The Road Show Summary

A colleague asked me what kind of outline I use for a typical "intro" marketing seminar. Here's a short outline I used recently at Western New England College.

Marketing explained quickly:

***You have a product or a service that you wish to sell. It doesn't matter if you're a for-profit company or a not-for-profit company. (That's just a determination by the IRS and a company mission).
***There is an audience/consumer base around you with members who may (or may not) be interested in your product or service.
***Marketing is building the two-way bridge that connects product with market.

In order to be successful, one must:

***know your product (service),
***know your competition, and
***know your market (who will buy).

There are three distinct types of potential customers:

***the enthusiasts (just let them know about your product and how to buy it);
***the interested (they might buy your product, but they need a little persuasion); and the
***disinterested (nothing you can do or say will make them open their wallets).

Build your campaign to reach the enthusiasts and convert the interested. Skip the disinterested population.

Good marketing campaigns craft the right message (think AIDA--the Verdi or Elton John version).

***A) attract attention,
***I) create interest
***D) create desire and
***A) make the market take action.

Good campaigns are also well-planned, well-budgeted, well-designed, well-worded and flexible enough to be pro-active and remain fluid.

Marketing tools include: advertising, direct mail, telemarketing, websites, eblasts and all forms of communication. The message is controlled by the client. The message is budgeted and paid for. The marketplace knows that. You can often measure the results of marketing by how much product is sold in relation to the time a marketing component appears.

Public relations

***forges a believable partnership between the organization and the community.
***includes media coverage, special events, and spreading positive word of mouth.
***builds trust and credibility, which is (when done well) unapparent to the consumer.

Good PR is budgeted and paid for, but some of it costs little. (A thank-you note for a job well done on behalf of your company or a kind word said about your product or service creates good will).

You can't often measure the results of good PR in terms of sales at a specific time. But, you hear the feedback. (Example: "That was a great article about you in the New York Times".) With PR, you can't always control the message (that's called "spin" and it's usually transparent), but a good PR team can shape the message. Good public relations is pro-active. Good public relations can turn reactive into future pro-active.