How Babies Can Show You the Way to Find A Niche

Like so many other expectant couples, Sarah and Mark began researching baby products right away, as soon as they found out they were expecting baby number one. They listened to advice from friends and family, and they turned to the Internet to learn more about all the options and brands available to them.

Before long, they found themselves overwhelmed with choices: bouncy seats, swings, white noise machines, stuffed animals designed to mimic the mother's heart rate. Who knew there could be so many different products dedicated to helping babies sleep?

As the couple began to wade through all the options, Sarah quickly began to realize the marketing genius behind it all. She worked in advertising and had seen this phenomenon countless times in successful ad campaigns. The makers of these various sleep products had completed the trifecta.

They had:

1. Identified a real problem
2. Tapped into their potential customers' fears
3. Designed a product to fill that niche in a slightly unique way

The importance of these three marketing points applies not only to companies designing sleep aids for babies, but to everyone who wants to design a successful product.

The keys to successful marketing

Successful marketing is built around identifying and addressing a key need for consumers. If your product looks interesting or does something really interesting, but customers don't see an immediate need for it, it probably won't sell very well. The key is to show customers exactly how your product addresses a specific need, even if the need is one they don't even know they have. Show customers how your product or service will make their lives easier, and they'll be far more likely to buy from you.

Capitalizing on what's different

When Sarah and Mark began researching baby products, they were amazed at the sheer number of products that were designed for sleeping. What perhaps is even more astounding, however, is that all the products were slightly different. No two products were exactly alike. Even if two white noise machines were standalone, plug-in devices, there were always some slight differences. Maybe one had an option to play a recording of a heartbeat, while another had more lullabies. Each manufacturer seemed to know exactly what made its product different from the competition, and that's what they capitalized on. One might focus on the benefits of having a newborn hear a gentle heartbeat while trying to sleep. Another might talk about how lullabies have been used for generations to soothe.

Like these manufacturers, your company must be able to show customers exactly how your products are different than the competition and why those differences make your products better. It does no good to duplicate a competitor's product, as that niche has already been filled. Think about what makes your product superior, and use that information to mold your marketing campaign.

Show the product providing the solution

Any product that's supposed to help babies sleep will include pictures of peacefully sleeping newborns right on the box. Such imagery expertly taps into the fears of potential customers (having a baby who won't sleep) and offers them a solution (use our product, and you'll have a peacefully resting infant). Your marketing campaigns should make it obvious to customers exactly how the product you're selling is going to help them.

Customers want to know exactly why they should do business with your company. Taking the time to develop a marketing plan that shows how your products address specific needs will pave the way to marketing success.

If you're looking to get started reworking your campaigns, give us a call today.

To contact Chuck Gherman for more information about how Printing Arts Press helps organizations with their Marketing needs through print communications please visit www.printingartspress.com.

Watch What You Say, Especially in Advertising

The language you use in your marketing materials has more of an effect than you may realize. In fact, something as simple as your choice of pronouns can end up having an influence on your potential customers and the likelihood of them purchasing your products.

The value of the first person

In general, customers respond better to marketing materials, especially websites, that use the first person. This might include buttons that say "create my account" instead of "open an account," or "start my free trial" instead of "start your free trial." Making this simple transition can provide a noticeable jump in conversion rates and higher click throughs. Potential customers will spend more time on your website, learning about your company and what you have to offer. Even if they don't buy during their initial visit, they'll begin to feel familiar and connected with your brand, and therefore more likely to return to you when they are ready to buy.

Why do first person pronouns matter?

It all comes down to the power of psychology. Using first person pronouns helps potential customers feel as though they already "belong" -- that your company truly cares. That's something many companies struggle with when trying to reach customers online. It's much easier to develop close relationships when interacting with customers in person. However, switching to first-person pronouns on your website can help to produce this same kind of connection with customers whose only interactions with your brand take place online.

Making the switch

Effectively incorporating first person pronouns as a part of your call to action must be paired with quality marketing materials. You cannot simply switch your pronouns and expect to see a change if your copy still requires a considerable amount of work. Focus first on developing quality advertising, whether on your website, in social media, or on a traditional advertising platform. Once you have the ad itself set, rather than wrap up your message with a standard call to action, make the switch to the first person and prepare to be amazed at the influence such a simple change can have.

