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PROJECT OVERVIEW

Most are formal, glossy and boring to everyone but investors. They're also expensive to produce. Using energetic and relevant features, juxtaposed with corporate achievements, will engage a bigger readership and help an annual report do double duty as both a promotional and an educational tool. A published article or column is a bit like free advertising in that it showcases your expertise – except that it captures interest for a longer time, conveys more detail, and has a professional gravitas not associated with an ad. In a time when leaders are expected to brand themselves through multiple content venues, they're almost mandatory. Written well, a good article or column will engage your public while leveraging your credibility. A successful blog can build relationships, promote new product, get immediate customer feedback and position you as an authority in your field. Yet most fail because they talk at readers, rather than inviting conversation. By presenting fresh and appealing content in an accessible forum, your blog can put your marketing initiatives on the viral fast track. Propagating a distinct brand identity goes beyond taglines and visuals. The content language must be fine-turned to a consistent pitch via a compelling and unified lexicon. An overt sales pitch will alienate some customers, while hard data can seem stale and too technical to others. In the middle ground is a case study, which combines both into a story that educates and sells at the same time. Announcements, newsletters, policy manuals, presentations: internal communications are often dismissed by both company and employees. But crafted well, they boost morale and shape a corporate culture of excellence. Bad direct mail (a.k.a. junk mail) uses super-hyped sales techniques and ends up in the trash. Good direct mail uses strategies based on the psychographics of your audience, which triggers positive response and stimulates follow-up. Donation request letters, event materials and media kits need to resonate emotionally with supporters. To motivate them to action, the content must depict your cause as relevant, urgent and achievable. Too many training manuals and user guides spur calls to tech support because they can't adapt the manufacturer's knowledge base to the customer's viewpoint. Clear, brief and comprehensible copy will assist the customer and boost the brand's reputation for being user-friendly. Many glossy, overstuffed media kits end up in the trash because they're more promotional than newsworthy. To incite coverage, a smart kit must include well-written features that appeal to the press, along with multi-media materials compatible with all levels of content dissemination. Newsletters might sound like "old media" but people still like reading them. Whether print or digital, the right combination of promotion, outreach, education and entertainment creates a popular and effective marketing tool. A smart press release can get you media coverage along with good backlinks and credibility. The trick is creating momentum – a bland notice will disappear in the daily sea of releases and an overly promotional one will be discarded as spam. To hit the mark, a release needs to be newsworthy, provocative and keyed toward SEO as well as the media. “Just do it.” A good tagline is short, snappy and informative, but a great one can immortalize your brand. Nuance, humor, irony and colloquialisms don't always make the jump from one language or region to another. What's an effective piece of copy in Japanese or Spanish might fall flat translated into English. Contextually appropriate copy can re-introduce the original effect for American audiences while preserving the creative integrity. Being on camera tends to turn anyone's delivery stiff and unnatural. A good script will adhere to natural speech patterns and make webcasts and video presentations a more comfortable and authentic experience. Because Internet surfers read more slowly and retain less information, site copy has specific requirements all its own - recycling print collateral won’t work. Fresh, SEO-keyed content can build quality backlinks, improve reader metrics and boost your advertising income.

Today's range of marketing options can seem overwhelming - but that same diversity allows both greater agility and economy in finding effective solutions. The key is developing the right content for the right strategy, then partnering it with the right channels. Just as each marketing initiative has a unique objective, every vehicle offers specific advantages.

Annual Reports

Articles and Columns

Blogs

Branding

Case Studies and White Papers

Corporate Communications

Direct Mail

Fundraising

Manuals and User Guides

Media Kits

Newsletters

Press Releases

Taglines

Transcultural Editing and Translation

Video Scripts

Web Sites

If you're not sure which collateral is the best fit for you, we can discuss your goals and create a focused scheme tailored to your budget and taste. I can also analyze your current materials in terms of audience, performance and message resonance. The "best" marketing is not necessarily the most expensive nor the trendiest, but whatever your customers find most appealing and convincing.

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