Google has disrupted the marketing world over the past 20 years. Shotgun marketing and traditional advertising have been pushed aside by the digital revolution.

In 1998, the founders of Google offered to sell the company for $1 million. Today, Alphabet, Google’s parent company has a market capitalization of $1.25 trillion thanks to the advertising empire and the industry that it founded.

Since Google’s search results are viewed by billions of people every day, its search engine is king of the hill. The company now controls approximately 90 percent of the search market and 40 percent of the digital advertising market. Digital advertisers can’t afford to ignore Google and they can’t ignore best practices that will make their campaigns more cost-effective.

One of the best-kept secrets awaiting Google advertisers is called Value Rules. It’s a simple, but sophisticated tactic that helps prioritize audiences for optimal targeting and optimal results.

Value Rules allows marketers to segment markets based on location, device or audience interests.

It’s a way to tell the algorithm which market segments are the most valuable to the advertiser, which can improve the relevance of your ads and boost the cost-effectiveness of your ad campaigns.

Don’t confuse Value Rules with conversion values or location targeting, which also are important tactics. Learn how to put Value Rules to work for your company or cause https://crossbowcommunications.com/improve-google-ads-with-value-rules/

Gary Chandler is the CEO of Crossbow Communications — an award-winning public affairs and government affairs firm. We specialize in public health and environmental issues. We serve the world.

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The most successful brands in the world rely on market research to stay in tune with customers and competitors. They understand that the market is dynamic and evolving. These companies understand that they must stay relevant with a moving target. These brands leave nothing to chance.

The best brands have a firm pulse on the direction and momentum of each market segment. They know what their customers want and need. Successful brands position—and reposition—themselves in the minds of customers and prospective customers constantly based on market feedback. Most of these companies perpetually position themselves as problem-solvers in the market.

Brands that are struggling are often disconnected from their customers.

These companies produce what they want to produce and they sell what they want to sell. The market can take it or leave it. Some of these brands can survive bad management, but not forever. These companies are leaving the door wide open for the competition to steal market share with a superior product or service.

Market research can help a company identify issues and opportunities. It can help you build relationships with allies, employees, suppliers, distributors, regulators, legislators and other stakeholders.

Keep your consumers at the center of brand management. If you lose the hearts and minds of your customers, you risk losing the foundation of your business. Customers are the ones who control the success of any product or service in a competitive market. Market research pays for itself in numerous ways, which is why market research should be an ongoing process. Listen to your clients, especially the ones who walk away. Exit surveys can help you identify problems before they escalate.

Advocacy organizations can use market research to build relationships, build coalitions, boost membership recruitment and retention, and increase financial support.

Listening is a strategic tool that can build your brand and your bottom line. Read the full story about brand management and market research.

Gary Chandler is the CEO of Crossbow Communications — an award-winning public affairs and government affairs firm. We specialize in public health and environmental issues. We serve the world.

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The lines separating marketing and public relations have always been blurred and competitive. Some agencies, including Crossbow, have always been integrated, but they were ahead of their time. 

Marketers now understand that relationships are the foundation of the practice and public relations professionals know how to build relationships, while positioning clients as leaders. The two practices are no longer fighting the convergence through turf wars. The rapid evolution of tech and reliance on data, the continued emphasis on content creation, and  the increasing prevalence of influencer marketing have all forced some old-school PR tactics out the window in favor of fresher and more effective tactics. For example, PR and media relations is a great way to educate audiences and overcome objections and misinformation. It’s also a powerful way to spark the bandwagon effect (where thought leaders influence followers).

One of the most important trends is the value that marketers are placing on PR’s strategic role within a larger marketing campaign.

Earned media is only as good as the story it tells.

PR professionals and marketers working together and sharing knowledge is the new trend. Audiences are becoming increasingly wary of the content they are presented–for good reason. For that reason, all content should be authentic and transparent to a level that was not seen before. Audiences want quality content that provides something they didn’t have before. Agencies should hire PR professionals in writing-based roles such as content strategists and digital marketing strategists, who can focus on strategic writing that truly connects with audiences.

To serve clients with PR needs, agencies need to first build strong partnerships with clients in order to increase trust and transparency. This then encourages the client to share more with the agency, creating a true partnership. Second, agencies need to ensure that the content they are creating is the most accurate information possible to then build trust with external audiences.

Collaboration continues to be more important than ever. Public relations efforts should align with strong content marketing strategy, as securing meaningful earned coverage requires an investment in content creation. Agencies can better position themselves in 2020 by helping clients understand the value of creating the right content as part of a broader thought leadership message and by knowing where to reach their audiences.

A message may be pitched by a PR professional in story, video or podcast format, but it also needs to be shared on the right social channels for broader reach. And don’t forget that today’s CMOs are requiring measurement in all areas of marketing—whether showing the effectiveness of PR or connecting email campaigns to a sale. Public relations professionals need to be able to demonstrate the reach of their placements and prove what messaging is working.

