getting the most out of your message: how to communicate effectively with decision-makers

Click here to load reader

Upload: carol

Post on 25-Feb-2016

68 views

Category:

Documents


1 download

DESCRIPTION

Getting the Most out of Your Message: How to Communicate Effectively with Decision-makers. University of Florida Department of Agricultural Education and Communication Tracy Irani. Communicating Effectively with Decision-makers. Why do we need to communicate effectively with decision-makers? - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

TRANSCRIPT

Slide 1

University of FloridaDepartment of Agricultural Education and CommunicationTracy IraniGetting the Most out of Your Message: How to Communicate Effectively with Decision-makers

1Communicating Effectively with Decision-makersWhy do we need to communicate effectively with decision-makers?Who are they?What do they want to know/like to hear from us?The right messagecrisp, clear, and consistentFrequency/repetition of messageExtension as a brand with identifiable attributes

2Opinion LeadershipTwo step flowcommunicating with publics and with those who can exert influence on publicsBranding through media reaches information seeking opinion leaders, who then influence receivers

3Campaign Planning/Tactical MarketingCampaignStrategic, structured planBased on analyzing the situation

BrandProduct, good, or serviceIdentifiable, consistent image

MessageMain ideaKey information

PublicsVarious audiences that must be reachedInternal and external clientele

4Campaign PlanningBrand ImageThe way Extension is perceived by your clientele and stakeholders; based on beliefs, values and experiencesBrand LoyaltyConsistent users of your services, not easily swayed by other options-the extent to which you have this is an asset called brand equity5Audience AnalysisUnderstand who could receive the messageDefine the target audienceDetermine the best methods of reaching the audience

DemographicsAge, gender, race, marital status, income, education, occupation, and geography

PsychographicsAttitudesValuesLifestyles

6Audience AnalysisUsage PatternsMost used media channelsTendency to be interested in a particular subject

Prior KnowledgePeople have experience with the messageKnowledge can make people either more or less likely to be interested

Finding the Right Target and Reaching ItKnow the messageDetermine who needs the messageDetermine the most effective methods of communication7Integrated MarketingProcess of coordinating promotional tools to build and maintain brand awareness, identity and preference. Uses consistent message themes and marks, via multiple channels to reach a targeted and segmented audienceBased on strategies derived from identifying audience characteristics and leveraging SWOT analysis

8Integrated Marketing ComponentsAdvertisingPaidDelivered through mass mediaAttempts to persuade

Public Relations ObjectivesPromote goodwillPromote a product or serviceEnhance internal communicationsCounteract negative publicityLobbyGive advice and counsel

PR MethodsPress releaseFeature storyMedia alerts/tip sheetsCompany newsletterInterview and press conferenceSponsored eventPublicityMedia exclusiveCause related

9Integrated MarketingMedia RelationsEstablish ongoing relationships with local media-understand media packaging for gatekeepers, AP styleOn a regular basis, provide informational materials to reportersBecome a reputable and dependable expert sourceGet to know the reporters in your geographic region, and know their beat assignments of reporters

Whats NewsworthyTimelyUniqueLocal impact

10SWOT AnalysisInternal

StrengthsAdvantages (Good reputation, cost advantage, access to high-quality resources, etc.)What the organization does wellWeaknessesWhat could be improved (Poor reputation, high cost, etc.)What should be avoided

11SWOT AnalysisExternal

OpportunitiesGood chances (Unfulfilled customer need, new market, etc.)Changes in technology or policy (loosening regulations, removed trade barriers, etc.)Changes in society (Shifts in consumer trends toward the organizations products or services)ThreatsObstaclesCompetition (Emergence of substitute products)Changes in technology or policy (New development makes the organizations processes obsolete, new regulations, etc.)Changes in society (Shifts in consumer trends away from the organizations products or services)12Creative StrategyWho, What, and Why

Product OrientedGeneric claimProduct featuresUnique selling proposition

Consumer OrientedBrand imageLifestyleAttitudeValues

13Unique Selling Proposition (USP)Product differentiation-Approach the correct target audienceMake audience see program as different or better Extension offers state residents the only comprehensive, one-stop source of practical education on hundreds of relevant topics. Programs are research-based, regionally customized and geared to meet a participants specific needs through the unbiased assistance of dedicated specialists.Whats unique about your program?

