The Wax Blog

I  tell my clients that marketing is a lot like working out – you have to be consistent or you won’t see results. No one expects to see muscles popping out all over after one visit to the gym. For the same reaons you can’t expect immediate, lasting results from one promotional campaign. As you look toward 2010 and what will surely be a better year for all of us, it might help to build a marketing practice that looks a bit more like a workout schedule. Here are few ways to do just that. (more…)

There are so many books out there for business owners on how to do your own marketing and/or public relations. Frankly most of them say the same thing – know the reporter, don’t be too salesy, etc. Here are my top five picks – not only are these books current, they go into real tactics that you can use right away. I think if you read these books, whether you’re a  small business owner, author, entrepreneur…. you can  start promoting or upgrade what you’re already doing and get some results fast.

1. Obviously social media  is one of the best (and cost-effective) ways to promote your business, service, book, whatever.  The definitive manual (and New York Times bestseller) on the subject is Trust Agents: Using the Web to Build Influence, Improve Reputation, and Earn Trust by Chris Brogan and Julien Smith. Smith and Brogan describe not only HOW to use social media, but WHY you want to use it and most importantly, how to measure your success.  The book covers the basics of social media so a newbie can learn but also dives into the more sophisticated aspects of the medium (more…)

I  found a company willing to share a true, B2B social media case study complete with strategy, tactics, and heavens to betsy, they even measured it!  As I perused my newly invigorated LinkedIn account I discovered Ed Loessi CMO and Chief Strategy officer for Boston-based RapidInfluence, a consulting company that focuses on the implementation of strategic plans. (Boy does every company need this!!) RapidInfluence embarked this year on a social media strategy and not only successfully implemented their strategy, they’ve documented it on their blog

Ed has kindly allowed me to re-blog their social media post here on the Wax blog – but I would strongly recommend you read the full blog on the RapidInfluence site here to view all the graphics and visit more links.  Please add comments with suggestions you might have for RapidInfluence on new things they might do or things that have worked for your firm. We’re all going to be learning new stuff forever in this world!

From the  RapidInfluence Blog, October 6, 2009 (more…)

(Photo by Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)

Sorry old school journalists, savvy advertising experts and prickly control-freak publicists but it’s time to realize something. To survive you can no longer be storytellers – you have to be information managers.  Here are some examples:

Rachel Maddow is an information manager. She takes the current news trends, analyzes them and offers up her opinion. She translates and disseminates information using a liberal, celesbian lens. We know it, we’re fine with it, we’ll watch her if we like that slant – and her numbers are through the roof.

Katie Couric is a storyteller. She takes the current news, tells the story she thinks we will find most interesting (called a HOOK or ANGLE) and puts a pretty package together hoping no one else has that same ANGLE.  Boring, yawn, her numbers are in the toilet.

Jon Stewart is also an information manager. He takes the current news, translates and gives it to us with using the funny lens. His numbers are great. Even Perez Hilton, as much as we love to hate him, is  an information manager. Perez takes the celebrity news and translates it with a snarky, ‘I used to be a geek and now I’m more powerful than you’ lens. His traffic numbers are still incredible.

Just try to ‘package’ a story or launch a brand these days with a clever message and a nice dose of spin. What happens? The public’s immediate attitude is that ‘WE WILL TAKE YOU DOWN, MOTHERF*&#ER’. (Remember Motrin Moms?) Today’s social media/citizen journalists love nothing better than to debunk a story, expose an exclusive, steal a headline from a print paper, or do whatever else it takes to prove they can get there faster and more provocatively than traditional media. And guess what? They’re winning the race.

It’s time to admit what we haven’t wanted to admit for a long time -  information is  too real-time and too accessible for us to believe the ’stories’ any more. We want to pick our chosen lens and get our information there.

Who’s your favorite information manager?

photo courtesy of vitrue.com

Wax is an integrated marketing firm – the only other “Wax” I’ve found in the U.S. Of course they’re in Miami so I imagine it’s a little different corporate culture (if I actually have one) than here in Minnesota. But since all their posts come up in MY google alerts I tend to read them. And they’re good. (Maybe someday they’ll want my URL and pay me big bucks for it. )

Take a look at a post on trends in Facebook that may help you if you’re starting to market in that particular social network. Enjoy! waxcom.com/impressions

A product, service or book is probably the greatest thing in the world – to its creator. But when an editor or producers says “pass” it’s the publicist who has to tell the client .Sometimes ZERO  media are interested. And for anyone who has written a book, started a business or provided a service, that can be a pretty personally hurtful message no matter how carefully it’s couched. For me, it’s the equivalent of having to tell clients “your baby is ugly” 95% of the time, without hurting their feelings. Nearly impossible.

