Drum roll please...It's CMA's Signature Holiday Card!

Once again, the laughter poured out 191 Clarksville Road this year in preparation for our signature holiday card. Join us as we look forward to a year full of celebration, as 2012 is our 25th anniversary year!

Happy Holidays from CMA! Check out the digital version of the card here.

Don’t Let Your Marketing Take a Vacation!

To many companies, putting the brakes on marketing over the summer is the standard operating procedure.  At CMA, we believe this is one of those rules that is meant to be broken.

While it might be true that many clients or prospects will be taking some time off over the summer months, very few companies can tune out from Memorial Day through Labor Day. As your competition is sitting by the pool, consider these strategies for making the most out of the summer months.

Your marketing plan is 12 months not nine.  When you craft your marketing plan, keep in mind the different times of year as well as peak times for your specific industry. Overall, your plan should be a year-round marketing program. There might be peaks and valleys, but you need to stay fairly consistent to get the ROI you are looking for out of your marketing.

Make the summer slowdown work for you.  A lot of businesses experience a bit of a lull during the summer.  This lull can be your chance to break through with your key prospects with well-designed email marketing and/or direct mail campaigns.  You might find that “too busy prospect” has a bit more time to take your call or review your latest brochure during the quiet summer months.

Take advantage of your competition being asleep at the wheel.   With less clutter in the inboxes of your target audience, your message can have greater impact.  Rather than being one of many, enjoy the chance to stand out and be heard.

Remember September is just around the corner.   Any kid will tell you that summer vacation goes by too quick.  Make sure you don’t get too distracted by the summer fun and forget to keep your marketing program moving forward for the fall.  If you get too far behind, you’ll get stuck worrying about whether you should wait to ramp up your marketing until after the holidays!

Looking for cost effective ways to keep your marketing program moving forward this summer? Give me a call.

Erin Higgins

Director of Marketing Services

ehiggins@cmasolutions.com

CMA Brings Joy to Local Family

CMA partnered with Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital’s Community Health Promotion Program to bring joy to a local family in need.

CMA adopted a five-person family in need for the holidays. Employees donated a variety of gifts for children ages 16, 11 and eight years old, as well as gifts for each parent. The overwhelming support enabled the firm to provide more than 12 gifts to the family.

CMA’s president and CEO, Jeffrey Barnhart, commented, “Our employees continue to think of others, especially during the holidays, and how they can make their days a little brighter. We are honored to continue our partnership with such an outstanding organization.”

From left to right: Corie Eisenberg, Kelly McKelvey, Lindsay Piccolella, Kaitlin Friedmann, Elizabeth Roe, Kristin Couch, Meghan Higgins, Colleen Reasoner and Erin Higgins.

Doing good is good for business

The non-profit sector is arguably the single most important force for bettering the regional community many of our businesses serve as well as the social and cultural fabric we, as a society, all share.

Many companies, including CMA, make corporate responsibility a focus year round. If your business is contributing a good deed in the spirit of the upcoming season of giving, even if it’s as simple as a food drive, why not leverage print and electronic public relations to let the community know?

Your press release and an accompanying photo won’t likely end up on the front page or the top of the landing page, but most media provide recognition for high-profile corporate citizenship or high-impact charitable donations. Corporate commitment to making a difference helps differentiate your business from competitors and casts your company in a favorable light in the minds of consumers and employees.

In fact, a recent report from the Council on Foundations noted that 83% of Americans have a more positive image of companies who support causes they care about or perceive to be beneficial to the common good. The report also states that 87% of employees at companies with corporate giving programs feel a stronger sense of loyalty to their employers.

No wonder that, even in a time of economic turbulence, an IBM study released this year found over 1, 000 CEOs plan to increase their corporate giving by 25% or more.

A regular and organized corporate social responsibility program not only burnishes your brand, but builds a reservoir of public good will that can prove resilient in times of crisis.

Ultimately it pays to embrace the spirit of giving, not just at this altruistic time of year, but on a planned and budgeted basis annually. Corporate philanthropy is good—both for business and the nonprofits whose missions are advanced. Doing well by doing good should be business as usual.

Jeff Barnhart
President & CEO
jbarnhart@cmasolutions.com