I’m here to answer any marketing questions related to online and multi-channel communications. Need advice or insights to some problems you’re finding? Go ahead, ask me anything marketing related. ANY Question you have, I may answer in a future issue of iContact Marketing Monthly and in our iContact Blog. Send me an email and ask me your toughest questions. Include your first name, company name, and your detailed question, with the subject, “Ask the Marketing Guy.”

QUESTION:
I send a newsletter to financial advisors. What is the best time of day and the best day of the week to send a newsletter?

ANSWER:
A lot of people will benefit from this question, whether you send to financial advisors or tea koozie collectors.

I’ll never say you’ve wasted an email marketing campaign effort because you didn’t send during the “best times” because as long as you’re producing your content and getting it out there the best you can, you’re doing a whole lot more than a lot of other businesses out there.

Are you BtoB emailing?
You’re going to be better of to sent email Tuesday thru Thursday, between 9:30 am and 3:00 pm. “Studies found that Monday’s are generally reserved for meetings, organizing, catching up on all the tasks left over from the week prior, and messages sent Friday afternoons are often ignored or show up at the bottom of the list when downloaded on Monday morning.”

Are you BtoC emailing?
Good luck! I say that only because your very nice, important message is being sent among personal email, other marketers, and worst of all, dirty spammers. That and human’s schedules are very different than human business people schedules. Picking the kids up from hockey practice, getting a nice family dinner time, grocery shopping, TV watching, and everything else that normal people do, their time is very limited but valuable to you. I think emailing between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. is going to work better than other times of the day. Friday thru Sunday emails are the most effective, generally because those crazy humans are more likely to be online over the weekend and have more time to sit down and read your message.

Things to consider:

* Time zone you are in vs. your customers
* Your audience - only you know who your audience is - could they be the early birds or the night owls?
* Your message - is it time sensitive?

This is a quick and dirty run down from our experience. We can’t guarantee that this will make a difference but we believe it to be true. I sure hope this has been helpful and if anyone has anything else they’d like to ask, please email me at jgray@icontact.com.

[Source: Jeffery Grey - icontact.com - May 2008]

How To Build Your ‘Transcendent’ USP
WITH HELP FROM DAVID BECKHAM

Good for David Beckham. We owe him a big thank you.

He showed us plenty of marketing lessons when his mega-contract with a U.S. soccer team achieved worldwide media saturation. The most important take away for us marketers?

David Beckham’s USP (Unique Selling Proposition).

The fact is, most marketers have a terrible time trying to articulate their company’s USP. But what does a solid USP give you?

A crystal clear message to take to your prospects, which ultimately helps you generate leads faster and easier.

This month’s article helps you create that crystal clear message, by showing you how to craft what I call a ‘transcendent’ USP, which is very different from a plain old USP.

First, a quick refresher. Every USP follows this simple three-part formula:
1. It promises a benefit
2. It makes a unique offer
3. It is significant enough to motivate action

But what’s a ‘transcendent’ USP?

That’s where David Beckham comes in. Let’s take a quick look at Beckham’s USP, and how it helped him market his services (as a professional soccer player) to a new target market of MLS (Major League Soccer) teams in the U.S.:

What benefits does Beckham promise?
From the second you sign him, Beckham gives you instant global exposure for your team’s brand, an immediate stratospheric surge in the demand for your product and ongoing worldwide media coverage measuring into the zillions.

What is his unique offer?
Beckham offers something no other soccer player in the world can: celebrity status on par with any Hollywood star. If your team signs Beckham, it’s like signing Tom Cruise. Or Madonna. You become the only team in the world with a pop culture icon modeling your jersey twice a week.

Is this significant enough to motivate action?
I’ll say. Beckham’s USP fetched him 250 Mil over 5 years.

Now, here’s what makes Beckham’s USP ‘transcendent’. Note the words I just used to describe Beckham’s benefit promise and unique offer.

