Is your marketing a Faux Pas? Modern Marketing Partners has launched a marketing faux pas campaign series aimed at redefining the challenges and mistakes made by many marketers.
With 2013 coming to a close, marketing planning for 2014 is well underway. Be sure to avoid the following Faux Pas for a successful 2014:
Borvertise
Borvertise: The act of producing boring, unoriginal ads often resulting in no sales.
While curing insomnia is admirable, if your advertisement can put people to sleep it is time for a change. Advertising is the heavyweight champion of traditional marketing, and a boring advertisement is the equivalent of a pillow fight. Advertising can build awareness and change perceptions, fast! And direct response advertising can generate leads. Advertisements should have:
- Arresting headlines/visuals
- Lead generating offers
- Cost-efficient media strategy and planning
Oldentity
Oldentity: The condition or state of suffering from an outdated and boring brand identity.
Stale. Archaic. Antiquated. If these are words that are used to describe your brand identity, it is time to get out of the pantsuit and into 2013. Your brand identity encompasses not only the visual aspects of your business, but your personality, values, and ideas. A modern identity can help set you apart from competitors (in a good way), create synergy, and encourage brand preference, not brand mocking. Your brand identity should:
- Have breakthrough visual treatments
- Reinforce desired positioning
- Leverage brand name best practices
Webique
Webique: A website of or resembling a style of an earlier period; not modern; ugly; ancient.
A website only a mother could love. Lets face it, if your website was created at a time when you were still using a Walkman or even heard this when you went on the Internet, it is time for an upgrade. People are looking for your business online. And you don’t want them to find that embarrassing version of you from 1990 (see: your high school yearbook picture). A modern website embodies all that is great about design: a good user experience, easy to follow navigation, visually appealing, and a fast load time. Your website should:
- Have arresting visual presentation
- Provide deep and useful content
- Be search optimized for results
Pubmissity
Pubmissity: The missing of public relations (PR) opportunities; miss the boat; lose out.
You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. Or in this case, miss 100% of the PR opportunities your nonexistent or incompetent PR team fail to obtain. Publicity, PR or media relations should be high profile, awareness building, and lead generating! And PR integrates with both social media and search marketing for even greater leverage. Top public relations tips include:
- R&D a PR strategy and plan
- Dedicate ongoing resources (time and money)
- Execute against a PR calendar & measure placement and results
Googlast
Googlast: Lack of ranking anywhere near the first page of Google resulting in low website traffic.
Nice guys finish last. And so do poorly optimized websites. If Google doesn’t love you, it is time to make a change. Ranking high on a search engines result page (SERP) is critical to generating traffic to your website. In fact, 53% of organic search clicks go to the first link, 15% to the second, and 9% to third (SEW). Being more aggressive in your strategy (both SEO and dating) can help you to NOT finish last. Top SEO techniques include:
- On-Page SEO: meta coding, URL structure, redirects, and landing pages
- Off-Page SEO: link building, PPC, online reviews
- Paid search can integrate with organic for supercharged web traffic
Logret
Logret: A feeling of sorrow, disappointment, or remorse for your company’s questionable logo choice.
This is spilt milk worth crying over. Drive through, $5, and stock logo services have caused a logret epidemic that has resulted in thousands of companies “pulling a Gap” (see: changing your logo after only one week). Your company’s logo is the single most visible visual and recognizable representation of your company. It is the face of your company. Keep these tips in mind:
- Keep it simple
- Visually convey meaning
- Be distinctive from competitors
Lonevent
Lonevent: Company events (webcasts, trade shows, etc.) that garner pathetic attendance and result in a lonely, and depressed feeling, and no leads.
One is the loneliest number, two can be just as bad as one, and low event attendance can be crushing to your bottom line (and your self-esteem). Trade shows and related event marketing can be one of your top budget items, so driving traffic and attendance to these events is of the utmost importance. Instead of sulking at the cocktail bar, wondering how you are going to justify huge event expenses, “steal the show” and start generating leads. You should be:
- Promoting pre and post-event
- Using bold graphics and imagery
- Capturing leads though multiple mechanisms
Shocial Media
Shocial Media: A social presence focused on vanity metrics (Likes, Followers, etc.) and not results; all sizzle and no steak.
Likes and Followers don’t pay the bills. And the bank won’t care that you are winning a virtual popularity contest. Your companies social media presence should be focused on generating measurable results, and not on stroking your “social media guru’s” ego. A well-executed social media presence can realize dramatic improvements in search engine results, and drive website traffic and lead generation. Social media is particularly potent when integrated with traditional marketing and publicity. You should:
- Deploy killer content
- Integrate social with ALL marketing
- Enlist a small army of brand ambassadors
