Twitter Me. Twitter You. (Digital Friday/Promotion)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing.  Today is Digital Friday and we will conclude this week by looking at a social media tool called Twitter.

Many of you are probably using Twitter or you have heard of Twitter.  Perhaps you have an account and are not using it to its full extent.  We are going to talk about Twitter and how it can be a great tool for creating awareness in the marketplace.

Now what is Twitter?  It’s a powerful social media tool, much like LinkedIn and Facebook.  It enables you to send out messages or “tweets” of 140 characters.  A message can be anything as long as it doesn’t exceed 140 characters.  Using tweets you can point followers to a website, blog, online article, etc.

Twitter can be utilized to find people to follow who have interesting content that you’d like to receive “tweets” about.  People will also follow you because they are engaged in your content.  It is a way of following and being followed.

You are able to create lists of people whose tweets you like.  You can follow other peoples’ lists and others are able to follow your lists.  It’s a powerful way to begin delving into the world of social media and sharing common thoughts with liked minded individuals.

Consider for a moment of what might make good Twitter content.  Many people will tweet what they had for breakfast.  I don’t care to follow that kind of content, however, I do follow tweets that align with my thinking and my interests.  If you are trying to target a particular customer and you create a tweet of interest to them they’re more likely to follow it.  It can be original content or you can pass through someone else’s content that is interesting to the target audience.

It is important to consider Twitter in some capacity as a marketing tool.  Spend the time to design cleaver ways to engage new customers and to share information about your company.  You can start by looking me up on Twitter @onceadaymkting, follow me and I will in turn follow you.

Thanks for joining us for Digital Friday.  To discuss a one on one service engagement and enhance the marketing and branding for your organization, contact James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing and we’ll see you next time.

Brand Surprises: Making Customers Smile (Recon Thursday/Positioning)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, and it is Recon Thursday.

Today we are going to talk about brand surprises and how to make your customers smile a little bit more about your company, product and brand.  I’ll also share a recent experience I had in the marketplace when having a tire replaced.

We all like surprises don’t we?  What is a surprise?  It’s something that is truly unexpected and typically it makes us smile.  Think about how that relates to your company and brand.  What would be a brand surprise that you can share with your customers when they come into your business or interact with your product?

Every favorable impression you create for your customer enhances your brand.  Remember, the brand resides in the mind of the customers and if they are now smiling and thinking positively about your brand they are very likely to use your product in the future.

Just a few days ago I went into Firestone Tires to buy a new tire for my car.  I was treated very well and was impressed by their customer service.  At the conclusion of the transaction, they asked if I would like to round up the amount of my payment to the next even dollar amount and donate the change to Meals on Wheels.  I agreed to the donation and it really made me smile.

This round-up charity contribution is a very good idea.  Firestone has aligned the fact that they are a tire seller with Meals on Wheels, which is a very good fit.  I thought this particular brand surprise was great.  It made me feel better about their brand.  I’m more likely to tell friends and I’m more likely to return to Firestone in the future.

What can you do to create a brand surprise?  As you are interacting with other companies, products, and brands, take a look at the brand surprises they are creating.  Encourage the people within your organization to develop a campaign that will truly make your customers smile.  It doesn’t have to be expensive or complicated.  It has to be something that resonates with your customers and will encourage them to continue turning to your brand in the future.

That concludes Recon Thursday for today.  I hope that you can create a great brand surprise.  But don’t tell me, surprise me.

To discuss a one on one service engagement and enhance the marketing and branding for your organization, contact James Glover at (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing and we’ll see you next time.

Guarantees: Building Customer Confidence (Action Monday/Positioning)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing.  Today we’re going to be talking about guarantees and how they can enhance your brand and customer confidence.

What is a guarantee?  It is a formal promise that a certain condition will be fulfilled.  For your company it could be a performance expectation, such as “satisfaction guaranteed”.  A guarantee increases the confidence of your buyers by minimizing purchase risk.  If someone is on the fence regarding a purchase and see by the guarantee that you are so confident about your product that you stand behind it, they may be more likely to buy.  This also enhances the brand.  You really believe in your company and product, so will your customers.

