Marketing success -- the essense

Steve Yastrow's books are worth reading. You will also find value in his blog at http://yastrow.com/index.php

Great marketing, in my opinion, starts with great employees delivering the product or service that clients are amazed and entertained as they do business with us. Your marketing resonates when, as Steve Yastrow advocates, employees and clients are in harmony, with each other and the larger community. When this connection is complete, you have the magical strength of exceeded expectations and solid word-of-mouth referrals. Then you can extend your reach with various forms of publicity and sometimes advertising, and see your results skyrocket.

So how do you do this in practice? Here, things get a little tricky, because neither clients nor employees (nor the larger community) are seeking textbook perfection. If you run your business with such a tight ship that employees are systematically forced or coerced into doing the 'right thing' you'll defeat yourself -- people can see really quickly through plastic 'friendliness' and insincere remarks like the famous "Have a nice day!"

And, in any case, the so-called 'wow' factor might be just a little over the top at a typical architectural, engineering or construction office. I mean, you want your calls returned properly and problems fixed or resolved with courtesy and respect,but you aren't expecting a dancing choir of "customer service" every time you send in a proposal for a quotation or invite response through an RFP. You certainly want competence, job site respect, cleanliness, and -- most importantly -- just the right amount of sensitive imagination where you discover you can save a little money or you know in advance that some expensive change-orders may be required, and you can see the general and sub trades are working together in a co-operative approach with the design consultants to minimize their costs or stresses.

The point is all of these things happen sometimes subtly, almost in the background, and when you have it right, your clients almost take them for granted, just confident that you are delivering the goods and that you aren't taking advantage of them. They call you back, then, and are willing to serve as positive references, and your insurance broker and bonding company representative hear this stuff in the background, and they learn you pay your bills and fix problems promptly, so your bonding limits are increased and you can grow, and win more and better projects.

I'll share some examples of how these pieces fit together; they in themselves may seem disjointed but when I'm done you'll get the idea.

• In Florida, in Absolute Aluminum's supplier-paid magazine, the company includes a page of head shots of its employees who have served in the military, coupled with a brief patriotic thank you message. While I suspect this message would not go over well in parts of Vermont, it is probably perfect in Venice, where many military families live. The employees feel recognized as special, they receive connection and respect from their fellow residents, including the families of military service personnel on active duty. In Venice, would you feel good about doing business with Absolute Aluminum for your sidings, gutters, or pool enclosures (especially since the entire service process is entirely satisfactory)? You bet.

  
  

• In Thunder Bay, Ontario, Finn Way General Contractor Inc. puts together the most comprehensive and well designed responses to RFP documentation I've ever seen. Through tabbed links, all the essential requests and documentation requirements within the RFP are addressed (you can't skimp on the mandatory requirements) but Finn Way goes a step further, with detailed employee descriptions, colour project photos, and piles of testimonial letters carefully selected to reflect the project they are quoting. Virtually every RFP they answer is followed with an invitation to bid -- and of course Finn Way uses common sense and only submits the RFPs where it thinks it has a reasonable chance of success.

• Finally, a story from our own business. Through an association event, we discovered a fascinating and important project under construction -- and the key decision-makers were in the meeting. We arranged the feature; but unfortunately one of our employees made a serious error --linked to a sudden deterioration in performance. We addressed the employee problem quickly (he left quickly, on good terms, and is now doing work he really enjoys) and the client, initially disturbed, has become an enthusiastic supporter of our business.

Note that just doing fancy RFPs putting veteran's pictures in your marketing materials, or having fast-acting human resources policies will create the marketing chemistry I'm describing here. But I sense the companies which get it right all share in common:

• Really solid hiring and human resources policies; encouraging the kind of employees with initiative, respect, and community-centredness to apply and stay with the company.
  
• Consistent and cohesive marketing materials that connect the competence of their employees to their communities and markets;
  
• The ability to resolve problems quickly, best at the front-line employee level, but if anything goes wrong there, with a management that can quickly see and correct the difficulties when they arise.

Note that great marketing, indeed, need not be expensive. Marketing materials can often be supported through supplier co-op funding (and if you get it right, the suppliers who are contributing to your marketing budget also gain from the process -- I can assure readers here that anyone who buys an ad to support their client's advertising feature in one of our publications will be treated with respect and offered free services and resources far in excess of the cost of the advertising.)

You, too, can find your harmony -- and enjoy the success that is possible with great marketing effectiveness.