14Creative StrategyGraphic DesignEyes want to read from top to bottom and left to rightImportant items should be placed in the areas people naturally scanSizes and proportions should be varied to prevent the ad from becoming boring

White SpaceCan be used to separate elements that do not belong togetherElements surrounded by white space indicate importance15Other ConsiderationsPartnershipsLocal mediaCompaniesOrganizations with similar interestsMedia LocationFlyers at grocery stores, community bulletin boards, libraries, schools, or locations the target audience frequentsCommunity calendars in newspapers, on television, on radio, and on the InternetWord of mouth to opinion leaders

News OutletsExplain your need personally; personal pitch, pitch lettersSend information about your event to a newspaper or television or radio stations public relations person, public affairs director, or promotions director by name--compile media directoryInclude boiler plate section with contact info in same place in every media release by every county faculty member.16Other ConsiderationsWebsiteEffective and inexpensivePost important information and upcoming eventsCan be incorporated into the other marketing methods - refer people to the websiteMust be relevant, fresh, always changing to attract and keep users coming to site

17EvaluationCriteriaGetting it (Do consumers understand?)Knowledge (Can consumers recognize and recall?)Attitude change (Where does the brand stand?)Behavior (Will people buy the product or service?)

MethodsSurveyAttendance or participationFrequency of inquiry

ResultsPerformance reviewGauging successChanging strategiesDifferent approach

18Guerilla MarketingUnconventional marketing intended to get maximum results from minimal resources.

Guerilla marketing involves being original, breaking the rules, and looking for alternatives to traditional marketing methods.

More about matching wits than matching budgetsLow costInnovativeLess clutter

Less reach19Coined by Jay Conrad Levinson, guerilla marketing is more about matching wits than matching budgets. Guerilla marketing can be as different from traditional marketing as guerilla warfare is from traditional warfare. Rather than marching their marketing dollars forth like infantry divisions, guerilla marketers snipe away with their marketing resources for maximum impact. [1]http://www.marketingterms.com/dictionary/guerilla_marketing/

[1] http://www.isp-planet.com/marketing/2002/guerilla_takes_gorilla.html PrinciplesPresence find ways to make yourself known at all times chat rooms, forums, discussion boards, e-mail, radio, magazines, blogs, Yellow PagesActivity be aware of opportunities to make your product known at all times and act on themEnergy continually marketing 360 degree marketingNetworks always looking to make contacts and develop networks importance of relationshipsSmart dont offend clientele or turn them off20Guerilla Marketing: 10 CommandmentsKnow your market. Know who you want to reach, how they think, and where they go--segmentation.Keep your name in front of your regular clientelebut understand they are already ag-aware.Work with the press.Educate the marketwhats the key message you need to convey?Put e-marketing/e-newsletters to work for you.

Do the Web right.Get a prime spot on the Web's search engines.Radio and Web go together better than print and web-frequency versus reach..Talk up your web site when you give talks and presentations at association meetings and conferences.Think about whats in it for your audience-why should they care?

21[1]The 10 Commandments of Guerilla MarketingIn 2003, guerilla marketing tactics and an increased emphasis on public relations will be important strategies for cost-conscious marketers in the business markets. But before you begin, make sure you spend your time and dollars most effectively. Start with the 10 Commandments of Guerilla Marketing ...Know your market. Know who your customers are, how they think, and where they go.

You can waste a lot of time and money going to the wrong events or advertising in the wrong publications. Understand whom you're selling to - industry, size of company, job function, related equipment, etc. Once you've defined your customer, focus your marketing efforts on reaching those prospects directly or through a related network of contacts.

Keep your name in front of your in-house list.

Before you stray too far in your marketing program, make sure you're in regular contact with your in-house list of prospects. Your highest conversion to sales will come from this list of people who've already expressed an interest in your product. Send a regular series of electronic or snail mails to the list to keep your name in the forefront of your prospects' minds and to keep the list fresh and up-to-date.

Work with the press.

