Marketing Matters Blog

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Category Archives: Advertising

Job Opportunity: Marketing and Public Relations Manager

Marketing Matters, established in 1997, is a full service integrated marketing and public relations agency that works with clients in a variety of industries including consumer electronics and installed technologies. Our work is both B2B and B2C focused.

 

We are seeking a creative, detailed, self-starting team member experienced in both public relations and marketing. Applicants must possess excellent writing and communication skills, be able to create and manage marketing programs, understand and implement marketing techniques (SEO, keywords, email marketing campaigns, social media, etc.), and be knowledgeable about media relations strategies and techniques.

 

The ideal candidate will be smart, entrepreneurial, trustworthy and fun to work with.

 

NOTE: We are seeking to fill this as a contractor position initially to help us with our current work. This position could lead to a full-time permanent position or end in September. The outcome will depend upon economic conditions.

 

Responsibilities:

In this role the candidate will be required to develop, implement and/or manage digital and traditional marketing and media campaigns:

  • B-to-B marketing campaigns (direct mail, email, webinars, advertising, events, etc.)
  • B-to-C promotional and media campaigns
  • Corporate communications (email, website, advertising, etc.)
  • Special events (trade shows, press events, etc.)

 

The ideal candidate will have proven experience in:

  • Conceptualizing, copywriting and working with a team to develop creative marketing programs that ensure the success of clients.
  • Providing strategic input on new business efforts, assist in preparing written proposals, writing creative briefs and reviewing budget estimates.
  • Working as a team player, innovation, resourcefulness, being able to manage numerous projects, being dedicated to the company’s success and possess strong communication skills.
  • Candidate should have good organizational and consensus building skills.
  • Successful candidates should also have proven skills in Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook and Acrobat. Knowledge of Adobe Creative Suite programs (PhotoShop, InDesign, Dreamweaver, Illustrator, etc.) are a major plus.

 

Essential duties and responsibilities include the following:

  • Develop, provide creative direction and draft copy for both online and offline communication vehicles, including web, email, print advertising, jump/splash pages, websites, collateral, media kits and promotional materials.
  • Ensure that all materials are within the current campaign and/or graphic standards, that all corporate and brand identity standards are followed, and that client approval is obtained at all phases of the project.
  • Managing the project process from proposal to strategic planning to creative development and production for client projects, including managing the budget and deadlines.
  • Ability to adhere to our company values of teamwork, transparency, communication, credibility, accountability and flexibility.
  • Stay abreast of industry changes and news.

 

Education and Experience:

Qualified candidates will possess at minimum:

  • Two years experience in corporate position or with an advertising, marketing and/or public relations agency
  • Bachelor’s degree with Marketing, Advertising or Communications emphasis preferred
  • Ability to conceptualize and assist in developing sophisticated marketing collateral using multiple resources
  • Knowledge of marketing administration, media relations and brand management at a level normally acquired through a minimum of a combined six years of relevant experience and education
  • Excellent creative, written and verbal communications skills
  • Team oriented with interpersonal and presentation skills
  • An ability to multi-task and determine priorities on a real-time basis
  • Strong (nearly obsessive) attention to detail
  • An abundance of common sense
  • Intrinsic drive to develop quality programs (appearance, perception, execution and results)

 

IMPORTANT: This is initially a contract position that could lead to a full-time permanent position with benefits and the opportunity for growth. If you feel this position is a good fit for you and us, please submit a cover letter with salary requirements, your resume and two writing samples in a single PDF file of reasonable size to coleen@marketingmatters.net. No phone calls, faxes or agencies, please.

 

More information about us can be found at www.marketingmatters.net.

QR Codes: Using Smartphones to Boost Your Sales

QR stands for Quick Response code. You’ve seen them. It looks like a pixilated bar code and it appears on just about everything from magazine ads to posters, to the front of business doors or on the sides of trucks. They are read from the bar code scanner from any smartphone.

We at Marketing Matters? We’re in favor of them. Why?

According to the nice people at Nielson who count things, 31 percent of the U.S. uses smartphones and that number is growing. Of that 31 percent, 69 percent use these applications.

QR codes are simple to use. By just scanning a QR code with your smartphone, your customers are immediately linked to a web page, short video or even your catalogues and sales materials — 24 hours a day. Your customers can also check inventory and place orders — 24 hours a day.

Through that tiny device, the smartphone, you can update prices, offers or information about your products. Even better, you can always be tuned in to collect customer data and measure the effectiveness of print communications and display ads — elusive measurements for marketers in the past.

