Ways to Engage Consumers for Advertisements

Whether on a streaming service, online or when watching a video, at some point we’ve all been just waiting for the “skip ad” button to pop up so we can click on it to get to what we’re there for. It occurred to me that I do this almost 100% of the time and I’m not alone. A study done by IPG showed that 65% of people skip video ads as soon as they get the chance. Some even stated that it is purely habit at this point. So, how do advertisers get people engaged to view their advertisements? What makes someone stop what they are doing and watch the ad or forget that the skip button is even there? We decided to do some research to find out the best ways to engage an audience with campaigns and this is what we found.

1.     Know where to advertise. This is number one in our opinion. Putting ads that are similar to content being viewed will most likely pique the interest of a consumer. For example, if someone is reading a running blog an ad for Brooks running shoes would be placed on the site. Programmatic advertising can assist brands with this and increase efficiency. Knowing where your target audience is most engaged is key.

2.     Get straight to the point and keep it short. You’ve got 8 seconds to hook, line and sink er’. That’s the average attention span of Gen Z and it’s still only 12 for Millennials. As we keep saying, attention spans are getting shorter, so don’t lose your audience by creating a 3-minute advertisement.

3.     Throw in something different. Attract immediate attention with something funny, odd or by pointing something important out. You may ask a thought-provoking question or show a compelling image. We know that always gets us to stop and watch. We always appreciate a creative campaign that stands out. Take the recent Liquid Death ad for example.

4.     Tell a story or share a personal experience. Telling a story can be done very well through the use of user generated content in your spots. It will help your audience connect with your brand. Look at our past campaign for Oreo “Stay Playful.” It asks their audience to stay playful and uses shots of UGC of regular people shooting basketballs during March Madness to connect with them.

5.     Be slightly mysterious. A study found that brands who introduced themselves too early look pushy and it will not go over well with your audience. Try to throw it in after the hook in order to help keep them watching until the end.

6.     Don’t be overly positive. This one is odd we know, but it has been shown that people tend to get annoyed when they see an ad that’s seemingly too happy. Although that may seem weird, when someone may not be in a great mood themselves, the last thing that they want to see is overly artificial happiness. Honestly, we’d be bothered by it.

7.     Put the brand logo next to the skip button. This is a little trick. Since people tend to skip video ads, this is to help ensure that they will still remember your brand name after they skip your ad. Although, it’s been disputed that it may not have a high impact, it can’t hurt right?!

There are many types of video ads to promote your product or service such as outstream, instream and social media video. Whatever advertising avenue you choose make sure to get the most eyes on your videos.

Friday Fun Fave 6/10/22

This week’s Friday favorite is from Liquid Death water brand. The brand did a bold ad where they have people do a blind taste-test that had people vomiting… Literally! This one is not for the faint of heart but man it’s a belly laugh kind of ad. In order to hype up their new sparkling water the put it next to “The Most Expensive Beverages on Earth.” These “most expensive beverages” are not truly beverages at all. They consist of things such as Spanish squid ink concoctions, caviar, and lobster Béarnaise sauce. To be honest, I don’t even know what that sauce is and I can be sure I would not want to drink it. One person did actually throw up. A lot spit it out. Apparently, one guy called later to ask how to get the taste out of his mouth according to Adweek. These poor tasters had no idea what they were in for and that is what makes it so GREAT! Liquid Death water the heavy metal of packaged water. You gotta’ love what they stand for with slogans like Death to Plastic and Murder Your Thirst. Obviously, Liquid Death water won the round versus the weird and gross tasting mixes they came up with. This ad was created in collaboration with Hey Wonderful Productions.

Why Customer Reviews Matter

87% of people read reviews when considering a purchase and 79% trust them as much as they would a personal recommendation (Forbes). As we know here at Locomotive, people trust real people when it comes to advertisements and brand recommendations. It’s part of the reason we truly believe in what our company does. But do customer reviews actually correlate to increase or decreased revenue? Do the reviews actually impact the business coming in? The answer is yes, most definitely! Actually, according to a study conducted on hotel sales impacted by online customer reviews in the International Journal of Hospitality Management, there is a “significant relationship between online consumer reviews and business performance of hotels.” This is not really surprising. We all do it. Let’s say that we want to buy something online. So, what is the first thing that we do? We look at the products online reviews to see what others are saying about it. Then we weigh out our options by searching that same product from their competitors. This helps us get a clear picture of what we’re buying before we buy it when we can’t touch or see it in real life. “66% of consumers consider positive reviews to be an important factor in their purchase decision” (SOCi). It makes sense. Word of mouth is one of the most powerful factors in driving business growth. Online reviews are just the digital version of this and it has even been dubbed eWOM, standing for “electronic word of mouth” now. Furthermore, a Hard University Study found that, “a one-star increase in a restaurant’s Yelp rating led to a 9% increase in revenue.” Seems that the numbers cannot be ignored. Customer reviews do affect a business and do matter. It’s important that this is not be ignored and feedback from your audience must be addressed in order to keep a positive light on your brand.

