Jenn’s Reno Lessons Learned

My husband and I are self proclaimed DIYers when it comes to home renovations. I’ve probably torn down, built more things and own more tools than most of my male friends. It all started with the purchase of our first home, which we now lovingly call our “practice house.” We went with a pretty run down fixer with “good bones” for two reasons. The first was because that is all we could afford at the time on our starving artist salaries. Secondly, we had huge vision and loved the idea of the challenge. We started with a modest collection of tools, a few home depot cards we received as gifts and off we went trying to renovate our home.

Immediately, I realized that my husband and I differ in one very significant way. I tend to be frugal and stubborn when it comes to our renovation purchases at the local hardware store. I pride myself on making the most of our budget and having the most impact for the least amount of money. My husband on the other hand won’t leave the store without wanting to purchase a new tool that will make the project easier.

But who needs to buy an 18-volt drill when we have an all-in-one 12-volt already at home? Or who needs to buy an electric circular saw when we have a circular saw attachment for that same battery powered 12-volt drill? And who needs a nail gun when you have a perfectly good hammer and swinging arms?

If you’ve done your own renovations before, you can probably see where I’m going with this. It took me a while to give in, but I’ll now admit that having the proper tool to accomplish a job is money well spent. Even further, if the person using the tool knows what they are doing, the job will go cheaper and faster with much better results. This is all true even if you have huge vision, a great plan and the determination to think you can do it yourself. Sometimes you just need to step back and admit you need help.

Take hanging drywall for instance. It seems easy enough. But after you have mudded once, you will realize that it takes an artist to make it look perfect. I’ll never forget the time that Luke and I decided to hang crown molding in the living room. It was amusing to watch two intelligent and handy people (who are good at math btw) attempt to make cuts at the correct angle to make it work. I later watched someone who had hung it a million times fly through the installation with perfect results. Experience and some tricks of the trade would have proved invaluable in that situation.

We have long since sold our practice house and are a little less adventurous these days. I still do some pretty crazy sounding reno projects myself though- like knocking down walls I don’t want when my husband is at work or installing a new bathroom floor one Sunday because the one I had was too hard to clean. The difference is that now I know when to hire someone to do parts or all of it for me and when to invest in the tools I need to get the job done right. There is absolutely no sense in saving money if you don’t get the results you want. Can I hear an AMEN?

So, what have I learned? Know the limits of talents and capabilities. Vision, determination and willingness don’t always make up for expertise. Invest in the right tools and use them wisely. Lastly, expect great results and make good decisions to make those results happen- even on a starving artist’s budget. And yes, even in your marketing efforts.

The B2B Marketing Challenge

Following last month’s social media case studies with B2B and B2C strategies and some recent client interactions along the same theme, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about this topic. What I’m about to say will resonate with some and aggravate others, but let me add this disclosure: I’m speaking the truth!

B2B marketing isn’t as “sexy” as B2C.

And there you have it. It often involves the cutting edge tactics with a little bit of fun thrown in (like these). But if you know me at all this will probably not be a surprise, I don’t really mind the B2B stuff. I think the added layer of challenges and parameters is “fun” and “sexy.” Sometimes this puts me in the position of having a tough conversation with a client about realigning their tactics to be friendlier with their business type (B2B or B2C). And sometimes that conversation is more like an argument, but it’s all in the name of getting the best results for the company’s bottom line. A lot of times, I fall back on research and analytics to help the company as they transition to where they need to be. When it comes to B2B marketing, one of the greatest tools to have is a content marketing strategy.

But what is CONTENT MARKETING, and how is it done? It isn’t as complicated as the moniker would allude, and companies that “get it” will be among the next wave of successful B2B organizations.

At the core of content marketing lies the concept of “thought leadership.” Basically, this is what companies do to look smart, create trust with prospects and clients and to become a resource for information. And, it all begins with creating quality, organic, strategic content.

