With little space – and even less time – the key to successful online advertising is to keep your message as simple as possible.

As customers start to find more and more of their news online, some printed trade publications – that were once the cornerstone of a potent B2B marketing mix – are being ignored.

As a result, a number of media outlets are taking the decision to move to website-only offerings.

Consequently, B2B marketers have to make the decision about how to maximise their print advertising budget.

The digital decision

Often the answer lies in following the publication online and investing in an online advertising package – with a mix of different ad sizes including leaderboards, skyscrapers, MPUs, ribbons, half pages and full takeovers.

Just like print advertising, budgets will dictate the space that you can secure and prominence within the chosen media.

And – just like print advertising – the key to making the best impact is to make sure your message and visuals are crystal clear.

With a perceived reduction in advertising space (compared to an A4 publication) the temptation can be to try and cram as many messages as possible into a digital ad.

“Just increase the number of transitions.”

“Make the font smaller and we’ll get more text in.”

“Make sure our logos really big.”

“Can you make that button flash a bit more?”

It’s very easy to become distracted from what you were trying to achieve in the first place and end up with an all singing, all dancing rotating box of confusion.

So, our advice is to keep it simple.

Think about the one message you want customers to take away.

Craft your headline – one to four words if possible.

Follow up with a compelling offer or proposition.

Hit them with your call to action.

Keep images to a minimum and make sure your fonts are legible.

And if you stick to those principles you should find that more of your customers and prospects are clicking through to your website rather than clicking off the page.

We’re often asked ‘what is the key to a successful trade PR programme?’ and our answer is always the same: Strong relationships with journalists.

Of course there are many other elements that must come together before a campaign or long-term programme can be deemed a success. However, without truly understanding and meeting the needs of your target publications – you won’t stand a chance of achieving your objectives.

Getting The Balance Right

One of the true benefits of public or more specifically, media relations. is the weight of credibility that comes from endorsement by the industry’s leading journals or websites.

Yet while an editor’s raison d’être is to engage their readers with valuable, unbiased and informative news, most companies desire to see their brands adorning as many pages as possible. Understandably they want articles that extol the virtues of their products and services – ideally at the expense of their competitors.

There are clearly conflicting motivations here. The challenge for those with PR responsibility is to strike the perfect balance between the two.

We obviously understand the pressure from above for widespread coverage – be it from clients or bosses. However, continually putting those needs beyond that of the publication are highly unlikely to bear fruit. A journalist bombarded with unsuitable information will quickly lose patience.

Give Them What They Want

Media relationships are built on the same foundations as any other: two-way communication and trust.

Study, analyse and most importantly ASK what each publication wants on any given subject. Without that insight, it’s impossible to know what a good submission looks like. Once you do, set about making it as easy as possible for them to include your business prominently.

Become a trusted source of relevant material. Become trusted to deliver when you say you will. By listening to requirements then delivering on them exactly, you become easy and beneficial to deal with. Over a period of sustained, high quality delivery you can establish the business you represent as the first port of call for that headline interview, front cover splash or next big opportunity.

Remove Barriers

It’s widely brandished that PR is ‘not an exact science’ but you can certainly tip the scales strongly in your favour by removing potential barriers to inclusion.

Develop relevant and engaging material. Meet deadlines. Supply striking imagery. And always remember – less about your features and more about the benefits to the target audience!

They say a picture paints a thousand words but what if those words aren’t ones you would like associated with your business? Like ‘un-professional’, ‘behind the times’, ‘technologically inept’ or ‘embarrassing’.

Photography, used well, can be one of the most impactful tools an organisation has at its disposal. Enticing a prospect, showcasing a function, standing out in a crowd or leaping off a page. It can convey your company’s personality or your latest product’s capabilities in an instant.

The right image gives quicker and more enlightening insight than even the most brilliantly crafted copy.

On the flip side, there’s nothing worse than a business using terrible imagery.

I’ve lost count of the number of emails, websites, brochures, exhibition stands or adverts I’ve seen that are let down by bad photography.

