Big Gnome

Marketing Communications Strategies for the New Year: Part 1

Thursday, January 8th, 2009

Later this morning, I’m guest speaking at a regional professional networking group luncheon and thought I’d share my notes with you. Instead of one, long post that no one will read in its entirety, here’s part one of a five-part mini-series of marketing goodness:

As we move bravely into 2009, I’m eager to meet with people, find out their concerns, and hopefully offer some ideas in regards to marketing communications, public relations and advertising efforts. Here are few questions to mull over:

Do you think marketing, public relations, and advertising have a direct impact on sales? How many of you are cutting back on or avoiding these efforts because “times are tough”? If marketing increases sales, why stop now? And, why stop when you may have a chance of standing out in your industry?

Below is the first of five cost-effective communications strategies to help you to continue to market your business, or to begin taking advantage of new opportunities during tough financial times—or any time. By “cost-effective,” I don’t mean cheap. These strategies will most likely require some money, as well as time for planning and execution. They may or may not be helpful to you. If you know this stuff already—great! You’re on the right track.

Strategy 1: Define and live your brand.

Does your business have a personality? Are you committed to living it out? Does your business have a mission or set of values? Do you have a consistent look and feel in your marketing materials and communications efforts with customers, the public, and the media?

Often people think brand is simply a company’s logo. That’s not it. A logo is a tool; it’s a component. Brand has external components, from how your Web site is designed to what colors are selected, but brand is ultimately intrinsic to your business.

For example, when’s the last time you lived out your tagline? Is it unique to you? Or, could your tagline easily be printed on another company’s business card?

Sometimes I think of brand like a house. Is your home in order? Do you need to clean or reorganize? Do your customers know what your house is built on? How’s the foundation? Do they know what they’ll get if they come over?

It can be fun—yet difficult—to go through the process of creating a brand for your company. And, if you don’t, you may risk having an image created for you, based on the public’s assumptions or your clients’ perceptions. That image could be inaccurate, or possibly negative. You may not like it.

Living your brand cannot be an act. You have to make sure that you can easily adhere to it in everything you do, from client services and employee relations, to marketing, advertising, and public relations efforts. Also, be sure to give your employees the resources they need to live the brand and effectively communicate it; otherwise, they’ll devise their own way that may send the wrong message about your brand.

Tags: Marketing Communications

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