By Jane K Stimmler
Nearly all the organizations we work with are highly attuned to “branding.” They understand the importance of establishing and maintaining identities for their businesses – and differentiating themselves from the herd. But branding itself is rapidly changing and it is important to acknowledge and embrace the change. With so many market dynamics competing for customer attention and loyalty, a successful branding strategy must be relevant, innovative and inspirational to get people to listen and pay attention.

Here are some ways to keep your branding fresh and stay in the forefront –

Know your audience
We often take for granted the obvious – who is our audience? Often there are multiple constituencies with whom you will want to communicate. Take the time to regularly review who they are, the best way to reach them, and what they need and want.

Constantly refresh your brand
Many organizations find it difficult to pinpoint and agree upon their branding strategy. So much so that once it is in place, they‘d prefer to stay with what they have than revisit the process to get there. Yet in this complex and dynamic marketing world, brands need regular refreshing. Assess your branding every year and consider what your organization is doing and saying. Is it still on point? What needs a tune-up?

Keep your message simple – and inspirational
Communicating your message in a straightforward and focused way is key. Trying to be all things to all people dilutes your message and ability to be heard. What makes you distinctive? Decide on your primary and secondary audiences and craft a simple, strong message for each. Your brand and message should have the power to inspire and motivate.

Involve everyone you can
As you are touting your brand to the outside world, don’t forget your staffers. The people inside the organization can be a huge asset (or not) to your branding effort. You will want to involve them by sharing the messaging and the reasoning for it, giving them tools to help them spread the word and asking them for feedback “from the field.”

Branding is more than a logo and tagline. It is a culture that is the lifeblood of your organization. So dig in and see where you stand. Uncover the positive branding/messaging changes that might be in order – and embrace them.

by Jane K Stimmler

I know. Your inbox is overflowing with emails – many of them unwanted and unread. So why would your organization want to use email as a marketing tool? According to a recent McKinsey article, “Why Marketers Should Keep Sending You Emails (January 2014),” emailing works. That is our experience as well with client communications. And, as in all good communication, all aspects of your emailing marketing should be given attention so as to accurately reflect your brand and maximize value of the message.

McKinsey recommends several areas which can help you “harness the full power of the inbox.”

While it is crucial to give attention to all the visual and content aspects of your email campaign, it is equally important to send viewers to the optimal landing page when they click for more information. The “click- through” should be relevant, interesting and support the messaging. And, according to McKinsey’s survey, nearly 45% of all marketing emails are opened on a mobile device, so it is important to give attention to the way the message displays on that platform.

Since “the best marketing organizations view every e-mail as an opportunity to learn more about their consumer,” track your results, including the open rate and click-throughs, as well as any feedback you receive. Use lessons learned to tweak your next campaign – analyze those results, adjust and so on. Your email campaigns should always be evolving to meet the needs and capture the attention of your clients/prospects.

Separating your firm – and emails – from the pack is difficult. In order to stand out, however, the more targeted the message and content, the better. Everyone who receives the email should feel that it contains some kernel that is of interest and importance to them. To achieve this, your business may want to tailor email campaigns to different client groups.

In our quickly evolving market, email usage has actually decreased as individuals are pulled to the newest technologies such as instant messaging and social networks. Still, it remains an important marketing tool on which businesses should remain focused.

by Jane K Stimmler
with Katie Boyle

In today’s complex world in which we are all bombarded with information, it’s challenging to get your message heard and your brand established. Social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter and Linked In have become a key part of the mix. Yet, nearly 40% of businesses are not marketing through social media, according to a survey by Eloqua. There are several reasons why this may be so. Often if the decision-makers aren’t users of social media, they discount its value. Frequently, companies aren’t certain exactly what social media will do for them – or how to implement a program. In any of these cases, they may be losing out. Especially if their competitors are savvy in using social media.

Here are some thoughts on how to connect, deliver and engage with your organization’s social media efforts.

Consider your strategy
What are your objectives? Are you trying to create brand awareness? Gain clients? Think about who you are trying to reach, and tailor the messaging toward the audience’s needs/interests – as well as your objectives.

Keep a sharp eye on content
Be sure content is concise, relevant and varied. Don’t be afraid to link to articles, promote events, post appropriate photos and pose questions. Engaging users is a long-term process and you’ll want to try different techniques.

Assign responsibility
Social media, as a relatively new and growing area, needs to be assigned to a team accountable for planning, publishing and monitoring A small team representing different areas of the organization is ideal for this task.

Plan ahead
Create a calendar containing your social media publishing schedule. Review this each week to ensure that your messages are timely and all get posted. Ensure everyone knows his or her responsibilities to avoid double posting and conflicts in information. Meet regularly to assess the response received and plan the next group of posts.

