In the business-to-business model, a [...]]]> Companies solely focused on selling to other businesses, and not to general consumer audiences, often put all of their promotional resources into sales. They are frequently quick to write off advertising and publicity. That’s usually a mistake. A good marketing program should include investments in both a sales force and advertising.

In the business-to-business model, a sales team traditionally is the most efficient use of your marketing dollars. It’s a simple formula: Hire people who make most or all of their salaries based on their level of sales. Instead of waiting for the phone to ring, a member of your team promotes your company to targeted types of businesses — and hopefully gets to the decision-makers. If a salesperson isn’t productive, then you can invest in someone else. It’s easy to measure your return on investment.

Companies selling business-to-business are smart to also wage an “air war” of creating awareness and demand for their products and services. Creating that demand and a strong brand demonstrates forward thinking in your company’s overall strategy.

You think the Xerox copier salesman has an easier job selling his or her product over the competing brand? Yup! Besides Xerox being a leading brand since the infancy of the photocopy, the company has continued to invest in advertising. You’ve likely seen Xerox’s ads touting quality and productivity. So when you’re in the market for a new multifunction office machine, Xerox is top of mind. That’s when advertising puts the wind at the back of your sales team.

But for companies lacking Xerox’s mega-TV advertising budget, there are more targeted vehicles for successful business-to-business branding and awareness campaigns. If certain types of businesses are more likely to buy your product or service, buy ads and do publicity in trade newspapers and magazines that serve those industries. If you have broader business appeal, but are limited to a geographic region, ads in business sections of newspapers and business journals and local radio or TV news-report sponsorships can be affordable media to beat the drum of awareness.

Most certainly in business-to-business marketing, direct mail is a key component. You can develop, and even buy, mail and e-mail lists of the companies you want to market to. Direct mail, in the form of postcards, sales letters, newsletters and catalogs, can be put right into the mailboxes of the people most likely to do business with you.

In business-to-business marketing, a good sales force is critical. Advertising and publicity to support your sales effort will magnify your program.

Josh Sommers is president and CEO of Focus Media, a leading Hudson Valley advertising and public relations agency. He can be reached at josh@advertisingandpr.com or 294-3342, ext. 303. Read his blog at www.advertisingandpr.com.

We’re inundated by thousands of messages per day. Your ads have to stand out to get noticed. So, make [...]]]> Making the investment in advertising, building and maintain a Web site and developing collateral, like brochures, are worthy investments. Professional design of these marketing elements is important. But great marketing pieces all start with the right message.

We’re inundated by thousands of messages per day. Your ads have to stand out to get noticed. So, make your messages compelling, and to the point. Don’t let the words in your ads die of mediocrity, but at the same time, don’t get too cute. If you don’t provide clarity to the reader, viewer or listener of your ad, then you’re simply throwing your money out. Make sure your ads clearly convey who you are and what you offer.

Your advertising copy should be relevant. Always remind yourself who your target audience is for the ad. Larger companies, often times do extensive research with focus groups to get feedback on their ads prior to running them. For most companies without mega-million advertising budgets, it’s important to ensure that your advertisement development process keeps the end user in mind that you want to attract. That means avoiding the use of insider industry terms and always putting your ads to a relevancy test.

One of the biggest mistakes made by companies when developing ads is not having a strong call to action — or even one at all. Yes, there’s always a place for general branding ads. But most small companies have to make every advertising dollar count — and make the phone ring. Make sure your advertising messaging tells the audience what the next step is, like call you or go to your Web site. Beyond those basic elements, consider also a call to action that creates more immediacy to your ad, like limited time discounts and special incentives. These offers should not be hidden in small print, but prominent and easy to find.

Great ads don’t start with a picture or music. They start with the right messaging. Make your ads compelling to get your company attention, and ensure that they are relevant to your desired audiences. All ads, unless you have money to burn, should have a call to action, and when possible, a reason for the potential customer to call sooner rather than later.

Josh Sommers is president and CEO of Focus Media, a Hudson Valley advertising and public relations agency. He can be reached at josh@advertisingandpr.com or 294-3342, ext. 303. Read his blog at www.advertisingandpr.com.

While creating general awareness through television, print and radio are important components for many campaigns, the marriage between research and the targeted marketing in politics is intriguing.

Political campaigns lead [...]]]> I’ve always been of the mind that well-run political campaigns are on the forefront of the latest in effective research, branding, marketing, publicity and social media strategies.

While creating general awareness through television, print and radio are important components for many campaigns, the marriage between research and the targeted marketing in politics is intriguing.

