Grow My Company

How to buy TV advertising, and what all those sales promo numbers really mean

If you want the skinny on buying TV advertising, here's a crash course from someone who sold and bought a lot of TV advertising over my career. I sold advertising for the local ABC affiliate for several years back in the 90s, and then I spent many hundreds of thousands of dollars annually while acting in my capacity as marketing director for an employer, as well as overseeing media purchases on behalf of many clients within my own business. I've seen all the tricks and tactics to make you spend your money with a particular station.

Stations seem to have finally realized that an average business owner doesn't understand technical numbers like ratings points. They understand plain English numbers in the thousands, so the marketing pieces I'm seeing lately reflects this. Ratings are more technical. Although they're not hard to grasp, the average business owner isn't expected to understand them. Agencies generally buy on ratings and subsequently use these projections/promises of delivery to make sure they receive what they paid for. If you're interested in the definition please check the glossary below. But for now, let's discuss common TV sales tactics.

Household numbers: One of the most common tricks to make poor ratings numbers look better is to use households numbers instead of popular buying demos, like adults 25-54. Think about your clients. It is unlikely that reaching a large number of households would be helpful to you. Household numbers include people of all ages, from newborn to elderly, people in all income brackets, people living in apartments, etc. If you've done your positioning work, you know exactly who buys your services. They are the only people you should be targeting with your advertising dollars. If a station is using household numbers in its promotional pieces, your clients are likely not watching its programming.

Packages: TV sales people love to sell packages that include a couple spots in key, effective areas and lots of spots at times where there is very little viewership. They try to fool you into thinking you're getting a great deal because of the frequency with which your ad runs. Again, think of your positioning. Are your key prospects watching TV at 3AM, 10:30AM, or 2:30PM? Are they watching during the daytime on the weekends? Probably not. Your target prospects are probably listening to news as they get ready for work in the morning and make dinner in the evening, however, so a $1,500 package that includes just 2 or 3 news spots and many spots in other areas may be a waste of your money.

Commissions: Sales people are paid on commission, so it's to their advantage to convince you to spend as much of your budget with them as possible. Many media sales people are honest and will try to find a good fit to advertise your service on their station. Some are not. The best insurance you have is your position statement. Don't buy an area that doesn't have a lot of viewers who are likely to buy your services. Ask for cost per thousand numbers of your chosen demos when looking at proposals, so you can evaluate bang for your buck among areas. Don't waste your money.

Glossary:

Ratings point: One ratings point is 1 percent of all TVs in a market whether on or off. 

Share: A share is a percentage of TVs on at the time.

Book: Nielsen puts out ratings books 4 times per year. Some markets are metered, which means that some homes have boxes sitting atop their TVs that record what station the TV is displaying through the day. Most markets are calculated by diary, however. This method relies on people writing down what they watch at any given time. Although this is the most accurate information available about programming popularity, as you can imagine, it is very flawed.

Projection: A projection is a mathematical equation of ratings from a particular book against viewing levels from another book. For example, TV viewership is traditionally up in the winter vs. the summer in New England, so if you're placing an annual buy, you may ask for projections that include numbers based on the latest ratings book adjusted for seasonal viewing levels.

Don't be fooled into buying advertising that won't work. Go back to basics and judge every advertising opportunity against your positioning. Spend your money wisely.

 - Christine Pilch

Photo credit: William Hook

Friday Favorites: 3.25.11

Here are 5 of my favorite or most helpful things I read on the web this week:

1. 7 Tools That Monitor Your Children on Facebook - Facebook can be a dangerous place for kids and a great concern for parents, but these tools can help provide piece of mind.
2. QR Codes: Game Changer or Passing Fad? - I believe that QR codes have tremendous potential to be a powerful component of marketing. This article explains what they are and how they can be used.
3. 5 Mobile App Trends You Can’t Ignore - This article is about using mobile apps for enhanced productivity.
4. How to Use Facebook Social Plugins on Your Website - Although I believe it's a bad idea to integrate Facebook and your blog comments because Facebook is too fickle to allow it control over something so important, this article is good for showing you how you can integrate Facebook into your site or blog.
5. Why Women Rule The Internet - This article is full of statistics about the significance of women for eCommerce, social networking sites, and even, surprisingly, gaming. If you're not optimizing your site for women, you just might be sorry.

