Producing Winning Videos: Part 2 (Action Wednesday/Physical Evidence)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing.  It’ Action Wednesday and we’re going to talk about creating a script and shooting your video in Part 2 of “Producing Winning Videos.”

One of the elements that make a video truly successful is a compelling story angle.  If it isn’t very compelling, informative or entertaining, your audience will not be interested.  Spend enough time considering the story you will tell in the production about your business or product.

Next, establish what the video will visually depict, what you are going to say and who will be the on camera talent.  Finally, consider the production aspects.  Set the amount you are going to spend on production, however, ensure you maintain production value regardless of your budget.  Establish the production schedule.  It may be one day, a week, perhaps over the course of a month.  These are all aspects you have to determine when you are the producer of your video.

Create titles and graphics.  If you are not able to do this yourself, engage a graphic animator or graphic illustrator.  It’s very important to include graphics to enhance production value.  The higher the quality you are shooting and the more add-ins such as titles and graphics you use increases the perception of a higher end product and, ultimately, a higher end brand.

Once you go into production, the key driver of your video is the script.  A script can be created simply in Word using a two column table.  In the left column, document the video activity, everything that will be seen in your show.  In the right column, transcribe the dialog.  Begin the video creation process by scripting what will be on camera and what the participants will talk about.

A great video has a call to action.  Incite your audience to get excited about something and to call you or to go to your website.  You want to engage your audience and give them a call to action that will benefit your business.

As the video producer, you have to decide who is going to direct and shoot the video.  Then determine the equipment to be used and the location of the shoot.

Additionally, you have to arrange for the talent you will use in the video.  This is very important.  The first thing you might consider is including yourself or your employees.  That’s good news/bad news.  Employees have a good understanding of the product, however, if someone leaves the organization would that make your video invalid?

You might think about hiring a corporate spokesperson.  Many firms hire outside talent to speak on behalf of the company.  I’ve hired a lot of key spokespeople and the very good ones are worth the money that they charge.

Finally, remember to fill the minor roles in your video, background people, extras, etc.

Regardless of who you have on camera, ensure you obtain a release from them authorizing the use of their likeness in the production.  If employees participate, pay them as for any other part of their job so there is consideration for their services in your video.

Lights, camera, action!  You are now ready to be a producer, director, maybe even the star of your own video.

After you have completed your shoot, you have the video edited.  It is fun to sit down and see all your clips assembled it into a show or a story that has a beginning, middle and end…like any great story.

I hope you have enjoyed our two part series on “Producing Winning Videos.”  In my experience, there aren’t many things better than producing a video, especially with YouTube and smart phones where video goes straight to the customer when they want to learn about your product.

If you feel you might need support in producing your video, feel free to contact me.  I am always available for a one-on-one service engagement.

I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day marketing, and we’ll see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

Producing Winning Videos: Part 1 (Strategic Tuesday/Physical Evidence)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing.  Today is Strategic Tuesday and we are starting a new series centered on videos.  I’ve been involved in production of professional television films, videos and interactive multimedia my entire career.  So today we’ll be talking about one of my favorite subjects.

Why should you consider video as part of your marketing campaign?  Look at the success of YouTube.  In 2011 there were 1 trillion video views.  That is 140 views per person for everyone in the world.  And, since not everyone is online, many are watching much more than 140 per year.

Why are videos important for your business?  When you create a great video with a compelling story, it can be produced once, put into cyber space, and can be viewed again and again for years to come.  If it happens to go viral, it could potentially be seen by millions of people.  Also, production costs are significantly less than in the past, so it isn’t an expensive proposition any longer.

Key factors for producing a winning video: Compelling story angle, what will entice people to watch your video; Informative without being boring; Entertainment value if possible; and Short unless it is instructional in nature such as a demonstration video for your product.  Ensure any video you use in connection with your business and/or products is high quality and looks professional.  Any perception it conveys will become part of your brand.

The last item I would like to discuss is production value or the overall quality of your production.  When I started producing videos costs were in the range of $5,000 per finished minute.  Based on the current capability of cameras and editing software, that cost has been greatly reduced.  Seriously consider the production of videos to market your company and your products.  It’s never been easier to tell you story through the power of video.

Based on my experience working with clients and even this blog, it should deliver great results for you.

That concluded Strategic Tuesday and Part 1 of our series on Producing Winning Videos.  Join me for Part 2 tomorrow on Action Wednesday, when we will discuss scripting and physical production.  If you would like to engage me for one-on-one consultation regarding your video, please contact me.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing and we’ll see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

7Ps of Marketing: People (Smart Monday/People)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, and it is Smart Monday.  We’ve got a great topic for you today in our continuing series of the 7Ps - the “7Ps of Marketing: People.”

