resources
When I started this company 14 years ago, Public Relations wasn’t a focal point of our new firm. Back in those days, we farmed out press releases, press conferences, and even media training. My background was in the television media business, so I was more focused on the advertising side of things in our industry.
Before and After advertising is as old as... well, advertising. I mean, who hasn’t seen an ad for Weight Watchers, and marveled at the Before and After comparisons of this highly effective weight loss program?
People are unique. We can all agree on that statement. Yet, when looking at marketing decisions, it seems the experts want to lump us into categories with the assumption that everyone occupying that category has the same patterns, desires, interests, and passions.
If you’ve ever looked at the sales process then you already know that people buy from people they know and trust. If you haven’t thought about it, now is a good time to consider what I call the “headwinds” in the sales process.
Remember the old saying, “curiosity killed the cat”? Well, the lack of curiosity has done-in more than a few businesses and leadership teams. Strong questions make a big impact.
We get it. It’s a big commitment. You don’t want to invest all your time just to get hurt again. You want someone who listens and communicates, someone who supports your growth and grows with you, and most importantly, someone you can trust.
Mister Starr was my 10th grade geometry teacher. I didn’t do so well in his class. I do, however, remember him clearly reminding our class to “check your work”.
Some of the best ideas are stolen (may I more politely say borrowed).
Over 30 years ago I was a TV sales manager who called on business and ad agencies in Michigan. One agency founder had a fun title on his card, and I remembered that. Fifteen years or so later, when I started my company, I decided I wanted to have some fun with our titles, as well. Internally we all know what we do, but externally, we like to poke a little fun at the formal titles and let our experience and sunny outlook shape the language that distinguishes us.
So often in business a great deal of time is spent focusing on what we’re writing and that’s important. At the same time, it’s important to evaluate the appearance of what is written. Taking a closer look quietly makes a difference in the way copy is presented.
Recently I learned of a fellow business owner who wanted to start doing some advertising. His company had been busy for years, but recently his business had slowed down significantly. The phones weren’t ringing. The orders for work had stopped. Enter the “famine” phase of the feast-famine cycle in commerce.
Some of us have thrived for years in the environment of the face-to-face meeting. It’s meant we’ve been able to read a room, notice body language, and maybe build rapport with someone based on the photos in their office or by identifying with...
Everyone there was in attendance to see Branford Marsalis. The famed musician was the main attraction for...
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Little things can make a big difference though – especially in commerce. One of the first questions I ask a new client is...
Sometimes you come across a person who just rubs you the wrong way. It happens to all of us in business (or education or healthcare or not-for-profit foundation work). That’s because those people are everywhere.
Money is a great motivator. Generally we can all agree on that concept and, as the holidays and the end-of-year bonus season approaches, it’s worth noting that most everyone is motivated by mo’ money, mo’ money, mo’ money. (That’s a 90’s comedy sketch reference for those not as old as I am.)
If you are a human being in a typical office work space, you're probably one who uses email. More likely than not, Yahoo, Gmail, or even AOL email rules your world. I
As many of you know, not only do I handle marketing and advertising at B2C Enterprises, I also work as a career firefighter/engineer in Chattanooga, Tennessee. One of the things we do is plan for emergency incidents before they happen, or, in firefighter shorthand, pre-plan.
Immediately I have to decide….Is this a “not sure what to ask you so I’ll just ask the simple how is business question”, or are they genuinely interested in the affairs of the marketing and advertising agency I run?
They were great trips, but as Mom so rightly pointed out, they came at the very end of the summer. Before the trip there was wiffle ball to play, swimming to dive into, friends to ride bikes with, girls to meet, smaller family trips to take, and movies to watch.
Except it's not - it's really quite simple. Naturally, I like to write - hopefully you can tell that from the energy that goes into delivering some value to you with these monthly pieces.
“We’re actively recruiting for…..”
This is a phrase, or even a buzzword, that c-levelers and human resources management types often toss around without a lot of thought.
Remember the old saying, “curiosity killed the cat”? Well, the lack of curiosity has done-in more than a few businesses and leadership teams. Strong questions make a big impact.
Mister Starr was my 10th grade geometry teacher. I didn’t do so well in his class. I do, however, remember him clearly reminding our class to “check your work”.
We enjoy giving it as a gift to our clients at the holidays. I also love to meet with clients, and prospects, and potential employees as they drink it. While I feel like I should enjoy a cuppa joe, the reality is: “I do not drink coffee!”
