Good Marketing | Lovescott

Posts Tagged ‘good marketing’

Life Lessons from Car Repairs

Tags: "Love Scott & Associates", advice, communication, Des Moines, good marketing, Inspiration, motivation, real life situations
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments 11/11/2010

Car trouble over the past few weeks has consumed me. Having to rely on others for transportation, learning to drive a stick shift (sad, I know.) and just trying to coordinate schedules when there are two people sharing one car is a HUGE pain, but it sort of works itself out. The biggest surprise has been my experience working with a mechanic who sent me to the Dealer. What mechanic sends work AWAY from their business? Looking back, this situation segued nicely with some life lessons we should all be reminded of now and again. Let me back up and tell the story from the beginning.

I’ve been having some dashboard lights going on in my car recently. I took the car to an auto shop to get checked out. They said everything was fine. Took the car home, the lights come back on, wash, rinse, repeat. In fact, I took my car back to the same auto shop three times!!! Each time they told me it was nothing. I was doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result.

Lesson one: If you keep trying the same thing, you’re going to get the same results. Try something different if you want something else to happen.

Two weeks ago, I t car repairs ake the car to a mechanic who specializes in my make of vehicle. He tries a few things out, then tells me if the car isn’t running funny the lights are nothing to worry about. But he gives me a warning, “as soon as your gas mileage changes or the car doesn’t seem right, call me!” Well guess what happened one week after I took the car to him? I took it back. Insanity, right? Not exactly…the lights were still on, but the car started to act funny – pardon my lack of proper mechanical terminology – but it sounded like my car was going to explode when it was in idle. I take the car immediately back to the mechanic.

Lesson two: Know what red flags you need to be watching for…and when you find one, DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! Don’t wait, act!

Mechanic spends several hours trying to figure out what’s wrong with the car. Calls me and tells me he has no idea. He’s stumped. He actually recommends I take the car to the dealer. I’ve NEVER had a private mechanic recommend I take a car to the dealer.

Lesson three: Know when to give up. There is no shame in admitting you’re stumped or don’t have the answers.

So I take the car to the dealer. The dealer gives me an estimate for repairs. I get detail from the dealer on exactly what they think is wrong. I call back the specialty mechanic and ask him if the dealer sounds like they’re legit. I also ask him if he wants the work. He tells me the dealer is legit in the diagnosis, and he doesn’t want to do the work because it’s outside his area of expertise.

Lesson four: Check your sources when you feel like something might be “off.”

AND lesson five: Know when something is outside your area of expertise and communicate that to the person you’re trying to help.

Picked up the car today…and it purrs like a kitten! So who gets my future business – the original auto shop, the mechanic or the dealer? Well, as much as I loved my old auto shop, the mechanic is taking this one. Not only did he try to help me (without charging me when he couldn’t find/fix the problem) he let me know when he couldn’t help me AND he sent me to the place that could. Because of his actions, I’ll remember him as someone I WANT to do business with in the future.

Lesson six: Honestly and integrity will always win in the end.

We’re up to Something Good!

Tags: "Love Scott & Associates", advice, Bill Love, blog, expectations, good marketing, Inspiration, Meals from the Heartland, Mission Assist, motivation, non-profit, Public Relations
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments 10/12/2010

I just returned from a mission trip to the Navajo Indian reservation just outside Gallup, New Mexico. It was not my first trip there. In fact, I have been there 12 times in the last four years and intend to continue going as often as I can in the future.

During these weeklong mission trips, we work to improve, however slightly and temporarily, the lives of Native Americans living on the Navajo reservation. The area where we do our work in New Mexico is situated in the second or third poorest county in the United States, depending on who’s doing the talking. So we do what we can… fixing holes in roofs; replacing broken windows; building handicapped accessible entrances to homes; chopping wood for winter warmth; running electricity to replace a single extension cord powering an entire house… the needs are endless and the effect eye-opening and life-changing. Each time I go, I come back with a crystal clear understanding of how blessed my life has been and how uplifting it can be to serve others.

But another thing the mission trips have taught me is that you don’t have to travel to Gallup, New Mexico, to find need. There is no shortage of opportunities to serve right here at home. Many of these needs are currently being addressed by non-profit organizations that are unselfishly making a very real and significant difference in the lives of others.

It was this realization, and our experience as the pro-bono marketing arm for the past two years for Meals from the Heartland, that prompted us to start an effort at Love Scott we call “Mission Assist.” Simply put, Mission Assist is an effort to help non-profit organizations better tell their stories, enhance their missions, and increase their funding. Mission Assist provides complete, coordinated marketing and development assistance to non-profit organizations at a substantially reduced charge.