Programmatic Advertising

Some of you may already know what programmatic advertising is but just in case we thought we would explain it for those who may not. Programmatic ads are done through the use of software or AI to buy digital advertising space. This connects publishers who own website domains with advertisers and takes the arduous task away from people having to manually do it. The software uses an algorithm to determine where the ad space is best for your target audience in order to increase your ROI. The brand gives the information of audience specifications, key performance indicators and information on the ad campaigns. The program will then create the algorithm to fit and find the perfect placements for your digital ads. After the ads go live, it will monitor and look for areas of improvement. This type of advertising couldn’t be more critical with the Google phase out of thirds party cookies. We are entering a digital era of personal information confidentiality and it’s only going to get harder to find your online audience with privacy at the forefront. This will be one of the best ways to get your ads in front of the right consumers. Here are some other reasons why it is important.

1.     Real-time adjustments. Since it is being monitored, it can show how the ad is doing based on impressions and can be adjusted as needed.

2.     Larger audience reach. Since there is purchasing power from any ad space, this increases the audience it will reach. Advertisers have a large pool of publishers, which will increase ROI as well.

3.     Efficiency. Budget is better spent. “More relevant ads are served through targeting” (Publift). Taking the human out of the equation who has to search for, inquire, and purchase the spaces makes this more efficient. It is so much faster with software and will save the company money in the end.

The future is digital! Making sure your company is up to date on the newest software and techniques for their advertising is going to be a key component to their success. Taking advantage of software that performs programmatic advertising will save your brand money, streamline your digital ad space buying process and help you reach a wider audience than before. Why wouldn’t your brand want to take advantage of this when it seems like a no brainer right?! Happy advertising! 

Understanding Purchasing Motivations

We all buy things… but why? What is the reason you bought that new pair of shoes? Well, actually there are really only 6 reasons that we buy things. It’s important as a business to understand these motives in order to align your product or service to your audience. You will need to define what problem your product or service solves for the customer in order to define what motive they will have in purchasing from you. Let’s take a look at the 6 buying motivations.

1.     Buying for profit/gain. Marketing for this type of motivation requires showing the benefits of buying. How does it improve someone’s life? Does it have high ROI or great reward? What can one achieve from buying this service or product? The type of products and services that come to mind are investments and education but it is not limited to this type of product or service.

2.     Fear of loss. This type of consumer is not a risk taker… obviously. This will help the consumer hold on to something they already have, such as their home. Products and services that come to mind are home owner’s insurance or further training for employee customer service.

3.     Comfort, convenience and pleasure. This one really speaks for itself. It’s that new blender you bought for smoothies or that newest laptop for work. These purchases make someone’s life easier or more convenient.

4.     Security & protection. This one is similar to fear of loss. Think of home security, cyber security or just the safest decision over another. For example, choosing one brand over another because WOM (word of mouth) recommendations.

5.     Pride of ownership. Remember that time you bought those nice Gucci sunglasses? Was it because you really liked them and they were far superior to others? Probably not 100% true. Sometimes buying something that comes with grandeur due to their reputation can be something we feel we deserve for our hard work. And there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. Marketing to this group of consumers will come with giving them feelings of gratification, dignity as well as a feeling of “high class.”  

6.     Satisfaction of emotion. This stimulates some type of an emotional response. Marketing for this type of audience is probably the easiest in our opinion. Most people are emotional buyers and will then justify their decision with some logic. Let’s look at an example though for clarification. Imagine that someone purchases a repurposed dining room table from a local, small business. This can create a feeling of personal satisfaction from supporting local business as well as feeling a sense of pride from choosing more sustainable options.

