Businesses Built to the Hilt

When you started your business–think back, did you put up a tent and a hand-painted sign and wait for the customers to flock to you? Probably not. Every business plan should have a marketing strategy, but many do not. Owners think through location, build-out, signage, phone systems, compensation, and a host of other things that make a business successful. If you are a business owner, you know how much work it is to get everything working, and yet asking customers to come to you and telling them why often takes a backseat to all these other concerns.

Marketing is often the first expense to be cut. Please note that I said “expense” instead of “investment.” If your marketing is simply an expense–Cut it! If it is a clear plan working consistently on several levels that brings you business and builds your brand (Business reputation) then it is a true investment. It doesn’t matter is your business is brand new or has been around for generations. All businesses need marketing. All businesses need a marketing plan, especially one that reaches today’s participatory consumers.

The newspaper mentality has always been, you must be in the paper. Really? Not so! Today’s consumers have changed their media habits and advertising must change in order to reach your customers. Are there some that still read the paper, yes, but only some.

The same thing was true of Yellow Pages listings…You must be in the Yellow Pages! It’s a huge monthly investment, but consumers used to go there to look at your business, often overshadowed by your competitor’s ads stacked right together. Some people use the directories still, but the percentage is waning. Today’s directory is more likely to be Google or Bing–and it’s free to list there! True!

The point is, make your marketing count! It’s your money. It’s your business. It’s your reputation. You aren’t in business just to see if it might work for a few weeks. Invest some time with a marketer who understands what your vision for the business is. Invest a percentage of your gross toward advertising because it can become the life-blood of your business.  (Another topic for another day.) Don’t overlook the impact your business can have from simple online platforms or shy away because you don’t understand it. A good full-service marketer will teach you the basics and do the rest for you. Know that your negotiation power has never been greater that it is in marketing right now. Online platforms can be purchased by geographic slices (Williamson County businesses can target Williamson County residents.) Working with online can be incredibly inexpensive and trackable.  Tradional media is aware of online, but to date have not been able to tap online to deliver results. Traditional media is simply what we’ve always known: radio, television, billboard, newspaper. The new media is everything else that people interact with each and every day. At To the Hilt Marketing we call it “participatory media,” and there are hundreds of ways to market to both the traditional market and the participatory market. Managing your online presense and your mass media presense together will show your customers that you are a strong business with a vision for the future.

To schedule a consultation that will help you examine both just send us an email to:  info@TotheHiltOnline.com

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Madness of Media

Have you noticed how mainstream media is throwing up all over themselves shoving their Facebook pages and Twitter sites at us? It’s as though they are trying to be oh-so-hip, but most of the people speaking on-air don’t have a clue about what it does or doesn’t do.

I remember not too long ago when mainstream media did not embrace the internet. I remember hearing reports of internet scams and scandals, pedifiles and porn sites on mainstream media, but little mention anything else. Slowly, the media discovered that they couldn’t continue to ignore online.  Shoppers were shopping there. Entertainers were entertaining there. Consumers were googling there. Heck, newspaper readers were reading there.

Slowly mainstream media bit the bullet and started touting their own websites and reporting more than the shady side of the internet. Now if you look at a news broadcast, the anchor’s email address is below her name and the website logo has replaced the station logo.

In talk shows now, it seems that there always time to talk about who’s Twittering what, remind listeners to become a Facebook friend and visit the website for complete details. Heck, even school closings from weather are listed on the site.

The internet that was so synister and evil a few years back is everyones friend.

