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Stevens & Tate
Pandering Your Way To Profits? Most Likely Not.
Category: Stevens & Tate Speaks
24 Jun 2010Everyone in business today feels the need to do more with less; fewer people and smaller budgets. Sure, it’s 2010 and things were supposed to be better by now, but many marketing professionals are still adjusting and cutting advertising spending.
Many of the prospects we speak with are dealing with this by cutting across the board. All channels are reduced to get to the “new budget number.” It seems fair to your advertising partners. All your reps — the radio lady, your trade publication guy and the direct mail house — understand that you’re doing what you have to do. And they feel they are getting their share of your budget. “We’ll get through this together.”
This is a perfect example of pandering, or gratifying others at your company’s expense. Webster online defines pandering as: “to act as a pander; especially : to provide gratification for others’ desires.” And when it comes to getting the most out of a lower ad budget, smart marketers know that this is not the way to get results.
Instead, successful companies are rebuilding their advertising plans from the ground up, bucket by bucket. Tracking results, surveying customers and adjusting each bucket of spending based on one thing: what is working today. Smart marketers understand that they don’t need every type of media in their plan, just because their competition is there. They stick to what is performing best for them right now.
So how can you get started? Shifting your spending strategy to meet your new budget needs does take some calculated risk. You may need to completely empty some buckets in order to afford to increase others, and it may take some trial and error to get the balance just right.
After reviewing your results, I strongly recommend determining your media lead generator and investing more in that media. Also consider completely cutting out a media that is just “somewhere you feel you have to be”, despite it giving you low trackable results. Continue to track and review results before making your next move to shift spend between your buckets.
Over time your plan will move toward a solid performance model and you will see improvement across the board.
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Staying Forever Young In Senior Living Advertising
Category: Senior Living| Social Media| Stevens & Tate Speaks
21 Jun 2010Did you watch Saturday Night Live on Mothers’ Day with Betty White? The 88-year-old actress hosted one of the highest rated shows in recent years. And while that’s an astounding feat in and of itself, how Betty White came to host SNL is even more astounding.
After seeing Betty White in a Snickers commercial during the Super Bowl, a San Antonio resident launched a Facebook campaign urging SNL to have the actress serve as host. The campaign attracted hundreds of thousands of followers.
As a marketer at a senior living advertising agency, what strikes me most about this story is how old and new media came together to generate so much excitement. The same principles can be used to market a senior living community.
Betty White’s stint on SNL is a prime example of multiple marketing vehicles working together to achieve a desired result. Although Facebook often is associated with the younger crowd, this media outlet is an excellent tool to reach an active online community – at little expense. Because of the site’s interaction among fans and followers, it can create a buzz about a product or service very quickly.
Because of all the hype, traditional news media began following the Betty White story. This exemplifies how well placed PR in newspapers and magazines still plays a valuable part in getting a message out to the general public. Use your local newspaper or a senior living publication to tell your story…tout the benefits of your senior living facility in a press release or have a reporter interview satisfied residents to promote a positive brand experience.
On SNL, Betty White appeared in almost all of the show’s skits, garnering laughs across the board. And I’m sure she was the topic of conversation around the water cooler that Monday. This shows the power television still has on our culture. For senior living advertising, this is important because the visual medium is an excellent way to showcase amenities that your properties provide. A picture of a pool is nice but a video of residents enjoying that pool is much more powerful.
That leads us to YouTube. Just as video of Betty’s White’s monologue popped up on YouTube minutes after she gave it live, videos of your senior living property can spread your message to another audience. After all, today’s seniors are more Internet savvy than every before—as are their children, who may be assisting in their decision on where to live.
In senior living marketing, new media outlets and traditional advertising vehicles can, and should, combine to create a successful campaign. And remember, all this Betty White hoopla started with a single Snickers ad…
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- Tags: Chicago creative marketing company, Chicago marketing consultants, senior living advertising, senior living advertising agency, senior living marketing, senior living marketing consultants, senior living marketing firm, social media marketing agency, social media marketing firm, Stevens & Tate
Mobile Friendly Websites
Category: Stevens & Tate Speaks| Web 2.0
16 Jun 2010With 42% of Americans using smart phones, the use of mobile friendly websites is becoming more and more necessary in order to reach more of today’s consumers.
Endora has put guidelines in place to coordinate with the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Mobile Web Best Practices:
- Developing so our page/screen width will be 120 pixels.
- Page height will be determined by the size of the file with the content (20KB).
- Web pages should reside on a .mobi url .
- If possible, programming should be added to the .com site to detect mobile visitors and redirect them to the mobile site. This will be based on the detectable data provided by the users mobile phone.
- Copy should be written to be informative in order to allow the mobile phone user to locate their information quickly and easily.
- In order to maintain a quick download time the site will contain minimal graphics and not include .pdf downloads or forms.
Some good examples of mobile friendly websites include:
BBC.mobi: they offer a clean and crisp layout with easy to find content. They also offer content based on the type of phone you have to make it easier for the end user.
Delta.mobi: Formerly Northwest, Delta offers useful services on their mobile website, including flight status checks and online check in. Their application is simple to use and the low graphics make it fast to move through.