Developing a quality call to action can play an important part in finding new customers and encouraging those who see the advertisements to convert. Incorporating first person pronouns in that call to action can have a profound effect on your bottom line. If you're interested in learning more about these different advertising techniques, give us a call today. We'd be happy to help you get started growing and finding new customers. 

To contact Chuck Gherman for more information about how Printing Arts Press helps organizations with their Marketing needs through print communications please visit www.printingartspress.com.

What the Cola Wars Can Teach You About Marketing

Imagine you are walking down the street and see a group of people trying to get volunteers for a taste testing. In the cups before them they have two identical looking colas. They ask you to try both cups and pick which one you prefer. You will then need to try and identify which is Coke and which is Pepsi.

Do you think you would be able to tell the difference? Do you think you would actually pick the flavor you usually drink (in other words, if you usually drink Coke, would you actually select that one as your favorite)?

Shockingly, many people don't. A number of different experiments have shown that many people are unable to correctly identify which cola is which. Even more surprisingly, in double blind taste tests, Pepsi often wins. It was this phenomenon that led to Pepsi steadily encroaching upon Coca-Cola's lead in the market in the 1970s and 1980s. In an effort to win back customers, Coca-Cola introduced the debacle that was New Coke. The new formula was quickly rejected by consumers, and the company worked to gain back the trust of their loyal customers.

Coca-Cola managed to transition out of their problematic campaign and back to their original formula, but this left them in an interesting position. They still used the original formula, which customers said they wanted, but this formula was the one that often lost to Pepsi in taste tests. In the twenty years since this fiasco, Coca-Cola still manages to lead the market and has been holding steady.

According to what many people view as the unwritten rules of marketing, this should not be happening. 

Coke has two major points working against it.

1. Coke's formula is often deemed inferior by the consumer base in taste tests.
2. The company completely alienated much of its loyal consumer base when it introduced New Coke without adequate market research.

Yet somehow Coca-Cola remains ahead.

Understanding why this happened and what companies today can learn from it can help you revolutionize your advertising campaigns.

Branding

Coca-Cola's advertising works to develop a certain mentality in us. When we see the brand's familiar script logo, we connect to the company's rich history. We see small children walking up to drugstore counters to buy a Coke. We also connect with the company's familiar advertising icons (its polar bears, for example) that are often featured in various advertising campaigns. Of course, Coca-Cola's friendship ads help us feel connected to other Coke drinkers around the globe, as well.

The key here is the brand. Coca-Cola is now an iconic brand. It has become such a staple in our culture that in some regions, the word 'Coke' is used to mean any soft drink.

So what are you doing to develop your brand? Creating and maintaining a strong brand should be at the center of all your marketing. Customers make decisions based on the subconscious associations they develop between a company's brand and its intangibles, including its quality, reliability, and history. Successful marketing helps to encourage positive associations in consumers' minds.

Thinking about the entire customer experience

Taste tests often show that Pepsi is the preferred brand, especially considering it is slightly sweeter. While this might be better for short-term tastes, many people drink soft drinks in vast quantities. They don't just drink a sip or two. They drink large bottles. Given the entire customer experience, it's easier to see why the slightly sweeter brand seems to be less preferred in the long run.

Branding and considering the entire customer experience have both had an enormous impact on Coca-Cola's ability to hold onto its lead over Pepsi, despite taste tests and marketing troubles. When you keep these criteria in mind for your company, you'll also be able to boost your success. So grab a soft drink, sit down, and work with us to begin determining how you can better market your company.

To contact Chuck Gherman for more information about how Printing Arts Press helps organizations with their Marketing needs through print communications please visit www.printingartspress.com.

Are You Performing 'Checkups' on Your Marketing Campaigns?

Well baby checkups are one of the most important health precautions new parents can take to ensure their child is growing properly and remains in good health. At these appointments, vaccines are administered, growth charts are established, and the overall health of the child is monitored. Within the baby's first year, new parents will bring their child in several times, with fewer appointments after that as the child ages.

Even as a child grows older, however, regular checkups remain important. Schools will require them for sports teams. Camps and similar activities want records that show the child is up to date on their shots. And parents don't want to wait for something to go wrong before bringing their child to the doctor.

As a business marketer, you should think of your marketing campaigns like a child. Just as a child needs regular checkups, your company's marketing will benefit from regular 'checkups,' too, even if nothing is actually wrong.

Why are checkups so important?

