Download How to get close to your customers

With compliments of
Willow Printing Group
Engaging Marketing Minds
Vol. 1, Issue 3, July/August 2014
Hyper
local
How to
get close
to your
customers
INSIDE
Oh no he didn’t
Best social sites
for engagement
The power of a question
Connecting
your brand with
the right audience,
at the right time.
Willow Printing Group is our first choice when building a sales and marketing
campaign. We trust that Willow understands our business and responds quickly
to ensure we design a campaign that incorporates all media options.
Vivian Shaw, Summitview Homes
Want to make better connections?
Call 905-660-1515 ext. 224 or email [email protected] to find out how.
publisher’s letter
The only trend
that matters
E
very year, the pundits present the hottest trends in marketing. They highlight the latest
in social networks, mobile access and content strategy. But one trend that will never go
out of style is being customer centric. No matter what channel you choose to use, connecting is what matters. Regardless of the vehicle, you’re defined by the company you keep.
When leadership teams discuss their value, the talk always comes back to the client.
While there is an unrelenting need to define yourself by the products you make or the services you provide, the fact is that your value cannot rest within those items alone. You simply
cannot be defined by what you make because those things can be duplicated, commoditized
and tossed aside for the latest trend.
CONTENTS
No matter what channel you
choose to use, connecting is
what matters. Regardless of the
vehicle, you’re defined by the
company you keep.
06 Getting hyper
Consider a brand like Polo, where the iconic logo means more than the actual clothes. Polo
shirts mean almost nothing without that little horse and jockey attached. But the logo doesn’t
mean anything without the people who want to wear it. The clients who don Polo’s apparel are
aspiring to a higher sense of self. In turn, they wear the logo to say something about who they
are and the communities they associate with.
The greatest marketers understand this premise. Certainly, the avenues of communication are critical, but the overall mindset that focuses on the customers they serve always will
prevail. They realize that what defines them is more about who their clients want to be rather
than the products they produce. As a result, their products and services are a direct reflection
of their communities and their overall value is explicitly clear.
In this issue, we delve into one of those “top trends.” Going hyperlocal typically is relegated to a mobile marketing strategy. But we took a little different spin in “Getting Hyper.”
We believe you can be just as hyperlocal with print or any other marketing service. Either way,
getting up close and personal with your clients is a sustainable trend.
In our second feature, “Oh No He Didn’t,” we highlight the merits of being a little different
with your marketing campaigns. While standing out in the crowd can be difficult, it’s usually a
great way to get noticed.
In that vein, we hope this issue gets you noticed and, as always, we are eager to help you
stand out with your clients. Enjoy the issue and all the best.
14Trending with...
03 Publisher’s Letter
The only trend that matters
04 The Inbox
4 ways you can win the local marketing game
10 Oh no he didn’t
Why out-of-the-box marketing campaigns
can work
Social media expert Dan Grody
15Hook, line and sinker
Which social sites are winning the war
of engagement?
Publisher
Jeff Ekstein
Managing Editor
Linda Whitehead
Art Direction
Brent Cashman
Warmest regards,
connect is published bimonthly
by Willow Printing Group, copyright 2014
All rights reserved
Jeff Ekstein, Publisher
This issue of connect is printed on
StarbritePlus® 100lb Velvet Text available
from Unisource Canada.
For more information visit
www.willowprint.com
Willow Printing Group – connect • July/August 2014
3
The
Inbox
Too much time on
4
their
hands...
July/August 2014 • connect – Willow Printing Group
18
hours a day. That’s how long
Millennials spend on different
types of media per day, according to research by Ipsos
MediaCT, Crowdtap and the Social Media
Advertising Consortium. The research also
shows that on a daily basis Millennials prioritize social networking above all other
media types, with 71 percent saying they
engage in social media daily. Also of note,
of the information they consume, Millennials trust user generated content (UGC) 50
percent more than information from other
media sources, including TV, newspapers
and magazines.
