by Scott Howard | Jan 29, 2019 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, Sound ADvice, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard
Since the beginning of time, it’s been known that you only have one opportunity to make a good first impression. The debate is …. how long do you have to make that impression?
Studies vary, but if you are applying for a job, a story in Psychological Science suggests it’s as little as 1/10 of a second. Other studies indicate that you have up to 7 seconds. Regardless of whose opinion you trust, the answer is still …not very long!
Your advertising message faces the same challenge. What your ads say and how they are delivered in the first few seconds dictates whether your potential customers will tune-in or tune-out to your message. I’m not saying physically change the channel, although that can happen too, but mentally pay attention, or mentally listen to your message
Reporters and authors have long known that the headline and the first sentence is what dictates whether the reader tunes-in and continues on with the rest of the story, or tunes-out. In an effort to develop the all-important “creative hook” at the top of your ads on websites, many headlines end up with more “creative” than “hook”.
I recommend you carefully consider the first few seconds of every ad, blog, text, email or post that you create.
Here is a bonus tip. Often times, you will find the best line of an ad or letter, or the best words/sentence are in the middle. When you find it, move it to the first line, or use it as the headline.
And this goes well beyond your advertising messages. These days I see an increase in complaints about customer service issues. There are a few reasons behind this.
First off, we have a shortage of available employees. Unemployment numbers in the United States statistically say we are at full employment. In other words, all the good employable people have jobs and in order for a company to get employees, they have to lower their standards. Maybe. In some cases they simply need to examine their hiring policies.
It used to be that being convicted of a felony, any felony, prevented you from employment. Now companies are amending that restriction to exclude non-violent offenders from being banned for consideration. Most banks will still not hire a convicted bank robber however.
But the other reason for businesses getting low marks on customer service has to do with focus and attention of those in the customer service industry. Technology has invaded every aspect of our lives that it is common place for everyone under the age of 40 to continually check their phones for messages, even when they are working. This creates tension when you are having a face to face conversation and they interrupt to reply to a text.
I’m not limiting this to the under 40 crowd either. I saw it happening when I got my hair cut the other day, and I admit that I’ve been guilty of it too.
Seconds Matter not just in the first impression, but every opportunity to make an impression. It’s part of your overall marketing.
By the way, the first part of today’s article on first impressions was included in a new free marketing newsletter that you can subscribe to, Sound ADvice. Just follow the link below or send me a note to Scott@WOWO.com.
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by Scott Howard | Dec 30, 2018 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, ScLoHo's Collective Wisdom, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo
After the big holiday push from November through Christmas time, most restaurants experience a slow down in January, unless you prepare ahead of time. 
Restaurant News has a great article listing some of the special days and events that you can plan a promotion around if you act quick:
For restaurant owners and operators, there’s no better way to start off the New Year than with a tasty selection of restaurant marketing ideas.
January is Hot Tea Month, Oatmeal Month and National Blood Donor Month.
January also kicks off with National Buffet Day and Buffet Week.
Special food days for menu marketing include days celebrating Apricots, Beans, Bittersweet Chocolate, Blonde Brownies, Blueberry Pancakes, Buttercrunch, Cheese, Chocolate Cake, Chocolate Covered Cherries, Corn Chips, Creampuffs, Croissants, English Toffee, Hot and Spicy Foods, Marzipan, Milk, Pastrami, Peach Melba, Peanut Brittle, Peanut Butter, Pie, Popcorn, Rhubarb, Shortbread, Spaghetti, Strawberry Ice Cream, Tempura and Whip Cream.
For beverage marketing, warm your guests up with something special on Hot Buttered Rum Day, Hot Toddy Day, Irish Coffee Day and Bloody Mary Day.
Follow this link to see a full calendar to inspire you and if you need help deciding exactly how to implement and market any of these special days, contact me.
by Scott Howard | Dec 5, 2018 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard
I picked up a new book from Seth Godin recently and am reading it right now. Or perhaps by the time I publish this and the podcast goes live, I will have finished it.
But I doubt it. My reading style is reflective when it comes to things like marketing. I should tell you that the name of Seth’s latest book is This Is Marketing. There are all kinds of bonus features online you can get and a community you can join once you buy the book.
But in just reading the little portion that I’ve read before I started writing today, I noticed that there are parallels to what he wrote and what I’ve been sharing over the years.
Today I want to ask you a serious question that not many business people stop and consider.
The question is:
Do They Like You
Things are different in the advertising and marketing world from when my parents and grandparents were around. Mass marketing was common because we had mass media. Mass media was defined by a limited number of media and entertainment options and so the masses of people they attracted were pretty large because of the limited options.
In the video world for example, there were between 3 and 5 TV stations in Fort Wayne, Indiana and they carried programming from ABC, CBS, PBS, NBC and Fox. Want to know the big news of the day? Sit down and watch the half hour newscast with the family when it came on TV live.
The percentage of people watching one thing at the same time was huge in comparison to today.