Nothing is more credible than a mention in a respected industry publication. Work with editors to get what is essentially free space. Send newsworthy announcements about your company's new products or business deals at least once a month. Note the use of the word "newsworthy" - there's nothing editors hate more than irrelevant or recycled material.

Educate the market.

Place articles in industry magazines. Start with case histories about customers who have successfully applied new methods to their operations (and just happen to use your products or services!). Develop technology articles and white papers to educate potential customers about your segment of the industry and any special innovations you've created along the way.

Put e-marketing to work for you.

One of the most effective marketing devices these days is the e-newsletter. Mailed monthly, this marketing tool can generate response rates of up to 40%, if written with the customer in mind. Don't just pitch your products, though. Educate the customer on related technology and other industry issues. Push prospects to your Web site for further information and use special tracking URLs to measure the effectiveness of each issue.

Do the Web right.

Today's technical professional is under a great amount of stress to do more, faster. To make this happen, they are scouring the Internet for the products and services they need to do their jobs better. As a result, nothing's worse for a sales and marketing program than a Web site that looks like it was put together in your next door neighbor's garage.

Start by analyzing the 4Cs of good Web site development - Creative, Content, Clarity, and Communications.

Creative: Does your Web site reflect a professional look and feel? If not, your prospects won't take you seriously.

Content: Have you filled the site with lots of technical content, both product information and tutorials? Have you created a complete set of pre- and post-sales FAQs? If not, your customers will not be able to get the info they need to make a purchase decision.

Clarity: Is it easy for the prospect to find the information they need? Can they get to everything within three mouse clicks? If not, they'll go to your competitor.

Communications - Have you taken advantage of the interactive nature of the Internet or are you just posting text? If not, you've lost an opportunity to more directly engage your prospects.

Get a prime spot on the Web's search engines.

Banners and text-based advertising on the top search engines can result in a large increase in traffic to your Web site. If you're selling to techies, look at Google, AltaVista, and Yahoo. If you're on a tight budget, employ a Search Engine Optimization service to fine-tune your Web site's ranking in the search results.

Postcards supplement an existing marketing program and are stress-free.

In the days of the post-anthrax scare, postcards are a safer and lower stress approach to direct mail. Mail postcards with special promotions or contests that will entice your prospect to further explore your Web site or call for additional information on a product. One of our clients had a 30% response to a postcard that featured a crossword puzzle geared specifically to design engineers.

Give talks and presentations at industry association meetings and conferences.

Virtually all professionals belong to at least one organization that helps them sharpen their technical skills. Attend annual conferences. Respond to Calls for Papers to get on the speaking circuit. Don't forget to work with local branches of large organizations, as well as at the national level.

Network, network, network.

Often the best way to reach prospects is through other people or organizations that work with them on a regular basis. If you're trying to reach CEOs, consider making friends with bankers, lawyers, and venture capitalists. If you're looking to reach IT managers, buddy up with networking and communications vendors.Sounds simple enough, right? Actually, the devil is in the details. To develop your knock-out Guerilla Marketing plan for 2003, call +91 40 55827718 or request a quote.

[1] http://www.zezan.com/guerillamarketing.htmlViral MarketingMarketing phenomenon that facilitates and encourages people to pass along a marketing message via weblogs, cell phones, email, Wikis. Hotmail

22InformationViral marketing depends on a high pass-along rate from person to person. If a large percentage of recipients forward something to a large number of friends, the overall growth snowballs very quickly. If the pass-along numbers get too low, the overall growth quickly fizzles.At the height of B2C it seemed as if every startup had a viral component to its strategy, or at least claimed to have one. However, relatively few marketing viruses achieve success on a scale similar to Hotmail, widely cited as the first example of viral marketing.Viral MarketingCreates a relationship with the audienceTo form or change an attitude, information relevance and motivation to process are key

Give away products or servicesviral newsrooms, virtual reprintsProvides for effortless transfer to othersspreads the messages like a virus-email alerts, business cardsExploits common motivations and behaviorsCuriosityFreeNeed to belongCoolWarm and fuzziesInformation seeking23The Six Simple Principles of Viral Marketingby Dr. Ralph F. Wilson, E-Commerce ConsultantWeb Marketing Today, Issue 70, February 1, 2000

I admit it. The term "viral marketing" is offensive. Call yourself a Viral Marketer and people will take two steps back. I would. "Do they have a vaccine for that yet?" you wonder. A sinister thing, the simple virus is fraught with doom, not quite dead yet not fully alive, it exists in that nether genre somewhere between disaster movies and horror flicks.