Understanding buying motivations is key to your marketing and advertising strategies. Knowing what category your brand falls under in terms of buying motivations will help deepen your understanding of your customer base. Why will your customers be buying your products or services? Will it create convenience or will it be purely for pride of ownership? If your brand understands where it will fall for buying motivation, sales & retention will inherently increase as a result.

Friday Fun Fave 6/3/22

This week our Friday fun favorite is one to kick off Pride Month! The “Taste so Good” music video for Cann, a cannabis beverage, and Weedmaps weed delivery service is a catchy hit! Featuring icons, such as Patricia Arquette, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Kesha and stars from Rupaul’s Drag Race, the campaign boasts that cannabis infused cocktails won’t give you the hangover that alcohol does. The brand, Cann is a queer-founded company that prides themselves on creating inclusion within the cannabis industry. The ad itself features a diverse group of people of all gender identity spectrums in colorful attire that resembles the rainbow. This was produced by London Alley in Los Angeles. We truly loved this advertisement. It was so fun and promotes a great message of LGBTQ+.

Finding Your Brand Target Market

Let’s first talk about the difference between target audience and target market. A target market is a set of consumers that a company plans to sell or reach with marketing activities where a target audience is the group or segment within that target market that is being served ads (Marketing Evolution). In this article we will focus on the target market and how your brand can identify yours. Target market is important for businesses in order to be more efficient on targeting specific groups instead of mass marketing to those who may have no interest. It also builds interest in the brand, loyalty and create a higher potential growth of sales. Here are some tips to start finding your brand’s target market.

1.     Determine what needs your product fills. Analyze your product. Who would buy this product and why? This will help you determine the bullet listed in number 4. Let’s look at an example. Your brand sells home good appliances. Your market then would be older adults who own home or rent.

2.     Collect data. Conduct market research. You can do your own research by drawing on existing data, looking at your own network, or gathering from metrics (Forbes). You can collect data using surveys, focus groups and in person talks and/or observations.

3.     Look at your competition. Conduct a competitor analysis. You can do this by looking at their business background. Where are they located and what type of facilities do they have? Look at their products. How’s the quality? What are they missing that you can offer? Look at their social media and take notes. What are their sales strategies? For more information on how to do this visit this LINK.

4.     Choose demographics & physiographics. Demographics are very important in determining your market as stated above. These include age, location, gender, income, education level, marital status, occupation, and ethnicities. And we’ve all heard of demographics but what are physiographics? These are attributes such as personality, values, lifestyle, interests, attitudes, and hobbies or your target market. All of these combined will help create a complete picture of who you will be selling your products to and how to properly market to them.

Finding your brand’s target market will take some work if you’re a new business breaking into a field. The benefits outweigh the time spent on this research and development toward finding your niche market. Funneling your brand’s audience will assist in being more efficient with time and resources spent on marketing to the correct audience. An audience who is interested in your product will create more sales and overall brand loyalties. Even if you’re a company that has been in business for a while, it’s always good to reassess your target market as trends tend to shift over time.

Memorial Day 2022

 Did you know that Memorial Day first began shortly after the Civil War ended in the spring of 1865? It was originally dubbed Decoration Day since the original purpose was putting flowers and decorating graves of fallen soldiers. It became an official holiday in 1971, where its federally declared birthplace was Waterloo, NY. After World War II it evolved into something where Americans would pay respects for all soldiers who died in all wars serving the United States. This holiday is really anything but happy as we remember those who gave their lives for their country. However, we can pay respects in many ways all across the continent. Some host parades, some visit cemeteries, some wear red, white and blue. Some even honor the fallen by giving back to the living veterans on this day. Visit this website to learn more on ways to do this. There is also a universal moment of silence that takes place at 3pm local time everywhere in the U.S. on this last Monday of May. Although, it’s a great way to appreciate those around you and spend quality time with family and friends, understanding why we do this every year is important. Whatever way you decide to pay your respects today, just realize that it’s not just another 4-day weekend to drink beer and eat BBQ.

