My day as a Dragon

I am a member of the High Point University Phillips School of Business Advisory Council and was recently asked to participate in a variation of  Dragon’s Den (Shark Tank is the American version) with international marketing class students at HPU. Students were divided into groups of five and they choose a product that is sold in other countries but not in the United States. Their job was to develop a business plan to introduce their product into the U.S. market. They presented their plan to a panel of “investors” (the advisory council) and the group who received the best offer from the panel were rewarded with additional points on their final grade for the class. It was a fascinating exercise in entrepreneurship for the students and very rewarding for the panel as well. There is something special about being back on campus (I am an HPU alum) interacting with these bright young people that I find uplifting and invigorating. Hats off to Dr. Richard Parker for exposing his students to this “reality training” exercise. I think it will serve them well in the future.

An American Success Story

We just delivered the latest version of the sixty page CNC Machining Center catalog for one of our favorite clients, C.R. Onsrud, Inc. I met Tom Onsrud several years ago and have had the pleasure of working with him and his staff on a host of projects over the years. I’ve always been impressed with this company and it’s ability to offer the highest quality machines at very reasonable prices -  all made in their Troutman, N.C. facility.

Tom’s grandfather started the company in 1915 and most of the U.S. aircrafts used in WWII had parts made on C.R. Onsrud routers. Almost all of the M-1 rifle stocks made in the Springfield Armory were built using Onsrud machines. In 1976, Tom’s father, Charles, invented the patented “Inverted Router” a machine that revolutionized the industry.

Today, Onsrud is at the forefront of CNC machine center technology and the company is still family owned and managed. They continue to grow and their products consistently  set the standard by which all others are measured. I’m a sucker for an American success story and C.R. Onsrud is a good one.

What makes a great designer?

Just as there are those who say “I own an SLR, therefore I am a photographer,” there are those who say “I know how use InDesign, therefore I am a graphic designer.” Over the years, I have met and collaborated with lots of designers, but I can count the great ones on one hand. To be a great designer, you must be born with an artist’s instinct and that’s something no amount of education is going to give you. Great artists just know when the design they are working on looks “right”. There is something in their minds eye that tells them when they have achieved the right mix – the perfect blend of color, texture, graphics and typography to draw the eye of those who matter (the customers). With years of schooling, you can teach rocket science and brain surgery but the one thing you can’t do is teach someone to be creative.

Using PSA’s to get the word out

You see them everywhere – Public Service Announcements (PSA’s) for various non-profit organizations. Have you ever wondered how they got the media to display their messages at no charge? It requires a lot of pre-planning and an equal amount of follow-up. I recommend a simple market survey to establish a baseline for name recognition of your service and to help you determine the needs and demographics of your target market. Your TV and radio spots must have a high production value and be supplied in various lengths to fit the space that might be open. For print media, you need to prepare ads with a succinct, compelling message and supply the ads in various sizes. Ditto with online banner ads. Now, establish a list of all viable media in your primary market. This requires a considerable amount of research to find not just street and email addresses but also the name of a contact person at each media outlet. Once the materials have been delivered, a follow up phone call and/or email helps create top of mind awareness of your service.  It takes a considerable amount of time, planning and effort to produce an effective PSA campaign but the rewards can be impressive. A follow-up market survey 12 months later can determine just how successful your efforts have been.

Hat’s off to Chrysler

If you saw Chrysler’s 2 minute commercial that aired in the Super Bowl, you can’t help but be impressed. Impressed that Chrysler’s marketing team chose Clint Eastwood to deliver the message – there is no one more respected. Impressed that Chrysler has the confidence to announce that Detroit iron is back – no apologies.  Impressed that Chrysler products have been, and continue to be, re-invented, improved and polished. Impressed that Chrysler’s marketing is re-introducing something sorely missing here in America…pride. From a marketing standpoint, I’m amazed that one seemingly simple line can be so powerful. “Imported from Detroit” is the marketing masterpiece that’s fueling a new- found sense of pride in American products. Thanks, Chrysler…we needed that.

Pinterest Interest

Have you checked out Pinterest – the new online bulletin board? It’s like a scrapbook where you post ideas and interesting images on custom-designed boards. Pinterest allows you to organize and share your uploaded info. Visitors can follow your boards, add comments and you can allow them to post to your boards. There are lots of photos and comments that tend to keep you on site longer than you planned. In fact, the average time spent on Pinterest is 88 minutes – the third longest behind Facebook (394 min.) and Tumblr (147 min.). Since most of the pics on the site are linked to the poster’s website or blog, you should consider using it to increase traffic to your site. Who knows if Pinterest will catch on and thrive, but so far, so good. For now, it is at least, an entertaining way to kill some time.

Social Media Super Bowl

Going to the Super Bowl in Indianapolis? Yeah, me neither. But, if we were going, we would have the advantages of their first-ever “social media command center”. From a 2800 sq. ft. space in downtown Indy, a team of specialists will monitor digital fan conversations via Facebook and Twitter. The team will tweet directions, direct them to attractions and generally help make their experience in the city more enjoyable. It’s a big undertaking with over a mile of Ethernet cable, 150 sq. ft. of networked screen space and 20 people working 15 hour days. It’s an interesting new development that could spread to other events around the country. Just think of the possibilities!

How do you “LIKE” this?

There is yet another tool to increase the number of fans for your Facebook page. It is called “Like –Gating” and it involves giving exclusive content to those folks who “like” your business Facebook page. Like-Gating takes those folks to a seperate page that features special offers just for them. The only problem is that Facebook users don’t know that you offer special content for liking them so it’s up to those folks who like you to pass the word that special content awaits those who hit the like button. Maybe it’s not perfect, but it is another relatively painless, inexpensive way to increase your Facebook fans. Remember, however, that once you offer this exclusive content, you need to continue to make your fans feel special with new info and offers. Want to discuss this further? Talk to your EKA representative today.

Lost and Found

The whole idea of marketing is to reach out and find potential customers…right? Well, not so much today. Today’s marketing is more about making yourself “findable” to customers searching for a company that does what you do. They are doing this right now – as you are reading this. They are using Facebook and web searches to find the goods and services they need. That’s why it is vitally important to be right there at the top of web searches and ever present on Facebook. Once they do find you, traditional advertising can make sure they recognize your brand and establish credibility for your products or services. REMEMBER – If they search and don’t immediately find you,  it’s time to re-think your marketing plan.

The Business Journal “Book Of Lists” ranks EKA 12th

It’s here! The book is here! We’re finally somebody! (Paraphrased from the Steve Martin movie classic “The Jerk”.) The bad news is we are still ranked number 12 – same as last year. That’s also the good news. It was a challenging year in the ad biz. Some agencies lost clients, laid off personnel or just folded their tent and headed for the hills. We managed to make it through relatively unscathed so I guess showing up squarely in the middle of the list of the top 24 agencies ain’t nothing to cry about. Where, oh where will we place in 2012?  Early indicators are that clients are anticipating an upswing in sales due to three years of pent-up demand. We are working on fresh new marketing approaches for several of our clients. We think it’s going to be a good year for them and for us as well. Stay tuned for updates!