Last Wednesday I was happy to be part of the Direct Marketing Club of New York (DMCNY) “Breaking Through Marketing Barriers” event. This open discussion on the nature of marketing through both digital and traditional channels lead to some unique insights for all involved. I want to share a few key takeaways from that night’s discussion here.
1. Trust is more important than ever off and online. Whether it’s a print ad or a product micro-site, your audience needs to trust the message you’re delivering. Without trust, you’re just talking to yourself.
2. Trust comes from consistency. Whatever form your message takes, it needs to be consistent, even if that means it needs to be contently objectionable, humorous, critical, or serious.
3. Know your audience. It seems simple enough, but often this key factor is overlooked. Speaking to your audience in the way in which they want to be is critical to gaining trust from them.
If you can gain your audience’s trust, you’re one step closer to achieving your ultimate goal.
Here’s the presentation I gave Wednesday night at the Social Media Coffeehouse. I want to thank Kevin for allowing me the opportunity to address his group. If anyone is interested in attending, they meet every 3rd Wednesday of the month in Little Falls, NJ.
It’s not often I’m singled out in a crowd, that’s why it was so interesting to meet Andrea Nierenberg a week ago. She was presenting at a networking event held by the Professional Business Network Association. After she scanned the room quickly, she walked right over to me and asked if I knew anything about iPhones. That’s how in the blink of an eye we wound up networking and seeing how we could help each other.
In a nutshell, that is what Andrea’s book, Savvy Networking is about. A quick read at only 109 pages it contains 118 networking tips and practices. These tips will help even the worst wallflower turn into a business networking dynamo.
Andrea herself is an independent personal marketing consultant and founder of The Nierenberg Group. She has worked with businesses such as AOL Time Warner, Citigroup, Coach, Estee Lauder, Georgia Pacific, Omnicom Group, Tiffany & Co., and Zenith Media.
Networking with Andrea was a delight, and I was able to help her out by filming the event using her iPhone. Not only that, I was even able to give her some quick pieces of advice on digital marketing.
I know the feeling. The company decided they want to do an event. That means booking locations, hotel rooms, caterers, staffing the event, etc, etc, etc. So with all of these headaches, why not limit one of them? That’s where online ticketing services come in.
There are many online services which allow you to create a virtual ticket, manage a guest list, distribute tickets through e-mail, and tie in an online payment system. Best of all, you can set up the ticketing system to require attendees to submit their contact information (including email). This will help in future outreach to current or potential clients and contacts.
Granted, in some cases having a physical invitation go out can’t be beat. But for when time, budget, and resources are limited, going digital with your ticketing may be worth it.
Last Wednesday I was happy to be part of the Direct Marketing Club of New York (DMCNY) “Breaking Through Marketing Barriers” event. This open discussion on the nature of marketing through both digital and traditional channels lead to some unique insights for all involved. I want to share a few key takeaways from that night’s discussion here.
