Archives for brand promise

Say Something New Inside a Fortune Cookie

October 27, 2011

5 Ways to Become a Star at Your Next Trade Show

So what do fortune cookies have to do with trade shows for building products? Nothing, really. But as a totally unexpected medium for your brand message—part of your overall show strategy—they’re a fun and inexpensive way to pull prospects into your booth and start a conversation.

But this post isn’t about fortune cookies. It’s about making the most of your 2012 trade show investment.

I know you’ve probably had some pretty successful shows in the past. You’re not new to this. But how are you measuring just how successful the shows have been? Are you taking advantage of all the leads you’re acquiring? Are they qualified leads? What’s your ROI (Return on Influence)? If you aren’t sure, you’re not alone.

After more than 20 years of working with clients in the building products industry, I’ve seen a disconnect that often stems from treating trade shows as individual events rather than integrating them into the overall brand-communications strategy.

Now, with the economic pitfalls that have paralyzed this industry, I know trade show exhibition has been put on the back burner for many of you. It still stands to reason, though, that the sheer power of trade shows to cost-effectively connect with hundreds—even thousands—of customers and prospects makes them an important way to showcase your brand.

Taking the time to strategize before embarking on your 2012 trade show program—and, in particular, pre- and post-show communication—is the most effective approach. Here are 5 ways you can effectively maintain brand consistency and reach brand stardom at your next trade show:

1. Stakeholders and Strategy
Kind of sounds like a Milton Bradley® game, doesn’t it? Get together with all key stakeholders and your creative team well in advance of the show to discuss overall strategy. Your creative team can help you formulate the best way to let your brand shine. Discuss the core messages you want to convey and how you can bring them to life.

These planning meetings should yield a succinct strategy for connecting with attendees before, during and after the show. The strategy will address how you will achieve your goals, influence exhibit design, and act as a script for your next blockbuster show.

2. Booths in the Zone
In a recent Marketing Profs article Stephanie Janard interviewed industry expert Les LaMotte, founder and CEO of Xtra Lite Displays (www.xtralite.com). According to Les, the key to maximizing booth traffic is to make sure the booth commands attention at several distances, starting with about 30 feet away. Your booth needs something eye-grabbing that attendees can spot from that distance. “Side wing” displays that catch attention from several aisles are also a good option.

The Big 3
1 The Memory Zone—about 15 feet away.

2 The Sensory Zone—close enough to interact with booth materials and demos.

3 The Data Zone—as much a state of mind as a particular proximity, the Data Zone is where booth visitors are looking for evidence that your product or service will solve their problems.

3. Loud and Clear
Competition at trade shows is fierce, and many companies think creating an exhibit with a “wow” factor is the ticket to generating traffic. Although you certainly want your exhibit to be visually effective, it’s critical to make sure the brand doesn’t get diluted in the process.

Instead, focus on creating clear, concise messages that support your brand attributes and resonate with the target audience. Start with words on paper. Seriously. You should be able to express your core message in one sentence. Once that’s established, building on it visually becomes easier and ultimately more effective.

4. Social Bee
Engaging socially with attendees prior to and during the show can have an extremely positive impact on attendance and participation. It isn’t, however, something you should use as a one-off campaign communication. It should be part of your overall marketing efforts. Social media isn’t a solution. It’s a tool. A way to become more intimate with your audience.

You can use social media tools to create curiosity and anticipation prior to a show. It’s a vehicle for being human. Let’s face it—your company isn’t about a tool or a widget. It’s ultimately about people who make something for people. I recommend having a point person to be your social voice. Make someone responsible for monitoring the conversation. This person can also blog about the sensational things that are happening during the show and stay connected with attendees long after the show is over.

5. After Glow
Everybody’s all excited and gung-ho during the show—preparation, dinners, drinks, enthusiastic conversations. But what happens after the show? Here’s where the ball gets dropped—little or no follow-through with the new “show” friends you’ve made. Capitalize on everything you’ve worked so hard for. Follow up with a thank-you letter. Ask them to stay in touch by subscribing to your e-newsletter. Socialize with them via Twitter and Facebook.

Measuring your effectiveness is also paramount. Utilizing a toll-free “trade show” number is a great way to track response. You can also capture important information via an online survey. Find out what resonated with them most. Coded response cards are another way to glean information and connect post-show.

Need help mapping out your trade show strategy?
Download our free Guide to Trade Show Stardom for Building Products Professionals.

What’s your trade show track record? Any big hits or misses? I’d love to hear from you. Here’s to creating a sensation and saying something new!

Allison DeFord POSTED BY: Allison DeFord| 1 Comment

How Design is Helping Building Materials Companies Thrive

September 23, 2011

 

Awhile back, I was talking to Festool Marketing VP Michael Williams and asked him what is the driving force behind the company’s growth. His answer, “We design tools that will have an impact on our customers lives. We have a common vision.” This resonates in Festools credo as well:

“At Festool, we design our power tools…
To solve problems.
For the way work happens.
With your comfort in mind.
To save time.
For quality, reliability and flawless execution.
For healthier environments.
To work together.