Friday Favorite 5/27/22

This week’s Friday favorite ad is not so fun. However, in lieu of the events in Texas this past week we felt compelled to share of our thoughts. This week’s ad is the March for our Lives PSA Addresses Uvalde Tragedy. The ad talks about the meaninglessness of “thoughts and prayers.” The March for our Lives Foundation laid out body bags on the National Mall to make a statement that literally nothing has changed over the years as these acts of gun violence continue to happen. The sad part is that this ad was created back in March and has just resurfaced due to the tragic events that occurred again this week. “In the 62 days since these body bags were laid in front of the Capital, 1 person was shot dead and 4 critically wounded in Laguna Woods, CA. 11 people were shot dead in Buffalo, N.Y. 21 people were shot dead ion Uvalde, TX. Including 19 children.” (Adage). It’s time for some real change in this country with respect to gun laws and it’s time that our senators begin taking this seriously. The video ends with a plea that these senators vote on background checks to purchase a gun. The proposed Enhanced Background Checks Act of 2021 has been sitting on their desks since it conception. Others in this country are also pushing for the ban of assault weapons. We implore you to watch this video on CNN from Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut if you already haven’t. These mass shootings only happen in this country. Something is wrong. Something has to be done! We have to start taking real steps towards fixing this issue. Our teachers and children should not be afraid for their lives at school! Now is the time for change! This influential ad was created by McCann-New York.

Omnichannel Marketing Approach

One of advertisings biggest challenges today is to market across multiple platforms. Multi-channel and omnichannel are similar but not interchangeable. Multi-channel marketing is the distribution of content and ads across multiple channels. Omnichannel marketing means that the customer journey will span multiple channels online and off. This omnichannel marketing could be in the form of websites, text, email, social media, and apps to name a few. According to a study done by Harvard Business Reviewdone on 46,000 shoppers, they concluded that, “73% of them used multiple channels through their shopping journey.” This approach is important to creating a seamless and positive customer experience.

So, how does a brand create an effective omnichannel marketing strategy? Let’s look at one example of great omnichannel marketing to start and break it down from there. Take Starbucks for example. They have created an absolutely seamless system within their app. To start, it works as a reward system with each purchase to earn points toward a free drink once it hits a certain number. I mean, who doesn’t like free stuff? Ok, let’s take a look at their app. You can reload your account with your linked card on file. You can do this through their website, over the phone, on the app or at a physical location. Something else they shifted focus on during the pandemic to reduce contact was their order ahead option. Don’t feel like waiting in line? Order ahead and pick it up on your way to work. This increased their revenue by offering another option other than in person ordering. Now they have both. This is seamless omnichannel marketing at is best.

However, one has to keep in mind that every business is not the same and each one will have to make a custom marketing plan. Let’s take a look at how to create one effectively with some tips.

1.     Put yourself in your customer’s shoes. Plan their experience with a detailed plan by asking yourself, “what would my customers want?” This will make the brand customer centric in order create a seamless experience for them. Try things out to see what works and what doesn’t flow smoothly.  

2.     Start with website and social media cohesion. Be consistent and on brand within both channels. Using the same message across all channels will help here but don’t use a plug and paste style. They should differ slightly without losing the brand voice.

3.     If your business calls for it, create an app. Almost every industry today could be tapping into the app business. Let’s look at an example here. A family member just called to tell you that your blender broke and you’re hosting a party later today. Now you’re are in the market for a new blender and fast! But… you’re out at the grocery store right now. You don’t have a computer on you and you don’t want to drive around all day looking for the item. What do you do? You get on your phone and do a search. You literally do this in line as you wait to pay for your groceries. You see that a Bed Bath and Beyond nearby has what you want. You download their app for ease of purchasing, use their coupon (since they always seem to have one available) and seamlessly buy your new blender a for pickup. Crisis averted!

4.     Don’t forget your CTA’s! Social ads that finish with call to actions that lead to app downloads. After making a purchase include a CTA to share it on the customer’s social media.

It’s easy to see why having an omnichannel marketing strategy is important in the tech heavy world that we live in today. People want ease. They want personalization. They want to not feel like something other than just another face in the crowd. Creating loyal customers through an omnichannel marketing strategy is a great way to build your brand and bridge the trust between you and your audience.

Tapping Into Gen Z for Advertising

Who’s ready for some changes? We know we are and Gen Z is proving to be new type of market when it comes to the advertising world. They are like no other that came before them. Let’s talk about the biggest difference between Gen X, Millennials and Gen Z. Millennials remember a time before social media whereas Gen Z does not know a world without it. Even more, their Gen X counterparts grew up on MTV with zero social media. I don’t think it really comes as a surprise that Gen Z is a unique group who can’t imagine a world without tech. Actually, 45% of Gen Zers say that they are online almost constantly according to Rolling Stone. Since the insurgence of smartphones, people can watch anything from anywhere and that’s what this generation does. They rely on social media platforms for almost everything. There are a couple of questions to ask yourself when considering how to market to this new breed of consumers.

