Marketing Matters

2009-02-16T09:40:25Z

Chartered Marketer [email protected]" target="_blank" title="Julie Sorath email">Julie McKeown from The Sorath Partnership answers your marketing questions, 1 or 2 of which are featured in each issue of the cluster e-newsletter:

August/September 2010 Issue

Q: We are a small company which is about to have a new website. As a new company our old one was put together by me and not really as professional as it should have been. We are going to a small web designer and really want to know what we should be looking for.

A: Go back to basics. What are you trying to get from the site? Who are your target markets? Is it business or consumer? Does your brand reflect this already? (If not then this needs an update too.) If consumer then you can get away with a busier site and more colours - if business then it should be simpler and cleaner looking.

What are your main offerings? You will no doubt be required to provide content and this is often difficult when you are 'buried in the business'. You should think about what your audience (target market) require to make them want to buy (even brochure sites need this) and write accordingly. You will probably find that the level of detail is not as high as you imagine! Finally, talk to the designer about the navigation as this is crucial - you should never be more than 3 clicks away from what you want. Oh, and don't forget about writing for SEO!!

Q: We are a small established business and going through a re-branding project at the moment. This is going well but we are worried about the effect on our customers. Can you help?

A: Re-branding is always something to be thought about deeply before going ahead. How much have you involved your customers in this? It can often help to give them a preview of the new brand - or at least let them know it is happening whilst assuring them that your intrinsic values of customer focus remain. It all depends on whether your main customers are business (fewer in number but more key customers, so easy to contact) or consumers (higher numbers and more difficult to contact individually).

Are you planning a hard or soft launch? ('Big bang' or gradual!) This will have an impact. If you reassure your customer base that you are still working for them then it should not be too much of a problem - assuming of course that you have not gone totally away from your original brand - recognition could be an issue if you have.

June/July 2010 Issue

Q: I have had my website for a while and have noticed that whilst I get quite a few people looking at my home page there are very few that go further into the site. Why could this be?

A: There are lots of reasons for this but my instinct is that there will be 3 main ones. 1 - Navigation issues/clarity of how to go further into the site. 2 - Branding/design. 3 - Content not applicable. Taking this one at a time, first of all the navigation must be very easy and clear - remember the 3 click rule. Secondly, the look and feel of the site must exude professionalism. Keep it simple and again, clear. Try not to have too many ‘whizzy’ things as it is distracting. Thirdly, and some of this is applicable to the first 2 points, the content. It is vital that you know who your target audience is and you write it specifically for them. If you don't you will miss them and everyone else too! I suspect that this is your main issue. You need to understand your target market, their needs and buying cycles in order to design a site that they can relate to and therefore will be interested in. I hope this helps.

Q: I am not sure if this is a marketing question or not. I am having a few issues with the staff not saying the 'right things' externally and as a result have had a few calls from confused customers. I am worried that I will lose business and am not sure what to do about this.

A: This is absolutely a marketing question! Internal marketing (to your own people) is as important as external marketing in this day and age. Your employees are another marketing channel, out there in the marketplace, and it is vital that they are 'on message'. You do not say whether you have regular meetings or formal internal communications or not but both of these, whatever size your company is, are very important. You can use them to get over the messages that you want the staff to portray - as well as using them as a way of raising staff morale. This will also help to make sure that the right messages get out! When staff feel that they understand what is going on and are really a valued part of the company then they will generally give off more positive vibes and will also proactively give out the company message.

April/May 2010 Issue

Q: As a very small business - just me at the moment, I am finding it really hard to know how to make myself look like a larger business but get the amount of work that I can cope with - if that makes sense.

A: It makes perfect sense. Marketing is about supply and demand and you need to generate the amount of demand that you can comfortably supply - if not a bit more so that you can grow the business (if it is sustained demand). Be careful not to grow too fast as I have seen many small companies fail because of this. Remember that cash is king and you need to keep it flowing in order to give your business the base it needs from which to move forwards. So grow a little, consolidate and grow again.

