Does my facelift make me look younger?

April 27, 2007

Boy Eight months ago next week, I launched this blog.  I didn’t really have any sense of what I would or wouldn’t want in terms of widgets, tools, archives, categories etc.  So as the months have gone on…we’ve just sort of tacked on this or that.

A few weeks ago we decided enough was enough…and have completely re-designed the blog with the user interface always front and center.

  • We went down to two columns, so the content is easier to access
    We shifted to a category drop box so we didn’t tie up so much real estate but the readers could still find everything they need AND see how many posts are in each category
    We greatly expanded the blogroll so my readers could even find more smart writing
  • We’ve fixed the column widths so you can re-size your browser without the text getting all funky (a technical design term that David Armano taught me!)
  • We’ve also jazzed up the banner etc.to be more consistent with other materials so our blog readers who come over from the e-newsletter etc. feel right at home

I’m hoping these changes make the blog even easier to access, more fun to read and will lure you back time and time again.

We’ve still got a couple surprises and tweaks coming up…but for the most part, this is it.  I’d love your feedback.  But be gentle.  After all, I am a delicate flower.

As with all things on my blog — my continued gratitude and appreciation to Mike Sansone.  He is all things blog for me.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
More

Blog roll exploded!

April 27, 2007

Picture_1

There are changes afoot at Drew’s Marketing Minute…so be on the ready. The first change is already in place. 

The longer I’m writing and reading blogs, the more incredible content I discover. My blog roll kept scrolling further and further down the page.  At the rate I was going, my page was going to scroll down 5 feet before you got to the end of the list.

So, the blog roll is going to be moving to its own page.  Enjoy the expanded list. And now that I have a whole page — watch out!  More great blogs are on the way!

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
More

Marketing Tips from a Marketing Agency: Make the invisible visible

April 26, 2007

It would only stand to reason that a marketing & branding agency would be pretty good at branding and marketing itself.

So I thought it might be fun to explore some branding & marketing concepts using our own agency, McLellan Marketing Group, as the guinea pig.

Make the invisible visible

Let’s face it — there are many elements of business that are pretty ordinary.  Not only are they ordinary but 99% of businesses do them the same way. 

Think of all the communication elements that you pretty much ignore because everyone’s looks and behaves the same.  Posted hours of operation, fax cover sheets, privacy disclaimers, e-mail signatures.  And on and on the list goes.  We’re so used to them being ordinary that, as consumers, we don’t even notice them.

Which makes them invisible.

A smart marketer will use the element of surprise and make the invisible visible.  An agency friend of ours in Denver (AOR) sends out a quarterly newsletter.  At the bottom of the newsletter, just like everyone else, they have a privacy disclaimer.  But theirs reads something like:

We’ll never sell or give your e-mail address to anyone.  Because that wouldn’t be nice.

They turned the invisible visible and gave us a hint of what working with them might be like. 

At MMG, one of the invisible things we make visible is our titles.  Could I be CEO or President?  Sure.  But yawn.

20070425card_2

But by being the Top Dog, suddenly we’re visible.  When was the last time someone looked at your business card and make a comment?  It happens to all of us at MMG every day.  Along with the Top Dog, some of the present and past MMG titles have been:

The Warden (are you going to risk not giving her your time sheets?)
Girl Wonder
Sgt. of Strategy
Brandologist
Chaos Curator
Conductor
Go To Guy
Dr. Designo

Do our titles say much more about the agency, our work style and our attitude than CEO, CFO, Art Director, etc. would say?

What’s invisible in your world that you could make visible?

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
More

Want to know the SOBCon secret?

April 25, 2007

Sob

 

As one of the presenters at the SOBCon event next month, I was invited to do a brief interview about the conference and got to talk about what I think is the coolest aspect of the whole weekend.

I call it the SOBCon secret because it’s what the conference is all about.  It demonstrates the heart and the difference in this event.  Of course, to find out what it is, you’ll need to listen.

Even more fun for me, I was interviewed by Des Moines own Mike WagnerMike is one of my two (Mike Sansone is the other) co-presenters at the event.

There’s still time to register and join in the sharing, learning and join Mike, Mike and me and all the other SOBCon attendees.

 

Special thanks to Zane Safrit for hosting the podcast series.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
More

Marketing Tips from a Marketing Agency: Be a drip

April 25, 2007

It would only stands to reason that a marketing & branding agency would be pretty good at branding and marketing itself.

So I thought it might be fun to explore some branding & marketing concepts using our own agency, McLellan Marketing Group, as the guinea pig.

Be A Drip

The natural urge it seems is to deluge our potential consumers with information. How often have you seen one of these:

  • A brochure with no white space and so much copy that your eyes blur
  • A company who explodes onto the marketplace and you see them everywhere – TV, radio, print for about 2 months…and then you never hear of them again
  • An e-mail campaign that floods your in box with multiple messages in a short period of time
  • A 12-page newsletter (white space or no)
  • A corporate website’s homepage that is packed with copy, starbursts and news items galore

Some marketers are compelled to shove as much information at their consumers as possible.  Perhaps it’s a concern that they’ll only get one shot at them.  Or the misconception that if they don’t explain every nuance of their product/service, the audience won’t get it.