About twenty years ago, in a city far from where my agency is located, I learned a valuable life lesson.
Gathered with me in an old room with dated furniture on a cloudy fall day were 12 people who I’d never met prior to that week. A few days before, we went through a tryout of sorts, and that was also a strange experience. I always wanted to...
People want to improve. Well, most people do anyway. They’ll talk the improvement game. They’ll go to conferences. They’ll read those books. Most will target a...
On the first night of November (which did seem weird), the Houston Astros captured their first-ever baseball World Series Championship. Just four years ago they were the laughingstock of the baseball world and had lost over 100 games – a near record for futility.
In the marketing world, we tend to be heavily focused on the next month, quarter, or year.
I will often judge how much we’ll enjoy an act at The Spot based on one natural interaction: I watch how the artist treats our magical, kind, and helpful sound engineer, Travis. If they care for him and treat him well, their performances are almost always extra enjoyable.
B2C Enterprises invests over a million dollars in media most years, while at the same time, interacting with salespeople from at least seven states. That’s a lot of business transactions and a lot of sales appointments.
Use someone else’s informative and entertaining story until you create your own to share. I did this when I was younger and I also did it seven years ago when I started my advertising agency.
They’ve ruined the process for many. Certainly they’ve made a lot of work for those who genuinely do put their prospects' best interests first. Typically when a salesperson walks through the door, the potential client leans to the position of distrust. It may be unfortunate, but it’s generally the case.
You get in and settle into your job and before you know it, the realization hits there are lots of other things that need to get done.
It's basketball season and I love basketball – more than most anything. So it’s a good time to write about basketball.
However, March of every year brings one specific activity that breaks this pattern. They are called "Brackets".
Every market has one of these types. Here in the Roanoke-Lynchburg television market, where our marketing firm is based, we are lucky enough to have two.
I’m talking about car dealers with terrible commercial campaigns.
No, it isn’t limited to just automotive marketing, but these guys are the...
For the past decade, I’ve noticed something that seemed kind of odd to me initially. Over time, I continued seeing this pattern and I figured it was time I identified it.
Some of the smartest people I know own companies, invent products, or find a better way to accomplish a goal. They are brilliant at what they do and have built a product or service based on some sort of genius technological solution. The work they do takes...
Years ago, I wrote about the value of “going where the eyeballs are” when it comes to advertising. It’s an age-old axiom, but as you evaluate your place in the business community, it’s one that deserves a little closer examination. If you have...
Over the years people have asked me how I decide what to write about in our monthly columns. Often it is noticing something basic and then pondering how it fits into marketing or business operations.
I have a teenager, which means I have to deal with the constant cycle of updating, repairing, and replacing of mobile phones. My normally sure-handed young man occasionally drops his...
My friend Bill from Toledo told me a story once and it has stayed with me for more than twenty years.
At the time, he was in broadcast television commercial production and, as a Black man living in America, he had a very different perspective than I did. He recalled being a kid in the early 70’s watching television and seeing...
In real estate there’s an old saying: only three things matter – location, location, location. It’s funny how that same adage has an application in the...
Football teams have evolved their rosters through the years – just like baseball teams did years before. You have short yardage runners, nickel backs, receivers who only play on third downs, and kickers who are especially talented at...
I’ve said it so many times lately – mostly as a sort of a preparation for what is to come for our prospective new clients. The more marketing you do, the more there is...
It’s an observation and it isn’t the case in every circumstance. For more than two decades I managed sales departments in the...
I’m convinced some ads are invisible. Well, they certainly take up space or air, but they get skipped or ignored more than...
Way back in the olden days, the proverbial shot of the storekeeper with a broom at his front step, apron tied around his waist, seemed to be...
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Galaxys, iPhones, Google Pixels, and the sort produce so many great memories. After all, without them, how would...
My Dad calls them “destructions”. You know – the printed papers that come with most electronic items or things that need to be put together. Detailed explanations of...
There’s a new brewery in downtown Roanoke. In fact, there are like six new breweries in our hip, small city. We’re the up-and-coming craft brewing mecca of the east coast with...
For years now, my creative team has been inserting clever images or photographs into...
From all accounts, Zoom calls are going to remain a part of the business day.
For years companies ran WebEx, Teams, and other video conference meetings, but it wasn’t until 2020 that we all started playing in that arena on a regular (read: daily, or even hourly) basis. That shift was startling to many...