As for looking bigger than you are, this is about having the right branding and image. For most IT companies this hinges around the website and my advice is to get this right. Clean, professional image, easy to navigate, business language - and most of all, benefits led for your customers. Concentrate on the business benefits to them for using you, not the technical ones and you should be OK. Hope this helps and good luck.

Q: My company has 10 employees - mainly technical staff - and until last year was growing nicely. We are now really struggling to get business and have already cut prices to the bone in order to stay afloat. I can't keep everyone busy but don't want to lose people as I am conscious that things will get better in the future and I want to be positioned for this. Do you have any ideas of how we can get through this and generate more business?

A: Well, this is a tricky one - something that many businesses are facing. You don't say exactly what products and services you provide and to what sectors so it is hard to be specific. My advice would be to look hard at who your customers are and what benefits they get from you. Try and understand their position in the marketplace and how the recession has affected them. From there you will have a better understanding of their potential purchase behaviour. Is there anything that you can do to help them drive more business from their customers?

Getting closer to your customers in this way will mean that you will get whatever business they can afford now and position yourself as their partner of choice in the good times. If your staff are not busy give them some market research tasks to do to find all of this out. Give them each a customer (or set of customers) to look after and generate closer relationships. This is likely to drive more business - but remember to concentrate on the customers that have the potential for greater profit or you will be wasting your valuable resources. Good luck.

February/March 2010 Issue

Q: At the moment my main way of getting and servicing customers is through my team of two sales people and a sales manager. However, they are not producing enough business to pay for themselves and the business. This isn't totally their fault but just the way things are at the moment. Our customers seem to be cutting back and business just isn't going as well as it could be. I don't want to get rid of anyone, but do need to get more business in that is profitable.

A: I think this is a problem everywhere at the moment. Sales people are high expense to revenue and so need to be kept for the key accounts and for acquiring high revenue customers. Manage the potential channels to market that you have by matching the lower revenue customers to lower cost channels such as the Internet and phone. Perhaps for the moment have one of your sales team back in the office on the phone to customers keeping contact in this way and recruiting a greater number of lower value sales.
Once the contact is firmly made then the others in the team can visit when they’re passing (or if you want to keep the same person as contact then he/she could have 1 day a week out on customer calls).

Unfortunately channel balancing and management takes more explanation than can be covered here but this should give you something to start with. Make sure though that you do not upset any good customers by removing contact that they value - and do not upset your great sales people by de-motivating them to the point that they leave. It is all about balance and compromise to get the best long and short term profits.

Q: I have had a few local sports people and teams asking if we will sponsor them. Up to now I have always said no as I can't think of anything that we will get for our money. However, I am having some doubts as my son's football team is looking for someone to pay for new kit etc. I could easily do it but want to do it based on good business decisions rather than just as a doting mum. What do you think?

A: Well, what you get out depends on the business. If it is a local one then you could get a fair return. Of course it would have to be coupled with other marketing to get the best results but local teams often get in the local press and if the team does well, a small ad with 'Well Done from ABC company' accompanying the press release can make sure that you are linked well to them. This also helps your corporate social responsibilities which can mean a lot to some companies and customers.

Again, you would have to put a campaign plan together to get the most out of the opportunity. Even if all you do is have your name on shirts, as long as there is a logo that is used elsewhere and can be linked to you and what you do then it should be of some benefit. Also, remember that you can claim for this as part of your marketing outgoings.

December 2009/January 2010 Issue

Q. My marketing manager keeps telling me that we need to capture more data on our customers that is personal. I am not sure how to do this or even why it is relevant.

A. First of all this data is highly relevant as it will help you to build closer relationships with your customers. Once this happens you can lock out the competition more effectively and they will become less price sensitive. Collecting it is as simple as having discussions that cover wider issues than business. Ask how they got on at the weekend and encourage them to talk about themselves. Keep this information on the customer database for the sales and marketing teams to use in the future, both personally and for events. For example you may discover that a high percentage of your customers like golf and therefore a golf day may bring high returns in the form of a marketing event.

Q. I am looking to send out a direct mailer to the local business community offering some great support packages that I have recently put together. I have a database that the previous marketing assistant of the company used so I thought I would use that. I have put together a letter with some information on the offer but it looks a bit bland. Can you please give some advice?