It is headed by an individual who has spent 30 years in the non-profit sector, many of them at the top level of various non-profit organizations. He completely understands the problems and opportunities common to non-profits. This level of knowledge and experience, combined with Love Scott’s 40 years in marketing, results in Mission Assist having a lot to offer non-profit organizations seeking to rise to the next level of effectiveness.

But the most rewarding aspect of Mission Assist for me has been the excitement it has generated among our staff. It turns out they have generous hearts for helping advance the work of non-profits. They have embraced Mission Assist with enthusiasm and seem to get an energy boost when their talents are turned toward helping a non-profit be even more effective.

Last March, we brought a couple dozen Navajo youth from New Mexico, who had been identified as having leadership potential, to Des Moines for a week of intense leadership training. On the last day, after they had worked several afternoons for non-profit organizations serving various needs around the city, we asked them if they were surprised at the level of need in our city. They answered that they weren’t particularly surprised by the level of need, but they were surprised by the number of local organizations actively involved in addressing those needs.

I think that says something really good about the caring nature of the people of Greater Des Moines and the great work being done by so many area non-profits. It’s a pleasure for us to be able to partner, through Mission Assist, with the important work they’re doing.

Defining Your Area of Suckage

Tags: "Love Scott & Associates", ad agency, Advertising, advertising agency, brand, branding, communication, creative, expectations, funny, good marketing, Inspiration, motivation, strategy
Posted in Public Relations | No Comments 7/15/2010

I am a big Dave Barry fan. Not so big that I follow everything he writes – in fact, I just finished my first, and his latest, book entitled “I’ll Mature When I’m Dead”. It was funny. Like, sitting in bed laughing OUTLOUD hoping not to wake the kids kind of funny.

But tucked among the sarcasm, humor and self-deprecation, Dave actually incorporates little nuggets of wisdom, whether he means to or not. Last night I came across one passage that really got me thinking (one reason I liked this book so much right now was that, for the most part, it didn’t require ANY thinking).

Dave was talking about kids’ sports these days and how parents are so involved, sometimes a little too much. He cites examples like screaming on the sidelines and convincing kids of being really great at something they actually show little ability to grasp. Of his own athletic abilities as a child he said,

“I learned, for example, that even though I was not as big, or fast, or strong, or coordinated as the other kids, if I worked really hard—if I gave 100 percent and never quit—I would still be smaller, slower, weaker and less coordinated than the other kids. In other words, I learned that even though I enjoyed playing sports, I sucked at them. And understanding that you suck at some things is useful information in life. The world would be a better place if people were fully cognizant of their areas of suckage.”

Amen. I’m known for being fairly straight-forward, and will readily admit when I’m really not very good at something – math, computers, miniature golf, and swimming for any purpose other than not drowning. And it’s funny, and sometimes incredibly frustrating, when someone tries to convince me otherwise. “Oh, I bet you’d really like mini-golf, and are probably really good at it, if you’d just try.” Ummmm, no. I’ve tried many, many times, and I a) don’t like it at all, and b) really suck at it. TRUST ME.

I started thinking about this in professional terms. How many times have I come across someone who thinks they can do everything for their business? They know what their customers like, they know how to reach and sell to them most effectively, they know how to write copy for things ranging from newsletters to ads. There’s little they don’t know, and by golly, they sure don’t suck at any of this! That’s their business!

No it’s not. Their business is to make a profit (or, in the case of non-profits, to keep the organization going and growing). They are where they are in the business because they know how to do certain things really well. There are areas where they excel, and areas where they really aren’t very good. We all have these. The best thing to do is to admit what you’re NOT good at, and find someone who is good to help you! There is nothing wrong with admitting that. In fact, I admire people who do it.

I’m not going to get specific because everyone is good at different things. I just thought I’d start the reflection process for others as Dave started it for me. What are you good at? What are your areas of suckage? Are you trying to convince others that you’re really good at something you’re not? Why?

Andrea James
President

Keeping the Faith

Tags: "Love Scott & Associates", ad agency, Adam Jensen, Advertising, advertising agency, Andrea James, brand, branding, client, communication, faith, good marketing, marketing, Mission Assist, research
Posted in Public Relations | No Comments 6/09/2010

Last week I found myself reflecting a lot about the paths we take in life – both personally and professionally – and what outside influences affect and change them. I interviewed with the Des Moines Business Record for a story on branding/rebranding last week which had me thinking a lot about why businesses do, or don’t, make decisions that can affect their futures (ours, obviously, being the decision to rebrand) .

