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Greetings! 
Welcome to the debut issue of slice. Credible Communications' goal for this newsletter is simple--to bring you a timely slice of what's happening in the marketing world, and to inspire fresh ideas for marketing your business.
In each issue, we'll feature trends, insights, and tips--from the esoteric to the down-to-earth. We'll bring you expert advice on Internet marketing, that slippery concept called branding, and effective approaches to web and email marketing, advertising, and direct mail.
In this first issue you'll learn a bit about branding and read about a wildly successful "green" direct mail campaign.
Be sure to let me know if you liked what you've read. (I'm also interested in your feedback about the amount of content. Is it too much information? Not enough? )
If you've experienced or know of a recent marketing success, feel free to submit it for inclusion in a future issue of slice.
Credible Communications |
| What's Your Brand Identity?
My greatest strength is...common sense. I'm really a standard brand--like Campbell's tomato soup or Baker's chocolate. (Katharine Hepburn)
If you think branding is a no-brainer you probably haven't engaged in the sometimes painful, always illuminating process of branding your business.
Contrary to what you might think, your company's brand identity is not your logo; rather it's an image, word or phrase that exists in the mind of the consumer. Your brand identity is how customers perceive your brand.
Small Businesses Benefit Too
In The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding,
authors Al Ries and Laura Ries write, "The [ultimate] objective of branding is to create in the mind of the prospect the perception that there is no other product on the market quite like your product."
You don't have to be a multinational corporation. Small businesses and even sole proprietors also benefit from a strong brand identity.
Beginning the Branding Process
Credible Communications is currently engaged in a branding process with a client in the financial services industry. The company already had a logo and tagline but hadn't defined their brand identity.
Classic brand: mm-
goodness on a cold rainy day
When we sat down with this client to brainstorm, four key questions guided the conversation. (You may want to ask yourself the same questions. Writing down your answers is integral to this process.)
1. Define why you're in business. What does your business do and how do you do it better than anyone else?
2. What do you want people to think when they hear your name. Write down these adjectives.
3. How do you want prospects, customers, suppliers, associates, and competitors to perceive your business? What words or phrases do you want people to associate with you?
4. How do clients benefit from your product or service?
Your answers will help you begin to define your brand identity.
Stay tuned for more about branding in our next issue.
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Green Direct Mail Campaign Takes Targeting to Extremes
Daily Digital Imaging walks the green talk like nobody else's business. In these environmental and cost-conscious times, this green-certified printer in Pleasant Hill, CA has a targeted, green approach to direct mail.
Daily Digital Imaging's most recent direct mail campaign had a whopping 15.7% response rate. Why was it such a success?
"It was simply a matter of getting the right message to the right audience at the right time. Digital technology takes this age-old practice to a new level through extreme targeting," explains Pello Walker, co-owner and vice president of business development for Daily Digital Imaging. "This campaign shows our customers what they can accomplish in their own direct marketing."
Six Offers, Two Headlines
Traditional "spray-and-pray" response rates range from half a percent to three percent. But digital technology enables customer segmentation and extreme targeting--saving energy, paper, and print dollars. Response rates aren't only higher, they're more likely to convert to sales because the promotion is targeted to the recipient's needs, profession, purchase habits, etc. 
Daily Digital Imaging crafted six offers, one for each of their customer segments, and two attention-grabbing headlines. One message focused on saving money and improving direct mail response rates, the other on the benefits of using a printer that conserves energy, water, and paper and uses non-toxic practices. The headlines were personalized with the recipient's first name.
Crisp, (green) color graphics contributed to the mailer's phenomenal response rate, according to Pello Walker.
Want to print and/or mail a successful direct mail campaign--green or otherwise? Call Daily Digital Imaging at (925) 935-3621.
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Juicy Tip
Brevity is the soul of wit--William Shakespeare
Here are three rules you should follow when writing content for your website:
1.Be succinct. Your web content should consist of 50% less text than the same information in print.
2. Write so users can scan. Don't make them read long blocks of text because they won't. Use short paragraphs, subheadings, and bulleted lists to get your information across.
3. Have someone check your work for typos, awkward syntax, and the flow of your ideas. Even the best writers need an editor. | |
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Incredible Newsletter Offer
First-timers special 50% off your first email newsletter
Email newsletters are an excellent way to stay close to your customers. Been thinking about creating one but can't find time to make it happen?
Credible Communications will help you develop a content strategy and an editorial calendar. We'll even manage your newsletter program. We also offer writing and editing services.
To kick off your newsletter program and receive 50% off your first issue, contact Lee Doyle. |
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