A Community Resource Forum Especially for Entrepreneurs

I was fortunate to have been invited to make presentations to a number of business, marketing and entrepreneurial studies classes in colleges and universities in the Rochester NY area over the past year.  My presentation focused on the creative flow of ideas leading to the development of a successful consumer product marketing campaign for a very entrepreneurial retail company.

During the course of my presentations, I met many talented entrepreneurs who already had businesses or were planning on starting them.  These people were truly inspiring – I have a great deal of admiration for them!

But, I wondered why colleges and universities didn’t collaborate as effectively as they could with the various business development organizations to provide better ways to help entrepreneurs.  There are a lot of excellent resources and services available that many people are not aware of.

I am happy to say that there is now a new initiative to bring together different resources and information for entrepreneurs.  On Thursday, November 12^th, Monroe Community College will host the first ever Pathways to Entrepreneurial Success event at their R. Thomas Flynn Campus Center from 7:30 am to 4:00 pm.  Tickets are $15.00 for regular admission and $10.00 for students (a box lunch is included).  For details visit http://entrepreneurshipforum.org/ or call 585-292-2008.

Attendees can learn from and interact with our region’s most successful business and community leaders.  The event is a daylong forum that will help entrepreneurs tap into the agencies, resources, mentors and educational programs.  The event will include entrepreneurial case studies, presentations, panel discussions, and plenty of networking opportunities. 

I was invited to play a role in the planning of the event- specifically organizing two “Ideamaker” breakout sessions in which a panel of entrepreneurs will share their own inspiring adventures and field questions

Entrepreneurs… Your journey could be the adventure of a lifetime!  And, it isn’t a path you have to walk alone.  So please consider attending the Pathways to Entrepreneurial Success on November 12^th.

 Fred Kopp – Ideamaker

What Makes Ad Campaigns Work?

Over the course of my career, I have seen and heard continuous discussions about developing the best ad campaigns.  A blend of thorough planning, creative/content that inspires action, sound media planning, program analysis, and delivering on the “promises” presented are keys to successfully driving sales and profits growth.  None of this is new.  

I recently ran across this short article in Advertising Age Online – June 1, 2009.  I feel this is good advice, especially given these challenging economic times…  

 The Journal of Advertising Research is publishing an analysis of 880 entries to the U.K.’s Institute of Practitioners in Advertising Effectiveness Awards, which are based on detailed information on business results for campaigns. It found the following strategies are most likely to increase sales or profit: 

-  Focus on hard objectives, such as specific market-share gains, rather than soft ones, such as brand awareness 

-  Focus on price, not volume 

-  Focus on penetration (winning new consumers) rather than loyalty 

-  Influence consumers emotionally rather than rationally 

-  Create ads with “talk value” 

-  Have a high share of voice relative to brand market share 

-  Include TV in the mix 

-  Include a small number of media channels with a concerted message 

Source: Les Binet & Peter Field, June issue, Journal of Advertising Research.

Fred Kopp – Ideamaker

Helping Innovators Tell Their Stories

For some time I’ve observed that despite the demanding economy, there are many tenacious, visionary organizations, companies, businesses and creative, determined individuals who are being pro-active in marketing themselves and their products and services.  My experience is that they will most likely emerge successfully from these tough economic times.

There are challenges to be overcome… many regional businesses and organizations are caught up in the chaos of these demanding times.  They are struggling just to get by and are unable to step back and focus on the future.  Many are also working with reduced or inexperienced resources.  Many organizations may use the services of traditional ad agencies, which can be expensive, or try to coordinate their marketing communications themselves in addition to the many other tasks they are tending to.

My personal goal is to develop non-traditional advertising services to create improved, positive awareness of the exciting things that are happening in the Upstate NY region.  My vision is to create powerful, ongoing marketing communications campaign from which individual organizations can benefit.  This would mean packaging affordable “best value” solutions that blend high quality creative and media services at affordable prices.

As a result, marketing communications would be available at more affordable prices vs. traditional ad agencies and will be of higher quality vs. “do it yourself” marketing. Businesses and organizations would benefit from ongoing networking and resources for collaboration and brainstorming, as if they had an in-house marketing department.  And, they would therefore benefit from increased and improved exposure, which improves brand awareness, reinforces customer loyalty and attracts new customers.  Their sales and profits would increase.

For more information on the Entrepreneurial IDEAMAKERS^TM program, please contact info@fredkoppcreative.com. 

Fred Kopp – Ideamaker

Clever Ad Copy Tagline(?)

