Holiday Greetings from Once a Day Marketing (Smart Mondy/People)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Happy Holiday from Once a Day Marketing

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we are starting the week by wishing you a happy holiday.

You've worked hard to enhance your brand during the year, great job. You deserve to pause for a moment and reflect on your branding accomplishments.

We thank you for following our daily blog to build your branding and marketing knowledge, strategy and tactics. We hope through Once a Day Marketing you are more inspired to brand and market every day.

Be sure to follow our blogs next year.  We promise to continue to provide the information you need to develop your brand, capture mindshare and earn more market share. From all of us at Once a Day Marketing, have a great new branding year.

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 (MST) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Tactical Implementation – Opening the Playbook (Smart Monday/Process)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Field Tactics: Making the Right Plays

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing™. Today is Smart Monday and those of you that follow my blog know I am an avid football fan. I see many similarities between preparing for a football game and preparing your marketing plan and tactical implementation of that plan.

Let’s say the start of the season is the start of your business year and your team is in place. First create a playbook or marketing plan of items you will implement during the year to get your message out. Then identify which items are the best to implement during the season and which players are well suited to carry them out.

Review your game plan, that marketing action plan, and determine which tactics are working best for you. Ensure you continue to implement those items. Just like in a football game, when a play is working keep using it until the defense stops it. Also review tactics you had planned but aren’t implementing. Now is the time to identify those items, put them into the game and see how they do.

You may want to consider adding trick plays that weren’t in your play book at the start of your business season. Use your insight about your company, the competition and market to add new ideas; a few things that just may shake up the marketing game a little bit. Perhaps you will have more customers take notice.

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 (MST) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Planning Your 2014 Branding Strategy (Smart Monday/Process)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Time to Think Strategically for Next Year

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and it's time to start thinking about your strategic solutions for next year.

Strategic planning is critical to the success of your organization.  You now have almost two years and 500 blogs of Once a Day Marketing™ advice under your belt.  It's time to apply these skills and start developing strategies around your branding and marketing to implement next year that will enhance the success of your business.

There are numerous ways to complete strategic planning, however, we want you to start by asking yourself these questions:

 
·         What tactics have been working for my brand?
·         Which channels are generating the awareness my business requires in the marketplace?
·         What hasn't been working?  Should I modify or eliminate it?
·         What is driving bottom line profits?

In the coming year your goal is to introduce a strategy to enhance your brand or enhance the bottom line.  Determine if there are new markets you would like to conquer next year as well.

Finally, create a list of goals and objectives to target in 2014 and continuously measure how well your marketing and branding efforts are achieving your goals.

Proactively developing smart strategic solutions for next year is crucial.  It establishes a road map to where you want to go and also gets your team on board.  A well-defined strategy allows you to have benchmark metrics to use in evaluating the results of the plan.

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 (MST) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Allocating Marketing Resources (Smart Monday/Process)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Is Your Brand a Cash Cow
I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and today and we are discussing the Boston Consulting Group Growth-Share Model of where to allocate marketing resources.

BCG created this growth-share model in 1970 but it’s still an effective tool today.  The vertical axis depicts market growth.  The horizontal axis represents your market share relative to your competition.  This tool will enable you to map where a business unit stands with respect to growth and relative market share.

There are four quadrants on the matrix.  Cash Cow is a business unit that isn’t growing rapidly at the moment but it does have good market share compared to the competition.  A cash cow tends to provide sustained cash flow.  Another category is called Stars.  That is a business unit where there is quite a bit of growth and also a good position in market share compared to the competition.

The third section is labeled Question Mark (?).  A business unit falls into this quadrant when there is growth but relative market share is not very large compared to the competition.  The last category is Dogs.  A business unit will fall into this section when there is little growth and little relative market share.

Determine whether your business unit is a Cash Cow, Star, Question Mark or a Dog.  Then evaluate the strategic options to move forward.  You can build it up, hold it as it is, harvest resources or divest.

Building up a business unit requires input of additional resources to grow and increase market share.  On the other end of the continuum is divestiture where you would move resources out of one unit to put into your Stars and Question Marks.  Leverage the growth-share matrix to make a strategic decision as to how you are going to respond to your businesses placement.

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 (MST) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Consumer Adoption of Innovations (Smart Monday/Process)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: How Consumers Adopt to Innovation

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we're looking at Everett Roger’s diffusion of innovation model and how it will assist you to understand your customer’s adoption patterns for new product innovations.