Why do I bring this up? Two reasons -

1) People need to engage in the public relations game knowing their odds. The chances of getting on national television or major print are very slim unless you are a celebrity or just did the impossible – like climbed a mountain for the first time while drinking martinis in pink bloomers. And even if you are a celebrity, you still get bumped. Michael Moore was bumped by Paris Hilton on Larry King Live (and boy was he pissed)

2)  Publicists need to tell their clients this. I love DIY publicists like Joan at the Publicity Hound. She gets that most people and companies don’t have the money to keep a PR campaign going as long as it takes. So she teaches them how to do it themselves. That helps them get PR in the first place and it also helps them understand the process, which helps ME when it’s time for them to engage in a PR firm.

Here are a few things people should know before they go into this.

• It’s not personal. The editor at Health magazine told me one month she got 400 new fitness DVD’s in the mail. How could she possibly go through them all?
• It has to be relevant – not only to the current media environment, but to the editorial guidelines of the pub or broadcast show, to the preferences of the producer, to what they’ve done in the past 12 issues or shows, to the juxtaposition of Mars to the moon (okay I’m exaggerating) Point it, we can’t possibly know all that before pitching. Whether or not something will hit is at best an educated guess.
• You might have the best publicist in the world and due to circumstances out of their control, you might get nothing despite their best intentions.

So why do PR if it’s such a crap shoot? First of all, if you’re consistent and pitching the right thing to the right media, it will work – eventually. Nothing is more effective long term than public relations done well. (and I emphasize DONE WELL)

So bottom line? Don’t take it personally if someone doesn’t like your pitch. Change the angle and move on. We really aren’t telling you your baby is ugly. It’s just not the right size, right now.

Since I recently listed several of my favorite PR sites – I thought it would be a good idea to post some of my favorite sites on the marketing side here too. I love RSS feeds – not only is it easy to stay up to date it shows me how prolific and smart many of my colleagues are in this business. Here are some of the blogs I’m following right now – and why. If you don’t mind, take a minute and list your own favorites in the comments section.

If I was only allowed one blog to read, for sure it would be Marketing Profs Daily Although many of us on Twitter are quite familiar with the brilliant Beth Harte, there are TONS of great posts on any marketing topic from sales to social media. The archive is huge and easy to search. I don’t pay for the “premium” option but I’ve been told it’s well worth it if you have the time. I try to read anything by Stephanie Miller and Kim Stearns but the site also links good posts from other blogs as well. It’s  a great collection of articles on just about any topic I need from a broad range of experts.

Although most people bow down to the OTHER Chris, I really like Chris Garrett’s site. He’s taught me a ton about new media, and blogging in particular. I wouldn’t say his posts are for blog neophytes or those just dabbling in it, but for someone who’s really trying to become adept at blogging and using the new media toolset, ChrisG is an excellent resource. I haven’t shelled out the $397 for his Authority Blogger course – anyone out there tried it?

Everybody knows that Seth Godin is brilliant – although I think his books are MUCH better than his blogging, I still love to read his blog. (Everyone should read Tribes, by the way)  The guy can say more in a few sentences than anybody else I know.  One thing that drives me nuts is his insistence on just continuing to put several posts on one page, so you end up scrolling around alot. But that’s just a nit. Seth’s a god of marketing.

John Jantsch’s Duct Tape Marketing is not a blog that I read daily, but it is required reading for my small business clients. This blog manages to take the mystery out of marketing and really boils it down to its simplest (but most effective) elements for small business. Case in point – his post on marketing strategy points out the critical questions every small business should ask themselves when planning a marketing campaign. Really good, back to the basics blog with some fun personal musings. Again, if you own a small business this should be a daily read.

Finally, maybe it’s because I’m the daughter of a pathologist but I love Brand Autopsy. The dramatic readings are hysterical and it’s a bit pop but it’s a fast read. The author, John Moore, is a former Starbucks/Whole Foods marketer who seems to know his stuff as far as word of mouth marketing goes. And it’s fun – I particularly like his “brands I would miss” series. Again, a fun, fast read.

AdAge’s has a great list of 150 marketing and PR sites if you’re looking for a specific topic.

It’s summer and so for that reason I’ll break from my insistence on pragmatic advice and write on a topic you might consider fluff. Yet it’s the biggest mistake I see small business owners make, including me. We have no patience. I think that it’s a given that a requirement for being an entrepreneur is to have a low grade case of ADD, or in my case, ADHD with an emphasis on the H. And in marketing, that will kill you.

I can’t tell you how many times a client tries something and when there are no immediate results says “Well that doesn’t work.” It’s like lifting weights one day and expecting a tricep cut to develop overnight. I’m not suggesting that we all go out and spend a bajillion dollars on advertising during American Idol. But I do think that in order for your PR, social media and marketing tactics to work you have to learn to wait a bit. Here are a few tips to use to figure out if you’re too impatient.

• Are you measuring your campaign results by the number of orders you’re getting off each initiative? In a word, DON’T. Look at your website hits instead, or the traffic in your store. What’s the first step toward buying your product or service? Do they request a brochure? Do they visit the website? Are you adding Twitter followers or Facebook fans like crazy? Measure by those “first steps” in the short term.