But you have to admire the virus. He has a way of living in secrecy until he is so numerous that he wins by sheer weight of numbers. He piggybacks on other hosts and uses their resources to increase his tribe. And in the right environment, he grows exponentially. A virus don't even have to mate -- he just replicates, again and again with geometrically increasing power, doubling with each iteration:1111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111111

In a few short generations, a virus population can explode.Viral Marketing DefinedWhat does a virus have to do with marketing? Viral marketing describes any strategy that encourages individuals to pass on a marketing message to others, creating the potential for exponential growth in the message's exposure and influence. Like viruses, such strategies take advantage of rapid multiplication to explode the message to thousands, to millions.

Off the Internet, viral marketing has been referred to as "word-of-mouth," "creating a buzz," "leveraging the media," "network marketing." But on the Internet, for better or worse, it's called "viral marketing." While others smarter than I have attempted to rename it, to somehow domesticate and tame it, I won't try. The term "viral marketing" has stuck. The Classic Hotmail.com ExampleThe classic example of viral marketing is Hotmail.com, one of the first free Web-based e-mail services. The strategy is simple: 1. Give away free e-mail addresses and services,

2. Attach a simple tag at the bottom of every free message sent out: "Get your private, free email at http://www.hotmail.com" and,

3. Then stand back while people e-mail to their own network of friends and associates,

4. Who see the message,

5. Sign up for their own free e-mail service, and then

6. Propel the message still wider to their own ever-increasing circles of friends and associates. Like tiny waves spreading ever farther from a single pebble dropped into a pond, a carefully designed viral marketing strategy ripples outward extremely rapidly. Elements of a Viral Marketing StrategyAccept this fact. Some viral marketing strategies work better than others, and few work as well as the simple Hotmail.com strategy. But below are the six basic elements you hope to include in your strategy. A viral marketing strategy need not contain ALL these elements, but the more elements it embraces, the more powerful the results are likely to be. An effective viral marketing strategy: 1. Gives away products or services2. Provides for effortless transfer to others3. Scales easily from small to very large4. Exploits common motivations and behaviors5. Utilizes existing communication networks6. Takes advantage of others' resources Let's examine at each of these elements briefly. 1. Gives away valuable products or services"Free" is the most powerful word in a marketer's vocabulary. Most viral marketing programs give away valuable products or services to attract attention. Free e-mail services, free information, free "cool" buttons, free software programs that perform powerful functions but not as much as you get in the "pro" version. Wilson's Second Law of Web Marketing is "The Law of Giving and Selling" (http://www.wilsonweb.com/wmta/basic-principles.htm). "Cheap" or "inexpensive" may generate a wave of interest, but "free" will usually do it much faster. Viral marketers practice delayed gratification. They may not profit today, or tomorrow, but if they can generate a groundswell of interest from something free, they know they will profit "soon and for the rest of their lives" (with apologies to "Casablanca"). Patience, my friends. Free attracts eyeballs. Eyeballs then see other desirable things that you are selling, and, presto! you earn money. Eyeballs bring valuable e-mail addresses, advertising revenue, and e-commerce sales opportunities. Give away something, sell something. 2. Provides for effortless transfer to othersPublic health nurses offer sage advice at flu season: stay away from people who cough, wash your hands often, and don't touch your eyes, nose, or mouth. Viruses only spread when they're easy to transmit. The medium that carries your marketing message must be easy to transfer and replicate: e-mail, website, graphic, software download. Viral marketing works famously on the Internet because instant communication has become so easy and inexpensive. Digital format make copying simple. From a marketing standpoint, you must simplify your marketing message so it can be transmitted easily and without degradation. Short is better. The classic is: "Get your private, free email at http://www.hotmail.com." The message is compelling, compressed, and copied at the bottom of every free e-mail message. 