Marketing
August 27, 2008
Back to Basics: The Elevator Speech
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The “elevator speech” is a cliche among professionals of all stripes, including association executives — you know, how can you explain what it is you do in 30 seconds or less? The purpose is not really to spring it on unsuspecting people riding down with you to the parking garage, of course, but to help focus your marketing and communications efforts on the things that really matter.
Though it’s a well-known concept, many associations get it wrong — let’s face it, many of us do a LOT of things for a lot of different constituent groups within the markets we serve. This form of feature-creep can actually be crippling in our marketing, especially when we focus that marketing on what it is we DO. Many associations, when asked what they DO, will spout off a few vague concepts that really mean little to those who aren’t already in the fold — things like education, promoting the industry/profession, or worse, words like “advocacy” or “networking.”
Here’s a better way to do it: When someone asks “So, what does your organization do?” (or when you are attempting to craft a marketing piece as if the recipient had asked such a question), you should actually answer a completely different question, which is: “What challenges do you solve?”
On one of the ASAE listserves today, Vinay Kumar offered a similar take on this concept, complete with a lengthy example, which he agreed to let me reprint as follows:
For example, let’s say I am an association that represents chiropractors and one of the versions of my elevator speeches can go something like:
“We work with overwhelmed chiropractors who are sick and tired of not having enough clients. Every time payroll comes around, they are worried if they’ll able to meet along with their other expenses. Our association, The Association for Successful Chiropractors” develops and provides ABC solutions that help our chiropractic members double their revenue, allowing them to easily make money and have the life they dreamed of when they first became chiropractors.”
Of course, if the person is interested, then they will ask “Geez, how do you do that?”. Then there is another set of conversation that can take place but we won’t go there for now. All I can say is that still don’t go into what you do. Instead turn the conversation around ask about their situation and learn about their issues. If you ask, they’ll tell you and that’s very valuable information.
What you DO should not be your focus. Instead show how you solve the real challenges of your market and help members and customers reach their individual goals.
August 22, 2008
More of the Same
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The “secret session” at ASAE: a bold social media experiment about a new way of doing business and getting buzz, or just plain old-fashioned hyperbolic marketing using slightly different tools? As usual, Cindy Butts nails it.
August 8, 2008
How to Grow in a (Shrinking?) Economy
Posted by Kevin | (4) Comments | Print This Article
I’ll leave it up to the so-called “experts” on what the economy is really doing at the macro level, but it’s only stating the obvious to point out that the last year has been a hard one for certain industries. So the question is, How can an association achieve revenue growth in a year when its members are facing economic challenges?
With the recent closing of our most recent fiscal year, I finally feel comfortable addressing this question with a few tips and thoughts based on our own experience doing so.
Create new products for your core market that meet a real need. Our core products are the standards and technical manuals that lay out how our industry is supposed to do its work. One of the things we hear most often from members and non-members is that the standards are very difficult to understand and require outside training. In late 2007 I worked with an industry trainer and launched a new series of computer-based training sessions that take the concepts and explain them in plain English in bite-sized, self-directed segments. The first three packages in this series produced a brand new six-figure revenue stream. My tips:
Make sure you are listening to members and exploit what they are telling you about your products, and about potential new products.
Look at your bestselling products and create ancillary products around them. For example, if you sell books, create training programs that explain them or demonstrate how to use them, or create audio versions if they lend themselves to that sort of treatment. The key is to look at what’s working and build on it.
Now is not the time to cut back on marketing. In addition to our usual product catalog and email marketing, we upped the ante with new monthly product mailings and an even more aggressive but targeted series of promotional emails. We experimented with landing pages, fax broadcasts, telemarketing, and even Google advertising. By being smart about how we spent our money, we were able to do “more” marketing (with significantly better results) at less expense. My tips:
It’s very possible to reduce printing and mailing expenses significantly while still producing high quality product through such things as paper choice, printing technologies, layout and “fold” (for example, take advantage of the new postal regulations and avoid flats).
You must have a way to easily segment and target emails. If you send emails to everyone, or even if you send emails to certain broad channels (”newsletters” or “product specials”), then you are not getting the most out of email marketing. You must have a way to send emails, for example, to everyone who opted into receiving product specials, *AND* who also purchased a particular product, registered for an event, etc. (and just as importantly, who *DIDN’T* purchase, register, etc.)
Do not rely on one marketing channel! Hit your markets in multiple ways.
Repeat, repeat, repeat! I think it’s a waste of time, for example, to mail a promotional flyer once. It’s more effective if you mail it twice, or three times, to the same audience. I also have decided it’s a waste of time to send “building” campaigns (for example, a series of postcards that “build” on a particular theme), unless the campaign is REALLY clever. Send the same thing, repeated.