There’s no mention of scoring goals, kicking ability, or performance on the soccer pitch. Beckham’s USP actually has nothing to do with soccer! The context of his offer is soccer, yes, but his USP transcends that context.

Here’s another famous USP that transcends context: Domino’s Pizza devoured their market when they started promising ‘Hot pizza delivered in 30 minutes’.

Although the context of their offering is pizza, their USP made no mention of secret sauce, pizza quality or even taste! Instead, it promised speed and convenience.

Transcendent USPs rise above the context of the offer and shift the buyer’s focus to the real payoff: higher-level benefits.

B2B companies notoriously struggle to nail down their USP because they get caught up in all the exciting features of their service, product or technology, forgetting all about higher-level benefits.

But if you want a USP that rises above your competitors, you need to stop talking about your secret sauce. You need to transcend.

Two Big Steps Toward Your Transcendent USP
Here are the first two things you need to do to create your transcendent USP:

1. Forget the catchy jingle approach
   You’re selling high value solutions to other businesses, not candy-coated chocolates. Trying to sum up your USP in 10 words will only lead to frustration. Don’t be afraid to take a few paragraphs to succinctly articulate your USP.
2. Relax
   Don’t feel like you have to figure everything out on your own. Ask your ten best clients to participate in a strategic marketing symposium of sorts. You can set up phone interviews or online surveys and collect input to key questions. You’ll find their feedback immensely helpful.

What kind of questions should you ask? Here are seven to help you get started. Note - some of these questions are not for the faint of heart! They’re intended for use by companies who aren’t afraid of raw, honest client feedback in the pursuit of their transcendent USP.

7 Questions To Help You Craft Your Transcendent USP

1. Why did you engage with our company over other vendors?
2. If someone asked you what our company does, what would you say?
3. What would you say is the one overriding benefit that our product/service brings you?
4. What are some measurable returns you have achieved by using our product/service? (Can you be specific in terms of time savings, cost savings, or increased revenues?)
5. How does our solution benefit you personally, in your day-to-day role?
6. How does it benefit others in your company?
7. What would you say to a colleague if he or she were considering using our services?

Developing a solid transcendent USP takes work, but the payoff (as our friend Mr. Beckham would agree) is well worth it. [Source: Peter savage - icontact.com - May 2008]

Most importantly, I see a humanizing effect in which a blog post or comment also includes links to profiles, pictures, contact information and comment forms. All are ways to launch discussions instead of just pushing content one way.

And, they’re becoming a way to connect with your customers and readers via your email messages. One-way communication is out, replaced by the digital conversation.

What the Print Dinosaurs Can Teach You

Print might be fading away as a communications medium, but publishers know the most about putting a human face on an impersonal medium. Just open the nearest newspaper or magazine.

Regular columnists often have small “mugshots” accompanying their copy. The editorial page, with the letters to the editor, is one of the best-read sections. Many publications also post the reporter’s email address or office number on the story or in the masthead, which appears in the same place every time. All of these help establish a connection between the paper and its readers.

Advertisers have had to rely on less direct methods. Consumers don’t relate as well to a faceless brand, so companies have used personal endorsements or created mascots to inject a little life. Remember the Marlboro Man, Speedy Alka-Seltzer, and Spuds McKenzie for Bud Light?

Email publishers are also expanding their engagement methods, by adding links to comment forms in their email content and tacking the form itself to the end of the Web version.

Now, it’s time for email marketers to step up, because readers expect to be able to interact at every level of the online world.

If you publish a regular newsletter (one that provides content to your readers, not just your weekly sales flyer in disguise) and you want to increase engagement rates, then read on to see what social tactics make a perfect pairing when used in email.

1. Humanize with a Mascot or Actual Employee

If your company uses a mascot or spokesperson in print or broadcast media, you naturally want to feature it prominently in your email communications, and not just because you want to be consistent.

Think of “Jack” and you immediately recognize the Jack in the Box brand, have an opinion on the products they sell and the humor they normally do it with. If they have a newsletter, you can be sure pictures of Jack should be all over it.

