Step #1 – Website and e-mail marketing

In Step #1 you can build a compelling one-two punch for your business.  I trust this goes without saying, but it is imperative that you have a fully functional website up and running.  Your website is your digital storefront/billboard/welcome mat for your business.  Not having one is a mortal sin, but having a website that is out-of-date or non-functional is just as bad.  What are the keys to a good website?

First of all, you need to make sure the site is well-designed.  It should be clean, easy to navigate, and fully convey your brand and messaging throughout.  Make sure it doesn’t take fifteen clicks to get to the pertinent information.  It should be easy for anyone to figure out who you are, what you do, and how to get in touch with you.  Also consider the amount of text on each page.  Unless your products or services are highly technical, try to limit the number or words you use.  Convey your message clearly and in simple fashion.

It is equally as important to make sure the website is designed in a way that will allow you to keep it updated.  Too many times companies invest in a custom website, but must rely on an outside company to make any updates or changes.  We highly recommend building a website with a Content Management System (CMS) platform such as WordPress.  This will provide you with a significant amount of control and ease-of-access to make updates and keep your website fresh and engaging.

With your website where you want it, make sure you integrate e-mail marketing into the mix.  You’ll want to have a landing page, opt-in page, or form somewhere on your website.  This will provide people with an opportunity to share their e-mail address and begin receiving newsletters or other e-mails from you.  The easier you make it for someone to provide their e-mail address, the faster you will build a relevant e-mail database to use for marketing.  Consider providing access to a whitepaper, e-book, or some other kind of “digital goodie” to incentivize/thank each person for sharing their e-mail.

Once you have a marketing list, you can begin to e-mail your clients and customers, prospects, and partners.  Be careful not to abuse your list (sending e-mails too frequently or e-mails that lack any relevance).  Those companies who really figure out the right message and frequency to their e-mail marketing strategy will be able to deliver strong call-to-action messaging to drive additional business.  You will want to make sure you are using an e-mail marketing program that can help measure key statistics and keep you in compliance with the CAN-SPAM Act.   The investment is worth it for the insightful data and for mitigating your liability.

Do you have a creative way you are leveraging your website?  How are you using e-mail marketing to drive business?    What is working for you?  Share your thoughts and opinions with us!

When it comes to marketing, there’s nothing quite like trying to keep up with the slew of emerging digital marketing tools to make you feel old and dated.  They seem to spring up quickly and multiply like rabbits!  Sometimes I’ll hear someone mention a hot new digital tool and think “huh?” while I run off and quickly do a Google search.

I have decided enough is enough.  I am putting my foot down on digital, (at least for the next week or so) which is why I want to spend some time talking about those old, outmoded traditional marketing tools.  I’m kidding of course!  Often, while we are all wrapped up in what is new, bright and shiny, we forget about some of the tried and true tools that still deliver results consistently.  When your team is made up of a lot of young, talented individuals, you can quickly forget that the entire world isn’t tied to Facebook, using Pinterest, or checking-in with Foursquare.  Sure, the demographics are certainly leaning digital, but you might be surprised to find that every marketing tactic in your arsenal doesn’t need to be digital to be relevant.

I was chatting with the VP of Marketing for a National chain in the travel industry last week.  He mentioned to me that 50% of their customers still prefer a direct mail approach.  While it may sound like an antiquated approach in the traditional marketing sphere, it is hard to beat something physical in the hands of your customers or prospects if it is getting the desired results.

It is the tangible and authentic feel of some of the traditional marketing tools that still makes them successful.  At the end of the day we like to connect with things, we like to touch them, and interact with them; we like to feel like they have some personal connection to us.  Sometimes a very well executed flyer, brochure, or direct mail piece can speak volumes about your business.  A well placed ad, especially in a highly targeted publication, can still reach the ideal audience for your product or service.  As radio and television become more decentralized and fragmented, there are opportunities to pick up valuable air time at a fraction of the cost. Right now there are businesses telling their story using traditional broadcast formats and finding success in their given markets.  One of the most effective of all the traditional tools is investing time and energy to connect within your community.  Whether through sponsorships with local events and organizations or providing support to a non-profit or charity event, this type of exposure is by far the most real, tangible interaction you will ever get for your business.  (Look for a future article discussing creative ideas for leveraging an event or partnership).