3. Scales easily from small to very largeTo spread like wildfire the transmission method must be rapidly scalable from small to very large. The weakness of the Hotmail model is that a free e-mail service requires its own mailservers to transmit the message. If the strategy is wildly successful, mailservers must be added very quickly or the rapid growth will bog down and die. If the virus multiplies only to kill the host before spreading, nothing is accomplished. So long as you have planned ahead of time how you can add mailservers rapidly you're okay. You must build in scalability to your viral model. 4. Exploits common motivations and behaviorsClever viral marketing plans take advantage of common human motivations. What proliferated "Netscape Now" buttons in the early days of the Web? The desire to be cool. Greed drives people. So does the hunger to be popular, loved, and understood. The resulting urge to communicate produces millions of websites and billions of e-mail messages. Design a marketing strategy that builds on common motivations and behaviors for its transmission, and you have a winner. 5. Utilizes existing communication networksMost people are social. Nerdy, basement-dwelling computer science grad students are the exception. Social scientists tell us that each person has a network of 8 to 12 people in their close network of friends, family, and associates. A person's broader network may consist of scores, hundreds, or thousands of people, depending upon her position in society. A waitress, for example, may communicate regularly with hundreds of customers in a given week. Network marketers have long understood the power of these human networks, both the strong, close networks as well as the weaker networked relationships. People on the Internet develop networks of relationships, too. They collect e-mail addresses and favorite website URLs. Affiliate programs exploit such networks, as do permission e-mail lists. Learn to place your message into existing communications between people, and you rapidly multiply its dispersion. 6. Takes advantage of others' resourcesThe most creative viral marketing plans use others' resources to get the word out. Affiliate programs, for example, place text or graphic links on others' websites. Authors who give away free articles, seek to position their articles on others' webpages. A news release can be picked up by hundreds of periodicals and form the basis of articles seen by hundreds of thousands of readers. Now someone else's newsprint or webpage is relaying your marketing message. Someone else's resources are depleted rather than your own. An Elementary ExerciseLet's put this into practice. I am seeking to promote my newest FREE e-mail marketing newsletter, Doctor Ebiz (http://doctorebiz.com), which discusses Web marketing and e-commerce trends and strategies. I'm using two viral marketing strategies and I'd appreciate your help in testing them, if you're up to an interesting challenge. I'll report results shortly to give you feedback on the effectiveness of these techniques. 1. First, I've placed a Recommend-It button on every page of the DoctorEbiz.com site to encourage visitors to tell a friend about the site. When you go to http://doctorebiz.com/ please try the Recommend-It button, and then report at http://www.wilsonweb.com/wmt5/ri-report.htm on how effective you think this strategy is. I'll share some of the results and your comments in a subsequent article: "Review: Recommend-It" (http://wilsonweb.com/reviews/recommend-it.htm).

2. Second, I grant permission for every reader to reproduce on your website the article you are now reading -- "The Six Simple Principles of Viral Marketing" (see http://www.wilsonweb.com/wmt5/viral-principles-clean.htm for an HTML version you can copy). But copy this article ONLY, without any alteration whatsoever. Include the copyright statement, too, please. If you have a marketing or small business website, it'll provide great content and help your visitors learn important strategies. When you've placed the article on your website, please tell me at http://wilsonweb.com/wmt5/viral-reprint.htm I'll tally the results and report them shortly, so to be included in the count, please do this quickly. (NOTE: I am giving permission to host on your website this article AND NO OTHERS. Reprinting or hosting my articles without express written permission is illegal, immoral, and a violation of my copyright.) Thank you for helping me carry out and then track this marketing exercise.

To one degree or another, all successful viral marketing strategies use most of the six principles outlined above. In the next article in this series, "Viral Marketing Techniques the Typical Business Website Can Deploy Now" (http://www.wilsonweb.com/wmt5/viral-deploy.htm), we'll move from theory to practice. But first learn these six foundational principles of viral marketing. Master them and wealth will flow your direction.

"Copyright 2000, Ralph F. Wilson. All rights reserved. Permission granted to reprint this article on your website without alteration if you include this copyright statement."

