Against the Grain

When taking on your first “real” project as an intern, a lot of thoughts go through your mind, “Am I ready for this? Where do I start? I hope I don’t blow this,” but none can beat the rush you get when you realize it’s time to prove your worth. It can be scary taking on a project with such a high value to our company when you have never done anything like it before. It’s like being thrown into an ocean, not knowing how to swim, and having to fend for yourself. Well, with no arm floaties, I had to learn on my own.

I soon found out that meetings are critical to the success of a project. It’s so easy to get the right group of talented people together, each from different departments, sit down and come up with tactical options on how to complete a project in the allotted timeframe and within the budget. My one-man project quickly turned into a group effort. Unlike class up at school, I was able to delegate tasks to each department at hand that specialized in that particular work. The creative ideas went to our creative department, the press release and announcements to our PR department and the website specifications to our interactive/online team. With follow-up meetings, I was able to put together a great marketing plan for the project. What would have been a semester-long project in school was put together in a little over a week.

The implementation of the marketing plan would not have happened had the plan not been approved with oversight from the CEO, President, account executive and head of the research department. This was a little intimidating to say the least. Facing a panel of four of your superiors and pitching a marketing plan that was little more than an idea a week ago was not an easy thing to do. All in all, I thought the presentation went over fairly well. Of course, for being the first “real” project I have put together, there were a couple tweaks here and there. But the project got approved. (That’s gotta’ mean something right?) Overall, it has been a great learning experience putting together a “real” full-blown marketing plan. Now comes the execution…

They’re talking about you. You may not know it, but your company, its products and employees are being talked about every day online. Blogs, Twitter, Facebook… all are dotted with mentions that can affect how your company, brand and industry are perceived.

They’re talking about your competitors too.

The question is, are you listening? Are you monitoring those sites to gain insight into customer wants and needs? Are you using it to gain a competitive advantage? Are you using the same services to participate in, and drive, the conversation? It’s not conventional marketing. But then, these are conventional times.

Trilix is a full-service advertising agency headquartered in the Midwest with expertise in helping manufacturers market effectively and drive sales success. Learn more at www.trilixgroup.com or email Todd Senne at tsenne@trilixgroup.com.

Ah, it’s a beautiful morning and you’re jonesing for a caffeine fix. You need a cup of coffee STAT. You have two options: brew a pot at home or head down to Starbucks for a cup of joe. Before you know it, you’re half way out the door and eagerly anticipating a venti café latte.

A few decades ago, a cup of coffee cost about 50 cents and research indicated that sales were rapidly declining. Today, Starbucks beverages average $3.00 each and their annual report says they have more than 16,000 stores in more than 50 countries. So, how did the Seattle-based coffee retailer successfully launch a premium product in a declining industry? They identified a vacant niche in the coffee market, then branded and positioned their product to satisfy it.

Branding is more than a name, it's an experience. It's the emotional response, ambiance and point-of-sale interaction that influences brand perception and earns customer loyalty. Successful branding is what keeps coffee drinkers flocking to Starbucks day after day — well that, and the pesky caffeine addiction. Is it more economical to brew a pot at home? Yes. But Starbucks mouth-watering aroma, soothing ambiance and social interactions generate brand loyalty that makes the premium price seem worthwhile.

Branding and market positioning go hand-in-hand and are essential elements of your integrated marketing campaign. A strong brand name allows companies to charge a premium, while bad branding leads to commoditization. This is generally thought of in terms of B2C industries, but the same principles apply to B2B. To successfully position your product in the market, you must understand how consumers perceive your brand so you can shape their attitudes and distinguish your product from your competitors'.

The best way to evaluate your branding and positioning is to conduct market research. Qualitative and quantitative data gives you vital statistics about the consumers you want to buy your products and use your services. Market research will help you identify your niche, classify your target audience and position your brand.

Researchers use multi-phase, qualitative and quantitative survey methods to ensure statistical reliability. The first stage uses a face-to-face delivery method, (e.g. an in-store intercept or focus group) to collect qualitative data about your brand. Personal interactions and first-hand conversations help researchers interpret consumers' emotional responses to your brand.

The second phase polls a larger audience using direct mail, online or phone surveys to collect quantitative data. This is statistically reliable, verifiable data that reveals the median age, gender, income level, marital status and geographical location of the people buying your product or using your services.

The qualitative survey results will help you understand a consumer's emotional response to your brand. Are consumers responding favorably? If not, how can you re-brand your product to improve public perception? The quantitative results will help you determine how to package, price and promote the product in the marketplace. Are you selling your product in the right stores? Is it priced competitively?

This information enables your marketing team to strategically plan an integrated campaign to reach your target audience within your advertising budget. Translation: getting your product in front of the “right people” will raise awareness about your brand, boost sales and increase your profitability.  

The next time you make a purchase, ask yourself why you chose that product instead of its competitor. Did the packaging influence your decision? Was it a “good deal?” How are consumers answering those same questions about your product?

Brand positioning influences thousands of subconscious decisions we make every day. If you correctly position your brand, you can build a loyal customer base that rivals Starbucks' – without that pesky caffeine addiction.  

A lot of people ask me why I closed Genesis Marketing and Research, Inc. and joined Trilix Research after 9 years.  The short answer is that it felt about time to do something different. Why?  The economy had gotten tougher the last couple years, clients were tightening their budgets more and I was getting ready to do something different in my life.  As many of you know, my life has changed drastically in the past two years and I wanted to make some changes to embrace and enhance my new life.  Trilix Research offers me the great opportunity to interact with bright, creative people daily and to actually see my research and strategy implemented.

Fortunately for me and my clients, Trilix was open to the idea of having me join them to start a research division.  I have known Todd Senne for almost 20 years and trusted both him and his partner, Ron Maahs.  In short, these two have grown Trilix Marketing to where it is today with nearly 30 employees by being good to their employees and their clients.  Few agencies have done so well in recent years.

What does me joining Trilix mean to customers of Trilix Research?  Your research will be completed to the same high standards as we had at Genesis Marketing and Research, Inc.  We will use the best research methodology to match your research need.  The work will be done accurately and the research projects will be competitively priced.  If you are a former client of Genesis, you will not see big price changes on similar projects done in the past.

Best of all, Trilix has more resources to help you.  Resources come in the form of talented people, the investment in new technology and creative problem solving. Our full-service research capabilities allows us to offer focus groups, online surveys, telephone surveys, advanced research techniques and fast turnaround times.  With all of the additional support backing me, Trilix Research will serve your client needs even better than before. I am excited to be working at Trilix and excited to be working with many of my former clients and many new ones as well.  

Your dealers and distributors are one of the most valuable sales and marketing resources you have. They are on the front line of customer interaction and can absolutely make or break a new initiative or product line. Having a dealer/distributor network that is jazzed about your products and enthusiastically recommends them to customers is a huge competitive advantage.

But if left unchecked, it can get out of hand.

A dealer’s main motivation is closing the deal and moving product. And if that means sacrificing your brand and positioning to do it, it will happen. And that’s a recipe for long-term disaster. Keep your dealers on message and operating within appropriate boundaries not only by providing them with marketing and sales tools, but by incentivizing them to use them (and punishing them when they don’t.) Because if left to their own devices, they’re bound to come up with something that misses the mark.

Trilix is a full-service advertising agency headquartered in the Midwest with expertise in helping manufacturers market effectively and drive sales success. Learn more at www.trilixgroup.com or email Todd Senne at tsenne@trilixgroup.com.