The problem is that we attempt to solve the simplest questions
cleverly, thereby rendering them unusually complex.
One should seek the simple solution. –Anton Chekhov

Perhaps it is human nature to overcomplicate things. As we consider all the causes, influences and relationships inherent in any problem we often get overwhelmed and paralyzed. Communication, branding or marketing problems are especially complicated by distribution, product, political and cultural issues that make clarity difficult.

Luckily, design is always beneficial when a problem is so complicated or intricate that it is hard to understand. Designers and writers find patterns, craft structures, define the ambiguous and sort through the details for insights and opportunities that solve problems. They find order and order leads to understanding.

Tell me what you see

One of our strongest tools for problem solving is visualization. For years we have been using our visual communication skills to outline complex problems and gain insights from responses. We visualize and let the user come to her own conclusions.

Visualization helps us see patterns in masses of data. The best infographics simplify information to inspire conversation and action. Design encourages interaction with data through visualization, which in turn encourages problem solving, finding opportunities and better communication.

Systematic methodologies, business processes and other heady aspects of marketing, like brand architecture models, are also critical paths that are best expressed visually. We will create everything from full-blown concept models to simple diagrams to communicate the problem that needs to be solved. Sometimes those visualizations are so successful that the visual ends up in the final product.

In every case, leveraging visuals and language to define the problem helps all stakeholders come to agreement. And agreement at the beginning of a problem-solving endeavor is a great place to start.

Like

Unlike

When I Googled “What is integrated marketing communications?” I received several fairly similar results. For fun, here are four definitions, in no particular order:

1. “Integrated marketing communications is a term used to describe a holistic approach to marketing communication. It aims to ensure consistency of message and the complementary use of media. The concept includes online and offline marketing channels.”

2. A different way of saying that is: “The practice of blending different elements of the communication mix in mutually reinforcing ways.”

3. “A strategy in which a company coordinates advertising, sales promotion, personal selling, and publicity in order to present a single consistent image for the product and the company.”

And my favorite:

4. “Where all aspects of a company’s promotional efforts work together with a unified purpose to deliver a consistent and positive message; [integrated marketing communications] recognizes that all contact points with customers and prospects are important, from the truck making a delivery to the CEO in the news.”

I have a favorite, yet I don’t believe any of the above definitions are 100 percent accurate. Here’s what I consider my perfect definition. It’s worked well for me in my experiences at Go East. It’s an amalgam of the above, with new content as well:

Integrated marketing communications is a holistic approach to marketing communication. It aims to ensure consistency of message and the blending of different elements of the communication mix in mutually reinforcing ways. The goal is to present a consistent message to the core audience(s) in a variety of channels, including online and offline efforts involving advertising, personal selling, sales promotion and PR. It recognizes that all contact points with customers are important and that while the way in which a company should communicate is different from tactic to tactic, the same key message can and should be delivered.

What do you think? I’m especially fond of the last sentence. How do you define integrated marketing communications?

Like

Unlike

From a marketing standpoint, social media is about engaging with customers in a meaningful way. “Engaging” and “meaningful” being the two key words!

Engaging: To cause someone to become involved in

Meaningful: Having a serious, important or useful quality or purpose

We can plan for meaningful content, but when we engage with our customers, we don’t know what will happen. Planning for social media almost seems like an oxymoron, right? How can you plan for something that is dynamic and kinetic? Well, think of how kinetic it would feel without a plan!

A good social media plan is created with a strategic, proven methodology. It’s about setting clear and measurable objectives. It’s about ongoing engagement. It’s about listening. It’s about reporting. It’s about being relevant. It’s about a lot of things, but it is not about creating a Facebook page and it’s not about you.

One other important thing about social media strategy is that it’s integrated with your brand strategy. All of your consumer touch points should be aligned with the same objectives. After all, social media — although a beast with its own set of rules — is just another consumer touch point.

How challenging is it for you to integrate your social media strategy with your brand strategy? How have you overcome those challenges?

Like

Unlike

It’s been said that I am a dork — most often by me. (Don’t worry, my colleagues at Go East and I embrace my dorkiness.) My latest proof point to dorkdom is my passion for writing marketing communications plans. I love it. I love it because it’s a tactical manifestation of my organization skills, it’s strategic, it’s creative and frankly, I love the written word.

To be clear, a marketing communications plan is the alignment of specific tactics to marketing strategies. Very often, communications plans are incorporated into marketing plans — but they each serve a different function and likely are formulated and referenced by people in different roles.

At a bare minimum, a stand-alone marketing communications plan should include a calendar that outlines tactics that are in alignment with business objectives and audiences.

Obviously that is not as simple as it sounds. The tactics could and should include everything that a brand is involved in from a marketing standpoint: trade shows, speaking engagements, FSIs, print advertising, product launches, etc. It should also include the seemingly smaller touch points: website maintenance, coupons, sales meetings, etc. These are all events or activities that are going to require attention from a marketing standpoint. It should also include social media strategy.

A 12-month marketing communications plan is the most common. Yet planning a year in advance can seem completely overwhelming. Take a deep breath, though. It can be done! When I develop marketing communications plans for my clients at Go East, I find it very helpful to start by literally mapping out on a calendar big things such as industry trade events or a known website redesign initiative. After that, the little things tend to fall into place. For example, if there is a large industry trade event in November, I know that there will be a need for pre-event activities in September and October. And I know that product enhancements or new products are often introduced at trade events, so I include efforts in May or June related to key message development, etc.