In a world that’s becoming increasingly ruled by algorithms and robots, PR strategy must be driven by emotion and have that human element in order to be more meaningful and lead to a growing focus on expert, local and enthusiastic micro-influencers, instead of macro-influencers. There is more content online today than ever before.

Not surprisingly, there is now a rising consumer trend towards digital detox and decluttering. The question for PR pros is how to emerge in today’s world of hyper-connectivity and digital addiction. Reporters and customers need to be able to trust PR pros not just to present them with content that is relevant to them, but to not waste their time with an overdose of info or irrelevant messaging.

More than ever, agencies must demonstrate a deep understanding of their clients’ business and leverage creativity and production to support PR strategies.

It is no longer enough to pitch media and secure coverage. PR pros need to consider all aspects of a client’s social and digital footprint. This could include creating original content in 10-second formats for social or getting spokespeople and influencers to do an Instagram takeover. Media outlets continue to be consolidated, closed and/or have their frequency lessened, and yet journalists are still inundated by the amount of pitches and ideas they receive.

We have found the most success with two strategies. The first is offering media experiences: This enables them to write—and us to secure—first-hand, in-depth articles. The second is offering video content in a range of lengths and formats. For example, we can pitch media about a unique skatepark design, but if you show it to them and their audience via video content, they understand the messages you are trying to convey and it also ensures client branding is included.

Gary Chandler is the CEO of Crossbow Communications — an award-winning public affairs and government affairs firm. We specialize in public health and environmental issues. We serve the world.

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Marketing is a process that begins before you start your business plan. It requires vision, determination and planning. Strategic planning is an investment that separates the leaders from the losers. Unfortunately, many small- to medium-sized businesses and advocacy organizations fail at strategic planning and even fewer invest in market research. Those two lapses can be fatal as you follow in the footsteps of the proven market leaders. Failing to plan is the same as planning to fail. Don’t fall into that trap or others. The following tips can help you avoid critical steps, while helping you maximize your return on your marketing budget:

Investment Or Expense: Many businesses think of marketing as an expense not an investment. Many fail to prepare a marketing plan, which includes an adequate marketing budget. Some organizations hire under-qualified people to staff the marketing department, under pay them and then expect miracles. This approach promotes a revolving door marketing department that will never maximize its impact on the bottom line. As such, the company’s marketing department will struggle to build market share, margins and its brand.

Market Research: In marketing and new product development, in particular, speed kills. You only get one chance to make a first impression, so get it right the first time. That goes for your product or service, its price, promotion and point of purchase. Who is your prime prospect? What problem are they trying to solve? What is their solution now? What do they know about you? What do they need to know about you? If you can’t answer these questions, your marketing department is living on a prayer. Faith and hope are not the cornerstones of market leadership.

Strategic Plan: If done thoroughly and strategically, your market research will pave the road for strategic planning. The strategic plan will help you set revenue goals that are consistent with your business plan, while adding in the strategies and tactics necessary to reach those revenue goals. It will identify your top market segments, what they need to hear and how to reach them. Identify obstacles, objections and competition. Is your marketing budget big enough to tackle the job? Will you need outside assistance to handle the work? What is the first deadline?

Without a strategic plan, you are shooting in the dark, compromising your brand and discounting shareholder equity.

Prioritize Market Segments: After finalizing the strategic plan, we begin developing the critical messages for each market segment. Then we develop the most important tools and channels to reach our prime prospects. Once you gain momentum in your top market segments, we start rolling out the plan to secondary target audiences.

Convergence, Integration and Influence: The digital age has accelerated the convergence of all stakeholder communications. Marketing, public relations, government relations and customer relations must be integrated for consistency, credibility and synergy. Convergence can raise your online profile and overall influence. Seamless messaging improves your chances of building awareness, understanding and support among influencers and stakeholders.

Relationships Matter: New technology and emerging channels have not replaced the importance of relationships. In some ways, our over-reliance on emerging technology has discounted the value of meaningful facetime and real conversations. Much is being lost in translation.

Data Mining and Information Science: The days of mail and email are far from over. In fact, for business conversations, they are still critical components of your marketing plan. Are you building your database on your current and prospective customers? Are you putting it to strategic use? Are you segmenting that list based on key variables, such as demographics, past purchasing activity, etc. Build your database so that you can customize and even personalize your outreach for maximum impact.

Social Media: Social media is an X factor for most businesses and it’s rarely a silver bullet solution. Some have it down to an art and science, while others fail to engage prospects or customers. Social media is essentially a free weapon in your arsenal, but it takes time and consistency. It also requires someone who knows what they are doing and who they are doing it for. Ignorance and incompetence on social media can not only waste your time, it can tarnish your organization’s reputation. Don’t put the new intern in charge of social media. Prepare a strategic plan. Prepare a media calendar. Define your key search terms across all audience segments. Include powerful visuals and use strategic hashtags to tie your post to keywords and important conversations.

SEO and Online Visibility: If the Internet isn’t working for you, it’s probably working against you. If you aren’t generating your share of business from the Internet, your competitors are picking your pockets. What keywords and search terms are people using when trying to find a business like yours? Use Google’s keyword tools to find the answer. Then audit your website to find opportunities to strengthen the copy and overall content to help generate more traffic from allies and potential customers.

