and vote for your favorite team.

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November 2nd, 2009

How to Increase the Traffic and Decrease the Bounce Rate on Your Website

trafficImagine this. The potential customer has found your website. They’re looking, they’re focusing, they’re reaching for their mouse… but where will they click?

Of course, we want them to click on a link within our site, and not bounce away from the site. Then we  want to see them click our call to action.

What are some ways you can improve the chances that a customer will stay on our website?

1. Improve readability. Add white space, or change fonts (see 7 Secrets for Choosing the Right Font for Your Webpage). Get rid of clutter. Readers are more likely to stay on a site where it’s easier to see the information.

2. Write great headlines. Attracting readers is a big part of the game. But don’t write outrageous headlines that don’t match the content. Readers will learn to distrust your site and will go away.

3. Include customer testimonials. These compel the reader to trust your claims, increasing the chance they’ll look around on your site.

4. Have videos on the site. A picture’s worth a thousand lines of HTML, as they say.

5. Have a blog where employees contribute. Prospects are more likely to trust the people behind the company versus the “company.” Adding the opinion of real people, even customers, can be of more interest to the readers.

6. Make your call to action obvious on your landing page. Be sure to include the solutions that you are providing also. The place to click needs to be obvious.

7. Put most important information above the fold. Users need to see the crux of your message without having to scroll.

8. Make it easy to find information. You’ve been on those sites where it’s just difficult to find what you’re looking for.  If it’s easier for the reader to go back to the original search and try another company, they will.

9. Provide access to tools your customers need. Assessment tools, links to useful sites, or calculation tools will keep users coming back, even if they aren’t buying today.

10. Have a prominent Search Box. Users need to have an easy way to find just what they are looking for.

Look at your site from a consumer’s point of view. What would drive you away? Try some of these tips and watch your bounce rate decrease.

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October 30th, 2009

7 Tips to Get and Keep Customers

idea litebulbWithout customers, you’re not going to survive. And if you are always getting new customers, but not keeping the old, you’re not going to survive with any sort of success. Here are a few short ideas to get your creative juices flowing.

First, you need to get customers:

1) Buddy up with another business. Send out your brochures or emails and include the other business. Have them do the same. Leverage both lists that way.

2) Keep your ads brief. Call them underwear ads if you like. Short and sweet, and they get attention. Brief ads are much more likely to be read.

3) Sponsor a seminar. Charging gives the impression there’s value to the seminar. Be sure it’s an informative session, and not just a sales pitch. No one wants to pay to go to a sales pitch.

4) Attend, and speak at, industry conferences. This is a great way to get attention for your business. Have lots of business cards and informative brochures handy for distribution.

Now that you have them, keep them:

5) Offer a discount to customers immediately after they purchase. A second email, a postcard with a coupon, or a handwritten note offering thanks will increase your customer’s interest if they feel like they’re getting special discounts.

6) Keep current customers current. Use mailings or e-Newsletters to keep your business in your existing customers’ minds. They can keep up with what’s up with your business.

7) Keep customers interested. Change your promotions and campaigns once in a while. Too much of the same gets boring for both your customers and you.

Remember that once a customer buys from you, they are more likely to do so again. It’s well worth it to make the effort to keep ‘em once you’ve got ‘em.

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October 28th, 2009

Make a Profit with a SPIN: The SPIN Model of Selling

By Ann Pruitt

handshakeNo matter what your business, you need to sell your products and services. Dentists, car salespeople, advertisers, and retailers alike rely on getting the right customers to buy. That’s obvious. What’s not so obvious is the way to go about getting the customer to commit to your product.

For example, as a marketer interested in selling your marketing services, you might assess the potential customer like this: They know you are a good marketer… but they also know there are other, cheaper marketers out there. You know you have a better product, and you know they would benefit greatly. What you need is a way to convince the customer that your company is the way to go. Or better yet – have them convince themselves.

The SPIN Selling model has been around since the late-80’s, and provides a way to do just that. It is a sales technique that focuses on asking just the right questions, and driving the potential customer to come to their own conclusion: They can’t go on without you.

Here are the major components of the SPIN Selling model. For more detail, you’ll want to get the book.

S: Situation Questions

Find out about the buyer’s current situation with questions like:

-How many employees do you have?

-How long have you been using your current system?

-What turnaround time are you getting now on your orders?

Only ask a few of these, especially of upper level buyers who don’t want to squander their time. If you can find out the information elsewhere ahead of time, you should, to avoid wasting everyone’s time. The point is to understand the wider context of their business.

P: Problem Questions

Ask about the buyer’s problems, difficulties, and dissatisfactions that you could solve with your product.

-How satisfied are you with your current campaigns?

-What’s keeping your customers from returning?