Political campaigns lead most industries in the realm of research. Consultants leverage polling to get the lay of the land, including their candidate’s approval rating and what issues are most important to voters. After a candidate’s ranking in a contest is determined, a campaign often tests messages that might enhance their position. The “Did you know this about the opponent?” and, “If so, does that change your mind?” questions are invaluable. Some confuse this form of research with a push poll, but it actually arms a political campaign with solid information on what messages might sway voters in an election contest.

Political consultants are kings of targeted marketing. This takes many forms, like e-mail, volunteer-driven phone banks and robocalls, door-to-door, and of course, direct mail. Unlike other forms of advertising, direct mail can ensure that your message reaches the homes of the voters you want to talk to.

In a political campaign, it is a very efficient use of a marketing dollar because you can keep your spending within the boundaries of a candidate’s district and not waste resources on the almost 50 percent of the people who don’t typically vote.

A campaign can also market specifically to political parties and other groups with segmented messages. For example, a Republican candidate with a liberal stance on social issues may benefit from a specific mailing to just Democrats.

More sophisticated campaigns identify trends in polls to conduct micro-targeted outreach to particular demographics. Voter records only show party affiliation, where voters lives and how often they vote.

But trends in polls may give your campaign data on what groups are more likely to support your candidate.

A campaign can then spend more time promoting its agenda to those groups. That’s done by overlaying demographic indicators and voter lists to reconcile with the favorable groups identified in the polling (Sorry, but there’s not enough room to explain that this week).

Political marketing is a sophisticated business. This election season, take note — there will be some great marketing going on.

Josh Sommers is president and CEO of Focus Media, a leading Hudson Valley advertising and public relations agency. He can be reached at josh@advertisingandpr.com or 294-3342, ext. 303. Read his blog at www.advertisingandpr.com.

BP and Tiger [...]]]> Your brand is not necessarily your own. Imagine comparing your reaction to seeing the BP logo a year ago to how you would respond today after the environmental disaster the company created. And I bet the warm-and-fuzzy feeling a Tiger Woods picture gave you last year likely gives you a different feeling now.

BP and Tiger Woods are recent case studies in how you can lose control of your brand. Although it’s possible to take a misstep and have your brand plummet, in most circumstances a proactive approach in managing your image can really pay off.

Your brand has many moving parts. There are the visual aspects, like your logo, font and color choices, and the look and feel of your website. While important in attempting to visually convey your company’s attributes, they actually play a small role in defining your company’s image in the marketplace.

Third parties can help

One of the bigger moving parts to successfully shape your brand is to actively seek influential third parties to endorse you, or at least spread positive messages about your company. A proactive public relations campaign is a great way to do that. The observations of independent journalists carry a lot more weight than any paid advertisement.

News stories about your company will not only raise your profile, but also will give you more credibility. My firm always advises our clients to use such news-media placements in collateral materials like brochures and mailings, and on the company website. That way, this type of “earned media” keeps working for you, long after it first appears in the news.

Ad programs valuable

Like general marketing, brand management can also benefit from well-conceived advertising programs. First, audiences realize you are paying to make the claims you use in your advertising messaging, so never overstate or embellish. Make your statements credible and believable. Also, create high-impact, memorable advertising. It’s challenging to build a solid brand on paid media alone, but if leveraged well, it can be another important touch point in building your brand.

A terrific way to make your advertising pop is to utilize testimonials. Similar to the goals of a public relations program, testimonials in advertising give your paid ad the third-party endorsement it’s missing. So if a patient says your hospital’s advanced emergency department saved his life, or if a celebrity endorses your product line, it adds that touch of credibility to make your advertising more effective.

Brand management takes time, and you can be derailed by circumstances that are not necessarily in your control. But a sustained brand management program can strengthen the demand for your company or product — and even bolster your bottom line.

Josh Sommers is president and CEO of Focus Media, a leading Hudson Valley advertising and public relations agency. He can be reached at josh@advertisingandpr.com or 294-3342, ext. 303. Read his blog at www.advertisingandpr.com.

That’s pretty amazing for a 30-to 60-second advertisement. I bet an Internet advertisement or piece of direct mail never had the same effect on you. Last week, I [...]]]> Granted it might not happen every day, but many of us have, at some point, been so touched by a television commercial that it moved us to tears.