We’ve talked a lot about the 7Ps of Marketing.  It’s a great tool to assist you in developing a strategy to achieve goals within your organization.  Today we are going to talk about People.  When you really think about it, do your customers buy your product or are they buying into the people in your organization who represent that product?  There’s an argument both ways.

Having the right kind of people in your organization can be a huge asset with respect to the enhancement of your brand.  Your brand can be severely diminished if you have people in your organization who are not truly brand ambassadors and are not representing your products or company values in the right way.

One aspect of your goals in relation to personnel is ensuring employees understand that they are brand ambassadors.  What they say and do, as well as how they interact with your customers is critical as it becomes part of the perception of the brand in the mind of the customer and, is also critical to creating a positive experience for customers.

How do you enhance your brand through your people?  You should start with yourself, “brand you” if you will.  Everything we’ve been talking about with respect to branding applies to the individual.  You can enhance your own personal brand and your relationship with your customers. 

You should also consider all the touch points where employees engage your customers.  It might be face-to-face in a sales capacity or customer services.  Often it’s on the phone or via the Internet.

We’ve talked about place or the distribution of your product.  Everywhere your product is distributed there is a person or an experience representing your organization.  Ensure those encounters are as favorable as they can be.  People are an essential part of the 7Ps of Marketing.  To truly enhance your brand, and potentially sell more product, looking at every interaction with your customers is key to success.

You may identify a need to create training around how to be a great brand ambassador for your organization.  Consider it for yourself, for the people in your organization, and perhaps even for people outside your organization who are representing your product. 

That concludes our Smart Monday.  Stop by tomorrow for Strategic Tuesday.  If you need more branding assistance, feel free to contact me to discuss a possible one-on-one service engagement.  That information is at the end of the blog.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, and we’ll see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

Sharing Information with SMS and RSS (Digital Friday/Promotion)

Hello there, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing.  It’s Digital Friday and that means we get to have one more blog together before you run off and have fun for the weekend.

Now, a question for you.  Isn’t it nice to both give and receive?  I think so and that’s what our subject matter is about today: “Sharing Information with SMS and RSS.”

As you’ve probably surmised by now I’m not a technical geek.  I’m a marketing geek, if there is such a thing.  As I talk about SMS and RSS feeds please bare with me to understand that I am trying to talk to you from the point of view of an application user rather than a technology developer. 

SMS stands for short message server.  In other words it’s text messaging that is delivered to your phone.  And RSS is really simple syndication and that’s where email blogs or updates to a website can be automatically sent to you.  When a customer chooses to receive SMS or RSS feeds, they get instantly alerted when new content is available. 

How do you use SMS and RSS feeds to your marketing advantage?  What you want to make sure is that when customers come to your website or your blog they have the ability to select your SMS or RSS feed so that they will automatically receive your updates.  What’s great is that you don’t have to spend the time to send it to them.  They’ve opted in and requested your feeds.  Their readers will find your information and pull it to them automatically.  That’s very powerful. 

You may also want use RSS and SMS feeds to find content that you are tracking.  By going to a website or a news blog you like and clicking on that RSS feed you will get notified when changes are made to the website.  How nifty is that!

Now let’s think about our taco stand again.  Let’s say our vendor has a website (it’s a very sophisticated little taco stand) and when people visit the website he’s got an offer for coupons.  People are able to select on the SMS or RSS feed and are automatically notified of coupons.  Near the end of the day the taco stand owner decides he wants to sell out all his tacos so he puts up a coupon for 50 percent off which expires in the next few hours.  Customers with his SMS get the coupons right to their phones and other through RSS right to their computers.  Before you know it he’s got a rush and sells out completely and they literally gobble up the last of his tacos.  SMS and RSS worked for him and his loyal following.

As I mentioned at the start of the video blog today giving and receiving is a good thing.  And you can do that with SMS and RSS feeds.  From your perspective as a marketer you want to make sure that people coming to your site that are trying to find your digital content can select an RSS or SMS feed so that they will automatically get your notices.  You should talk to an I/T expert to be able to accomplish this.  But I want you to be thinking about it.

On the other side as you go out there into the world exploring other sites, it could be your competitors sites or general information you are trying to seek, you select RSS and SMS feeds and they will automatically come to you.  It keeps you in the know all the time and technology is doing the giving and receiving, not you.

This wraps up another week of Once a Day Marketing.  Hope you join me next week when I start off with Smart Monday.  If by chance you need a little more branding support than my daily blog offers, feel free to contact me to discuss a one-on-one service arrangement.  My my contact information is available below.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, and we’ll see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

SWOT Analysis: Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats (Recon Thursday/Process)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing.  It’s Recon Thursday, and today we are going to talk about one of my favorite tactics to use when working with my clients.  It’s called a SWOT analysis and that stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats.

What is a SWOT analysis?  It is a tool for analyzing internal and external factors that may enhance or impede achieving your objectives.  You can apply SWOT analysis to a business, product, brand, your competition, even to yourself in a personal assessment.

