There are a zillion articles and blog posts on why you need a marketing strategy and how to develop a marketing plan. The marketing "To-Do" list is endless. Do this, then that.

Blog three times a week. Frequent short posts or longer, more in-depth posts? Article marketing. E-books. Content marketing strategy. Video. Webshows. Podcasting. Branding. Logo redesign. Website redesign. Inbound marketing. Direct mail. VDP. Email marketing. Mobile-friendly website. SMS / text marketing. Location-based services. Foursquare. Gowalla. Groupon. New media. Social media. Facebook. Twitter. LinkedIn. Print ads. Magazines. Newspapers. Yellow pages.

Whew! Where does it end?

Then you've got the metrics, analytics and ROI. What's working and what's not?

So where do you start? How do you start? You know you need to start, but how do you find the time? Most small businesses would need an extra person just to keep up with all of this. And that's exactly my point.

You can find someone "part-time" depending on your needs:

• Intern – There are lots of bright college kids that want summer internships or will work part-time. Give them the "To-Do" list.
• Printer – I know, I know, this part is self-serving. But some printers have adapted with the changes in technology and become MSR's (Marketing Service Providers). So your printer (or this printer, me) might be able to handle some of this for you.
• Virtual Assistant – There are VAs that specialize in these activities. Google it.
• Online Agency – This will take a bit more research and bigger investment. But seems like I run across more amazing talent every day.
• Ad Agency – Look local first because there are some very bright people stretching from Greenville to Wilmington.

Call us. We can give you some direction on this. We may or may not be a fit for you but rest assured, worst case, we can find someone to answer your questions.

David A Moore is a cross-media marketing junkie fueled by Mountain Dew. His habit is supported at Advantage Printing, a commercial print and marketing service provider serving churches, nonprofits and small businesses.

Follow me on Twitter: www.twitter.com/davidamoore

www.facebook.com/davidmoore.me

With about 100 days until the fall election, I thought it would be appropriate for another political marketing post.

Direct mail is a hugely important part of any political campaign. Direct mail pieces serve as a connection to voters and can deliver your message in a controlled method. I've picked up a few more tips and tricks on my recent involvement in the state and local political campaigns.

Here are some basic political direct mail tips to help tell your story:

Highlight your message - More than anything, voters want to know what you stand for and what you intend to do if elected. Make sure your values are highlighted in your message and that you use big, bold headlines to grab attention fast.

Target your campaign - Send different postcards to voters with different priority issues. Emphasize what is important to each voter segment. Rural voters might be interested in protecting agriculture, for instance; while other voters in the same district might be more interested in cutting taxes or support of education. These ideas do not conflict, so you can cater to both parties in your direct mail postcard campaigns.

Example: This is the address sided of a postcard mailed to hunters and was designed to capture their attention.

Example: This postcard was mailed to the farming community and was versioned for the specific county in which they lived.

Polish your image - Excellent direct mail postcard and brochure design goes a long way toward establishing your image to voters. You don't want to look like all the other candidates, so don't be afraid to try something different. You don't necessarily need to stick to the traditional red, white and blue.

Show voters you understand the size of the workload with an oversized postcard or brochure. A 6 x 11 postcard in the mailbox will certainly make you stand out against your competing candidates. And the good news; you can mail it at the same letter rates.

Get an immediate response - The ultimate goal of political direct mail campaigns is to persuade a particular voter to be on your side. You can increase your chances of being elected and collect valuable information by driving traffic to your website with a direct mail postcard. Ask voters to weigh in on the issues in an online survey, and include questions that yield demographic information. Better yet, you can determine who is already going to vote for you and who has not yet decided so you can develop more targeted campaigns as the election date draws near. You can do this in real time combining variable data printing with personalized URLs and social media tools like Facebook and Twitter.

Print quality - High-quality political printing showcases a high-quality candidate. For direct mail political postcards, use a minimum 12-point gloss stock or 100# cover matte paper. If you have a green agenda (as many voters do), you could go with eco-friendly 100% recycled stock. Brochures should be printed on 100# or 80# gloss text for optimal impact.

Your political campaign says everything about who you are, what you stand for and what you're going to do. Target your voters, highlight your message, showcase your image, be different and drive immediate response — all wrapped up in an effective postcard or brochure — and your next political direct mail campaign will be a hit with the voters.