Integrated marketing

You'll want to read Steve Yastrow's books for insights into the importance of a clients-first approach to marketing. His latest blog entry is appropriately titled, "Your un-media plan".

I believe in integrated marketing; that is, your effective combination of internal and external methodologies to both your brand and attract new clients. Done properly, this need not cost a fortune -- in fact, you can often build an effective marketing strategy for little or no cash.

Your employees and current clients are 80 per cent of the picture.

Read Steve Yastrow's Brand Harmony -- then think about the overall client experience and how you can improve it. Dissatisfied clients bad-mouth you. Satisfied clients will purchase more. And truly enthusiastic clients will be your best sales reps. You need to make the entire process of doing business with your organization a pleasure -- in fact something clients truly enjoy. Frankly, with my own business, I see lots of improvements to be made here -- yesterday, I worked on a file where the contract had not been properly confirmed, we had sent inaccurate invoices, our collection department had 'pushed' for payment -- but not promptly returned calls seeking clarification -- and this is a long-standing and well-established customer! Ouch.

It is vitally important that before you spend any money on outbound marketing and selling, you ensure your internal processes are in order, and you can serve your current clients properly, effectively, and enthusiastically.

In reaching for new business, consider your clients' needs first.

Sure, you can force your way into the consciousness of potential clients by blunt force -- and maybe get some business. But this is expensive and largely ineffective. I know not everyone agrees with me, but this is why I have problems with dumb telemarketing and canvassing, where drones reading scripts call down lists in the 'numbers game'. But how many people do you irritate in the effort to get some response? (I'm not quarrelling with rational and creative canvassing and telemarketing -- if you are a roofer and drive around, and see roofs needing work -- maybe it makes sense to knock on the door, especially if you know the work now will save your potential client much grief later on.)

Multiple messages from credible sources will influence decisions.

Advertising, word-of-mouth, consistent logos and designs, and editorial coverage, will build the 'front of mind' awareness of your business, your positive awareness, and attract interest.

Your key marketing measurements should be the "cost per lead" and "quality of client satisfaction".

You need to measure your results, and your objective should be to achieve the most profitable cost per lead (note the absolute cost of the lead is less important than its lifetime value. Say, you need to spend $100,000 to attract one client -- but this will be a repeat client worth $1 million a year -- and a client with a large network of friends and colleagues, who can purchase your services as well.) But you will not have a sustainable business unless you deliver the goods and your clients are truly impressed with your service.

You need a plan, a budget, and the ability to change on the fly.

Some seat of the pants marketing decisions are rational -- you need to be able to seize opportunities as they arise, or adapt to changing economic circumstances. But you don't want to be flapping about desperately, or doing business just because one sales rep or another charms you about a particular media or leads service. With guidelines, consistent principals, and an integrated approach, you'll be able to evaluate competing marketing service claims and achieve the results you are seeking.

We: About client relationships

Do these images really belong together? Yes, in that the tourism and hospitality industries are the places where many of the client-centred marketing principals advocated by Steve Yastrow in his new book: We: The Ideal Customer Relationship are expressed -- though their practical applications are very real for the construction industry, both commercial and residential.

We headed out on a boat yesterday on a Vallatera Adventures visit to Las Caletas, a private island about 45 minutes from Peurto Vallarta after sighting some whales in the Pacific Ocean. The tour organizers appreciate their market and handle it with creativity -- for the (younger) couples out for escape, this is something of a booze cruise, with an unlimited open bar -- but the operators keep things well enough organized so that families with younger and school-age children (ours included) won't feel uncomfortable.

(I especially enjoyed overhearing the rather frank observations by the young tour leader who described how sometimes his job can be hell when clients expect perfection from him, but misbehave themselves -- especially since his salary is a fraction of the money that people blowing money on the tour earn each year.)

We found about the tour through -- yes, Gecko Rent A Car -- where Adam and Denis offered us a 15 per cent discount off the tour's list price and obviously earned some commissions in the process.

As I sat on the beachfront playing Brickbrat on my Blackberry (while Eric snorkeled and Vivian sunned herself) I thought about Steve Yastrow's book We: The Ideal Customer Relationship He sent a copy to me just before I headed on vacation. Yastrow and I engaged in a dialogue a few months ago when I reported on his earlier book Brand Harmony (thanks to Sonny Lykos's introduction).

