Marketing Max - Creative Services and Marketing Solutions for Your Business

New White Paper for Professional Service Businesses

Friday, August 8, 2008

As simple as it may be, we've released a new white paper targeting those in the professional services business -- CPAs, attorneys, real estate agents, and even plumbers and other blue collars.

The message: How important it is to have a professional web presence (and how to get there).

Check it out; it's free.

Permalink

Got Cliché?

Thursday, July 24, 2008

Posted by: Travis Nelson, Marketing Max.

With our current economic downturn some businesses are hesitant to dedicate resources for advertising, but as we’ve discussed before, there is actually no better time to focus on promoting your products and services.

Presenting a new and fresh image is vital to stand out from your competitors, and one of the best ways to do this is by avoiding clichés and overused themes. How many logos have you seen just today with some sort of “swoosh” or “orbit” around them? I bet you live in a neighborhood where there is a BBQ ribs restaurant having a pig-chef as the mascot (which, when you think about it, is just weird.) Not to mention the Web 2.0 revolution and its countless websites sporting subtle glossy reflections, misspelled names, and “Beta” labels.

Try something new for a change. Do something out of the ordinary, and please forgive the cliché, but “think outside the box.” A new look—perhaps wild and extraordinary—should be just the extra step you need to stand out from your competitors.

Marketing Max team members are knowledgeable about what’s popular in the creative field, and about what themes are overused. We can help you overhaul your creative image with something new and different.

You never know, maybe you’ll start a new trend yourself. It’s okay to be first. =D

Permalink

Quality of Service

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

So, I'm leaving my house to run to the jiffy store and I see a guy cutting my neighbor's lawn. He runs right over a Styrofoam cup leaving white debris everywhere on the side of the house. I didn't really think anything of it... until I came back from the store.

He's gone. The mess is still there. Perhaps it's nitpicking, but c'mon man! This cup made a complete mess--like a 10'x10' area of little white crap everywhere. Certainly he could have at least TRIED to clean it up--or maybe pick the damn cup up before he even started cutting.

Call me cranky, but I'd fire the guy in a second for a total lack of common sense and customer care.

Ok, done venting =)

More now than ever, you should do everything you can to impress your customers. Impressing them means you'll likely retain them.

Quality of service. It's super-duper important.

Permalink

Need Creative FAST?

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Need a banner ad, website, magazine ad, brochure, flyer or any other creative designed really super ultra fast?

Check out Marketing Max Direct. It's just a page on our site right now, but will be on its own site at some point in the near future. Oh, it's fast.

GO GO GO!!!

Permalink

Royal Caribbean: Customer Service Excellence

Monday, June 16, 2008

My wife and I just returned from a seven-day cruise along the Inside Passage of Alaska. To say the least, it was absolutely amazing. What a beautiful part of our country--sites and sounds unlike anything found in the Lower 48.

The ship was Royal Caribbean's Radiance of the Seas and it too was amazing. And while I can't say the ship was as great as the scenery we witnessed on our various excursions and during the cruise itself, the level of customer service was an 11 on a scale of 1-10. Really.

Royal Caribbean's crew is made up of English speaking folks from all over the world. They know your name, your favorite drink, and that you like your salad dressing on the side. Tell them once, they'll remember it for the entire cruise. It's really hard to explain because you just don't see this level of customer care anywhere else--or at least I haven't--and I study customer service a lot as part of my company's mission.

Sure, there will always be naysayers and drinks are really expensive. But during the entire cruise, we didn't have a single complaint when it came to the people that Royal Caribbean employs on this particular ship. Seriously remarkable.

That's it. Just a plug and a big thanks to Royal Caribbean and the crew that served us so well.

Permalink

5 things to do in preparation for a campaign launch

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Posted by: Travis Nelson, Marketing Max.

Launching an ad campaign is an exciting event. It can also be a scary one. As long as you have all your ducks in a row, you should be okay, but it’s always good to have a bit of assurance when the time comes to throw your offer out to the world.

Here are 5 tips to keep in mind when launching a new campaign:

• Review your company’s mission statement; does the ad reflect it? Each time you advertise, you are selling a part of your company, whether it be the work you produce, the services you offer or, in an awareness campaign, your vision and your brand. Consistency is important as is a strong tie-in to your company’s core mission. There are exceptions to this rule of course, sometimes used for shock or viral purposes, but they should be used sparingly and with good reason.
• Evaluate your marketing goals; does the ad tie into them? If your current marketing goal is to raise customer awareness, focus on your company brand. If you’re trying to push products for a year-end clearance, focus on the call-to-action and a strong offer. You get the point. Make your ad relevant to your current goal, and make the message stand out.
• Educate and prepare your employees. Make sure your staff knows the promotion is being launched and that they understand the details of it—the offer, the terms, and the expiration date. Most importantly, be sure your front line (sales, customer service) knows the ad inside and out. There’s nothing worse than a potential customer calling to take advantage of your offer, and talking to someone who doesn’t know a thing about it.
• Test and verify your goal process. Don’t launch a campaign until you’re absolutely sure that your means of capturing leads or converting customers are in full working order. This means working coupon codes, landing pages, lead forms and phone numbers. Have a contingency plan in case of emergencies.
• Predefine what you will do with data and conversions. If you are collecting leads or making sales, the response to your ad is a goldmine of data. Sadly, many companies launch an ad for the sake of advertising and never pay mind to how well the campaign did. Keep track of users’ interest, calculate whether the campaign made money (or if it will in the long run), and use this data to optimize future marketing efforts.

Related: Download the FREE whitepaper "Successful Small Business Marketing" from Marketing Max.

Permalink

If it looks good, it’s an ad, right?

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Posted by: Travis Nelson, Marketing Max.

Imagine you just saw (or heard) a fantastic advertisement. It was so funny it made you laugh out loud, or it was so creative and visually engaging that you can’t even describe it—it was like watching a 30-second movie. People tell us about ads like this all the time, but when we ask them what product or service the ad was for, we’re faced with a blank stare and silence.

Our senses are constantly bombarded with advertisements, but from a marketing standpoint, “creative” just doesn’t cut it, at least not like it used to. Sure, an ad was funny, but what is it selling? Sure an ad looked great, but did anyone buy the product or service?

Creating an ad is a more complex process than text and a couple of images. Consider the following:

• Does the ad have a succinct, straightforward message without complexity that waters down the core message?
• Were there brand tie-ins? If so, were they strong enough to be memorable?
• If it’s a funny ad (remember, everyone else is already doing “funny”), was it unique in some way?
• Does the ad revolve around a marketing goal, and just as important, was the response tracked in some way?
• Is the ad going to be seen more than once?

It’s important to create ads that are more than just a pretty picture or a funny punchline. Contact Marketing Max today for more insight into creating a great, effective ad.

Permalink