First impressions are everything, so it doesn’t matter whether it’s uninspiring, out of focus, inappropriate or poorly composed. If it’s awful… don’t use it! No excuses.

While I always advocate the use of a professional photographer whenever possible, I appreciate that some contexts and budgets don’t allow.

A live social media update for example. David Bailey isn’t always on hand. So how fortunate that 99% of us carry a multi-megapixel camera in our pockets 99% of the time. These things are quite impressive – it’s why Apple and others have sold a few.

So pray tell me how people contrive to magically transform a crystal clear, beautifully lit work of art into a 9kb monstrosity by the time it reaches their design agency? Or when the planets align for the perfect PR moment, how the happy snapper manages to sever the head off the hero from only a few feet away?

And don’t get me started on ’selfies’ as LinkedIn profile pictures. I want to see who I’m making a business transaction with, not their arm, their pout or their best Blue Steel.

Most importantly, when planning your promotional materials, I implore you to do it properly. Find that extra budget for a photographer with proven expertise. Their livelihood depends on making you look good – so unsurprisingly they’ve become incredibly skilled at it.

Many readers will work in B2B organisations that invest thousands in materials, equipment, research and development. You leave no stone unturned in honing your products to the exact needs of the market place. You assemble a team of industry experts to design, manufacture and sell them to an audience you have worked tirelessly to know and understand. You will do whatever it takes to establish a slick supply chain and profitable route to market.

So don’t fall at the final hurdle. Show that product in the best possible light. Bring it to life creatively. Promote it in all its glory.

In the scheme of things great photography is a negligible cost. But it’s the first thing your customer will see.

Direct mail can be an effective tool for promoting your business, services or offers to customers and prospects. Done well, it’s interactive, engaging and likely to generate a profitable response but there are some key things to consider at the planning stage.

By working through the following steps, you can give yourself the best chance of delivering a direct mail campaign that will leave your contacts smiling and generate a buzz about your business.

1. Establish A Clear Message

Before you dive into promotional product brochures or start your internet searches, be sure you’ve nailed your first step – identifying a clear message.

Be it a specific offer, new product launch or introducing a new feature, the more confident and clear you are about your messaging (and the benefit/s for your customers), the easier it will be to identify suitable items or themes for your mailing.

2. Be Useful

The sky’s the limit in terms of what you can send out but think about what the person receiving the product will do with it.

The more useful it is, the more likely it is to stay on a desk, be put on a wall or shared among colleagues. So not only will you make a great first impression, you’ll enjoy longer-term exposure too.

3. Be Original

As stated above, your piece should be useful but this should be balanced with originality if you want to really stand out from the crowd.

Original ideas aren’t easy to generate (that’s where B2B marketing specialists like us come in!) but they prove a level of sophistication that your competitors might be lacking.

Don’t just stick your logo on the first product you see. Spend your money wisely and design your package carefully.

4. Allocate Enough Budget

And while we’re talking money, don’t forget to factor in all of your potential expenses.

Effective direct mail doesn’t need to break the bank but there are a number of costs to consider including:

• Product
• Promotional material
• Packaging
• Collation
• Postage

5. Think Through Logistics

If your campaign includes multiple items from multiple sources, you might want to consider working with a fulfilment house to collate everything and send it out for you.

This decision will essentially come down to how complex your package is, how much in-house resource you have and how much you can spend.

Do you have space to store all of the items? Do you have the people to package everything up? Can you print off all of the letters you need? What about stamps or franking all of the items?

6. Collate The Right Data

You might have designed the best direct mail piece ever but it’s useless if you don’t have anyone to send it to.

Remember, you want to send the package to people who will be happy to hear from you, interested in what you have to offer and likely to engage with you in return.

At the very least you’ll need a spreadsheet with the following information:

• Contact Name (ideally split by first and last name)
• Company Name
• Job Title
• Address (ideally split line by line)

You might also want to split your data by existing clients and prospects – as there may be different versions of letters or leaflets which are relevant to each group.

7. Other Activity

Your direct mail campaign shouldn’t end once your package is on its way. Like all effective B2B marketing, a joined-up approach can amplify the success of your communications.