Another example: Beleaguered communications company Sprint is trying to use their new CEO Dan to bring a face to the company in order to strengthen its bond with consumers. Its TV spots include an email address consumers can use to sound off to him, good or bad (dan@sprint.com).

2. Add a Picture; Build a Bond

Use a picture of your most identifiable mascot or spokesperson, or the author if the material carries a byline. This can build trust, help the reader identify with the writer and strengthen the desire to respond.

Try this simple test. How do you respond to each of the three scenarios below. (No, I won’t give out grades but I’ll know if you cheat). Which of these three gives you the strongest bond and reinforces your trust in the information the author provides?

Opinion on using personal pics in emailby Stefan Pollard

Fig. 1

Opinion on using personal pics in emailby Stefan Pollard

Fig. 2

Opinion on using personal pics in emailby Stefan Pollard

Fig. 3

The first choice (byline only, no picture) is pretty standard with publishers. You likely glossed right past it, with no strong connection.

The second choice (blank photo as seen in social networks where user profiles are not updated) probably makes you wonder why the author is trying to hide. On most social networks, not having a picture is an immediate turn-off. It hurts the trust and relationship-building factors you are trying to create.

While not requiring pictures, many social networks give you the opportunity to upload a photo right at registration and periodically invite you to update your profile with a picture. They also apply subtle pressure by making members who don’t post pictures stand out with default images (a question mark in Facebook, a “o_O” emoticon in Twitter, a grayed-out silhouette or default image in others and on instant-message clients. Those who don’t upload look more like outsiders or newbies than active, trustworthy participants.

The third choice should have had the greatest impact on you, giving you a connection that a real person has written something. It might also increase your desire to comment back (positive and negative), because you can picture the person talking. It’s not a faceless wall of type.

More email newsletters are starting to use pictures of the authors, similar to the personal profiles in social networks. This is a good start, but you need to take it further in order to foster strong relationships with your readers. Be sure to provide a feedback link to the photo and author’s name (mailto:author@company.com) so you don’t discourage your readers.

Expand the relationship if you also publish a company blog. Publish information about the authors featured, link to your company’s sponsored page on social networks like MySpace or Facebook, or other places where the authors can be contacted.

3. Add the Conversation to the Newsletter

Did a particular story, issue or incident generate a strong discussion on your Web site? Keep the conversation moving by featuring it in the next edition. Highlight your active readers, call them by name and respond to them publicly. Once your audience sees that you do respond to comments, more comments will flood your way.

In The Intevation Report, for example, the Ask Lyris content comes directly from our readers’ questions.

You can also use this tactic to spur a discussion. Over at the Email Experience Council, they will often push a topic to the members asking for input as an attempt to keep conversations happening and keeping the list active.

4. Use Audio or Video When Available

One of the newsletters I read has an interesting twist: Each monthly edition comes with an audio version available on iTunes, where I can listen to the author read his column to me, instead of reading the content myself.

It brings another level of humanization to the relationship between author and reader when you can hear the author’s voice and passion for the topic. (In case you want to check it out for yourself, I’m referring to Michael Katz’s E-Newsletter on E-Newsletters.)

When you have video feeds, link to those as well and let your audience watch the product reviews, live debates and other content.

5. Survey Says …

Yes, you see these everywhere, but reader polls are there for a reason: They work. They’re a cheap window into reader attitudes and preferences, for one thing, but they also give readers a noninvasive way to connect with you.

Ask the audience a question, they’ll tell you, and you can use that information to keep the dialog moving and, incidentally, refine your own email program. The Email Experience Council does an easy two-click survey in each newsletter and constantly keeps the topic fresh.

EEC pushes the two-click survey constantly by referring to it in blog posts and in emails recapping important announcements. As a result, EEC gets a good response, and this in turn helps it keep a pulse on what its membership is interested in.