Or is it? Have these media outlets and shows figured out how to monetize the online audience? Seems like they are real good at sending out too many updates and offers once they capture your data. (Funny, I don’t feel that way about Amazon, but they have my data and even periodically send me behaviorally targeted offers–for example if I bought season one of “Mad Men,” they let me know when season two is available. I like that.)  It seems that media sites just don’t get it yet. Look at those websites! It’s like a circus of advertisers talking to us, zinging past us with rich media, embedded in every little nook and kranny of the page. If I go to my favorite radio station’s website: www.kmox.comthe crisp, award winning news reputation that has forever been maintained on KMOX is nowhere to be found on the home page of kmox.com. I have to however view a dozen or more ads and listen to some guy tell me how great cable is. That’s not why I’m there! No one goes there for that! Hidden deep inside some drop down menu is the feature or news item I went there to find. I’m so dizzy from the ads, I may never find the little link I’m looking for. KMOX is not the only station like this. Actually, KMOX is not nearly as bad as most radio and of the television.

I guess my point is, we’ve known about the internet for a while now. The media acts like it’s something brand new and they are so smart about it. I can remember when hosts didn’t even want their guests to give out a website, but now everyone is slinging ’em at us from all angles. Thanks.

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Participating Online and Participating In Person

  Nearly all of the organizations I belong to have an online presence. Most all have Linked In as a base for membership. Very nice. I can look for people in my groups for contacts and business needs. Linked In seems to have made the grade with business organizations. Recently hundreds of Linked In members met for a huge networking event in St. Louis. I understand that these types of gatherings are taking place in a number or markets.

Smaller organizations also use Linked In for scheduling, RSVP’s, and discussions. A good example is the Missouri/Chesterfield/St. Charles Networking group that meets for lunch in Chesterfield twice a month and is getting ready to have a requested happy hour.

I’ve recently gotten involved involved with the St. Louis Small Business Meet-Up in Kirkwood. I like the intimacy of these groups in that I get to talk one on one with other business owners. I have encouraged the Meet-up group to deploy a blog. While we are in beginning stages, it should serve as an informative, easy communication device online. Members can subscribe to see when news is posted. Also, we are featuring one of our members every month. This will enventually provide a significant biography of each member with the services they offer. Visit the St. Louis Small Business Meet-Up blog here: http://slsbmg.wordpress.com/  My thought is that if we go a step beyond just a Linked In listing and discussion, we can give members a lot more options to be visible and manage their reputation online. I encourage all members to put a link to our Meet-up blog on their websites and blogs.

Shown in this post is a sampling of the organizations that I personally participate with, either online or in person–often both!

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Fresh View of Social Media Participation

   Much of the social media discussion here comes from other sources including “Nielsen Global Faces Report March 2009”  and numerous blog posts, articles and comments from Social Media Experts. This blog is not written for the expert, but instead for those of us who are new to the party and interested in figuring out how Social Media applies to us and our business. First a little information.

  Participation and interaction on the internet sites continues to evolve. A few years back, most people spent the majority of their time checking email. We then began to surf and shop more. Now estimates say that 10% of all media time is spent in social media and blogging sites interacting with user generated content. That is very significant. The growth of social media sites and where that growth is coming from is very significant too. It may surprise you.

   The experts agree that consumers have changed and the way advertisers reach consumers needs to change as well.  Word like: false, promotion, uncredible, loud, and out of touch surround advertising attitudes–false was the most frequently used term.  For years, advertisers have reached consumers with a one way message cleverly designed to gather the audience attention, often neglecting to communicate a real benefit or reasonable action to engage the consumer. Today the playing field has changed. It’s no longer just advertisers who have multi-million dollar ad budgets that are the only ones who can participate. Everyone can participate. Participating correctly with today’s consumers is what makes it work. Successful advertising must add value, be authentic and a two-way conversation. There are many options to do this using online advertising tools.

   It makes sense, right?

   Advertise where the consumers are engaged and interested, right?

   Fish where the fish are, right?

   Social Media has emerged as an important part of the advertising conversation. Social Media sites serve a dual role as consumers and publishers of content. Most are set up to highlight the user, not the advertisers. Speculation is that the clean content  hosting is one of the reasons that sites appeal to users. (Ever see one of those sites with advertising flashing, popping and talking to you?) Companies are beginning to learn how to engage and attract social media users using member communities where the consumer opts-in by becoming a member, builds a network, and invests their time.

