Once a Day Marketing: November 2014

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

Creating a Community Brand (Strategy)

Listen to our featured Ask Those Branding Guys radio show podcast: Ralph L.Mims and Branding Village of Los Lunas

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing™. On our radio show Ask Those Branding Guys, we discussed the importance of a strong, unified community brand.

Joining us on the show was Ralph L. Mims, Economic Development Manager for the Village of Los Lunas, New Mexico. Los Lunas is located 20 miles south of Albuquerque and has been cultivating their community brand over the past two years.

The Brand is leveraged to attract retail establishments and home-based workers to the area. The Los Lunas tagline is Small Community, Big Possibilities denotes the rural nature of the town yet its ability to get things done to enhance the quality of life and business opportunities for residents. Mims also employs the sub-brand, A Community That Works, for purposes of promoting the village at retailer expos and trade shows as well as on the Los Lunas website.

Mims shared that social media is used extensively to communicate the message of the Los Lunas brand. They have developed an outbound social media matrix based on the four pillars of the community brand; Live, Work, Stay and Play. The next step is to engage the community and involve residents in spreading a positive message about Los Lunas using hashtags related to each pillar.

Mims encourages any community in the process of developing a brand to invest the resources into determining the needs of residents through surveying topics such as the type or retail establishments desired or community assets that would enhance quality of life.

Los Lunas continues to face the challenge of creating awareness of the village outside of New Mexico. Mims is using the brand to their advantage and is achieving results in the form of new retailers now located in the area.

Enjoy the show.

Once a Day Marketing™ positions brands to become #1 in the minds of target customers. Visit our website at www.onceadaymarketing.com. Contact James Glover at (505) 501-1330 or email glover@onceadaymarketing.com. Listen to Ask Those Branding Guys™ every Monday at 11:00am (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

Friday, November 21, 2014

Product Innovation and New Markets (Tactics)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing™. Today we are looking at product innovation to expand into new markets.

If you are a car-maker who manufactures heavy duty trucks in a market place where many drivers want better gas mileage, what do you do? When you are one of the world's top beer makers, brewing up a great dark beer, but today's imbibers are gravitating toward craft and fusion brews, what options do you have? Or, what if you recognize there are a lot of urban dog owners who don't have the time to exercise their pets?

The solution? Product innovation that allows expansion into new markets. The Ansoff Matrix model refers to this as diversification. Take a moment to review a previous Once a Day Marketing™ blog: The Ansoff Matrix Model

To solve the three situations above, Ford is launching a new F-150 truck made with an aluminum body to achieve lighter weight and provide better gas mileage. Guinness is releasing a new beer called the American Blonde Lager, manufactured in the USA, a big, grand, different tasting beer. Lastly, Frolick Dogs in Alexandria, VA is a new canine sports club designed to keep dogs fit, a new company with bold offering.

I applaud these efforts of thinking creatively to design new products that address the needs in new markets. According to Ansoff, this kind of approach or diversification is the most risky venture. But as they say: Nothing ventured, nothing gained. So to steal from a popular TV commercial these days: What's in your innovation wallet?

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Branding a Regional Medical Provider (Strategy)

Listen to our featured Ask Those Branding Guys radio show podcast: Branding Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing™. On our radio show Ask Those Branding Guys, we discussed branding and marketing for a Regional Medical Facility.

Joining us on the show was Lillian Montoya, VP of Public Policy & Stakeholder Engagement for Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center. Their mission is to improve lives by providing compassionate and excellent care to patients and families. Christus St. Vincent has been part of the Northern New Mexico community for 150 years, serves seven counties and 300,000 residents.

In the current environment resulting from health care reform there is a focus on health and wellness. Service provider reimbursements are now results driven and have shifted from a service basis to an outcome and customer satisfaction basis.

Lillian is actively driving the Christus St. Vincent value proposition of quality health care close to home and their investment in the community out to the customer base. Feedback is gathered via surveys, community coffees and one on one patient interaction by the Medical Center leadership team. Christus St. Vincent is adding a $40 million wing in response to customer desire for private rooms.

Christus St. Vincent is providing customer service training to the staff to ingrain a customer-centric culture, empower individuals to take ownership of the message and also act as brand ambassadors.

Lillian shared that, to get their message out, targeted direct mail and print ads for special events work the best. The key to selecting the most appropriate channels is to know your audience. Her advice; completely own activities, manage the brand and be sure to address the negative feedback.

Enjoy the show.

Monday, November 10, 2014

Making Customers Smile (Strategy)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing™. Today we are looking at how simple things can make your customers smile.

Every time you make your customers smile, you are creating favorable impressions in their minds about your brand. Smiles might be generated by the quality of your product, value proposition, how easy you make it for customers to buy your product, customer service and sometimes even how your product looks.

I recently purchased a box of Cheerios and had to smile at General Mills. Printed on the back of the cereal box in big letters was the word "Smile." This message wasn't designed to help improve impulse buying at the grocery store. It was General Mills' way of helping customers think positively every time they poured a bowl of Cheerios. Well done, General Mills.

What are you doing to make your customers smile?

Friday, November 7, 2014

Which Advertising Agency is Right for You? (Knowledge)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Selecting Your Advertising Agency

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing™. Today we are looking at outsourcing marketing support for your company, specifically focusing on advertising agencies.

Advertising agencies will create your branding and marketing and may also act as your media buyer. Through branding they are positioning your products and developing target audiences. Under the marketing umbrella the agency will create your message, design ads or even produce TV commercials and radio spots.

Once you have made the decision to hire an advertising agency there are numerous aspects to consider when selecting the one that is the best fit for your company. Look at their experience; review their portfolio to ensure you like their work. Meet the individuals that are part of the organization. Find out how connected they are to the community and to the media outlets such as local papers, television stations and radio stations.

Other elements to review include the approach they will take to conduct your advertising campaign and the associated costs. Also, confirm that the agency will let you know the metrics they will provide to measure the success of the advertising campaign. This is a vital element in determining the impact of any advertising.

Ensure you discuss fees. Every agency will be different; they may be project based, hourly or retainer. Lastly, make sure the agency you select has media buying clout. If they are going to represent you to place your ads on television, in print or on the radio you want to know that they have the ability to obtain the most favorable pricing.

Once a Day Marketing™ positions brands to become #1 in the minds of target customers .Visit our website at www.onceadaymarketing.com. Contact James Glover at (505) 501-1330 or email glover@onceadaymarketing.com. Listen to Ask Those Branding Guys™ every Monday at 11am (MST) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

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