A. Of course. First of all make sure that your database is the right one to use - don't just use it because it is there. If it is more than a year old it is probably out of date now and it may not cover your target market. First of all you need to decide what the objectives of the mailer are; then what benefits your target market will get. From there you can confirm your target market and make sure that you have the right database. Make sure that you can measure response so you need to have the right 'call to action' or response mechanism in place. Finally make sure that your message is crisp and understandable.
Once you have all of this in place put together something that fits with your brand image. If you are sending to a business audience make sure that it is professional and clean looking - a covering letter will give more information but keep it to one page. Try to follow up with a phone call a few days later but not on a Monday or Friday!
I hope this helps you. If you don't think you are getting the right image across call in a design agency - that's what they are there for.

October / November 2009 Issue

Q: How important is it for everything I send out to have the same look? I hear so much about branding but don’t really understand why it is so important on everything. Isn’t it just a logo?

R: Great question. Branding is VERY important and it is more than just a logo (although that is a good start). Whatever goes out to your audience gives an impression about your business. Individuals (including those in businesses) get thousands of marketing messages every day and it is important that any you send out not only stand out in the crowd of other messages, but also get reinforced by any other media that goes out from your company. For instance, you may have a yellow pages ad, a yell.com ad, something in the local paper, website and send out a flyer. If all of these have the same logo, colour scheme, font and theme they will be reinforcing the others, giving your company a lot more chance of being recognised when your audience are in the market for whatever your services are. You will get the opportunity over rivals who fade into the background because their image or brand isn’t so strong. So the short answer is that it is very important for everything to have the same look and feel.

Q: I work for a company with quite a few staff. Many are ‘back office’ and just don’t seem to care about our customers – because they never see them. I read a lot that says everyone must be focused on the customer. How can I change things?

R: Unless you are the MD or have the ear of the MD you may struggle. Try leaving relevant articles in front of him/her, or emailing your concerns. You are quite right. Everyone has to be focused on the end customer and work as a team in order to make the company more efficient and effective – especially in today’s climate. This has to be driven from the top however, otherwise it won’t work. Customer based targets (such as customer satisfaction ratings) are a good start. Trying to get the back office team actively involved in some customer facing projects may be a way to make things change a little. There are many things that can be done from streamlining work processes to implementing targets that can have a positive effect – but culture change has to be high on the agenda too – and this starts at the top.

August / September 2009 Issue

Q: We send out a lot of marketing literature – either as e-shots or mailers and never really get much in the way of return. Can you please help?

R: Well, there are three things to consider here. The first is getting the segmentation right and making sure that you are not sending out generic messages. The second is to make sure that you follow up the mailers with calls wherever possible. We know that the response rate for mailshots is around 1% – this goes up to 12% if follow up calls are included. Finally, make sure that you track the responses that you do get. Measuring your marketing allows to make sure that any ‘mistakes’ are not repeated and successful campaigns are. This saves money and resource as well as generating revenue.

Q: We’re really finding it hard in the recession to break even, never mind make a profit. What can you suggest? We are a small web developer and there are a lot of competitors in this area.

R: If you are a small company then you are likely to be better off as a niche company rather than trying to go for all sectors of business. You do not say whether you host sites as well, but if so this should give you some residual income. Is there a market sector that you have a greater number of clients in? Or, is there one that you feel more comfortable working with? If so, and if this is a large enough sector then why not specialise? Do you design your own sites or work with a designer (or both)? Partnering with a specialist design house can often help to generate throughput.

As you know, you need to make every penny spent worthwhile. Therefore it makes sense to really understand your current situation, where you can cut costs and what will give you the most opportunity. This includes looking at where your competitors are strong or weak, so that you can see where you can get into markets that they are not involved in or cannot compete.
I am sorry that I have asked more questions than I have answered, but if you can answer them you will be on the way to understanding the best way forward for your company.

June/July 2009 issue

Q: I would like to do some more marketing but have very little budget. What can you advise?

R: First of all understand who your target markets are. These markets may be corporates, other small to medium sized businesses, home users or public sector organisations (dependent on your services). Do you have a good story to tell – have you expanded, taken on new staff, launched a new product etc? Have you recently secured a significant deal with a client that would make a news story? Local PR, and better still trade PR, can be a good way of getting your name around for little money.