Advertising by interruption worked because of the mass of people you would reach. Same was true of radio, newspaper and other forms of entertainment like movie theaters that seated hundreds at a time to watch the couple of films that were released each week.
Advertising by interruption is a topic I’ll expand on in the future but for now, I want to share with you what happens after you have reached someone by advertising or word of mouth or by accident.
That person is going to form an opinion of you and your business. They are going to ask themselves that question:
Do They Like You
This will determine if they become a long term customer worth thousands of dollars in your future, or if they are never coming back and instead will be worth thousands of dollars to your competitors.
Advertising can’t fix a broken business.
If you screw up and end up chasing away the customers that your advertising brought in, you better fix that leaky boat.
And now a plug for what I do. I make money when businesses buy advertising solutions from me that air on my radio station, WOWO in Fort Wayne, Indiana and/or pair it up with some of the digital advertising solutions I offer.
But my heart is in looking at the big picture of your business and the entire customer experience. I want to help you figure out ways to be sure the answer is:
Yes, they like us
Contact me and let’s start a conversation about your marketing, advertising and how to be better in ways that your customers care about.
I’m going to wrap this up with a story of a local restaurant that my wife and I really were rooting for.
After several years of being our Saturday night date night destination, the owner of the building decided that they would not renew the lease of this highly popular restaurant and bar. The owner decided that they were going to reinvent the place and after being shut down for a couple of weeks, they slowly opened with a limited menu and then a full menu.
Instead of visiting every week, my wife and I visited every other week. Then we skipped a few weeks. After our last visit, I said we are only going to visit once a month or less.
Things had changed under the new management. The last straw for me was the food was inconsistent. When I finally found a dish I loved and came back two weeks later, it was not the same. It was such a disappointment.
The service had been slow under new management due to a lack of staff, but we were willing to wait. A longer wait time for our food was acceptable since it was undergoing this transformation. The staff was also great, the ones we saw behind the bar and the wait staff that stayed under the new management were like friends.
But when the new place lost it’s appeal with the food and when you are in the food business, that’s deadly.
Sadly, I don’t like them anymore. They are no longer getting my date night money every week, or my occasional lunch money, or my recommendations to friends and business people. I won’t write a bad review online, because I want them to get it together, but not on my dime. I will check back every 4 to 6 weeks and see if they are improving. If they don’t, they will have to shut down.
My lesson for them and for you is to ask the question:
Do They Like You?
and find out ways to get better, fast.
As always, I’m here to help.
by Scott Howard | Nov 20, 2018 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, ScLoHo Sales Tips, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, Uncategorized, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard
The Holi-daze are upon on and this is a weird and wonderful time of year. I’ve created a few items that you as a business person or marketing person, or what ever kind of person you are, you can take a look at and use to help you navigate the last few weeks of this year.
If this is make it or break it time for your retail business, it’s time to suck it up. Just because you are having to work long hours and cover for the employees that are sick or you just are short handed because all the good people have jobs elsewhere due, remember your customers.
The customers who actually drove to your store really want to buy something that you sell. Otherwise, we would have ordered it online. Just the other day, my wife was working on a project and after making a couple trips to the store, she asked me to order a tool online. It took me less than 10 minutes on a Saturday afternoon and it arrived at our house Monday. While that was convenient for my family, we are also a shop local family. Of the $200 we spent on this project, $185 went to a local store and $15 went to Amazon.
That’s because we are consciously looking to support our friends and neighbors. Locally owned coffee shops and restaurants get most of my food and beverage money every month.
The point is, the people who come to your store, have a choice to buy from you or someone else. Super-serve them and keep them coming back. Create a positive shopping experience for them and they will come back. Make it a bad experience, and you may have lost them forever.
Advertising is the part of marketing that functions as the invitation to your company. But advertising can’t fix problems that go on inside your company.
Last week I was meeting with someone who wanted to hire me to train his staff on how to upsell his customers in a manner that is not annoying, but instead is genuine.
Speaking of advertising, you really need to invite people to your store right now. People are spending for themselves and for others. They are overspending, maxing out credit cards this time of year. While I don’t believe that is a good thing to do, I’m not their mom and they are grown ups right?
Advertising this time of year might be challenging if you haven’t planned ahead.
Using television ads means you need to get a fresh ad produced and that takes time and money. Also the television viewing is different this time of year due to the holiday specials on TV and combined with the changes in TV viewing habits, I recommend you stay away from TV unless you already have it planned out.
Print ads might be available in the daily newspaper, but with the dwindling number of readers, just say no.
Social Media including Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest might work, but you better have a professional managing it, or else you can waste time and money.
I offer some online advertising options through the Federated Digital Solutions division of my company, but again, it’s kind of late to plan for this Holi-daze season. If you want to talk about it, let’s plan a campaign for the new year.
My suggestion is using radio advertising to capture customers right now for the Holi-daze season.
Within a couple of days, I can get your message in front of thousands of people right here in our city who are shopping. WOWO radio continues to be one of the most listened to radio stations in Fort Wayne and it’s a hot time right now. Our annual Penny Pitch drive is underway with money being raised for two local non-profits. Weekly events that you and your business can be associated with provide a feel-good connection.