First let’s look at strengths.  This is where you assess the strengths of your organization.   Create a list either by yourself or with input from friends or peers.  Some items are very important, other less so, focus on the important items.

Next, look at the weaknesses of your organization the same way.  Again, create a list and prioritize the most important items to address.

Identify opportunities.  What opportunities may be available to you?  These are external areas where you may be able to leverage your strengths, or, convert a weakness to strength, and go after opportunities as well.

Lastly, what are the threats to your organization?  Generally, this is something you don’t have control over.  It may be high gas prices, a hurricane, power outage, etc.  There may be threats, however, if you know about them you can work around or minimize them to reduce your risk.

Why is the SWOT analysis important?  First, it enables you to match your strengths with opportunities.  If you have weaknesses and/or threats, you can focus on converting them to strengths.

Let’s take a look at our Taco Stand for a moment.  Using a SWOT analysis, the owner has identified the strength of having great, authentic tacos served fast.  One weakness is that they are positioned on the far side of the plaza today, away from where the tourists are expected to arrive.  A second weakness has been identified as the potential for rain.

An opportunity may be receiving information that several tour buses will be arriving at lunchtime with foreign visitors who want an authentic taco experience quickly

After identifying these items with a SWOT analysis, what can our taco stand vendor do?  He is mobile and can reposition to be in the right place when the buses arrive.  He can also park under an overhang so when it rains his customers won’t get wet.

What happens when the buses pull in?  The tourists see his stand, that his food is authentic and served quickly, they get in line and buy their lunch.

Utilizing the SWOT analysis, the taco stand made more money than he might have otherwise and the analysis really paid off for him.

The purpose of Once a Day Marketing is to inspire you with ideas you can follow up on.  More details regarding a SWOT analysis are available online than I can share with you in this short blog.

My recommendation is that you perform a SWOT analysis.  Then develop an action plan and strategy to use it to your advantage in accomplishing the objectives you set out in your strategic plan.

That’s our Recon Thursday, join us tomorrow for Digital Friday.  And, as always, if you need more branding support, please contact me to discuss a one-on-one service engagement.  I am Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, and we will see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

Using PR to Enhance Your Brand (Action Wednesday/Promotion)

Hello again, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing.  Today is Action Wednesday.

Today’s topic is: “Using PR to Enhance Your Brand” and I’m going to be discussing PR and Publicity.

When was the last time you sent out a press release?  Was it a while ago?  Have you ever sent out a press release?  Recently, there was an article regarding Once a Day Marketing in the Santa Fe New Mexican, our local paper.  That article appeared because I took the time to send a press release to the newspaper.

Just what is publicity?  It is when you are attracting attention through public notice.

Why is this good strategy?  Newspapers need stories, as do radio, internet and other outlets.  Through your press release you are announcing you have a story of interest to share and there may be an opportunity for your item to be picked.  That’s the whole premise around publicity.  

Publicity creates a slightly different promotion for your business than a paid advertisement or other tactics in the traditional mode.  When people see a news related story, it lends credibility to your company and your brand.  I believe customers will have more confidence in your product than they would seeing an advertisement you paid for.  There is a subtlety with respect this kind of publicity.  The press release is what drives it.

Two components comprise a successfully press release, the text of the press release itself and who you send it to. 

With respect to the press release, the content has to be interesting, timely, and relevant.  Like all the strategies we have talked about here at Once a Day Marketing, it should be focused on the audience of the publication or the radio/television station you are sending it to.  It’s important to understand who that audience is.  Include the Who, When, Where, Why, and How elements along with your contact information in the event an editor or publisher has questions.

Target the right channels.  The Once a Day Marketing story in the New Mexican was submitted to the Business Editor.  That was good fit, he covers local businesses and Once a Day Marketing focuses on assisting local businesses. 

To be successful, ensure you develop relationships through networking or cold-calling.  Ask what types of stories editors are looking for, etc. and create that interaction.  Also, research the various publications and outlets that you are interested in to better understand their audiences. 

Lastly, follow up to see if there is interest in your story and, if your story does receive coverage, be sure to thank the appropriate party.  This may increase the likelihood your next story will be covered as well.

Your assignment for Action Wednesday is to develop a press release.  If you’ve never done it, or if you haven’t done it lately, it will be a good exercise.  Determine what your story angel is, develop your distribution list and send it out.  And be sure to follow up.

Fortunately there are numerous ways to do distribute a press release.  I e-mailed mine to the Business Editor at the New Mexican.  You may want to consider other means such as PR Newswire or PRweb.  These are online services that will distribute your press release, across the globe if you like.  Base distribution on the audience you are trying to reach and how much money you have, etc. 

I hope you do send out a press release and get coverage that develops positive exposure for your company and drives a little bit more traffic your way. 