I enjoyed Yastrow's latest book, again focusing on the basic fact that selling and branding is more about relationships than transactions; and these are unique, individual and thoughtful processes over time -- that lead to the ideal situation where client and business (or groups within clients and businesses) are engaged in co-oerative projects and relationships that transcend the immediate, and work for the mutual benefit of both groups.

In business, these relationships are the opposite of the zero sum game -- and require a whole lot of special qualities and skills that allow employees to work beyond scripts, processes, and formal procedures. Each client relationship, Yastrow proposes, needs to be individualized. Branding -- the overall quality of relationship between client and company -- is not the exclusive responsibility of the marketing department -- it is at root a cultural thing where both front line employees and senior executives create a holistic environment where clients feel welcome, engaged, involved and sense their individuality is respected.

(Does this describe Gecko Rent a Car? Yes. Did Vallarta Adventures get it right -- in a different sort of way?-- Yes. What would have happened if Gecko gave a referral to an organization that paid a higher commission but delivered terrible value? And what is the relationship between Gecko and Vallarta Adventures? We don't know, but I suspect it is healthy.)

Fair enough, such good business is indeed possible, and wherever you can make it happen, ideal. I sense a relationship of this sort is developing with Web Empowerment Solutions who are presently working on our website rebuild. We got things off to a good start when I met with Gilles Cote and Shawn Taylor to discuss the terms of engagement. Impressively, we struck a deal that gives WES some useful operating cash while reducing our current IT cash expenses, and they receive a solid and powerful boost for marketing within the construction industry. In putting the deal together we thought outside the box, with some creativity and effectiveness. So far, it looks like we are getting real value here and I hope to reciprocate as the months proceed.

The challenge with We relationships is that they are time-consuming, potentially expensive, and require an incredible spirit and openness with employees and clients. And here is the big challenge with the concept. While we are all individuals and have unique personalities, not everyone is built the same way -- and many of us (myself included) are really not that good at personal interactions and relationship building. Recruiting and selecting employees with the right qualities is a real challenge and if your organization is currently full of the 'wrong type' you will have an uphill battle in changing the culture and ways of behaving.

In his book, Yastrow suggests some approaches to work around these challenges, but I really think the big issue is whether you can work through all the layers of perception and behaviour in employees and expect them to think outside their silos and relate effectively if they are not hired carefully in the first place and the overall corporate organization and structure is right.

Even then, things don't always work out so well. Enterprise Rent A Car is cited as an example of a business which gets client relationships right, but I would not compare the somewhat tacky 'friendliness' I have received at Enterprise with the real relationship I felt at Gecko.

And in the hotel business, despite all the efforts at creating systems to engage employees and managers in client-centric behaviour, we still have incidents like I experienced at the Hilton Garden Inn at JFK Airport. The hotel and service were fine if unmemorable (okay, it is an Airport hotel), but I really didn't appreciate this email from the hotel:

Dear Valued Guest,
On behalf of the team at the Hilton Garden Inn Queens /JFK Airport THANK YOU FOR STAYING WITH US! Our goal is to ensure your stay was an excellent experience. You may be receiving an email shortly from Hilton Guest Services to survey your stay; it is our hope that you score us either a 9 or a 10 in Accommodations and Service categories. If we did not meet your expectations, please feel free to reply back with your feedback as we will review each comment with my staff to improve future stays. Once again, thank you for choosing the Hilton Garden Inn Queens / JFK Airport.

This note's explicit message is: Hey, they are going to send a survey to you and we want a great score, and please don't blow the survey by answering that "we" are less than perfect!

No! That is gaming the system, and that is the sort of thing that happens too often when organizations try to set up measurement tools and structures to create the We! environment. Ironically, the thank you would have worked a whole lot better simply not mentioning the survey -- and in any case, if I were the hotel manager, I would want -- in fact welcome -- less-than-perfect results as a feedback mechanism to improve my operations. (Oh well, the manager now must deal with the consequences of this blog! I'll be interested in his response.)

So, what can you do?

• Read Yastrow's books. They are useful.
  
• Take vacations. The best way to experience customer service/branding experiences is when you are on the road (or in the air) and experience the service/hospitality industry first hand. They are in the front lines of these crucial branding and relationship-building concepts.


• Hire carefully and with sensitivity.
  
• Let your employees be themselves and don't worry too much if they do their own thing -- in fact encourage individuality. You'll find they can connect with clients much more effectively and ideally, without forcing the issue, create the true We culture that Yastrow advocates.