   Facebook is hands down, the largest social media site in the U.S.  The surprising thing is that nearly 40% of its world wide user base is between the ages of 35-49.  That’s parents and career people and home owners…not college students. The fastest growing Facebook population is 50+.  The adolescent stigma of social media has finally been broken. Anyone who believes that it’s just a bunch of kids is seriously behind the times. Now, not only are the numbers of mature consumers growing but the time they spend online has grown and much of that time is spent with Facebook or another members community site: Bebo, My Space, Linked In, Twitter, Blogs… and more emerging every day in this fast growing lucrative segment of the internet. Overlooking this category for advertising to reach geographically and often behaviorally targeted users is a mistake.

   How you set up your business’ participation in social media does make a difference. Also, often participants will create fan sites and you definitely want to be involved, engaged and aware of what the dialogue says.

Fan Page for St. Louis Cardinals on Facebook

This is NOT the official St. Louis Cardinals fan page designed and placed by MLB Cardinals, yet it has ten times the fans and comments as the official site. People visit here to comment on the most recent issues, post pictures of their kids with hot dogs at the ballpark. It’s a great page and a perfect example of a Fan Page on Facebook, and if the Cardinals are smart, they are aware of this site, monitoring it and attempting to control their online presense.

Business posted Fan Page for restaurant on Facebook

    Here’s an official page posted. Granted it is not for a baseball team with the emotional fan base of the St. Louis Cardinals, but with a significant viral campaign this page could really take off and be a significant marketing tool for the restaurant. Just seeing this logo a few times on your profile might remind you that this business exists the next time you are in the area and looking for a great sushi place in the Westport area. 

   The point is, there’s a lot of ways to influence, advertise and participate with consumers. Look above in these examples. There’s ads available there too that can be geotargeted to reach people in your immediate market. These type of ads are available on most social media networks.

Here’s some sites you might want to visit to continue the conversation about Social Media. We want you to keep your mind open and we will discuss marketing tactics and give you a plan to reach these very participatory consumers.

http://www.smartmarketers.com/2009/01/generating_leads_with_social_m_1.html

http://www.webinknow.com/2008/06/facebook-and-yo.html

http://www.buzzmaven.com/2009/04/hard-social-media-lessons.html

http://www.twitip.com/10-easy-steps-for-twitter-beginners/?goback=%2Ehom

  All of these authors are very credible. Take a look at these articles and if you want more information: more articles and reference material contact us and we will be happy to share more. We keep a library. If you’d like to sit down and have a discussion about how your business can begin reaching online participatory consumers, we will be happy to schedule an appointment to meet. We strive to be “Your Simple Online Solution.”

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What to do?

  Looking at a blank canvas can be daunting. I’ve done it.  Knowing what I wanted to paint, but lacked confidence to start, mar the canvas by the chance I could make a wrong stroke. The first stroke of color is always the hardest. After the virginity of the prepared canvas has been broken the strokes, right or wrong are much easier. It’s the layering of the paint that makes the image art. I know that. Learned that a long time ago. Yet, every time I prepare my paints and brushes, take a seat in a well-lit room and stare at that stark white canvas. I cannot think of many times that I’ve looked at the end result and been disappointed. I can think of many times I looked away and got busy with other things rather than make that first stroke.

   What does this have to do with anything? Everything. I think that we often look the other way rather than taking that first little step into something new thinking that it’s too hard or we will do it wrong. That first step, or stroke, is a leap of faith. Once we start it’s no longer painful, we get used to fixing as we go and letting the results guide us toward the result.

   Many of you reading this are business people. How hard is it to step out of your comfort zone and try something new?  What’s more, when has it worked and made a difference in your business? When has it failed? That business is your baby, your livelihood, sometimes even your life. What I do know is that you took a risk and had faith enough to begin that business, so you are probably my type of people.