-What concerns do you have with the firm you are currently working with?

Ask about their problems a lot, early on in the conversation. Think of your product as a way to solve their problems, instead of it as possessing a bunch of characteristics. That will help you ask the right questions to draw out the problems that you know your business could solve. Avoid telling them benefits of your product. Let them suffer a little more.

I:  Implication Questions

Ask the buyer about the effects or consequences of their problems, difficulties, and dissatisfactions.

-What effects does having a slow turnaround time on orders have on your competitive position?

-How are your current campaigns keeping you from promoting the image you want?

-How is your current partnership costing you money?

These are the most powerful, and most difficult, questions for helping your potential customer see how their pain is affecting their business. It helps them see how they are wrong when they tell you your solution isn’t worth the effort and cost. They’ll be begging for a solution.

N:  Need-payoff

Ask the buyer about the value or usefulness of the proposed solution.

-How would a faster order turnaround time help your company make more money?

-If we designed a good campaign, how much money would that save you?

-Why is it important to your company to have a “youthful” image?

These questions should end up with the buyer explaining to you about the value of your product. This provides a greater impact since they are discovering your value, while also making you sound less pushy.

Use the SPIN model as a broad sequence of questions, rather than a rigid formula, and you should be selling so much it’ll make your head SPIN!


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October 21st, 2009

Give Me a Title!

By Ann Pruitt

We have a dilemma here at 60 Second Marketer. I don’t really know what to call my job. Jamie Turner, the boss guy, is appropriately called “Chief Content Officer.” I, however, don’t really have a title.

As marketers, we all know that the packaging is a good part of the battle. We all also know that a title is important for the resume – not to mention as a way to describe to other people what you do at your job all day (and night, sometimes). So how do you package a job that entails writing content for a couple of websites, along with other responsibilities?

Laptop

Up until now, I’ve held the title “Associate,” mostly, I think, for its general generality. But it just doesn’t seem to capture the essence of what I do, not to mention that it sounds, well, junior. (I have enough years behind me that “junior” is a poor descriptor, thank-you-very-much.) We considered “Chief Training Officer,” but that sounded a little overblown to me, and didn’t include the writing that I do.

Blogging and related chores are a relatively new profession. There doesn’t yet seem to be a consensus on what to call the job. Perhaps that’s because there are so many iterations of it. I did a quick search, and yielded these for consideration:

Blogger

Content Curator

Content Developer

Content Management Product Manager

Online Content Writer

Social Content Manager

Web Content Administrator

Web Content Writer

Yet none of these seem to fit. I’m more than a Content Writer (or a Copy Writer), but less than a Chief Content Officer. I make my own decisions and have my own responsibilities, but go to Jamie when I need guidance. I sorta like Content Developer, but I’m not sure.

So I’m turning it over to you, our experienced marketing community. What title can you suggest for my job? Here’s what I do; I need a title that describes it and that I can add to my resume with pride. Now, do what you do and package me for market!

  • Research and write blogs and articles for two websites
  • Develop and deliver online training seminars
  • Develop and write eNewsletters
  • Manage contributing authors
  • Research competitors
  • “Other responsibilities as assigned”

Thanks,

Ann W. Pruitt

Associate, The 60 Second Marketer

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October 9th, 2009

Easy Effective Email: Match Your Email Marketing Formats and Objectives for Effectiveness

at in hand

Email is where it's @.

What are your objectives in your email marketing campaign? What formats are most effective to communicate these objectives? How often should you send the emails?

Constant Contact, an email marketing solutions company, and the company we at 60 Second Online University use for our weekly eNewsletter, offers a way to match the formats you choose based on the objectives of your email campaign. Here are:

  • three typical formats
  • the informational objectives that work well in those formats
  • a suggested frequency for sending those emails.

1)      Newsletter Format: Use this format when your objectives include:

  1. Enhance awareness
  2. Increase interaction
  3. Educate recipients

Send a Newsletter monthly or quarterly.

2)      Promotional Format: This format works best when your objectives are to:

  1. Motivate purchases
  2. Generate traffic to a storefront
  3. Generate traffic to a website

You’ll want to send promotional emails bi-weekly or monthly.

3)      Announcement Format: These press releases or new product offerings are effective with objectives such as:

  1. Increase event attendance
  2. Increase donations/contributions
  3. Improve public relations

Since these are usually event-based, send an event invitation with multiple communications allowing for recipients to first “save the date”, then sign up, then get a reminder. Announcements, of course, would only need a single communication.

Constant Contact reminds us – track your responses to be sure what you think is effective really is effective. If the campaign isn’t getting the results you expected, check your format, check you objectives, check your timing, and see if you can tweak.

