Apples, Oranges and Gasoline

Apples, Oranges and Gasoline

by | Mar 8, 2022 | Marketing and Advertising Insights

The main point I’m about to share with you is that not all advertising is the same and that’s good.

Also you need to understand the differences before you say yes to spending anything.

Apple, Oranges, and Gasoline.

At first glance the first two, Apples and Oranges have nothing in common with Gasoline.

However consider this:

Apples, Oranges and Gasoline are all fuels.

Yes, Gasoline is the most obvious fuel because that is what we pump into our cars, but Apples and Oranges are fuel for our bodies.  It is because our forefathers were able to fuel their bodies with food including fruit like Apples and Oranges that the science and technology was invented and created to produce Gasoline.

And now, Gasoline, and other petroleum based fuels are needed to transport the Apples and Oranges from their trees to our homes.

I bet you never thought about Apples, Oranges and Gasoline like this before.

Perhaps you are also wondering what Apples, Oranges and Gasoline have to do with advertising and marketing.

I just used them to create a word picture or two as we dig deeper.

Let’s pretend Apples and Oranges are two different radio stations with different formats.  The Apple station plays Country Music and the Orange station features News and Talk as their format.

The expectation of what you’re going to get when you bite into an apple is very different than a bite of orange.  One isn’t better than the other, they are just different.  Some people prefer one over the other and it may also depend on the person’s mood or time of day.

Same applies to radio stations.  I know some people who only listen to News and Talk radio during the week, but on the weekend, they crank up the music of their favorite station.

Just like their are differences in the chemical and nutritional composition of Apples and Oranges, there are also distinct differences between music based radio stations and news talk radio stations that you should know about before you purchase radio or any broadcast advertising.  It’s not just as simple as picking your favorite fruit.

What about that Gasoline?  In our story today, let’s equate Gasoline with Social Media.

Both Gasoline and Social Media can be very beneficial.  They can both be very dangerous.  The properties of Gasoline that powers our cars are the same properties that can be explosively dangerous.

Same with Social Media.  With the growth of platforms like Facebook, I’ve connected with dozens of people from my past along with made hundreds of new connections.  That’s the good side.  Social Media sites like Facebook have also fueled some terrible things and created divisions and ignited countless negative things too numerous to mention today.

Apples, Oranges and Gasoline can work together for good.  I’ve seen Social Media work in sync with News Talk and Music radio stations too.

My challenge to you as a business owner is what I said at the beginning, that not all advertising is the same so please work with someone that understands how to use each and how not to use each.

It’s more than the cost, it’s the purpose of what you want to accomplish.

I just looked up the cost of a gallon of Apple Juice, gallon of Orange Juice and a gallon of Gasoline and while Gas is still the cheapest of the three, you wouldn’t drink a glass of gasoline as a substitute for your morning O.J. right?

Need some guidance figuring all this out for your business? Contact me.

 

Are You Living In The Past?

Are You Living In The Past?

by | Feb 8, 2022 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo

There is an old perception among TV people that “everyone watches the Olympics”. Because of this, the old broadcast networks of ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox usually air reruns of regular shows instead of new episodes. (NBC is the official network this year).

However there are millions of people who are not going to watch because they either have no interest, or time to watch. Our TV viewing habits from 40 years ago simply are not applicable in 2022.

Live TV viewership is a fraction of what it was. Screentime has increased when you count our phones, laptops and tablets but what we watch and how we watch is radically different.

In the middle of the 2022 Olympics we have the Superbowl. This one live sports event is guaranteed to have more viewers than any single event of the Olympics.

My take away for all this is to question things you are doing that may be outdated but you keep doing them anyway.

And since I write about media and marketing, this caught my attention because the couple of TV programs my wife and I like to watch are in their winter hiatus and it’s going to be a few more weeks before they present new episodes.

No, I’m not going to switch from watching NCIS to Figure Skating this month.  I’ll find something else to do with that hour of my life. Much of the media I consume is by appointment. Not all, but nearly most of it when it comes to TV.

What is “by appointment”?  It’s the ability to watch what I want when I want.  The emphasis is on the when.  As a baby boomer who grew up without this option, I really like it now.  In our house we cut the cord a few years ago an instead use streaming services.

Amazon Prime I’ve had for years originally for the free shipping since we have many family members out of town, but we also use the video platform to watch stuff, “by appointment”.  YouTubeTV is our main replacement for Xfinity and we have a choice to watch something live or recorded.  The shows my wife and I used to watch live, like NCIS, we now watch on the weekend, at a time that works for us “by appointment”.  Because of this, we don’t get any local TV commercials.  If your business is trying to reach me by spending money with the local TV stations, it isn’t working.

My screen time is further divided up between other streaming services including Hulu, Netflix, HBO+, Paramount and Peacock.  No, I don’t watch all of these, but they are coming into my house and maybe my wife has a show that she watches on these streaming services.  The point is, you need to reconsider where you place your advertising and see if the expectations and results that you had in the past are even achievable today.

