Mid-Missouri Marketing Resource Blog

Marketing automation is a valuable asset to add to your overall marketing strategy. Using a marketing automation software platform, you are able to streamline your work processes, build strong customer leads, and become more efficient with your time spent on marketing overall. When you are working hard at nurturing leads and trying to increase revenue, it's important to consider the numerous benefits of marketing automation.

COVID-19 took the world of sales and turned it on it’s head. Salespeople stood in shock as they watched revenue, and therefore paychecks, dwindle. Many cringed every time their phone rang as they took cancellation after cancellation after cancellation. Forced to recalibrate their sales process to adapt to a different environment, they had to figure out how to make sales calls when they couldn’t meet face-to-face. For local and regional salespeople, this was a new and intimidating concept.

Millennials are the largest living generation that every brand wants to charm. It’s not an easy thing to gain their attention and keep it. In fact, studies show that millennials are less likely to respond to traditional advertising tactics which is one of many battles to overcome. 

Lucky for you, we have cracked the code on marketing to millennials. Here are some tips on how to market to those 35 and younger. 

Naysayers have, for years, been touting the decline of print magazines. Claiming that people will abandon print in lieu of digital options, they prophesy that magazines will eventually disappear completely and for those that remain, their online versions will replace them. For that reason, we’ve kept a close eye on readership and advertising trends and here’s what you need to know...

Current evidence and trends tell us that magazines aren’t just surviving, but thriving. All the gloom and doom...has simply not happened. Here’s what we’ve discovered instead:

McDonalds is one of the most easily recognized, well-known brands in the world. If fact, you would be hard pressed to find someone who hasn’t at least heard of McDonalds and most have visited a franchise more than a few times. They maintain their immense reputation for stellar recognition and brand awareness through consistent branding, advertising and being willing to adapt to an ever-changing marketplace. Here’s some marketing lessons we call learn from McDonalds, one of the best in the business at knowing and employing relevant, effective marketing practices:

One of the most powerful marketing tools for a business is when a business owner becomes the voice of his or her company.  Think Dave from Wendy’s; when he started starring in their ads in the 80s, sales skyrocketed.  Dave seemed natural, unaffected, likeable and sincere.  He invoked trust.  On a subconscious level, viewers must have felt like, if Dave is such a good guy, eating at Wendy’s must be the right thing to do! 

This is especially true for local business.  There’s something reassuring to listeners about a local business owner who comes across as a good person, who is fully involved with the business and has a vision for how to improve his or her customer’s lives. 

Many local businesses do take advantage of this opportunity, but not all businesses do so as successfully as they could – and most often this is because they aren’t naturals at voicing their own ads. 

This is not their fault, of course.  Public speaking in all its forms is like dancing or playing a musical instrument; it comes more easily to some than to others.  But, just like dancing or playing a musical instrument, it does come with a set of ‘good form’ tips that can at least help nudge one in the right direction.  The rest is practice!

Advertising is a key part of business, but unless your messages are effective, you’re spinning your wheels. For an ad campaign to truly connect with your customers, you must create messages that are both memorable and powerful. You must also clearly communicate how you help make the consumer’s life better.

To better illustrate our point, here are three of the most powerful, effective advertising campaigns ever created:

As media has evolved, gone are the days of checking the “Help Wanted” ads in local newspapers. With the help of Google and job boards like Indeed, prospective employees can find open positions in their industry in any location with just a few clicks. With this increased access to jobs around the world at any time, employers need to get more creative than a simple job posting when it comes to recruiting top talent. This is where social media recruitment comes into play.

Your advertising is a precious commodity. There’s limited space or time to tell your story, so the challenge is to use it wisely. Your story is what creates your brand. It’s what people will remember. Good advertising gives consumers a message that will stick and only includes information that is relevant. However, in our expert opinion...we find that old habits die hard. Certain bits of information are no longer germane and may be costing you valuable air time. Here is Director of Sales Carrie Berkbuegler in this video discussing 5 topics, commonly included in traditional advertising, that nobody cares about anymore.

Top-40 music continues to vibe with not just the young in age, but also the young at heart. Listeners to the format are like the music they adore - active, trendy, vibrant, youthful and engaged. They also happen to have money...and a desire to spend it. These young yuppies are buying everything from food and clothes to homes and cars - a far cry from the stereotypical teenage listener trying to finish homework so he/she can play video games. If you haven't considered Top-40 as an audience worthy of your business, you're missing out.  Here's why.