Co-op and MDF Programs - Adoption is your key Front-End Metric
Chalk It Up to Experience
Last Friday, I was able to enjoy being pampered at the salon. Some may call it a “haircut”,but this was no ordinary haircut. Not only was I able to book my appointment on their website (a much appreciated convenience), but upon arrival I was offered my choice of coffee, tea or water. While I waited for my appointment I was given full access to the latest and greatest in pop culture trash (you know the basics; People, US Weekly and the like). They made me so comfortable in fact, that I didn’t even notice that I had waited 20 minutes already. Why would I care? I had all I needed to slip into relaxation mode.
These days most companies are aware of this experiential phenomenon and focusing more on making the customer experience a positive and memorable
one. There are subtle ways in which many businesses enhance the customer experience without the customer being aware of it. When you get your oil changed or car washed there is usually coffee and popcorn in the lobby for you while you wait. The same is true for most banks. Many clothing boutiques and department stores offer bottled water and other beverages while you shop, keeping you happy and spending money.
Another less obvious experiential tactic is the “husband chair” (my personal favorite). Ladies, I think you may know what I am talking about here. The chair or couch that you see so cleverly placed in the store lobby or dressing room area. While this magical chair provides solace for one’s mate, it allows a feeling of relief, freedom and ease for the shopper. Alleviating the pressure to hurry and get in and get out. No more having to ignore those slow, not so subtle sighs of frustration followed by “Ready? Let’s go. You said this was going to be quick”. When the “husband chair” is occupied there’s more time to shop and more money to be spent!
In the end, the customer makes their own decisions, but if you can make them as comfortable as possible you are much more likely to convert their visit or experience into a sale.The comfortable experience doesn’t always have to be an after-thought. At Balihoo, we offer quality solutions that are designed with ease of use in mind; providing comfort, and ultimately, piece of mind.
Drive More Sales Even With Your Lowered Budget
Marketing obviously doesn’t get easier during a recession – according to the 2009 ANA/MMA Marketing Accountability Survey three-fourths of marketers had their budgets cut this year and two-thirds were expected to drive more sales with their newly lowered budget. The number one reported strategy for marketers who wanted to improve effectiveness without spending more was to switch up their marketing mix from traditional to digital.
It will be interesting to see how the average marketer’s media mix will change over the next several years (as the economy begins to improve). Over the past 16-months, marketers have noted that interactive marketing has proven to be more effective and efficient and are therefore moving their dollars from traditional media toward less expensive and more efficient interactive tools – enabling them to accomplish current advertising goals with less money.
Also of interest, more than 50% of respondents reported that they had shifted spending away from brand-building initiatives and 38% were putting more spending in lower-cost media. While it makes sense for a brand with a solid, seemingly impenetrable image to take a step away from branding-building and focus their dollars elsewhere – neglecting to develop or deepen a brand that is relatively unknown or seemingly weak can destroy a company – especially in a down economy.
Advertising Bombardment – Bring It On!
It’s a fact of life we’ve grown to accept: advertisements are everywhere. They infiltrate our daily life and are impossible to ignore. Some people are bothered by this supposed ‘attack’ on personal space and time, while others have learned to merely accept this relatively new reality that shows no sign of slowing. Still others have grown to enthusiastically embrace our new world of logos, slogans, spokesmen, and paraphernalia that are stuck, said, plastered, placed, handed out, hung up and thrown in our faces just about everywhere.
Clearly, this expansion of advertising has gained significant speed due to its pairing with the Internet’s ever-improving capacity to track consumer habits and preferences. This ability has given marketers previously un-dreamt of opportunities to reach their target audience. The liberation of audio, visual and textual communication through online conduits has also opened the floodgates for advertisers to reach a captured audience with precision and speed.
Depending on the day, I find myself in one of the aforementioned buckets of reactions to advertising. More and more; however, I am shocked to realize I’m actually a proud member of the latter group – that growing body of people who gladly grab a brand’s sticker for their water bottle, publicly befriend a company on Facebook, or follow their favorite stores on Twitter.
This revelation about myself as a welcoming consumer of advertising finally hit me in its entirety the other day when my friend introduced me to the new wave of ‘free’ international communication offered by Talkster. Talkster is a service that allows you to use local cell phone minutes to make international calls. The connection is crystal clear, the convenience is great, and the price is unbeatable! How is this possible? Easy – you only have to listen to a 10-second advertisement before your call is connected. That’s it? REALLY? Well then, bring it on! I’d gladly listen to even 30 seconds of ads in order to have the flexibility of talking to my friend in Hong Kong on my cell phone for free.