That’s our Action Wednesday, be sure to stop by tomorrow for Recon Thursday.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, and we’ll see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

Planning Your Strategic Future (Strategic Tuesday/Process)

Hello there, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing.  Today is Strategic Tuesday, and we are continuing our series on strategic planning.  Today’s topic is: “Planning Your Strategic Future.”  We are going to define what strategic planning is all about.

I know most small businesses and entrepreneurs are so involved in day-to-day operations that they forget about their strategic future.  However, if you don’t know where you are going, how will you get there?

A strategic plan is the process of looking into the future and determining how you are going to get where you want to go.  You should also consider the resources you have available to enable you to make that journey. 

A strategic plan is not a business plan.  You’ve probably heard of business plans or even developed your own.  A business plan contains much more detail around your organization, product, market and marketing plan, as well as your operational and financial plans.  The business plan contains the numbers, so if you are seeking out investment capital the business plan is what you would share.

A strategic plan is also not an action plan; we’ll be talking about that in the future.  An action plan is very tactical as to what tasks you are going to do today, next week, next month.  It addresses who is responsible for task execution, target completion and cost. 

The strategic plan is about the future and the journey to achieving your goals.  It is a roadmap.  And, just like planning a trip, you know where you are and you know where you want to go.

There are various ways you can get from here to there on your journey.  A paved road, an unpaved road or a route that is less conventional.  Determine which route makes the most sense for your company. 

You also have to determine the means you use to reach your goal.  In our trip analogy, if you are going to take the freeway, you might want to drive a Ferrari.  If you’re going via the unpaved road, you had better take an off-road vehicle.  Similarly, the resources you leverage depend on the route that you’re taking.   Lastly, you have to determine how fast you want to reach your target which relates to timing and duration. 

The strategic plan provides a sense of direction for you and the other people in your organization.  Think of the strategic plan as your company’s GPS system.  It tells you where you are now and provides directions to reach your future goal.  And, like the GPS, you have to recalibrate now and then because circumstances change in the market place with respect to your competition, the products that you are offering, etc.  The strategic plan that may have been forward looking two or three years ago is no longer relevant, so update it periodically to ensure you stay on track. 

There is a great deal of information related to strategic planning on the internet.  My recommendation is to dive in and look at the various methodologies for developing a strategic plan and then put your plan in place.

That wraps up another Strategic Tuesday.  Join us tomorrow for Action Wednesday.  If you would like to arrange a one-on-one service engagement, please contact me via the information at the end of the blog.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing and we’ll see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

Being Presidential (Smart Monday/Positioning)

Hello again, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing.  Since today is President’s Day I’m going to feel like a president and take a day off from my Smart Monday video blog.  I will pick up tomorrow with Strategic Tuesday.

But I still can’t resist blogging about branding, if only for a moment.  What comes to mind when you think about a United States president?  What does being “presidential” mean to you?  As a citizen you have certain expectations in your mind of what your president should be, don’t you?  Which presidents have created favorable impressions in your mind?  Which have left not-so-favorable impressions?

Is the president’s brand any different than the expectations you have for all the other brands you encounter each day?  One might say that a president’s brand is really no different than any other brand out there, except for the fact that most Americans hold this brand in high regard.  There is a certain amount of brand stature and esteem associated with the president.  We want to trust the brand.  We want to be loyal to the brand.  We want to believe in the brand promise.  I guess that’s why we feel so disappointed when this brand, aka the President, lets us down now and then.  The reason?  We just expect a lot from our president or in other words we expect a lot from this brand. 

I’m not much into politics but I am into branding.  In my opinion I believe President Obama has done a good job maintaining the integrity of the presidential brand.  I hope whoever is our next president and all the presidents after that will continue to advance this brand in the future.  Now we just need to work on brand USA.

Thanks for joining me here at Once a Day Marketing.  I hope you will visit me at Facebook.com/OnceaDayMarketing, say hello, “Like” us, comment and share with your friends.  If you are interested in working with me directly in a one-on-one service engagement around how I might assist to enhance your brand or company, feel free to contact me at the information provided at the end of this Blog.  I am Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, and we will see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

Branding with Facebook (Digital Friday/Positioning)

Hello again, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, and it’s Friday.  You know what that means, it’s Digital Friday and today we’re going to talk about Facebook.  Our topic is: Branding with Facebook.

Boasting 845 million subscribers, Facebook is the largest social networking site by far.

It is a tool where you can create an online persona for your company, brand, and products.  Many of large companies are already doing so.  Also, there is a trend called social commerce where e-commerce and social media are coming together.  Rather than the customer coming to you, you are reaching out to them. 

McDonald’s, Target and Staples all have social commerce sites.  This may be a good time for you to start thinking about having presence on Facebook as well.  If you are going to jump into the world of Facebook, formulate a solid strategy so that you are successful.