 Well, that's it for this week!

- Christine Pilch

iPad = iPublic iOpinion iFlop

Yes, I've been lax about posting on this blog as other projects have consumed me, but I just couldn't let Apple's collosal branding failure go unaddressed.

Within an hour of Apple's announcement yesterday, one of the top trending words on Twitter was iTampon, and it went downhill from there.

iPad. Really? Huh? Tilt head, and try to let that one sink in. Blink eyes a few times. iPad. Seriously?

iJust don't get it.

How could one of the world's savviest brands go so far off the ranch? How could they miss the iTarget, not by an inch, but by a mile? Did they finally get so big, and so bold, and so iArrogant that they forgot that an iProduct has to be iPositioned?

Gosh... iPad. Women hate it because of the iInference of something that has iInconvenienced them and iInterfered with their lives for years. Men hate it because it's an iFeminine product that most won't even iPurchase for their wives and girlfriends. But iDigress...

Let's start with what positioning is. Positioning is determining 3 things to find the niche of clients who are most likely to purchase services from you, then building an identity that is so attractive to those prospective customers that they wouldn't dream of purchasing anywhere else.

1. First determine who your clients are. I mean the specifics about them; demographics, likes, dislikes, tenancies, pain, problems, etc.


2. Next figure out what they get from you. By this I mean what need or desire your service will satisfy for them. (What's in it for them)


3. Find out why these clients buy from you instead of your competition

Once you answer these 3 questions, you are ready to build a brand as your best clients see you. You can craft an image of yourself that is exactly as they want you to be, so they perceive you as the perfect solution. Only at this point can you most effectively name your company or product to appeal to those prospective customers. Anything else is premature and almost 100% guaranteed ego driven.

At this point Apple should have known who would be most likely to purchase this product. They should have looked at their position statement, which they had probably spent several hundred thousand dollars developing, and had a creative team come up with something that would appeal specifically to those most likely to purchase their tablet. 

iPad. Seriously? Even all my iTech, iGeek friends, (and I use that word with the utmost iAffection,) are laughing about this one and have publicly iCriticized it. Those who will iPurchase it, will do so iRegardless of the iNaming iBlunder, but I'm betting that they might quickly find an iAlternative pet name for their new iToy. Nobody wants to say "iPad" out loud for fear of rolling iLaughter from all within iEarshot.

So what's the take-away here? Even a company as brilliant as Apple can make a colossal mistake. They seem to have forgotten the primary rule of branding: know your position and be true to it in all things. Some people will certainly buy this product, but how many others won't bother taking a look because of the negative publicity, the jokes, and the snide remarks? Can you afford to risk even a single customer by making such a mistake? 

And finally, remember that your brand is what people perceive you to be, not how you perceive yourself. What you think doesn't matter, and no matter how cool Apple thinks this iPad is, if the public thinks it's an iJoke, it's iJunk.

 

by: Christine Pilch
Christine@GrowMyCo.com
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When your own employees sabotage your company's brand

I know I've said it many times before, but I have to repeat it again: your brand isn't your logo or stationery, although they may be physical representations of it. Your brand is the way you are perceived. It's about how people feel when they hear your name or see any physical element of it. It is built entirely from one's experience with your product or service and is the sum total of all touch points that they have ever been exposed to.

So, have you thought about the potential damage your employees can inflict on that brand?

One of the most critical elements of any brand is in setting up expectations of behavior. Think of Wal-Mart. You expect to be greeted in a friendly manner by a smiling someone at the door. Consider McDonalds. You expect those fries to be perfectly cooked and piping hot. Think of the receptionist at your doctor's office. You expect her to be helpful and polite.

But what if the Wal-Mart greeter scowls, the fries are brown and cold, and the receptionist is rude? In an instant, your expectations aren't met, and you feel uncomfortable or perhaps a bit cheated or angry. Your experience doesn't match the perception that you have created about that product of service, and the brand begins to erode in your mind.

Now think about your own business. Are all of your employees on the same page? Do they all deliver a consistent experience to your clients at every touch point?

Your employees are your brand's champions or the undoing of it. They must always present a professional, tactful, classy front. Clients are affected by their tone, attitude, and even the way employees dress, so be careful of who is on your front-line. For example, your accounting person may be terrific with numbers, but if his people skills are poor, he shouldn't handle clients' inquiries. Even if an employee is having a bad day, that's not an excuse to inflict a rotten attitude on the public.