Content might come in the form of white papers that would live on your company’s website, a blog that welcomes feedback from readers, a workshop or seminar series that offers helpful information, and the list could go on and on! What’s important is that this content be

• Planned – Identify topics and channels and timelines
• Directed at your audience – What do they want to hear? What are they looking for?
• Consistent – Keep the information coming!
• Distributed by technology that people are already using – Common social tools
• Promoted – No one will read your content if they don’t know it is there!

As a part of our DIG programming, our speakers in March addressed 13 steps to effective content marketing. Please check out their presentation to learn more about content marketing, and as always, let us know if you have feedback. We’re all ears…  I challenge you to do your own content marketing plan and then, measure your own results. What should you expect to see?

• Improved search rankings
• Other sites linked to your content (in-bound links improve SEO)
• Increased web traffic when users come to your site and use it as a resource

May the Force Be with You

@Twelpforce, that is. At this month’s DIG, we featured a B2C case study for Best Buy’s Twitter channel, @Twelpforce, in our presentation (check it out over here). We came across a lot of helpful information while we were pulling together research, more than would fit in an hour-long format, and we wanted to share it with you. Fast Company calls it “Marketing that Isn’t Marketing,” and Twitter even features Best Buy in their small library of case studies. To learn more about Best Buy’s outstanding use of Twitter as a customer service tool, check out the links below.

Fast Company – Marketing that Isn’t Marketing

Twitter.com Case Study – Best Buy

An Interview with Best Buy’s Social Media Steward, John Bernier

Best Buy’s @Twelpforce Participation Guidelines

Social Marketing – Follow-Up Questions

This topic always leaves me marinating on a set of new ideas. Currently, I am reflecting on some of the questions asked by the participants in this month’s DIG session “Social Marketing: One Size Doesn’t Fit All.” So, here is a summary of my thoughts in the last few days and questions the audience raised.

Q: Should companies handle their social marketing internally or outsource the work?
A: I think the real answer to this question may lie somewhere in the middle. In the early social marketing days (think 2007), there wasn’t a choice. If a company really wanted to play on Facebook or Twitter, they did it themselves. Even agencies weren’t ready to make social their business, but the pendulum on this issue has swung in the other direction. Now, marketers have access to networks of social “experts,” tried-and-true best practices and their own bumps and bruises and can base recommendations to clients on real experience. This benefit of working with a social pro or agency may drive earlier results to client-users because strategies can be discussed up front. We don’t just have to be reactive anymore. Now, do I think that companies should only outsource their social marketing? Absolutely not. No one knows the tone, message and goals of a company better than an internal source, but finding a balance of internal and external collaboration seems to be the ticket in the environment right this minute.

Q: Is it possible that folks who “like” my businesses page are missing my posts due to the new News Feed filter settings in Facebook?
A: Unfortunately, yes, some of your Page followers may be missing your posts if they haven’t changed this default setting. According to Social Media Examiner, “Users now have more control over what appears in their news feed. They can filter their feed to show `Friends and pages you interact with most’ or `All of your friends and pages.’ The default setting is the former, and given that default settings usually go unchanged, brands may more frequently be filtered from news feeds when users don’t interact with their posts in their news feed when the user may actually still want to keep up with the brand’s news.” Read more.

It’s also good to remember that they can “hide” your posts from their News Feed at any time. This doesn’t remove them from “like” status though. Posts on your business’s page should have analytics next to them showing how impressions the post had, and those can give you an idea of how many of your followers are seeing your message. This is akin to the “unsubscribe” of email marketing. TIP: Keep your messages interesting and relevant, and make sure you’re not over-posting.

Also check out what Facebook has to say and check your settings: http://www.facebook.com/help/?page=878.

Q: How do you segment a geographic niche using social marketing?
A: You can start with groups and events that are in a target geographic area. If one doesn’t exist, you can always create one. It’s a great low-pressure tactic to bring people together. For example, our fictitious company from this month’s presentation, Bark Bark Organic Dog Food, might create a website for people to find their local dog park. When dog owners show interest in a particular park, Bark Bark knows which stores to put their products in. In addition, they can
work with the store to send coupons to local dog owners.