A More
Beautiful
Question:
We’re constantly working to keep
younger consumers engaged by
tapping into their passion points via
social media, mobile, music and
design. We want to be involved
with our consumers in a way that
means something to them.
The Power of
Inquiry to Spark
Breakthrough Ideas
– Brent Tyler, global brand manager at Zippo, on why the brand
feels it’s important to stay intrinsically connected to Millennials
By Warren Berger
It starts with a question.
In his new book, journalist and innovation expert
Warren Berger shows
that one of the most
powerful forces for igniting change in business
and in our daily lives is
a simple, under-appreciated tool – one that has
been available to each of us since childhood.
Questioning can help us identify and solve
problems, come up with game-changing ideas
and pursue fresh opportunities.
In “A More Beautiful Question: The Power of Inquiry to Spark Breakthrough Ideas,”
Berger shows us why we often are reluctant
to simply ask, “Why?” Even though children
start out asking hundreds of questions a day,
the art of questioning “falls off a cliff” as kids
enter school. Berger details why that in an
education and business culture devised to
reward rote answers over challenging inquiry
questioning isn’t encouraged and, in fact, is
sometimes barely tolerated.
Going inside the world of businesses such
as Google, Netflix, IDEO and Airbnb, Berger details how the most creative, successful people
tend to be expert questioners. Through inspiring
stories of artists, teachers, entrepreneurs, basement tinkerers and social activists, you can see
how a simple question can change the world
around you.
In a time when reinvigorating your business
models is paramount, you may want this book
and its strategy at the center of your reinvention.
W
ell, at least they
admit that being
on the same page
is good for business. According to the “CMOs and
CFOs: Collision or Collaboration” report from Active
International, chief marketing officers and chief financial officers agree they
should be on the same
page with each other: 77
percent of CMOs and 76
percent of CFOs deem such
alignment highly important.
Interestingly, the CMOs and
CFOs surveyed are less
sure about how that coordination affects the bottom
line, with only 45 percent
of each group saying misalignment has a moderate
or higher negative impact
on the financial results of
their company.
62
The percent of small businesses that plan to spend the
majority of their 2014 annual marketing budget on retaining
existing customers rather than trying to acquire new ones,
according to the “Big Customer Loyalty in Small Business
World” report by BIA/Kelsey and Manta. The report also
shows that small business owners are spending most of
their time investing in existing customer relationships, with
56 percent spending less than 25 percent of their time on
efforts related to new customer acquisitions.
Willow Printing Group – connect • July/August 2014
5
6
July/August 2014 • connect – Willow Printing Group
Getting
4 ways
you can win
the local
marketing
game
hyper
M
By Lorrie Bryan
y local grocery store is like a small-town market from a bygone era. The produce is fresh,
mostly organic and locally grown; the shelves
are stocked with wholesome foods made from the finest natural
ingredients; the butchers, bakers and other employees are friendly
and helpful; the seafood is certified sustainable, the chicken is free-range and
the eggs are cage-free. The air carries the aroma of hearty baking bread, freshly
ground coffee and fresh-cut flowers. In addition to offering all of my
favourite healthy foods, my congenial grocer is a good neighbour.
It donates considerably to area food banks and shelters,
helps local school kids create gardens, makes loans
to area farmers and each month provides breakfast for the
volunteers who keep the nearby beaches clean.
Ironically, this quaint market belongs to a national chain that has become the eighth largest public
food and drug retailer in the country (it ranks No. 232 on the Fortune 500 list). In 2013, it enjoyed
record profits and $13 billion in sales. And its employees love the brand, too. Whole Foods Market
offers terrific benefits and a fun, friendly work atmosphere. The company’s exceptional work culture
has garnered a spot on Fortune magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work For” every year since the
list began in 1998.
Willow Printing Group – connect • July/August 2014
7
Getting hyper
One of the reasons for Whole Foods’ continuing success is its focus on local marketing.
The grocer realized that its customers’ needs
are different and vary from region to region, resulting in region-specific social accounts and
content marketing strategies. It builds tremendous brand loyalty and trust by integrating its
stores into the various communities it serves.
