June is Effective Communications Month - and what could be more important to your marketing?
Effective Communication Month
Whether you need to tweak existing communications or make them over completely, it should be comforting (and exciting!) to know that it has never been easier, faster or less expensive to communicate with clients and prospects—anywhere in the world they might be! Technology has gone a long way toward leveling the playing field for small businesses (vs. large corporations that have the resources to reach out worldwide on their own).
Does all of the new technology available for use in communications mean that decades and even centuries-old tools like the phone, brochures, catalogs, flyers, business cards and mailers are out of vogue? No, they are more important than ever, in part because you have to utilize more channels of communication, more often, in order to leave an impression in the minds of clients or prospects in today’s world. People are bombarded with thousands of individual marketing messages in any given day. You cannot focus solely on internet marketing, or social marketing, or buzz marketing, or print marketing—you have to do it all.
Establishing multiple channels for, and creating habits of engaging in consistent communications with clients and prospects is crucial. In addition to your regular/scheduled communications, you will be able to use all of these channels to support special initiatives, build more brand awareness and capture more client and prospect mindshare.
So how do you prioritize your marketing investments when it comes to limited resources like time and money? How do you construct communications that work to reinforce not only your message of the moment, but also your brand?
First, become aware of all of the tools available to you. Then, decide which communications tools you will use, when, and to what extent you will use each one based on the specific campaign, marketing goals or business problem you want to address. It may sound like a lot of work, but it is through the use of planned, robust communications that business is built, new clients are gained, and buzz, viral marketing and referrals are stimulated. The fact that it can seem like there are a lot of moving pieces is precisely why it is crucial for you to know which tools are at your disposal, how they work best and when to use them. And that’s why it’s helpful to establish a regular schedule of on-going communications and a plan you can deploy any time you need to support special campaigns or events.
Once you have identified all of the tools at your disposal, decide how and when you will employee each of them and how you will use them in concert with one another. Set up a basic, manageable schedule of communications tasks to perform each month. It’s unrealistic to try to create a website, a Facebook page, start an e-mail newsletter and launch a direct mail campaign all in the same month (especially if you are the only one who will be doing these tasks).
Create a list of the channels and collateral you already have and a list of things you want to add to your communications tool box. Prioritize the list of what you want, and focus on the top one or two items at a time until they’ve been incorporated, then move on to the next. And find other people within your organization who are willing, would enjoy, and are capable of helping with communications responsibilities—you can’t do it all yourself!
For Effective Communication Month
Review your existing channels of communications. Determine which are the most effective, which need to be discontinued, redesigned or reinvigorated, and which need to be added. Renew your commitment to completing scheduled tasks on a regular basis. Solicit help and instruction where you need it.
Do you know all you need to know about e-mail and social media marketing? There are many free resources on the internet that can provide you with updates about new capabilities or teach you what you need to know to get started. A local community college may have marketing classes you can take or audit, or you can outsource some or all of these tasks to a marketing professional.
Evaluate internal communications including signage, price tags, displays, etc.; are they legible, clean and still ‘new’ looking? Do you use your logo, fonts and formatting consistently? Do your communications speak effectively to the needs and wants of your customers—are they producing the desired results?
Evaluate employee communications. When was the last time you had an all-employee meeting? When did you last meet individually with each of your staff? Do you have a system for employees to ask questions, make suggestions or share information with you or one another?
When was the last time you solicited feedback from customers or employees? Do you conduct surveys? Do you act on suggestions? Do you communicate results?
