Marketing 101 Archives - Page 5 of 10

The first step on the path toward audience understanding can involve cocktails

April 22, 2013 by Erica Barnhart

Thinking woman in front of blackboard with question marks After reading some of my recent posts on identifying your target audience, you may be wondering: “Hey Erica, that’s great. I get that my target audience isn’t just like me and they aren’t simply defined by their demographics, but what do I do to figure out who they are?” So today, I’ll start you off with some questions that will lead you down the path of defining your audience and then later this month, I’ll be posting a bit of a deeper dive from a guest blogger who has a scrappy approach to helping organizations do this type of audience analysis.

So without further delay, here are some of those questions to ask yourself about your current and future supporters:

For what goal am I gathering this data, e.g. donor retention, donor acquisition, volunteer recruitment, board recruitment?
What data am I already collecting on donors and other supporters?
When I ask our best supporters why they’re involved, what do they say? What got them excited about our organization the very first time they engaged? Why do they stay engaged?
Where do our supporters, and supporters of organizations with similar or complementary missions, hang out both online and offline?
Who is talking about my mission online? Who is influential?
Why do supporters believe in our work? That early childhood education leads to lifelong success? That clean drinking water is a human right?

A little group brainstorming over cocktails can really super-charge your organization’s focus on your highest priority audiences, aka your believers.

Marketing Game Plan for Idaho Gives

March 22, 2013 by Erica Barnhart

My marketing advice is…drink more coffee!

May 2, is going to be a big day in Idaho. It’ll be their first-ever statewide celebration of giving–aptly called Idaho Gives.

Thanks to the Idaho Nonprofit Center, the wonderful masterminds behind Idaho Gives, I have gotten to train nonprofits from all over the state on how to create a Marketing Game Plans for this statewide give-a-palooza.

These one day give-fests are awesome from nonprofits. Why? Because they force you to get your marketing in line with your mission and your goals. (The lure of free money and golden tickets can have that effect.)

Now, when people come to a marketing training, they usually think we’re going to spend most of our time talking about Facebook, e-blasts and, if we’re really, really lucky, Pinterest.

Instead, we talk a lot about what their goals are and who they need to engage to reach those goals. Why so little talk of Pinterest and Instagram and all the fun stuff? I like the fun stuff as much as the next marketing-obsessed speaker, but here’s what I’ve learned over the years: that part comes pretty easy once you know your WHAT (your goals) and your WHO (the people you should engage).

And you know what isn’t fun at all? Wasting your time and money. And that’s what you’re doing when you skip the What and the Who. Because without that information, you can’t make good choices. Doh.

At times, you might skip those two all-important first steps and get results by random luck. Good for you. But you can’t take random luck to the bank time and time again, now can you? No, you can’t. Not unless you’re George Clooney’s gang from Ocean’s Thirteen. (Oh but look, they did meticulous planning before taking their loot to the bank too, so scratch that!)

It’s through planning that you figure out how to tailor your messages. As Gayla Hatfield of Hope Preschool and Memorial Community Center told the Coeur d’Alene Press, they weren’t clear on who they really needed to reach and were “spewing too much info out.” Now she knows how to target her message and she’s “better prepared” for fundraising in general and Idaho Gives in particular.

Planning may not be as fun as pinning and, as you can see in the picture above, it requires quite a bit of caffeine (note how many coffee cups are strewn across the table) and not everyone will find it riveting (note the woman on her mobile, who was actually very engaged much of the time, I swear, but happened to not be when this particular pic was snapped…what are the odds?), but if you’re serious about marketing advancing your mission, planning is the way it’s gotta be.

The Idaho nonprofits who rolled up their sleeves, filled up their coffee mugs, and did their planning will likely have a very good day on May 2. I can’t wait to see their plans turn into action..and engagement…and donations!

[For the record: In one of the trainings, the group was having so much fun, I laughed until I cried. I really, truly did. (Thanks to Dawn Burke of The Rat Retreat for being such a sport!) Proof that planning can be both fun and productive.]

Want to show some empathy? We’ve got a button for that!

