MarketingMoment

One of the most common errors I come across in any kind of writing is mixing up “it’s” and “its”.

Put simply, “its” denotes that “it” is a possessive pronoun meaning, more or less, “of it” or “belonging to it” – eg, “She gave the dog its bone.” Always fight the urge to add an apostrophe when you are using “its” in this sense. 

The only time you need use that apostrophe with these three letters (”i”, “t” and “s”) is when you are contracting the words “it” and “is”, or when “it” and “has” are being used together – eg, “It’s sunny outside,” or “It’s been sunny today.” 

See, once you know how and why, it is that simple!

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I heard on the news (BBC) this morning that supermarkets are spending more on advertising and less on branding, in an attempt to lure shoppers and defeat the credit-crunch fallout.

Does this mean that you should follow suit?

Advertising – whether it’s advertising in magazines, newspapers, the trade press or online – CAN be yield a good return on business. But it’s generally more appropriate for larger brands with the advertising budget to match their size.

That said, advertising DOES work, and it can work for you . . . providing you advertise the right things to the right people in the right places and in the right way.  

If you do wish to dip your toe in the advertising arena, then I would suggest spending your budget very carefully to ensure you receive maximum returns for your expenditure.  

My step-by-step, lead-generation system High-Powered Ads that Generate Sales reveals where to place your ad – and where NOT to advertise – as well as how to triple the results of ANY ad you write . . . guaranteed! For more information, point your browser to: http://mediaminister.co.uk/products.htm#HPA 

But back to the question of whether you should ditch your branding efforts. I think not. Branding is crucial to any business – at any time and regardless of the state of the economy.

It can reinforce your image so that you stay in your existing customers mind, as well as grab the curiosity of potential new customers. 

Central to effective branding is the concept of consistency. No matter what you do, you absolutely MUST be consistent with your core marketing message. That’s because you want your business image and brand to be easily recognisable, and you want your prospects to conclude that your company is a confident, credible and stable one.

To really strengthen your brand image, as well as being consistent, you should be educating your potential customers about WHY they should buy your product or service (no one likes to be sold, right?). The use of case studies and testimonials is a great way to achieve this. You’ll find plenty of other ideas in posts here on MarketingMoment.

So what about you? How are you educating your customers to increase sales?

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Perfect for testing an idea before making a commitment, a mini or condensed version of the standard marketing plan can prove valuable in a number of ways. Not least to analyse the year before, review where you are now and focus on what you wish to achieve over the next six months.

Start by heading over to this handy page where you can download a variety of one-page marketing plan templates – F.R.E.E. of charge.

By putting it in writing, you will identify tactics and strategies to help you with your business goals. 

Psssst . . . Not sure where to start? As well as offering worksheets and home-study tools, I can give you profit-multiplying advice and pointers on things you can do straight away to attract new business with my Powerfully Effective Marketing sessions.  

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I read a fun post on freelancing and holidays by blogger Joanne Mallon this morning. She points out that the word holiday is often a misnomer for sole traders. There they sit on the beach, hugging their Blackberry to their left ear while trying to pick up important work emails (and pick off not-so-important granules of sand).

That’s IF they’re lucky enough to unchain themselves from their desk and actually take a break, that is. As freelancers know only too painfully, no work = no pay.

Well, do you want to hear something shocking? I haven’t been on holiday for more than two years! Well, I did go to Cornwall for a week in September 2006, but I don’t count that as I became seriously ill on day two. Oh, and yes, I did go to see my dad in Devon for a few days back in February this year, but I don’t count that one as a holiday, either. As much as I love my father, he can be hard work!

The point I’m making is that I’m long overdue for a holiday, and if I’m not careful I’ll be fully booked with client commitments before the end of summer.

That’s one of the perils of self-employment: Unless you schedule in some ‘getaway’ time well in advance, the days can easily fly by without you having so much as dipped your toe in the garden, let alone those much-missed sunnier shores. So make time for that holiday! Hmmm, best take heed of my own advice, then…

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The subject line is one of THE most powerful weapons in your internet-marketing arsenal. Yet it’s one of the most overlooked. So how do you get your emails recognised, opened AND acted upon? Easy, sign up to my newsletter and you’ll receive a ‘hidden’ link to the article I ran on this very topic in last week’s issue.

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Top web advertisers and marketers favour search and email marketing, according to a recent survey carried out by industry leaders ad:tech and MarketingSherpa. The annual survey is a good indicator of what’s working online and what’s to come.

Behaviorally-targeted ads rated higher than any other online performer. The advertisers and marketers questioned plan to invest more in PPC and behavioral ads this year, and move away from poorly-targeted display ads.

Other top tactics include:

- House email lists.

- Testing. Marketers are measuring, testing and split-testing more than ever in almost all categories surveyed.

- Search engine optimisation (SEO) is delivering a strong return on investment.

- Agencies are urging marketers to explore viral marketing and advertising in mobile phones, online video sites and virtual worlds.

The latter reflects the changing landscape of the online advertising world. 

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According to a study by Forrester Research, the top three elements visitors look for in websites are (in no particular order):

1. High-quality information – useful, relevant content is the biggest influence on a visitor’s decision to return to any given website.
2. Ease of use – your site’s architecture should be simple, accessible and intuitive.
3. Quick to load – people are far too busy and will NOT tolerate ‘lag’ time. In fact, they’ll get frustrated if they have to wait more than a few seconds for a page to download, and will abandon it altogether after just five-seven seconds. 

Source: Internet Marketing Report

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If you read copy written by someone other than a copywriter, chances are it will scream Features! Features! Features! OK, features are a very good thing indeed and, yes, readers do need to know about them. But not all of them. And NOT right up front. 

Instead, you need to do what every good copywriter 
MUST do in order to educate or make the sale: turn features into benefits, and put those benefits at the beginning of your copy. 

These benefits must be tied into your readers’ desires, needs and wants. So, when you solve your readers’ problems, they’ll go looking for the features — meaning they WILLl bother to read the rest of your marketing message. 

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Entries are open for the 2008 CIP Eco-Innovation fund, which has a total of £22/€28 million in grants available for innovative, environmental-friendly projects in the areas of materials recycling, sustainable buildings, food and drink, cleaner industrial processes, green business and smart purchasing.

The fund is open to all legal persons based in the eligible countries, but the priority will be given to SMEs. Clusters of applicants and projects which demonstrate a European added value and have a high potential for market replication are strongly encouraged.

The closing date for all submissions is 11 September 2008.