   I have always enjoyed talking to people with an entreprenuerial spirit. I’m not one to sit back and collect a paycheck. I tease that I’ve never had a real job in my life…I’ve always been a salesperson. I have always viewed that as a noble profession. Sales with ethics is helping people get what they want. I reap what I sow and sometimes I’ve been really good at sowing some great ideas with brave businesses who see the reason to leap to the next level with me. Often it was difficult to start, but the end result was worth the trouble. I look at that canvas sitting on the easel and it’s hard to remember when it was white.

   I use this example on purpose. It was hard for me to step out of the corporate world and take the leap into my own business. I’m not sure why. I’ve often been the innovator in my company. I have always passed my ideas up the ladder and often they have made money for my company. At some point I started to look from right to left and believed that I knew something that few others do. My experience is broad and I am a student of my industry and the businesses that comprise media. There wasn’t going to be the perfect job for me unless I created it. My partner Richard felt the same way. So, we made that first step like you did when you went into business. We had to.

   Now, we have a noble cause in mind: Helping you get what you want. If you have a website, or not, we should have a conversation about today’s participatory media and how to reach consumers. You made the first stroke when you started your business. This new layer might be a little difficult to start, but  it’s worth it.  At To the Hilt Online Solutions it’s our job to help you get what you want. That’s what we do.

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So Is Traditional Media Still Traditional Media?

   Do you read a newspaper everyday? Did you know that in the 50’s and 60’s someone in most households spent on average 70 minutes of time with the local paper? I see newspaper as litter now. How dare they put litter on my lawn when I didn’t ask for it, just so they can count me in their circulation numbers. Directly to the recycle bin, I say. What I want to read, I read online. I “opt in” to the information online.

  What about the radio? How much time do you spend listening now?  Many of us grew up with our favorite stations going with us everywhere we went, listening to Casey Kasem, making cassette tapes of our favorite music. I remember listening to the radio all the time. All baseball games were not televised, niether were football–we listened because our team might not be the one or two featured games of the week. We had less money and as a result we had less music of our own.

   Television used to be four stations: ABC, CBS, NBC and PBS. We sat through the commercials. We knew when our favorite shows were on. Heck, we even believed the advertising! “Wide World of Sports” was the first reality tv show and gameshows included “Truth or Consequences” and “The Joker’s Wild.” The Disney movie on Sunday night was special enough that we came in from playing to watch it including the intro that featured the Disney fireworks.

  So, do we consume any of these forms of entertainment and information the same? I think not.

   Other advertising mediums have changed too. Do you use the Yellow Pages anymore or simply type in Google? Can you tell me what the billboards on your way to work feature? Or have they been the same so long that they are simply part of the landscape, like a tree? Do you open your mail everyday? How much of it do you throw away without even opening–again, the recycle bin. 

   Okay. I’m in the 40+ demographic. Where are you? I ask because, the 40+ demographic is the fastest growing consumers of online information and entertainment. Keep in mind that people younger than we are won’t even share the memories of media mentioned above. They’ve never lived without a VCR, cell phone, internet, Major League Baseball Network, HBO or Google.  They use media differently than we do. They think differently than we do. When you say mouse, they think of a computer device…not a rodent.

   Strange to think of the changes in our lifetime. Even thinking back 10 years ago (1999), I was teaching my counterparts (media executives) how to write PowerPoint presentations and set up email accounts. As a sales person, I remember getting emails back when I wouldn’t get a phone call back, just because people were just starting to embrace the technology. I had dial-up back then and only one computer to share in the household….Just 10 years ago.  And, for a long time main-stream media kept us worried that most websites were run by porn companies and pediphiles. Not true.

   Now, 73% of people use internet as their primary source of business information (source: Pew Internet and American Life Project 2008.) 

   Amazon.com was the only major national consumer business that saw a substantial year to year increase in December 2008.