How about sending out an email campaign that arrives on the same day as your posted items – replicating the same design and highlighting the same messages?

Why not get on the telephone and follow-up with the most important contacts shortly after the package lands?

You could incorporate some social activity too – sharing any positive responses that emerge as customers and prospects receive their direct mail.

In summary:

Direct mail is a fantastic way to engage with your audience.

As the name suggests, it’s personal direct communication and you can control the entirety of the message.

Just take the time to ensure your recipients end up boasting about it – rather than binning it.

Next up on the chopping block for a good old Brookes & Sowerby rant; Account Manager Sam talks the big 3 – spelling, punctuation and grammar.

At the risk of sounding like your secondary school English teacher, the correct usage of spelling, punctuation and grammar is incredibly important – especially in a business context.

A website, newspaper article or company tweet littered with errors gives an instant negative impression to the reader – and the simple fact is, it is so easily avoided.

With numerous tools at our disposal such as spellcheck, autocorrect and online dictionaries – which are available at the click of a button – senseless and sloppy errors really shouldn’t appear.

That said, while these are all helpful tools for picking up rogue spelling mistakes, grammatically incorrect sentences and misused punctuation they are by no means perfect.

In fact, over-reliance on these features can actually have a negative impact on your writing ability in the long-term.

For a start, they are often automatically set to American-English so will suggest the American versions of words such as organization, traveling, program etc. which wouldn’t be appropriate for an English company.

Similarly, they may insert the wrong word for the context or simply guess the nearest word to the one you’ve typed (an example concerns a former colleague Rhian becoming Rhino – not exactly how you want to be signing off a professional email!)

So, reading back over your writing and checking that any spellcheck or autocorrect amends actually make sense is crucial.

Even better, get a particularly eagle-eyed colleague (or two!) to proofread your written work before it is published or sent out to stop any final mistakes from slipping through the net.

Simply put, inaccuracies in spelling, punctuation and grammar are embarrassing. They look sloppy and unprofessional – and can be costly in terms of alienating potential customers or clients.

Come on people – get a simple framework in place to avoid these errors.

It’ll make all the difference when it comes to winning – or whining – customers.

If you’re sending out a regular stream of email campaigns to clients and prospects, it’s a cold reality that errors are occasionally made. The way you respond can often say more about your brand than the initial planned activity.

Let’s face it, like most things in life, no matter how careful you are and how meticulous your planning, sometimes things just don’t work out.

If you’re managing email campaigns then this could mean that there’s a spelling mistake, a missing image, a broken link or even that the email has been sent in error.

What do you do?

Don’t panic

You need a clear head to understand what has happened, how serious it is, what impact the error has had on your campaign and what do you need to do to rectify the situation.

Take responsibility

If it’s serious enough to warrant a response, then make sure you own up to the error.

We’ve seen instances where email campaigns have been corrected and then reissued immediately to the same list with no acknowledgement of what has gone wrong.

For those that saw the first email – but didn’t spot the error – they can feel like they are being bombarded by your brand.

And, as we know, becoming too intrusive can encourage people to switch off or ignore you in the future.

Clients and prospects are much more likely to respect brands that are honest than ones which bury their heads in the sand.

Show some personality

Your response is a great way to showcase some brand personality.

Take this recent example we received from FreeAgent:

The tone of the email is very much in line with their friendly, supportive and approachable brand.

They’ve owned up to the error and provided the link that was missing in the first email.

It’s not stuffy or faceless but inclusive and endearing – especially with the use of ‘Feeling sheepish,” as the sign off – showing empathy with others who’ve been in the same situation.

Interestingly, the email also gives them a second bite at the cherry – with another opportunity to push the key message from the first email.

Which doesn’t seem overkill because this is clearly a different email to the first.

In summary:

Keep calm, put your hands up, craft an apology email and be swift in your response.

Some tone of voice guidelines will help you with your choice of words too. If you missed our earlier story on that – or want a refresher – then read it here.