Pandora radio is another great example of a service whose advertisements I willingly accept. Pandora allows me to customize my own radio stations online with only the minor disturbance of a short ad every once in a while. I’ve even noticed the themes of the ads seem to fit nicely with the genre of my streaming music. Also, we should not overlook another favorite example of mine that is often taken for granted: major subscription-based newspapers and magazines typically make their featured articles available online for a limited time. This free information is provided thanks to the bordering banner ads subsidizing what would otherwise be money from my own pocket paying for a subscription. This teaming of online sponsors and service providers has proven extremely beneficial to all parties involved.
So again, I admit I am a sucker for free stuff (who isn’t?) and I don’t mind the advertisements that allow me to use free stuff. To the delight of advertisers, I am more receptive to their messages when I can consciously recognize the benefits they provide. In addition, as ads become more relevant to my preferences, I find myself reading them, listening to them, and interacting with them more frequently.
I applaud the businesses willing to think outside the box and explore non-traditional advertising. Kudos, as well, to the entrepreneurs who make these marketing opportunities available and are always looking for new ways to help vendors reach consumers. If we could all learn to embrace this symbiotic relationship (and perhaps even capitalize on a trend that is only going to grow) we will become more effective vendors, advertisers, and consumers alike.
Spending on Media Planning: There’s More Value There Than You Think
Okay, I admit, I’m a media planner. Now, before you look at the title and the prior sentence and accuse me of being some kind of media-driven politician, rolling into town, gun-blazing, shooting phrases like ‘Gross Rating Points’, ‘aperture’, and ‘Daily Unique Visitors’, hear me out. I’m not trying to sell you anything, but rather open your eyes to a very attractive value-proposition.
As a media planner, it’s my job to create media plans. In a nutshell, these plans traditionally take a business’s marketing budget and develop a strategy for the coming year that includes what mediums will be used to advertise (e.g. cable television, newspapers) and when (e.g. peak sales months, all year) they’ll be used in order to successfully keep the advertiser’s name top-of-mind with the consumers they so crucially rely on for business. Believe me; this can be very valuable for businesses that don’t have the time, knowledge, desire, or a combination of the three to worry about placing advertising. And while a brand-new media plan is quite valuable, I think a good chunk of the value hides in the analysis us planners do on the advertising a business already has (or had) in place.
Before a media planner really begins a plan, we scrutinize how a business currently advertises, looking for ways to improve the existing before recommending additions. This is where we identify when an unsuspecting business might be the victim of what a sales representative might call “The Greatest Deal in Advertising. Period.” So many times, we find these “great deals” are anything but. I’ve seen businesses run it all: ads that air between 12 am and 6 am (yes, AM), ads that miss their targets completely (think Axe Body Spray commercial on the Lifetime network), ads that are too small to even be noticed, ads that… well, I think you get the picture.
When prodded for why they signed contracts for ads such as these, many businesses answer, “Because it was cheap!” Hey, a business can’t be blamed for this misfortune, however. They were probably given a flashy presentation by a rep that threw out phrases like “limitless frequency” or “unparalled reach” and with thoughts of seeing their ads air during The Tonight Show and the big-time sales that would surely follow, signed the dotted line. Getting our hands on what those reps are feeding you and translating confusing rate schedules or calculating gross rating points are what us media planners were put on this earth to do! After doing so, we’re able to point out how and why your prior/current advertising wasn’t/won’t be effective for you. THIS is where I believe the value lies. Armed with what won’t work is just as valuable as knowing what will. And whether or not a business continues to use us media planners after we’ve explained this, they’re forever equipped with information on what to avoid altogether when the sales reps come knocking.
The New Face of Primetime?
What are you doing next Monday night? Monday night September 14th? At say 10/9c?
If you’re anything like me you’ll be stationed directly in front of your TV for the premiere of The Jay Leno Show… (right where NBC wants me).
How can I avoid it? NBC is putting big promotional dollars behind its new Primetime bet and I want to see what all the fuss is about! They are devoting some serious funds to nationwide television ads, radio campaigns, Yahoo! online banners, CineMedia in-theatre advertising, and (dare I forget) theatre popcorn bags featuring Mr. Leno himself. Ford is also hopping on board as an official sponsor- donating electric Ford Focuses for an onsite “Green Car Challenge” racetrack, where celebrities will compete multiple times per week. Celebrities like Jerry Seinfeld, Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Rihanna all of which are expected to join Jay in the first week.
So… why all the buzz, why the big push?
Well, NBC and Jay are hoping to change the face of Primetime programming. This network, rated in 4th position since 2004, is taking a gamble on a comedy/variety show in a time slot notorious for big time dramas. They claim that audiences are ready for a light alternative to grim scripted dramas (think ER, Law & Order SVU, CSI: New York).
If successful they could truly change the landscape of evening television, ushering the way for other major networks to follow suit.
And believe me they will, for the following reasons:
1-Less expensive to produce. The cost of Leno’s show will be a fraction of what the network pays to produce a drama. Less actors, writers, location changes etc.