Creating a strong social media platform takes time and the ROI is difficult to measure. It’s still early in the s.m. game – and many organizations don’t stay with it. But as Scott Monty, Ford’s global digital/multimedia communications manager, has said: “What’s the ROI of putting your pants on every day? It’s hard to measure but there’s negative consequences for not doing it. The same goes for social media marketing.”

by Jane K Stimmler

I became intrigued by a video recently passed along by a Facebook friend. In it, Simon Sinek, author of Start With Why, talked about the premise of his book, which is: “People don’t buy WHAT you do, they buy WHY you do it.” He states that clients/buyers come to you because they believe what you believe – and that successful firms understand this and hire people who share their beliefs and can inspire others. I started thinking about Sinek’s ideas and how they might apply to my business as well as my clients’. The more thought I’ve given to it, the more it makes sense.

According to Sinek, most sales and marketing programs begin by conveying what the selling organization does and how the organization differs from competitors. Few marketers get to telling the “why am I doing it” part of the equation. Instead, Sinek suggests, the process should be reversed. Successful organizations, he says, begin their communication with the “why.” They talk about the purpose of their work, what they and their organization believe, why they are doing what they do. This instills confidence – and, more importantly, draws together clients and organizations who believe in similar core values.

Sinek says, “You have to earn trust by communicating and demonstrating that you share the same values and beliefs. You have to talk about your WHY and prove it with WHAT you do. Again, a WHY is just a belief, HOWs are the actions we take to realize that belief, and WHATs are the results of those actions. When all three are in balance, trust is built and value is perceived.”

It strikes me that this philosophy, while it can apply to any type of company, is particularly well-matched to firms that offer services, rather than products. For example, in the case of a law firm or other professional service firm, potential clients are often making a decision to purchase something intangible. The people who are marketing (and often performing) the service must find a way to distinguish themselves. If a prospective client believes in the people he or she will be working with, it is certainly easier to make the decision to hire them.

Does your organization communicate its core beliefs, ethics and mission? Does each employee understand these and buy in to the thinking? Do your marketing and messaging reflect your values? If not, it might be time to reflect on your “why.”

by Jane K Stimmler

Want to have a prosperous, successful year ahead? We all do! Perhaps you have specific goals and targets to meet, or maybe you simply want to do a little (or a lot) better than last year. Either way, you need a plan of action. Here are some thoughts to keep in mind as you tackle the year ahead.

Determine priorities: It’s decision time. Since you cannot do everything and be everywhere, you need to realistically decide on your priorities. For example, is it critical to acquire new clients/customers or should you work to retain and expand the clients you already have? Will you need to develop or repackage services to achieve your goals?

Stay focused: Once you’ve decided on your priorities, keep your eye on the ball. It’s easy to get diverted from your mission and all of a sudden find yourself spending time on activities that don’t align with your plans. Assess your progress regularly to insure that you are on track.

Evaluate your resources: Most of us do not operate alone and need the help of our team to accomplish work goals. If you have promised a deliverable to a client, is there any doubt that it can and will get done? As you embark on your plan, be sure you have the resources you need to follow through.

Target your markets and messages: Targeting is the name of the game, so each client expects you to understand and address his or her specific needs. Industry, age, gender, ethnicity – all of these should be considered as you approach your prospects, and your messaging should be specifically targeted to your audience.

Distinguish yourself: There’s a lot of noise and competition in the marketplace. In order to break through, you need to distinguish yourself from the pack. Think about what makes you and your service unique, and brand yourself accordingly.

Hopefully, these thoughts will be helpful as you launch your plans for 2013. Happy New Year!

by Jane K Stimmler

You may think it’s never going to happen. But there’s always the possibility that something will occur that has the potential to impact your organization negatively. When – and if – this situation occurs, your best antidote is to be prepared. I’ve handled a number of ‘crisis communication’ situations – a disgruntled employee stirring up trouble, a financial downturn which comes to public attention, company news which leaks out prematurely. All these situations were, rightly, of great concern to their organizations.

The effect of negative news has the potential for significant financial, reputational and personnel ramifications. The way in which situations like the ones described above are handled will determine the extent of the damage done to the organization. My advice? Expect the unexpected, and take out an ‘insurance policy’ to deal with potential problems. Here’s how:

Have a plan for dealing with crises.

Recognize the wild cards that could occur and include, in your operational thinking, a plan for dealing with them. Think about some of the negative things that could possibly occur, and try to forecast what would be needed to combat the situation.

Designate your team for handling the situation.

