» Craft Industry Marketing

Enough Already!

admin — Fri, 30 Apr 2010 16:32:41 +0000

When News is Not Newsworthy

In preparing a byline feature story recently I found myself scouring the web for new and noteworthy innovations. What I found was a tremendous amount of recycled repackaged promotional messaging – which begs the question – when is news newsworthy?

With the sad realization that basic PR tenets have appeared to escape even some of the most high profile companies today I offer a few suggestions to avoid putting out less than useful information for those that may want to promote your company:

Don’t Fudge the Figures.

While trying to keep your company top-of-mind among journalists and editors is an admirable goal be careful you’re not top-of-mind for all the wrong reasons. A news release or feature story that deals with figures such as sales or attendance at an event being “up” begs the question “compared to what?” Any editor worth their salt is going to ask that question – and not having solid backup for the claim when pressed for specifics compromises your credibility.

Don’t Practice Blatant Repackaging.

As the saying goes you can put lipstick on a pig – but it’s still a pig. One release about your company’s new product launch is really enough. Writing three incarnations of the same new product release with slightly different slants for the same target media group is overkill. (e.g. three releases about the same sports bottle product launch: one written for cyclists in mind another for camping enthusiasts and yet another for urban commuters - all offered up for the same media). Practicing blatant recycling (and posting all three releases to your company’s online newsroom) can be really effective at stunting media's further site navigation for source material. In contrast three separate releases distributed discreetly to three different targeted media segments is fine.

Don’t Use Releases for Promotional Offers.

News releases are really not the place for purely promotional offers such as buy-one-get-one limited time offers. These messages have their own place and are better suited to Twitter a 'special offers' tab on your website and e-blasts to your target audiences. Editors and journalists are more pressed for time than ever with the downsizing of the publishing industry – and generally don’t have the wherewithal (or patience) to sift through promotional messages dressed as news releases. Let's remember that they are called news releases for a reason and need to contain some worthwhile news not hype.

Meet Your Quota Without Compromising Your Reputation.

Instead – why not dig deeper for developments within your industry in order to stay top-of-mind with the media? Identify the appropriate person at your organization to weigh in on a particular industry issue and actively promote that person to media as a resource for editorial development. Whether consumer advocacy industry preservation or the advancement of a philanthropic cause your company supports – all will serve you better than “news” that isn’t newsworthy. Meeting news release quotas without the goods to back each release up isn’t doing your company any favors.

Have an opinion on this topic to share? Leave a comment – we’d love to hear it!

Signs Of A Recovering Economy!

Roger Halligan — Fri, 05 Feb 2010 16:30:13 +0000

I just returned from two very successful expositions last week that were held on opposite coasts for completely different audiences. The 2010 AHR Expo (world's largest heating and air conditioning event) was held January 25-27 in Orlando Florida and attracted more than 45000 HVAC professionals. At the same time the CHA Craft & Hobby Trade Show (largest craft & hobby show in North America) was held in Anaheim California and attracted close to 10000 crafting professionals. Although the participants and products on display couldn't be more different the events shared one thing in common - they attracted more attendees and exhibitors then they had anticipated. Given the current economy both the show organizers and the exhibitors expected attendance to be significantly down from previous years. They also expected fewer "power" buyers from around the country and the world due to many companies' restrictive travel policies. Fortunately these fears were unfounded as thousands of qualified buyers from around the world filled the aisles and booths at all three shows. I believe there were four major factors for this better-than-expected turn out:

Pent-up demand for new products is building
Buyers were interested in the many "green"/sustainable products that were being shown
There is a sense that the economy is finally starting to improve.
Show management had the foresight to continue their marketing communication campaigns uninterrupted while many other events cut back on marketing.

There was a definite sense of optimism throughout the show floors. And as we all know an optimistic outlook is one of the first steps to an economic recovery. What are you seeing/hearing out there?

You Can’t Shake Hands In Cyberspace

Roger Halligan — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 20:49:29 +0000

Most marketing pros are painfully aware of the beating that trade shows have taken as a result of the recessionary economy over the last several months. Even the strongest events have experienced declines in the number of exhibitors and attendees as many companies cut back on travel and trade show-related budgets. And as a result of this decline some naysayers are once again asserting the demise of trade shows and pointing to the Internet as the savior of all our meeting-related needs. Despite the fact that many of these naysayers are purveyors of online meeting technologies I agree that webinars Webex and other online tools can be very valuable meeting solutions. However they will never replace the need to feel and touch a product or experience firsthand how it can meet your specific needs. Equally important a trade show is the only place where you can visit with several suppliers in a few hours time and compare their products side-by-side. It would cost buyers thousands of dollars and many hours to visit these various suppliers at their locations to see the equipment in operation. We do several trade shows a year for both our corporate and trade show management clients and many companies constantly tell us trade shows are their best marketing tool for generating new business. While it is true that most companies nowadays have a major web presence and conduct meetings via the web the smart ones don't eliminate the best trade shows from their marketing mix when times get tough. The Wall Street Journal and several other respected media have recently run articles about the importance of participating in trade shows during a recession. In fact an article with the same title as this blog recently appeared in the November IAEE Executive Briefing. Perhaps the best reason I have ever heard for participating in trades shows came from an attendee with a Fortune 500 company who told me "When I'm making a large purchase that has major implications for my company I want to look my business partner in the eye when I shake their hand to close the deal." As we all know you can't shake hands in cyberspace.