2-Less re-runs. Network dramas average approximately 24 episodes per year. Jay however, will easily shoot over 200 episodes- 46 weeks a year/5 days a week to be exact.
3-Build good solid audiences for the evening news. Nationally the viewership for evening news has continued to decline. The thought here is that if you keep audiences engaged through the hour prior to evening news they will stay and watch the next half hour.
4-No more TiVo! Statistically, Primetime television has been the most recorded or skipped programming available. Which advertisers like ourselves recognized and in turn refrain from recommending these day parts to our clients. If networks can provide fresh, new episodes audiences can pull away from their patterned evening payback mode and tune in live.
5-We need a breakout “hit”! There hasn’t been a network “hit” in the past four years and ratings for this time slot continue to decline, aiding in the constant slow leak of audiences and advertisers turning to cable.
So, Mr. Leno there’s quite a bit of weight resting upon your chin… err… I mean shoulders (sorry, I couldn’t contain myself). Can you turn things around for the peacock network or are we in for more of the same?
Stay Tuned…. I know I will.
A Reason to Smile - Marketing Dental Implants
I find myself thinking a lot about teeth lately. No, I’m not dreaming about my teeth falling out due to some Freudian anxiety. The topic of pearly whites has been on my mind heavily since May, when Balihoo formally launched a marketing program with Nobel Biocare’s top dental practices. I could easily ramble for pages about the topic of marketing dental implants and other fee-for-service dental procedures in this blog, but then, well, I’d be rambling. So I will stick to the salient points.
1. The public is not well educated on dental implants. Meanwhile, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 22% of Americans age 65+ have had all of their natural teeth extracted. Are dentures their only option? No, there is a fixed prosthetic product that mimics their natural teeth and deters bone degeneration. Voila! - dental implants! No more dealing with PoliGrip! The FDA cleared dental implant procedures in 1982, but my mind only recalls Apple Macintosh, cellular phones and Prozac when I 
think of inventions in the 80s. It’s time to go to market.
2. If marketing direct-to-consumer is considered faux pas in the healthcare industry, how will the American public learn about this procedure? Our TVs, magazines and billboards are peppered with advertisements for Lasik surgery, pharmaceutical drugs and even Botox. Come on, even Bob Dole went on air promoting Erectile Dysfunction. When B2C media campaigns are executed tastefully for dental implants, our dental practice clients are not only seeing an increase in patients filling their chairs, they are doing a service to their community by educating them on a quality of life enhancing alternative to dentures. This brings me to point #3…
3. Enhancing your quality of life. I have nightmares of my grandmother putting her dentures in a sock in a dresser. She was embarrassed by them. Baby boomers want to feel young for life; have their steak and eat it too. And with this age group being the fastest segment of online adopters, you better believe they are researching healthcare online. If nowhere else, dental implant specialists should market this procedure in a website well-optimized in the search engines and engage in pay-per-click campaigns.
4. With innovations like sedation dentistry and lasers, these procedures are virtually pain free. Check out the testimonial video clips from these two practices with which we work: http://MySmileToday.com and http://NoDentures.com.
The Wall Street Journal published an article on August 11 titled “Dentists Step Up Marketing as Patients Skip Their Visits.” I end this blog with the following thought by Dr. Wong, a general dentist interviewed in the article, “You can’t go to the office and just be a dentist anymore; you have to go to the office and be a dentist and a CEO.” In other words, you need to go to the office and be a dentist and a marketer.