David A Moore is a cross-media marketing junkie fueled by Mountain Dew. His habit is supported at Advantage Printing, a commercial print and marketing service provider serving churches, nonprofits and small businesses. He has provided marketing support on local and state level political campaigns since 2000.

Follow me on Twitter: www.twitter.com/davidamoore

www.facebook.com/davidmoore.me

This is a screen shot of my Inbox. I received an email this morning that kind of ticks me off and is a lesson in "What NOT to do for your email newsletter."

Being in the print & marketing business I subscribe to the PaperSpecs email newsletter. I find the information useful from time to time and a good knowledge of papers can save my clients money. So being tuned in to what PaperSpecs offers keeps the knowledge fresh. It's not an email newsletter that I devour each time it comes in, but I do open it and glance at the subtitles for anything interesting.

Today the SUBJECT LINE got my attention, "Insane deals on quality printing." Now usually if you go to the trouble of crafting a compelling, attention-getting subject line, that's a good thing. In this case, it's part of the reason I'm pissed off at PaperSpecs. My first thought (from my printer's perspective) was, "What kind of "deals" is PaperSpecs offering on printing? Do they mean paper? Paper prices?"

Then you read the top line above the picture, "…a message from one of our partners…" It's an ADVERTISEMENT! No news here! I didn't sign up to get solicitations from anther printer. So now I am considering canceling my subscription because I consider this SPAM.

MARKETING TAKEAWAY:

1. Keep your e-letter information relevant to your audience.
2. Craft compelling, attention-getting subject lines.
3. Don't abuse the PRIVILEGE of being allowed into recipients inbox.
4. The recipient defines SPAM is, not the sender.

David A. Moore is a cross-media marketing junkie fueled by Mountain Dew. His habit is supported as managing partner of Advantage Printing, a commercial print and marketing service provider serving small to mid-sized businesses, nonprofits and churches.

Follow me on Twitter: www.twitter.com/davidamoore

www.facebook.com/davidmoore.me

Business cards can be one of our most important pieces in the marketing toolbox. They are handed out, mailed out, left out, worn out and just plain lost. You may be the type that uses 100's or 1000's each year.

Business cards are economical. The more you print, the cheaper they get per piece. Your business card says a lot about you, your organization and your products or services. Your business card can influence customers to pick up the phone - or toss it in the trash.

Business cards come in all shapes, sizes and colors and are printed on just about anything you can imagine. Changing any one of these variables can help you create a very memorable card. Think about the times you have been handed a card and just the feel of the card in your hands made an impression. Our goal is to make that a GOOD impression. Giving or receiving flimsy little business cards can make a BAD impression very quickly.

Focus on the paper stocks

With most everyone agreeing to the value and importance of a good business card, it still amazes me that so many businesses want to print their business cards on cheap, thin paper stocks.

Pick up your own card right now. With your eyes closed, imagine how your current card feels in prospects' hands. Is it light and flimsy, telling them that your company is on shaky ground? Or is it thick and solid, telling them your are well grounded and prepared to handle their business needs?

Business card printing is cheaper than you think

Business card printing is the most economical, "biggest bang for your buck" printing that you will ever do. But still, you have many small businesses that will print business cards on desktop printers using specially perforated business card paper. They think they are saving money but the desktop business cards have three disadvantages:

1. Your inks look bad and can smear for a sloppy image.
2. The perforations and thin paper required to make it around the desktop printer cylinder make for a flimsy, cheap-looking card.
3. It's actually more expensive than professional printing.

Skip the home printing

Printing business cards on desktop printers not only looks bad, it costs more money than having your business cards printed by a pro. Do the math yourself: to print 1,000 business cards, you would need five packs of business card desktop printer paper at a cost of $80 (200 per pack at $16 each). And while printing at home seems "free," it's when you go to replace those ink cartridges that you realize just how much it really costs. It could cost an estimated $.20 / sheet to print for a total of $20. So now there's about $100 in "cheap" business cards.

You compare that to 1000 cards printed in full-color on 14pt gloss with UV coating. It a "no contest."

There's no downside to having your business cards professionally printed on sturdy, professional paper stocks. You look good, the cards feel good, and you can actually save money.

David A Moore is a cross-media marketing junkie fueled by Mountain Dew. His habit is supported as managing partner of Advantage Printing, a commercial print and marketing service provider serving churches, nonprofits and small businesses.

Follow me on Twitter: www.twitter.com/davidamoore

www.facebook.com/davidmoore.me