First you have to have a Facebook site, if you don’t, go to Facebook.com and establish your Page.  Once you have 25 individuals who have “Liked” your site you can obtain a unique web address.  Mine is Facebook.com/OnceaDayMarketing. 

Next, create site content that is meaningful to your audience by posting items/information that they will find compelling.  Carefully consider the type of content that is relevant for your customers. 

Time will also be required to devote to marketing the site.  Just because it’s online, people aren’t going to find it.  Through your social media and traditional marketing efforts, tell people about your site, invite them there, ask them to “Like” you, comment and share their feedback. 

Then develop a strategy to keep them coming back.  Now, how do you do that?  You can become a resource, perhaps customer will be able to questions of you as I encourage on Once a Day Marketing. 

You may also consider providing some type of information free of charge.  In my case at Once a Day Marketing, I am providing free branding and marketing advice.  This is content that people value.  They keep coming back because I am seen as a marketing source.  Visitors to the site are able research the 7Ps of marketing, price, promotion, place, product, etc. as well as view video blogs that will allow them to seek solutions for whatever their marketing challenge may be.  Use Facebook in a way that makes sense for your audience.

Facebook can be a pivotal part of a social media campaign and a great way to interact with your customers.  The price is right, it’s free.  I believe that it will continue evolving into an even more robust marketing tool, including expanded social commerce and other enhancements that Facebook will unveil in the future.

Thanks for joining me for another Digital Friday here at Once a Day Marketing.   I hope you will visit my Page at Facebook.com/OnceaDayMarketing, say hello, “Like” us, comment and share with your friends.   If you are interested in working with me directly in a one-on-one service engagement around how I might assist to enhance your brand or company, feel free to contact me, information is at the end of this Blog.  I am Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, and we will see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

Cooperative Marketing: Sharing the Load (Recon Thursday/Promotion)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, where business takes shape. Before we begin today I would like to thank all of you once again for tuning in.  The Once a Day Marketing Brand is growing.  There are more followers every day.  So I thank you and encourage you to continue following and sharing with your friends.

Today is Recon Thursday and our topic is “Cooperative Marketing: Sharing the Load.”

What is cooperative marketing?  Simply put, it is developing a campaign in conjunction with another brand or product and you market together.

Numerous companies participate in cooperative marketing because it enables them to share the load, so to speak.  You share budgets and connections which is a very good thing.  For example, if you were to take out a newspaper ad in a cooperative fashion with another company, you might only be spending 50% of what the cost would have been otherwise.  You are getting the same reach and amount of exposure for half the dollars. 

I received an iPod Nano for Christmas and I absolutely love it.  And, it is a great example of cooperative marketing. 

The iPod has technology that is able to capture statistics when I run, such as how fast and how far.  It uses Nike+ software to keep track of all of that information so when I plug my iPod into my computer iTunes pops up it and it asks if I want to log into Nike+.  Once on that site, it automatically uploads all my running data.  And, it provides Nike with the opportunity to market running related clothing and accessories to me.

Talk about an effective campaign between Nike and Apple!  Cooperative marketing does work and it’s something for you to seriously consider as well.

How do you find the right cooperative marketing partner?  Look at the companies who are marketing in your area that you would consider prospective partners.  Then, you have to determine whether any of these companies would be a good fit. 

First, is it a complementary product?  For instance, if you operate a hotel, you might be able to market in conjunction with a nearby restaurant.  Perhaps different shops inside a mall take out a cooperative ad enticing people to go to the mall.  There are numerous ways to marketing cooperatively.  Virtually every kind of marketing channel, every kind of promotion you can think of is a medium for cooperative marketing. 

If you really want to make it happen, the only way to achieve that goal is to take the time to formulate a strategy and then approach companies that may be a good fit with respect to marketing and see if they would like to help you share the load.

Just as the iPod exemplifies, cooperative marketing does make sense.  You have to be creative and find the right partner, but if you do you can achieve great results and you’ll certainly reduce your marketing expense or have twice the budget to spend in the future.

That’s our Recon Thursday for today, stop by tomorrow for Digital Friday.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, where business takes shape and we will see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

Really Listening to Your Customers

Hello again, Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, where business takes shape.  Today is Action Wednesday.  I’m going to share a little trick of the trade that is very effective when I deal directly with my clients and prepare my deliverables, my product if you will.

Today’s topic is “Really Listening to Your Customers.”

We’re going to talk about small audio tape recorders, which are very cheap these days, and one of the best tools I use in business dealing with my customers.

Why use a tape recorder?  When I deal with my customers I often forget many things that they tell me.  It’s not my intent to do so, but I do.  So, between having bad recall and not taking good notes, even when I am trying to capture everything that my client is requesting from me, I sometimes fall short.

If you have experienced a similar challenge, consider implementing the use of a recording device.