Think a topic is interesting and should be explored further? Ask your readers before you spend time on it.

Using any one of these five techniques—or better yet, as many as you can—goes a long way toward transforming your one-way newsletter into a digital dialogue.

[Source: Stefan Pollard - emaillabs.com - April 2008]

Online video, a relatively stoic, one-way medium as we know it, is creeping along into the land of interactivity. Technologies from VideoEgg and others are doing what they can to make watching a video a little more of a search or suggestion-based experience.

But is that really it? Do we have it all locked up in incremental functionality enhancements?

I wish there was a good answer to that. All we really know is that the changes that have transformed video are really enhancements to other rich media technologies.

Though somewhat unnoticed, Adobe Flash has transformed video more profoundly than any form of video delivery or compression to date.

Today, most online videos don’t need a player or a plug-in. Technologies that allow interaction are embedded, rather than coded, into the video experience. Browser-based acceptance was a tremendous change — a change that happened so silently we didn’t notice it.

These things are good, but the iPhone isn’t built on good. Nor is it what social network technologies are composed for either.

So let’s think about a few things that could make the technological jump even more profound.

Multi-screen

Most of us know this in one of two ways: the TV model of screen-on-screen, or the computer model of keeping multiple video windows open at the same time. People guilty of the latter know the dangerous precipice you tread upon when, after several minutes of this behavior, you hear the laptop fan kick on and all applications slow to a crawl.

Most of us don’t know this isn’t the optimal solution until the computer shuts down. Only then do we get that pang of worry.

When we think about what multi-screen will be, it may have more to do with processing power in other parts of your computer than a better browser.

Currently, we look at MHz and CPU processing power as the little gerbil running in the wheel and pushing all the video pixels out to our screen. That’s what pushes it all out, but it’s also the cause of a lot of overload problems.

Next time you buy a computer, look at the Graphics Processor, or GPU, and see if it’s a highly rated chip that can process at a high FPS (frames per second) rate.

If there’s any planning for the near future of your multi-screen experience you can do, that would be most of it.

Integrated

Integrated video is something I’ve mentioned many times in the past. Adobe Flash has allowed you to virtually embed just about anything you can do in Flash into video.

Time consuming? Yes. Interesting? Yes? Cheap to update? Well, not as much, unless you plan well.

I’ve been highly involved in the site, Meals Together. It’s a decent example of what you can to with good theatrical timing and experiential Web site modeling. But believe me, there are many more examples out there.

The Future?

Ah yes, where are we going with all this? I’m glad to say I don’t think we can say. So many technologies are being developed. Whatever we can dream up today may actually come to be true in a year or so.

Video chat, though commonly a separate window experience, will be refined into a one-window form of communication. Yes, maybe typing over your friend’s face will be a bit annoying, but there are elegant ways to make that work.Self-production of video will probably take a more sophisticated leap forward and help the emerging talent of visual storytelling do a better job. Storyboard modeling and edit wizards could make your home movies or home produced video spots more professional.

All in all, we’re going to see a lot of changes, but most of these changes will have to wait for our mass ability to adjust to interaction improvements.

Video technology will undoubtedly seem more like a Web site (or was that the other way around?) and in the end we’ll see the next few years change the game of how the chocolate of TV is mixed with the peanut butter of online.OK, now I’m hungry.

[Source: Dorian Sweet - clickz.com - April 2008]

Even with the best fact-based decision-making methodology, we need to make the client very comfortable with a plan or strategy. To do this, the client must feel like you’re providing them with exactly what they need. And to give them what they need, you must get them to tell you what their needs are. You must ask the right questions.

Sometimes you can determine what you’ll get from a vendor based on the questions she asks rather than the presentation she eventually gives you. Many times, asking the right questions early in a relationship not only arms you with information to create a successful marketing strategy or media plan but also gets the client thinking along the same lines as you. It helps the client look at success in the same way you do and aligns your priorities. It gets a client thinking about things you think are important early in the process.

