I was recently advising a colleague on writing a brochure. The goal was to attract potential clients to purchase their products and consulting services. The first drafts she showed me proudly proclaimed the mission statement of their organization, which, if it were an academic or non-profit institution, may have made sense. But it did nothing to communicate the company’s positioning, their persona, nor did it answer the “what’s in it for me?” for the potential client.

The desire to communicate mission statements seems very strong in corporations. Even Disney has their mission statement front and center on their corporate page. But do you know what? NOBODY CARES ABOUT YOUR MISSION STATEMENT! OK, maybe the upper levels in your organization care. It’s doubtful that other departments in your company care. And even if they do, can’t we all just fill in the mission statement blanks…”to be the premier provider of X in the entire world!”

Instead of a mission statement, make sure your marketing collateral communicates the value proposition you have for your client, exactly what you are offering, and why they should choose you over other alternatives. A great way to do this is to pose a question that relates to a problem they need to solve or an opportunity they could easily benefit from.

Use language, colors and images that project your brand persona. Professional and straightforward or creative and irreverent? Let your brand personality come through, even as you provide the compelling hook and clear call to action..

Popularity: 42% [?]

When it comes to maintaining a premium corporate identity, Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia has shown us how not to do it. The primary lesson from MSLO: It is easy to lower the value of a brand and much more difficult to raise the value of a brand.

Last week CEO Susan Lyne resigned from the company, having taken over MSLO in 2005 while Martha was preparing to try on the latest in ankle bracelets. During Lyne’s tenure, the stock price lost over 70% of its value. Lyne had had some previous successful ventures at ABC television, as well as launching Premiere Magazine. So what went wrong?

Many would blame Martha Stewart herself. How can you sustain a company brand around one personality, particularly when that personality is convicted on four felony counts of obstructing a feeral securities investigation? And she is a bit passe, no? Today it’s Rachel Ray and iron chefs. Still, Martha had many loyal fans.

A much deeper issue was in the comapny’s merchandising. Much like Harley-Davidson did in the ’80’s, Martha Stewart went for cash gain and cheap marketshare in 1997. They struck a deal with Kmart, who was in bankruptcy at that time. Why, many colleagues have asked me, would someone like Martha Stewart sell her merchandise in Kmart? According to Slate’s James Ledbetter, Kmart agreed to pay a minimum of $40M a year in royalties to MSLO through January 2003. For a while the cash cow concept worked in MSLO’s favor. But the struggling Kmart never got on its feet, merging with Sears in 2005. From 2003-2007, Kmart did not sell enough of Martha merchandise to pay anywhere near that original royalty. So the cash flow dries up and the Martha merchandise is selling next to the end-cap of cheap motor oil. And today, here’s Martha trying to pitch her brand as a premium buy at Macy’s. So which is it? Upscale premium or mass commodity? The market doesn’t like to view a brand with double vision. Hard on the yes, you know? And to make matters worse, MSLO has also cut a merchandising deal with Costco!

The simple rule of thumb is that you cannot extend a brand that far and expect it to retain its value. At best, MSLO should have created a low-end subbrand that could have stood for a price-value without trashing the entire brand (even GAP got that one right!). You need to manage your brand as a portfolio. You need to think long-term and not chase the easy dollars into commodity land.

Popularity: 31% [?]

I recently participated in a survey conducted by Forrester Research. The results: spending for E-Marketing and B2B social media will likely remain the same or increase over the next year. In spite of the economic downturn, interactive marketing continues to be seen as a worthwhile investment across 333 businesses that Forrester surveyed. Investment categories included blogging, social networking, email, and search optimization. Traditional marketing tools, such as display ads, should see a decrease in budgeted dollars.

A full 70% of recipients said that their spending would stay the same or increase. As you might expect, professional services, financial services and E-Marketers were the most likely to say they would continue to invest in interactive marketing tools.

How about you? Is this where you’re spending your dollars? If so, you should have an overall game plan and mapped out campaign, and a way to measure success. This is way to make your emarketing a tool for long-term growth and success, not just the “next great gimmick” to try out.