Again, I don’t want all of you to run off and put an end to all of your digital marketing initiatives, that’s not the point of this article.  We will spend plenty of time examining the power of digital marketing tools as well.  My hope is you will remember or at least consider the value traditional marketing can provide.  It’s ultimately about broadening your reach through multiple channels.  You might even consider how traditional marketing can strengthen your digital marketing efforts.  Although we have a lot of amazing developers and programmers working at xiik, we’ve worked diligently to keep our traditional offerings robust.  We have designers, graphic artists, strategists, and researchers ready to help your company develop, revise, or execute a comprehensive traditional marketing approach.  While it may be exciting to focus on emerging tools, please resist the temptation to put all of your “eggs” in the digital marketing “basket.”

What do you think?  Do you feel old?  Do you see the power of traditional marketing tools?  We would love to hear your success stories?  Reply here or leave your response on Twitter or Facebook.

Where to begin? I grew up loving business and have a real passion for marketing and strategy (probably one of the reasons I am now working at xiik). It seems natural to start this series with the basics…a real 50,000 foot view of marketing. It’s hard not to really “xiik out” when I think about where we’ve come in the world of marketing. There are so many amazing digital tools at our disposal and some tried and true traditional tools that work equally well. If we step back in history for just a second it’s amazing to consider just how far we’ve come.

In 1992, just 20 short years ago, a good marketing mix for a business might include: print advertising, direct mail, community sponsorships and engagement, and local radio and television commercials (if you had the budget). So simple we could probably manage our marketing plan in our sleep.

In 2002, we were still relying heavily on these traditional tools. Maybe we were using e-mail to do some marketing. If we had the budget, we probably had a website, but it was likely very static. There was still no Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, no saturation of text messaging, and blogging was still the little brother to message boards and chat rooms. Wow! How times have changed!

You might be wondering why this history lesson is relevant to you. Quite simply, the level of complexity that Presidents, CEOs, and Marketing Executives have to navigate just to keep their company and their brand at the forefront of consumer’s minds is overwhelming. While it might seem easy to say, “We’ll just stick with what works for us,” the reality is a fully optimized mix of marketing tools is the only way to remain relevant and positioned for success in today’s fast-paced business climate.

If you have an in-house marketing team there can still be a lot of value in using an outside firm to assist with strategy and execution. Regardless of the size of your marketing team or breadth of your marketing capabilities there can be a real savings of time, resources, and energy when you look for external assistance. Pardon me for the in-blog commercial, but the reason I get so excited about xiik is the fact that we have the ability to deliver the most cutting-edge digital marketing tools, while still maintaining good old fashioned expertise with traditional marketing tools as well. This approach can be a real win-win and can keep you from falling too far behind to the competition in terms of your marketing mix.

In the coming weeks, I am going to delve deeper into both traditional and digital marketing tools and further expand on the growing complexity of marketing today. Soon you will understand why having multiple marketing tools in your arsenal just makes good business sense and why finding the right marketing partner to help you can make all of the difference.

In the meantime, if you think your marketing plan might be due for a “check-up,” please send us an e-mail or give us a call.

Here’s a quick question as well: What area of marketing do you see as being most challenging for your company or business to execute? We’d love to hear your feedback!

In essence, it doesn’t seem like a difficult request to fulfill:  gather the tools and resources at our disposal, and lay them out for someone to see in a lovely list.  An Excel Spreadsheet, even.   And, in theory, it’s easy to categorize what tools might be helpful consider putting in someone’s toolbox.  Yet as I find myself sitting down repeatedly to craft this list, I continue to struggle.

Because it’s not in the list — it’s in the strategy and skilled execution of the plan that the magic actually happens.    It’s similar to having Harry Potter’s list of school supplies.  Even if you could find the perfect wand (yes, I know the wand chooses you, Potter fanatics), education, knowledge and care are required to pull off the perfect spell.

My hesitation and struggle in creating this metaphor for my friend is this:  without fully understanding what he’s trying to accomplish, any such list holds very little value.  It doesn’t provide recommendations, guidance, priority, or measurable results.   Instead, it’s almost dangerous because it might send him down a path without the appropriate guard rails in place.

