Cross Media 1:1 Marketing

The jack of all trades is a master of none

There has been a lot of chatter lately about completely integrated marketing platforms that handle production and marketing in one neat bundle.  One vendor claims a “holy grail, ” assuming, of course, you don’t ask the system to do too much…

While certain marketing technologies (PURLs, emails, landing pages, SMS-text, unique phone tracking, etc.) can certainly be lumped together in one provider, the assertion that one platform can provide an entire cross marketing and production solution requires more investigation.

Consider solutions that utilize a provider model that can plug into and utilize a variety of services rather than rely on monolithic or single technology providers with legacy code and systems.  That way, it doesn’t matter what the next “twitter” will be and you won’t be stuck.

Cross Media – the new “Extreme”

Every few years there seems to be a great idea that gets co-opted as a catch phrase by bad marketers looking to make an average product or service somehow remarkable.  Most recently the word was extreme.  After the success of a youth oriented series of sporting events, everything from business forms, mini-golf and snack chips was referred to as extreme, xtreme, or XTREME !!!!  Extreme business forms?  Seriously?

The latest word to be drafted into the pantheon of hucksters looking to peddle one particular solution or another is cross media. 

What Cross Media Marketing is: A method of using multiple channels to provide a unified marketing message that features a call to action on all of the channels employed to drive respondents to a single data collection point in order to start a two way conversation.

What Cross Media Marketing is NOT: Anything else.

Marketers have been issuing the same message on multiple channels since the inception of mass marketing.  Coordinated TV, radio, and print ads are nothing new.  What makes a campaign become cross media or cross channel is how the responses are funneled into a single data collection point, either systematically or manually, to generate a dialogue with the prospect.  The dialogue is the key feature.  Marketers need to gather information from their clients and use that information to generate the follow on communications – regardless of channel. Any channel or medium can be employed.  Anything else is just advertising.  

And finally, to the folks at that consumer electronics giant spending millions:  Posting a video online and in downtown Tokyo does not qualify as cross media marketing no matter how much you say it does.  It’s just a video…

Printing Industries Association of Arizona (PIAZ) Partners with VDP Web® for Personalized URLs (PURL ) and offers Special Member Discounts

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Printing Industries Association of Arizona, serving Arizona, New Mexico and Colorado and JFM Concepts are proud to announce the addition of online and on-demand PURLs as part of their member group buying power platform.  Members are now able to launch sophisticated PURL campaigns without annual license fees, contracts, minimums or set up charges and they can take advantage of significant discounts.

Indianapolis, IN  October 2 2009 – The Printing Industries Association of Arizona has partnered with JFM Concepts to offer the VDP Web® online PURL software as a service at a significant discount to members.  Commercial printers seeking to offer PURL campaigns have been burdened by long term contracts, minimums, high setup and license fees, software and design limitations, and heavy training requirements.  These providers can now offer the most versatile PURL campaigns on the market using the VDP Web® Online service without these limitations at a significant discount. A free fourteen day trial is available to members at www.vdpweb.com.

Founded in 1990, PIAZ was established to serve the printing community and to provide a forum in which members could grow and profit. Today, they serve that community by presenting opportunities for education and group buying power, as well as local activities for our members to gather and exchange information.  VDP Web is now a powerful part of that mission.  VDP Web is specifically designed to support commercial printers.  Reseller and Enterprise accounts can easily setup an unlimited number of clients as sub-accounts with permissions-based access.  Enterprise accounts include a fully brandable interface at no additional charge. Using a simple form, anyone can customize the interface with a logo, contact information and even assign a vanity URL for client access.  Enterprise accounts also enjoy a powerful Web Services API and complimentary PURLs for self promotion.

VDP Web Online is the ideal tool for printers to use as the centerpiece of cross media efforts and has all of the features needed to build and manage complete campaigns.  PURLs, personalized landing pages with surveys and opt-ins, email, SMS Text, unique 800# tracking, and world class reporting are all available using simple, web based tools.  Users can create landing pages with variable text, images, links, video and sound. There are no workflows or templates to limit design or functionality.  Easy to use content wizards allow users to rapidly build and deploy fully functional micro sites while still allowing maximum design control.  Use PURLs in both print and email direct marketing to help drive response and provide detailed tracking for documented Return on Investment (ROI).

A free fourteen day trial is available to members at: http://www.vdpweb.com

About PIAZ
PIAZ is an affiliate of the Printing Industries of America. With over 12,000 members worldwide, the Printing Industries of America is the world's largest graphic arts trade association representing an industry with more than 1.2 million employees. Located in Sewickley, PA, The organization serves the interest of its member companies and along with its affiliates delivers products and services that enhance the growth, efficiency and profitability of its members and the industry through advocacy, education research and technical information.

The next cross media marketing thought leader!

JFM is pleased to announce that Jordan Ewbank has joined JFM Concepts and the VDP Web team.  Please join us in welcoming him to the fold.  More details to follow!

Cross Media & Integrated Marketing Budgets Rising?

Although the numbers are not out yet, the consensus between JFM and our widespread customer base is that marketing dollars are flowing again.  Both in North America and abroad, inquiries to direct marketers for many types of cross media marketing programs are on the rise.  In our mind, there are three reasons for the sudden increase.