I think in most cases, it’s a mix of insecurity and not really understanding the audience.  It’s as though they’re saying "I’m not confident in knowing what my audience needs/wants to know and I don’t trust my own instincts…so I am going to throw everything but the kitchen sink at them."

Bad marketing strategy.

Here’s the analogy we use to help clients understand this concept.  When there’s a hard, driving rain, the ground can only absorb so much of it before the water just runs off.  Consumers are the same way.  They can only absorb so much information before our well-crafted words just run off, falling on deaf ears.

But a gentle all-day rain has a different result.  Because of its slow and steady pace, the ground can easily, over time, absorb all the water that comes.

We need to be a drip, not a downpour when it comes to our marketing efforts.  Want an example?

Picture_2

Since 1999 at MMG we’ve been producing a weekly marketing e-newsletter called (wait for it…) the Marketing Minute.  Never more than 300 words and a few links.  Drip, drip.

Every week.  We’ve never let anything keep us from getting it out.  Not kidney stones, internet connection problems, or client deadlines.  Drip, drip.

People have said we should charge for it or discourage people forwarding it along.  Never going to happen.  Drip, drip.

We’ve had some readers for over 8 years. We get new additions every week.  Drip, drip.

We’ve gotten RFPs and business from subscribers 2, 3 and 4 years after they started reading it. They hadn’t needed us or been in a position to hire us until then.  Drip, drip.

How can you be a drip when it comes to marketing your company?

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
More

Screwing up STINKS!

April 23, 2007

Stinks Three quick facts about making a mistake.

  • You’re bound to do it.
  • It can cost you a customer.
  • Most people don’t handle it well.

In fact, disappointing a customer stinks.  Fortunately the solution does too.

S — Shut up.  When a customer begins to complain, just shut up and listen.  They need to vent.  You need to understand what has them upset.  To accomplish both, shut up.

T — Take ownership.  Your fault, someone in shipping’s fault, the customer’s fault.  It doesn’t matter.  Once the customer hands you the problem, make it yours.

I — Investigate the problem.  Your customer wants to know they’re getting more than lip service.  And, you want to avoid having to do this again, don’t you?

N — Never offer an excuse.  It doesn’t matter why it happened.  It just matters that it happened.  Once the situation is defused and you’ve done your investigating, then you can offer an explanation.  But never an excuse.

K — Keep your word.  If you say you’re going to call them back  that afternoon, do it.  If you say you’re going to mail them some coupons or pick up the tab for dinner or deliver the corrected report by Thursday — do it. 

S — Say you are sorry.  Use those exact words.  "I’m sorry this happened."  "I’m sorry we kept you waiting."  The customer wants to hear that you feel badly.  They do and they do not want to feel it all by themselves!

I can see you, you’re shaking your head at me and saying "well duh, Drew."  But you know what…it’s not a duh.  Otherwise more companies would actually handle problems this way.

So print this off and post it somewhere that your employees can see it.  Better yet, go over it with them at the next quarterly  meeting.  And  then walk the talk by demonstrating how it works next time you make a mistake.

Think you won’t?  Refer to the top of the post!

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
More

What should the “freebie rule” be for bloggers?

April 22, 2007

Gift For years, journalists have maintained a "no gift" rule because they never wanted their credibility be put into question.  While I am sure some journalists bend/break that rule…it’s pretty much the industry standard.

But most bloggers are not journalists by trade.  They aren’t employed by a media outlet and they certainly aren’t objective observers.  Most bloggers infuse their opinions into their posts. 

So is it wrong for a blogger to accept freebies?  There’s a pretty broad spectrum of opinions out there.

Lewis Green raises this issue and takes a very clear stand in his post Does taking a freebie mean you can’t trust me?

Tim Almond talks about Microsoft sending out laptops and his opinion of accepting gifts.

Robert Scoble say as long as you disclose you received the product (in this case…the laptop) for free, your ethics are fine.

Joel Spolsky calls it a bribe that is corrupting the medium.

B.L. Ochman makes her take on the question pretty clear in a post from late December where she called PR agency Edelman’s ethics into question.

What do YOU think? 

A laptop or a trip to Seattle to meet Bill Gates (examples in the above links) seems like the extreme that only the most influential bloggers will be tempted by.  But what about a free weekend at a bed and breakfast?  Or an advance copy of a book?  Or a pair of sunglasses?  How about a marketing white report that will later be sold?  Tickets to a show or concert?

Should a blogger ever accept a gift?  When is it okay?  If a blogger does accept a freebie — how should they handle that fact if they post about it?

UPDATE:  Some additional opinions…

Chip Griffin has this to say. 

David Reich adds his always valuable and insightful 2 cents.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
More

What would you advise? PR nightmare

April 21, 2007

Rich The situation:  The General Manager of  the San Manuel Indian Bingo and Casino has booked the country singing duo Big & Rich and sold a few thousand tickets.  Without his knowledge, a radio station who had tickets to give away has upped the ante.