1.   Can they trust your brand? They want transparency and they want it now. Since this generation can and will find answers to information they have questions for, make sure your brand is be honest. They will also build a relationship with your brand if they feel that they can relate to what your company stands for.

2.     Do you stand for something? Brand neutrality is a no go for this generation. They want brans that stand up for social injustices. They want brands that aren’t afraid to take a stand for what’s right even if that means offending some of their audience.

3.     Are you influencer savvy? They don’t care about celebrities! Relatability takes the driver seat with them. They want people that they can relate to not paid actors. This is another reason UGC is extremely affective to connecting with them!

4.     Can you make it fast? 8 seconds to be exact. That’s the average attention span of this generation according to iab.uk! Are you really that shocked? And before you getting too cheeky, just know that Millennials are right behind them with a whopping 12 seconds.

5.     Do you know how to use each social media platform differently and accordingly? Not only should you diversify your content across each platform it needs to be tailor fit!

Gen Z harnesses the power of $143 billion since they comprise 40% of the U.S. population according to Forbes. If your brand wants to uncover ways to tap into their market it’s important to understand what they value in a company. They’re different. Changes are coming and we think that they’re honestly for the better. Who doesn’t want to support a brand that takes social stances, is trustworthy and transparent?

CTA: Why is it Important?

CTA or call to action buttons have a large role to play in advertising. This is where a brand turns someone who is a viewer into their customer. A lead into a client. According to Creative MMS, CTA’s on landing pages increase conversion rates by as high as 80%. But how? A call to action can help seal the deal on an ad campaign or website page. It inspires your audience to take the next step through giving the viewer obvious instructions what do next. The smoother the brand makes their CTA experience the better. People expect brands to give them information on what to do next so they don’t have to problem solve if they’re interested in what your brand has to offer.  

What do CTA’s look like though? Let’s walk through them. First, submission forms. It can be for a newsletter or something similar where your audience becomes more identifiable through emails. One of the most common types of CTA’s found on websites are service/product discovery. As the name states, they lead people to services/products offered by the company. Another popular type is sharing. This offers the viewers to share the content across social media platforms and increases visibility for your brand. One that is commonly found on video content is “learn more” or “continue reading” buttons. However, these tend to perform lower than download now buttons (HubSpot). One specific type of CTA is event promotion and is exactly as it sounds.

Now that we’ve discussed some types of CTA’s, what makes one more compelling than another? Let me preface by saying that testing should always be done within a company to see what types of CTA’s and placements work best for the brand. There are a few guidelines that a brand can stick to otherwise to ensure a solid CTA. One, clearly stated benefits and actionable texts for the user. This takes the brain work out of the decision making for consumers who already have insane decision fatigue from fast-paced lifestyles. Two, exceptional designs that make the CTA stand out with contrast to the page or video to attract attention immediately. Three, keep it short! It must be five words or less. Last, and most important, proper placement is key. It must be the most visible thing and command attention. This will require some trial and error to get it just right.

The key takeaway here is that calls to action buttons are important for brands. They shouldn’t be an aspect of ad campaigns or websites that are mistakenly overlooked. They help funnel sales and create new clients. People expect to be assisted on what to do next after reading or watching. CTA’s take the leg work out for them, gives them a direct roadmap, and transitions become seamless from leads to clients.   

Silent Video

“Silence is a source of great strength”

-Lao Tzu

Imagine that you’re in a quiet work environment. You get on your phone to look something up. As the page finishes loading, a loud blast of sounds starts coming through and you fumble to get your volume button pressed down to zero. We’ve all had this happen to us. It’s disruptive and it affects people negatively. Turns out that 66% of people hate it when ads automatically play with sound on according to an article by Teads. In response, advertisers are trying to mitigate this by producing ads that begin to play automatically without sound. Since outstreamed videos are going to become a thing of the future, advertisers should focus on silent plays with captions. According to Facebook, captioned video ads increased views by 12%. Ads should be able to convey an emotional message without the use of sound. This can be done with the use of motion graphics and text within the campaign. This new trend will be a way for advertisers to use their creative license to make videos impactful despite not having any sound.  We’re certain your team has the creative abilities to do this but here are some quick tips to get you started on ways to make your silent spots stand out and perform well.

