A Marketing-Communications & Creative Agency
Unprecedented
A quick search of my inbox a few months back showed more than 300 instances of the word “unprecedented“ and over 450 instances of the word “uncertain.” Add to that the number of times we’ve heard them on TV commercials, social media, newscasts, and everywhere online. We know these are unprecedented and uncertain times. Why? The news and caring companies everywhere have told us so.
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Why should a tech company consider hiring an external marketing firm? One of the most important reasons is that an agency will be made up of team members with years of combined expertise in diverse marketing skill sets. Finding a single person or building an internal team with all of this experience will cost far more than partnering with a marketing agency.
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Marketing is not an exact science and can seem very abstract. On top of that, the marketing industry is evolving at a much quicker pace than other areas of business. Social media, smartphones, and ad block features in web browsers are just a few of the things that have greatly impacted the efforts of marketers. Buyers also behave much differently today than they did in the early 2000’s.
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New website features, styles, and trends appear daily. Some disappear quickly and others become a standard which other sites follow for years.
Best practices for websites may be technical or related to design and content. Some standards have remained for years, while others change year after year.
Think of some website features or styles you’ve experienced:
Many tech companies refer to their offering as a product, others call it a solution, and still others refer to their service. What’s the best way to market your offering?
If you are routinely charging different rates or prices for your offering, chances are, you don’t have a product.
This may not sound like an important point to discuss, but it can influence a prospect’s perception of your company and affect whether he or she buys from you or not. I’ve worked with SaaS companies, software companies, and others who have some type of tech solution. Here are some common scenarios:
Often, these terms are used interchangeably, with no sense of consistency or clarity.
Including software screenshots can help or hurt your marketing.
Many tech companies develop proprietary software that includes dashboards to help users monitor some aspect of their business in real time. Many of these dashboards have interactive or static graphs.
As tech companies develop print and digital marketing materials, it’s common to include screenshots of these dashboards. The dashboards can create a lot of value for the users. It’s understandable that the developers of the software want them included in marketing materials.
Negative marketing messages are everywhere—TV, radio, web, print, outdoor and social media.
Negative marketing can take many forms:
Speaking negatively about the competition
Make strong statements about your software or technology solution without using meaningless buzzwords.
Technology marketing often includes the words below to position a solution above competitors. Yet, these words are overused, weak on meaning, and often can’t be proven.
Innovative
This means, “the act of introducing or the state of being introduced,” according to the dictionary. Your technology may actually be innovative; however, all other technology companies are innovative to some degree or another. Since it’s the nature of technology companies to innovate, you’re just doing what is the most basic, expected level of work in your industry. Being innovative doesn’t set you apart from all other tech companies. [Read more…]
Many businesses introduce a new product or service by saying, “Our customers have asked for this…”
You’ve seen TV commercials or seen ads that say something like this:
“Our customers asked for an easier way to…” Or, “Our customers asked us to make our vacuums more powerful.” You get the idea.
Whether you work in a technology company or a consumer business, some shy away from saying this, because they don’t want to appear as if they are reactive. They believe they should look proactive enough that their customers never have to ask for a new product feature or service, that the company is way ahead of the curve. That’s not always the best approach.
Here are four immediate benefits of letting people know that your customers have asked for more:
1. It shows you’re listening and have the pulse of your customers.
How else would you know what customers want unless you have a system in place and a culture where there is open dialog? Have all the best inventions come only from companies, or are great products and services partly a result of companies listening to their customers’ needs?
Content is king, they say. It’s never been more true, as long as it’s relevant content for your audience.
Americans have been referred to as consumers for a long time. Today, we’re not just consuming electronic gadgets, food, and other products, we’re consuming information. That information, or content, can be news, entertainment, social media, or finding a recipe for biscotti.
Businesses that provide the content people want are better positioned for growth. In the not so distant past, companies that provided valuable content were appreciated. Today, people not only appreciate your content, they expect it.
Regardless of your business, you have content. It just may be in your head, and not easily available to your audience. This content can range from how your technology can save your customer money to offering advice on how to choose the right furniture for your home. Your expertise should be shared with your audience. This gives potential buyers a chance to know you, and they appreciate the benefits of your free advice.
Offering content, especially free content, to your audience is no different than the free glass of water you get in a restaurant. Will there be people who drink the free water and don’t order a meal? Maybe, but the expertise you share is sure to have a payoff.
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