Here at Marketing Matters, we use QR codes on our business cards and on most of our printed materials. This allows users to quickly navigate to our contact page — or whatever page or video we want them to see. From there, users can read more information about us, or just tap on our number to give us a call. We also use them on cards placed in event pressrooms, like at CEDIA Expo, so editors can quickly go to the client’s press page.

Not everyone will be interested enough in your brand or product to scan your codes. Sorry. That’s life. But for those who do, they’ll be rewarded with relevant content. They can take that step from being attracted to calling you and placing orders. Our challenge as marketers is to ensure the correct content is provided to our intended audiences whether B2B or B2C.

If you are ready to use QR codes, start small. Measure. Adjust your program and/or message based on results. Tell your customers what it is and what it is for (example: Scan this QR code with your smartphone to read/see/enter/purchase, etc…). Before you know it, you’ll have the data and insight to adjust your marketing mix to its optimum.

The smartphone is nothing less than magic.

Will you be using QR codes in 2011? At Marketing Matters, we can help. I would love to hear your plans or thoughts.

Coleen Sterns Leith is president and chief techno-geek at Marketing Matters, a communications and design firm specializing in technology, consumer and custom electronics, audio-video, and related industries. As a 20-plus year consumer electronics industry veteran, she is a recognized expert in public relations, business development, and marketing. Coleen and her firm are headquartered in Hollywood, Florida. She can be reached at coleen@marketingmatters.net.

Basics of Advertising in the Consumer Electronic Industry

At Marketing Matters, we believe it’s very important for a company to have a mix of different tactics within a communication strategy. No one tool can provide every solution. One very important segment of any company’s communication mix should be advertising. Admittedly, some advertising can seem very costly, but if you pick the right audience and give your message in the right way, it can show the effectiveness of your product/service and pay dividends in the long run. If you’re just considering advertising for the first time or simply want tips on how to do it better, I’ve provided a foundation to get you on your way.

Time and Financial Budgeting
As trite as it may sound, planning to plan is important. Even if you’re busy with other activities, it’s important to take time to plan your yearly communication strategy. Nearly all publications in the industry issue media kits as early as October. Start by taking time to assess what each medium is covering, as well as when. This will give you a great foundation for media planning, and can also be helpful in figuring out your public relations strategies.

There are many different tactics in financial budgeting. For example, a company can take a percentage of gross sales (maybe 5% for smaller companies). Some companies may just figure out what media they want to purchase and that becomes their budget. Another simple method companies use is to simply spend whatever is left once expenses are paid. Whatever method you choose, make sure that you’re spending enough money marketing your product. Many companies cut back marketing spending when times are tough; this is actually the opposite of what they should be doing.

Know Your Audience
If you’re just starting out, it’s obviously important to know whom exactly you’ll be targeting. Whether it’s performing formal market research in the form of surveys or informal market research in the form of conversations with your customers, most established companies already know who buys their products.

By pairing your target audiences with the right media channel you will begin to see real effects. Although most of the media in consumer and custom electronics industry offer the same news, features and editorial content, the demographics of their readership and how they communicate with them, sets them apart from each other.

Although very general, here is a short list of sample uses for media.

1)      Looking for leads, try sponsoring a webinar.

2)      If engaging with your target audience is important, try social media adverting.

3)      If building an email list is difficult and time consuming, consider renting one.

4)      If you want to show what sets you apart from your competitor, traditional advertising (like print) is a good idea.

When to Hire a Media Manager
Effectively planning and executing a media plan can take a lot of time and skill. You need to consider outside help if your company is lacking either. This is especially a problem now as many companies have downsized, putting a lot of strain on their employees as the company begins to grow again. If your staff is working at maximum capacity and you don’t have the resources to bring on additional employees, consider a freelancer or agency. Likewise, agencies combine the experience of multiple people, which can further ensure your success.

Whomever you choose, it’s important to have someone who is experienced and well-versed in the workings of your industry. Generally, someone who is highly skilled will work faster and better, and the more connections the media planner has, the better success your advertising will have. Additionally, those connections can sometimes lead to better advertising rates.

As mentioned, advertising is just one of the different tools you can use, and it can be very beneficial to create a synergy out of combining different components to your communications mix. Just visualize the impact of potential customers receiving a mailer, getting an email from you the following week, and opening his or her favorite publication and seeing an ad you placed and/or an article about you. That’s staying top of mind.

Kyle E. Glass is the Public Relations and Marketing Manager at Marketing Matters (http://www.marketingmatters.net), a communications and design firm specializing in technology, consumer and custom electronics, audio-video and related industries.