An innovation is any product, service or idea perceived by your customers as new.  According to Roger’s diffusion of innovation model, the length of time it takes consumers to adopt a new product is represented by a bell shaped curve.

The model breaks consumers into five groups.  Innovators, comprising 2.5% of consumers, are adventuresome; they like and seek out risk and are the first to buy new products.  Early adopters, 13.5% of consumers, are opinion leaders and once they make a decision to buy typically others will follow suit.

The largest group is the early majority who make up 34% of consumers.  This group is very deliberate but they choose to follow the early adopters when making purchases.  Next, the late majority, also at 34%, tend to be skeptical.  When they see other consumer getting on board, they will seek out a new product.

Finally, we have the laggards who comprise about 16% of consumers at the tail end of the curve.  This segment is very traditional and they need to know that a product is well proven before they will buy.

Understanding adoption patters for your customers is important to accurately target your advertising.  Once you categorize your customers into the various groups of adopters you will be able to leverage demographics and psychographics to determine media characteristics and create a compelling advertising message for each group that will resonate specifically with them.

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 (MST) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Understanding Your Customer Loyaltyscape (Smart Monday/Process)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Do You Know Your Customer Loyaltyscape
Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we are sharing our model to categorize the loyalty of your customers.

There are numerous, very technical ways to zero in on the buying behavior and characteristics of your customers; some leverage demographics, others use psychographics.  We like the 10,000 foot view to assess customer loyalty.

Once a Day Marketing™ has developed a simple matrix with four different categories of customers; Undecided, BlueMooners, Zombies and Brand Lovers.

Undecided are the vast majority of consumers in the market place who would potentially buy your product but don't know anything about your brand.  Next are the Blue Mooners, these are customers who have tried your product out of convenience rather than having an interest in a specific brand.

Third are Zombies, they are really good customers and habitually gravitate to your product but they aren’t very loyal.  As soon as they discover competitor product attributes that are more interesting or beneficial they will divert and seek out the alternative brand.  The last group is Brand Lovers.  These customers will literally go out of their way to use your product because it provides them with an experience they absolutely love.

Here are some tactics you can apply to influence each group toward your brand.  Share more information with the Undecideds.  One approach may be more traditional or social media marketing to get on their radar and generate enough interest for them to try your product.

Blue Mooners have tried your brand once, so the strategic question is how to motivate them to try it again.  Zombies are already habitually using your product, they are not loyal per se so the challenge is to persuade them to be loyal.

Brand Lovers are sacred to your business and are probably driving most of your revenue. Your goal is to provide them with more reasons to love your product and recommend your product to their peers.

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.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Bling Can Enhance Impulse Buying (Smart Monday/Promotion)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we are looking at how bling (the flashy, ostentatious flaunting of things) can enhance impulse buying.

Recently we attended a branding webinar hosted by Guy Kawasaki, a top marketing guru.  He shared adding bling to a blog will visually attract followers.  Great advice, Guy, thanks.

We would add that bling works on just about all branding and marketing because we are such a visually oriented society.  When in line to check out at an Old Navy store this past weekend, we had to pass down a long aisle of merchandise before we arrived at the cash register.  Talk about bling.

From our picture you can see Minnie Mouse and Marvel Comics on display to entice customers as they wait to make their purchase.  This is great example of using bling to enhance impulse buying.  It would be interesting to know how many items are sold from this long display of "last chance" merchandise.  One thing is sure, Old Navy is using this tactic because it works for them.

If you want to entice more impulse buying, follow the practices of the experts like Old Navy, Barnes and Noble, and even your local grocery store of parading your customers past a display of enticing merchandise.  Let us know how it goes.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Understanding Product Life Cycle (Smart Monday/Product)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Product Life Cycle and Your Marketing

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we are taking a look at the classic product life cycle and how that impacts your marketing.

Products evolve a lot like people.  They are born, grow, mature, age and then pass on.  There are four stages to the classic product life cycle: introduction, growth, maturity and decline.

Introduction is when an idea is transformed into a product and introduced into the market place.  Production and marketing costs are initially high and profits may be low at the outset.

Next is growth.  Sales are climbing, consumers are adopting the product and the company is beginning to make a profit.

In the maturity phase the product has been on the market for a while.  Sales are still climbing but profits are declining because competition has now entered the market.  Other companies like the original product so they are emulating it and taking away market share.  This is the time before the product slides into decline that marketers have to consider how they are going to remarket this product.