We wanted to inject some extra spice to our blog so asked the team to share their thoughts and opinions. First up to the plate was our designer Mike, who couldn’t wait to let off some steam.

In the firing line? The use of creativity in organisations.

Take it away Mike…

Why is it that some business leaders see creativity as a commodity reserved solely for those of us working in the so called “creative industries”?

The Department for Culture Media & Sport defines creative industries as ‘those industries that are based on individual creativity, skill and talent with the potential to create wealth and jobs through developing intellectual property.’

These are further defined as nine creative sectors, namely:

• Advertising and marketing
• Architecture
• Crafts
• Design: product, graphic and fashion design
• Film, TV, video, radio and photography
• IT, software and computer services
• Publishing
• Museums, galleries and libraries
• Music, performing and visual arts

These are, of course, nine sectors where creativity is essential.

However, the creative industries should not be a monopoly of all lateral thinking. Nor should companies outside of these nine sectors put less of a value on creativity.

A quick job search shows you the extent of the problem.

Search for the word creative in any job directory and you will be greeted with listings for “creative designer”, “marketing assistant”, “creative photo and videographer” and other roles associated with the above nine industry sectors.

Unfortunately, this seems to be where the demand for creativity ends.

Neither in the job title or description, have I ever seen the words “creative sales executive”. Yet number one in the list of creative sectors is advertising and marketing – an industry based on the principle of using creativity to help promote and sell.

I’m not suggesting that we start putting the word creative in front of every job title by any means.

If I were in hospital and a somebody said to me “the creative surgeon will be right with you” I might start worrying that my gallbladder will end up on display in the Tate Modern.

But companies need to understand that creativity goes beyond simply creating.

Putting the word creative in front of your job title does not make you a creative. The ability to out think a problem in a unique way does.

Business leaders and managers need to actively encourage creativity within the work place and not kill off ideas that challenge convention.

Creating a culture where risk-taking is not frowned upon and where people feel safe to make suggestions – no matter how crazy they may seem – is essential to success.

How many brilliant ideas do you think have gone unheard because of a fear of looking stupid or of failure?

“If you always make the right decision, the safe decision, the one most people make, you will be the same as everyone else.”

― Paul Arden

Rant over.

It’s only natural that when time is tight in the face of increasing workloads and looming client deadlines, investment in social media output can dwindle. But if you put a best practice framework in place ahead of time you can ensure that you are still reaching your audience in even the busiest periods.

Using the few simple steps below you should be able to ensure that you stay ahead of the game, and don’t fall foul of showcasing a series of social media channels on your website that look dated as a result of no recent updates.

1. Monitoring

Set aside a few hours a week for monitoring your channels and collating any relevant material for interacting with at a later date.

Taking screenshots of interesting posts, or bookmarking urls, can save you time later on and leave you with a bank of relevant, and topical material that you can draw upon when required.

2. Scheduling

Where possible schedule your posts ahead of time, at regular intervals, using a social media planning tool such as Hootsuite – that way your social media accounts can be ticking along nicely even if you’re knee-deep in a new business proposal, press release or presentation.

3. Get ahead

When you do get a bit of down time, use this wisely to put together generated content for your posts. When writing these think about the products and services you offer that you want to get across to your clients.

Alternatively, industry related opinion pieces, office news, or client updates can keep your audience interested in you and give you a bank of posts to hand that are ready to go even when that new project hits!

4. Retweets/likes

When time is really against you, a simple retweet or Facebook like on a topic relevant to your business, or a client post, can go a long way to showing that you are still engaged and in touch with what’s going on even when you don’t have the time to post your own content.

5. Multi-channel

Don’t be afraid to use the same content across all of your social media channels (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram etc.). Your audience will connect with you in different ways so don’t worry about bombarding them with a repetitive message.

Just make sure to tweak these slightly across the different channels to allow for word limits, visual aspects and differences in tone and style.

In summary:

As we all know social media is increasingly important in this digital age, and it is vital that you don’t get left behind. While it is easy for it to fall to the bottom of the ‘to-do’ pile when things get hectic, if you bear the above in mind you should be able to maintain your social media presence, and still nail those deadlines. Result.