Let’s take a look at two of my favorite companies and the guarantees they offer.  The first is High Country Gardens.  The High Country Gardens guarantee states that you will receive healthy, vigorous plants that transplant successfully and prosper. Within one year from shipment, if you are not satisfied for any reason, they will cheerfully send you a free one-time replacement (if available) or refund the full price of the plant.

The next is REI, an outdoor equipment store.  At REI, they stand behind everything they sell. If at any time your REI purchase doesn't meet your expectations, you can return it for a replacement or refund.  100% guaranteed.

If you truly believe in your company, product or service, why not offer a guarantee?  Ensure the guarantee makes sense.  You don’t want to give away the farm, however, you do want to instill confidence in buyers and back your product.  If a customer does want to return an item, make sure you honor that guarantee.  Over time you will build confidence, trust and loyalty in your brand.  If your brand is more successful your business will follow along as well.

Thanks for joining us for Action Wednesday.  Stop by tomorrow for Recon Thursday.  To discuss a one on one service engagement and enhance the marketing and branding for your organization, contact James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com.  I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing and we’ll see you next time.

Cheaper Ways to Wow Your Customers (Strategic Tuesday/Process)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing.  Today is Strategic Tuesday, and we are going to be looking at ways you can save money within your organization and enhance your customers’ experience at the same time.

Let’s take a look at cheaper ways to wow your customers.  Perhaps you have heard of the expression Faster, Better, Cheaper?  That means the product you create is faster, better or both for your customers but it costs your less.  This can be accomplished through both new technologies and more traditional means.

Let’s look at a couple of examples.  First, in banking today you are able to slide your check into the ATM where it is scanned and imaged.  The bank no longer has to open deposit envelopes or physically process the checks.  Imagine the cost savings for the bank that result from no longer having to move and process thousands of checks on a daily basis.

In another example, some restaurant chains accept take-out orders over the phone and provide preferential parking and a pick-up location dedicated to take-out orders.  Customers receive a quality product quickly.  The restaurant doesn’t have to devote tables or as large a wait staff to the take-out process, everybody wins.  The establishment saves money and customers have a faster, better product.

How do you go about saving money while enhancing the customer experience for your organization?  Assess your delivery channels and look for areas of opportunity.  Make a traditional enhancement or, convert a process to a new technology that costs less and provides a better service to your customers.

Once you have identified opportunities, review the costs and benefits associated with the change and, if you determine costs can be reduced by providing an enhanced product or service to your customers, you should seriously consider implementing.  You may find that your customers are thrilled with something that is faster and better and for you it was cheaper.

That concludes this week’s Strategic Tuesday, please join us tomorrow for Action Wednesday.  To discuss a one on one service engagement and enhance the marketing and branding for your organization, contact James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com.  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: (Smart Monday/Physical Evidence)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing.  Our goal is to provide you with ideas and inspiration to market every day and we hope you are doing that.

Today we are going to focus on physical evidence in our continuing series around using the 7Ps of Marketing as tool to make your business more successful.

Physical evidence is everything your customers, or your potential customers, see when interacting with your company or brand.  Typically it encompasses the store front and the product or its packaging however it also extends to your website and how your employees are dressed.  All of these are equally a part of the physical evidence.

Imagine when customers arrive at your business there are literally coffee stains on the carpet.  That doesn’t make a good impression.  They may be wondering why the business didn’t take time to clean up the mess.

When considering your physical evidence, look at the customer touch points throughout the delivery channel(s) and determine where those “coffee stains” are.  Then create a strategy to enhance the aspects you have identified.  These improvements will create a more favorable impression of your company and product in the mind of your customers.  Essentially you are enhancing your brand.

As an example, let’s look at the physical evidence of the Taco Stand.  Imagine if you walked up and it was very shabby, the sign was illegible and the food server was dirty.  Chances are you wouldn’t place an order. The physical evidence is really impacting your decision to buy or not.

On the other hand, if you walked up and the taco stand was well built, there was a beautiful seating area, the server was clean and pressed and the signage was very clear, you may be more apt to make a purchase.  That is physical evidence at its best.

That concludes this week’s Smart Monday, please join us tomorrow for Strategic Tuesday.  To discuss a one on one service engagement and enhance the marketing and branding for your organization, contact James Glover: (505) 501-1330 or onceadaymarketing@gmail.com.  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

Inbound Marketing: The Fly Fishing Analogy (Digital Friday/Promotion)

Hello again, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing, and today is Digital Friday.

