There’s so much to love about email marketing. Number One, it’s inexpensive. Number Two, you can geek out with detailed reports that measure effectiveness, like how many people open your email, how many people click on each link…even if anyone forwards your email to a friend.
An email newsletter or promo can also increase the effectiveness of other campaigns you have running, such as print, radio advertising or direct mail. You can get a beautiful, branded design in front of your customers without print costs.
We will help you test subject lines, write in-depth content, follow e-commerce best practices, optimize your “preview pane,” build your list, set up opt-in subscriptions...all the stuff you need to know to make your email marketing program more effective.
It’s easy to get started -- for your first campaign, just provide your e-mail list (click here for how NOT to be a spammer), an outline of what you want to say, and we take it from there…designed, edited and delivered, all for one low price. Easy!
What? No email list yet? You’re missing out if you’re not building one. Let us know if you need help getting started.
Here's one of our most recent email newsletter creations. Pretty, huh?
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 The world of marketing is all abuzz about Twitter ... and
if you're over the age of 30, you may be wondering if it's something you need to know about for your business. What is Twitter? Basically, Twitter is a social-networking utility that lets you send out tiny little bits of information to anyone who is "following" you.
For example, Kate and I "follow" Peter Shankman on Twitter…he's a PR/social networking professional who sends out regular "queries" from reporters who need sources for stories. Plus, he's really funny. So he's providing us with useful and fun information, faster and more succinctly than an email or a blog.
So what do YOU need to know about Twittering? An easy way to get familiar with it is to find someone who is a "thought leader" or mentor in your field, and see if they Twitter. Follow along for a while and see if it's useful.
Another use that we see in the near future is with crisis communication -- since you can broadcast Twitter text to mobile phones, it has good potential for school districts, nonprofits or government agencies that may want to get small bits of information out to a large number of people, without being dependent on email or a land-line phone.
And, it's free, which is always a good thing.
But should YOU be Twittering? In our opinion, we think the business value is pretty limited right now. Most of us just don't have a constant stream of interesting tidbits to share all day, every day. People have a limited amount of brain space to dedicate to your business, and they're probably just not fascinated enough with you to follow your every word (painful, huh?)
So what do you think? Do you Twitter, and have you received any business value from it? Share your experiences with us.
 (Fitness and Sports Training)
In our new tradition of sharing some GOOD news, here's another company you need to know about: FAST (www.fastandyou.com) Located in Oconomowoc, FAST provides Corporate Wellness Programs and elite sports training. Owner Dwight Sandvold worked with us this summer to develop specific messages and materials for each side of his business. He had a lot of great ideas, but needed help with marketing strategy and creating the supporting materials needed to build his credibility.
The Strategy: Specific, value-based marketing messages
The Tools: Comprehensive marketing evaluation, message development, signs and rack cards, corporate information folder.
The Results: Dwight is now confidently able to walk into any size company and present them with a fitness and wellness program folder that provides bottom-line business value. Combined with his experience and enthusiasm, companies are eager to work with him, and he's busier than ever!
From bnet.com
Advertising budgets often become easy prey during down markets — but companies that start to slash do so at their own peril. “If there’s any time to increase communication, it’s during a recession,” says Andrew Razeghi, a marketing professor at Northwestern’s Kellogg School of Management. During the recession that followed September 11, just 25 percent of all companies boosted their ad spending — and those that did saw their market share rise more than twice as fast as it typically rises during a normal economy, according to a 2001 Cahners Advertising research report. According to a MarketSense study, during the recession of 1989-91, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell saw sales jump by 61 percent and 40 percent, respectively, after pumping more money into advertising, while McDonald’s slashed its ad budget and saw sales drop 28 percent.
It’s not that easy, of course. Marketers need to spend smart — and tune their message to customers' shifting attitudes during a financial crisis. “The closer a brand can cozy up to a consumer with a message along the lines of ‘we’re all in this together,’ the better off a brand will be,” says John Quelch, a Harvard Business School professor and author of Greater Good: How Good Marketing Makes for Better Democracy. For instance, a credit-card company should change its message from “use our card to give memorable holiday gifts” to “our card gives you the most money back.” |
