Creating a marketing plan with little or no budget…

Your local marketing toolkit

Emma James

Tasty Marketing

17 November 2010

•(from The Wall Street Journal)

•Some time ago in London, just after the release of Spiderman 3, the journalist visited a public toilet in central New York.

•Upon entering, he noticed a gap in the line of urinals, one was missing.

•Strange, he thought, then something caught his eye.

•The urinal wasn’t missing – it was elevated!

•There it was, hanging from the ceiling and beside it, on the wall, was a message:

•“Spiderman 3 – Out Now.”

•He was never to forget it.

•THAT IS THE POWER OF MARKETING – it’s not about money – it about how you use it! A smaller budget actually makes you more imaginative.

What is Marketing?

•The aim of marketing is to get more from existing customers through cross selling and referrals, plus bringing on board new customers.

Budget cuts and statistics…

“You can safely cut your marketing budget as long as you look for cheaper alternatives to keep communicating with your customers.” Moneyaside Magazine

“There's a saying that half of your marketing efforts are wasted, but its just knowing which half! Thomas Murrell, Marketing Expert

“Advertising grew by a mere 1% in 2008 according to Zenith Optimedia, but PR is much more impressive.” Digital Branding Magazine

Tips to Lower CostsUse your own database

Existing customers- more spend and more often

Use contacts and clients

Testimonials

Barter

Negotiate

Plan ahead

Bulk

Ask for recommendations and referrals

Relationships

Review methods and message constantly

Share contacts and affinities

BUDGETS…Where are you spending now?

•Advertising

•Direct mail and distribution

•Printing

•Signage

•Events and exhibitions

•New launches

• COST PER VIEWER?

• IS IT WORKING?

• MEASURING RESPONSE?

Are you spending wasted money?

•Target audience and medium – who, where, why, when how?

•Right message – benefits, length, understanding,

•The dreaded advertising – target, measure, attention

•Consumer vs B2B direct mail

•Planning ahead

•Differentiation

•Shows and exhibitions

•Asking customers

•Bargain and negotiate

•Don’t follow the competition

Step 1:

•Brainstorm

•Plan ahead

•Create a strategy and message

•Split per target audience or sector

•Research customers and competitors

•Get your team involved

Steps to prepare before creating the plan…

•USP

•PEST

•SWOT

•What do you want to achieve – recognition, enquiries, awareness, new markets, launches, growth.

•Ask the customers.

•What has happened before? How do clients find you now? What has worked and failed in the past?

Marketing Communications Strategy

•This is the promotional tools – the Marketing Mix also incorporates pricing, packaging, distribution and products / services.

•The chart (handout)

Some budget marketing tools…

•Public Relations

•Is it newsworthy

•Contact local publications

•Write a straight forward press release

•Take a photo – this can make or break the campaign

•Build journalist relationships

•Hold a press event or launch

Writing a Press Release

What is Newsworthy?

Ask the experts…

•James Tourgout, Editor of Dorset Echo – The press release must contain the basic information – who, what, where when, how? Ensure names are spelt correctly and the most important points are at the top.

•Gill Bevis, Editor of The Business magazine – Put the headline in the “re” line of the email and to ensure you stand out from the crowd. Ensure the press release is in a word document so that we can copy the relevant points across.

•Bridget Swann, Editor of Dorset Magazine – Keep the press release succinct. Make it easy for us to pick out the key points and ensure the photo is high resolution.

Budget marketing tools…

•Cherish Your Customers

•Celebrate together – hold events and parties – workshops to hospitality or just in house

•Find out what they want – research them / questionnaires

•Tell them what you’re doing – newsletters by email or hard copy

Budget marketing tools…

Create Special Offers

•Offer something different – can they buy more or come back again?

•Use seasons as an excuse

•Offer loyalty schemes

Budget marketing tools

•Sponsorship – rarely used to its full capabilities

•Sponsor local events - business

•Get involved with the community

•Charitable events / sponsorship

•Associations

Budget marketing tools…

•Think about Direct Mail

•B2B strength

•Email possibilities

•Team up with other firms

•Timing and message

•Call to action

•Databases

•Lumpymail

Direct Mail

•Lumpymail – a theory by Jon Goldman

•The World’s Greatest Direct Mail Secret Weapon

•Lumpymail.com

•Over shaped and oddly sized!

Lumpymail…The stats…

•The average person receives 3100 marketing messages per day!

•If you took all direct mail and laid it end to end, it would wrap around the world 6 times in just one year!

The 3 Piles•Everyone sorts their mail into 3 piles:

• C Pile: circular or crap!

• 87% of mail.• Junk mail,. Solicitation, adverts.

• B Pile: “I’ll think it over”

• NO!• Not immediate.

A PILE:

The golden ticket.Personal letter from Nan!Legal letter, wedding invite.GOOD LUMPYMAIL

How do I Get on the A Pile?

Break through the clutter – add a lump or bump

Make them curious – create a question, what the heck is this?

Make sure your piece rolls to the top

Be personal

Duct Tape Marketing – Direct MailPersonalisation builds trust

Target the list

Get the outer envelope right

Good things come in small packages

A splash of colour

Handwritten notes

Repetition and telling a story

Create a call-to-action

•With gravy lumps are bad, with mail lumps are good!

•“Notice me!” “Open me!”

Examples

•Impact Signs –

sweets, rock, muffins

•Go South Coast

•Tasty Marketing –

kidnap, sweets, eggs, Eric

•G&H Construction –

fish and chips

•Shooting Success

•Peeks

•Take a look at:

•Lumpymail.com

•Message muffins

•Butterfly Bakery

•RT Promotions

•Sweetsncandy.com

•The Carrier Bag Shop

•Peeks

FLU!

Viral marketing spreads – you want to encourage it!

E.g.

• networking

• Word of mouth

• Referrals

• Affinities

• Incentives

• Loyalty

• PR

• Newsletters

• Existing contacts

• Recommendations

• Testimonials

Newsletters

•“A newsletter is a conversation, not a speech!”

•FACTORS TO CONSIDER:

• Cost

• Method of sending

• Time

• Team involvement

• Personalisation

• Frequency

• Not too much selling – advice and news

• New products and launches

• Client cases

• Competitions and promotions

• Incentives to respond

• Templates

• Feedback

• Continuity long term

• Integration

• Title

• Columns

• Who are you speaking to?

• Look and feel

Ten Things Copy Should Always Be:

The Attention Economy

“Businesses need to get and hold a customer's attention in order to achieve business success”

Thomas C Davenport and John C Beck

“Attention is the focused mental engagement on a particular item of information.”

The Attention Economy

What type of business are you?

•B2B

•Affinity Marketing

•Seminars and workshops

•Direct Mail

•Eshots and newsletters

•Shows and exhibitions

•Networking and w.o.m.

•B2C

•Loyalty with other businesses

•In house materials

•Vouchers

•Brochures and catalogues

•Outdoor signage

NEXT STEPS (Duct tape marketing)

•1.What do you really want to achieve?

•2.Beleive it is possible!

•3.Put it in writing.

•4.List the detail of the benefits.

•5.Set a deadline.

•6.List the possible hurdles.

•7.What skills, people and resources do you need?

•8.Plan.

•9. Revise.

•10. Commit

Who are Tasty Marketing?

•Local marketing for local companies

•Specialist in Hants and Dorset

•The Menu

•www.tastymarketing.co.uk