Small Business Branding Interview

In case you are unaware, I also write weekly for Small Business Branding, and they honoured me with the first in a series of interviews with their business writers. You can find it here. We will also being doing podcasts in the near future.

Forget The Logo, It's The Brand That's Costing You Money!

To a lot of graphic designers and advertising agencies, brand and logo are interchangeable. To be clear they should be referring to your brand image or your brand logo - there is a difference. A logo is just a small part of your overall corporate brand. Simply put, your brand is essentially your reputation in the marketplace. It is affected by all of your stake holders (customers, employees and suppliers).  If I stop a person on the street and ask them what your brand is, I am looking for them to tell me what their understanding of your company is. If I were to ask you what you feel about Detroit and you reply, "Murder City". That is it's brand. The brand may or may not be true, but it is the perception at this point in time. 

The same is true with Detroit's brand. It may not be true that it is the Murder Capital, but over the years the city has allowed it's brand to be determined by outside forces. Movies, comedians and the media in general have used Detroit as their whipping post for all that is wrong with urban blight in America. Your ultimate job is to constantly have your finger on the pulse of your brand. You simply can't afford to allow the marketplace to define you. The goal is to have a strong brand - one that makes you money.

Cities have what is called a 'place brand'. It's been said that our own community has a poor brand. You don't have to agree with the assessment, but you'd be a fool to ignore it. We have allowed the marketplace to define our city's brand. Windsor has to address it's poor brand directly, it can't be 'spun' out of existence. The root causes must be addressed.  The problem with a less than accurate brand story is, the very audience you want to become advocates, feel betrayed and become ardent critics.  

All of these scenarios are brand issues and are why smart companies are sitting up and taking notice. Any smart company who brushes off branding as merely a buzz word is passing the baton to their competitors. It has been said that the fasted way to kill a bad product is with great advertising. You can't fool 'em twice no matter how pretty a face you put on it.

In the industrial heartland that is southwestern Ontario, smart companies are engaged in initiatives that position their brands as leaders. In discussions with Peter Berry, President of OB1 Consulting, a respected Risk Management Expert, it was pointed out to me that companies who want their brands recognized as leaders in Green Initiatives, Compliance issues and Cross-Border Efficiency are also companies who are serious about taking control of their brand and how it is used. Many of these risk initiatives are used as effective differentiators when promoting the the corporate brand image. These pro-active companies are not waiting for bad things to happen to their brands, things that will cost them an enormous amount of money to fix and in some case cost hundreds of thousands of dollars in potential lost revenue due to hits on their brands. They are reducing risk now and reaping the brand payoffs. Having a strong brand in the first place will determine if these storms can be weathered. 

Here are 10 things you need to do to gain an insight on your brand:

1) Resist changing your brand logo. The problem is much deeper than that.

2) What are your stake holders saying about your brand? Ask them. Stake holders include employees, customers and suppliers.

3) Tomorrow morning ask the first staff member you see, "what do we do here at...?" Their answer may startle you.

4) Do a risk assessment to determine if there are areas of compliance and opportunity that might increase your brand strength among your market.

5) Are you suffering from any brand negatives? Are these issues keeping you up at night?

6) If you are currently putting a happy spin on your marketing, make sure it reinforces your brand values. 
 
7) You do have brand values don't you?

8) Do you have an effective differentiator? (this is key to branding properly)

9) Do a visual analysis to address brand issues with inconsistencies.

10)  Strengthen your brand. It invigorates staff and makes them passionate advocates for you.

Remember you have a brand whether you want one or not, your goal is to define yourself.  If you don't, your competition will do it for you - and that's never a good thing. Where do you fit in, in all of this?

Do You Have A Magical Brand?

I just spent the last week with my wife walking the theme parks of Disney World. We haven't been there in many years and a lot has changed. I have to admit that the Disney brand is alive and kicking in Florida. Where else do you see grown men and woman walking in public wearing various themed mouse ears and Goofy hats? At Disney World it seems perfectly suited to the atmosphere created there.

The Disney experience is essentially the audience immersed in theatre. The resort we stayed at welcomed you "home" upon entering the grounds and the entire cast consistently wished you to "have a magical day". I was very impressed by this brand experience. One morning my wife and I went for a walk around the grounds and came upon the main gate from the outside. The guard came out, asking to see ID and once we were identified promptly "welcomed us home". Are your staff as fine tuned to a consistent brand message?