1.     Use bold visuals and/or animations. This will help catch the viewers eye and keep them engaged. It’s also very visually striking to see good fonts and animations that blend well together within your brand’s signature look.

2.     Use Call to Action buttons. Make sure to insert in a way that it is natural flowing. You can even run tests before it launches to see where it receives the most clicks. CTA buttons are imperative to getting conversions. Using a download button seems to yield the best lead results (HubSpot).

3.     Subtitles. If your brand feels it won’t be able to get its point across 100% without sounds then subtitles can offer a lot of relief. Facebook now offers a feature where you can automatically add captions to videos.

4.     Write unconventional scripts. This is always a fun way to entice viewers to keep watching your campaigns. They’ll want to know what is about to happen next. I know I always appreciate a good creative ad that keeps me on my toes or just completely blows me away with how unconventional it is! A prime example would be the recent OutHorse Your Email Campaign for Visit Iceland.

5.     Share your offers/discounts early in the ad. Since attention spans are shorter and shorter each year, you want to get the most important message out first. Research suggests that you have about 10 seconds to hook, line, and sink em’!  

6.     Be short and concise. Again, for those in the back who didn’t hear. Attention spans continue to lessen so it’s important to make your campaigns shorter than 60 seconds. The ad must also grab the attention of the audience immediately in order to keep them engaged in watching.

7.     Don’t ditch the audio. Sometimes people do still listen to ads with sound on. Be able to convey your message without it but really drive the point home with the audio on. Make that emotional connection deeper with your audience.

In the words of the infamous Will Rogers, “Never miss a good chance to shut up!” This is definitely one of those times! A time for advertisers to harness the opportunity to creatively grow through the rise in popularity of silent ads is here. Let your campaigns say a lot through saying nothing at all! Happy creating!

Friday Fun Favorite 5/20/22

This week’s Friday Fun Favorite goes to the “OutHorse Your Email” campaign to promote tourism to Iceland. This quirky ad says that if people take their vacations in Iceland then horses will write your work email replies for you. Obviously, this is meant to be a joke but the fact that, “41% of people check their work emails 5-6x’s/daily when on vacation,” is no laughing matter. It’s no surprise that only 44% of workers say that they’re actually recharged after their vacations” (AdWeek). As Iceland is one of the most naturally beautiful places to visit, the country wants tourists to really unplug and enjoy all that it has to offer without being bogged down with professional commitments. The ad boasts that your work replies may end up being lllerfiadsk;fn from their world-famous horses, but this service is real and it will create an email bounce back reply while on vacation. This ad was created by SS+K for Visit Iceland , which are known for their humorous campaigns.

The Importance of Customer Satisfaction

Customer satisfaction is the measurement of how well a business’s products or services meet their customer’s expectations. I mean, we all know this. We have our favorite brands that we buy from and we know the reasons why. We have all also been in a place where we have decided to stop buying from a business. Statistics show that 59% of customers will leave a company after several poor experiences and 17% after just one according to PwC. I know I have done this and you’re probably saying to yourself right now that you have too. The top reasons for customer dissatisfaction are quality issues, pricing problems, poor customer service, failure to meet implied expectations and usability complications. Don’t be that person. Listen to your customer’s wants and needs. It’s much easier to keep a client than acquire a new one and it’s actually costlier. According to Survicate, it can be 5-25x’s more expensive than retaining an existing one. Exceptional customer service will also lead to new customers through word of mouth. So, what makes great customer service stand out from just good customer service? Well, it’s going that extra mile to make sure that each customer’s experience is positive by going the extra mile. Going above and beyond expectations. Here are a couple of ways to ensure that your company has stand out, customer driven service.

1.     Offer omnichannel customer service avenues. This will offer options for everyone. Offer phone, text, email and live online web chats. Everyone has a different preference when it comes to contact so be prepared for that.

2.     Be timely. No one likes to sit on hold for a half hour! Ensure that your customer service is prompt! 66% of people think that valuing their time is the most important thing in any online customer experience (Help Scout.) Resolve issues as quickly as possible but make sure not to rush through. Quality over speed every time for the more complex problems. 