When you take the time to document a strategy, you have a road map to success. Of course, I am no stranger to reality. I know that the unexpected pops up. But that’s when the marketing communication plan is most effective! We can easily ascertain if the “hot need for a new sales tool” is in alignment with the marketing objectives or not. Either it doesn’t — and you’ve quickly ascertained that you can save time and money — or it does. If it does and you didn’t plan for it, just roll with it and make a note to include it in next year’s plan.  In the end, you save time and potentially money. What’s better than that?

So I’ll say it again, if having a passion for effective communication makes me a dork, then that’s what I am. What are your experiences with marketing communications plans? Please share the good, the bad and the ugly and join me in my kingdom of dorkdom!

1 person likes this post.

Unlike

A clear way to differentiate products on a shelf is to color-code the packaging. I love color-coding! What better way to see that there is something different among a line of products?

Below are four examples of how Go East has helped its clients color-code.

A great way to differentiate among food products is to use the product itself to color-code. Campbell’s® V8® Soup does a nice job of keeping green as their brand color but using the color of the vegetables to distinguish the varieties on shelf.

Like

Unlike

It’s no wonder that big brands often have strong color palettes. But what happens when those big brands — or any size brand for that matter — have a line extension? The question becomes: Should a new color be added to the brand’s palette and, if so, how do you introduce your customers to it?

The short answer is: Stop! (imagine screeching brake sounds now).

The long answer is: Proceed, but with caution. This is more than a design decision. Adding color to the palette requires an evaluation of the brand architecture to determine what makes the most sense. And if your company determines that adding color to a brand’s palette is a good idea, it also needs to take a strategic approach to migrating the new color into your brand’s collateral, website, etc. This is where a good marketing communications plan can make all the difference in the world.

Color plays an important role in branding (logo, collateral and everything) — after all, 80 percent of visual information is related to color. Don’t underestimate its value by making the decision flippantly.

Like

Unlike

Juliet:
“What’s in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.”

Shakespeare, “Romeo and Juliet” (II, 1-2)

We look to Shakespeare as the authority on all things related to the most excellent use of the English language. The bard was both poet and playwright, crafting language that created characters that have lasted half a millenium. And yet, in “Romeo and Juliet” he has Juliet diminish the most fundamental act of language — naming. True, the flower came before its name, yet its name embodies — with sound and later meaning — all that we come to associate with the name “rose.”

Naming

So, when an organization seeks a name for itself or its product, to whom should it look to create a name? Where do we find modern-day Shakespeares who can craft language to meet the many needs of modern-day name?

Understanding brand, what builds brand and how the name must truly embody the brand is critical to naming success. At Go East, we believe branding provides differentiation, which promises business success. A name is the core of differentiation execution. Taking a too-cautious approach to naming risks developing a name that refuses to stick in the mind of your customer. Living too much in the past can create a name that doesn’t work for future growth. And creating a name that is so different that there is no context, no point of reference, or is just too weird risks alienating the people you want to engage.

Finding the perfect name requires a balance of art and science. We believe naming is a craft that combines strategy and poetry, semantics and sound. There are so many considerations needed to create a relevant name it is imperative that businesses partner with agencies that have a robust naming processes that take all aspects into consideration. Our process, based on the best industry practices, allows us to flex our linguistic skills within our brand-building context to meet our clients’ business needs. We provide clients with a fresh perspective that considers all the angles — trademarking, digital needs, visual and verbal impact. And we help our clients to look forward to their business vision and ensure that the name can withstand the test of time.

I wouldn’t go so far as to go head-to-head with Shakespeare, but I will name a rose a rose when it makes sense for the brand.

2 people like this post.

Unlike

When was the last time you looked at your business strategy or plan? Has it changed recently? Are your marketing efforts in alignment? Have you considered that your communication and naming strategies may not be in alignment with your business strategy?

Aside from supporting the business objectives of your organization, a name, whether it’s for a company or a product, should have five key characteristics:

1. Memorable — A name should be easily recognized and recalled. This is where you should think twice about made-up spelling. Of course, sometimes made-up spellings are completely appropriate. On the other hand, there are other ways to be memorable.
2. Meaningful — A name should be credible, as well interesting and rich in visual and verbal imagery.  Sometimes meaningful can mean descriptive, but not always. A name that is too descriptive may limit your future product or service expansions. Finding the right balance is important.
3. Transferable — The new name should be something that works both within and across product categories, geographic boundaries and/or cultures. Maybe your product is currently only used in conjunction one industry — even though there are opportunities and capabilities to expand into others — you’ll want to make sure your name doesn’t limit you from effectively doing so.
4. Timeless — A name should be flexible enough to still be relevant as you progress. Are the words you’re using going to seem dated in a few years?
5. Protectable — Is the name legally secure and competitively well-guarded? At Go East we perform top level searches before we present a name to a client and we always recommend that our clients work with their trademark lawyers to ensure protectability. That being said, every person has a different risk tolerance and what may seem safe to one person, may be unsafe to another. It’s important to know where you stand.

If you can do the above — and stay in alignment with your business strategy — you’ll likely be successful! What characteristics make your organization or product’s name a good one?

Like

Unlike