I tend to be noticing mobile advertising more and more these days.  Many companies are very clever while others do not capitalize on effectively utilizing their “mobile billboards”… the sides of their delivery trucks and trailers.

When stopped in traffic the other day, I noticed an advertising tag line “Discover a World of Difference” on the side of the box truck next to me.  At first it seemed like another example of “ho hum” ad copy – until I noticed the name of the company to which it was connected…

The tag line “Discover a World of Difference” belonged to Matthews Industries CASKET DIVISION! 

Talk about a company who is dying to get business.  It begs the question… how do they validate their copy claim?  Who comes back from the next world to do customer testimonials?  Do they use séances for customer focus groups for product development?  

Lesson… I’m not sure.  Good ad copy gets noticed, whether intentional or not.  I’m actually amused (you had to be there) and should stop writing now!  

Fred Kopp – Ideamaker

Flo Would be Pissed!

No doubt the auto insurance companies are fighting for customers.  Included in many companies’ media mix are logos boldly emblazoned on their company vehicles to reinforce their brand identities. 

But, not all brand visibility can be positive.  While traveling our local expressway, what do I see pulled off on the opposite side of the road but a Progressive Car Insurance vehicle – getting a speeding ticket. 

Too bad I did not have my camera!  I wonder if Progressive has an “employee discount” program with our local sheriff’s department.

Lesson… Employee behavior can make an impression – good or bad.

Flo, the Progressive Auto Insurance Girl, would be really pissed!  But, the little green Aussie lizard guy would be grinnin’!

Fred Kopp – Ideamaker

The NEW RULES of MARKETING & PR

I’ve heard many strong arguments within the past two years about what media most effectively communicate with consumers.  The use and effectiveness of traditional media (newspapers, TV, radio, direct mail, etc.) is said to be declining (I’m not totally convinced of this) vs. the upsurge of new web-based media (websites, e-mail blasts, blogs, social media, etc.). 

In order to learn more about web-based media, I’ve attended many presentations in the last 9 months focused on understanding new ways of communicating to consumers via the Internet.  These presentations focus on web-based media… some free, some at a cost.  But, after scribbling a bunch of notes, I retain only a bit from these presentations.  This is because I keep trying to think “big picture”… how do web-based customer communications fit into the total marketing communications media mix for different business scenarios?  

While there is no lack of reading on the subject, a very savvy marketing friend of mine recommended that I read a book by David Meerman Scott -  The NEW RULES of MARKETING & PR.  Boy was I glad that she referred Mr. Scott’s book to me! 

The book goes beyond explaining the potential of new web-based media.  It re-emphasizes how good marketing and advertising plans should be developed and executed successfully in general.  (Visit http://www.swampfox.ws/2009/02/27/the-new-rules-marketing-and-pr and http://www.davidmeermanscott.com/)  You can find the book at Borders, Barnes and Noble or online.

I highly recommend reading The NEW RULES of MARKETING & PR to those who drive business within their organizations and to all who provide advertising, marketing communication, media and creative services to their clients.  It’s an engaging read with lots of wisdom – the margins of my book are already plastered with my scribbles for my own reference.

Fred Kopp – Ideamaker

An Ad that “Missed the (Fishing) Boat”

Poorly designed ads cost as much as good ones.

One of my most wonderful vacations was our family’s Alaskan Cruise. So, when I opened my mailbox I saw a big postcard that announced the upcoming Alaska Salmon season, my mouth was watering and I was ready to book another trip.

Then, I thought, this postcard is not from Celebrity Cruises… Red Lobster must be having a promotion.  Or, maybe Palmer’s new meat and fish market is introducing new offerings. 

No company was identified so I flipped it over.  On the address side of the postcard was some copy, as well as a chart showing when various salmon species are coming in season.  At first it was not readily apparent who the advertising company was. But then I noticed that there was a very small logo of my old company – Wegmans – on the top of the address panel.

The copy on the left-hand panel states “Our longtime fishing partners…” But, nowhere is Wegmans mentioned.  Wegmans web address is illegible at the bottom of the graph… a tiny type font covered up with the required postal inkjet printing. 

On the right-hand panel has the Wegmans logo printed very small in the return address area, along with a tiny Wegmans Shoppers Club logo – which has no correlation to the rest of the ad content anyway.  There’s also “AVAILABLE AT YOUR PITTSFORD WEGMANS” crudely inkjet printed… just plopped in there.  The digitized signature of the store manager (Pittsford) could have been easily substituted for a more personalized and powerful invitation to come my Wegmans store. 

With the concerns with both the costs and performance of today’s advertising media, while artistically pleasing, this mailer is poorly designed.  This piece was probably not inexpensive to produce and mail. 