It also gives you an opportunity to show the client how deeply you think about their business. Asking the right questions can also make a client wonder why your competition isn’t asking those questions. Truly, asking the right questions is often as important as giving the right answers.

So today, I’m listing some of my favorite questions we ask when we pitch or getting a new account or project. Some questions seem obvious, but the reality is many of these questions are never asked; we often assume we already know the answers.

Service/Relationship

• What qualities and behaviors do you want to see in your account and media team? What qualities and behaviors do you not want to see?
• What isn’t working about your current vendor relationship or in-house solution?
• What are common mistakes and misconceptions agencies make or have about your business?
• Do you have a wish list of initiatives not part of this program that you’d like to see come to fruition in the future?
• How do you measure the quality of your agency relationships?
• What are things you’d like to see your agency take more responsibility for or go over and above the call of duty on?
• What is the most often you can meet with us for status and planning meetings?
• Do all the people in your company who need to know what we are doing understand what we are doing? Are there any training or informational seminars you’d like us to give to different groups in your company (online media, search marketing, social media marketing, etc.)?

Goals/Metrics:

• What are your metrics for success? Cost per thousand, click, lead, or action? CTR (define) or ROI (define)? Page views, engagement time, or brand recognition?
• What’s the most important action on your site? What’s least important?
• What will make this campaign successful in your eyes? How about from your boss’s perspective or sales team’s?
• Do you have any historical or current benchmarks for these metrics we can trend against? (e.g., often a client is at a $50 cost per action and they are hiring you to get it to $25.)
• Can you elaborate on things you’ve tried in the past? What worked well, and why do you think it succeeded? What didn’t work, and why do you think if failed?
• What is your average margin on a sale, or what is your average cost of goods sold? What are the expenses that go into the cost of goods sold?

Tracking and Reporting

• How do you currently measure ROI? What tracking systems are you using now?
• Are you able to trace offline actions and sales (call center, retail, post-lead conversion) to online investments? If so, how?
• Are there any security compliance regulations we should know about know that will make it hard to get our tracking code onto your site? If there are, who should we start talking to now?
• Are there any in-house reports or dashboards you’ll want our data integrated into? If so, can we see them so we can deliver data to you in the right format?
• What can we provide you to help express your success within your company and promote the good work you do?

Media

• What media properties do you know you want to be in? Why?
• What properties do you know you do not want to be in? Why?
• What are your geographical constraints?
• Are you asking for online value-added placements with your offline media buys?
• Do you have any proposals from media reps who contacted you directly?
• Do you want to have a media day to meet with the reps of the larger properties we’re buying on?

Audience

• Who are your target customers, broken down by product?
• Do the have any seasonal or geographic buying patterns?
• Can you provide us with all the customer analysis data you can?
• Who are your best customers, and what do they have in common?
• Who are your average customers?
• Who are your worst customers?

Messaging/Offers

• What are all the benefits of your products, broken down by product and target audience? How do you help people?
• What are all the offers you can realistically make to your different audiences, broken down by audience and product? What can we give them right now?
• What has worked and not worked in the past from a benefit and offer messaging standpoint?
• Can we see all the creative (banners, search ads, e-mail, and landing pages) you’ve run in the last couple years? Do you have the results for these various executions?
• Can we talk to your salespeople about what closes a deal? Can we hear a pitch from your top salesperson?
• Do you mind if we secretly shop your competitors and hear their pitch?
• What makes you different from your competitors? Why are you better? Why was your product developed?

Note, you don’t need to share this entire list of questions with your client or ask the company to complete a questionnaire before meeting with them. Of course, you don’t have to ask them each and every question, either!

This is a list for you to complete gradually over the course of several conversations, e-mail messages, and meetings. However, once it’s completed, send your client all the questions you asked accompanied by the answers — just for “clarification,” of course. Your client will love this document, guaranteed!

[Source: Harry Gold - clickz.com - April 2008]