Hopefully this acts as a great guide to get you started or enhance your existing social activity. We obviously recognise there are more intricate and complex elements that can elevate your social media engagement to the next level. More on those in a future blog!

Creating a website that looks great, accurately conveys your brand and runs like clockwork is no mean feat…and we say that having just relaunched our brand new shiny website a mere month ago!

There are many things to consider; whether you’re starting from scratch, or revamping an existing website, but here are 10 areas that will give you a good starting point to getting your website absolutely spot on…

1. Domain Name
First and foremost, you’ll need a domain name – if you already have one; fantastic! If not these can be easily and quickly secured online.

Where possible keep it short, simple and easily searchable. After all, you want to make it as easy as possible for the user to find you.

Once your domain name is registered, be sure to keep the login details for the DNS control panel handy so that you can activate or switch over to your new site as soon as it’s ready.

2. Sitemap
This is essentially the structure for your site – how this is laid out will depend on the amount of content your website needs to contain and how you want this to be displayed.

It may be a single page site with all of the information simply and concisely outlined, or it may require a more complex structure with multiple pages and sections. All businesses are different so take time to think through the most logical structure that works for you.

3. Copy
The copy on your site is extremely important – it is the ‘voice’ that communicates your business, product or services to your audience.

It should be professional and well-written, and must make your benefits and offerings instantly clear and attractive to your customer.

4. Images
Similarly, the imagery you use on your site is crucial to conveying your personality and brand in a visual context.

Allocating budget for professional photography can bring your website to life in a genuine and ‘real’ way compared to stock images which often look forced and de-humanise your messaging.

Alternatively, a consistent and well executed graphical style can help you stand out from your competitors and give a unique and original feel.

5. E-commerce
Depending on the nature of your business you may have a requirement for an e-commerce section on your site.

If so a whole host of additional considerations will apply here, such as the products/services you’ll include, product descriptions, customer account functionality, guest checkouts, search functionality, filtering, security, postage/delivery costs and many more.

Depending on complexity you may be able to utilise a platform like Shopify – or it could be easier to tailor make a site from scratch.

Contact us if you’d like a wider conversation about e-commerce websites.

6. Social Media
To maximise your online presence it is vital that you include all of the social networks you use on your website. This signposting helps users to engage with you in multiple ways.

So dig out those Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn login details and get them all set up on your site for optimum connectivity and communication.

7. Debugging
As much as we’d love it to, things don’t always run smoothly from the very first development link – trust us this is perfectly normal!

Allow plenty of time for ironing out those little glitches ahead of your launch date. Check, check and re-check absolutely everything on your site across all devices and browsers to ensure that no gremlins are missed.

8. Launch Plan
Once the site is all ready to go it’s easy to get carried away and want to get it out there immediately but take time to establish a coherent launch plan, incorporating social media and email marketing to current and potential contacts.

That little bit of added time will mean that your launch will go smoothly and is presented in a well thought out, totally joined up, and truly multi-channel way.

9. Update
No matter the length of the journey in getting there, the launch is only the start – your website is a constantly evolving entity and you should strive to update and improve it regularly.

For this reason, you need to factor in the time and effort required to make adjustments and to add in additional content on a regular basis.

The devil is in the detail; address changes, contact details, new clients, new branding – all must be reflected in your website as soon as possible. Otherwise it’s very easy to look dated. Quickly.

If you’re worried about how much time you’ll have then keep things simple: if you can’t commit to writing regular blog posts, it’s best not to include one on your site. That goes for social media too.

10. Maintenance
Similarly, you must be prepared to allow time for ongoing maintenance to your site.

Software and technology is constantly changing and you will need to be reactive to these changes when it comes to your site too.

In summary:

There are a huge number of things to consider when creating or refreshing a website and the above list is by no means exhaustive, but taking the above pointers into consideration should put you in good stead for developing an effective website that works for you.

For further advice and assistance at putting the above into practice feel free to contact us – or check out some of the websites we have created for other companies here.