I’m not just picking on TV by the way.  Printed media has undergone tremendous changes too. Newspapers, magazines and remember the phone book?  Are you still paying for ads in any of these because it’s been traditional and you want to do what Dad and Grandpa did to build the business?

I must caution you however,  there are some value to nearly any kind of marketing you do, but you have to understand the return on investment principles and other factors and not just continue because the advertising salesperson had a slick sales pitch.  I’ll be talking more about some of the specifics in the weeks ahead, and if you want my help now, reach out to me.

 

Adjusting To New Realities In The Workforce

Adjusting To New Realities In The Workforce

by | Jan 11, 2022 | Marketing and Advertising Insights

The saying that we are in a new reality was one that many of us didn’t want to hear last year.

But it’s true and the quicker we see what is happening, the sooner we can adjust.

At the end of the year, I read the Monday Morning Memo from Roy H. Williams that talked about 3 realities we are facing today:

  1. Inflation
  2. Covid
  3. Employee Shortages

I’m not an expert on any of these, but I deal with them just like you do.

The first two are out of our individual hands, we are powerless as individuals to solve the increase in prices of goods and services because many of us we are needing to also raise the prices to pass along the costs that inflation has had on our goods and services.  Covid, well that has turned into a political football that I’m not about to address, and like you, we have limited power to fix.

What Roy mentioned in his Monday Morning Memo was a concept that I’m going to pass along to you to solve the Employee Shortage reality of 2022.

The staffing shortage was entirely predictable.  In the United States of America, the birthrate has been declining for decades.

“For years many demographers have been warning of a permanent worker shortage in the coming decades. It may just be that the pandemic brought the shortage earlier.”

“An important concept in demographics is the ‘replacement birth rate’. This is the birth rate needed to replace deaths and keep the population unchanged. If the actual birth rate is higher than the replacement rate, then the population increases. Demographers estimate the replacement birth rate is 2.1 children per woman. If the birth rate is lower than this replacement rate, then the population decreases. In the case of the latter, a declining population will eventually result in a declining labor force.”

“Statistics show the US birth rate has been steadily declining and is below the replacement rate. The latest birth rate for 2020 is 1.6, well below the replacement rate of 2.1. This means that, based on domestic births alone, the nation’s population would be declining. So far, immigration has prevented this, but there’s no assurance this will continue in the future…”

The specific idea that Roy Williams shares is for a company to offer free private daycare to employees on-site (or close to) the companies location where parents can drop off their young ones with the assurance that they will be taken care of while Mom and Dad are taking care of business.

That idea might actually work for some companies, but it’s not a universal solution right now.

So what is a universal solution?

I have a two part answer:

1st off, you need to become a company that people want to work for. In the past few years, the company I am with has undergone a specific plan to access our company culture and then improve it.  The ideas come from those who are already here.  We looked at those ideas, and found a few that could be implemented and then measured again and asked again.  It’s an ongoing process at Federated Media.

We realize that not everyone who works for us is going to stay forever. Many will leave for many different reasons, but what we want to do is keep the best and hire others that will contribute both to our mission and also our company culture. As a result, I have coworkers who have been here for years, even decades, not because they have to work here, but because they want to.

Personally the real reason I left most of the jobs I had were due to something in the culture.  The real people problem was not that we couldn’t hire enough, but we hired the wrong people at other places I worked. The answer to this for you and your company is to take that same evaluation and find out why people work for you and what can make it even better.  That is what you need to promote in your recruitment messages and ads.

Here’s the 2nd part of my solution to the labor shortage: Change the number of employees you need to run your business.

The reality is there are less people available to be hired as I mentioned at the beginning and so your business model needs to change.

Business models have been evolving and the side effects of the pandemic shut-down just accelerated some of what was going on already.  Several fast food restaurants closed their dining rooms and some are not planning on opening them up.  Instead they have become drive-thru only establishments.  I’ve seen this in my area for nearly two decades as multiple Pizza Huts created this style of restaurant. I’m sure there are others in your area that are undergoing a similar transformation.  Plus ordering online has really taken off.  Last year I went inside to place an order for chicken and was told that I had to either use the app or drive thru.

Grocery stores and other retailers are relying on self serve check out lanes more than ever.  Now instead of a cashier ringing up one customer at a time, it’s common to see one employee overseeing 6 to 10 self serve checkouts.

I’ve got a third bonus tip for you that I almost forgot because I’ve been doing it for so long and our company has been doing it even longer, at least in the Fort Wayne division of Federated Media.  Flexible work life is what we call it, but here’s how it really works…

The advertising salespeople do not have a dedicated workspace at our office.  Instead, there are a couple of hours each week that they come to the office for meetings with their manager.  Where are they the rest of the time?  Working from home, client meetings, working from their favorite internet cafe a.k.a. coffee shop, who knows?  They might be running their kid to the dentist during the middle of the day, or grabbing lunch with a friend.

