3 Marketing Tips For Success

By: Sandra Franklin Date: March 12, 2015 Categories: Blog

Field_of_dreams_JPEGOne of my favorite movies is Field of Dreams starring Kevin Costner and James Earl Jones. Even though I’m not a big baseball fan, the fact that the players were able to realize their dreams makes it a winner in my book. And the line, “Build it and they will come.” puts the icing on the cake.

But in actuality, just because you build it doesn’t mean that people will come. Far too often, business owners, nonprofits and ministries have incredibly innovative events or products that fail miserably. Why? because no one knows that what they have to offer exists. It’s a common mistake that can be easily avoided. Here are a few tips to get you started in the right direction.

Determine your marketing budget.

According to the U.S Small Business Administration, “small businesses should allocate 7-8 percent of their revenues to marketing.

So, what if you’re not in a position to allocate this much to your marketing budget? Start with what you have and gradually increase your budget. Consulting with a marketing & media strategist will assist you in developing a plan that’s right for you.

Join the Party

One of the keys to your success is determining who your target audience is (age, gender, income,education etc.) and joining them. If your product or service is geared towards college students, find out where they hang out. Tailor your marketing efforts to their needs,speak their language and be the solution to their problems.

Keep Going

As a business owner, it’s vital that you have a continuous presence in the market for top of mind awareness. Some marketing efforts are free and don’t require a lot of time. It could be as simple as sending a thank you card to your loyal or first time customers.

You’ve put in the hard work to bring your dream to reality, don’t stop now. Make the decision to market and promote your business, nonprofit or ministry. Remember that by the time you’re tired of saying “We’re Here!” some people are just hearing you for the first time.

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A few years back, one of my colleagues and I were discussing areas that we wanted to pour our experience and passions into . During the conversation, I realized that throughout all of my years in media production and marketing, political campaigns had alluded me.

election 2014
Surprisingly enough,our first opportunity came right on the heels of this discovery. We joined the political arena in a mayoral race. The team was already in full stride by the time we came aboard. We hit the ground running placing media buys with existing TV and radio ads. Unfortunately, in spite of our efforts and our candidate’s hard work, we didn’t cross the finish line first.

Recently the opportunity presented itself again. Dr. James Beverly was running for his second term as State Representative. After meeting with Dr. Beverly, it was obvious that he possessed a genuine concern for the city’s growth and well being. He had worked hard over the last two years and had a vision for a new Macon. Being a part of making our city better felt right, so we joined him on the “campaign trail”.

Developing a marketing and media strategy for the Beverly political campaign resembled the procedure we normally follow, but there were some obvious challenges. This election was different in the sense that the primary was in May as opposed to July. Not only were we faced with encouraging people to vote, but we needed them to vote during a time when they were focused on graduations and end of the school year activities.
We met with Dr. Beverly and the campaign staff to determine how best to communicate his platform.

After analyzing his target audience we crafted two commercials that spoke to their needs and concerns as voters. Hands down we knew that we wanted to remain true to ourselves and run a “clean” campaign that communicated the facts, all the while maintaining integrity.

James Beverly for State Representative

James Beverly for State Representative from Hill Street Media on Vimeo.

Numerous media platforms were incorporated into the campaign including, social media, television, radio, transit advertising, direct mail along with others.

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Transit Advertising – James Beverly for State Representative

While we held down the fort on our end, Dr. Beverly and the campaign staff were knocking on doors…a lot of doors, rallying voters.

We were working to win and that’s exactly what happened! Dr. Beverly maintained his seat with approximately 60% of the vote.

Congratulations State Representative James Beverly, we’re confident that you will do us proud!

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Christmas, The Nutcracker & Wigs

By: Sandra Franklin Date: December 11, 2013 Categories: Blog

Have you spotted him riding around town?

Have you spotted him riding around town?

As a little girl, I remember watching The Nutcracker almost every year.  I think the performance intrigued me so much because of my desire to become a dancer.  And, it reminded me that Christmas was just around the corner.

Tonight through December 15th, the Grand Opera House www.thegrandmacon.com will be the gathering place for local and professional dancers to shine.  According to Marianna Gebara, Managing Director for the Nutcracker of Middle Georgia, the cast is comprised of 122 dancers which includes 6 professionals from across the country.  There will also be a few other guests that you won’t be able to see but, their work will be front and center.

Gloria and Claudia Marable, the mother and daughter team of Shh! It’s a Wig www.shhwigs.info were given the opportunity style the hair pieces for a few of Claire’s friends in the Nutcracker www.midganutcracker.com.  Normally this dynamic team is busy styling fashion and medical needs wigs and hair pieces for their clients, but this week their talent will take the stage.  Gloria, the founder of Shh! It’s a Wig, spent a lot of time as a young girl in her Aunt’s salon and developed a love for wigs. Marable says, “you have to tweek, cut and thin the wigs and make them your own.”  She especially takes great pleasure in fitting ladies of all ages with wigs that have lost their hair due to cancer.  It’s her way of putting a smile on their faces.  Claudia, her daughter, grew up in the business and has taken it to another level as a licensed cosmetologist, make up artist and certified Trichologist http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trichology. 

Claudia & Gloria Marable - Shh! It's A Wig | Macon, GA

Claudia & Gloria Marable – Shh! It’s A Wig | Macon, GA

Reports are already surfacing that this year’s show is truly breathtaking. Gebara, states that the new snow scene is “the prettiest in the Southeast.”  The Marables work will be amongst all the beauty.  Just look for the cascading, bouncing curls surrounding Claire at the Christmas Party.

Merry Christmas!