During the decline stage, when sales and profits are falling off, a business has to evaluate whether they want to reinvent the product or retire it and bring a new innovation into the market place.

You can alter your marketing strategy anywhere during the process based on the marketing mix that is required at that time.  At introduction perhaps you employ more promotion strategies and later on move into leveraging pricing strategies.

Remember that the life cycle is different for every product.  Some may rapidly go up and then decline and others might take longer so you have to be the expert in analyzing your own product life cycle to determine the marketing strategies that you will use.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Move Marketing Milestones Forward (Smart Monday/Process)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Managing Marketing Milestones

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we are discussing moving your marketing milestones forward.

There are many marketing milestones that will put your company in a better position.  The question is, what milestones should you pursue given scarce resources?

From a strategic point of view, there are many goals related to your marketing and branding.  Focus on identifying the marketing milestone most important to the success of your organization.  It may be creating a marketing plan, improving your product, developing a new pricing strategy or launching a social media campaign.

Pull a team together and complete that milestone.  Then choose the next and finish that one too.  Over time, you will find your marketing will advance milestone by milestone and your company will as well.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Why Advertising Frequency is Important (Smart Monday/Promotion)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Marketing Rule of 27

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we are looking at the Marketing Rule of 27, a fascinating study conducted about 10 years ago.

Have you ever wondered how much advertisement you have to place before potential customers absorb enough impressions to finally make your brand stick?  The Marketing Rule of 27 answers this question.

The study found that to gain just one good impression in the mind of your customer you have to place an ad three different times.

The study also discovered that to really lock the brand into the mind of your customers, they have to absorb that good impression nine times.  When you do the math, 9 x 3 = 27 and that is how the name of the rule is derived.

What this means to you from an advertising perspective is that you have to ensure your message is shared 27 times with the same mix of potential customers (reach) so it will resonate and capture mindshare.  Review your marketing plan and develop an advertising approach that will allow your brand to sink into the minds of your potential customers.

There really is no one-hit-advertising-wonder; the Marketing Rule of 27 implies that it is an ongoing, consistent process of sharing your compelling message consistently over a period of time.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Branding: Telling Your Side of the Story (Smart Monday/Positioning)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we are looking at the importance of consistently telling your brand story.

Brand identity is how you want your company, product or services to be perceived by your target customers.  Brand image is how these customers actually perceive your brand.  Your branding goal is to ensure that customer brand image aligns with your brand identity over time.

The best way to accomplish this goal is to first make sure you have shored up your 7Ps of Marketing (to provide a rewarding brand experience).  Next, you need to consistently tell potential customers and remind current customers about the unique and compelling benefits of your products or services.  In essence, your brand story.  Your job is to manage and drive this compelling, marketing communications at all times.

Your competitors are working hard to tell their story to capture customer mindshare.  If you are aren't doing the same thing your market share will drop.

Further, it's also easy for customers to share negative experiences about your brand through social media.  Again, by being proactive and managing your story you can positively address these concerns and continue to shape favorable impressions in the mind of your customers.

Branding is 24/7/365 and no one is better at telling your story than you.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Brand Strategy Versus Advertising (Smart Monday/Process)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we are looking at the difference between developing brand strategy and advertising.

In a recent blog, Mark Ritson stated that brand strategy is no job for an advertising agency.  We tend to agree.

At Once a Day Marketing we spend most of our time developing brand strategy for our clients.  Because we know that a brand is simply everything, it's imperative for our team to have a thorough understanding of virtually every aspect of our client's company including operations, manufacturing, marketing, sales, etc. This knowledge enables us to properly position the brand.

We are also required to understand the client's brand architecture (how brands within the company's portfolio relate to each other), how the customer perceives brand benefits and also how that brand relates to competitors.  We assess positioning, brand promise, functional and emotional benefits, etc.  This work is then used to create compelling messaging that will be relevant and resonate with target customers.

Advertising is the process of sharing this messaging through the marketing ecosystem of traditional and social media channels.  With the myriad of ways consumers are now exposed to marketing messaging it's a full time job for an advertising agency to understand these channels and perfect their flow of communications to cost-effectively reach their targets.

Back to Riston's point, it's very difficult for a brand strategy company to have a great grasp on all aspects of advertising if they are spending all their time in the branding trenches.  The same is true of advertising agencies.  How can they really know branding if their goal is to be the best at delivering client messaging through advertising channels?