1. Executive teams that have been hording cash in the face of the liquidity crisis have begun to loosen the purse strings.  Although we are by no means out of the woods and liquidity remains a major issue for many businesses, sitting tight, especially in the face of competitor activity, is not a viable long term strategy.  Considering that the meaning of “long term” is now often measured in a few quarters rather than years, the shift is almost inevitable.

2. Sales pipelines have emptied and new leads are required to keep sales coming in the door.  The decrease in traffic to web sites, call centers, and brick & mortar locations needs both direct marketing and advertising to overcome the drop.

3. Even though overall marketing budgets may have decreased dramatically, the cash earmarked for cross media applications has stayed constant or grown as an absolute figure.  As executives loosen the purse strings these programs have received a disproportionately large share of the available funds.

Marketing service providers that incorporate multiple cross media channels in their product mix, including email, PURLs, variable data print, dimensional mail, and more have seen a large increase in both inquiries and sales.  It is not too late to enter into these markets by partnering with a firm capable of providing more than just the back end technology for cross media, but also the marketing expertise to make campaigns successful.

Look for a big announcement from us coming on Tuesday 9/29

There is a big announcement coming from JFM tomorrow.  I wish I could spill the beans now!

The Top Integrated Cross Media Marketing Mistakes

Many of the major mistakes firms make in integrated cross media are simple to avoid. Here are a few of the most common errors.

• Not starting immediately
• Not coordinating across channels and brands
• Not providing a data collection mechanism
• Creating data silos of content response metrics
• Failing to start a two way conversation
• No asking questions and seeking customer input
• Not letting the customer choose the communications channel

Avoid these problems and your cross media program is half way there.

Tips for Social Media Quality Control

Here are a few tips to assure that the social media portion of your cross media marketing strategy does not cause any problems for the brand.

• Make sure that all corporate communications that may affect the brand are controlled. This includes employee accounts that are linked to the firm. Keep personal account and activity separate from business accounts unless part of a carefully controlled brand strategy for lifestyle.
• Conduct common sense training on the use and dangers of social media and networking sites. Point out the obvious.
• Focus only on the positive or well documented when posting comments or blogging on any site.
• Write comments first and then come back to them later before posting if in doubt

A few simple precautions can prevent a PR disaster.

From CIO - February 2007

The following article is reproduced from CIO in its entirety from February 2, 2007.  It is even more vaild today.

"Many in the business community—including those in IT—relegate Web 2.0’s clout to the under-20 set. A new study concludes that attitude is a mistake. The Web 2.0 model of consumer interaction and participation is a mass phenomenon, concludes the Booz Allen Hamilton study of 2,400 consumers in the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany. Companies that don’t adapt their business models to the lessons of YouTube, Flickr and MySpace are in trouble, the study says.

Key findings include:

• Web 2.0 relevance cuts across gender and age. Forty-one percent of U.S. MySpace users are older than 35. That number was 35 percent for the United Kingdom and 29 percent for Germany.
• Web 2.0 users have few privacy concerns. Sixty-four percent of U.S. messages are freely available to the public. U.K. respondents reported that number as 61 percent, while Germany reported 73 percent.
• Web 2.0 capitalizes on ubiquitous connectivity. Approximately one-quarter of surveyed MySpace users are accessing MySpace from a laptop, a school or office computer, an Internet-enabled cafe or a BlackBerry.
• Web 2.0 communities influence opinions and purchasing decisions. Thirty-nine percent of surveyed MySpace users receive product picks from virtual peers.

The study determines that the Internet is establishing itself more strongly in consumers’ lives. In particular, Web 2.0-influenced trends will affect how businesses get and keep customers. The study lists Web 2.0 opportunities that include shorter innovation cycles using customer integration, cross-media selling, customer service sites with end-user created content and wide participation, and using Web 2.0 as a brand channel."

The Pervasive Internet

Not all that long ago the most important place in any traveler’s world was the hotspot.  A mobile business person had to plan ahead.  The airport and hotel room were safe bets and Starbucks and few other large chains were likely candidates as well.  The mobile business person had to have everything required in their laptop (which likely weighed a ton) and their PDA – remember those clunky boxes with their calculator like screens?

Technological advances aside, the real change in the last few years is the ubiquitous access to wireless networks.  Doctor’s offices, malls, public parks, libraries, and even entire cities have signals being beamed around them.  Couple the spread of access with the rise in sales of net books, mobile broadband cards, and internet enabled cell phones on fast cellular data networks, and suddenly access is no longer an issue.

The “go to” source of information on the fly is changing.  Will consumers buy a paper, boot up a laptop, or jump on their phone to check movie schedules at the local cineplex?  One of the most troubling aspects of the change in information availability is for retailers and manufacturers of consumer goods.  When standing in front of a display it is now easy and painless to read reviews of products posted online.  From experience, I have personally not purchased a water cooler for the office that otherwise looked perfect because of the reviews I accessed while in the store.  Magazine ads, packaging, and point of sale pitches are no longer the main source of product information. 

The web has changed the function of those media from a channel for information and sales and relegated it to brand building and interest generation.  From electric toothbrushes and bicycles to industrial power generation, simple to complex sales are being influenced online.  A cross media marketing strategy that incorporates social media is critical.  Blogs, networking sites, and instant message forums are as important as a full page advertisement in the local paper.  The new marketing channels are too important to be ignored by any business.