That’s pretty amazing for a 30-to 60-second advertisement. I bet an Internet advertisement or piece of direct mail never had the same effect on you. Last week, I wrote about the ability of television advertising to reach broad or more specialized market segments, but just as important is the fact that the sensory experience television provides can create a powerful connection between your product or service and the audience. That’s why thoughtful creation of television productions is key.

Expensive option

Television is one of the most expensive options. First, you have to buy enough frequency and coverage to make a television advertising buy effective. Next, your ad has to be done right. A poorly produced spot can make the most expensive advertising buy worthless. You’re actually better off not doing television time unless you can back it up with a great commercial.

Rarely do I write that you absolutely need to hire a professional to do your marketing, but in the case of television production, there should not be any compromise. The last thing you want is your brother-in-law, who does a great job with home videos, creating the spot for your $30,000 high-definition cable buy. In addition to services offered directly by the television stations and cable companies, there are many advertising and creative agencies that can provide the quality you need to maximize the effectiveness of your advertising.

Make your product goals clear

If the agency does not work with you on a consistent basis, make sure the producer takes the time to understand your company and the goals of your marketing program. That includes an understanding of your product and how it relates to the target audience. Only then can a great and relevant ad be conceived.

Television advertising can be a very effective way to reach your target audience. Be prepared to make the time and financial investment to fully leverage television’s ability to create a memorable and emotional connection to your company’s offerings.

Josh Sommers is president and CEO of Focus Media, a leading Hudson Valley advertising and public relations agency. He can be reached at josh@advertisingandpr.com or 294-3342, ext. 303. Read his blog at www.advertisingandpr.com.

One thing that certainly did test us during the recession was change, and how we communicated it. While change done strategically can create better efficiencies and leaner [...]]]> The Great Recession may be over, but it will continue to impact how we think, and rethink, our business strategy for years, even for the remainder of our careers.

One thing that certainly did test us during the recession was change, and how we communicated it. While change done strategically can create better efficiencies and leaner operating budgets, communicating change or crisis effectively to employees can soften negative impacts.

For larger, higher-profile organizations, a common breakdown of internal communication and trust occurs when employees learn of company troubles through the news media or rumors, without a word from management. Smart companies find that open communication with employees during challenging times builds trust. Sometimes, it even opens a forum for fresh ideas of ways to help the company recover from the crisis. This type of internal communication is much better than allowing outside forces do it for you.

Another significant benefit of maintaining an open dialogue with employees is providing a consistent, accurate and managed message for your customers. If your company is in the midst of a crisis and staff members only have secondhand information, employees can quickly become resentful of tight-lipped management. In addition, company leadership sitting silently can motivate employees with an uncertain future to poison your customers’ confidence in your company.

Looping your team members in and managing their message to the public is a vital communications step. Engage your employees with information, including how potential new developments may affect them. If your company’s changes are in the public realm or will directly affect your customers, invest in a well-planned training program for your workers in advance of the transition. You want all of your employees delivering the same, consistent message to your customers.

In addition to developing an internal and external communications strategy, make sure to include key members of your team, such as human resource officials and managers who oversee frontline staff.

A poorly implemented plan during crisis or change can result in poor staff morale, loss of employees you want to keep, and a diminished bottom line.

Josh Sommers is president and CEO of Focus Media, a leading Hudson Valley advertising and public relations agency. He can be reached at josh@advertisingandpr.com or 294-3342, ext. 303. Read his blog at www.advertisingandpr.com.

Martin Luther King Jr. repeated “I have a dream” in his famous speech at the Lincoln Memorial in 1963. Business [...]]]> Staying on message is one of the most fundamental rules of any type of external and internal communications. IBM repeated the word “excellence” in its advertising during the 1980s until the lines became part of pop culture.

Martin Luther King Jr. repeated “I have a dream” in his famous speech at the Lincoln Memorial in 1963.
Business legends Jack Welch of General Electric and Lee Iacocca of Chrysler were also masters at picking a few messages to communicate to employees and repeating and reinforcing them for optimal effect.

Obama fails to stay on message

President Barack Obama’s failure to stay on message during the seven-week BP oil spill crisis is responsible for mounting public discontent with his handling of this terrible incident.

In a recent USA Today/Gallup survey, 53 percent of respondents rate Obama’s response to the oil spill as “poor” or “very poor.” In fact, many pundits are now predicting that his comments on Tuesday that he wanted to “know whose ass to kick” and that he would have fired BP CEO Tony Hayward may heighten the criticism being aimed at him. Can anyone say “Katrina?”