This distinction is something to consider as you hire consultants or agencies to develop your brand strategy and advertising in the future.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Reach, Frequency & Consistency (Smart Monday/Promotion)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Brand Building: Reach, Frequency and Consistency

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we are looking at three key concepts to understand when building your brand.

When planning how to deliver your compelling marketing message to potential customers, it is essential to consider reach, frequency and consistency.

Reach is the population of potential audience that will be exposed to your message.

Frequency is how often you share your message with the target audience.

Consistency is sharing the same message over and over so that it will stick in the minds of your customers.

Reach, frequency and consistency are critical concepts.  You should be selective in advertising because you don’t have to reach everyone with your messaging, not everybody is your potential customer.  Once you have identified the target audience it’s important to determine how your message will be distributed to those potential customers in your market area.

When determining frequency, ensure that you share the message enough so it will resonate with your potential customers and your brand becomes top of mind when they are thinking of buying the kind of products or services you offer.

Have you heard the slogan “You’re in Good Hands with Allstate”?  This insurance company has been using this message for a very long time; it is relevant and maintains mindshare with customers when they are looking for insurance.  Evaluate your advertising and identify how you can accomplish the same consistency when you are sharing your compelling marketing message.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Branding in a Mature Market (Smart Monay/Positioning)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Branding in Non-Mature and Mature Markets

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we’re going to take a quick look at branding in a mature market.

A mature market is defined by the fact that the product or service category has several brand leaders.  For example, if I asked you to name a top cola you'd probably mention Coke and Pepsi.  These are category brand leaders in the mature soda market.

In a mature market it's more challenging to create top of mind with potential customers, especially if you are trying to compete head to head with the category leaders.  The best strategy is to differentiate your offering by focusing on a unique attribute that competitors aren't offering.

Let's take a look at an example.  In Santa Fe there is a restaurant called Maria's.  It doesn't boast that it's the best restaurant in New Mexico or even the best New Mexican restaurant in Santa Fe.  It does promote having the largest selection of margaritas anywhere.  Whenever you ask a local in Santa Fe where the best place is to find a margarita, Maria's is always top of mind.  By creating this unique positioning in the restaurant category, Maria has captured substantial market share as well.

If your brand is situated in a mature market capture more market share by promoting your unique positioning.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

The Consumer Adoption Process (Smart Monday/Process)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: 5 Steps of Consumer Adoption

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we're looking again at Philip Kotler's work, specifically reviewing the adoption process of consumers.

There are five stages to this process: awareness, interest, evaluation, trial and adoption.  Kotler's model assists us to understand the minds of consumers as they consider buying new products, in particular how they react when exposed to new ideas.

During the awareness phase, consumers have to somehow become aware of the product; that's what marketing is all about.  As you advertise, then they become interested and seek product information.

Next is evaluation when potential customers obtain and review details about the product and determine if they want to try it.  Today the internet is widely used as a means to gather information related to new products.

In the trial stage, that is what customer actually do.  They use the product to see if they like it. 

If they do then they move into the adoption phase and become regular buyers of the product or service.

Your goal as a marketer is to facilitate the adoption process for your customers.  It will be different for every kind of product.  Consumer may be more likely to try an inexpensive product.  For more expensive products the evaluation step before the trial will be longer.

Also, consider the individual customers; every customer is different.  Some are early adopters and others wait for everyone else to buy once it becomes a proven product.  These customers are often referred to as laggards.

When you create your marketing plan ensure you understand these stages of adoption and develop an advertising campaign with customer behavior in mind.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Route 66 - Creating a Memorable Experience (Smart Monday/Product)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Route 66 Brand Mystique

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Smart Monday and we are highlighting the brand mystique of Route 66 and the importance of creating memorable experiences.

Certain brands have mystique such as the Beatles, Marilyn Monroe, Paris, and Disneyland.  Route 66, the historic highway that spanned from Chicago to Santa Monica, is another iconic brand in America.

We had the opportunity to chat with Kevin Mueller, owner of the Blue Swallow Motel in Tucumcari, New Mexico, a restored Route 66 motel that enables its visitors to step back in time and relive the memories of "The Mother Road."

Kevin Mueller Excerpt: Route 66 was established as a national roadway in November of 1926.  Because it traversed across the Southwest, all the way from Chicago to Los Angeles, it was a major route for people to travel whether for vacation or relocations.  It became legendary in Steinbeck’s book "The Grapes of Wrath" as the mother road.