And it all starts with its mission and concurrent strategic marketing plan.
Donna Vieira, VP of marketing for interlinkONE, a software and marketing services company focused on lead generation
activities, says most businesses that serve
consumers could benefit from hyperlocal
marketing strategies.
“For the most part, most small businesses
do need to focus more energy on marketing to
local consumers,” Vieira says. “In 2013, MarketingProfs put out an article that said three
quarters of U.S. consumer spending occurs at
retail locations within 15 miles of the consumers’ homes. That’s a pretty staggering statistic.
When you think of ecommerce, it really shows
the immediate need to market locally, especially if you’re in a B2C environment. I can’t
emphasize enough that it all starts with a solid
marketing plan.”
A marketing plan can include social media, direct mail, mobile messaging and/or automated marketing campaigns. Following are
examples of how you can create loyalty and
trust in your market:
1.
Integrated marketing campaigns
When retailers such as Whole Foods open a new store, they frequently launch
an integrated marketing campaign that begins when local residents receive a
direct-mail invitation to a grand-opening celebration. The invitations typically
include information such as explanation of the company’s mission, a list of local
partnerships and coupons for free merchandise. A select group of local community
and business leaders may receive an invitation to a pre-grand opening that features free food,
local vendor promotions and live music provided by local talent such as an area high school
band ensemble.
“Direct mail is frequently an integral element of successful marketing campaigns.” Said Jeff
Ekstein, Chairman of Printing Industries of America, at the recent Print Leadership Summit. “Especially now with the new CASL legislation in Canada that limits the sending of email campaigns
without express or implied consent. Direct mail continues to be the least intrusive form of advertising, and despite changes in the way we communicate, according to the DMA Response Rate Report
(2012), response rates for direct mail are 30 times higher (3.40% vs. 0.12%) than those for email.
Many successful marketing campaigns begin with an engaging direct mail piece that directs the
reader to take some type of action: download an app, fill out a form, or visit a website or a physical
location. In fact, the 2012 Exact Target Consumer Preferences study showed that 65% of people
have made a purchase as a result of direct mail. When the content is relevant and personalized, the
opportunity to engage, nurture a relationship and build brand loyalty is even greater.” Jeff concluded.
Jeff says that with Canada Post’s UA (Unaddressed Admail) program, it’s easier than ever to
target very specific local markets. In addition, cross promotion strategies, including media advertising
and social media like local Facebook and Twitter, can provide another option to reach area residents.
“For the most
part, most small
businesses do
need to focus more
energy on marketing
to local consumers.
When you think
of ecommerce,
it really shows the
immediate need
to market locally.”
– Donna Vieira,
VP of Marketing, interlinkONE
8
July/August 2014 • connect – Willow Printing Group
2.
Relevant content
Rising popularity of social media compels many business
owners to create a presence
on social media, but Meghan
Skiff, founder of Mixy Marketing,
and an inbound marketing expert, warns that
“having a presence” on social media is not a
sound marketing strategy.
“Business owners need to build their
strategy based on desired outcomes,” she
says. “If the business is looking to leverage
the local community in order to drive revenue, the goal is to take an active role in the
community conversation, initiating and building loyal relationships over time. The focus
should be on the customer, not the network.
Social networks are simply tools to execute
the strategy.”
For example, Whole Foods successfully
engages customers by offering useful, relevant content through a bimonthly 20-page
newsletter that features healthy budget recipes, seasonal deals, recipes for in-season
produce and several pages of store coupons.
Facebook pages share store photos, event
reminders, great recipes and customer reviews. Users of the iPhone and iPad can
download a Whole Foods app that offers
more than 3,000 recipes and the ability to
create a shopping list for a particular recipe
with one click.
3.
Marketing automation
Companies can use vehicles
such as newsletters to get
customers to opt in for timely
reminders on special in-store
events, and weekly specials and coupons via an automated marketing program.
“Automating your marketing is essential in
today’s busy world,” Vieira says. “With newsletters, social media sites, blog posts and your
website to keep up with, you need tools that
can help you stay on track with your goals
without spending huge amounts of time.”