Ultimately, the presentation ended up titled the “Universe of Marketing.”  A 150 Million KM view of how the pieces put together.  I pulled in a 3rd grade graphic of the solar system (old, as Pluto was still a planet on this version) and outlined the planets as aspects of what we do.  The metaphor works well enough to explain the depth of information within each area of business, and to some degree the scope of ‘orbit.’  The presentation went well in person, when I was able to explain the weaknesses of the metaphor, dig into some of the intricacies and overlap, and answer questions as they came up.  However, it’s also one I’m not likely to share without being available in person to fully explain.

The number of options available these days to craft a strategic plan are as infinite as the universe itself.  There’s no one ‘right’ solution, just a variety of tools to be used to meet your end goal.  Beware of any organization that utilizes a ‘one fits all solution’ or fails to think about the big picture while asking questions and crafting your plan.  And ensure you’re carefully considering your measurable end goal.

Is what you don’t know you don’t know keeping you up at night?  If you find yourself lying in bed concerned about a business problem that needs a solution I won’t offer an intricate chart to let you go off and figure it out on your own.  But I can offer this:  a willing ear, diplomatic and straight-forward questions and guidance, strategy, and a customized solution based on what makes sense for you.  Plus, we’ll have a hell of a lot more fun and be more effective than if I just give you an Excel sheet with a list of things you *might* want to consider doing.

What methods have you found that are helpful in taking an integrated approach in your marketing strategy?

The best answer is found by considering your own needs, your current knowledge of the process and available resources.  Still, because I hear this question so frequently, here’s my two cents in the hopes it helps you in your own researching phase.  Of course, I’m also always happy to guide you to a decision in person, as well!

How to choose an Agency

You’ve most likely realized that working with an agency brings the benefit of having a team of experts, each adept at their particular area and experienced at working with others to produce results no one could achieve on their own.  At this point, the choice should become less about price, and more about fit.  Here are a few questions to ask yourself as you begin the research phase:

Has the organization does this before?

Yes, your needs are unique, but the organization you work with should be able to provide comparable examples to the work you need under discussion. At a minimum, look for signs that the organization has skills that will be easily transferrable to your project!

Can the organization provide comprehensive strategic thinking?

Most agencies can throw together a website these days.  However, the recommendations provided must consider your long-term organizational goals.  If you’re not discussing the ways the strategy will provide a return on your investment, your team may be missing the boat.  Also, make sure your team is capable of bringing ideas, recommendations, and long term support as your needs or problems change.  A great article we’ve posted on in the past about digital vs. integrated marketing teams was written a few years ago by our own Topher Overstreet.

Are the recommendations provided scalable?  Do they integrate with your full plan?

Your team is responsible for ensuring your project meets your immediate needs, but should also be an advisor to keep you abreast of the latest trends and ideas to further enhance your business.  Additionally your agency should steer you in the right direction because a tool meets your needs, not because it’s something they like doing.  (A great read about custom Content Management Systems by Doug Karr can be found  here.)

Do you have an excellent rapport with the team you’ll be working with?

Expect to have a few bumps in the road.  Your agency team should be your advocate, and will occasionally need to ask difficult, challenging questions.  Ensure you’re comfortable that the team you’re working with will do so, and that when they do, you’ll be comfortable answering them honestly.   Do you feel like you’re interviewing these guys?  Run.  Like.  Hell.

Does the team have great references?

Most agencies have case studies of the work they’re proud of on their site.  If you’re happy with the look and feel on their portfolio, ask for references and ask about their satisfaction with the work throughout the process, and after the project was completed.   The number one question:  was it effective?   The number two question: was the process fun?

Making a choice about the organization to work with does require research and a great deal of trust.  Above all, make sure you’re comfortable that the team you work with brings the right mix of skills to make your project both effective AND enjoyable.  I’d love to know – what research did you do when you chose a team to work with?   What other steps or questions would you recommend?

Mutt Strut, a dog walk around the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, is the signature fundraising event for the Humane Society of Indianapolis (IndyHumane), bringing in hundreds of thousands of dollars for the non-profit organization every year.