I also can create room for advertising for a special event. Earlier this month, I put together a radio advertising campaign for an event that was less than a week away. I wrote the ads, we produced the campaign and in the 5 days leading up and including the sale days, over 50 ad invitations were heard by over 75,000 WOWO listeners.
If this is crunch time for you, let’s talk now.
Or if this is a slow time of the year for you because you are not part of the retail Holi-daze season, this is an excellent time to plan for the new year. I can make time to help you with your planning, reach out and we’ll get started.
By the way, I have a couple of ideas for retailers that you can do right now for this Holi-daze season:
- This first one was inspired by Amazon. I use Amazon to buy gifts for my relatives that are hundreds of miles away. I often spend a little extra to have Amazon gift wrap those presents. What if you offered to gift wrap purchases as an upsell to people who are in your store? Make it easy and just have a stock of gift bags and tissue paper, and charge them your cost plus an extra buck or two. You can even partner up with a local charity and give the proceeds to them.
- This other idea also was inspired by something Amazon does not do. Sometimes I buy a gift ahead of time and I don’t want it to arrive before hand. What if you offered a Santa’s Closet for people who want to buy presents now, but wait a few days or weeks to take them home?
- My last idea is something you need to start and continue forever. Collect email addresses and text numbers and offer a program to customers who sign up to be notified of special events. Most major retailers do this and you should too.
by Scott Howard | Sep 24, 2018 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, ScLoHo's Fort Wayne, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo, WOWO Fort Wayne Radio Advertising with Scott Howard
Changing your logo won’t make you rich.
Advertising your brand might be worthless.
Instead, if growing your business is important, focus on Connections and Relationships.
I do a lot of reading and observing. I take pride in the fact that I have a pretty diverse circle of friends of all ages. Some are in their 70’s pushing 80 and others are just old enough to vote in the next election.
Personally, I have worked in show business and as an entry level material handler in a factory. I enjoy my relationships with millionaires and with people who are working multiple jobs to make ends meet.
What’s this have to do with branding, marketing and advertising your logo?
Let me tell you.
We the people of this United States value a few things over everything else:
- Trust
- Honesty
- Hope
I’ll go deeper.
We want to Trust that when ever we are going to spend money on something, that we are paying the right price, not getting ripped off with a bunch of hype and advertising promises that aren’t really true.
We crave Honesty in our business dealings. We understand that no one is perfect, but when something happens that needs fixed or corrected. don’t weasel your way out of it. Be honest. Do what you can to fix the problem. By the way, you will earn greater loyalty by fixing a problem for someone than if everything went smoothly the first time.
Also we want to be optimistic in this country of ours. No matter what we are buying, we want to have hope that the purchase we are making will improve our lives. This is the Hope I am talking about. The new car, and the box of cereal, both purchases are based on Hope to fill a need or desire.
Here’s a couple of ways to implement these three values:
First off, live them. Not just you, but everyone in your business. The front line clerks and staff that deal with the public, your customers everyday need to convey Trust, Honesty and Hope in their actions and attitude. You need to model it and live it so it can be passed down the line.
This is what builds relationships and relationships build your business.
I call this your Internal Marketing. It’s what you do to give your customers a good feeling about being your customer.
Your External Marketing is about making that initial connection outside of your business location. It’s about inviting people to check you out, inviting them to browse your place and look around. Doesn’t matter if it is online or in person, the same principle applies.
Your External Marketing includes your paid advertising. You need to be consistent in conveying Trust, Honesty, and Hope in your ads that reflect the customer experience that you have built in your company.
I’m going to tell you why I work in the radio industry and not some other form of media or advertising sales. It has a lot to do with what I have just said. And it is more true right now with where I work at WOWO Radio in Fort Wayne, Indiana compared to nearly any other place I have worked in media.
As a former radio personality, I experienced first hand the power of listeners making a connection with the voice on the other end. My first wife and mother of my kids, met me because I was on the radio.
When a radio personality does it correctly, he or she can create an intimacy with individual listeners that is as strong as a lot of in-person friendships.
Television personalities can do this too to a certain degree, but studies have shown that the bond isn’t as personal as radio personalities can create.
What about social media advertising? Billboard advertising? Newspaper, magazine, placemat, direct mail advertising? Those are just ads. There might be a bit of connecting, but certainly not relationship building.
The kind of relationship building via radio advertising with WOWO occurs on many levels. Long time listeners to the station consider WOWO as a trusted source of news and information as they have been a leader in providing that since before I was a kid and have continued the past couple of decades as a news and talk radio station. That trust in the station is also transferred to the businesses that advertise on WOWO.
A deeper level of trust is established when one of our personalities talks about your business, in either a short sponsorship message or as a personal endorsement or testimonial. Man, those types of ads are extremely powerful because they combine all the elements we’ve been talking about today. Trust, Honesty and Hope thru Connections and Relationships.
Want to know more? Let’s talk. Drop me a note to Scott @ScLoHo.net.
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