In all of the attraction areas, is music playing the "soundtrack" of the park. You quickly recognize that everything you see and experience has been "created" to best position the Disney effect. It got to the point where my wife Rose, asked me if the birds in the trees singing were the real thing or a recording? All of this control over experience really does make you forget the real world outside. The effect is absolutely convincing. You forget you are walking around an enormous set. You really want to believe. My wife was actually excited to get her picture taken with Mickey and friends. (I thought it was pretty cool too)

I took away a lesson in how to make customers love you. Give them a consistent message and over deliver on everything you do for them. I loved the experience so much, I was willing to pay $8 to $10 for a Manhattan (my favorite drink). Back home in a restaurant I would shell out half that amount. Everything cost more, but the brand delivers and so I was smitten. When you love something you are willing to pay more to prolong the experience. Are your customers willing to pay more for your experience? Maybe it's time you have a hard look at how you deliver to your audience.

Many people might say that they resent the manicured experience at Disney World, but I would challenge them to show me any successful brand that doesn't succeed by delivering their product on an emotional level. The Disney Brand conjures up a deep heart felt desire to believe that the world is a good place where everyone wishes you a magical day even if for a moment. Even if that belief lasts only a week, it is good for the soul. But what is important to note from a business perspective is, every time I see the Disney name I will be reminded of the great feeling that I felt at Disney World. That brand experience translates into major dollars for the Disney Corporation. It allows them to sell me on many product offerings based on a brand promise that is magical.

We could all use a bit of that magic.

Disney doesn't appear to ever be sitting still. New attractions and resorts keep adding to the magic. Are you continually delivering new services and products to your audience? Don't sit still and let grass grow under your brand's feet. The magic is in your brand - this is your opportunity to control it's delivery.

'Shroomming is NOT a Spectator Sport!

I attended an interesting annual general meeting of the Canadian Mushroom Association in Toronto. The speaker's presentation was promotion oriented. I was very impressed with the marketing efforts of the CMGA. They had assembled an excellent media program involving the web and traditionl media. Much of the work was done in-house, but they were savy enough to use the branding rule of consistency. They used their logo and brand message effectively. There was a call to action on every item driving the audience to the web site where they were lured into getting free recipes for registering with their emails. I was very impressed with the results of this effort - 10,000 emails in their first year. That is outstanding. Every commercial whether radio or TV ending by driving home the web address. All print and digital efforts did the same. The diagnostic data gleamed from their websites, revealed a remarkable ability to hit their target audience.

All and all the CMGA should be patted on the back for their efforts and it was refreshing to hear that the mission continues. The only blip in the evenings presentation was at the expense of the mandate of the organization which is to "move more mushrooms". It was reported that mushroom sales remained flat. Absolutely no movement in sales performance. To the few members I talked to in attendance they saw the marketing efforts as disappointing, since sales didn't go up.

I think this to be short sighted. As marketers we are well aware of the time it takes to see a return on marketing efforts.

This is a common tendancey of many in business who simply don't appreciate how marketing works. Their attitude is understandable though, as they are the troops on the front line. They take their few hard earned dollars and trust that the results will bear fruit tomorrow. But in reality they are only planting the seeds (spawning if you will). To get 10,000 emails is remarkable and a gold mine in opportunties since the targeted audience signed up for mushroom info. That 10,000 will multiply with any recipe sharing between friends and family.

The only missing component I don't recall seeing in the marketing mix was a co-ordinated effort to have each grower member do their part with co-oping the drive to the website on their marketing and corporate materials. For instance a number of member's business cards I saw showed no drive to mushrooms.ca. Every stake holder in the Canadian mushroom industry has a stake in the success of this effort. Let's see who steps up and takes a leadership role. Marketing shouldn't be something to watch from the sidelines - it is NOT a spectator sport.

20 Questions To THE Perfect Customer!

We in business have tendency to want to leave no stone unturned when it comes to generating income. Are you targeting your efforts to reach your best target audience? Are you aware of just who this audience is? A good exercise would be to identify this person. To perform this task you have to build a demographic profile. Remember - the profile is of the person that you make the most money from. Once identified, you will want to locate more like them.

Here are some questions to ask yourselve regarding your most profitable demographic profile:

1. Are they male or female?
2. How old would they be?
3. What income level?
4. Are they philanthropic?
5. Are they married?
6. Do they have kids? (if so, what age are the kids?)
7. Are they community minded?
8. Union or non-union?
9. Are they American or not?
10. Republican or Democrat?
11. What vehicle do they drive?
12. Visible minority?
13. Aggressive or passive?
14. Introvert or extrovert?
15. Do they read the local newspaper?
16. Are they joiners?
17. Are they handy around the house?
18. Do they own a single family dwelling? or a condo?
19. Are they a sports fan or culture fan or both?
20. How much money do they spend with us?