Q: Is it better to have a large amount of irrelevant fans or a smaller group of more qualified people that may be leads?
A: When you check your monthly analytics, don’t focus on the percent of growth. Keep an eye on where the growth came from. Are they the consumers you wanted? It’s better to have a smaller group of committed followers of your brand. It’s the old quality vs. quantity adage. The same goes for who you follow.

Q: Are Facebook ads that can target your demographic a good tool and use of resources for B2B?
A: Facebook ads are best for B2C companies, unless you can target a trade group. See slide 10 for the best social media tools for B2B.

Q: How is social e-commerce changing how we purchase?
A: Good grief! I have no idea! Facebook credits (and similar) are allowing us to purchase products where we are versus having to go the extra step to shop on another site, or (gasp) even have to leave our homes to find what we need. I’m going to be looking at this more closely to study how consumers are reacting to the new shopping trend and what it means for B2C companies in particular.

Q: If you use Facebook Connect for visitors to your sites, are you able to capture their info for future marketing?
A: Great question. Facebook Connect allows you to use data while the visitor is logged into the site. For more info, review the Facebook privacy policy here http://www.facebook.com/terms.php.

Q: Now that Verizon has the iPhone, what will this do to the mobile market? And, will text marketing see another revival?
A: Still marinating on this one. If you have an opinion, or a resource for this information. Comment here!

B2C Case Study: Tasti D-Lite

Social Media: Risk or Reward?

This week’s DIG was a tiny step away from the traditionally “marketing” focused content that our monthly gatherings are known for. But the topic of how Social Media (Marketing) is affecting the employee/employer relationship was fascinating!! I’m not sure that as marketers we could have known that the creation of the marketing platforms and social networks that have been so fanatically adopted would have the dramatic affect that it IS having on the world (and specifically, the world of Human Resources).

The experts from the Nashville office of Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart spoke to our group and shared a presentation full of anecdotes, laws, best practices and a heaping dose of a wake up call about the risks and reward of social marketing in the work place. The talk that Jennifer Rusie and Jonathan Harris delivered applied to all of us – those who hire, and those who are seeking to be hired.

My takeaway from the DIG? To be careful, and to document. While our agency has a sound social media policy for our staffers, we also have to manage social marketing for our clients. We need to encourage them to adopt simple, but structured policies to keep things on the up and up. The mere use of social networking in the workplace isn’t the primary issue, it is HOW it is being used, and what is being said that matters.

On hiring, I learned that if we choose (and it is a choice to consider seriously) to narrow candidates for an open position by looking at their online activity, that we need to proceed cautiously. It is perfectly legal to look at FaceBook, Twitter and LinkedIn or personal but public blogs, but as a prospective employer, we need to disclose that we are doing so. It’s fair, and it keeps the candidate from being able to say that they intended that information to be private – even though it may be publicly available.

Jenn and Jon’s presentation left me with some other things to consider as well – Do we need to consider a policy where managers are prohibited from “friending” their subordinates on FaceBook? How, and should we be monitoring text messages and tweets? Being a small shop, these actions are easier to manage because we can communicate directly with each employee about our expectations and rules of engaging in the social universe. It was also tremendously helpful to understand what larger employers, including our clients, may be faced with.

I know that the next time I am reading my FaceBook or Twitter feeds, I’ll think differently about what my own friends are posting – and how dancing the line between social and professional can be a risky balance.

View the presentation below.

Holly

Marketing and an Old House

Those close to me — actually, almost anyone that’s met me — know that over the past few years, I’ve become somewhat obsessed with tools. The idea of the “marketing toolbox” likely spurred from very literal (and neverending) experiences with tools as my husband and I fully renovated our home.

I live in a very old house. When we bought it in 2006, we knew it needed a lot of work, though we may have underestimated just how much work. Then the gas company showed up and turned off our gas line — not only did it need work, but it was dangerous! It was then that renovation (and some demolition) began.

Somewhere along the line, I saw the parallel between the process of fixing up our house (have you seen “The Money Pit”?) and the process business owners go through when marketing their businesses. Just like a home, a business needs constant maintenance. Sometimes, it even needs a complete renovation!

