Keeping Things Fresh

It’s August and the summer is still in full swing, but that doesn’t mean you should stop thinking about ways to continuously keep your marketing efforts fresh. Now is the time to evaluate your company’s marketing vehicles, as they are the drivers for increasing your visibility in the marketplace and bringing in new customers. Consider looking at the following areas of your business, so that come September, you can put your best marketing foot forward.

Key messages. Examine your company’s key messages and make sure they continue to accurately represent your company’s brand and products and services. If this has changed, bring together an executive team to determine what has changed and how these need to be altered to help move the company forward. Many CMA clients have taken advantage of our strategic marketing process called Marketecture(TM), which helps companies focus on outside forces that may be affecting your customer base as well as determine key message alterations to communicate better.

An example of a recent logo update for Homasote, the 101 year old manufacturer of building and industrial packaging products made from 98 percent recycled materials, which was the result of a Marketecture session:



Website. Your company’s website is the main information source for your target audience and the destination for all things associated with your business. Do you have current case studies showcasing your products and services? Are there up-to-date testimonials from clients? Does your newsroom reflect all current media placements and press releases? Evaluate how current the information is on your website with an experienced marketing team that can help add any items that will enhance the visitor’s experience, including social media “widgets” and other new media tools.

An example of a website redesign that helped strengthen a client's brand with rotating images and a cleaner design:



Sales materials. Determine if your sales materials truly showcase your company’s products and services. These materials aid your team in the overall sales process and help your company stand out from the competition. A seasoned team like CMA can help you stay current and creative while still making sure your information and visual imagery accurately showcase your products and services’ capabilities.

An example of a suite of sales materials designed for ESI Lighting, a manufacturer of energy-efficient lighting technologies:



Need help keeping your company’s marketing efforts fresh? Send us an email today.

Erin Higgins
Director of Marketing Services
ehiggins@cmasolutions.com

Who Are You?

Throughout the month of June, we’ll be tackling the topic of market research, an essential part of any strategic marketing initiative. Not many people are aware of the two main levels of market research needed to effectively gauge the behaviors and buying habits of your clients and customers. CMA uses primary and secondary research to glimpse into the target audience’s world and accurately assess the marketing tactics that will move them to action.

Secondary market research data, contrary to its name, is usually conducted first. This process of gathering target audience demographic information through existing data sources segments the market and dissects key pieces of information about who buys what, when and at what price.

Primary research confirms the positioning and key messaging determined through secondary research. Primary research is usually implemented via a survey that solicits needed information on the target audience. Surveys can be conducted through web-based services that provide accurate tracking of who responds, however some companies prefer to conduct in-person surveys or phone surveys to maximize effectiveness.

Once you have this data you have an accurate picture of who you are targeting and can use this information to personalize your sales pitch through various media. This is now even being done on social media websites such as Facebook. Users will find that shortly after they join a particular group or fan page, Facebook alters the ads displayed on the right hand side of the screen shot to their supposed “likes.” A user who might have become a fan of one comedian will be targeted in promotions for other comedy shows in their home town, for example.

In effective marketing, companies should aim to keep a continuous relationship with a customer, one that is poised to grow stronger over time. CMA is known for our strategic eye for marketing and can help you maintain these relationships. Give us a call or let us know your thoughts on building your marketing relationships.

Erin Higgins
Director of Marketing Services
ehiggins@cmasolutions.com

What does green really mean?

With Earth day almost upon us, I thought it would be appropriate to discuss the ever-popular topic of green marketing. While many of us in the marketing industry have been branding and positioning products that are biodegradable, energy-efficient and/or all-natural, for example, for many years, the environmental bandwagon now applies to nearly every industry imaginable. By following these simple tips, your company can effectively position these types of products and services all year round.

Choose the Right Words
Try actually refraining from using the word “green” to describe your company’s products and services if you feel your audience will be more receptive to specific language describing environmental benefits. Perhaps “biodegradable” or “all-natural” might resonate better. Many of your customers continue to be bombarded with these claims everyday, so using the word “green” may drive them away and position you as an unreliable source.

Know Your Audience
It is important to know your audience in order to help you better position your products and services in the marketplace. Take the time to research what phrases or keywords speak to your audience and drive them to take action.

Provide additional benefits to customers beyond going green
Knowing the product your customers are buying contains green qualities often makes people feel good about their purchases. But the ideal situation is to go the extra mile to provide an additional benefit—a health incentive, reduced maintenance or something that helps the customer save money in addition to a product’s low environmental impact.

Consider Appropriate Design Elements
When creating design elements associated with your company’s products or services, be sure to incorporate images that support your marketing messages, but also steer clear of clichéd images. Consider exploring earth tones instead of going right for the green, or use images that represent other aspects of the earth instead of the proverbial leaf image I can be viewed as overused.

In following these tips, you will find that the most interesting part of the green marketing phenomenon is its versatility. Give us a call and let us help you develop a green marketing plan that showcases your company’s environmental benefits and encompasses a strategy that is executed with sensitivity and integrity.

Jeffrey Barnhart
President and CEO
jbarnhart@cmasolutions.com

Don’t Fear the New Year

Let’s face it. 2009 has left many business owners reluctant to make any large investments in their business’s future—even if those investments are essential for long term growth. The financial crisis left a sense of unpredictability, and decision makers are still pulling back on planned marketing projects and strategies while the storm blows over.

Back in September, we discussed the paralysis of decision makers to move marketing initiatives forward. The consolidation of roles and possibly, the creation of new positions, have left businesses frozen by uncertainty.

While the emergence from the recession is expected to be slow this year, 2010 provides us with a fresh start. Stop feeling helpless by developing strategies that play on your business’s current strengths and position your brand for future successes.

Yes, there are outside forces you may be unable to control. CMA’s Marketecture™ process analyzes the best ways to position a company through marketing and advises company executives how to deal with outside forces such as technological advances, political/policy changes and socio-cultural implications. By focusing on these forces and how your company ranks among the competition—something most business owners are not able to devote time to on a regular basis—your business will once again become agile and ready to move forward into the year ahead.

Perhaps the new year holds new opportunities for your business. What needs will emerge out of the recession? While the economy strengthens, consider working with experts who know the ebb and flow of business cycles and can customize marketing strategies to fit your business.

Jeffrey Barnhart
President and CEO
jbarnhart@cmasolutions.com