Retention is always important, but especially so when an industry is facing economic turmoil. Many associations think the key to improving retention is to remind members of the value that membership offers. However, we have found that the key to improving retention is to remind members that they owe money. With members expiring throughout the year, we begin our dues renewal process (both paper and email) five months out from expiration. Our retention rate held at around 90% this year. My tips:
The number one reason given for not renewing is “I didn’t realize I had expired.” Take away this excuse! Don’t be afraid to be persistent, almost annoying. Do not wait until the last minute to begin the renewal invoicing process.
Reach deeper into your core marketplace to find new audiences. I’ve talked ad nauseam about my belief that successful associations focus their efforts on expanding products and services for their core market, rather than take what they’re already doing and seek new markets. Part of exploiting the core market, though, is finding new decision makers within that marketplace. For example, we are launching a little two-day conference this October aimed specifically at a common lower-level management position among our members (as opposed to the owner or top-level position who is our usual audience). By early July we’d already surpassed our budgeted attendance expectations for this new conference, and added an overflow hotel; now we expect the event to completely sell out. My tips:
Look at your membership base (particularly if you are a trade association) and find new audiences within that base who may be interested in new educational or product offerings. First, you have to know what (and who) they are. This means being very familiar with typical member operations and being aggressive about collecting names and email addresses. (For example, our member “primary contacts” can login through our website at any time and add other employees to their account, giving us access to these valuable contacts and their job titles.)
Add niche events and mini-conferences to your schedule. Some associations try to bring in new people from their market by constantly adding new “tracks” to their annual meeting or coming up with alternate marketing approaches. I’ve found this to have mixed results. People in specific operational or professional segments will be drawn more to a an event that is specifically for them than they will by a new workshop series at a bigger event. And the niche event can bring in new sponsorship and exhibitor dollars at a higher price since the audience is so targeted.
Don’t stop experimenting, and take risks. Not everything will work; for example, we tried a regional one-day marketing seminar this year that was not successful enough to try again. This doesn’t stop us from innovating and experimenting. This fall we will be launching some new subscription-based online applications quite different from anything we’ve tried before. And we are building on the series of CDs mentioned above, with four new packages slated to be released in September and October. Another niche event will be launched next spring. My tips:
Stop thinking that you are in the business of doing whatever it is you happen to do now. Move in new directions.
Embrace a “guerilla” approach to media and technology for producing these new products and programs. None of the things we did this year that brought in high revenue cost us very much at all.
As you can tell by now, I believe strongly in product, product, product. Products are key to growing an association and making it possible for it to continually enhance services and advocacy for the industry it represents, no matter what the economy is doing (and none of the things we did this year were done specifically in response to the economy).
If the only things you sell are membership and meetings, then you’ve focused your model around two things that are most likely to be scrutinized, and possibly abandoned, by companies and people whose confidence in the economy is shaken.
May 12, 2008
You’re Only As Good As Your Guarantee
Posted by Kevin | (3) Comments | Print This Article
Mickie Rops asked a question on the ASAE listserve last week, and a few of the responses have left me scratching my head. She wanted to know if associations offer refunds for webinars or web conferences, in particular if someone claimed a technical difficulty.
A few of the responses have seemed near apoplectic at the idea of ever giving someone a refund.
I say — big mistake. You should be offering a 100% satisfaction guarantee on everything you do and sell (including membership). You should be offering refunds cheerfully and happily, without requiring people to jump through hoops to get them.
This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t ask questions — offer options (a free something, or a credit of some sort) — but ultimately, if someone is asking for a refund (or even if they’re just casually mentioning that they didn’t like something), that means that they are unhappy and your goal should be to make them happy. Give them a refund.
Remember, we are not in the transaction business, we are in the relationship business. Guarding over the money you’ve been given to perform a service or provide a product means that you are obsessing over a transaction and hurting the relationship. You may win the battle and lose the war.
Trust me, I know that there are people out there who will try to game the system and complain over every little thing in hopes of scraping back every nickel and dime. But they are the exception, and they can be dealt with (you should have some way of identifying repeat offenders in your system). A better plan is to identify the game players and then bar them from participating altogether. Don’t treat all your customers like the exception.
(By the way, I am assuming that what you are offering is of high enough quality that refund requests are relatively rare. If everybody’s asking for a refund — then they definitely deserve one, and you should rethink a lot of things.)
April 21, 2008
Bills Get Paid, Letters Get “Filed”
Posted by Kevin | (5) Comments | Print This Article
Over coffee with Vinay Kumar today, he reminded me of an issue I’ve mentioned on the ASAE listserves a couple times but I don’t think I’ve posted about it here.
The question that usually comes up is, “Should we send a letter out with our membership invoices (renewal statements or whatever you want to call them) that explain the benefits that the member gets?”