Yearly physicals can help doctors and parents stay on top of a child's overall health, even if everything seems to be going well. Doctors can address minor annoyances that might not seem to warrant visits themselves, while also watching for potentially unnoticed signs of problems. This kind of preventive care allows doctors to keep their patients in better health.

It works the same way with your marketing campaigns. When things are going well, it's easy to put off running diagnostics and doing checkups. However, even if a campaign is bringing in customers, regular checkups are still important. Breaking down the campaign piece by piece and examining it can help you find potential weak spots where customers are slipping through the cracks, so you can repair those rough spots and improve your conversion rates.

Diagnostics and regular checkups can also provide a warning if something is about to go wrong. For example, if you find during your examination that most of your customers are coming through a particular channel, you can devote the time and energy necessary to make sure that channel continues running smoothly, while also investigating what might be holding up the others channels you've been targeting.

What should you look at?

At a child's physical, the doctor will listen to the heart and lungs, examine the nose, throat, and ears, and perhaps administer shots. A marketing campaign checkup should also look at the bare bones of the process. This includes looking at where customers are coming from and where they are being lost. Start by breaking down the sales funnel and determining who is leaving at each stage. See if any aspects of your marketing campaigns are attracting so few customers that they've become a waste of money. Determine if they can be improved or if they should just be scrapped.

Research what competitors are doing and try to improve even the strongest aspects of your campaigns. Survey customers to see what they wish could be improved about the process.

Yearly physicals are important for monitoring and improving the health of all children, and regular checkups are important for your marketing campaigns, too. Regularly get out your data, sit down with the marketing team, and break down campaigns step by step. Yes, such checkups will require time, but they can help make your campaigns more efficient, improve conversion rates, and help your company grow.

To contact Chuck Gherman for more information about how Printing Arts Press helps organizations with their Marketing needs through print communications please visit www.printingartspress.com.

Are You Connecting With Your Customers?

No matter how great your product or service is -- and we know it's great --  customers still make buying decisions based on emotions. Sadly, most businesses don't strive to create that personal connection that influences buying behavior. When it comes to effective sales and marketing approaches, building relationships with customers is key. But how can you bring that all-important personal touch to every transaction and really make your business stand out?

These best practices will help you nurture personal connections with customers and build brand loyalty.

Ask First, Sell Later

Before you jump right into a standard sales pitch, take the time to ask your customers a few questions. More importantly, really listen to their answers. A bit of gentle probing will help your customer articulate exactly what it is they need. That, in turn, will allow you to clearly explain exactly how your products or services will solve their problems.

This way, you're not simply pushing something that they may or may not really need or want. Instead, you're taking their unique situation into account and providing a personalized, customized solution. At the same time, you're building rapport by creating a personal interaction that's so important.

Again, really listening is key. While your customer is speaking, stop what you're doing, take a breath, and simply listen. Don't attempt to think ahead and formulate answers before they're finished talking. Remain in the moment, and place your full attention on them. They'll notice the difference!

Quid Pro Quo

Keep on building that relationship by offering some personal information about yourself, too. Don't worry. You don't have to give out your Social Security number or your home address. In fact, avoid TMI at all costs. Sharing just a bit will humanize you to your customer. Talking about where you where born, a common hobby, a sports team, or even a recent movie you watched or book you read can make a real impact.

Scientific studies support this strategy. A 2009 study in the <em>Journal of Consumer Research</em> found that customers were more likely to buy -- and to be happy about their purchase -- when a salesperson shared personal info like a birthday or a birthplace. But don't fake it; the study also found that creating similarities where none really exist simply to make a connection tended to backfire, especially if the customer found out later that the salesperson wasn't being forthcoming.

Keep in Touch

Regular newsletters are a great way to keep in touch with your customers -- with the added benefit of keeping your brand in the forefront of their minds. CIO recommends sending a newsletter at least 10 times per year. Make it simple to scan and read, with short, concise articles and a prominent table of contents so customers can find what they're looking for with ease. Focus on relevant content that your customers can use, making your newsletter something to look forward to.

That Personal Touch

Sending a handwritten note or postcard is a great way to ensure that your business stands out. Handwritten communication proves beyond a doubt that you've taken the time to sit down and make an effort, which makes your customer feel valued. Try to include personalized content in each note to really make an impact.

These simple steps will help you build that human connection that's so key to driving sales and customer loyalty.

To contact Chuck Gherman for more information about how Printing Arts Press helps organizations with their Marketing needs through print communications please visit www.printingartspress.com.