March 17, 2013 by Erica Barnhart

like People love clicking buttons. If you’ve ever handed a three-year-old your cell phone, you know what I mean. Kids are cute, and it almost makes the bill for that 14 minute accidental call to Taiwan OK.

Buttons get more action today than ever before. People click “like” buttons on Facebook to connect themselves with brands they care about. When it comes to human connections, that “like” button is an expression of what Larry Rosen, Ph.D calls ‘virtual empathy’, which “was the best predictor of being able to express real-world empathy”, according to a study he conducted with colleagues.

Now think about what this means when you talk about your mission online. Engage your audience by creating opportunities for people to “like” or “share”, and it gives them a little opportunity to connect. And they will because they feel you, dawg, they really do.

One organization that does a great job of buttonizing is FreePress.net, which provides clickable CTA buttons that let you send an email to legislators, contact companies, and share themed images with your social networks. Super clear CTAs, super clickable.

Call now! While supplies last!

March 13, 2013 by Erica Barnhart

There’s nothing worse than getting a wimpy marketing email. You know the ones. You start reading, fail to identify the point and—poof!—it’s gone with one click of the delete button. Bad, boring emails are an epidemic these days.

Missing from most of these bad emails is a clear, compelling call-to-action (CTA). You know, that part where you give the reader easy ways for them to engage. Calls to action should be directive. After all, we’re talking about a “call to action”, not a “request for action”. The goal is to make it so compelling and abundantly obvious what you want them to do that, of course, they want to do it.

Mushy and obsequious are not invited to your CTA party. They don’t inspire action. Yes, it can feel funky to ask someone to do something for you. Think of it this way: people who take the time to read your stuff through to the CTA like what you’re doing. They want to help. Make it easy for them to do it.

So you’ll tell your stories to your supporters to set the stage, then simply tell them what you’d like them to do. Be clear and be bold! In your emails, on your website and in your conversations.

Here are few resources to help you create a kick-ass CTA:

How to copywrite a call to action

10 techniques for an effective ‘call to action’ online

How to Write Call-to-Action Copy That Gets Visitors Clicking

A little love is better than a lot of like

December 4, 2012 by Erica Barnhart

But do the love you?

In the next version of Pitchfalls, I’m going to add the following to the list: “You want to be liked, rather than loved.”

Jessica Valenti put it so eloquently in her post, She who dies with the most likes wins?

“The truth is that we don’t need everyone to like us, we need a few people to love us. Because what’s better than being roundly liked is being fully known—an impossibility both professionally and personally if you’re so busy being likable that you forget to be yourself.”

You can’t be all thing to all people. Better to have a smaller number of donors adore you than a whole bunch who only kinda sorta like you. Ish.

You are Yoda. Not Luke Skywalker.

November 2, 2012 by Erica Barnhart

Yoda: small, fierce, and effective

As 2012 winds down and we start thinking about 2013, here’s something to ponder: For your dreams to become reality, you need to channel your inner Yoda.

Nancy Duarte makes this point as it relates to presentations. In her TEDx talk, she points out how easy it is to think you’re the hero when you’re standing on stage delivering a presentation. The really good presenters, the ones that have the audience wrapped around their proverbial finger, take their audience on a journey in which they, the audience members, are like Luke Skywalker (or Princess Leah)–on an adventure, kicking butt, taking names and generally being and feeling awesome.

When you give people the opportunity to be awesome, they get on your side.

You have the opportunity to let people be heroes all the time: in your website copy, in your annual appeals, in your annual reports, in your newsletters, at meetings, in speeches, and every time you pitch someone on your idea.

We could add this as a fourth reason to the three already offered as to why bad pitches happen to good people: you act like Luke Skywalker instead of Yoda.

Yoda may not have youth, big biceps and good hair on his side, but he’s who you want to be like if you want your ideas to take hold, your donors to give, your clients to buy, or your kids to listen.

Let them be the hero. Show them the path and get out of their way.