The 2011 IndyMuttStrut.org website

Several years ago, the event had only one section dedicated to it on IndyHumane’s website. For an event of this magnitude, this had to change. IndyHumane needed to raise more money at the event to support its services, and it needed to do that by sharing more info in better ways with its followers.

In 2009, IndyHumane chose xiik to design and develop Mutt Strut’s first dedicated website. In addition to giving Mutt Strut an enhanced brand experience for supporters, the site integrated the event registration system IndyHumane had successfully used in prior years. That year’s event broke previous fundraising and attendance records, attracting thousands of people and raising hundreds of thousands of dollars.

In 2010, IndyHumane worked with xiik to redesign the site again, giving it a smoother interface, the ability to feature videos on the homepage, and a comprehensive FAQ section. The event broke its previous records again, in spite of a torrential day-long downpour.

This year, in addition to hiring xiik to develop the back-end of its newly redesigned website, IndyHumane again used xiik to redesign IndyMuttStrut.org, integrating design elements from the event’s new branding, photos from past events, and RSS feeds with updates on fundraising goals. The event raised more money than last year.

The success of the past several Mutt Struts have been due in part to IndyHumane’s ability to share the most pertinent information about such a big event in a simple yet effective way. How many times have you planned to go to a special event – a concert, fundraiser, fair, etc. – only to be frustrated by the lack of information online? A dedicated, easy-to- use website helps any event.

Whether you’re a for-profit business or a non-profit organization, you need a good web presence to promote your major efforts – it’s the easiest, fastest way to get the most important information out to the most valuable people.

Have you used a particularly great special-event website lately? Seen one in need of a touchup? Or do you know of a great event that doesn’t even have a web presence and is missing out on its potential? Share your thoughts in the comments section.

Closet Works Customers Near You Map

Closet Works specializes in creating custom cabinetry, and with more than 22,000 customers in the Chicago area, they had a powerful client base but no way to use it to attract more customers. After all, custom cabinets aren’t something the typical homeowner purchases often.

Closet Works partnered with xiik to develop a customer map tool that shows potential customers just how much of an impact Closet Works has had in their area. The xiik-designed Customers Near You map enables site visitors to plug in their zip code and see how many of their neighbors within a 5-mile radius chose Closet Works for their custom cabinets.

Customer information and address are left anonymous to protect privacy, but individual branded placemarks identify the collective presence that Closet Works has within a neighborhood. With so many customers, the visual effect of the map is immediate and impressive.

Closet Works’ Customer Map is featured prominently on their homepage. But they know this application of technology isn’t a one-stop solution for growing their business, and they carefully consider all aspects of their brand online and in person. They specialize in good customer service, as their 4.5-star rating on the popular review site Yelp attests.

Closet Works has proven that it’s easy to leverage what you already have with new technology if you work with the right people. If you’re interested in learning how you can use new technology to grow an established customer base for your brand, contact xiik today.

A nine-year-old boy stood more than 20 feet in the air in a hayloft, stretching his hands out toward a rope swing. His friend below had just launched the long rope (which was strung from the very top peak of the barn) up toward the boy above. But just as the boy reached to grasp the rope and swing out across the barn, his friend accidentally pulled back on the rope to relaunch it and looked up to see the boy suddenly falling down—head first—toward the hard, wooden floor below…

Cliffhanger! What does this story have to do with anything and why is it related to xiik?

Marketing is all about telling stories. I was reminded of this yesterday while attending the MBO Conference in Indianapolis, Indiana. Two of the sessions I went to were focused on content planning and strategy—very critical for successful marketing campaigns.

Don Schindler of AgencyND spoke about the successful elements of a story:

The Exposition—quickly setting the scene
Hook—revealing the problem
Rising Action—keep them hooked while building the story
Climax—everything builds to this moment
Resolution—finally giving the answer

Seventh grade English, right? I recall sitting at my desk in junior high, sketching that graph every English teacher wants you to learn. You know—the one that looks vaguely like a mountain range?

So what does basic plot structure have to do with marketing? Everything!

Your target audience must be engaged with your message to gain their interest in your product/services/ideas. A compelling story will captivate your audience and draw them in so that you can lead them toward your goal.