4.
“The businesses that truly take advantage of
local community brand building are building
their own community of supporters within their
physical community.”
– Meghan Skiff, Founder, Mixy Marketing
Unique customer
experiences
And while coupons are
great, Andrew Davis,
author of “Brandscaping,” says that businesses
should not rely on them to build
loyalty. “Brands should think
about creating an experience so
good they don’t need discounts
and promotions. For example,
instead of sending a discount for
a product or service (which cuts
into your profit for your most loyal
customers), ask yourself what you
can do to inspire them to come
back? What can you do to get them
excited about telling others about what
you do?”
Davis points to special events such
as meet-and-greets and educational seminars as ways to create excitement and interest around your brand. The key is to create
an ubiquitous, upbeat vibe that makes people want to be a part of what you are doing.
“The businesses that truly take advantage of local community brand building are
building their own community of supporters
within their physical community,” Skiff says.
“If this is done well, the business becomes
part of each individual’s story. For the customer, it’s much more appealing to be part of
the story than the target of a promotion.”
Willow Printing Group – connect • July/August 2014
9
Oh no
he didn’t
Justin Ahrens
@justinahrens – June 8
Day 10 wheels4water ride is done! Great ride in Ohio
and through the great city of #Cleveland now for…
_instagram.com/p/pAMScttr0/
Why out-of-the-box
marketing campaigns
can work
By Michael J. Pallerino
W
hen you’re the oldest water development non-profit in the country
and driven by deep-rooted Christian
beliefs, it’s easy to see why you might be overshadowed by the more flashy water organizations
that have cropped up over the years. That was
the challenge for Lifewater International. Not that
an organization that’s dedicated to effectively and sustainably serving the world’s rural poor
through integrated water, sanitation and hygiene programs is complaining. Its work – training,
equipping and empowering local partners around the world to provide their own communities
with safe water – stands on its own.
10
July/August 2014 • connect – Willow Printing Group
In the world of marketing,
which runs the gambit from
traditional, to strategically
sophisticated, and in your
face and out-of-the-box
campaigns, getting to
the end game (exposure,
excitement, engagement,
etc.) is the goal.
But when Rule29, an award winning suburban Chicagobased strategic creative firm, was looking to refresh the brand,
it sought to create a more attractive way for younger, more
engaged populations to take stock in the Lifewater story. And
there was an added incentive. Rule29 founder and principle
Justin Ahrens wanted to help the organization fund its water
and sanitation program in Lira, Uganda.
The end result was what would become known as
“The Ride.” Ahrens and Brian MacDonald, owner of Wonderkind Studios, decided to create Wheels4Water – a 1,000-mile
bike trip that would start in Boston and end in Chicago. The
ride surely would get people’s attention – how could it not?
Willow Printing Group – connect • July/August 2014
11
Oh no he didn’t
The baseline goal was to raise $40,000 to provide 1,000 people
in Lira with access to clean water and sanitation resources for life. The
broader goal was to use the ride as a platform for spreading the word
about Lifewater and the work that it was doing. And the ultimate goal
was to create a campaign that Lifewater could regenerate year after
year to continue to raise funds and awareness. So, through a variety
of mediums (video, social media, print and digital advertising, etc.),
Rule29 launched a multi-faceted marketing campaign aimed at broadening Lifewater’s audience and creating opportunities for its future development as a brand.
“We found the organization to be incredibly compelling, not only
because they are so effective at addressing the worldwide water and
sanitation crisis, but because they believe so deeply in the importance
of the work that must be done,” Ahrens says. “They often had chosen
less in-your-face marketing techniques. We wanted to change that.”
In the world of marketing, which runs the gambit from traditional,
to strategically sophisticated,
and in your face and out-ofthe-box campaigns, getting to
the end game (exposure, excitement, engagement, etc.)
is the goal.
Take what Domino’s Pizza did in 2011. In an effort to
leap out of the box, the pizza
chain moved its marketing
efforts into real time by allowing live Twitter comments
from its customers to be displayed on a Times Square
billboard in New York City.