Back to School with the 1,2,3 Marketing Tree

September 5, 2012 by Erica Barnhart

It’s the first day of school in our neck of the woods. Time to get back to the basics. Claxon’s 1,2,3, Marketing Tree gives you the basic steps for your organization to inspire action and engagement (i.e. market itself) in a way that’s simple, effective and fun. Yep, yep! Find out how in this quick video.

1, 2, 3 Marketing Tree from Claxon Marketing on Vimeo.

Connect through Humor

August 30, 2012 by Erica Barnhart

Free and abundant, humor can be a great way to connect people with your cause. Hear two funny examples of using humor to advance your mission.

[vimeo]https://vimeo.com/33286518[/vimeo]

Connect through Humor from Claxon Marketing on Vimeo.

Do you have a MAP (Marketing Action Plan)?

August 16, 2012 by Erica Barnhart

Say what?! You don’t have a MAP? You’re playing with fire, my friend. Fire.

Resources are too tight and your vision too big and awesome to not know how you will use marketing to specifically and strategically help you out.

That’s why I created a Marketing Action Plan (MAP) for do-gooders–people who work at nonprofits, foundations, associations and other institutions of good repute.

The MAP has specific questions, explanations and a checklist to keep you on track. It is simple, straight-forward and requires very little time to make very big progress.

Download it and see for yourself. It’s free. What’ve you got to lose? (Aside from your way, of course.)

5 Small & Deadly Mistakes to Avoid

July 31, 2012 by Erica Barnhart

Mistakes A few weeks ago, Harvard Business Review blogger Kyle Wiens wrote a post about why he won’t hire people who use poor grammar. The comment section became a veritable grammar smack-down, with over 1,400 people weighing in.

As a non profit focused follow-up to Wiens’ post, I did one on why I wouldn’t give to non profits that use poor grammar. Based on how much traffic that post got, it’s clear this grammar stuff gets people all hot and bothered.

Why would posts about things as mundane as commas, semi-colons and apostrophes unleash such a fervor?

Because in people’s minds, sloppy grammar amounts to sloppy work. And few people want to support a sloppy org, let’s be honest.

Grammar isn’t the only small thing that turns out to be a big turn-off. Here’s a list of the Top 5 Small but Deadly Mistakes to Avoid (if you want happy supporters):

Failing to honor someone’s request to not receive direct mail: Really, seriously take them off your list. No excuses.
Not sending timely thank you notes: If someone can’t remember making the gift for which you are thanking them, you’ve missed your window for a gracious, heartfelt, “we value you” moment with that donor. Bummer. Ditto for volunteers, advocates or anyone else who has done something nice for your organization. Apps like Red Stamp and the ongoing consistency of the US Postal Service can help you make this happen.
Misspelling someone’s name (yeah, I know this is close to grammar but it merits its own spot): One time? Okay. More than that—especially for your most committed supporters—is poor form. Nothing says, “I can’t be bothered” like consistently writing Addams instead of Adams.
Poor phone etiquette: If someone has taken the time to pick up the phone to call you, they should be treated well. From the first “hello” to a smooth transfer to a courteous sign-off (“Thanks for taking the time to reach out. It means a lot to us!”), the phone experience matters. Basic phone etiquette can go a long, long way to happy supporter-dom.
Cross-channel inconsistency: Okay, this one isn’t exactly small, per se, but it’s deadly if you don’t get it right. With the advent of social media, keeping consistent across channels is a challenge. If I first meet you on Facebook and then I visit your website and it looks like it was last updated in 1999, I’m going to wonder what the heck is going on with you. Facebook says modern. Animated gifs not so much. (If you’re stuck on this, this post might help.) Ditto for messaging. If your board chair describes what you do in a way that is inconsistent with the brochure she’s left behind for you to peruse, this doesn’t instill confidence. It erodes it. Confidence leads to trust and trust is the cornerstone of both initial and ongoing engagement.

Some of these traps can be handled with process improvement, some are a question of culture and values and others are a matter of carving out time to get your house in order. Can’t tackle all five? Prioritize them from most egregious to least and, over time, work your way through the list.

Here’s to sweating the small stuff!