3.     Don’t be pushy. No one likes a pushy salesman. Help customers help themselves by not shoving products down their throats. Offer help but don’t be overly aggressive.

4.     Personalize and be consistent. People like to feel like their experience is being tailored to their own needs. For example, know your customer’s names. I know that I personally love it when I repeatedly go to a business and they say hello calling me by name. I’ve actually recently stopped doing business somewhere because the owner acted like she doesn’t know me when I’m there every single week and we had personally had introductions at some point early on in the business relationship. Rude!

5.     Be positive and know how to problem solve. A positive attitude is one of the most important aspects of the customer experience overall. Smile, say hello, know what to do when there is a problem and how to go about solving it. Be creative in the process. Be flexible with your customers. Relationships are a give and take from both sides. They choose to do business with you. Respect that and make sure that they know you appreciate that!

Understanding ways to provide great customers service are vital to the success of a business. A business will thrive with the skills to provide this to their customers. Of course, this is not the only thing necessary for an accomplished business but it by far one of the most important in retaining your audience and growing it.

Ways to Foster Employee Trust in the Workplace

Oxytocin is called the “love” hormone released into the bloodstream that produces a euphoric feeling. It happens after we exercise, listen to music and embrace another human being in some way. A study done by Harvard Business Review demonstrated that acts done in order to produce trust from person to person, oxytocin is also released. This feel good hormone aids the process of trust within our bodies. It makes us feel good when we can trust someone. “People that work at high-trust companies compared to low-trust companies report that 50% state they’re more productive, 74% are less stressed, 106% have more energy at work and 40% have less burnout from work activities.” We’ve decided to make a 5 hit bullet point list of our top ways to improve trust within the workplace between employees in all positions.

1.     Listen more than you speak and ask for feedback. Make it clear that their input is important to the company and they can be part of the changes that go on within it. When employees feel that the company aligns with their values and that they can contribute to the company’s growth they’re more invested in its successes.

2.     Be transparent. Share information when you can. Have daily one-on-one communications with employees to reduce uncertainty about their careers and the current work situations going on.

3.     Encourage. Don’t demand! Motivating employees through encouragement instead of demands has been shown to increase productivity. I mean, I know that I don’t like being told what to do! I’m more apt to complete a task with encouragement than commands. This shows that you trust the employee to do the right thing and it gives them the freedom to do things their own way. When they feel trusted they will reciprocate.

4.     Emphasize what you have in common. Building real relationships with employees is crucial! Neuroscience shows that building social ties increase oxytocin and improves performance. Nurture these relationships with work events and team building activities.

5.     Show vulnerability and admit faults. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Even if you’re the CEO you’re still human! It will remind your employees of this and is a not a sign of weakness but a sign of secure leadership. When you make a mistake own it. They will respect your honesty and ability to embrace faults.

Trust only improves a business. Fostering care from the inside out will ensure a successful company that will stand the test of time. Let’s make this the “New Normal” in the workplace and continue to build great relationships. Not only inside the workplace but out!

Brand Recall

Content is Queen! “Did you know that 65% of people are visual learners and 94% of all communication is visual?” (Vennage). There are many benefits of visual marketing versus pure text as we all now know, but it’s important to make your brand memorable through your visual content advertising. People remember things visually so brand recognition is vitally important. Customers are more likely to remember your brand’s advertisements if they’re associated with something that they can recall easily because it caught their eye in some way. Was it different in some way? Did it make them think and use some brain power? Were they connected on an emotional level? One way to increase brand memorability is to localize your visual content for specific audience areas. For example, in Philadelphia they use the word “Jawn” to describe any person, place or thing. Yes, I know it’s a strange word to describe literally a vast array of anything. Anyway, back to our story… we pass by a billboard every morning for a lawyer named John Morgan. I’m sure you’ve all heard or seen his commercials at some point since he’s America’s largest cliché injury law firm, Morgan & Morgan. On this particular Philly billboard his name is advertised as Jawn Morgan.  This is a prime example of localized advertising at its best and it will make locals remember the brand. The second way is to tell a story. Be sure to have a beginning, a middle and an end. Throw in some emotion and/or humor and stay in your brand’s voice. People love a good story. Especially if it’s one they can relate to. Another fun way to improve the memorability of your ads for your brand is to employ engagement with the viewers. Make them work something out. Use their brains. They’ll eventually have that “aha” moment when the conclusion is realized or given. People tend to remember things more when they have to problem solve. You can use enthymeme’s to achieve this type of recall as well. “Aristotle calls the enthymeme the “body of persuasion ….because we are most easily persuaded when we think that something has been demonstrated” (Aristotle’s Rhetoric). These are only a few ways to improve memorability of your brand and its advertising. It’s interesting to note that if a brand’s advertisement can be remembered after 60 days, “13% of those people are likely to buy the product or service, 38% will think more positively about the brand, and 25% will become ambassadors of the brand, according to a new study done by HAVAS. This goal can be achievable with the right tools and team!