The team would likely include at least one top executive who is the decision-maker, legal counsel and a communications expert. Depending on the circumstances, you might need financial or other expertise. When you select the individuals to handle a crisis, whether they are in-house or external, their discretion is paramount.

Put everyone on call for the eventuality.

Gather the group together and explain the objective of the crisis team. Each member should have a list of everyone in the group with emergency contact information. If and when a crisis occurs, all members should be reachable immediately so the matter can be dealt with in a timely and effective way.

Handle the situation – and move on.

By taking these steps, you and your organization will be able to avoid the “drip drip drip” of negative information that causes so many problems. Addressing whatever has occurred quickly and accurately is half the battle in crisis communications.

By being prepared, selecting the right people and dealing with the situation, your organization will be in the best position to limit the damage of any crisis.

by Jane K. Stimmler

I recently attended a client symposium at which the discussion centered on how to shape your business model to address the issues of this changing, technology-based world. The participants were high end media photographers whose business has been greatly – and negatively – impacted by the fact that everyone who owns a smart phone is now a “photographer.” In this digital age, with everyone taking photos and posting them online, how does a professional photographer continue to be relevant and valuable? It was a fascinating discussion.

With new technology coming fast and furious, it can feel a lot like your business is under siege. In the past few years, most of us have seen new forms of competition, changing methods of service delivery and different expectations from clients. So much information is now available online that your clients may believe they are now experts in your field. They may feel that they can do some or all of the work you do without utilizing your services, or that you should be delivering more for less.

There are many more examples of this “seige.” In my own business, anyone can now go online and get a website template or have a brochure done without the need for a marketing firm. Even the legal profession is not safe – well-known attorney Robert Shapiro is on television marketing a number of legal documents that can be obtained through his website. And the examples go on.

The bottom line is that we all have to be attentive to our individual competitive climates and be sure we are adapting our businesses to be in the forefront of our professions.

• Do you monitor and assess who your current competitors are and the different ways they are marketing their services?  The nature of your competition may have changed. 
• Are you offering value above and beyond your competition? Clients are demanding truly customized solutions these days – otherwise, they’ll go elsewhere. With all the “free” info out there in cyberspace, you may want to think about giving clients and prospects something valuable in the way of research or other information to showcase your organization’s expertise.
• Do you use all available marketing tools? You may need to use varied marketing tactics to reach your customer/client base. Your tech-savvy clients will be open to different forms of social media and other web-based tools while other segments of your base may be more “old school.”
• Do you keep your message fresh?  Are you reflecting the changing conditions of your business or profession as you communicate and giving your clients/prospects solid reasons to come to you? 

It’s more important than ever to stay on top of the ever-changing business environment and show that you’re organization is current, fresh and relevant.

By Jane K. Stimmler

You’ve arrived at an event that you believe will help you professionally – perhaps a meeting of a business organization or community group where you hope to see people you know and meet new contacts. You are investing your time, perhaps money too, to be there. So how can you make the most of this opportunity, and hopefully have an enjoyable time as well? There are a few do’s and don’ts to keep in mind.

DO:

• Have a “goal” in mind for the event. Why are you there? What do you want to gain from the event (meeting people, gaining information, being seen)?
• Be inclusive to others even if you are in a group. You never know who you’ll meet and who might know the person standing beside you.
• Make introductions liberally. It reflects well on you as a connector of people, and you’ll find others returning the favor.
• Be conscious of having a pleasant, welcoming manner. Resolve to put away your frustrations from the last meeting you had, or the chaos at home for the duration of the event.
• Have your promotional “script” in mind (also known as the elevator speech) when someone asks what you do. Be prepared to give a clear and brief summary that opens the door to further discussion.

DON’T:

• Shrink into a corner if you don’t see immediately see someone you know. Even though it may be a bit uncomfortable, position yourself to see and be seen.
• Scan the room like a shark when you should be paying attention to the person you’re talking with. There’s nothing more annoying and, through this behavior, you are showing disrespect.
• Stick like glue to the one person you know.  You won’t meet anyone new that way and a networking event isn’t the best time to go in-depth on a personal conversation.
• Hesitate to approach the speaker or someone else you want to meet, even if they don’t know you. Just summon your courage and introduce yourself with a conversation starter like – “I was very interested in your presentation because…”
• Take cell phone calls in the middle of a conversation. Unless it’s an emergency, it’s a real distraction.

I’ve seen many otherwise self-assured individuals panic at the prospect of walking into a room of “strangers” at a networking event. While there’s no doubt it can be a bit daunting – remember, we’ve all been there. The benefits are many and after you have a few successes, you’ll feel a great deal more confident and comfortable.