Month: March 2011

Fun Friday –Two Puffy Words You Want to Avoid

You know them. You see them all the time. They are puffy words used to describe a company, product or service that are typically unsubstantiated and overused.

When trying to establish trust with an audience, words such as “unique,”  and “leading,” work against you.  Try replacing these words with facts and supporting documentation.

1) Unique

To be unique is to be one of a kind. By definition, you can’t be very unique. You either are or you’re not.

Global Thermoelectric is the world’s largest supplier of thermoelectric generators and remote power systems and a very unique manufacturing operation.

The sentence below effectively uses  “one-of-a-kind” rather than unique, and offers detail of interest to the reader.

Read Sharp’s history of making one-of-a-kind products based on founder Tokuji Hayakawa’s dream to “Make products that other companies want to imitate.”

2) Leading

To be leading you need to be ahead of the competition.  In the sentence below, you are left to wonder what they lead in. There are no facts to back up the statement.

The leading manufacturer of revolving door technology, Crane’s passion for quality, precision and innovative design makes the company’s products a favorite among architects, specifiers, interior designers and others in the commercial building trades.

The following sentence establishes leadership with fact-based information.

For the fifth consecutive year, The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Department of Energy (DOE) announced that Pella Corporation has earned an ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year 2011 award for their commitment to manufacturing energy-efficient products and educating consumers about them.

What other “Puff” words would you like to see used less often?

Green Beer and WordPress Go Down Easy

Green Beer for St. Patrick's DayI love this day. I love green beer, eating corned beef and cabbage, and celebrating my Irish heritage. It’s also the perfect day to showcase the new website I created for my friends at Chicago-based Shamrock Tuckpointing. I recently helped Owner John Gallagher overhaul the Shamrock Tuckpointing website using the WordPress theme WP Remix. I love the idea of WordPress for creating great websites, not just blogs. I hope we can finally say goodbye to stagnant, static websites. My Mom might not be able to update this site, but just about anyone else could do it.

When it comes to Internet marketing, Gallagher is like a lot of small contractors – he didn’t know where to begin. He understood that potential customers search the Internet and not the Yellow Pages. And he knew that a website lacking in style, substance and visibility was causing him to missing an opportunity. However, he was lacking a solution that fit his budget.

A few months ago, I wouldn’t have been able to help John  beyond providing content. But after learning how WordPress can work as a website, I knew I could do more. Too often web designers complete the design, only to be held at a standstill because the client doesn’t have content. Waiting in the wings are search engine specialists who want to be paid handsomely for getting that page to the top of the Google rankings. It’s all too overwhelming and expensive for a small contractor who is busy estimating jobs, hiring workers, repairing chimneys and inspecting job sites.

With WordPress it’s easy for content to be the driving force for design, and the two can work together seamlessly. With elaborate paid themes available, an array of Plug-ins, SEO options and free analytic tools, you can have a very dynamic website up and running very quickly and economically. I’m not a webmaster by any stretch of the imagination, but I was able to get this site completed in a matter of weeks.

I wish I could show you the “before”… but you can see the “after” at www.shamrocktuckpointing.com.

Could WordPress be a solution for you?

Four Reasons Why No One Wants to Use Your 800 Number

Marketers spend countless hours coming up with strategies to engage customers and prospects through content marketing.  Yet, too often, when customers are trying to engage with a company, such as when they have a question or problem, we make it difficult. We relegate the answers to an 800 number, when we could be providing the information online. Here’s why 800 numbers are a turn-off:

1)      The automated voice mail. If there’s a better way to make your customers feel like they are not important, let me know.   When is the last time you heard a message that was engaging on an 800 line. “Listen carefully, we have changed our selections” is typically followed by an endless array of options, not one of which involves a human being. Companies may as well just scream, “We don’t want to talk to you!”

2)      The wait is too long. I recently spent 10 or 15 minutes waiting to ask a question of GoDaddy.com.  Another interaction with Lenovo took more than 30 minutes to resolve. And while you wait, you have to listen to annoying music, or sales messages.

3)      People who can’t solve their problems. When you finally do reach a human, it never seems to be the person who can solve your problem. By the time you have been transferred to the right person, you have explained the problem at least three different times to three different people.

4)      There’s usually no record of your conversation. Unless you count the confirmation number you scribbled on a scrap of paper. After a phone transaction, I am often left wondering if anything really will be accomplished.

Is it any wonder that your customers would look online for the answers to their problems? Studies show an increasing preference for online interaction.

Does your website content address your customer’s questions? Do you have an area for frequently asked questions?  Can a customer chat with an operator online? Can they access a customer portal to see their account information?

Many b-to-b marketers fail to answer common questions online because they want people to call them. But will they?

What’s your strategy?

Package Content in a Favored Format

Which is the best content format for your loyal customers?

  • ˜       Blog
  • ˜       Newsletter
  • ˜       White paper
  • ˜       Video

If you chose Newsletter from the choices above you are correct. This format is favored for loyal customers because when done well, newsletters contain information relevant to an already aware audience. When delivered on a consistent basis, it becomes familiar and anticipated. I just received Jakob Neilson’s Alert Box, a hybrid version of a newsletter from a content usability expert I admire. In it were links to 11 most hated advertising techniques and 10 Web design mistakes that readers loath the most as well as information on how to use PDFs and which content formats to avoid – Pop ups “which are the #1 most hated advertising design.” Alert Box is always worth my time because the topics are relevant and I trust the sender.

Which of the above is the best content format for potential customers? While it depends on what prospects are looking for, in general, a blog post may be your best bet. Prospects may not only be interested in the topic of the post but the reader comments regarding the post are often read. You can point prospects to a particular blog post during follow up or lead nurturing.

What format would you choose to help your prospects evaluate your services or products? A White Paper authored by a credible source offers an effective marketing tool to promote your company, your solutions, and your brand. A White Paper is helpful in establishing your thought leadership and building trust with prospects.

Video is an effective way for prospects to see your company’s brand using tone and personality. It’s great for showing “how to” processes as well. According to a recent Thomson Reuters survey, 73% of communications professionals expect the use of video to increase at their company this year. For a video content format to be most effective, include your website URL and a text summary. Keep it under three minutes in length. Remember, video can be embedded so viewers may find it in other locations besides your website. See this award winning sales Video by RightNow Technologies.

There are other great content formats including case studies, testimonials, podcasts, e-books, articles, social media, and slide shows that are effective when used wisely and strategically to reach a B2B audience. Ideas for each will be shared in later posts.

Understand what format is favored by your audience and you have a content package ready to be opened.

Fun Friday Worst Sentence

Here is this week’s worst sentence found on the web and a revision.

BEFORE
“Now, it is also important when you read that answer that you realize that if you have an Upsell process and/or a “BACK END” or call center, you MUST take into considersation [sic] the effects your FRONT END offer and conversions play on your BACK END to see the NET RESULT of your campaign.”

AFTER
To see the net result of your campaign, measure the effects your front end offer and conversions have on your back end.