Drew McLellan, Author at McLellan Marketing Group

I’ll give you a toaster….

September 1, 2007

Remember when we were kids and banks would offer toasters, clock radios and stadium blankets in exchange for opening a checking account?

Well baby, we have NOT come a long way.

All too often, when a company tries to bribe potential customers with incentives, they fail to really understand the math that's going on in the prospect's head.

The key to developing a good incentive offer is understanding the value of what you are offering versus the cost of what you want in return. Check out my post at IowaBiz.com as we explore the good and bad of incentives.

Are you being held hostage by your web developer (part 2)

September 1, 2007

A couple weeks ago, I wrote a post asking the question “are you being held hostage by your web developer” which garnered some excellent and lesson packed comments.

They’re just too good to take the risk that you feed reader users might have missed them. So read carefully and heed their hard earned warnings.

Look for a web developer who gets both function and fashion

“Finally I would list to suggest to anyone looking for a web developer to look for a company committed to both Design and Development. Some companies do a really good job of creating a great looking or flashy site but it has limited backend functionality. A lot of people are tempted to go with a service because of the “look” they can provide. The most important aspect of “design” is usability across platforms and devices.

Look for a company who is committed to good programming practices that can accommodate future changes and security concerns. We are big believers in giving in giving our clients RSS functionality so their message can go to their customer/reader base instead of making them go to their site manually ever time.”

Patrick

Ask your developer for key information BEFORE you need it

“You should always get the FTP information, user name, password and hosting information in writing. Put it away somewhere safe.

I also provide clients with a CD back up of their site at least once a year or more frequently if they want one.”

Char

Don’t let them scare you into staying

“She has a very small business and a small footprint on the web, so the only way she’s getting all this spam is because her current website is plastered with her email address. But her company never told her this before, or advised her about how to prevent spam–despite the fact that her spam is incredibly high for what she does on the web–they happily let her get deeper and deeper into spam-hell.

And now that she wants to switch, they’re trying to frighten her into staying. Very frustrating!?

Katie Konrath

Be ready to do it yourself in a pinch

“Make sure you have someone in-house who can update, manage, and add content to the site. There’s nothing worse than having to rely on external sources for something you could easily do yourself.”

Ryan Karpeles

Don’t overlook blogging software as a website content management option

“For a couple of non-profits, I’ve built sites using hosted (free) WordPress blogging software (some of the templates are nicely set up to create pages/tabs that resemble regular websites). Tied into those sites are Google calendars (free), and storage of files at Box.net (free). I’m not a programmer, but with these kind of tools, as long as the web presence is not too extensive as far as information and use of forms, it’s do-able. And, of course, maintenance is a breeze – no need for a programmer, just train the user on how to use the free tools for administration.”

Steve Woodruff

Get references

“Ask around… a lot. I almost went with someone who was very nice and very helpful but in the end she realized her work and time might not be a good fit for me. She referred me to Mike Sansone and Sandra Renshaw. I consider that to be entrepreneurial divine intervention. With the right tool and their help, another star is born. Ask around…A LOT!!!”

Sherry Borzo

Ask smart questions

1. How long have they been in business?
2. Who are some of their other clients?
3. How do they deal with customer service issues?
4. What kind of training/information will they provide when the site launches?
5. Can you select the hosting provider, with their help?

Ian

You don’t have to be a techie to maintain your site

“It has mostly been said here but I want to add my vote for users insisting on control of their content. Simple software such as Contribute allows even the most tech-disabled of us to manage our content easily. And changing content frequently is the best way to grow visitors to our site.”

Lewis Green

Document your details

“In other words the vendor should supply a notebook of all critial passwords for everything about the network. I am a small shop (3 people) and when we build out a new network we supply all relevant info about their network.”

Loren Nason

Begin with the end in mind

“I always advise folks to make sure that whoever they select to develop their site or blog understands that it’s a marketing tool and should be an element of their marketing plan, not a standalone project. I just got a call from a company (referred to me by a client) to help them understand why their web site wasn’t coming up in the search engines. I took a look at the site and source code and it was very obvious that the site was not designed or developed with search engine marketing in mind (even though they told the client that SEO was part of the project).”

Debra Murphy

Thanks to all these experts for sharing their good counsel with us. Remember…there are lots of good web developers out there. Don’t settle for anything less.

It’s not art, it’s a website

What’s the matter with you people? You’re supposed to be marketers!

Product packaging — is it part of your brand or disposable?

August 30, 2007

A recent article in the New York Times focused on how product packaging trends have changed over the last 10-20 years. The trend, as late as the 90's was that companies would retain a packaging design for 7+ years. Today, the trend is less than 2 years. (To the left, Kleenex is now available in oval shaped boxes.)

The article lists many reasons why a company might shift packaging more often today.

Shorter attention spans of the buying population
The movement from container to a 3-D on-shelf ad for the product
Harder to expose audiences to mass media messaging, so have to grab them at the venue
Turning the mundane (tissue boxes, cleaning bottles) into decor
Trying to reduce package size/cost
Functionality (Coors label turns blue when it is just the right temperature)

An extreme example — Mountain Dew is changing its packaging 12 times from May-October. Wow. (see examples to the right)

So what do you think? Are they messing with their brand? Is this sort of revolving door packaging a good thing? Does it matter what the product is?

Related posts:

In the pink or just ick?

More packaging brain candy

Have you committed a Cardinal Zin?

As we were saying…about watching differently

August 29, 2007

There's a new beta in town. Hulu.com

Their goal? Nothing big. Just to give you access to the world's premiere content, when, where and how you want it.