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October 5th, 2009

Making a Customer-Focused Website

elearning thinkingAs marketers, we know how to sell a product. But have you considered that your website is a product also? Apply some of the techniques that you know so well in marketing to “sell” your website to your customers. Make it customer focused rather than company focused, by trying these techniques:

1. Avoid the “It’s All About Us” Syndrome: The website, surely, has to describe your services and sell your product. But it doesn’t have to do that to the exclusion of meeting your customers’ needs. Can your customer find what they need at all? Can they get their questions answered? Can they get further help from a person if needed? If your website is filled only with words telling how wonderful you are, you’re making it harder for the customer to solve their problem.

2. Provide topics that the reader needs: The website should catch the reader’s attention because there’s a benefit for the reader to be there. In fact, you can even provide topics that explain what the reader needs. Whether you are listing reasons why they should use your services, or you are sharing blogs, the reader needs to see the WIIFM – the What’s In It For Me.

3. Don’t lose credibility: Be sure any claims you make on your site can be backed up. Have customer testimonials, real examples, demonstrations, and/or pictures. If the customers doubt your intentions, they won’t dance with you anymore.

4. Engage the readers: Provide places for the readers to give your company feedback, whether through a link to your Twitter or Facebook site, or through a forum.  Readers are more likely to come back to your site if they feel they are not only gaining information from it, but also contributing to it. Related Links, Live Chat, or membership privileges all engage the visitor.

5. Make it an Easy Sell: We’ve all been on those websites that took so many clicks to find what we were looking for, we gave up. Make the sections easy to find, easy to click, and easy to get back from.

Use these techniques to build a website that focuses on the customer’s needs instead of the company’s needs, and see if you don’t get better responses to your website.

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September 22nd, 2009

7 Ways to Leverage Your Advertising

by Jay Abraham, author, The Sticking Point Solution

It's all about leverage

It's all about leverage

If advertising is currently your main driver of sales, you can make surprisingly minor and easy changes in your existing advertising that will produce major results – and you won’t have to spend a dime. There are several  leverage factors at your immediate disposal, each of which can increase sales 20 to 500 percent:

1. Write great headlines: No matter how good the rest of your ad is, your audience won’t ever see it if they don’t get past the headline. Your headline must telegraph to your prospects the biggest, most appealing specific benefit or payoff they can expect to receive. It must be catchy and contain key words that will pop up from the page.

2. Set yourself apart: Distinguish your business from every other competitor by addressing an obvious void in the marketplace that you alone can honestly fill. Set your prospects’ buying criteria for them, so that only you, your business, or your product can clear the bar. Focus on one specific, relevant niche that is most sorely lacking in the marketplace and make it your own.

3. Offer proof to build your credibility: Provide substantiation for your claims, including client testimonials, quotes from experts, and excerpts of media articles about your product. Contrast your performance, construction, or support with the competitions’.

4. Reverse your customers’ risk: Put the onus on yourself. Tell your clients that you’ll offer a full refund, or at least some element of the transaction. Taking the burden of risk off a client will result in higher (and quicker) sales.

5. Include a call to action: Now that your audience has read your ad, don’t make their next step ambiguous. Tell them exactly what to do, why to do it, what benefits they can expect – and what penalties or dangers will result from delay. “Call now!” “Visit our store!” Such phrases may sound old school, but they’re still in use for a reason.

6. Offer a bonus: Whether it’s a coupon, a discount, an extended warranty, or the promise of preferential treatment, a bonus on top of your already fabulous product or service proposition can only further entice and multiply sales. “Be one of the first to join and receive a free companion book!”

7. Summarize your offer: By summarizing your offer at the end of your ad, you are seizing the moment to “Bring it home”:  Reiterate the problem you are able to solve, the benefits your buyers will gain, and the upside with no downside. Then tell them again how to act now.

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Jay Abraham, author of The Sticking Point Solution: 9 Ways to Move Your Business From Stagnation to Stunning Growth In Tough Economic Times, is founder and CEO of Abraham Group, Inc., in Los Angeles, California and has spent the last twenty-five years increasing the bottom lines for over 10,000 clients in more than 400 industries worldwide.

Learn more about Jay Abraham at www.abraham.com

Reprinted with permission.

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The 60 Second Marketer is a free online magazine brought to you by BKV Interactive and Direct Response. We try to provide quick updates on the newest tools, tips and techniques in marketing. We also try to accomplish that with a dose of humor or levity. As it turns out, we're pretty good at providing tools, tips and techniques, but we're not actually all that funny. Which would explain why people don't call us "funny" as much as they call us "laughable." Bummer. Our offices, for those of you who are interested, are located in Atlanta (404-233-0332) and Kansas City (913-648-8333). We also have offices on Bora Bora, but they don't have the phones installed yet.

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