Curls & More Curls

Curls & More Curls

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Class Is In Session

By: Sandra Franklin Date: November 19, 2013 Categories: Blog

As a student, I told myself, “I’ll be glad when I get out of school,” much more often than I care to admit. However, it didn’t take long for me to come to the realization that in order to grow and compete, I had to resolve to become the ‘eternal student’.

A few months ago we partnered with Scott’s Health Mart Pharmacy www.scottspharmacy1.com to create a radio campaign.  Dr. Bryan Scott ‘took us to school’ concerning the benefits of Probiotics – organisms such as bacteria or yeast that are believed to Chalkboard for Blog postimprove health.2013-05-22 18.27.45

( www.webmd.com)

Yes, you heard right, a pharmacy that advocates the use of natural supplements to improve your overall health.  We love it!  While they most definitely prescribe and compound medications to aid those with health issues, they actively promote using natural supplements to avoid illnesses.  It’s like a double punch in a really good way.  Their efforts prove that they’re not just a business, but are genuinely concerned about the well-being of the community…hence their tagline, “Caring for you and about you.”

So you see, while we’re partnering with our clients to provide their media and marketing needs, they give us great insight into their careers. Because of them we are healthier, more financially sound and are up to date on the latest fashion trends (wink).  In essence, for the Hill Street Media team… class is always in session.

Scott’s Rheumatoid Arthritis Radio Campaign

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Did you see that?

By: Sandra Franklin Date: October 14, 2013 Categories: Blog

When traveling long distances, we always prefer to fly. But when it’s a relatively short distance we load up the car and hit the road.  I love reading the billboards as we travel…yeah I admit it…I try to read all of them.

Most of the time I chuckle over the cleverness of the ads.  And, at other times I wonder how in the world they expect anyone to read their message without coming to a complete stop.  So to make sure that your billboard doesn’t cause a multiple car accident here are a few tips to keep in mind.

1.   Remember that drivers only have about 6 seconds to read your message.   So, keep it short and to the poPonds clean poresint.  Preferable 6 words or less.

2.  Use contrasting colors.  This will guarantee that your ad stands out and captures the attention of your viewers.

3.  Make sure that the graphics can be easily read. Try to stay away from scripts and fancy fonts.
4. Be creative.  2D is fine but 3D is so much more fun! Check out
the Pond’s billboard.  We love it!

 

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See you at the library!

By: Sandra Franklin Date: July 30, 2013 Categories: Blog

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Washington Library | Downtown Macon

I’m an avid reader.  My idea of relaxing is curling up, preferably on the beach, with a good book.  Since I have such a passion for reading, I began encouraging our daughter, Bayley, to read early.  Even though she can download books on her Kindle, she would rather hold a book in her hands and turn the pages.  This preference means that we’ve taken several trips to the library this summer.

Fortunately we have two libraries near our home, but we drive a little bit further to the one downtown because of Ms. Audrey.

You see the first time we visited, we realized that we didn’t have the summer reading list.  Ms. Audrey took the extra steps to find our list all the while engaging Bayley in great “fifth grade” conversation.  As the two of them began walking towards the books, the conversation went something like this, “Oh this is a great list! You’re going to love these books. What type of books do you like to read?”

Of course all libraries offer the same services, but what makes us drive pass the others is customer service.  Ms Audrey has managed to transform an ordinary service into an experience which builds relationships.  And you can do the same.

It’s the simple things that mean a lot, like greeting your customers/clients and asking them about their day….(People like to be acknowledged.)  Offer something extra like a light refreshment, an instant coupon, first time customer rewards, you can send a thank you note, or provide a discount when they refer a friend.  And, to enhance the shopping experience, add some relaxing or fun music.

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Ocmulgee Bear has a home across the street from the library.

“A dissatisfied consumer will tell between 9 and 15 people about their experience and about 13% of dissatisfied customers tell more than 20 people.” (Source: White House Office of Consumer Affairs, Washington, DC)
Don’t let your customers pass you by or turn away because of poor customer service.  Give them an excellent product with outstanding customer service and they’ll come back again and again!

See you at the library :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Change Lanes

By: Sandra Franklin Date: July 15, 2013 Categories: Blog

The other day was one of those “hit the ground running” type of days.  I was on the road at 6:00am heading to Atlanta. Traffic was flowing rather smoothly until it came to an unexpected crawl.  I was surrounded by traffic, but my lane (the middle lane) was running slower than slow.

As soon as there was a break in the traffic, I hopped in the left lane to go around the truck in front of me and immediately realized that traffic wasn’t that congested at all.  I just needed to change lanes.

Are your advertising and marketing efforts stuck in traffic?  Have they become stale or better yet stagnant?  Maybe you need to change lanes and try a different approach.  If you’ve always used newspaper to promote your business, try television, mobile media or a social media campaign.  You might even want to consider sponsoring a community event.

A simple change in platforms could place you in front of an entirely new audience resulting in new clients and increased profits.

Traffic

Changing & Growing!

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Where is that snail?

By: Sandra Franklin Date: June 19, 2013 Categories: Blog

I stepped outside for a moment and as I turned to walk inside, I saw a snail on the sidewalk.  I see snails all of the time, but this one was perfectly formed just like Turbo from the new DreamWorks movie (We’re excited about seeing this one!).  www.turbomovie.com

I was about to grab my camera to take a picture, but got distracted.  After about 15 minutes, I remembered my little friend and hurried outside to snap a few shots.  I was sure it hadn’t gone very far.  But to my surprise, I couldn’t find it anywhere.

This incident reminds me of the advertising efforts of some small businesses.  They aren’t armed with huge marketing budgets but, they consistently place media buys and capitalize on social media.   And then one day, you look for them in that little place that they’ve always been and they’re not there.  They’ve grown, expanded or opened other locations!  All because like the snail, they kept moving and remained steady in communicating who they are and what they offer!

Staying Steady,
Sandra

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