• Are you changing your marketing strategy on a weekly or monthly basis? WRONG. You had better have confidence in your strategy (or your consultant) from the start. Nothing works if you don’t believe in it 100% from the beginning. Switching around what you’re doing on a constant basis and you’ll end up running circles.
• Are you relying on only one outreach method? It may work now, but it will stop working eventually. Or you’ll end up trying one thing after another. BLEND your messaging channels. If you’re doing radio, connect it to a twitter promotion.. Trying guerilla marketing? Make sure you’ve got some PR working in conjunction with those “on the ground”techniques.

Particularly in the online world, patience is the key to success. Jay Conrad Levinson, the founder of Guerilla Marketing, believes that patience is the most important characteristic of successful entrepreneurs. Be confident in your approach. Measure it wisely. And then, like that old farmer in the field, be patient and watch the seeds of your marketing work grow.

Here’s a great post with some more tips on social media and patience – great stuff here!

Taking a nice long break from work (including lots of driving time through Nebraska) gave me a fresh perspective and I realized I needed to spend some time talking about sales. Marketing and PR often look down their noses at this “redheaded stepchild” in the promotion family but face it – if you can’t close a deal all the beautiful collateral and wonderful media plugs in the world aren’t going to help you. Even if your product is consumer-based, you still have to be able to sell – whether it’s getting the next book advance, attracting valuable new partners or even selling your company! I carried a bag for years and it’s given me a set of skills that have been invaluable in every job I’ve ever done, from the boardroom to the green room.

A tough economy means you better be a good salesperson or you’re screwed.  In spite of new media good sales manners haven’t changed. I got a book in the mail recently, Making it Happen in Sales by Henry Thomas.  After getting past the mundane title I found some great basic stuff that everyone should remember anytime they’re dealing with clients. I reviewed this list before  my next three meetings with potential clients  and closed every deal. Sales may not be the most glamorous task but it’s the one that gets the job done – so listen up people!

• Listen to your client  75% of the time AT LEAST. In  Making it Happen in Sales Henry says “Based on my years of selling, I believe their (his prospects) silent voices sound something like this ‘Don’t try to sell me. Listen to me, value me, understand me, and let me know that you want to help me.’” Ask a lot of questions, listen to your client and understand their sense of urgency. BE QUIET when they respond.
• Observe their body language. Literally mirror what they’re doing. If they cross their legs, cross yours. Lean in and see if they lean in. The more “in sync” you are physically the more they are relating to your message. It’s not a trick, it’s a way to gauge if your client is really interested. (And believe me, too many people are so involved with what they have to offer  they miss this completely)
• FOCUS. Don’t you dare look at your phone if it buzzes. That tells the client “hey there might be something more important than you out there”. Stay in the moment and turn off all the gadgets. Sometimes I’m waiting for a reporter to call about a story and it might be urgent…if that’s the case I let my client know before we start.
• Don’t judge – it’s too easy to criticize a client’s website or marketing campaign in order to show them all the holes you can fill. It’s also too easy to tell the client all the things they need help with (hear that life coaches???) so that you can show how valuable you can be. It’s so disheartening to have someone do that…instead compliment them on all the things they’ve done well and wait until the END to present what you can do on top of that!
• THEN communicate. Mr. Thomas and I agree that only once you understand the situation should you start to sell. Make notes as you go and tailor your short pitch exactly to their situation.

Of course, I lose deals sometimes when clients expect me to come in with all the razzle dazzle marketing hoo ha. But then I get the call three months later when the hoo ha has revealed itself as boo ya and my competition has exhibited they have NOTHING of substance to offer. Once again I meet with the client, I listen, I tell them what I can do and I get the gig long term. Happens to me constantly.

For an excellent primer/reminder on sales, order Henry’s book – it’s a quick read and will give you some great pointers.  I’m going to continue to blog about sales for a while now. I’m on the hunt for good sales blogs and sites so if you know of any shoot me a comment and I’ll include in the next post. For a list of books about sales here’s a link to Amazon’s recommendations

I know it’s popular to thumb your nose at the celeb magazines. Who cares what Brangelina eats for a midnight snack? We are intelligent people who have no interest in digesting such worthless information – right?

WRONG – and here’s why. The average American consumer is influenced heavily by pop culture. Our fascination with celebrities is a huge piece of that pop culture right now. You can use this to your advantage if you’re smart.

Here’s a great example. I’m working on a campaign for Yale University’s Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity. The Rudd Center released some videos  to help raise awareness about weight bias. As I was blasting them all over the internet I found a rapidly growing story about Jessica Simpson’s weight.  A quick blog by the Rudd Center’s Dr. Rebecca Puhl about the story on Ms. Simpson and BOOM. I immediately got a massive acceleration in the spread of my story online.

Newsworthy is newsworthy, my friends. Whether or not WE think it’s newsworthy is irrelevant – the media decides. If  breaking news is making  headlines don’t ignore it because you think it’s stupid.  If there’s an angle to help create a hook for your message, use it. It doesn’t make you less of a person, I promise.

Besides, I know you read that stuff at the dentist’s office.

P.S. Watch the Rudd Center videos here.