Additionally, and totally unrelated, our creative director, Adam Jensen, signed himself up for a 10-week intense group fitness challenge that one year ago, he wouldn’t have dreamed of taking on. In a sense, he’s been pursuing some personal rebranding, focusing on his health and fitness for the last year. After watching how hard he’s worked to lose 75 pounds and get into better shape, it was inspiring to see him take on something he’d once thought impossible. Both Love Scott’s rebranding efforts, and Adam’s new undertaking, had me thinking about the one thing they have in common. Making the decision to act on fear or faith.

Decisions aren’t always simple. For some companies, decision-making processes, like whether and how to brand/ rebrand, are daunting. Spending the time and inviting internal and possibly external criticism are not always pleasant thoughts. Likewise, personal decisions such as Adam’s, which require self reflection, motivation and determination, are filled with unknowns around every corner. Think about every decision you’ve ever made in your life. Each and every one was driven by the stronger influence of those two things: fear or faith.

Fear of failure. Fear of change. Fear of the unknown. Everything (non-life-threatening) I’ve ever not tried, I can attribute to overwhelming fear. Now, fear can also be a blessing, and it’s actually required for faith to even exist. But for many (and too many companies I care to mention), focusing on fear can be tragically prohibitive when it comes to making effective marketing decisions. What if a campaign doesn’t work? What if it’s too radical for their public? There’s no proof an effort WILL work, so why take the chance?

And then there’s my favorite word – faith. Faith in what’s possible. Faith in doing things right. Faith in discovery through effort. Every time I’ve succeeded at anything, I’ve counted on faith. Faith in myself, faith in God, faith in others. And there have definitely been times when I’ve leaned on faith only to fail. But those are also the times I learned the most about what was needed to later succeed. What if I’d listened to the fear and never tried? I wouldn’t have learned how to do it right, better, the next time.

Faith doesn’t mean entering blindly into a situation, counting on a miracle for something great to happen. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary offers this as a definition:

Main Entry: ¹faith

Pronunciation: \ˈfāth\

Function: noun

Etymology: Middle English feith, from Anglo-French feid, fei, from Latin fides; akin to Latin fidere to trust — more at bide

Date: 13th century

1 a : allegiance to duty or a person : loyalty b (1) : fidelity to one’s promises (2) : sincerity of intentions
2 a (1) : belief and trust in and loyalty to God (2) : belief in the traditional doctrines of a religion b (1) : firm belief in something for which there is no proof (2) : complete trust
3 : something that is believed especially with strong conviction; especially : a system of religious beliefs <the Protestant faith>

Sincerity of intentions. Firm belief in something for which there is no proof. Complete trust. With a strong belief in any of these, good things will eventually happen. If your intentions are to market your company right, have faith in yourself and your convictions that it will happen. If you hire a company to do it for you, have faith in yourself to choose the right company, then have faith in them to do what needs to be done…right!

With our rebranding effort, it took faith in the time we’d spend and the system itself that got us through the process. We could have feared what we’d discover from surveying our past and current clients, or that extra time we had to invest might be wasted, but we didn’t. We kept the faith that it would all lead to something great. And it did.

Likewise, Adam let fear rule his decision a year ago and didn’t step up to the challenge he now has faith he can complete. He took some convincing, and had to dabble a little here and there to find his faith-footing, but he found it and is now charging forward.

What drives you and makes your decisions – both personally and professionally? Fear or faith? Which do you want to drive your decisions?

The Key To A Great Marketing Program!

Tags: advertising agency, appreciation, Bill Love, brand, branding, c-level, CEO, client, communication, creative, Des Moines Advertising agency, expectations, good clients, good marketing, great marketing, marketing, power trip, research, strategy
Posted in Advertising | 2 Comments 6/02/2010

I’m often asked what, in my opinion, is the key ingredient to creating a great marketing program. My answer seems to surprise most people, not so much because they disagree, but because it’s an ingredient often overlooked.

I think they expect my answer to be one of the following:

a) rock-solid marketing intelligence, well researched facts and figures on which to base everything
b) a well thought-out strategy that is on target and incorporates relevance and value in the proposition
c) stand-out, attention-getting creative
d) or; developing, articulating, building equity in, and then defending from all foes, foreign and domestic, a brand for your company or product.

All of those things are important to creating a world-class marketing program. But from an advertising agency perspective, I think the single most important ingredient to a great marketing program is having a great client.

I can think of no ingredient I would rank as more important. Great clients allow great marketing programs to happen. Not-so-great clients invariably end up with not-so-great marketing programs and, because they are by their very nature not-so-great clients, they usually end up blaming their “not-so-great advertising agency” for the poor performance of their not-so-great marketing program.