A key word in Williams’ answer is DESIGN. In a sea of “quality” and “solutions” and “customer service”, here is just one example of a company in the building products industry that’s leveraging design to gain critical advantage over their competition. But isn’t design just about logos and annual reports and websites? True, these communication tools are an important part of your brandhood, however, there is something much bigger at work here.

In the wake of Steve Jobs resignation  from Apple, there are lessons to be learned. He wasn’t trained as a designer or engineer, but was a user of technology himself. He was a visionary. As Jobs told Inc. magazine in 1989, “You can’t just ask customers what they want and then try and give that to them. By the time you get it built, they’ll want something new.” It isn’t necessarily about market research anymore. It’s about prolific thinking. It’s about focusing on the customer at all times and staying true to your brand truth. Design plays a major role in everything from marketing and advertising to production processes and supply chain.

“From GM to 3M, in boardrooms
and on Wall Street, in Silicon Valley
and on Madison Avenue,
design matters more than ever.
-Linda Tischler, Fast Company

A perfect example of this is the 99-year old quietly creative innovator, 3M. Why would a $27 billion dollar giant, best known for it’s notes, tape and sponges, have any need to hire a 26-year old designer from Milan? They were already successful. What would design ad to the mix? Sales, that’s what. From the redesign of their mini-projector to his new line of tape dispensers , Mauro Porcino has had a profound impact on 3M’s bottom line. Think “double”.

Fast Company reported this month, “In an economy with fewer ad dollars to go around—U.S. advertising fell 14% in 2009 and recovered only 5.4% last year—brand equity is at a premium.” So, do you spend millions on brand awareness or take a step back and design a better experience. I believe in starting with the experience. People ask me all the time, “So, I have X to spend on advertising…what should we spend it on?” My answer is always the same. “Slow down and take look around you before you start throwing money at a billboard campaign or hosting a golf tournament.” What’s worked in the past? What’s currently in play? How do customers feel about your brand? Where do they go? What are they talking about? What would serve them? When was the last time you walked through your buying process “like a customer?” If all that’s in order then let’s take a look at the customer touch points and design a strategy. There’s no faster way to erode brand equity than to throw a bunch of money at brand awareness only to have customers irritated or disappointed once they respond.

What’s Working Well

At one time Festool had a monster marketing budget and sold many things to many people. This worked well for a long time, but they knew it could be better. By aligning sales, marketing and upper management, the Festool team speaks the same language now. They know exactly who their customers are and what drives them. They also know who their customers aren’t. No more selling all things to all people. Design is driven by design. Festool took a step back to design a better approach. To have a better understanding of customers needs and desires. Their attention to detail is second to none. Their system of tools is not only extremely efficient, but beautifully designed—not to mention highly coveted by building professionals and enthusiasts alike.

Design Matters

You don’t have to be Apple or Nike to realize good design matters. From marketing strategy and product design to photography and messaging—company’s in the building products industry are thriving on design. What used to be considered an after-thought or “something your nephew could do” is now at the center of what’s driving corporate America. Finding an edge is becoming harder. As Farenheit 212′s Mark Payne notes, “Design is differentiation made visible, visceral, and experiential. Creativity and innovation are emerging as disciplines because we have no other choice.” Design, in other words, can be the critical competitive advantage.

Is design a part of your current brandhood? Why or why not?
I want to know.

Here’s to creating a sensation, my friends.

Allison DeFord POSTED BY: Allison DeFord| Leave a comment

How Enchanted Are Your Customers?

August 24, 2011
Slightly enchanted?
Positively enchanted?
Uber enchanted?
OR Unenchanted?

If you haven’t checked out Guy Kawasaki’s new book, Enchantment, you may want to. I’ve been reading it and thinking about how this idea of enchantment relates to the building products industry. At first, it made me chuckle. Enchanted customers in the building products industry floating around with wings a flapping and sprinkling fairy dust all around the office. Sorry, this is what I actually thought of.

Guy describes enchantment as “causing a voluntary change of heart and mind and, therefore, actions.” The goal is not to sell them your tool or product or widget, but to fill them with great delight and completely transform the relationship. Enchantment reshapes, converts and changes behaviors. Enchanted customers are more loyal. They are changed for having done business with you.

You must know what your customers are thinking. Kawasaki uses an example from when he worked for Apple in the 80′s. Apple failed to sell Macs to the business market because they didn’t understand what their potential customers were thinking. They were so enchanted by their own product that they couldn’t understand why everyone else didn’t feel the same way. Apple was “me” focused instead of “you” focused. They were more enchanted with themselves than with addressing the needs and concerns of their customers.