Answering these questions will give to a solid base to determine your perfect customer. Using census data or a market research source, identify more of this demographic profile within your community. If you charted the outcome on a map, you will typically see clustering of locations. This is because similar demographic groups tend to live close to one another. Market to these target locations. This will save printing and distribution costs by avoiding areas not identified as a target group. Now you not only know your perfect customer but where they live too.

How To Present Your Brand Professionally.

I can't tell you how many times I've seen competent people stand up in front of an audience, speak intelligently, pick up their clicker and proceed to walk through a miserably amatuer digital presentation. I witnessed this exact situation in Detroit a few months back. The presenter was a local motivational speaker. Very engaging personality BUT the digital presentation was embarrassing. I even had notes passed my way, suggesting I have a chat with the presenter afterwards. There are some simple things you can do to make what you present visually more powerful. The high school quality of this evening lowered my expectations of this presenter. His brand was tarnished. It told me that he didn't entirely get it. If he wanted to be considered one of the players in the motivational arena, he has to put a better shine on his overall package. Other comments I heard later was that he was a hack. He could have done so much better with a keen understanding of how much damage he was doing to himself.

Try these pointers for your next presentation:

1. Pick an overall brand colour scheme. Stick with it. Consistency builds confidence. It is very comforting for an audience to see a consistent colour and direction.

2. Bring banner stands or banners that push the theme of your presentation. Remind your audience of what they are about to enjoy. Just like a movie poster.

3. Distribute materials that either promote other products you have or your service. Be sure that they reflect your brand image. Don't just leave them in a stack on a table by the door. Put one at every place setting. It also helps to distribute your colours through out the room.

4. In the digital presentation itself - DON'T USE BORDERS! You don't need them, the edge of the screen is fine. Border just close information in.

5. Make sure that your Brand logo is at the bottom of EVERY page of the presentation. Never let your audience forget who is speaking to them. A nice touch is putting their logo next to yours, this is of course if your audience is from one source or you are presenting to a potential client.

6. Insert video clips that compliment your message. They set a powerful tone and helps to break up the pace.

7. (This is a preference thing) I prefer to NOT work off of a script. You should know your subject so just speak to the screen. Use the screen to keep you on track, speak to what it is referencing. Don't read the screen - if you resort to that technique, what is the point of having you there? Off-script also allows you to constantly keep your eyes on the audience - more engaging.

8. Input music where appropriate such as the intro and exit. It is a feel good tactic.

9. I usually have the second last screen show text asking for questions.

10. Your last screen should be a "Thank you for coming!" screen. You can leave this up as the audience applauds and they start to mill around you for discussion. Your brand logo is also large on this screen.

Another idea might be to have the audience look on the back of the materials you initially left on the table and they will notice a number, hold a draw for one of your products or some nice prize "related" to what the topic was. Everybody loves FREE. It is a happy ending technique.

Following the above principal will go a long way in developing your expert brand. Your personal and corporate brand will be more powerful. Even if you don't fancy yourself a professional speaker, you will ooze confidence in the professionalism of your presentation. I also generally use pictures of people through out my presentation as people like to look at people. I find a lack of humanity very cold. Charts and graphs have their place but putting relevant people in the frame is engaging.

If I had to pick one tip out of the ten, that would be #5. Putting your logo on every screen is key. Doing this consistently will do wonders for your message.

Yap, Yap, Yap!

It's time to start talking with customers.

Technology has made many of us lazy communicators. One of the things that makes a brand great is communication with your customers. You can't have a relationship if you're not talking. It's not enough to just do a great job, you have to connect as well. Connecting is more than seeing your name in the in-box of their email program. If that is where it's at for you, you allow your competition to take the personality advantage. I can't tell you how many times just picking up the phone or personally dropping in has gotten me additional business - just because it all started with the phrase, "Hey Ed, let me pass this idea past you."

Once you have their ear, you have every opportunity to tell of some new product or service. It is cheaper in cost and sweat to get additional business from existing customers. Technology has its uses, but nothing beats old fashion shoe leather. It also gives you a chance to be known to the front office. It puts a personality to the name. Over time you are part of the overall team. You are an employee in a sense too. Everyone is on board to making thew company successful.

Most customers are so busy. A regular check-in gives them a chance to get you to focus a bit on you and hopefully a chance for you to make their lives easier.

There is no downside that I have recognized from personal attention. Even long-distance customers see value in the regular dropping in - it shows that they are high on the food chain with your company. They are worth the effort. What it does for your brand is immense.