Google.mobi: Google is always a great example of how to take full advantage of online tools. They offer graphics that are well executed and provide added value to the experience.
QR Codes
Category: Stevens & Tate Speaks| Web 2.0
14 Jun 2010
What Are QR Codes?
QR code is a matrix code (or two-dimensional bar code) created by a Japanese automotive component manufacturer in 1994. This technology is recently becoming adopted by the marketing world.
Common in Japan and Europe now, “QR” is derived from “Quick Response” and it allows users to access additional information products through mobile devices.
How Do They Work?
QR codes work in conjunction with smartphones. Simply scan the QR Code using the camera or scanner in your smartphone and (if you have the application loaded on your smartphone) you will instantly have access to special information about the product (usually in the form of a dedicated mobile website).
QR codes can:
- Send people to a URL
- Offer coupons
- Give product details
- Provide event details
- List contact details, with links to directly connect
- And more!
Two great examples of how QR Codes are used:
- Demo video found on YouTube
- Lego video showing how QR codes work and how Lego was able to make their product uniquely relevant to the QR code itself
Benefits of QR Codes:
- Keeps you current in new technology
- Makes you a leader in your industry
- Offers your customers and prospects quick access to useful, additional information in a new convenient way
- Is a unique way to extend print/online campaigns
- Allows your audience to take your information with them and keep it always at their fingertips to easily pass it along to others
- Trackable and measurable for results
- Starting to become more popular in the U.S.; experts believe a big increase in the next 12 months
- 42% of Americans use smartphones (up almost 30% in just 3 years)
Is your company currently using QR codes? Contact us on how. We would love to tell your marketing story.
Using Web 2.0 Tools in the Senior Living Market
Category: Senior Living| Social Media| Stevens & Tate Speaks
9 Jun 2010The senior living market is a perfect environment to take advantage of Web 2.0 tools and generate interaction with our audience. Every senior living community offers a unique blend of people, environment, activity, culture, and energy. Whether you’re an active adult retirement community, an assisted living residence, a CCRC, or a skilled nursing facility, new media tools, like Facebook and Twitter, can help you put your physical community’s style and personality on display to the world.
Some wonderful examples of how to use these tools on your website are:
1. Offer your viewers a chance to see you in your true environment. Allow short snippets of resident videos and highlights of events partaking at your communities. With a flip camera and a little creativity, senior living companies can produce an unlimited stream of entertaining, helpful, and informative, videos to share. – See Erickson’s media gallery on how to use different forms of video.
2. Allow the opportunity to connect with the new audiences via Facebook, LinkedIn, blogs, and YouTube. Create Facebook and Twitter pages and post information that will support and educate your readers. – See how WesternRIM.com utilizes Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.
3. Provide ample opportunity for visitors to easily share content from the page with their friends. – See how Sunrise uses ‘Share’ tools on their website.
4. Use blogs to continue the education on your services and support the content of your website. Offer a place on your website for yourself and partners to write articles relevant to your industry. – See how Trilogy Life utilizes a blog and video to offer resident testimonials.
Social media empowers senior living and other senior care organizations by giving them tools to connect, communicate, and share in ways never before possible. These tools provide an opportunity for companies to engage their audience, build trust and credibility, and be part of the conversations that are taking place both on and off the Web.
If your organization is using social media successfully and you would like to be featured on this blog, please contact us. We would love to share your story.
Don’t Be Afraid to Engage in Social Media On Your Own Website
Category: Social Media| Stevens & Tate Speaks
8 Jun 2010Most companies believe that by taking part in websites such as Facebook, Twitter and My Space they are “doing social media”. To me, social media begins at home. The first place people look when wanting to interact with a company is their website. True enthusiasts would love to interact throughout your site and help you keep your content updated.
Now I know what you are thinking – everyone fears the backlash. Are you truly that nervous about your brand? Do you not feel like you have a loyal customer base that will be out there speaking well about you more than those speaking badly? In truth, most brands have more ‘champions’ than they do ‘slayers’. And most people who are unhappy about your company will want to tell you first – what better place than on your own website in a controlled environment, versus on someone else’s website where you have less control of the conversation.
Understanding Dissecting Your Markets
Category: Retail/Grocery| Stevens & Tate Speaks
1 Jun 2010While out in Vegas at the FMI show a few weeks ago I confirmed what I always believed. The FMI show is a well-done Food related Industry show that garners about everything under the sun that has to do with food. What I witnessed was how the niche market has expanded and makes you see value in their products. Of course the “Green” initiative is big in any field today, but how about the groups selling “mist”ers that lightly water your vegetables in any grocery store that saves you money on water? Or what about re-using the water and the company that supports that? What about the company that sells the bolts that go with those “mist”ers that won’t rust? What about the company that has the padding the vegetables lay on that will allow the water to breath into the piping system that another company is selling. It goes on and on. Everybody is tied to everybody and as time grows, it’s getting incredibly connected.