The campaign, which
ran for several weeks, inDavid Cooperstein
cluded customer comments
“If the creative
isn’t a bit
outrageous,
the client
should be
outraged.”
At right, Justin Ahrens and Brian MacDonald get ready for their Wheels4Water ride.
12
July/August 2014 • connect – Willow Printing Group
– Steve Greenblatt,
Senior Marketing Executive,
ThinkPatented
“The digital landscape is
increasingly fragmented
making it difficult to engage
consumers with traditional
media executions online, mobile
devices and on social media.”
– Scott Reese, CEO & Co-founder, blurbIQ Inc
of activities, including watching a video featuring the clothes and the ability to peruse a
Steve Greenblatt
lookbook. The ads were set up so that users
didn’t have to navigate away from the page
they were on to enjoy the content. But, if
(good, bad or neutral) on a
so inclined, they could head to the Macy’s
4,630 square-foot billboard.
site to purchase the clothing or share the ad
The comments, filtered for bad
campaign across different platforms (online,
language and appropriateness,
mobile, tablets, etc.) on various social media
but not for sentiment, were
platforms, including Facebook and Twitter.
culled from what was called the
Interactive media advertising company
Domino’s Tracker. The device
blurbIQ created the 300x600 and 300x250
allowed Domino’s customers to
banner ads. The firm’s strategy was to invite
track the progress of their pizza
consumers to take part in the advertising,
orders online. Consumers whose
where they are going to touch and discover
comments were used also reScott Reese
additional brand material.
ceived a link to a video clip of
“The digital landscape is increasingly fragmented, making it difficult
their comments as they ran on the billboard.
to engage consumers with traditional media executions online, mobile
When it comes to billboards, David Coodevices and on social media,” says Scott Reese, CEO and co-founder of
perstein likes to talk about a Southern CaliblurbIQ Inc. “The strategy was to encourage consumers to scratch off the
fornia campaign Audi ran when it introduced
call to action layer, all within the ad unit without having to leave the pubthe A4. The brand put a billboard up with the
lisher page. The average time spent in unit was more than 60 seconds.”
line, “Your move, BMW.” Shortly thereafter, a
Steve Greenblatt has seen his share of unique marketing campaigns.
Santa Monica, Calif., BMW dealer struck back with a billboard that
With more than 40-plus years in the advertising world game; his stories
claimed, “Checkmate,” after the launch of BMW’s latest 3-series. The
are endless. One of his favourites is the Kryptonite-Moses campaign.
move escalated when Audi put “your pawn is no match for our king.”
By the early 1990s Kryptonite Lock had established a leadership
above its R8 supercar sign. It was outdone by British high-performance
position in the physical security industry – largely in the bicycle and motorcarmaker McLaren Automotive, which commissioned a blimp to do a
cycle markets. To appeal to a broader consumer constituency, they wanted
flyover with a sign that declared, “Game Over.”
to establish an impactful, quick and universally understandable message.
“Dueling billboards; it was the perfect set up for ad campaigns
As a theft deterrent, the no-brainer solution was to play off of the eighth
to come,” says Cooperstein, the CMO at Simulmedia who has been
commandment (thou shall not steal.)
involved in a number of brand and product launches as both an analyst
And, as luck would have it, the product had roughly the same
and practitioner.
shape as the fabled stone tablets that Moses was said to have carried down from the mountain. Suddenly, the product became its own
Did you see that?
positioning line, and the brand gained overnight traction in many new
The banner ad. They are hard to ignore. Now, whether you remember
markets and became the “household term” for U-locks.
what you see is an altogether different story. Macy’s set out to change
Greenblatt, who today works as a senior marketing executive for
all of that with a banner ad campaign it conducted for the apparel brand
ThinkPatented, a cross media marketing and printing company in MiMaison Jules.
amisburg, Ohio, says that out-of-the-box campaigns should be someThe campaign didn’t rely on static images and text. Instead, it
thing every brand strives for. “If the creative isn’t a bit outrageous, the
enabled users to “scratch and “peel” banner ads that revealed 12
client should be outraged.”
different Parisian-themed outfits. Buttons offered options for a variety
Willow Printing Group – connect • July/August 2014
13
Q&A:
Interview with Dan Grody
Trending with ...