Many folks in the marketing industry fall back on the easy route—using the same old marketing language: “our product can change your life” or “we will beat our competitor’s price.” In this way, we forget that effective marketing messages aren’t written for a company’s compliance office or CEO—they are written for everyday people who are captivated by real, compelling stories about mystery, intrigue, romance, and adventure!

The young boy falling down from the hayloft in the story above was my father’s cousin and the boy standing below was my father. Miraculously, as his cousin was falling down, one of the hay bales in the stack below him just happened to be sticking out a bit from the others and managed to break his fall enough to flip him around so he could land feet first. Had those bales of hay been stacked squarely, he may not have survived that fall. My father recounted that story to my brothers and me when we were children as an example of how one tiny unexpected thing can change your life.

To me, successful marketing is like that bale of hay. A fascinating story that sticks out from the usual “marketing speak” can capture people’s attention and possibly even change the course of their life by influencing them to make a decision they wouldn’t have otherwise considered.

I know I am reenergized—how about you?

Mass Effect, BioWare’s latest role-playing game, is one example. It really pushes story and engages the player with well-defined characters with whom s/he can relate. Naturally, real world scenarios come into play, in this case, sex. Good old-fashioned digital gaming sex!

Now, let it be known that these in-game sex scenes are totally mild. Just like in film, games have a rating system to help prevent minors from playing them. So why would it be any different for a game to introduce sexuality and real emotion, especially considering the increasingly wider demographic that gaming represents? The production director for Mass Effect 2 describes,

“When I play a game, I always find it odd when I’m just running around shooting things and beating things up without understanding why I care. I need a personal reason to care. That’s something that the characters offer.”

This gaming trend got me thinking more about how sex may be spreading to other new media, namely the Internet. And no, we aren’t talking pornography here, which practically started the internet. Instead, the focus is on companies that were originally more conservative and have completely rebranded themselves around that famous phrase: Sex sells.

American Apparel is my primary example. They are HOT! From one look at their home page, it is clear that this brand isn’t afraid to show some skin, literally. Their suggestive promotions leave customers wanting more. In other words, they have brought sexy back.

Just as we play games like Mass Effect to immerse ourselves in a fantasy and connect to its characters, we visit the American Apparel website in hopes we’ll find sexier duds for the avatar that is our real identity. The engaging photography, beautiful models and seductive marketing keep us browsing and fantasizing, until (in their hopes) we arrive at an item we simply must have.

Of course, American Apparel isn’t the only retailer with an unorthodox way of marketing. There are plenty of others, including one of our well-known quality denim suppliers, Diesel, pictured below.

So what does this mean? That our heads are stuck in the gutter and more brands are giving in too? I don’t think so. Rather, these companies have capitalized on a part of life that is captivating and, frankly, always on our minds. Their marketing strategies have shifted to a more progressive way of thinking to keep pace with changing generational attitudes and globalization. The younger crowd is less squeamish about the human anatomy than its predecessor, as are several Westernized cultures across the Atlantic. Like it or not, get used to seeing even more sex than you’ve seen before. As graphics technologies have begun to create interactive experiences that more closely mimic our sensory world, never before have we been so captivated by websites and games. Buckle up, it’s gonna be a risqué ride!

So, how does a company like xiik relate to an athlete like Shaun White?

Like him, there are some mad skillz here at xiik. Maybe not quite his snowboarding skills, but we’re pretty savvy when it comes to marketing. We have years of marketing experience, boat loads of creativity and the ability to execute those ideas through web, video and print. Every day we challenge ourselves and our clients to pull out the “big guns” and craft up a product that will be mind-blowing. If Shaun White needed an interactive website, video, marketing materials or anything else to sustain his brand, he could come to us and let us “put down tricks” in the form of interactive marketing.

If our team took a vacation to go take snowboarding lessons from Shuan White himself, I’m pretty sure none of us would be doubting what the pro instructed us to do. We would let the professional do his job because he has mastered his craft! Sure we can give our suggestions where we see fit, but at the end of the day we respect his gold medals. The same can be said for our company. We love getting input from our clients and should always be a part of the creative process, but our expertise helps us guide our clients down path safely and effectively. We might not be competing in Vancouver this winter, but for everyone here at xiik, a client’s success is our gold medal.

Read more about White’s accomplishments here. Read more about xiik’s here.