Also consider how toxic a bad attitude is internally. Can one bad apple spoil the whole bunch? I have seen a few organizations that were turned into glum, depressing places by people who made it their mission in life to spread their own misery. If you've got such an employee on your staff, think about addressing him or removing her.

Your brand and your reputation are wrapped up very tightly together. Make sure you protect them by employing the right people.

by: Christine Pilch
Christine@GrowMyCo.com
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Image Credit: Microsoft

Glamour magazine's "real woman" photo - a lesson in positioning

Glamour magazine's September 2009 issue ran a nude photo of a model that caught the attention of millions of women...not because of it's racy nature, but because she doesn't have a flat belly. Instantly, millions of women saw someone who looked just like them. It struck a chord, and the praise started flowing.

Hooray! Finally, a real woman appeared in a magazine looking beautiful. Finally, millions of women saw themselves in a magazine and maybe felt a little less disappointed the next time they looked in the mirror.

This is what positioning is all about. Positioning is identifying your target audience, determining what they want, and giving it to them by becoming a reflection of what they want. Perhaps indeliberately, Glamour magazine learned a valuable lesson about what their readers relate to, how they view themselves and what they want. The question now is, "Does Glamour have the guts to seize this golden opportunity?"

The photo was small and buried on page 194, so it is unlikely that Glamour intended this as a turning point, redefining the direction of their magazine. It is unlikely that they will get rid of the airbrushed, half-starved, 6 ft. models that grace their covers and content, replacing them with "real women."

But perhaps the women's magazine world will now take notice and recognize that the general female population doesn't relate to the fashion world's definition of beauty. Perhaps, when presented with an alternative, they would actually gravitate toward something familiar and comforting, something that makes them feel good about themselves rather than inadequate and second-rate.

Glamour magazine learned that there is a market segment that is hungry for something that they can relate to. They learned this segment's position without expensive research and focus groups. They now know what "real women" want.

Now who will give America's "real women" what we want?


by: Christine Pilch
Christine@GrowMyCo.com
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Turbo Tax nails their position and branding

We're right smack in the middle of Turbo Tax's season, and boy, do they ever understand their own branding. They have positioned their product as the premiere do-it-yourself tax software and created various versions to accommodate personal needs. What really impressed me lately though is the tagline that they've been using in their advertising:

Choose easy.

I am not sure if that tagline is new or if I've just noticed it, but those two words do exactly what a tagline should do, nail down the customer benefit. Here, Turbo Tax captures the essence of one of their primary customer benefits, making it easier to do your taxes. You know what you get, your taxes done as easy as possible. What a relief! That is a powerful motivator to buy their product.

TurboTax has a very small window to make their money, and they have pulled out all the stops to make the most of their season. I haven't seen a mis-step yet. Whoever is guiding their brand strategy is right on the money.


by: Christine Pilch
Christine@GrowMyCo.com
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Marketing & branding = windows and mirrors

My colleague and Twitter friend, Gabriel Rossi, branding specialist in Brazil, recently tweeted something that hit the nail right on the head: "Marketing & Branding = Windows & Mirrors." I was impressed by this spot-on analogy. Marketing is indeed a window into your product or service, and good branding is a mirror of what your target clients, customers and patients want you to be.

It all goes back to basics, your position. If you have identified who your ideal customers are, what they get from you, why your company is the best provider, and what value they perceive from your product or service, you are in a position to craft marketing messages that are appealing to those particular people. You can explain the benefits they receive and how their pain will be alleviated. Those are very powerful attention grabbers and one of the best means of piquing enough curiosity to have them want to know more.

Think of marketing as an education process that warms up your prospects to prime them for a sale. Effective marketing provides the right information to turn individuals into a warm prospects. It is the processes of pre-selling and gives them a window into what they get.

A strong brand then acts as a mirror, reflecting themselves back to those target prospects - their desires satisfied, their pain soothed. They see a fresher, better, happier, more satisfied "me," one that they identify with and desire.

Marketing & Branding = Windows & Mirrors. - So true.

by: Christine Pilch

Christine@GrowMyCo.com
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Image Credit: Microsoft

Branding from the inside out - the importance of consistency

Your brand is precious, and it should be voraciously protected. But what happens when your own staff and employees give out conflicting brand messages? How can you get everyone on the same page and delivering the same messages to prospects and clients?