Please Don’t Waste My Time!

Roger Halligan — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 22:27:24 +0000

While social media can be a highly effective strategic marketing tool in the B2B space it seems that it has also spawned legions of people who feel compelled to weigh in on any and all topics with inane comments. Yes social media is all about sharing various perspectives and opinions with colleagues around the world. However one would hope that people would be a little more judicious and respectful of other peoples' time before automatically offering their advice and opinions especially when it comes to B2B social media. This wasn't such a critical issue when social media was in its infancy a couple years ago and you had a limited number of people participating in the various groups. But as more and more people become involved finding the time to monitor all these conversations is becoming very difficult. For example I belong to several social media marketing groups that I find very valuable and informative. There used to be a dozen or so "discussions" with each posting/update and many of them offered good advice and/or links to other sites where one could find valuable surveys articles white papers and solid information. Some of us would also pose questions to these groups and get valuable answers and suggestions in return. It appears those good old days may be gone forever. Now many of these groups' communiques have grown to 40 or 50 discussions per posting with 75% of them offering little value or substance. In many instances it appears these "conversations" are from people who can be categorized into one of five groups: 1) People who are new to social media and just want to be able to say they are now "experienced" social media professionals because they regularly converse 2) People who feel compelled to comment even if they don't have anything new or useful to add 3) People who don't read the other "comments" and "conversations" and offer the same advice and/or ask the same questions that have already been posted 4) People who are promoting a product or service which is against social media decorum. 5) People who are truly engaged and have valuable comments or suggestions to offer Unfortunately social media groups are attracting more people from the first three categories. As a result what used to be 12 conversations has grown to 50 conversations and what used to take a couple of minutes to scan and review now takes four times as long. There are still some golden nuggets of information among the various conversations but who has time to pan for gold these days? My plea to all of you out there is this: Please engage whenever you can if you have something of value to add. If it is not of value please spare us your musings and meanderings. And just so I'm not wasting your time with my meanderings here's a golden nugget for you - I would highly recommend logging into Andy Beal's Marketing Pilgrim blog. I've found his blog to be extremely valuable at providing information surveys reports white papers and topics created by a team of experienced marketing experts. Nope he's not a friend relative or even acquaintance just a great source for social media information.

Can Social Media Be Your Best Damage Control Ally?

admin — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 20:38:56 +0000

While there is no shortage of material online today about social media's effectiveness for generating interest in new products brands and businesses - not much has been said about using it in the preemptive sense. A recent conversation I had with ScrapbookUpdate.com editor and social media guru Nancy Nally revealed that social media may also be the best tool in a business marketing communication arsenal for effective damage control. With more than 1000 Twitter followers 3400 RSS subscribers and 1500 unique visitors to her website each day Nally is both a seasoned social media user and keen observer of the dynamics underlying online reputation. With an appreciation for the lightning speed at which brand perception can change - she recommends using social media in the preemptive sense as follows: Build Brand Equity Before You Need It Not unlike saving money for a rainy day creating a reserve account of brand equity well before you ever need it is paramount. "Everyone messes up" says Nally. "It's important to safeguard yourself in advance of those times your business falters. Work to create a reserve fund now to counter those inevitable missteps of the future." Practical examples of creating brand equity ahead of time include consistent audience engagement that elicits candid feedback and cultivates relationships and quickly addressing issues as they happen with complete transparency. Respect the Cycle Different than traditional public relations - the social media cycle is never-ending. Therefore consistent engagement is primary for its preemptive use. "The Internet doesn't take the weekend off" says Nally. "It's critical to stay engaged based on the speed at which information is spread online. If the perception exists that your company has erred in some way - whether or not it actually has - and you fail to respond your reputation could be completely destroyed." Stay one step ahead Another valuable aspect of social media Nally swears by is the opportunity it affords businesses to avoid issues before they happen. Few other mediums offer such candid insight to customer opinions perceptions needs and wants than conversations in the social media space do. Businesses that regularly monitor the social media conversations surrounding their industry are well positioned to learn from other businesses' mistakes and leverage current market demand. "It's like free research that tells businesses in no uncertain terms what pitfalls they should avoid and what current market needs they should strive to meet. It's not only defensive - but incredibly valuable." Do you have a social media success story to share? Comment below - we'd love to hear about it!