When you introduce a new baby into the family, you are immediately flooded by a handful of companies wanting to get you to ‘try’ and to continue using their products.

When Cecelia was born, we got hammered with coupons, samples of pedialyte and similac, as well as baby nutrition books from a number of other companies. Gerber is the only company that has continued marketing to us, and therefore, they are the winner! Well, they also win because their marketing pieces have ROCKED!

I got a great piece of direct mail a while back (PS – I thought direct mail was dead, but not when it’s part of an integrated online/offline drip campaign), that included coupons, ‘tear-away’ information cards, and connections to Gerber’s website, mobile app, Facebook page, and call center.

The most impressive part of receiving this ad was that not only was it timed perfectly to Cecelia’s age, its content answered a lot of the nagging questions I had in my head about how to feed my baby.

If you would like to design a direct mail piece that is as impactful as Gerber’s, use the following conventions:

1. Set up a drip campaign that follows your customers natural progress through the buying cycle or path-to-closure

2. Include a direct response “ask” so you can track the effectiveness of the campaign and compute your ROI (ex. coupons)

3. Make sure that your piece is content rich, and answers the primary questions that your clients have at each stage of the buying cycle.

4. Use a portion of the ad to move your clients up your permission marketing stream by including reasons for them to opt-in to your social network, blog, or e-newsletter.

5. Don’t overwhelm them. Time your marketing pieces so that they become an eagerly anticipated part of your prospects trip to the mailbox.

Please share some ways that you have implemented a similar strategy for your business.

Jamar Cobb-Dennard
jamar@jamarspeaks.com

Tony Note: reprinted from chapter 7 of Mind Capture: How You Can Stand Out in The Age of Advertising Deficit Disorder (2008 Morgan James).

I’m often asked by non-profits and cash strapped startup businesses to assist them in their marketing and promotion efforts. I’m fully aware that will usually entail me listening to a long litany of reasons from the business owner or Executive Director that low cost marketing techniques are challenging to find such as,

“We have such a limited budget, where do we begin?”

“We have no money for marketing.”

“We can’t seem to get any media attention or publicity for our compamy, cause, event or announcements.”

“XYZ Foundation gets all the money and recognition.”

I’m a huge proponent of giving back to worthy causes. I call this enlightened capitalism and you’ll see it get more and more press because it has a lot of incredible benefits for everyone involved.

The comments I listed above that I often hear from startups and from far too many people in the non-profit world test my patience and overall mental health greatly for three major reasons:

#1. They’re often positioned as perceived roadblocks that are impossible to get around

#2. Many times it’s an excuse, because many folks in non-profit land in particular have this sense of overwhelm or are afraid to get marketing feedback, look at new ideas and think like an entrepreneur.

#3. I’m a solutions based person and this attitude is often a sabotaging and self-fulfilling prophecy unless the business or organization is truly committed to change and trying new initiatives versus hiding behind excuses.

When I do agree to offer assistance or advice to a group or cause I immediately point out a few strategies that a non-profit can use to jump start new life into the organization. Let me now share with you Ten Great Benefits of Cause Marketing.

#1. You’re helping an organization that you truly believe in

#2. You have a direct hand in helping others

#3. Many times it can be fun and you learn more about your community

#4. It strengthens the image of your business and employees in the public eye

#5. Great publicity for the cause and your company or organization

#6. Generates a feeling of goodwill towards the non-profit and your business

#7. You often meet movers and shakers in the community

#8. Great way to rally employees to share and give back to others

#9. Tax benefits by donating money, products and services

#10. Often times the positive exposure and feedback from tying in with a local non-profit is more cost effective and memorable than advertising

Tony Rubleski
Mind Capture
616-638-39121
www.mindcapturegroup.com

If you’re running a small business of nearly any variety, it’s incredibly important to understand who your niche market is. Unless you’re one of the Wal-Marts or Amazons of the world, you definitely do have a niche and being able to define and cultivate it will help you with improving your web analytics, increased sales revenue, and robust brand management. Here are 3 tips for catering to your niche through social media:

Offer promotions, contests and incentives. Creating a verdant garden of discount possibilities, savings, and incentives is one of the best ways to cater to your niche. In short, people like getting stuff for free. They also like to compete for free things, so hosting contests on your social media sites, such as Facebook or Twitter, is a great idea for creating an online stir. Have a logo design contest, or a viral video contest and host it through YouTube. Inviting user generated art and design can be a tremendous boon. Also, promote your brand on Foursquare, where you can offer discounts on products in exchange for check-ins.

Promote valuable independent resources. Customers respect a company or site that is not afraid to refer to others. For example, if you’re running an online education forum and your site lacks decent tutorials, you should provide links to great sites that do have tutorials such as the Khan Academy or Open Culture. Not only will this enhance your community, it can lead to you getting linkbacks, blogroll features, and considerable street cred. There’s always the opportunity that later on you will be to partner with these other sites in a way that is financially agreeable to both of you. In short, put your money where your mouth is—if you claim to be “the leading authority on…” don’t tolerate obvious gaps in your knowledge base.

Use media effectively. Consider having a YouTube video of the day that is relevant to your niche. See the previous tip about viral video contests. Many companies use online video as vehicle for ingenius marketing campaigns in which the consumer ends up doing your marketing for you. Or consider having a photo contest through Tumblr, Flickr, or Imgur. Beyond just video and photos, investing in some research as to what kinds of visual aesthetics your niche prefers can go a long way. You don’t have to get too psychological about it, but your website and company ethos should appeal visually and emotionally to the demands of your community. For example, if your niche is science fiction, a general space-age aesthetic wouldn’t be too cheesy would make your fans feel at home.

Appealing to your niche market is one of the most important elements of running a small business. Investing considerable effort and resources into defining who your niche is and how you will reach them is an excellent idea for the present and future.

kyle lacy
ExactTarget
(blog) www.kylelacy.com
(join) www.smallerindiana.com
(tweet) kyleplacy

I’ve been doing some research for a client of mine on how to get votes using social media for a contest she is entering in March. We all have seen those contests – it’s a growing trend. Companies will use contests to get contestants to do the company’s word of mouth marketing for them. It’s actually quite brilliant – getting others to get their friends, family and anyone else to visit the company’s website in a short period of time.

It seems the best way to go about getting votes is using a multi-pronged communications strategy – engaging your entire list of friends and such through email, social media and direct contact, but it does take a lot of time and energy to mobilize your community.

Here are some tips I learned through my research that may help you as well:

• Email is the most effective method of communication according to several articles I read

• Always use your own shortened URL site, like bit.ly, so you can monitor and track a bit better

• Keep these two questions in mind: are you making it easy for your community to vote; are you communicating about this opportunity completely, efficiently and concisely

• Be personal – tell them why you want to win this contest and make sure you thank those who let you know they voted for you

• Use your network – ask others to forward and promote you to their networks – have any social media influencers in your corner, they can be an awesome ally in something like this

• Keep an eye on the conversation – even going as far as using Google alerts or Twitter tools to see what’s going on – and this makes it easier for you to see who is helping you out and thanking them for their work on your behalf

Any other thoughts or ideas? I would love to hear them, not only for me but for my client as well!

Serina Kelly
Relevate
www.getrelevate.com
serina@getrelevate.com
317-203-7740