A crisis of communication

Obama’s message has been mixed from the start of this crisis, and now he will pay the consequences. From a crisis communications perspective, Obama’s reaction was too slow – he didn’t visit the Gulf until 18 days after the spill – and his message has been inconsistent. At first, Obama declared BP solely responsible for the spill and said the company was “acting at our direction.” Three weeks later, he talks about firing Hayward and beating up someone. Pardon me, but this isn’t a clear and consistent message.

Consider the case of Ashland Inc. In 1988, a storage tank collapsed at the company’s facility near Pittsburgh and dumped four million gallons of diesel fuel, including 700,000 gallons into the Monongahela River that threatened the drinking water of many nearby communities.
Ashland’s ensuing response is now considered textbook procedure for handling major crises. Here are the key elements of Ashland’s recipe for crisis management that was developed after the 1988 incident:
* Go to the site immediately.
* Get firsthand information.
* Marshal your resources and equipment to clean up the mess.
* Communicate consistently with the media.
* Stay on the job until the danger is gone.

I think Obama failed on every one of these points.

With Hurricane Katrina so fresh in the minds of the American public, it is rather surprising that the Obama administration has lost control of this crisis.
The BP spill has become the worst environmental accident in U.S. history and may continue for several more months. As the crisis grows, Americans will look to point a finger at someone. At this point, BP and Obama are in their crosshairs.

Josh Sommers is president and CEO of Focus Media, a leading Hudson Valley advertising and public relations agency. He can be reached at josh@advertisingandpr.com or 294-3342, ext. 303. Read his blog at www.advertisingandpr.com.

Ever since the April 20th fire on an oil rig that killed 11 people, an estimated 210,000 gallons of crude oil a [...]]]> By Josh Sommers

The BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is now considered the nation’s worst environmental disaster in decades and will have devastating consequences for years to come.

Ever since the April 20th fire on an oil rig that killed 11 people, an estimated 210,000 gallons of crude oil a day have been leaking into the Gulf of Mexico. BP is spending $7 million a day to try to stop the leak, clean up the spill and mitigate economic impact. Meanwhile, the Justice Department has launched an investigation into the accident and the day-to-day developments are on the front page of newspapers worwldwide.

BP, which leased the oil rig from the Swiss company Transocean, now faces a crisis that threatens its long-term viability. Since the accident, the company’s falling stock price has cut more than $30 billion from its market value and protests against the company are intensifying. Earlier this month, BP was targeted by both “60 Minutes” and “Saturday Night Live” in the same weekend.

In a fight for its life, BP’s ongoing response provides valuable lessons as a snapshot of how major corporations mobilize to solve serious problems.

First, BP took full responsibility for the cleanup and focused all of its resources on the crisis. To date, BP has sent 19,000 workers and 650 vessels to the scene. It has deployed 1.7 million feet of floating barriers that are designed to hold back oil that floats to the surface. BP has publicly committed to paying legitimate claims for loss and damage caused by the spill that could include property damage and the loss of earnings and profits. To date, it has received 15,000 claims and has paid 2,600 of them.

Next, BP retained one of the world’s leading public relations agencies, Brunswick Group, to help communicate the company’s actions to the public. The company is providing information through a wide array of channels, including its website, traditional media, Twitter and www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com, a site built specifically for the crisis. The company has opened a 24-hour phone line for volunteers and for claims related to the spill.

The use of electronic tools has allowed BP to respond faster and more precisely to new developments. For example, when media reports alleged that BP was attempting to convince fishermen to sign waivers holding BP harmless from certain claims, BP responded on Twitter: “We’ve assured fishermen’s association that fishermen offering services are not required to sign a waiver.”

The use of video on its website has also helped convey the depth of BP’s response. In one video, BP CEO Tony Hayward explains the cleanup while a room full of busy-looking employees buzz behind him, giving viewers a glimpse into the hectic cleanup process that they don’t get from a typical media interview. Hayward has also served as the firm’s primary spokesperson, an effective public relations tactic used often by Fortune 500 firms to help emphasize the importance of the issue.

The cause of this spill may be debated for years, but BP’s public relations response has been bold, comprehensive and proactive.

It has deployed traditional public relations tactics coupled with interactive and social media tools to explain its response and demonstrate compassion for those affected by the spill. In today’s world, this is a terrific case study on how to react to a public relations crisis.

Josh Sommers is president and CEO of Focus Media, a leading Hudson Valley advertising and public relations agency. He can be reached at josh@advertisingandpr.com or 294-3342, ext. 303. Read his blog at www.advertisingandpr.com. His column appears Fridays.