_______________________--[1]Tips for Optimizing Viral Marketing Campaigns E-Mail Marketing Optimization Sponsored by Silverpop Error! Unknown switch argument.BY Brady Brewer | February 22, 2001 Viral marketing, or "refer-a-friend," email campaigns have received a lot of attention in the media recently. These campaigns, which encourage recipients of promotional emails to forward the messages to their friends, have garnered both positive and negative reviews from consumers, privacy advocates, and industry pundits. At the heart of the issue are concerns over sending unsolicited email, but by using viral marketing tactics carefully, marketers may avoid negative reactions and gain an excellent return on investment (ROI) as they increase the reach of a marketing message to a targeted group far beyond their original audience. Listed below are five insights on how to execute a viral marketing campaign most effectively. Offer an incentive. Viral marketing works best when a valuable and tangible incentive is offered, encouraging individuals to forward an email message to their friends. However, marketers should cap the incentive to a specific quantity to avoid spam-like distribution of the message -- for example, offering an incentive of 20 percent off referrers' next purchase if they forward the message to five friends. Open-ended incentives, such as offering a $5 credit for every five friends referred, can end up causing a marketer customer service, financial, and privacy-related problems.

A women's athletic clothing multichannel retailer recently offered a creative and socially aware incentive when it launched a viral marketing campaign that rewarded message recipients with a free T-shirt and a $1 donation to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation when an individual sent the special email message to five friends and three of those friends opted in to the retailer's catalog or email list. The campaign was tremendously successful, driving a click-through rate three times higher than normal, an email newsletter sign-up rate of over 30 percent, and a catalog subscription rate of nearly 70 percent. Meanwhile, cost per sale decreased by 89 percent.Don't consider the referral an opt-in. When a customer refers a friend, the referral should not be considered an opt-in. A name and email address volunteered by a person's friend does not constitute an opt-in by the individual, so the data should be deleted immediately after the referral email is sent. Verbiage should be included in the referral email asking if the individual would like to receive future mailings, allowing her to opt in if she wishes.Personalize the referral email. Response rates increase dramatically when users can see that a message is coming from a friend, so it is best to personalize the email message to show that it's coming from a recognizable source. The subject line is the key component in a viral marketing email, because it can immediately identify the email as friendly. A good subject line may read: "ADV: John Doe Thought You'd Like 20% Off at XYZ.com," thereby identifying that it is an advertisement, there's a special offer, and the message was sent from a friend.Track and analyze the results. As with any marketing campaign, tracking the results and optimizing performance over time is absolutely necessary. Thankfully, sophisticated email marketers can track insightful and actionable data that can be used to evaluate performance. Important metrics to analyze are pass-along, click-through, and conversion rates. Marketers should separate the click-through and conversion rates by original customers from referrals and evaluate their respective performances. These metrics will alert a marketer to which offers and customers drive the highest ROI.Continually promote friendly referrals. Marketers who want to have their messages frequently forwarded should place a viral marketing offer in every relevant outgoing email message. Viral marketing makes for a great one-time campaign, but it can also be a very effective tool for continuing to broaden the reach of your marketing messages over time.Though no sure-fire way exists to prevent negative customer reactions, by following these five concepts marketers should find their viral marketing campaigns to be most effective.

[1] http://www.clickz.com/experts/em_mkt/opt/article.php/837511__________________________________________________________

Developing a plan seven critical elementsWhats the benefit to your audience Your positioning or key takeaway messagewhat do you want to influence in terms of attitude formation or changeYour target marketwho are you targeting and whyYour budgethow much can you spend and what are most cost effective, yet efficient ways to spend resources TacticsGuerilla marketing and PR techniquesViral and Internet marketingMonth by month implementation schedule because you need both reach and frequency

24ActivityWork in groups of four-five to develop a detailed plan-not a single activityBrainstorm the key message takeaway or catchphrase you want to conveyBenefitKey message positioningTarget audience(s)BudgetTacticsImplementation schedule25Sharing what worksbuilding the networkWetpaintquick and dirty Wiki groupsUse to share ideas and programsAg awareness blogdevelop a topic calendar, share moderating chores, get on blogrolls, get linkedE-newsletterViral newsroom26Questions?Thank You!

27