Social media expert Dan Grody
D
an Grody knows a good tune when he hears one. As a partner at Tellem Grody, the agency counts on his diverse musical taste to drive its
consumer product, music and social divisions. He also spearheads all
of its social, youth marketing and entertainment-related projects. Not bad for
the former intern, who methodically worked his way up the corporate ladder.
After studying music professionally, Grody began expanding that end of the
practice within the agency by adding clients such as LAMA College for Music
Professionals, Drum Channel, Mannheim Steamroller and Cradle Rock. Here
are his insights on what social should mean to your brand.
Building
organically
takes a lot
of time. …
Figure out how
to humanize
your presence
online.
It’s about
people, not
brand logos.
What’s everybody missing when it comes to what
social media means to a brand?
For starters, you must know your audience and the emotional reasons
they engage with your brand online. Also, many businesses and brands
entering the social media landscape need to know their presence is not
about quantity of followers, but quality. After you have a genuine understanding of your audience, it’s important to map out your strategy for
your social media presence. Many businesses jump into more platforms
than they’re prepared to handle or they don’t understand the makeup and
demographics of each platform. So, figure out which platforms are most
important to your customers, and then find what would inspire them to
follow your brand and engage with your content.
14
July/August 2014 • connect – Willow Printing Group
So, you don’t want to sell them here?
No, do not aggressively spam or sell your followers. That’s the quickest way to turn people
off. They don’t log into social networks to see
your advertisements. They want to feel closer
to your brand, get inside information and learn
about things first. Remember: You don’t own
social media. Use it to engage and listen to
your customers, and then drive traffic to your
website (which you own) and build your email
databases (which you own). Many small businesses will put the youngest person in the office on social media duties when it should be
managed by a seasoned communication or
marketing professional. Social media execution requires more
knowledge than having grown up using Facebook.
How should expectations
be gauged when you set
out into the social world?
Social media is just one of many tools you can use in your
marketing and PR campaigns. Don’t expect something to
go viral just because you have a Facebook page or YouTube
video. Define the ultimate goal of your social media presence.
Set precise, realistic goals and objectives. Stalk your competitors and research engagement benchmarks for your industry.
What’s the one thing every brand should
expect from a social media campaign?
Expect that social media is a very serious commitment. Building organically takes a lot of time. You’ll need to budget for
paid/sponsored features to expose your content to larger audiences. You can’t just post content once a week and expect to
get much from it. Figure out how to humanize your presence online. It’s
about people, not brand logos.
Can social media really help build a thought
leadership position?
Absolutely. You can be an influencer and master of your topic online if
you can handle disagreement or perhaps even be proven wrong. But
hang in there, and you’ll win over fans – people who will defend you
and support your statements online. It seems so obvious, but instead
of being all about self-promotion, figure out how you can actually help
your customers and answer their questions, and you will become the
voice of your market.
Before You
Go
Hook, line
and sinker
Which social sites are winning the war of engagement?
L
ike my post. Retweet me. Check out this video. We get it. We
spend an egregious amount of time on social media. So, where
do we spend the most time? According to Shareaholic’s ”Social
Referrals That Matter” report, YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn are
driving the most engaged social referrals to websites. The study
examined six months of data across its network of 200,000-plus sites
and more than 250 million unique monthly visitors. To the left you
can see all the sites we love most.
Willow Printing Group – connect • July/August 2014
15
Integrating your
marketing mix…
Maximizing your return while lowering costs.
Willow has always been a valued business partner throughout
our 18+ years relationship and has evolved to become an innovative
company offering a multitude of modern business services.
They have always got the job done right and on time.
Tom Swales, National Rubber Technologies
Call 905-660-1515 ext. 224 or email [email protected] to learn more.