Today’s topic is "Inbound Marketing: The Fly Fishing Analogy."

Before I define inbound marketing, let’s review traditional marketing.  Under the traditional model, you create a strategy, a campaign, and advertisements directed at your target audience.  That material is typically blasted in the form of TV and radio commercials, print ads, publicity, etc. and hopefully resonates with a particular type of customer.  It is often seen as interruption marketing.  Customers may or may not want to receive your message when you are ready to send it.

In bound marketing take the opposite approach.  Your customers find you.  It is permission based marketing.  Using the power of social media, you create content and leverage websites to attract customer that are interested in your company, products and services.  The premise is that they will find your message and follow it back to you.

It’s an entirely different approach in that it can reside at a location until you choose to update or remove it.  There is an opportunity for the same message to be viewed over and over for a long period of time, where in traditional advertisement you buy print or TV ads, they run and then that campaign is finished.

This is an emerging trend.  It has been around for a while but is really taking off.  You will see a lot more inbound marketing, especially on mobile devices, where you can place the advertisement in the customer hands when they are ready to receive it.

Now that you have a good idea of what inbound marketing is, I am going to share my Fly Fishing Analogy.

Imagine you craft the perfect fly, which is your content, and you never have to create it again.

You toss in river that is your market.  It floats along and will continue to float until you remove it.

In the river are all sorts of fish, these are your potential customers.  They will notice your lure (content) and if they are interested, they may take the bait and respond to your message.

You, as the inbound marketer, will receive the lead that comes in.  Reel the customer in by respond to questions, requests for customer service, and orders with immediate follow up.

If you’ve never been a fisherman, here is your chance.  Spend time crafting your content.  The more content you have online, the more inbound responses you will generate.  That will increase your marketing exposure and your lead flow.  It’s up to you to convert those into customers.

That concludes Digital Friday and another week of Once a Day Marketing.  Join me next week for more exciting marketing and branding tips.  If you need assistance crafting your inbound marketing message, please contact me for 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

People Watching: How's Your Team Doing (Recon Thursday/People)

Hello, I’m Jim Glover, That Branding Guy, for Once a Day Marketing.  Today is Recon Thursday, where we encourage you to take a look at your company, market or competition.

Today’s topic is “People Watching: How’s Your Team Doing?”

Monday we discussed the 7Ps of Marketing: People.  Now we are going to take a closer look at the people in your organization.  The original Marketing mix didn’t include People.  However, nothing is more important to your success than your team.  We’re going to have you do a deeper dive and identify the touch points between you/your employees and your customers.

The people within your organization are your brand, positive experiences with customers lead to positive impressions about the brand and negative experiences diminish your brand.  It is extremely important for everyone in your organization to understand that they are brand ambassadors, that what they say and how they act impacts the overall status of your brand.

Let’s start with touch points you have personally.  They may be face to face, on the phone, via e-mail, speaking engagement or seminars.  Review every instance where you are in front of customers or potential customers and determine how to improve those interactions.  Consider enhancements to your personal appearance and presentations/proposals; establishing a target timeframe for follow-up and improvements to customer service.  Any of those items will enhance the brand.

Next, look at your employees.  Are they answering the phone appropriately?  Are e-mails responses clear and concise?  Are presentations/proposals for clients polished and professional?  Does their appearance comply with company dress code?  Again, look at those touch points and identify opportunities around how to improve.

Keep in mind not everyone is a people person.  Look carefully at who should be engaging the customer.  For example, if a staff member does not have strong presentation skills, perhaps they should remain back at the office.  Use your judgment to gauge each situation.

One area often overlooked is people outside your organization representing your products.  They also reflect on your brand.  Go out to the channels and observe their interactions with customers (e.g., secret shopper).  Include distributors, sales representatives, and even convenience store counter people.  Anywhere you can improve customer interactions will result in enhancement to the brand of your company and products.

Once you pull your team together, promote it heavily to distinguish your brand.  Not only do you have a great product, you’ve got great people as well.

That’s Recon Thursday, to stop by tomorrow for Digital Friday.  If you would like assistance regarding the 7Ps for your organization, please call me to arrange a one on one service engagement.  Contact 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