This is another thing that many associations do. (It’s almost as if we are embarrassed to be asking for money.) We used to do it in my organization as well and it still comes up occasionally. When we stopped doing it several years ago, the rate at which we received renewals increased rapidly. We send membership statements that look like bills, including nothing but the return envelope, and get the renewals back very quickly. This year our retention for our December 31 renewals hit 60% — in September. (They ended up over 90%.)
My theory for this is: “Invoices go in the ‘to be paid’ pile, letters go in the ‘to be read’ pile.” As usual I have no scientific data to support this other than my own experience.
Personally, when I get a bill it goes right into our check request process for my later review and signature. If there’s a letter with it, I usually just throw it away.
Sometimes, however, it seems like a really interesting letter, so it (along with the enclosed bill) goes into the pile of things “to be read” on my desk. Then, once a month or so, I get irritated at the amount of paper on my desk and throw it all away, assuming that if there’s anything important, I’ve probably given a copy of it to someone else.
The moral of the story: If you must send a letter with your renewal statement, don’t make it very interesting.
(And as always — TEST to discover what works best for your organization.)
April 17, 2008
More Stupid Email Tricks
Posted by Kevin | (3) Comments | Print This Article
Remember my post a couple weeks ago on Desperation Marketing? I hate to repeat myself, but I’m getting these emails so frequently I’ve decided to just start calling people out. And maybe, just maybe, offer some advice to improve their campaigns.
The latest was from PRSA, which I used to belong to, and which sent me an email with the subject line, “PRSA Would Like to Welcome You Back!”
As I’ve already made pretty clear in my earlier post, I couldn’t care less what PRSA would like. This is not a subject line that inspires reading, let alone whipping out my checkbook.
But, for the sake of this post, I went ahead and read it. Turns out, the awful subject line wasn’t the only thing wrong with it. They somehow managed to 1) reduce opens with a bad subject line, while also 2) repelling the people who actually opened it. Here’s why:
1) The email is not from an actual person, it is from “PRSA Member Services” (with the warm and fuzzy email address of “emailupdates@prsa.org”). While I might feasibly, possibly care about what Jane Smith thinks, I definitely don’t care what some faceless organizational department thinks.
2) The email begins, “To: Kevin W. Holland”. It’s nice that you know my name and middle initial, but so does every other computer database in the world. This is not an inviting lead.
3) The first sentence beneath the quote-unquote “greeting” is, “The Public Relations Society of America would like to reinstate your membership.” Setting aside the fact that they appear to only care about themselves, “reinstate” is such a cold and clinical word. It immediately suggests “separation” between the sender and the recipient.
4) They then graciously offer to waive their “reinstatement” fee. ‘Nuff said.
5) The remainder of the email is a list of generic-sounding benefits. Stay informed, accelerate your career, launch effective campaigns, expand your network, blah blah blah.
6) The closing line: “We look forward to welcoming you back to PRSA!” Because, of course, it’s all about the association.
The sad fact is that association executives write in to ASAE listserves all the time saying things like, “We tried email marketing, and it doesn’t work.” Of course, what they “tried” is an email like this one. When you do something wrong, it frequently doesn’t work.
Here is an email that *might* have gotten me to “reinstate.” This is just off the top of my head, of course.
Subject: Sorry to bother you, but …
From: Jane Jones, PRSA
Body:Hey Kevin,
Sorry to bother you, but I was looking through our member rosters in Virginia and noticed that you hadn’t renewed your PRSA membership in the last couple years. I know how busy you must be and how we all have to justify our annual dues expenses given all the associations in our field. But I just wanted to check and see if you had taken a look recently at some of the new things we’re offering.
For example, our online database PRC Search gives you direct online access to thousands of award-winning PR campaigns. It’s like a brainstorming session with the best minds in PR, 24/7, whenever you need some quick inspiration or are thinking, “I wonder if anyone has tried THIS …”
Of course, if you want more real-time Q&As with experts from all over the country, our professional sections and chapters put you in touch with more than 20,000 members, many of whom have “been there, done that” and are more than happy to share what they’ve learned (saving you from learning the hard way).
And our daily, monthly and quarterly publications keep you in touch with the latest and most innovative practices and tactics in the field. Only members get them!
I think you’ll find the new PRSA a boon to your career, whether you’re happy where you are or seeking new opportunities. In fact, I’m so sure you’ll think you made the right decision that I’ll be happy to waive the usual $35 fee we charge returning members, if you are ready to give us another try.
Just give me a call at XXX-XXX-XXXX and we can take care of this for you right away. (If you’d rather sign up online, just go to www.xxxx.org and use the tracking code “RETURN” to save the 35 bucks. But, I’d love to talk to you!)
If you have any questions, shoot me a reply or give me a call. I’m sure you’ll find PRSA offers a huge return on a small investment, and I look forward to helping you continue to grow your career!
Yours,
Jane