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As a small business owner, you face a multitude of emotions: Freedom, Fulfillment, Happiness, Frustration, Stress...
But what about LOVE?
Today is Valentine’s Day, my favorite of the “non-holidays.” In our household, we don’t exchange gifts, chocolate or cards, but I do enjoy a day dedicated to celebrating LOVE. It energizes us, is there for us when we are down, and is, in my opinion, the 8th Wonder of the World.
LOVE for a spouse, child, family member, friend or event pet is understood. But what about LOVE for your brand? When did you last look at your logo and feel emotion? Do your marketing materials make you “feel” anything? They should!
Recently we unveiled a rebrand for a client. As we shared her new “look” for her small business, she began to cry - tears of joy I hope! :) She connected to what was, only minutes earlier, ink on paper. It reflected her vision, her hopes for her company and most importantly her brand personality. It was LOVE at first sight!
That, my friend, is branding!
Your brand SHOULD evoke emotion. You should LOVE your website and print collateral. You should feel pride when you see your logo on a truck, polo shirt or pen.
Why?
Because, that emotion keeps you loyal, trusting and connected to your business. You sell harder, you work longer and you serve your clients better - because you believe in and LOVE your business.
If you don’t LOVE your brand, call us. Because, after all, what is life without LOVE?
by Heather N. Mangold, MBA on Tuesday February 14, 2012
by Heather N. Mangold, MBA on Wednesday January 11, 2012
My favorite day....website launch day! Thinking about a home remodel? Or maybe building a new castle for the king and queen? Check out Next Step Builders' new website! Beautiful photos of the great work they do! Check it out at www.nextstepbuilders.com
by Heather N. Mangold, MBA on Tuesday January 03, 2012
Welcome to the New Year! If you are working on your 2012 goals, we thought we'd share our "thinking critically" list of questions. Hope they are helpful!
- What is your unique selling proposition - what’s different about your organization/product/service
- Who are the key players on your team? What are their roles/strengths?
- What are your key goals/business objectives? What’s holding you back?
- What are your biggest revenues/sales opportunities? Most profitable? Least profitable?
- What is your biggest frustration with growing this area?
- Who have you been targeting? Is there a new segment that you’ve not considered?
- Who do you consider your main competition? How do you stack up?
- Can you define your brand?
- How do consumers perceive your brand?
- How would you describe your current marketing/advertising/PR efforts? Where are they weak? Where are they strong?
- Do you have a marketing plan? What process do you use to develop it? How often is it revisited?
- What marketing resources do you already have? How would you rate those resources?
- What marketing talent/capabilities do you have in house? External relationships?
- What is your marketing budget?
Need help formulating or executing on your 2012 plans? Let us know!
by L.J. Hyland on Thursday October 20, 2011
The other day I was checking my email when one stuck out to me. This particular email did not stand out because of its one of a kind design or its great message, but rather because it made me realize how much time, money, and effort can be misdirected in email marketing. The email I received was for a sale on a 12x12 gazebo. This would be fine if I was a middle-aged family with disposable income, but I am a 21 year old college student who lives at home, has a mild income, and no possible need for a gazebo. I don’t want to see your email blast fall to the same DELETED fate, here are a few basic email marketing tips to follow.
Tip #1 Know Your Target Market.
Your target market should be as specific as possible so that you are only attracting people with a high level of interest in your product. A great way to define your target market is by age, race, sex, geography and income.
Tip #2 Only Target Your Target Market.
Try to refine your email list to as a specific of a group as you can. It’s better to send out 20 email and get 5 good responses than to send out 200 for the same outcome. I know that sounds like common sense, but it’s one of the most common rules that companies break. Some companies feel if they send their message to everyone then everyone will come running to get their product. The actual fact of the matter is, majority of the people who buy your product are going to be within your target market. Using the umbrella affect to cover everyone is going to upset the people who don’t have any interest in your product. It is also going to cost you a lot more money to acquire such a large list.
Your target market should be as specific as possible so that you are only attracting people with a high level of interest in your product. A great way to define your target market is by age, race, sex, geography and income.
Tip #2 Only Target Your Target Market.
Try to refine your email list to as a specific of a group as you can. It’s better to send out 20 email and get 5 good responses than to send out 200 for the same outcome. I know that sounds like common sense, but it’s one of the most common rules that companies break. Some companies feel if they send their message to everyone then everyone will come running to get their product. The actual fact of the matter is, majority of the people who buy your product are going to be within your target market. Using the umbrella affect to cover everyone is going to upset the people who don’t have any interest in your product. It is also going to cost you a lot more money to acquire such a large list.
Tip #3 Consider Timing.Running a business to business email blast at 3:30 on a Friday afternoon might not be the wisest idea. The majority of people are already looking forward to their weekend. The email is likely to get deleted or put to the side until Monday. The best way to figure out a good time to send out your email blast, is to try and think like the market your sending it to. If you were them, when would you be most likely be available to receive a message?
Hopefully these three basic tips on sending an email blast will help you increase the open, and response rate to your emails.
by Heather N. Mangold, MBA on Tuesday August 23, 2011
It's been a busy summer at Mangold Creative! We've been pushing up our sleeves and getting busy with some great client projects, including two new websites launched this past week. Hope you enjoy!
Both are fantastic clients, with service-oriented cultures and a great deal of experience!
www.TrishJohnsonInteriors.com
Both are fantastic clients, with service-oriented cultures and a great deal of experience!
www.TrishJohnsonInteriors.com
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