E-Marketing should be an important part of your marketing and brand strategy. Incorporate it wisely for the long-haul.

Popularity: 36% [?]

OK, we are in a recession. The question is what do you do about it? How should you adapt your marketing strategy? How can you retain the value of your brand during the downturn?

Rule # 1. Don’t panic. If you have a game plan, don’t jettison it. This is not the time to start a price war with your competitors. This period will end. It is always easier for a brand’s value to go down than to build it back up. If you do need to respond to a competitor’s pricing moves, match them, but don’t undercut them. You may start a spiraling down of the entire product category.

Rule #2. Continue to think long-term. Your customers’ real needs are still there. Continue to build value in your offerings. Even if they need to go away for a bit, if they know you are investing in what’s important to them. They need to know that you are in it for the long haul, that you have resources to weather you through. This will motivate them to continue to want to associate with your brand. I may not be buying a new BMW this year, but I sure don’t want them churning out the next Yugo to match the current size of my wallet.

Rule #3. Now is a good time to turn on reverse positioning.  If you’ve been thinking long-term, then hopefully you have adopted reverse positioning as part of your long-term strategies. This is where you can strip out some features of your product so that you can afford to add in some sizzle to the next generation. Think Gen2 of the iPod.

Rule #4.  Stay in touch with, and reward, your loyal customers. You still need to reach out to your targeted customers. Use online promotions and communications to stay in contact. Don’t just try to gain new customers. Also reward the customers wo have been loyal to you.

Rule #5.  Use your portfolio to your advantage. If you have a portfolio of products, your brand strategy should assign each of them a role to play in the market. Your low-end products should be used to extend your share and protect you from attacks from below. Don’t over promote these products, but do make sure they are available on the shelf. Likewise, use your higher end products to maintain your brand value and premium positioning.  

Popularity: 21% [?]

Nowadays online marketing is important for just about any business. But all those new terms can be confusing: web sites, blogging, search engine optimization, e-mailing, webinars. It’s enough to make your head spin. As a business owner, I had to sort through if, and how, I was going to use online tools to create and promote my brand. So many, terms, and me on a tight budget. Let’s quickly sort through them.

1. Your Web Site.
   This is basically your store front. It’s where customers come to window shop. Is your window attractive. Does it catch my eye? Does it reflect who you are (think law firm vs. donut shop). And, very importantly, can I look in your “window” and see what you have to offer? Any specials today?
2. SEO (search engine optimization)
   SEO helps customers find your website. This is not unlike having a well-designed Yellow Pages strategy. The big consideration here is have you thought about how I want to find you? If you are a travel agency, I may look for you under that title in the phone book. But online, I’m going to be looking for very specific information about what I want to do. So, I’m likely to look for “Bed and breakfasts in Vermont” or “Low-cost Hawaiian vacations.” Am i going to find you when I click on the search button?
3. Blogging
   This is all about having conversations with your customers. Think about going into a hardware store and talking with an expert about using plumbing tools. Or the talking with the guy who owns the imported cheese shop about when and how to serve brie vs. Camembert. With blogging, you present yourself as the friendly expert, AND converse with customers.
4. Webinars
   Also known as e-learning, webinars are an opportunity to show your expertise to a wide range of customers. Usually 45 minutes to one hour in length, you can think of these as a sort of guest lecture at a local college (only the students come from all over). Depending on your business model and the amount of intellectual property involved, you may or may not charge for a webinar.
5. E-Mailing
   This is NOT spam. E-mail campaigns are best used like a newsletter, sent to those who want to hear from you about updates, new offers, perhaps a follow-on to a webinar that you’ve hosted. Like blogging, e-mail campaigns should contain information that is useful to your customers. If you give a webinar on the basics of making premium ice-cream, you might follow up with a series of tips on how to add specific flavors, like summertime peach or espresso chocolate.

I obviously need an ice-cream break! How do YOU use your online marketing tools? What successes have you had? What frustrations? I’d like to know!

Popularity: 22% [?]