The Importance of Marketing Research

Research shows that businesses are 60% more profitable when they are customer-centric according to an article written by Lucid.  Market research is one of the best ways to do this by getting to know your customer base. This is done through gathering data to learn more about demographics and marketing trends as well as other important aspects of business goals. First, there are many subcategories of marketing research and I will only touch on a few in this article. Let’s first look at branding research. The point of this type of research is to understand what type of impressions your brand is making on the consumer. Do they know who you are and will they buy what you are selling? What qualities are associated with the brand and how it is performing in relation to competitors? This can be conducted through surveys, focus groups, or one-on-one interviews and it will help the brand understand areas that need improvement. Second, let’s talk about customer research. The top three points of this research is to see how satisfied your customers are, what level of loyalty do they have to your brand and who exactly are your customers are. That last one is done through customer segmentation that divides your customers into different subgroups based on their behaviors and preferences. This research is done through looking back at purchasing histories, demographics of client base, customer satisfaction surveys, NPS and customer journey mapping.  A third type of marketing research is competitor research. It’s important to see what your competitors are doing. Where are they succeeding? Where are they lacking? How can you stand out from them as a unique business? This is done by simply finding your competition and doing simple research on them. Let’s also talk about marketing campaign evaluations and research. This is taking data from single campaigns to see how effect they are in the advertising space. How many people have seen your ad? What is the click-through rate? What is the ROI of the campaign? You can use website traffic to track figures from ads run on webpages. You can use social engagement figures, such as clicks, shares, comments and likes. There are many ways to track the effectiveness of your marketing campaigns. Now that we’ve discussed a few know that there are many types of marketing research we didn’t touch on and so many ways to obtain the data you need. You can read more about them here. So, why is it important to conduct marketing research? Well, knowing your customers on a deeper level will help you build trust and connect with them more effectively. It will also help you see where you need to improve as a business. Most importantly it helps minimize your risks through understanding what customers want and need. Overall, this will keep your business afloat and on top of trends in the years to come. Not only that, it will help you strive and succeed to the best of your abilities!

Friday Fun Fave 5/13/22

This week we’re taking a new direction for our fun favorite pick of the week. With summer right around the corner we are all very much looking forward to sitting out in the sun enjoying time with family and friends. We just came across a new ad by Guinness beer created by Abbott Mead Vickers BBDO. The images are, “Waves crashing against a rock, people lazing on a deck chair on hot beach sand, surfboards glistening in the summer sun… that start of summer is here” (AMVBBDO). This very playful ad shows images that you would typically see in a summer setting. Guinness has then added their logo and, not only that, these particular images themselves all have a striking resemblance to a pint of beer. Genius! They hired London based landscape photographer, Catherine Hyland to take these striking photos. Let’s be real anyone who’s ever seen the Guinness ads over the years or visited the museum in Dublin understands their specific flare for creativity.

Contextual Advertising

While writing our blog about Google’s announcement of their 3rd party cookie phase out the term contextual advertising came up as a possible solution. We found this topic worth digging into a little. Contextual ads are placed on web pages based on the content of those pages. For example, if you’re reading an article on Yosemite an ad for hiking boots may pop up. This keeps the user’s data privacy in tact while still getting the right information in front of the right audience. Contextual advertising relies on the relevance of its keywords, topics, and images so it’s important that the agency be very clear on these things.  It also doesn’t need 3rd party cookies that are required to collect data for behavioral advertising. Some numbers even suggest that “45% of publishing executives saw no significant benefit of behavioral ads versus contextual and 23% said that behavioral ads actually caused a 23% decline in revenue” (Forbes). It seems that this type of adverting may even be more cost efficient according to a study done by AdAge. This just validates that there are good reasons to shift to this type of ad space as privacy laws get stricter in the coming years.