Business routines are backwards these days. It used to be I’d build a relationship with someone, then they would become a client. Now, clients decide to trust us to help them and then at some point afterward we begin...
It’s fascinating when a client says something to me that I’ve already thought or said myself many times. As if hearing the idea for the first time, their comment hits my head (or my heart) and drives home a concept chock full of value. That’s exactly what happened to me during a recent Zoom call with a client.
We were talking about their media plans and how they suggested we approach their strategy for the coming season. We were working through their goals, their budget, previous success, and some new ideas to...
This fall, out on a walk, I noticed a house in my neighborhood that provided the perfect picture for what we tell our clients. It was so appropriate I decided to snap a picture. Hopefully it isn’t your home. I’m hoping it can illustrate an important point about your business. Think ahead.
Thinking ahead is good advice for...
For the past decade, I’ve noticed something that seemed kind of odd to me initially. Over time, I continued seeing this pattern and I figured it was time I identified it.
Some of the smartest people I know own companies, invent products, or find a better way to accomplish a goal. They are brilliant at what they do and have built a product or service based on some sort of genius technological solution. The work they do takes...
Years ago, I wrote about the value of “going where the eyeballs are” when it comes to advertising. It’s an age-old axiom, but as you evaluate your place in the business community, it’s one that deserves a little closer examination. If you have...
Over the years people have asked me how I decide what to write about in our monthly columns. Often it is noticing something basic and then pondering how it fits into marketing or business operations.
I have a teenager, which means I have to deal with the constant cycle of updating, repairing, and replacing of mobile phones. My normally sure-handed young man occasionally drops his...
Before I became a business owner eleven years ago, I was a sales manager. Before I was a sales manager, I was a seller out in the field. Early on I decided I didn’t ever want to be...
Around 15 years ago I spent a day in Northern New Jersey making sales calls with a consultant. I like new places and, while I had driven through the region, I had never really spent any time there.
One of the things wise people encouraged me to do was to meet with people to help me see what possibilities existed out there and to better understand what made me special, valuable, and unique.
As sellers and account managers we are a reflection.....When they’re doing great work it shows naturally through our demeanor and plays out...
My Dad is probably the biggest fan of my writing – and sometimes my biggest critic. I’ve seen the statistics for this monthly piece and most of you who receive it actually read it. Some of you may muddle through it while others...
About a year and a half ago we hired a business development person at our marketing and advertising firm. It was a big step for me since prior to that time...
There are patterns in every part of commerce. It’s easier to be robotically repetitive and as businesspeople, shoppers, or office workers, we tend to continue doing what we’re most comfortable with.
It’s so easy in the sales process to nod your head, agree with the prospect, and work to keep the peace. After all, it feels better and what kind of position are you in to object or share strong opinions when you’re trying to start a business relationship with someone? The answer is the best position.
“Misery loves company.”
“It is what it is.”
“This too shall pass.”
“Take it a day at a time.”
“The sun will come up tomorrow.”
Yesterday, in the midst of all the new ways of conducting business, I was on my seventh conference call of the week and a significant client of ours told us what had been happening in their world. Major work was being put off by a large cross section of their clients. He tongue-in-cheek said...
Twice in a matter of days I asked a “youngin” about learning something and both times they took the same tack. Suddenly, I realized how old I was.
You see, back in the day we’d have asked a friend for information, or gone to the library, or found an expert, or gotten a hold of an owner’s manual. Heck, back then we’d even grab a...
When you run a small business, manage a few dozen accounts, shepherd a travel basketball playing teenager, and work behind the scenes on two non-profit leadership teams it’s easy to...
There is a commonly seen logo that I simply love.I love everything about it. I love how different divisions have the same...
Multitasking? Nah. Sometimes we can do multiple things in a really fast sequence, but when we try to do two jobs at one time...
Things seem to happen so fast these days.Of course that’s what people have been saying for generations so...
Like many of you, I grew up hearing nursery rhymes and, while I may not know why the itsy-bitsy spider crawled up the water spout, I can tell you one thing: Most anything that is universally familiar can become fodder for successful advertising.
Humor is a wonderful way to break into someone’s space or to capture their interest. When it’s appropriate, we use humor in our client’s marketing.
I scream. You scream. We all scream for ice cream.” That might have been the first food marketing campaign in the history of America (or not).