Let me explain this concept in another way, How did one concept and brand bleed over to so many other companies in such a short amount of time? The product and brand is Febreze. You remember the nice smelling odor- eliminating product? Well in a few years span this is what they have done:
- Febreze Freshener- Now in 15 scents
- Febreze To Go- Now in two scents
- Febreze NOTICEables oil warmers that last 30 days- 16 scents
- Febreze Candles- 13 scents
- Febreze Air Effects- 15 scents
- Febreze SPORT Extreme Odor Eliminator
- Febreze Home Collection Flameless Luminary-four scents
- Febreze Room Spray- four scents
- Febreze Home Collection Scented Reed Diffuser- four scents
- Febreze Home Collection Soy Blend Candle- four scents
- Febreze Pet Order Eliminator- four products
- Febreze Car Odor
- Febreze Smoke Odor
- Febreze Bacteria Odor
- Febreze Allergen and Odor
- Febreze Food Odor
- Febreze Carpet Odor
- Febreze Closet Renewables
- Febreze Laundry Odor Eliminator
- Tide with Febreze Freshness
- Bounce with Febreze Fresh Scent
- Swiffer with Febreze Fresh Scent
- Mr. Clean Bathroom Cleaners, Magic Erasers, Multi-Surfaces Sprays, Your Home Pro products, Cleaning Tools all with Febreze
- Downy with Febreze Fresh Scent
It is remarkable what they have accomplished in such little time. Their demographics range from 16 year olds to Senior Citizens. These are real products that are probably in your cabinet and now a comfortable brand that people trust. But Febreze as a company needed to join forces with so many other companies to make this happen, even the injection molding of their containers, the spring in their sprayers and Yankee Candle who is assisting with their candles.
Everyone is connected to everyone. FMI had so much cross selling I couldn’t tell if Oscar Mayer Hotdogs were the brand and they partnered with Black Angus or if Black Angus approached Oscar Mayer? Is the product for Senior Living or a Single Soccer Mom? For the consumer, who cares? We win and keep winning big.
Stevens & Tate Marketing on WisBusiness.com
Category: Anouncements| What People Are Saying About Stevens & Tate
25 May 2010Stevens & Tate’s upcoming speaking engagement on Attraction Marketing has been featured on the WisBusiness.com – Wisconsin’s Business News Source.
Stevens & Tate’s seminar on Attraction Marketing will discuss how to make your company more interesting to potential clients and business partners. Dan Gartlan, President of Stevens & Tate Marketing, will be speaking about strategies that produce measurable results that are obtainable for any company using the internal talents that already exist at all levels within the organization.
To see the article, click here.
Fashion, The Economy and Color
Category: Retail/Grocery| Stevens & Tate Speaks
18 May 2010“These are the days that try men’s souls.”
These words were uttered by Thomas Paine during the Revolutionary War but some would say it’s also the perfect phrase to describe the average American shopper’s mindset today.
Dazed and confused by the job market, the financial markets and natural disasters galore, what is a consumer to think? And more importantly what are they to do? As indicated by March’s recent retail reports, it appears that consumers answering this question by shedding their fears and heading back to the mall.
So what are they buying? As a Creative Marketing Agency, these are the kinds of questions we ask, and recently I came across an interesting article by the Pantone Color Institute that discussed fashion purchases and specifically, how the economy will impact color choice in women’s clothing this year.
According to Pantone Color Institute Executive Director Leatrice Eiseman, “Now, more than ever, women are vigilant when it comes to spending,” she said in the report. “Instead of reinventing their wardrobe at the start of each season, consumers want pieces to complement what they already own. Pairing a bold color with a basic piece or freshening up their look with bright accents addresses the need for practicality, as well as fun.”
The rest of the report was even more interesting, and I’d highly recommend reading it for yourself. You’ll get a new glimpse at new sketches by Maria Pinto, Adrienne Vittadini, Badgley Mischka, Tommy Hilfiger as well as commentary on trends in the new economy by Nicole Fishcelis, Fashion Director at Macy’s and Clinton Kelly from TLC’s “What Not to Wear.”
Check it out here.
Reading Emails on Your Mobile Device is the Norm in 2010
Category: E-Mail Marketing| Stevens & Tate Speaks
29 Apr 2010Adopting the use of reading email on your phone is outpacing the adoption of reading email on your computer by eight times the rate, from 139 million people reading their email via mobile in 2009 to 234 million now using their phone for email use in 2010, with the iPhone and Android outperforming Blackberry and all others.
The use of mobile has changed many factors of how we anticipate and read emails. Shorter subject lines and body content are outperforming what has been typical in the past. We need to now think about the use of mobile when we develop our emails and keep our content simple and our conversion metric easily obtainable.
We also need to think about what types of emails go out when. More email is read by phone during the weekends when consumers are out and away from their computers. How should our email messages differ if we send one out during the weekend versus midweek?
Think about your prospects ‘mobile lifestyle’ and try to reach them at the most opportune time. If you know their lifestyle your message will reach them stronger at the right time.
Mobile Challenges to consider:
- Develop mobile ready websites and landing pages
- Experienced mobile resources
- Multiple operating systems/devises for optimization
- Concise messaging with short URLs
- Quantifying mobile penetration
- Qualifying mobile engagement
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