Before you kick off a campaign - PR, marketing or any other type of formal communication - there are a few important questions you need to ask yourself to avoid putting the cart before the horse.
Key messages are just that. Key to working out your press targets, key to finding the case studies to support your business, key to every piece of collateral that you create. However, it takes time to work them out. Sit in a boardroom with a group of executives, with the company's brand seemingly running through their bloodstreams, and you’ll find that each one has a different perspective on what the company stands for, how it stands out and why customers chose them.
If the board is unclear every level down will have a variety of other company colours to add to the mix. Unfortunately, rather than making the end result a kaleidoscope of opportunity - if you mix too many colours the result is mud.
If you want to build a multifaceted business start with an achievable goal then build. Find your main differentiators and ensure that one important selling point doesn't contradict another.
When Amazon launched with a goal to be "Wal-Mart online" the story goes that the chairman and founder, Jeffrey P. Bezos, threw out the extensive marketing plan declaring "We're going to sell books." Building credibility in one area before expanding to another makes marketing sense rather than be an 'all things to all people’ newcomer who can get lost in the crowd.
As times get tougher you need to make it easier for your clients or customers to buy. Can your service be simply explained? Is the product's benefit easy to understand? Is what you charge clear and not laden with hidden costs? Whatever size your customer is, their budgets are being scrutinized. If you can’t be clear about what you sell, how much it’s going to cost, and how they’re going to benefit – they’ll never to the internal selling job needed to get you a purchase order.
What do you want to be famous for? Take the time to establish your messages before you turn on the PR machine. It’ll provide you with a engine under the bonnet and make all the difference.
Key messages are just that. Key to working out your press targets, key to finding the case studies to support your business, key to every piece of collateral that you create. However, it takes time to work them out. Sit in a boardroom with a group of executives, with the company's brand seemingly running through their bloodstreams, and you’ll find that each one has a different perspective on what the company stands for, how it stands out and why customers chose them.
If the board is unclear every level down will have a variety of other company colours to add to the mix. Unfortunately, rather than making the end result a kaleidoscope of opportunity - if you mix too many colours the result is mud.
If you want to build a multifaceted business start with an achievable goal then build. Find your main differentiators and ensure that one important selling point doesn't contradict another.
When Amazon launched with a goal to be "Wal-Mart online" the story goes that the chairman and founder, Jeffrey P. Bezos, threw out the extensive marketing plan declaring "We're going to sell books." Building credibility in one area before expanding to another makes marketing sense rather than be an 'all things to all people’ newcomer who can get lost in the crowd.
As times get tougher you need to make it easier for your clients or customers to buy. Can your service be simply explained? Is the product's benefit easy to understand? Is what you charge clear and not laden with hidden costs? Whatever size your customer is, their budgets are being scrutinized. If you can’t be clear about what you sell, how much it’s going to cost, and how they’re going to benefit – they’ll never to the internal selling job needed to get you a purchase order.
What do you want to be famous for? Take the time to establish your messages before you turn on the PR machine. It’ll provide you with a engine under the bonnet and make all the difference.