Once you understand the market(s) you are in start by segmenting it between current customers and prospects. Understanding your current customers and what works for them will help you to market to prospects in a more targeted way - getting better results for your marketing budget.

Keep in contact with your current customers via newsletters and the odd phone call – tell them what is happening in the industry and what you are doing as well as finding out how they are – don’t try and sell, just keep in touch. Knowing their buying cycle will also tell you when to just ‘chat’ and when to start selling. Give them an offer for introducing someone.
Make use of your customer database – and if you don’t have one then get started!

Remember that people buy from people and just as your relationships with friends started with nothing and built up as you got to know each other – so it is with customers. A smile costs nothing and can reap rewards! (and make sure that all of your staff smile too as they represent your company and its image to your customers and prospects).

Q: How do I go about building marketing messages about my company?

R: In order to get the right messages you first must have knowledge of the audience's needs so that you can describe the benefits in relation to these. Then you need to know these benefits in detail in relation to competitor offerings and other unique selling propositions you have. Armed with this you can then build your basic message to market, tailoring it to meet the needs of each segment so that it hits the spot.

April / May 2009 Issue

Q: I am a hardware reseller in the main and am finding it very difficult to compete against the large retailers. Do you have any ideas please?

R: You don't tell me what your other offerings are, but working in a commoditised market such as hardware, if is very difficult to get differential advantage without constantly dropping prices - which of course is not sustainable. In this current economic climate everyone is expecting a bargain and my suggestion is to take a step back and look seriously at what else you can offer. You must add value to your customer base and this usually happens via perceived service and high quality products. If you look deeply into what you do and what your customers want, I strongly suspect that you will find something other than pure hardware that will give you more to offer them. If you do this and give good value then you will have satisfied customers who will grow loyal and remain so - as long as you are delivering against their expectations.

Q: As a small web development company working with designers, I often feel that I am at a disadvantage and am thinking of taking on a designer in-house in order to compete more efficiently but am a bit concerned about the risk. Can you advise me please?

R: This is a difficult one to answer without knowing more detail about your circumstances. Sometimes it is better to have all the functions in house and other times it is better to stick to your core competencies and work with others. How much of your business comes through the designers that you currently work with? If it is a large amount, how easy will it be for you to go out to market to find new customers? How do people buy their websites? Often it is via a design house and so you would have to market yourself very differently from how you do today. A lot of the answer also depends on your company's financial circumstance - how much money is available to effectively re-brand and re-launch at least a part of the business?

February / March 2009 Issue

Customer Service – the ONLY differentiator

Many companies react to slow times with price cuts and other monetary offers. Although these may result in a short term trickle (or flood if they are lucky) of business, this isn’t sustained. Even worse, their brand starts to become devalued as they compete on price not benefit to their customer. Whilst innovation in the form of new products and services can also help to keep a company ahead of the market, the only sure fire way of keeping a customer is to treat him or her how they want to be treated. There is an art to this but it starts with pleasant, polite and professional people (a different set of 4 P’s for the marketing people amongst you) who own problems and get them resolved – when they say they will.

Q: Dear Julie, We introduced a small call answering system recently and have noticed that the number of calls (and therefore business) has dropped off quite dramatically. We have an 0845 number and so can track calls. We have found that nearly 50% of the calls only last for 10 seconds and are a little confused about this. Can you please shed some light on this?

R: Of course. There could be a few reasons for this. First of all the calls are not getting past your call answering system which could mean that you have a message that customers simply don’t like. You may have your list of departments in the wrong order and people cannot be bothered to hang around, or they may not like the fact that there is not a ‘real person’ at the end of the phone. You should try and call in to see what you think – and get some friends to do the same and give you an honest answer about the system (and your staff when they get through to them). You could even try disconnecting the system to see if this makes a difference (but make sure that if you do, you cover every angle so that customers are not left hanging around waiting for people to answer). A phone call is the first introduction to your company for many people and so the service they get at this level determines all service in their perception. It is important that you get this right because so many companies do not.