Franchise Marketing Newsletter No. 5
| Here is an excerpt from one of our recent internal newsletters:
4 Ways to Boost Franchise Sales Overview: For franchise owners, today’s challenge is to not only win the battle against slumping sales but to establish an easy-to-execute strategy that will generate success in any economy. A franchisee has the benefit of using a predetermined business plan and the ability to network with peers who share the same goals. More sales result in more brand equity, which strengthens their own business as well as their neighboring franchisee. To increase franchise sales the following four proactive steps are given: (1) Understand your industry (2) Listen to your customers (3) Slashing prices is NOT the answer - helping customers spend money more easily is (i.e. don’t think that slashing manpower and making your customers stand in line for 20 minutes to reach the one available cashier is saving you money) (4) Discover new ways to deliver value to your customers. Balihoo Perspective: All good points that can basically be summed up to: Find out what it takes to satisfy your customer base so that they feel a sense of ongoing loyalty toward your company/product and do it. I thought that the point about reducing manpower to help save money (while leaving your customers with less customer service - thus resulting in underserviced and dissatisfied customers) was a particularly good one. Above all else, if your customers aren’t happy it doesn’t matter how much money you are saving on manpower - your sales will plummet and your business will suffer. How One Small Business Uses Twitter to Build Its Brand Overview: A New Orleans-based, all-natural pizza joint called Naked Pizza shares how they have used Twitter to build their brand name as they work toward entering the national Balihoo Perspective: With more and more of our clients looking into social networking and tools like Twitter, this article provides a great look into one local store’s adoption and success with it. The beauty of social networking is that it provides the ability to add a level of personality and individuality that most other advertising forms simply cannot - what’s more - seeing as many of these tools are free to set-up and maintain, its cost-effectiveness is tough to beat! Study Confirms Display Ads, Paid Search Work in Concert Overview: According to a new study from iProspect, display ads influence search behavior. Internet users are more likely to engage and/or eventually make a purchase from brands with which they are already familiar. Display ads help breed familiarity. This article also reports findings that suggest that of people that react to display ads, 31% of those people click on display ads, and 27% go to search engines to do a search related to the ad (brand, offer, product). Also interesting, consumers may validate (or discredit) a brand based upon its search engine ranking - if Google ranks a product or a brand high in query results, it “must” be a reputable brand.“If I don’t have a display campaign to support my paid search campaign, I’m basically giving the traffic away to my competitors,” said Robert Murray, CEO of iProspect. Balihoo Perspective: Many of our customers utilize search and/or display advertising. While not overwhelmingly surprising, it is interesting to see studies that confirm that the two generally work well (perhaps even best) in concert. 6 Stupid Media Planning Mistakes verview: As with all job functionalities, media planning has changed alongside of technological advancements and evolving customer needs. This article outlines 6 relatively common media planning mistakes. The major points made: 1) Be sure you carefully articulate what each medium is supposed to do and for whom it is supposed to do it 2) Listen to your target audience 3) Social networking is both a tactic and strategy - make sure you know the difference 4) Media planners must be geared for both planning and buying - ultimately, only one of which can be dominate. Balihoo Perspective: We all know that we have a great media team. One of the many things that make them great is their ability to continually question their planning and buying tactics. With the media landscape constantly in flux, the only constant in the entire scheme of things is the need to satisfy our customers. Great work on continually striving to fulfill our customers’ needs media team! The Economic of Local Search Advertising Overview: As people continue to search for more local business information online, it seems inevitable that local advertisers will follow. Borrell Associates projects locally placed search advertising in the U.S. will grow 30% over the next five years (from $4.1 billion in 2008 to $5.3 billion in 2013). Local search advertising will be massive, but the segment must reform and innovate - this article pinpoints several points of friction to overcome, yet the opportunity is tremendous. Balihoo Perspective: The rise of local search advertising is understandably of interest to us. With more and more consumers continually turning to the internet to search for specific services or products in their local area, it only makes sense that more small business owners are going to opt to establish an online presence. Microsoft Execs See Mobile Ad Growth Overview: Microsoft has projected that mobile phone advertising will account for 5 to 10% of global media ad spending within the next 5 years. Mobile advertising could in the meantime attract interest from a niche of advertisers, such as small “mom and pop” local retailers who don’t routinely embrace mainstream online advertising. Balihoo Perspective: With smartphones everywhere you look, mobile advertising could be huge. The local targeting capabilities here are pretty awesome. This article also touches upon the rapid increase in mobile internet browsing - suggesting that many may already performing searches for products and services from their phones. Growing Number of Moms Using Social Media Overview: A new study by BabyCenter (dubbed ‘Meet the 21st Century Mom’) indicates that mothers of young children are spending increasingly more time using social media tools. Women with new babies at home cut back on media consumption by as much as three hours a day, with print taking the biggest hit. According to the report 49% of respondents claim to read magazines less after giving birth, and 46% said the same about their newspaper usage. Balihoo Perspective: Many women are turning to the internet and social forums to obtain the information/news that they used to get from newspapers and magazines - small Overview: Company blogging can be a great marketing tool. This article highlights five companies that have done interesting things with their blogs. To qualify for this list, the author’s number one requirement was that the corporate blogging program accomplished clearly articulated goals set by the organization. Highlighted blogs - Carhartt: Tough Jobs, GK from Elite Sportswear, Alerding Castor, Roto-Rooter and HH Greg. Balihoo Perspective: The key here is that in order to have a successful blog, you need to identify specific goals and then determine what tactics you will follow to meet those goals. Each of these blogs revolves around consumer input and the generation of continued conversation - keeping your current and potential customers engaged for corporate blogging success. Stay tuned to see some changes coming to our blog, the Balihoo Kennel. |
market. Working with a small marketing budget and attempting to compete with nationally recognized pizza chains, Naked Pizza had tried numerous cost-effective strategies without generating the kind of buzz that they were really looking for. Enter Twitter.
businesses that might not have otherwise been able to afford to place print ads might find online placement more affordable. 
