Media Emerging

The old way to think about your marketing:

• I need a brochure
• I need a business card
• I need a Web site

The new way to think about your marketing:

• I’m launching a new business…what do I need?
• I need to attract new customers
• I need to differentiate myself from my competitors

The old approach thinks of marketing is products. The new approach thinks of marketing as solutions.

Why It Matters

Think of your marketing as a collection of tasks. Here’s what your day would look like under the old model:

• Search the phone book for marketing companies. Spend half of morning making calls.
• Talk to freelancer about designing brochures.
• Spend more time on the phone talking to a web designer.
• Hire intern to help with marketing.
• Run to printer to pick up new business cards.
• Try to get freelancer to call website designer to get on the same page.
• DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW TO START A BLOG?!
• Back to printer. They don’t use the same ink as the freelancer’s printer. Logos look wrong.
• Where’s that damn intern?!
• Call a dozen friends to find a company that can help you set up e-mail marketing.
• Missed three sales today because you were at the printer.
• Web site just crashed. Call web designer. He’s on vacation…or back at college.
• Press release? Well, I hadn’t thought about that…
• Close up shop. Try again tomorrow to get everything on track.

Now take a look at what your day would look like under the new model:

• Sit down with veteran marketing strategist. Outline an integrated marketing campaign that includes everything you need: direct mail, Internet, e-mail marketing, advertising.
• Focus on other aspects of business while your full-service marketing team handles writing, design, printing and execution of your marketing strategy.
• Show off new marketing tools to existing customers. Everything looks professional, consistent, sharp. Clients are impressed.
• Nurture incoming leads, close more sales, grow your business

How to Choose a Marketing Firm

When looking for someone to help with your marketing, keep in mind The Old Way and The New Way.

For a product-oriented approach, you could use a combination freelancers, in-house employees, print shops, and Internet orders. It may take five or six people to get the whole project done, and you’ll have to manage the whole process.

For a solution-oriented approach, you want something simple and convenient, yet sophisticated enough to help you stand out. Choose a marketing team that can adapt as your marketing needs evolve.

Questions to Ask a Marketing Agency (or Other Marketing Provider)

• Can you handle my complete marketing needs (from logos to Web site, from writing to design and printing)?
• Will I have access to the writers and designers?
• How quickly will you be able to complete my project?
• Can you recommend solutions based on my goals?

Houston business reporter Loren Steffy got stuck listening to IRS on-hold music for the better part of the morning yesterday. The song: A tune from Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker. How fitting…

In a tribute to our friends at the IRS, let’s talk telephones. Here are 20 Ways a Telephone Can Grow Your Business. Enjoy!

1. Call your VIP customers to say “Thank You.” Heck, call all of your customers to say “Thank You.”
2. Create a memorable phone number; 1-800-CALL-ATT is unforgettable. 1-800-225-5277 doesn’t exactly stick in the mind.
3. Include your blog or website address in your after hours message.
4. Get leads via text message from My411Pages.com.
5. Ditch the extra phone line and send your faxes straight to e-mail.
6. Switch to an iPhone or Blackberry and respond to client e-mails faster.
7. Follow local journalists on Twitter via your cell; when they need a source for a story, you’ll be the first to reply.
8. Use a call center to generate sales leads.
9. Forward office calls to your cell phone so you never miss a call.
10. Operate multiple businesses from a single location with a virtual phone system.
11. Get a toll free number to make it easier for customers to reach you.
12. Hire a virtual receptionist so customers are never frustrated by busy signals or after-hours answering machines.
13. Enter the Matrix. You are the one, Neo.
14. Create an automated phone survey to collect customer feedback.
15. Alert customers to deliveries, sales and events using a voice broadcast service.
16. Conduct interviews via telephone and convert them to a podcast.
    (Editor’s Note: Check out the PRstore Podcast to see how we use podcasts to support franchise sales)
17. Avoid costly delays with real-time traffic alerts by cell phone.
18. Call a blogger in your industry. Offer to write a guest post.
19. Avoid the cost of calling 411 by calling Google instead.
20. Grab documents off your desktop and edit them on the go with QuickOffice.