So, what is a great client? From my perspective, first it’s a client who deeply appreciates the importance and incalculable value of good marketing to the success of a business. They get it. They know that marketing is an investment that should realize a good return and that great marketing usually produces great returns.

Next, they are a client who knows what they don’t know. They may be a great businessperson, but unless they’re also a great marketing person, they know they should leave those chores to people trained in the marketing disciplines. They seek out great marketing people and then trust them with the company’s marketing program. Are they totally detached from the marketing program? Of course not. They supply much needed C-level input, but in doing so, they also avoid screwing up good marketing ideas by imposing their power trips on the people responsible for producing marketing results.

And finally, they encourage and reward great thinking from their marketing people. This takes guts! Giving people who hail from a totally different side of the brain free rein to be inventive, creative and cutting edge with your marketing dollars is an act of courage that I have not often witnessed in my 40 years in the business.

But I have occasionally seen it. And it’s a beautiful thing to behold when it happens. It also invariably results in great marketing.

Great marketing starts with a great client. Period.

We’ve all worked with an endless list of not-so-great clients, but can anyone out there give me an “amen” on the joys of working with a great client?

Bill Love

Raindrops on Roses, Whiskers on Kittens…

Tags: "Love Scott & Associates", Adam Jensen, Advertising, branding, Chip and Dan Heath, Favorite things, good marketing, Made to Stick, message, US Postal Service
Posted in Advertising | No Comments 3/09/2010

It seems to me that in the ultra-competitive business we are in, its easy for creatives to be able to pick out things they DON’T like. Its easy to pick on a brand, a competitor or say you could do something better. For a lot of creatives (and I’ve fallen right into this trap) its tougher to give someone some credit for doing something really well. Its tough, because it’s in our nature to be jealous – we wish we had come up with that! So this will be my spot to pick out a few of my favorite things that are going right in the spaces you might be fast forwarding through with your DVR remotes….

Right now I’m reading the book “Made to Stick” by Chip Heath and Dan Heath. ( madetostick.com ) A great book on using a formula for how to make a good idea better or a great idea – “sticky.” Which to them would be the holy grail of ideas. In my small space I just wanted to focus on their first principle in the SUCCESs (Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credibility, Emotional, and Stories) formula – simple. The Heath brothers delve into several traits and the psychology of simple, but the thought that I found to be the most compelling was the equation; Simple = Core + Compact. The Core concept is your core competency and being able to communicate it exactly. Compact, is taking your core and communicating it in a succinct message. When you combine your core competency with a highly compact message, you get a memorable result – the start of a sticky idea. Obviously just from the words in the formula, you can begin to see how an idea is refined into being sticky.

My sticky idea award goes to the U.S. Postal service. Their current ad campaign promotes the use of their flat rate priority mail service and how they’ve streamlined ease of use. I have a confession to make, I am a devout eBay user and have been for probably ten years now, so they got my attention right away. I have to ship oddly sized things all of the time and then worry about how much the shipping will be when I step into the post office. But I don’t think you have to use eBay to feel that pain. As the spots point out, they can ease the shipping problems of personal or business situations. These spots are creative, funny, and to the point. But they are so because of their sticky message: “If it fits, it ships.” What more do you need to know? The US Postal Service ships things, this is their core. Then the message becomes consumer driven – what will it cost me, what do I use, and is it reliable. Well this is answered in a simple sentence. Through the spots they bring in all of the attributes of the SUCCESs formula – Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credibility, Emotional and a Story – making it a very sticky idea. I dare you to not remember that the US Postal Priority Mail service is associated with “If it fits, it ships.”

The creative team that produced the clown spot has a special place in my heart as I hate clowns. They are seemingly innocent, yet highly creepy to me. I don’t think any one in the world could have put together my thoughts about clowns into thirty seconds like they did. Take a look and decide for yourselves if these spots are “sticky.”

Archive

Posts Tagged ‘good marketing’

Life Lessons from Car Repairs

We’re up to Something Good!

Defining Your Area of Suckage

Keeping the Faith

The Key To A Great Marketing Program!

Raindrops on Roses, Whiskers on Kittens…

Subscribe to our feed via email!

Who is Love Scott, anyway?

Tweet with @Love_Scott !

Recent Posts From Love Scott

Recent Comments From Our Friends

Community

Archive

Posts Tagged ‘good marketing’

Life Lessons from Car Repairs

We’re up to Something Good!

Defining Your Area of Suckage

Keeping the Faith

The Key To A Great Marketing Program!

Raindrops on Roses, Whiskers on Kittens…

Subscribe to our feed via email!

Who is Love Scott, anyway?

Tweet with @Love_Scott !

Recent Posts From Love Scott

Recent Comments From Our Friends

What Are We Talking About?

Community