 Another challenge I encounter is occasionally responding to the client’s needs and providing solutions rather than really listening to their request.  When I return from the meeting I find that I have done more talking than my customer and that’s not good.  Using a tape recorder allows you to sit back and listen to what your customer is requesting from you.

There are so many digital tape recorders and audio recording devices available, mine happens to be a Sony product.  However, smart phones have recording capability, and, with software like OneNote, your laptop can record meetings if it has a microphone.

Another feature that is exciting about a lot of these tools is that some come with software which will convert the audio file to text.  Then you can drop it into a report or any document you are working with.

When you would like to record your client, always ask permission, whether face to face or on the telephone.   Let your customer know that you would like to devote your attention to listening to their need and will transcribe the notes from the meeting later.

Then you just listen.  When they’re telling you what services or products they are looking for you can listen to what they are saying, knowing that it is being recorded on the tape recorder.

A key action is, once your record it, you go back to your office and listen to it.  What you will find are some great nuggets and gems in there that you never realized your customer even asked of you.  So, by hearing the conversation again you can prepare a deliverable for your client based on their wants and needs.  You are going to find that this is a great tool for interacting with your customers. 

You will also find out if you’ve been listening or you’ve been chatting.  If the conversation is a little one-sided coming from your direction it will be a great tool to help you become a more effective listener.

That’s our Action Wednesday for today, simple but really a very good tool for meeting the needs of your customer.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, where business takes shape and we’ll see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

SMART Goals are the Right Goals (Strategic Tuesday/Process)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, where business takes shape.  And today is Strategic Tuesday.  We’ve going to continue our series on developing strategic plans and action plans.  And last time we talked about the importance of vision and mission statements.  Today we are going to talk about goals and our title for today’s episode is: “SMART Goals are the Right Goals.”

Now just what is a goal?  A goal is a very specific and measurable achievement that drives the organization toward its mission.  A goal is very important because it provides a sense of common direction and inspiration for people in your organization and yourself to move the company forward.  And of course that’s what you want to do.  If everyone can see the goal and feel that it’s obtainable then they’ll work together and strive toward accomplishing it.

Now we are going to talk about “SMART criteria” in developing your goals.  SMART criteria was originally developed by Peter Drucker, a management guru.  SMART stands for: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound.  Now what do each one mean?

It starts with Specific: that’s the who, what, why, how, etc., when you are setting your goals.  Be very specific because if you are vague it’s not going to get you very far.  You want to be very specific in what you are trying to accomplish.  The more specific the easier it is for everyone to see where you’re going.

It also has to be measurable, such as how much and how many?  If it’s not very measurable then how do you really know when you’ve accomplished anything?

Next is has to be achievable.  Do you have the resources in place to actually make your goals happen?  So setting a goal if it’s not achievable makes no sense and will be looked at skeptically in your organization. 

It also has to be relevant.  You can set all sorts of goals but if it really doesn’t mean anything, or it’s not related to what you want to accomplish, then that’s not a good, relevant or realistic goal. 

Lastly, it has to be time-bound, which means you need to have a time set for when these things are going to happen.  That gives you accountability.  That gives you a sense of urgency.  If it’s open ended then who ever just jumps on a project when there’s nothing really at stake?  So that’s why SMART criteria is so important when you are developing your goals.

Now let’s use SMART criteria for my efforts to train and run the Chicago Marathon.  I’ve actually run it but we are going to pretend I haven’t and set the goals using the SMART criteria related to running finishing the Chicago Marathon. 

First, the training goals need to be specific.  Now I could say that I want to get in shape.  But I could also say I want to run a marathon and I could even further say that I want to run the Chicago Marathon and finish it.  I’m beginning to be a little bit more specific in what I’m trying to accomplish. 

Next it needs to be measurable.  How many workouts am I going to do in a week and how far am I going to run?  That would be my measurable goals. 

Next would be whether it’s achievable.  Now that’s often the question asked of people running their first marathon.  This happened to be my fifth marathon so I had the sense that I could finish it but when you are setting your goals you need to know if you can get there or not.  And the goal for me was not to win but to finish it. 

Next is has to be something that is relevant.  Suppose I set training goals that I want to sit on the couch every day, not worout, then run the marathon.  Now that is something very specific, sitting on the couch, watching TV and perhaps eating a bag of potato chips, but it’s not really relevant to my goal of finishing the marathon.  Getting out and running every day seems to be more relevant with respect to the proper training. 

Next is time-bound.  Again, I need to set out when to do these workouts because the marathon is coming on a very specific day.  I have to be ready to do the marathon by that date.  I start training really late that’s not going to help me much.  If I don’t start training until after the marathon, that’s not going to help me at all.  So using SMART criteria I can figure out how to train and run my marathon properly. 