Getting all your internal resources on the same brand page starts with going back to your position statement. Does everyone in your organization understand who your target customers are, what they get from your company, and why your company is the best source for those customers to obtain their professional services? Does everyone clearly and succinctly deliver a consistent brand message? Is the information that prospects and clients receive the same every time?

The onus of brand enforcement ultimately lies with you, the business owner. Either you accept the responsibility of "brand cop," or you delegate it to someone within your organization. One of the most important functions of your brand cop is the training of all staff. Even if every new employee is handed a copy of your position statement upon hire, it is unreasonable to expect them to automatically understand and assimilate it into their daily actions.

All staff should be trained and fully understand your position in the market, why your company is unique, what value you bring to your service, and how your clients expect and deserve to be treated in every interaction. Remember that your brand is the way people feel about your service and company. If they have a certain expectation, and that expectation is not met, your brand becomes a lie and you lose their trust.

It's a good idea to have regular followup refresher training to make sure that everybody remains on the same page as well. Perhaps an annual meeting would suffice.

by: Christine Pilch
Christine@GrowMyCo.com
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Image Credit: Microsoft

13 reasons to continue marketing in a recession

Finally, yesterday it was announced that America is officially in a recession and has been for a year. After we all cried a collective, "Duh!" it is time to ponder, has anything really changed for you personally since that news struck? Are you in better or worse shape today than you were yesterday?

For most service business owners, the news didn't really change anything. However, this might be a good time to consider how best to retain the business you have and perhaps even grow. I can tell you with absolute certainty that one of the quickest ways to lose business is to stop reminding people about your services. Stop marketing, and you will fade away.

Why should you keep marketing during the recession?

1. To retain market share
2. Because your competitors will probably slow down or stop
3. To remind your clients that you're there
4. To educate prospects about how you can help them
5. To demonstrate stability
6. To prove your expertise
7. To maintain a positive public demeanor
8. To demonstrate your value
9. To offer free industry tips
10. To touch inactive clients who may have upcoming needs
11. Because incredible deals on media time and space can be negotiated now
12. To solidify your market position
13. To make your clients feel appreciated

One final parting thought, since this blog is about positioning and branding, it is important to stress that your marketing messages must be on-target, to the right people, and about something that they want. Remember that they don't care about you and what you have to offer.

To be successful, your marketing messages have to be about what your clients and prospects get. Don't talk about quality, value or service and expect that to be a successful campaign. Find your niche, differentiate yourself, and create messages that appeal to a specific audience.

by: Christine Pilch
Christine@GrowMyCo.com
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Image Credit: Microsoft

When your ad agency doesn't understand branding

"Branding," is a popular buzzword that is often misused by people who don't understand what it actually is. It's not surprising that many business owners don't quite understand what their brand is, but it's a sad day indeed when an advertising agency doesn't get it. Unfortunately, that happens pretty often.

I recently saw this ad for an advertising agency's "branding service," and I just shook my head. This agency wants your business, and they may have a talented graphic designer who can make your materials look attractive, but this ad isn't actually about branding, so if they don't get it, how can they help you?

Your brand is the sum total of your clients' and prospects' experiences with your service. It's what they feel when they hear your name or see your logo. The physical aspects named in the ad are elements of your brand, but they are not the brand itself.

This blog is full of posts about what a waste of money it is to change your phyical look and expect that your brand will change. By themselves, a new logo, stationery package, and all the rest of the items listed in the ad to the left will rebrand your business about as successfully as changing the carpeting and window dressings in your office would.

The only way a company can rebrand is to change its clients' experience. You must change the way your clients feel they are treated in every interaction with your company. You must establish a different or higher expectation and uphold it in all client touchpoints.

Once you have made your core rebranding commitment, repositioned your company, created a position and value statement, and all stakeholders are onboard and trained, only then can you successfully change the graphics that represent your company to appeal to the target clients identified in your positioning.

If you change your logo and other associated graphic materials before repositioning your company, who will those graphics appeal to? Only the egos of your company's partners and administration.

Please don't be fooled into thinking that a new graphic look will change your brand. If someone tells you differently, you might want to go shopping for a new marketing/advertising company.


by: Christine Pilch
Christine@GrowMyCo.com
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