Are you and your team focused on enchanting your customers or in selling them on why your brand is so enchanting? It’s tough. It’s easy to get caught up in selling instead of serving. Relying only on traditional marketing instead of evolving with customer trends. Engaging customers. Conversing with them. Listening to them. Giving them something they didn’t even know they needed.

Now, some of you have already figured out that potential customers are enchanted with video content on YouTube. Greg Jarboe is the author of YouTube and Video Marketing: An Hour a Day. He says that video content that is enchanting must provide intrinsic value to the viewer. He states that this value comes in four forms:

  1. Inspiration

  2. Entertainment

  3. Enlightenment

  4. Education

The idea is for you to supply a regular stream of video online that inspires, entertains, enlightens or educates your audience. This is a great way to enchantment current and potential customers. I can’t tell you how many manufacturers and distributors in the building products industry are not taking advantage of this fantastic medium. The ones that have are benefitting greatly.

I also encourage you to enchant your employees, but that is another conversation. Until then, please comment on this idea of enchantment. How are you enchanting your customers? What would move them?

Allison DeFord POSTED BY: Allison DeFord| 1 Comment

10 Ways to Create a Sensation Around Your Brand
Part 10

January 20, 2011

CREATE FANS


A Strategy For Putting Ideas into Action
Deciding which tools and techniques make the most sense for your company, who’ll implement them, how and when to do it requires a strategy. Or as we like to call it, a play book.

[This can seem daunting if you’re a brand in a crowded market with multiple competitors, few meaningful points of difference and too few viable positions. If that’s the case, look for new product or service offerings that create marketable points of difference.

Are you currently a CATEGORY OF ONE brand? Build on a strength you already have, such as creativity and innovation, and instead of “selling tools to the construction industry” you’re the brand that’s “reinventing building.” This can then be translated into a tagline, marketing campaign and a guiding force in strategic business decisions.

Four Steps to a (Sensational) Brand Strategy

1 | DEFINE YOUR BRAND
Conduct a brand audit, an assessment of the current state of your brand. The primary goal is to learn, through surveys, personal interviews and website/blog conversations, how customers and prospects feel about your brand today.

Define your brand’s personality. Bold and brawny? Fun and friendly? Honest and hard-working? Smart and sensible? (If your first thought is bland and boring, or you’re just not satisfied with your current brandhood, decide which traits you’d like your brand to embody and work to make them a reality.)

Be the customer. Define your primary and secondary audience members and give each group a persona—Joe Customer, if you will. Literally create a page for each in your brand strategy document, complete with representative photo and profile of likes, dislikes, behaviors and patterns. You’ll be surprised how often you’ll mull an idea and wonder what would Joe think?

Create a positioning statement. Simply put, your brand does what for whom to support the why.

2 | CREATE A BRAND MAP
First, identify all points of contact with Joe Customer. Most B2B’s have at least 100 points of contact, many that have become dormant. Include the points you’re already taking advantage of (you advertise in an industry journal he subscribes to) and others you could be, per the profile you developed (he fans your competitors on Facebook, but you’ve yet to set up an account). Determine the best ways to connect, and develop a plan for integrating your brand.

As you move to Step 3, take a moment to review the first nine installments in our e-series via the links at right. They’re chock full of ideas and how-tos for making your brand the one to follow.

3 | SET GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
Sales goals are always a top priority, however, our concern here is brand awareness. The corresponding objective: To maximize the recognition of, and sustained interest in, your brand via communication touchpoints. (And ultimately, convert more prospects into repeat customers.)

Specific goals depend on the marketing tools you have in place and the results of Steps 1 and 2. Your goals might be to increase website traffic, page views or search rankings…grow your e-newsletter subscriber list (or its frequency)…boost your following in social media…or simply to put more product samples into hands at the next trade show.

4 | DEVELOP A STYLE GUIDE
The key to any brand strategy is consistency (visual and literal) and this is the bible for maintaining it across all platforms. Basic components include rules for logo size, color and placement, as well as guidelines for using taglines and other brand messaging.

Whether your style guide is five pages or 500, make sure it’s comprehensive, current and most important, consistently used.

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Some of you may still be wondering why a B2B brand in the building products industry needs a brand strategy. Isn’t selling quality products and offering great customer service enough to set you apart as the leader?

We get that question a lot, and the answer is NO. Your competitors are saying the exact same thing that you are.
So who stands out? Who’s garnering the loyal fans?

Even if you’re a big fish in a little pond, confident in your brandhood, it’s critically important to solidify your brand promise and work to grow your following.

How are you winning over your fans? I’d love to hear from you.

Here’s to creating a sensation! Let’s get started.

Allison DeFord, Trailblazer
allison@felteverywhere.com

Allison DeFord POSTED BY: Allison DeFord| 1 Comment