Now I think you can see why you need to be “smart” when you are developing your goals.  I recommend that you get out there on the Internet and check SMART criteria out a little bit more.  Pull up the list, look at it and use it as a tool for defining your own goals.  Because if you do have goals, you and your fellow workers going to be able to move toward something that you all seek together.  And of course that’s what you are trying to accomplish.

That’s our Strategic Tuesday.  Try and stop by tomorrow for Action Wednesday.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, where business takes shape.  And we’ll see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

7Ps of Marketing: Place (Smart Monday/Price)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, where business takes shape. 

Today is Smart Monday and we’re continuing with our series about the 7Ps of Marketing.  Our topic is all about place, also known as distribution.

It’s interesting, when you think about what we are doing here at Once a Day Marketing.  It’s like a new language, and often the best way to learn a language is total immersion.  You go to a country and don’t hear a bit of English, you hear the language of that country.  After a while you become fluent in that language.  And that’s what we are doing here.  We’re tossing a bunch of words, ideas and concepts at you and hopefully you come out of it speaking great Marketing.

When we define place or distribution in the 7Ps what we’re talking about all the places that your customers can find products.  In today’s world there are a number of places that make products available including traditional modes and non-traditional modes like the internet.

Now, think about your daily transactions.  What kind of experience do you have when you go to the grocery store?  A Safeway visit is different than a Whole Foods?  Or you might purchase a product online on this kind of website vs. that kind of website, eBay, Amazon or something totally different.  There are all kinds of experiences that you have when you purchase a product. 

What you have to think about are the shopping experiences that you love and then the ones you don’t like.  You want to make sure when you are looking at your own company, product and places that you create an environment where your customers love to buy your products.

Where are your customers finding your products?  There may be a direct way to your product or, there might be an indirect way to your product.

Let’s go back to the caveman days for a moment.  Think about that very first caveman 10,000 years ago.  He figures out how to grow some sort of grain outside the cave.  Somebody walks by and says “What’s that?”  He responds that it’s a new food source.  The passerby offers some form of money, and he gives them the grain.  So that would be the direct approach.

Perhaps someone stops by from another village and he says “You know, I think I can sell your grain to people in my village.  Why don’t you let me have some, I’ll go sell it and we’ll split the profits.”  This is the indirect approach.

So you have the possibilities of direct and indirect.  The indirect mode is typically a manufacturer who uses a wholesaler, a middleman or a distributor to get to a retail outlet that finds the consumer.

But today everything is changing.  You know that.  The world is going digital.  There are all sorts of interesting ways to get your product out there. 

Let’s look at Apple Computer.  When Apple first created its computers, it sold indirectly to sell their customers rather than directly.  Numerous sales channels were in place and so they used these existing indirect channels to sell their products through wholesalers, distributors and so forth. 

But over time it’s changed.  There are physical Apple Stores and there is an online Apple Store yet you can still find Apple products in places like Best Buy. 

Today distribution and place strategies are comingled and what you have to do is find the strategy that makes the most sense for the kind of product you’re pushing through those channels. 

Place strategies, a.k.a. distribution strategies, are going to continue to change and evolve.  Here’s an idea that you might think about.  Let’s say you’re watching a video on your smart phone about how a craft brewer is making a specialized beer.  As you are watching the video you can touch a button and instantly an option is available for you to order a case of that new micro brew.  While you are still watching the show, the product is packaged, put into a distribution system, shipped and the very next day it’s sitting on your doorstep.

That’s powerful.  That’s where the world is going.  What you should do, as you take a look at where your place and distribution channels are, is make sure you are able to create strategies that really make sense for your customers and ensure that they love the experience, want to buy your product and want to buy it often.  Maybe even tell a few friends.  That’s your goal when it comes to place.

That’s Smart Monday for today.  Stop by tomorrow for Strategic Tuesday.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, where business takes shape.  Hopefully your business is taking shape as you follow our blog.  And we’ll see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

A Blogger on Blogging (Digital Friday/Promotion)

Hello again, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, where business takes shape.  I hope you’ve been enjoying my blog, and that you’ve been tuning in and that you’ve been sharing with your friends.  It’s Digital Friday which means we are going to talk about something related to digital/social media. 

Today’s topic is about blogging which is really emerging in the digital world.  Since I’m a blogger I’m going to be telling you about blogging.  Today’s title is: “A Blogger on Blogging.”

You’re watching my video blog so you probably have a pretty good sense of what a blog is.  But a blog is any sort of online content you want to share with your audience.  It could be video, could be audio, could be pictures, could be text, could be links to other sites.  It’s basically a place where you can create and share your own original thoughts or respond to other people’s views as well.  That’s what a blog is.

Now, where do you blog?  There are all sorts of places where you can blog.  Some people place it on their own website.  I’m working right now with Santafe.com and sharing by blog through a community website that features other bloggers as well.  You can also use other online sites such as WordPress, Tumblr, and Blogger.  Fortunately, these sites are free most of the time and provide an easy way for you to upload your blog content, which is very important because it doesn’t take you very long to do it. 