This sounds like the Covid inspired Work From Home business model, but we’ve been doing it this way for many, many years.  As a General Sales Manager, I have my own office at our Fort Wayne office that I work from nearly every day.  But those on my sales team are given the freedom to do what works best for them.  We have particular items that need done daily, weekly or monthly but the ultimate measure of their success is the revenue they are responsible for with their individual budgets.  Their success is not measured with punches on a time clock.

Yes we have guidelines and Key Performance Indicators that when followed will create individual successes, but reporting to the office just because it’s always been that way, 5 days a week… We abandoned that years ago to focus on productivity.  In other departments, there are similar flexible work arrangements too.  This has become an important part of our culture.

By the way, I am always looking for qualified candidates to join my advertising sales team at WOWO radio in Fort Wayne, Indiana.  We just hired a new team member and I have at least one more opening to fill.  However, I’m going to keep that position open until I find the person that fits us best.  Perhaps that is something you should do with your company too, be picky with who you hire to protect the culture you have in place.

And one last note, if you would like to learn more about the opening I have, here’s a link to the job posting. https://www.wowo.com/wanted-sales-hunter/

 

Brand Building For 2022

Brand Building For 2022

by | Jan 4, 2022 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, Sound ADvice, The Not-So-Secret Writings of ScLoHo

When you own and operate a business and you live and breathe it, often, it’s difficult to see when things change.  As they say, sometimes it’s hard to see the forest for the trees.

When is the last time you had a Brand Health Check-Up?

Only politicians can succeed without delivering on their promises, and only weather forecasters can make mistakes every day and still keep their jobs.

Unfortunately, you are neither, so you have to build your business and your brand by delivering on every promise and accurately forecasting how your customers prefer to be served and sold.

Some business owners mistakenly think that a brand is built simply around their business name, location, industry, employees, and their marketing. But your brand is the sum of everything your customers and prospects hear, see, feel, and experience when they do business with you.

Your brand is who you are, what you do, and how you do it!  Reputation management is an ongoing, continual task, and regular check-ups are necessary.

Brands are the sum of the impressions you create at every customer touchpoint; from your advertising to the way you answer your phone, the cleanliness of your buildings, vehicles, and bathrooms, your warranty and return policies, to the way you empower your staff to resolve customer conflicts.

Does your business need a health check? Do you have a clearly defined mission and is it evident at every customer touchpoint?

Click here for our free Brand Health Check to ensure that you are walking the talk.

Your Supplier Wants To Help Pay For Your Advertising

Your Supplier Wants To Help Pay For Your Advertising

by | Nov 30, 2021 | Marketing and Advertising Insights, Sound ADvice

All of your suppliers have a vested interest in your success, and most of them have access to extraordinary marketing funds and resources beyond traditional co-op to help you sell more of their products.

With the end of the year rapidly approaching, it’s your chance to make a “Last Dash for Cash”.  Don’t think it’s too late. Millions of co-op dollars go unused every year. The main reason is that seldom does anyone ask for these funds! If you don’t access those funds, you are literally throwing money away, or worse yet, your competitors will scoop those funds and use them against you.

In our How to Leverage Your Suppliers’ Marketing Muscle, tactic number one is “Tender your Next Ad Campaign”. Present a written proposal for submissions for marketing support from all of your suppliers outlining your proposed advertising schedule and investment, along with any special displays, promotions, demonstrations, or other exposure the winning bidder will receive.

Many business owners believe their hands are tied to rigid manufacturers’ restrictions if they use manufacturers’ co-op advertising funds, but seldom is this the case.  The “squeaky wheel” oftentimes gets the grease!

If you are an appliance dealer, for example, and you sell GE and Whirlpool, your GE representative has a vested interest in you featuring GE versus Whirlpool in your ad. If you make a presentation to GE outlining the kind of campaign you propose to use to sell more GE products without using the standard GE script or ad copy that the manufacturer supplies, it will generally be approved by their office because they don’t want your campaign to feature their competitor.

Still, other businesses opt not to leverage their suppliers’ marketing muscle because it takes time and effort. In today’s competitive environment you need to take advantage of every competitive edge you can.

It may be too late in the year to go through the process of preparing and presenting a full-blown marketing campaign, but it’s not too late to simply ASK.

The old saying, “Ask and ye shall receive” still works, especially at the end of the year when manufacturers have unspent funds.

Make a Last Dash for your Cash and Good Luck!

Click here to retrieve our FREE How to Leverage Your Suppliers’ Marketing Muscle.
 
 
For the past several years, I have been working with a wholesaler that has created additional coop funding with their largest supplier and it pays for 50% of the advertising they do on my radio station in the form of product credits.  It’s really a no-brainer for the dealers to do this.
 
Another company that I work with has me submit scripts and get a approval number which takes just a couple of days and they also get free money for their advertising on WOWO.
 
Contact me and we’ll help you see what you qualify for in coop funds for the year ahead.!