Here's a bit of the CEO's welcome letter.

Welcome to Hulu! Our passionate and growing team here has been very hard at work on a service that we're quite excited about. We'll keep you updated with news as we go along.

The first bit of news we'd like to share is that we have a name: Hulu.

Why Hulu? Objectively, Hulu is short, easy to spell, easy to pronounce, and rhymes with itself. Subjectively, Hulu strikes us as an inherently fun name, one that captures the spirit of the service we're building. Our hope is that Hulu will embody our (admittedly ambitious) never-ending mission, which is to help you find and enjoy the world's premier content when, where and how you want it.

So do you suppose Hulu will have :30 spots?

Thanks to Jon Burg for giving me a head up on this beta release. Check out his comments as well.

You can sign up to be a part of the beta as well.

We watch differently. We will advertise differently.

August 29, 2007

A recent study released by The IBM Institute for Business Value suggests that thanks to DVRs, we are actually watching MORE television. But fewer ads.

As DVRs and other technology allow us to skip over the :30 spot — you have to know that advertisers will find a new way.

What do you think that new way will be? Read more about the study and its implications in my post over at Marketing Profs Daily Fix.

New bloggers toolbox

August 27, 2007

A couple months ago, I asked for your help. I said:

As fresh faces leap into the blogging waters faster than we can count them, it occurred to me that it's in everyone's best interest (and just good manners) to offer a helping hand to the neophytes. We're helping clients launch blogs on a regular basis and for many of them, these is new territory.

But I need your help. Someone helped you…now it's our turn!

Well, help you did! I have now compiled everyone's suggestions and organized them by the following categories:

Are chock full of practical tips
Act as a living lab on how to write compelling blog posts
Demonstrate how to build a community
Teach marketing tools
Are welcome wagons – bloggers who spotlight newbies

The toolbox will now have a permanent home here at Drew's Marketing Minute. Watch for a button along my sidebar.

Feel free grab the button and share it with your readers as well. Hopefully, the toolbox will be a resource that bloggers new and old can find value in for a long time.

Special thanks to the contributors. If I missed anyone, please let me know and I will add your contributions.

Contributors:

Spinning Silk Multimedia

A quick trip around the blogosphere!

August 26, 2007

Scott Monty celebrates his one year blogiversary this week. Scott's blog is a great mix of marketing musings, old and new. Always worth a read.

Blogger Social Details are in…and the registrations are beginning to build as well. April 4-6th in the Big Apple. We really hope you can make it.

Robert Hruzek is calling on all of us to change the world, starting with ourselves. Count on Robert to set his (and our) sights high. Check out his challenge.

If you loved the Z-list and the W-list, here's another one for you. The Black Entrepreneurs Toolbox from Bootstrapper.

How brands help us decipher features

August 25, 2007

Picture_4

A good brand sets up expectations. The more definitive the brand, the better we can anticipate the experience. We can almost sense what would be a "right or wrong fit" based on the brand values or behaviors.

For example…see how many of these you get right:

What shape is Disney Cruise line's most popular pool?
What rating would Disney's 7 pm live entertainment show earn?
How about their 9 pm show?
How late is the casino open?
The food that is consumed in the largest quantity on the ship is…
How many times a day do the cruise activities team have "age specific" kid activities planned?
What is the decor of the most popular on-board restaurant?

Facebook gets the door slammed in its face

August 23, 2007

Shhh….listen for it.

It's happening all over the world. Companies are slamming the door in the face of Facebook.

Citing productivity and security, corporations from Australia's largest telecommunications company, Telstra to many ma and pa store fronts, are banning the growing social networking tool.

According to London's Telegraph, more than 2/3 of UK companies are making Facebook off limits and visiting it during work hours is a sackable offense. (I so wish I spoke UK) Interesting that London was just identified as having more Facebook members than any other city in the world.

According to a survey by Sophos, over 50% of workplaces are now "FaceBlocking" and the ones who have not are afraid of employee backlash.

And it's not just corporate America. Colleges and public access points are also blocking or considering blocking the site.

What do you think? Smart? Paranoid? An over-reaction? Justified? If you were the CEO of an organization, what would you do?

Related posts:

Social Media isn't just for kids

MySpace holds first primary

When’s the best time to chase new business?

August 23, 2007

2007 has been a good year for many businesses. Studies are showing consumer optimism and spending are up. B-to-B reports are saying that businesses are also spending with renewed confidence.

You may be one of the lucky companies that's feeling pretty good about the work you have piling up. Customers are aplenty and the register is ringing. In fact, you are probably so busy you just don't have time to think about marketing. You'll get back to it when things slow down. Right?

Wrong. Really wrong.

The time to aggressively market is now. Why? Somehow we forget that client acquisition is hardly an instantaneous event. If we wait until we have extra time or really need the cash flow – we're in trouble.

The best time to reach out to potential new customers? It needs to be a constant part of your day. Every day. The challenge is to automate your efforts so that no matter how busy you are, it does not stutter or stop. So how do you go about making marketing part of your routine?

Identify at least one marketing tool that you can commit to for the rest of the year. It might be a monthly sales postcard to dormant customers, hosting a 4th quarter seminar aimed at your target audience, or a push in your print ad schedule.

Next, do something that locks you in. Print the postcards. Schedule the seminar and publicize the date. Sign a contract for the print ads. Do something that commits you. No matter how busy you are.

Is it enough? For most businesses, no. But it's a good start.

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