How many of them are lacking in yours?
Next to your actual sales force and your own undeniable powers of persuasiveness, web sites, corporate brochures and identity kits should be among your hardest working marketing tools.
In order to make sure you’re maximizing the power of these tools, we have put together a checklist of attributes which no self-respecting corporate identity package should be without.
1. Synergy With Your Company’s Overall Image.
This synergy is the key to building awareness of your company as a brand. Everything should look like everything else, because that’s what makes you look professional.
2. A Strong Essential Message.
This is the promise you make to your potential customers or clients, and it’s one of the most important pillars upon which your communications is built.
3. An appealing Look & Positive Feel…
that’s both ‘in character’ and inviting to read. People read things that look appealing and interesting. Anything else, they tend to ignore.
4. Obvious Corporate Identification.
It’s all the rage in the design world to play down logos. But that’s how most readers end up missing them.
5. Bad English Ain’t Good.
Bad grammar is running rampant in communications these days. Bad grammar can make you look like a not-so-bright, and therefore not-so-trustworthy company.
6. First Person Focus.
Never talk about your company in the third person. If you do, people will think you’re weird. Talking about your company in the first person naturally personalizes the communication and makes it more inviting for the prospect to read.
7. Simplicity. Simplicity. Simplicity…
in the use of supporting language and graphics. Remember, you know more about your business than anyone you are talking to. Showing respect for what they don’t know will always be rewarded.
8. A Positive Selling Attitude Throughout.
This is all about keeping the tone and manner of your communications positive, upbeat and on point, and one of the most important keys to stimulating response.
9. Testimonial & Case Study Support.
Your satisfied customers are, bar none, your best salespersons. Anything that quantifies results is going to be more meaningful to your readers than abstract notions or platitudes. You’ll be surprised how powerful these underused selling techniques can be.
10. Concrete Reasons Why The Prospect Should Be Doing Business With You.
Too many companies fill their communications with reasons why they are so great, but they seldom turn it around and give their prospects a real sense of what’s in it for them.
feedback. He got so many and such varied responses his head was spinning and couldn’t sleep that night.
take a specific action at the end? That it builds a feeling of trust and stability or makes people feel warm and fuzzy? Use this as a guideline to come up with specific questions. Like, ‘did it make you feel warm and fuzzy?’ Same goes for concerns you have – ‘or did it seem too corporate’.
input. Don’t be reluctant to ask – most people feel privileged that you value their opinion.
Except those same experts are often getting paid $500- $1,000 an hour (or more) to do client work. And if the marketing budget includes internal time…things can get really expensive, quickly. Or if the professionals in the firm don’t think blogging helps build business, the challenges can be even greater.
one of the most easily accessible lines of communication a company has, providing exposure to people that actually care about what your experts have to say. People that could easily become future clients.
outsource). Get your support team to find appropriate pictures. If all else fails, have your expert verbalize their opinions and have someone else write them down. Don’t forget to enhance the blog for search. That too can be outsourced.
d they start ignoring it. Meanwhile, if they also see an ad, an update pops-up on LinkedIn, then notice you’re speaking as an expert, or spot your brochure on a colleagues desk, then get the newsletter again; suddenly you are top of mind for whatever you do. Plus, you provide more opportunities for them to sell you to decision makers and more ways to refer you (ex: send your newsletter to a peer). You provide more opportunities for them to see your brilliance and understand all of what you do.
s great for bringing people into your funnel – the most fun projects for Rapport actually. However, if you succeed in bringing people in, then what? You need to have other points of contact ready to go to keep them engaged and coming back, or leading them to your pre-sale action step. For this particular client once she brings them in en masse, she needs to build trust with them to move to the next step in the buying cycle, so we have to make sure mechanisms for doing that are there to support the initial big effort.
to do and then plan and budget for them over a quarter, if not a year. An action plan really makes things much less daunting.
t as effective as they should be and recognizing a lack of consistency in look and language from one item to the next. But, they haven’t really identified and built their brand character yet.
The why is important so you can start to identify specific characteristics. Maybe the graphics are really impactful, the headlines are compelling, etc.
For some, getting rolling with social media, is mission critical. But for many, social media can undermine other marketing efforts that could be far more effective for the organization. For those selling to other businesses, this is particularly true. Clients are busy. Really really busy. Research we have done on behalf of our clients shows that, particularly at the executive level, people can’t even begin to keep up with their business email, let alone reading articles, going to webinars and conferences and doing the other things that are necessary to keep ahead of the curve in their given field.
Design presentations used to be made in person, art mounted on boards and accompanied by a detailed rationale. Concepts had reason and were sold to the client so that they understand the nuance and logic of a concept, beyond just liking it or not. What designers work on in the studio – which can be many different ideas – is the basis for what’s eventually presented, but should not be seen outside. The designer and/or creative director must review all ideas and choose the one that suits the clients needs best, then develop that version for the presentation. 
Clients don’t usually know much about why a design works or why it should be executed in a particular way, or how to avoid letting personal taste intrude on decisions. It easily leads to numerous rounds and a design with what they admire as their personal stamp, but which may well make the design not right for the company and its audience. They just don’t get the great results they could if left up to the experts.
Being a good designer takes more than knowing how to operate a computer. It takes talent, knowledge and skill. Experienced designers know what makes for good, effective business-building design! That’s why the designer has to sell the merits of creating the right fit for the future of the company not the individual. By telling the client what it takes, and presenting what the designer believes is the best option, taking client comments into consideration without letting personal ideas over-ride good design that fits the need, builds confidence and rapport between the client and the designer.
Compare Apples to Apples
As a B2B firm, that calculation may shock you, even at 1 or 2%. This leads to my favourite method of calculating your marketing budget – look at what you spent the last year, or three – you may be surprised. No two companies are alike, so use your own history. This would include all graphic design and web development services, copywriting, printing, electronic and print ad space, sponsorships, internal time writing blogs and the like, pens with your logo on it, domain registration and hosting, mailing services like MailChimp or Constant Contact, etc, etc. – probably more than you realize.
Factor in what you want to add to the mix this year. Even forays into social media aren’t free, though they’re often touted as ‘free marketing’. You may not have to buy ad space but it takes man hours. What’s your strategy? Who would do it? Do you need outside help in executing or setting it up (like an editor or ghost writer for your blog). The ROI on this type of marketing is harder and slower to recognize as relationship building takes time.
Finally, build in a buffer for unexpected opportunities. Many clients decide to participate in a tradeshow or sponsor something and are surprised with an offer of ad space they need to now fill. Or, your professional association suggests you provide branded tchochkes for giveaways at a conference. Maybe you hire new people or plan to move and will need more stationery. If you set aside a little extra, it will give you the breathing room to do it well, which often means professionally.