Occasionally I hear managers in companies comment “direct mail (or whatever media) doesn’t deliver the results we want”.  Well, poor design content is the reason more often than not.  Why risk having an otherwise appealing product only vaguely associated with the company offering it. 

The lesson is to make every advertising dollar count!  Make it easy for customers – ever bombarded with thousands of ad messages daily – to quickly identify your company in association with a great product offering.  Today more than ever, companies need to get the most out of their advertising, in this case assuring that their direct mail pieces will actually be read before making those one-way trips to the recycling bin.

Fred Kopp – Ideamaker

The Importance of Tying “Go-To-Market” and Financial Plans Together

In my earlier writing I advised that your “Go-To-Market” plan is the key to your organization’s success.  I want to expand on this a bit.

It is important that you tie your “Go-To-Market” plan into your annual budget plan – based on your financial schedule, syncing up with your 12-month fiscal calendar.

You need to develop this discipline whether you are a large of small organization.  You would be surprised on how many organizations do not follow this practice. 

As you go through your organization’s promotional and fiscal year, you should adopt the discipline of doing a forecast (or update) of the upcoming month’s advertising expenses, as it most likely has changed.  Compare to your budget and determine and report what is expected to change.

After the month has closed, also adopt the disciple of doing a reconciliation and review of that prior month’s performance.  Compare to both budget and forecast.  Determine what changed vs. the budget and forecast. 

Delegate parts of this planning process to key team members.  Gather input and share results (But, maintain confidentiality.) on a monthly basis.  Do this both within your organization at a management level, and within your department as well. 

This “Go-To-Market” planning process, tied to your budget plan, will keep you best assess the performance of your advertising and marketing activities throughout the year.  And, it will make future planning easier and more accurate. 

Bottom line, you will find yourself planning better for the future, eliminating wasteful expenditures, and more quickly reacting to unexpected marketing challenges.

Fred Kopp – Ideamaker

Simplicity + Cleverness = $$$$s!

(or “Sometimes the boss can actually write copy!”)

Sometimes successful ad campaigns can be remarkably simple.  Here’s an example.

Back when I was directing Wegmans’ advertising, I was brainstorming with my boss, Danny Wegman, on developing clever ways to increase awareness for their outstanding baked goods.  Their competitors not only were other supermarkets, but the donut shop chains as well.  Coincidentally, we were coming up on the fall harvest season – so our promotion was very timely. 

“Wegmans’ donuts make good gobblin’!” exclaimed Danny.

Huh? 

“Wegmans’ donuts make good gobblin’! – Get it?”  

Brilliant! 

Now how to blast this into consumers’ minds?   The next stop – our ad agency.  I wanted a creatively simple, yet powerful image for a TV spot. 

The solution?  A :10 second TV spot.  (Why :10 seconds?  Done right, the message sinks in immediately before viewers can flip channels, get up to go to the bathroom, or go to the fridge.)

The final :10 Wegmans TV spot – along with a great media schedule – featured the image of a mouth-watering Halloween donut that slowly turned on an axis.  As it did, the donut transformed with a big bite taken out of it.

The only audio in the spot were Danny Wegman’s original words… “Wegmans’ donuts make good gobblin’!” – enhanced with some subtle sound effects.

The result… Success!  So much so that this mini-campaign was repeated for many years.  Wegmans’ baked goods sales continued to increase.

Lesson learned… Cleverness and simplicity can effectively sell products and services.  And, sometimes even the boss can come up with great ad copy!

Fred Kopp – Ideamaker

Break Through the Clutter – Stand Out from Competitors

Consumers are bombarded with thousands of advertising messages a day… some sources say as many as 3,000 – some even more.  Thing is… consumers are busy and distracted – they only remember a handful of ad messages. 

I continously see “wasted advertising” dollars (Given my years of experience, I can’t resist looking for these all the time).  In todays’ tough economy, companies need to plan and see every ad dollar produces results.   The trick is to develop the right content that represents your value proposition; present it powerfully, creatively and clearly; focused on the right audience; and with repetition.  You need to stand out from your competitors and from media cutter in general. 

This is easier said than done!

Discipline and planning is required within your organization… well as holding your ad agency, web developer, graphic design services, or in-house creative group accountable.

A regional ad agency I visited years ago had a sign posted in their office… “B-25”.  (Nope, this was not a vintage aircraft).  That ad agency understood that the average customer only remembers 25 of those 3,000 messages they are bombarded with daily.  Their goal was to have every ad message created for their clients “be one of those 25 remembered messages”. 

“B-25”

Fred Kopp – Ideamaker