It’s all the legend around it that enables the brand to live on.  The fact that so much of it still exists even though it’s not a national highway anymore.  So many bits of it have been preserved.  People can step back in time and experience that vacation that they took with their parents in the family station wagon back in the ‘40s and ‘50s and still stay in some of the same places that they stayed at with their mom and dad.  People want to share that with their families.  People want to experience those bits of their youth, something different from the normal (hotel) chains that they are used to seeing around their homes.  It’s a chance to relive a bit of history.  It’s still here and they can live it on their own Route 66 adventure.

Route 66, despite its mystique, must still offer memorable experiences today.  Many of the communities located on the historic highway are working hard to create new activities designed to entertain and enlighten travelers.  The big question to ask yourself: “Is your brand creating mystique and providing a rewarding experience?”  Something to think about.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.
 

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Branding a Unique Event (Smart Monday/Positioning)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Branding the Santa Fe Indian Market

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™. Today is Smart Monday and we are highlighting a world-class event here in Santa Fe, New Mexico branded with distinction.

Santa Fe is host to the famous Santa Fe Indian Market, the largest annual Native America Indian art market in the United States.  Now in its 92nd year, the gathering covers 14 square blocks of downtown Santa Fe and features 1,025 Native America Artists from over 160 tribes.

What makes the Santa Fe Indian Market brand so distinctive?  It features the top Native American artists from across the country, the quality of the art is unsurpassed; customers are able to meet and interact with each one of the artists; the setting is beautiful, historic Santa Fe, the 2^nd oldest city in the USA and, it aligns with the many cultures of New Mexico, especially the Native American culture.

Indian Market draws people to New Mexico who would like to experience the state, Santa Fe, and the Native American culture as well.

The Santa Fe Indian Market brand is as real and authentic as a brand can get.  It delivers on its promise to bring you the best Native America art in the United States.  As you are looking to distinguish your brand, consider how to make it real and authentic.  Then deliver on that brand promise.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Marketing the American Dream (Smart Monday/Promotion)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™. Today is Smart Monday and we are looking at marketing the American Dream.

We are big believers that you can brand anything, whether person, place or thing.  This past week we attended the 2013 Rural Forum, New Mexico's top economic development conference, and a key discussion theme was place branding and delivering the American dream.  Visit nmrural.org.

Keynote speaker Ed Burghard, CEO of The Burghard Group and creator of Strengthening Brand America, presented the concept that a state like New Mexico should strive to build an environment that enables its residents and businesses to pursue the American dream.  This will attract talented people to the state who will create opportunities for growth and prosperity.

From a branding perspective, delivering the opportunity to pursue the American Dream is a unique differentiator for a state.  Xavier University has developed the American Dream Composite Index (ADCI) that tracks how well each state is doing related to its economic, well-being, societal, diversity and environmental factors.  Visit americandreamcompositeindex.com.

New Mexico now ranks #2 on the scale.  Promoting this high ADCI score is a great way for New Mexico to differentiate itself from its competition, the other 49 states.  Further, striving to be #1 on the ADCI can provide strategic direction for the state and all its rural communities to work together toward building and strengthening the brand of New Mexico.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.

Inspiring Customer Loyalty (Smart Monday/Promotion)

Once a Day Marketing™ featured video blog: Building Customer Loyalty Programs

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy for Once a Day Marketing™.  Today is Strategic Tuesday and we are looking at rewarding your loyal customers.

In today’s competitive market place you are working hard to land every customer that patronizes your business.  Are you working as hard to reward loyal customers who continuously seek out your product?

There are many ways to thank repeat customers for their business.  In a formal system you keep track of the transactions for each customer and base rewards on activity.  Customers may earn points they can redeem for merchandise, discounts, free hotel rooms or other premium related to your business and that aligns with the customers’ interest.

An informal system is a less complicated such as a stamp card from a local restaurant.  After the customer presents it to be stamped for a specified number of meals, they are rewarded with a free meal.

A well thought out customer loyalty program will ensure your customers feel appreciated.  The reward you offer should be something the customer will value such as the examples cited above.  In exchange they will be loyal and have a greater appreciation for your brand.

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 noon (MDT) streaming live on SantaFe.com KVSF 101.5 FM.

© 2013 Once a Day Marketing™.  All rights reserved.