To accommodate the wish of an ill 5-year old girl, the radio station has made arrangements with Big & Rich to let the girl and her family see the show and hang with the entertainers backstage after the show.  They, of course, have promoted this heavily on their station.

The night of the show, the casino GM learns of the plans.  He says they can’t go through with the plan because they are not allowed to permit anyone under 21 into the casino. 

Because they didn’t want to break their promise to the little girl, Big & Rich canceled the concert and spent time with the little girl on their touring bus.

The casino is left with a couple thousand people waiting to get into the concert and has to tell them its canceled. And you can imagine what the radio station did.  Lots of bad buzz.

What would you have done?  Okay, time for you to step into the casino GM’s shoes.  Would you have handled the situation like he did?  If not, what would you have done differently?

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
More

Is the no negative language rule a double negative?

April 20, 2007

Not3 I am blaming it on The Secret.  In the last month, we have had two different clients ask us to go back and revise something we’d created a while ago and they’d already been using because it contained "negative language." 

One even referenced the book and the Law of Attraction.   

Now don’t get me wrong…I’m all for the law of attraction. I agree with it.  But I also think its more of a concept than an absolute. 

Then, the topic came up yesterday in yet another client meeting on a current project.  So this has been on my mind quite a bit lately.

As a writer, I strongly believe that sometimes it is more powerful to speak in the negative.  Maybe I’m wrong.  Let me share with you my thoughts and then I’d like to listen to yours.

Words like never, don’t or won’t can be potent triggers. They can connote a depth of conviction, in my opinion.  I like to use them as a contrast.  To give the copy a twist or really pound home a point without pulling out the hammer.

Not2 "We’ll never charge you for the same repair twice" is a more powerful statement than the same concept written in the positive.

We don’t do bankers hours feels stronger than we have evening hours or we’re open until 7. 

Our viscosity standards will never be compromised is pretty tough to state in a positive way with as much conviction.

Or am I wrong?  I’d love to hear your thoughts about using negative language in copy and taglines.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
More

Meet the Age of Conversation Authors

April 19, 2007

Picture_5 About two weeks ago, Gavin Heaton and I announced that we were going to publish an e-book called The Age of Conversation.

We’re going to donate all proceeds to Variety, the Children’s Charity.  We’ve been spotlighting different chapters across the globe throughout our posts.

Then we shared that the book will be dedicated to CK and her mom, Sandra Kerley.

Of course, it was going to be an incredibly short book if only Gavin and I wrote it. So we invited all of you to join us.  To kick it off with some fire power, we started with an impressive list of confirmed authors to be sure:

Gavin Heaton
Drew McLellan
CK
Valeria Maltoni
Emily Reed
Katie Chatfield
Greg Verdino
Mack Collier
Lewis Green
Sacrum
Ann Handley
Paul McEnany
Roger von Oech
Anna Farmery
David Armano
Bob Glaza
Mark Goren
Matt Dickman
Scott Monty
Richard Huntington
Cam Beck
David Reich
Luc Debaisieux
Sean Howard
Tim Jackson
Patrick Schaber
Roberta Rosenberg
Uwe Hook
Tony D. Clark
Todd Andrlik
Toby Bloomberg
Steve Woodruff
Steve Bannister
Steve Roesler
Stanley Johnson
Spike Jones
Nathan Snell
Simon Payn
Ryan Rasmussen
Ron Shevlin
Roger Anderson
Robert Hruzek
Rishi Desai
Phil Gerbyshak
Peter Corbett
Pete Deutschman
Nick Rice
Nick Wright
Michael Morton
Mark Earls
Mark Blair
Mario Vellandi
Lori Magno
Kristin Gorski
Kris Hoet
G.Kofi Annan
Kimberly Dawn Wells
Karl Long
Julie Fleischer
Jordan Behan
John La Grou
Joe Raasch
Jim Kukral
Jessica Hagy
Janet Green
Jamey Shiels
Dr. Graham Hill
Gia Facchini
Geert Desager
Gaurav Mishra
Gary Schoeniger
Gareth Kay
Faris Yakob
Emily Clasper
Ed Cotton
Dustin Jacobsen
Tom Clifford
David Polinchock
David Koopmans
David Brazeal
David Berkowitz
Carolyn Manning
Craig Wilson
Cord Silverstein
Connie Reece
Colin McKay
Chris Newlan
Chris Corrigan
Cedric Giorgi
Brian Reich
Becky Carroll
Arun Rajagopal
Andy Nulman
Amy Jussel
AJ James
Kim Klaver
Sandy Renshaw
Susan Bird
Ryan Barrett
Troy Worman
CB Whittemore
S. Neil Vineberg

The topics are as remarkable as the authors.  These authors are going to tackle everything from community to religion, job seeking to design, sharing to television.  And just about everything in between.

In less than 1 week, we exceeded our 100 author goal and we’re off to an incredible book.&nbs p; Thanks to all of you who have decided to write a chapter, to all of you who promoted the author request and to all of you who I know will continue to help us spread the word.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
More