So, if you are going to be a good blogger what do you have to do.  Well, the number one thing in my mind is that you have to create content that other people are going to want to explore.  There are many blog sites out there where people are sharing their opinion but they’re not necessarily market-driven blogs.  They are just there for somebody to share what they think. 

Now that’s good, people might find you, but if you’re trying to do your blog for marketing purposes then

it’s very important that you give strong consideration to what the content of the blog is and that it aligns with the interests of your target market.

So your blog needs to be compelling.  It needs to be entertaining.  It should be useful and practical, which is the focus of my blog to you. And, hopefully the blog drives interaction, conversation, comments and it’s something that people want to share with others.  The more you can accomplish these elements the more successful your blog is going to be. 

Two more things.  You also have to be committed to the content.  I have a daily blog.  That means I have to create a blog every single day.  That’s not necessary for a successful blog, but you need to be committed to creating the content.  If you’re going to develop a following, then you want that following to be able to regularly follow.   So, if there is no content they are going to drift away and it might be hard to get them back. 

And then the very last thing is also being committed to marketing.  Just because you have a blog doesn’t mean people are going to find it or doesn’t mean that people are going to investigate.  It’s also very important that you spend quality time telling people about your blog and using marketing avenues, many of which we’ve discussed in our blog here, to get the word out.

To blog or not to blog?  That is the question.  I like blogging.  I like being able to engage my customers like you through the Once a Day Marketing blog.  I think it’s very cool.  But you have to decide if a blog makes sense for you.  Will it help you create more awareness for your product with your target customers.  I think every business is a little bit different so you really need to analyze this closely. 

There are lots of benefits associated with blogging.  There are also costs, mostly the time requirement.  If you are going to be a blogger you’ve got to be committed to creating that original, properly distributing it up for people to access, and then be sure to market to create awareness that your blog exists.  But blogging is a wonderful way to engage your customers and get more involved in the digital/social media world.  And that might be a good thing for you and your business and products.

This concludes another week of Once a Day Marketing, where business takes shape. I hope you’re enjoying the blog; I hope you’re sharing it with your friends and tuning in whenever possible.  Remember, you can always go back and review my old blogs to get caught up.  Some of you have asked about working directly with me.  If you would like that, feel free to contact me about a one-on-one service engagement.  I’m always happy to work a little more in-depth with my clients.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, and we will see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com

A Look at Marketing Best Practices (Recon Thursday/Process)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, where business takes shape.  It’s Recon Thursday and we’ve got an exciting topic for you today: “A Look at Marketing Best Practices.” 

I hope you are enjoying the blog and “Like” us on Facebook.  Please comment and share your thoughts around what we’re doing and how we can help your business improve in the future.

What are marketing Best Practices?  Well, very simply, it’s those things that companies are doing with respect to their marketing that really work.  There are a lot of unsuccessful efforts out there, those might be considered last practices.  Sometimes you can refine those, make them better and they become Best Practices.  Then, if you completely innovate and create whole new solutions, those might be called Next Practices and we’ll be talking about that in another Blog in the future.  

Remember in Kindergarten, when we were learning to read and write, if you looked at the paper of a classmate they called that cheating and sent you to the principal?  Well in today’s world of marketing and consulting whenever you look over at that other person’s work and you take from it what you like, they call that Best Practices.  Why go through the process of having to relearn everything if you can apply something that’s already working.  That’s what Best Practice is all about – identifying what’s really working best in the marketplace.

The question is, how do you identify these marketing Best Practices?  We’re going to take an easy approach.  First, I’d like you to think about companies that you really think do a great job marketing.  Coca-Cola, Apple Computer, maybe Ford.  There are probably all sorts of companies out there where you like what they are doing.  They’re effective marketers and they are reaching their targets.

Create a list of those companies and then go out and take a look at what they are actually doing in their marketing exercises.  What are they doing online, what messaging are they using, where are they positioning themselves in the marketplace.  Take a look at each one of your favorites and make yourself some notes.

Then, take those notes and create a list of strategies that you would like to try for your own business.  And that’s really it.  The main thing is to keep reviewing those companies or, whenever you hear of a new company you like, just go out and take a peek at what they’re doing to be so good at marketing.

There are no hard and fast rules for looking at Best Practices in marketing.  But, I do want you to have fun with this.  You’ve created a list of companies that you like, so explore their marketing endeavors.  See what creative things they’re doing with approach, their messaging and their positioning.  Then take from that what you like best and implement it.   

Given the resources that you have, money, time, talent, etc., go out and implement a marketing plan effectively.  Keep reviewing the plan and try it something new if it doesn’t work and keep going if it does.

That’s it for Recon Thursday, stop by tomorrow for Digital Friday.  I am Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, where business takes shape and we will see you next time.

James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com