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Three Real Ways to Enhance Your Marketing Communication
Alan Gross, President, GSM
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Alan Gross, President, CSM
Alan Gross is president of GSM Marketing, a marketing partner to TPAs,
recordkeepers, and other service providers in the retirement space since 2009. GSM
helps clients establish stronger brand identity, tell better stories and answer “Why Us”
on everything from their websites to expert content delivered through video,
whitepapers, webinars, and events.
Prior to starting GSM, Alan worked for 16 years with SunGard’s Relius and Omni
solutions for recordkeeping, administration, and government reporting. He led software
training groups and later, marketing teams for these leading brands. Before joining
SunGard, Alan held licenses as a securities and options principal for a stock brokerage
firm. More at www.gsm.marketing
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3 Real Ways to Enhance Your
Marketing Communication
Alan Gross, President, GSM
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Thanks for the opportunity to spend
time together
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GSM www.gsm.marketing
OUR PERSPECTIVE Watching and learning
20+ Years observing this industry work
6 Years helping clients establish their
brand, answer “why us”, and build
relationships
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GSM www.gsm.marketing
Our path today
• Why Marketing Communication Matters
• 3 Cost-effective and actionable ways to
engage
• How to start (if you haven’t already)
• Making sure everyone knows about it
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Why Marketing Communication Matters
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BEING A “GO-TO” PARTNER
…is to be regarded as a valued expert.
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ASSERT YOUR LEADERSHIP
An effective way to assert this is to share
insights and education with your partners
and clients. Be the expert source!
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EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION IS
• The right message
• To the right audience
• At the right time
• Delivered the right way
Relevance
Alignment
Timeliness
Preference
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ORIGINAL VS. INDUSTRY CONTENT
Sometimes being original matters.
Sometimes being the expert source
matters.
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BE ORIGINAL (5 examples)
1. What drives you.
2. What you are passionate about.
3. How you work.
4. Why you do this.
5. How you help others reach their goals.
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COVERING INDUSTRY (3 examples)
1. Sharing important news.
2. Sharing regulatory info.
3. Educational stories.
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BE ACTIVE
It’s important to evolve
from a passive presence
to one that actively
supports business
growth.
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HOW OFTEN?
Frequency and volume
should reflect your own
reality as well as the
needs of your audience
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THE HARD PART
Time
Inspiration
The Words
Skill/Comfort
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WHY DO IT
• Be a true resource
• Support your partners
• Support relationship
growth
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GSM www.gsm.marketing
WHY DO IT – ANSWER “WHY US?”
Your communication
– Explains why you are the expert partner
to many
– Demonstrates how you help clients
reach their goals
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3 Cost-effective and actionable
ways to engage
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Idea #1: Blog (it’s easier than you think)
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A BLOG
• A blog started as a writer’s aid to post and categorize / tag articles.
• Now it’s anything you want it to be.
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THE TRADITIONAL BLOG STILL WORKS
• Short posts (150 – 200 words) – Informal observations and opinions
– Brief educational pieces
• Long form articles – Thought leadership / expert voice discussions
– White papers and case studies
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EXAMPLES TO WRITE ABOUT
• 3 Things every business owner should know about
planning for their financial future
• 5 Things investors often get wrong
• The one thing I wish you knew about what I do
• Why we’re here
Use your experience!
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GSM www.gsm.marketing
LUCKY FOR YOU EVERYBODY’S BUSY!
“Get in > Get to the point > Get out”
is a good motto.
This is our mantra as we write, edit
and publish everyday!
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INFOGRAPHICS: Making several points
Image sources: AARP / www.columnfivemedia.com/work-items/infographic-invest-dont-gamble
visual.ly/match-your-investments-needs, The Economic Times, Wealth
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INFOGRAPHICS: Making a single point
• The opportunity is to
add your commentary
and insight based on
your knowledge and
experience. This lends
itself to a great content
stream.
Image source: www.merrilledge.com/article/how-social-security-fits-into-your-retirement-plan
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Idea # 2: Video (it might be easier than you think)
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VIDEO BLOG
Image source: GSM Marketing Plan Sponsor Video Series
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VIDEO: MORE THAN WORDS
• A picture's worth a
thousand words –
video is exponentially
more interesting
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TEXT or VIDEO?
Some viewers prefer to read. Some prefer to watch.
Takeaway: Do both. Use the video transcript as a post.
Forbes Insights (December 2010) reported that 59% of senior executives prefer to watch video instead of reading
text when both are available on the same page.
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STEPS TO TAKE
Consider format: One person vs. two people sharing.
Studio vs. Webcam
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GSM www.gsm.marketing
STEPS TO TAKE
Consider topics as categories or series.
Sharing news
Evergreen topics
Compliance matters.
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Idea # 3: Survey (it’s good to ask questions)
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SURVEY YOUR AUDIENCE
• Ask questions to validate your
assumptions.
• Ask questions to learn more about
needs, priorities and preferences.
• Demonstrate interest in your
relationships
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KEEP IT SHORT
• A one question poll can yield useful
information and seed more content
• A short survey is more likely to be
completed than a long one
• Consider doing periodic surveys to
take the pulse of your clients
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GSM www.gsm.marketing
SURVEY YOUR AUDIENCE
• Share the executive summary
of the results
• Explain what matters and why
• Another blog post, video, email
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Idea # 4: Webinar (it’s good to present)
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HOST A WEBINAR
• It’s an opportunity to share your
knowledge and expertise
• Audience size doesn’t matter – you’ll be
able to make the content available on-
demand for many more
• It can complement live performances
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HOST A WEBINAR
• The web is convenient and inexpensive
compared to hotel ballrooms
• Many people (both clients and prospects)
are more comfortable learning privately
than in a public space
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WEBINAR RECOMMENDATIONS
• Keep it short!
• Keep it tightly focused
• Record for on-demand replay
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How to start (if you haven’t already)
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CONTENT MATTERS
• Think about information your clients, prospects and partners would value
• Think about topics that resonate with you
ACTION: Write an initial short list of 10 topics.
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WHAT’S YOUR FREQUENCY?
• Commit to a frequency you can meet.
• Consistency is more important than
frequency. Weekly, bi-weekly, monthly
calendars work. Decide what you can do.
• Don’t start and stop. You’ll lose your
audience.
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ONCE YOU START
• You’re establishing a conversation and an
expectation.
• Don’t start and stop. You’ll lose your
audience.
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Making sure everyone knows about it
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PROMOTING YOUR VOICE
• Your website
• Email, LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook
• These are all opt-in’s
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PROMOTING YOUR VOICE: WEBSITE
• It may seem obvious, but update your
homepage with latest content!
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It’s not about any of us… it’s about all of us.
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GSM www.gsm.marketing
GSM: Your marketing team
• Professional website design
• Expert content development
• Marketing automation programs with:
– content development, email and social promotion to drive
engagement and support relationship building (lead gen)
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3 Real Ways to Enhance Your
Marketing Communication
Alan Gross, President, GSM