Earned Media: Generating news is an important part of most marketing plans. Mainstream news is still a major influencer and people find the news more credible than an advertisement. Industry leaders are newsmakers, so don’t let your competitors steal your glory. Plus, as you generate news, you are creating fuel for your social media campaigns.

Crisis Aversion: Crisis management is an important part of branding and reputation management. Failing to prevent crises can destroy an organization’s operations and reputation. Forming a crisis aversion team can help spot these issues before they develop. Saving lives, property and reputation is a critical success factor for all organizations. Just ask Boeing, which has lost billions in stockholder equity and airplane orders in the wake of two jet crashes that might have been preventable.

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Gary Chandler is the CEO of Crossbow Communications — an award-winning public affairs and government affairs firm. We specialize in public health and environmental issues. We serve the world.

The post Avoid Common Marketing Mistakes appeared first on Gary Chandler.

Nike just took a big step by taking its marketing campaign into the political arena. Despite calls for boycotts from those who support racism and fascism, the new ad campaign has already generated publicity and a spike in sales.

The racists and fascists claim that Nike, Colin Kaepernick and others who protest the murders of unarmed American citizens by public servants is anti-American, unpatriotic and disrespectful to veterans, members of the armed services and police officers. Not so fast. Let’s cut through the rhetoric and propaganda.

Over the past 50 years, African-Americans and Hispanic soldiers have seen more front line duty in the U.S. military than their white counterparts. They have incurred more fatalities than whites. The discrimination continues and minorities have paid their dues. So, if any social group in America has earned the right to use the flag and a song as an opportunity to draw attention to ongoing racism, fascism and corruption, it’s racial minorities. They are defending America and Americans, when public servants only want to defend themselves with shallow symbols and conversations.

Ironically and undeniably, African-Americans and other minorities have fought in the nation’s wars for centuries.

They have eagerly defended the basic freedoms that are denied to their families. In addition to discrimination, this institutional racism is a form of taxation without representation. Similar injustices and abuses sparked the American Revolution and gave rise to the formation of this great nation. As our forefathers intended, the flag flies for everyone or it flies for no one.

It’s time to defend much more than just a piece of cloth. Our air, food and water are being contaminated with industrial waste. Neurodegenerative disease is the fastest-growing cause of death in America and the world. Autism continues to soar because of the rampant release of neurotoxins into the world we depend upon. Public property and budgets are being plundered. The nation is on its way to bankruptcy with a record national debt and a bankruptcy expert at the helm. Yet, the only conversation mainstream media and the White House can muster is one about the national anthem. It’s time for deeper conversations. Answers begin with the truth and the misguided national anthem debate is a convenient smokescreen for a hijacked administration. The fascists who are wrapping themselves in the American flag are actually anti-American traitors. They stand only for themselves. They would make Nazi propagandist Joseph Goebbels proud. Just say no to their ignorance and hate.

When Colin Kaepernick took a stand against racism, injustice and many other social ills in August 2016, President Trump and other sick minds twisted the conversation with old school propaganda. Instead of addressing the issues of racism, murder, corruption, cover-ups and more, those who stand up for these victims are being attacked. Their patriotism has been questioned. Their second-amendment rights have been challenged. My guess is that millions of patriots from years gone by are rolling over in their graves as public servants are shooting unarmed citizens in the back. Those who speak up are being stabbed in the back. The party line is that these shootings will continue until morale improves. That’s the fascist party.

It’s interesting how the machine is quicker to defend a symbol of a free nation than defending the people themselves. Propaganda is alive and well and Americans owe it to themselves, their families and their nation to think for themselves on this issues and many others.

Kaepernick signed a new, multiyear deal with Nike that makes him a face of the 30th anniversary of the sports apparel company’s “Just Do It” campaign. With just one tweet, the former NFL quarterback and Nike have set the world on fire, causing a flurry of stories in major publications, inspiring a top trending hashtag across social media.

Reaction to Kaepernick’s tweet was swift. Almost immediately, “Just Do It” and “Nike” became top trending terms on Twitter in the United States, and by morning the hashtag #NikeBoycott was one of the most used on the social media service. People posted videos and photographs of themselves destroying their Nike apparel in response to the company’s decision to work with Kaepernick.

Nike’s stock price fell more than two percent after the announcement. While some investors are likely nervous that the company’s decision to feature Kaepernick could inspire a boycott, the stock price of Adidas also was down more than two percent that morning. The broader stock market downturn was being blamed on worries about tense negotiations over NAFTA. But one week later, Nike reported that online sales had jumped by 31 percent after unveiling the campaign.

“I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” he told Steve Wyche of NFL Media about the decision two years ago. “To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.”

Read The Full Story About NIKE, Colin Kaepernick and the national anthem.

Gary Chandler is the CEO of Crossbow Communications. He is the author of several books about health and environmental issues from around the world. He also is the author of the Language and Travel Guide To Indonesia.

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