   The consumer has changed. Has your marketing? Using online advertising gives businesses the opportunity to interact with consumers in ways they never could before. In the past, advertising has always been a one-way conversation:  Company Message—-to—Consumer. Tradional media interupts your life and forces you to listen to the message, often with force, comedy, yelling, shock. As a result, the consumer no longer trusts advertising the same way they did in the past. Do you?

  Today’s “participatory media”–media that consumers opt-into online gives your business the opportunity to interact with your customers, find niche buyers, create targeted messages, build loyalty and much more. Is it easy? No, it can be very time consuming. Any business owner could, with enough research and skill create online advertising for minimal costs. Having a controlled presence on the web is very important also. How’s your website performing? Do you know? Is it driving traffic to your business? Do you know? Could it be improved?

   At To the Hilt Online Solutions, we are not a creative advertising house foremost. What I mean is, we aren’t interested in selling you a website. We are marketing professionals. We have technical people on staff, but we are more likely to look at your website (for free) and tell you what you or your webmaster should do to improve its performance. I don’t write a lick of code and neither does my partner Richard. What we do is help businesses grow using the very best “participatory media” tools. And we keep it simple and affordable for you.

   And, by the way, we still have major contacts with all the traditional media too if you need radio, television or newspaper. We out-source that from a veteran media person who has as much experience as either of us. We are creative, but chose to have the creative done by our Creative Services Director who is a professional designer. We stay focused on growing your business. I’m likely to scribble a flow chart or a graphic idea in front of you–hopefully I do, because that’s how great ideas and partnerships begin.

Contact us if you like this info. We’ll be happy to meet and talk about online marketing–from concept to actual campaigns.  It’s an easy email: info@tothehiltonline.com

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“Participatory Media”

   I don’t know if we made this term up or if we read it somewhere.  We’ve studied and examined everything online. We didn’t plan to go into business, but we are and we have an approach that is new and easy for the business owner. What I know is that marketing has changed dramatically in the past 20 years. Makes sense. I think about what the world was like for me as a kid and compare it to what the world is like for my kids. It’s hard to imagine that so much has changed so fast, and all indications are that it will continue to do so. I’m sure you can think of examples that are staggering from your own life.

“Participatory Media”–it’s not the same media that we grew up with. Today’s media is interactive and informative and educational. The consumer has more choices than they ever have. The world is at their fingertips if they want it to be. It’s in nearly all homes, offices and in many cases completely mobile.

“Traditional Media”–Radio, Television, Billboard, Yellow Pages, Direct Mail, Newspaper all still exist on varying levels. At To the Hilt Online Solutions, we are very familiar having bought and sold every kind of traditional media for most of my career. But, the world changed and with it my opinions and opportunities changed. I have watched as television commercials have gotten more and more ridiculous and practically scream at the consumer. Ever watch a cable channel and the commercials are twice as loud as the program. The consumer has more choices now. Today’s consumer doesn’t do nearly as much “appointment consumption of media” as they once did.

The consumer has become smarter, more informed. Traditional advertising is a one-way conversation at the consumer, often with a “dumbed down” message.  With the fragmentation of traditional advertising it has become so wide and broad that it is often ineffective.

Today’s “participatory media” is more niche oriented and often a two, three, four-way conversation with the advertiser actually interacting with the consumer. It can be done.  In today’s challenging economy, most marketers report that they will be moving much of their advertising efforts into the online space. Reduced ad budgets are expected in the coming year and most businesses need to get the biggest bang for their bucks. You can honestly see the results online…that’s not easy with radio, television or newspaper anymore.

While you might choose either of these reasons to venture into online, understand that it is a long-term solution that builds and grows if done properly. Practice “retention-oriented behaviors” online like you do in your business.

“Participatory Media” is simply that–a way to reach, educate, influence, connect with your customers. Often it is your customers that are your greatest advertising. Remember the old term “word of mouth?” Make the “word of mouse” work for your business.

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