The core of our clients at Werkshop is made up of small businesses, with owners who steer the ship. As entrepreneurs, their business is their baby, and they’re generally emotional about it. So when it is time to grow, change or evolve, marketing suddenly becomes scary. Sometimes, in fact, the owner has been a part of the business for so long that strategic problems — much like our gas leak — come as a complete surprise!

That’s why we don’t just storm into the house and start tearing down walls — we first have to develop a plan. We evaluate the history of the business, then survey the industry’s landscape. And we find out lots of things this way. Is someone else utilizing the same (or similar) brand name? Has the competition started taking marketshare with a new pricing model?

We work with the business owner to show them that if we move a wall two feet this way (pricing), and update the plumbing (logo mark), that everything will make more sense, work better and become the home they once loved all over again. Over time, the rest of the plan can be put in to place, and the business owner’s goals become realities. And while it might not be cheap, it doesn’t have to be “The Money Pit,” either.

Four years into our home renovation — even though we may never quite be “done” — we’re loving our home. Likewise, I’m loving what it has taught me about small business.

Around here, it’s all in a day’s werk.

Building Werkshop (or “How We Learned to Practice What We Preach”)

Giving advice is easy… taking one’s own advice, however, is a little tougher.

Recently, I’ve taken a dose of my own medicine: For the first time in several years, I had to re-evaluate the marketing strategy for my own company. This was painful. The reason for the dose of self-prescribed marketing strategy was huge – Fresh Dirt was merging with a complementary company. The news was BIG — and we had to keep it a secret.

Wait… Let me backtrack.

Many people have asked Werkshop CEO Tim Earnhart and I how we met. The answer is that we didn’t, at least initially. Tim first met Jenn Sheets (Werkshop’s VP/Creative Director, who at the time was one of my Fresh Dirt team members) at an AAF Nashville meeting, and they struck up a conversation. When Jenn found that Tim owned a creative agency in nearby Bowling Green, Ky. — a boutique agency that could help our boutique strategy firm — she demanded that I sit still long enough to call Tim and introduce myself. Well, I did, and found that not only did we need the help of Earnhart + Friends’ creative geniuses, they were in need of a dose of strategy. It was a perfect match.

So after a few months of working in tandem (sharing clients, employees and processes with one another), Tim and I decided to tear down the walls — or, in other words, to get hitched. This not-so-simple decision was the beginning of the journey to a new name, a new brand, and opening the marketing toolbox to work on our own big project.

Since very few people outside the agencies knew what was going on, that made the process especially difficult. What did I learn? I learned to appreciate how personal marketing strategy can be to a business owner. Here are some thoughts from the journey toward the new brand.

When a marketing agency brands itself, it starts by looking inwardly. In all honesty, we subconsciously thought we were better than the strategic process that we tout so loudly, and attempted to immediately rename ourselves. (Bad marketers!) After many weeks and a half-dozen bad ideas, we settled on a name that we thought made sense. Tim and I then rolled out the name and brand design to our staff — without asking for their thoughts or getting their input — and soon realized we had made a big mistake. We were settling! The brand we’d come up with was internally focused, and that’s not what our company is about. But, like many of our new clients, the two of us basically worked in a vacuum; and, as always, the vacuum yielded poor results.

Thankfully, we realized our mistake soon enough to fix it, and took it as an opportunity to start over. This time, we brought in an external facilitator — a former Fresh Dirt client and one of the smartest marketing-process people I know — to walk us through our own strategic exercises. It was during that session that I realized how it felt to be my own client. I had many “aha!” moments that afternoon, and that “getting out of our own way” event allowed the E+F/FDM marriage to take a much stronger form.

We thought about our core business, about where we really provide value. We thought about what people say about us, to us, and how they engage. And we recommitted to putting the client first, opening up our vocabulary to explain the distinct set of services we can provide.

Our “use your tools wisely” mantra took hold. New yet natural language of “blueprints” and “building” and “foundations” bloomed. And the marketing toolbox that I ramble about so often found a home.

The tools, and the builders, now have a Werkshop — and every single one of us can see that we’re in a much stronger position because of it.