CRM Marketing Series: Part 2 | Relationship Building

In our recent article, To CRM or Not to CRM? Why Market to Current Customers? we challenged you to look at your business and evaluate how your company approaches relationship building and how well your employees build those relationships. We wanted to follow with more tips to make your CRM&M work for you!

Tip #1: Our favorite reminder—avoid the hard sell! If you communication is always about your business and products, people will tune out.

Tip #2: Let your personality shine through. Read the full article…

CRM & Marketing Series: Part 1 | Why Market to Current Customers?

That’s a great question. The best answer I can give you is that it costs 3-8x more to acquire a new customer than to retain an existing one. In today's competitive marketing environment, business owners and managers need every advantage they can get. Customer relationship management and marketing (CRM&M) keeps your business on the top of the mind of your customer. By doing so, customers are more likely to buy again, or upgrade to the next level, and the ‘reminder’ encourages them to be your advocates, and can generate referrals as your current customers recommend you to their friends and families.

There are both newer and tried and true methods you can utilize to stay top of mind with your customers. The channels you use will vary depending on your audience and what products or services you provide. Here are a few of our favorites:

1. Newsletters – newsletters are a popular way to educate and interest your clients. You may want to alternate printed and email versions. Read the full article...

An Intern's Perspective

By Guest Blogger & vitalink Intern Adrienne Bryant

When I began looking for an internship this summer, I was a little nervous from the many stories I’ve heard about interns getting stuck behind a desk and made to do all the grunt work. The first couple of interviews went okay, but nothing jumped out at me until I sat down in the vitalink office and began talking to Jeanne and Mary Ann. I couldn’t have wished for a better company to intern for. Here at vitalink, I’ve been allowed to actively participate in multiple projects for clients including research and creative work.

One of the creative projects I was assigned recently was to take photographs of an automobile accident scene for the cover of a book called Wrecked. The whole process was extremely fun. One of the first things I had to do was find old broken car parts I could use to create the scene, so the morning before the shoot I picked up an old headlight from a local body shop. As I was contemplating how exactly to bust it up, smashing it with a baseball bat kept replaying in my head, one of my good friends texted me. The conversation began with the typical, “What’s up? I’m good, how are you?” and changed when my friend said, “I’m okay, I got in a car accident yesterday and my car is destroyed.” Thinking about it now, I probably didn’t respond in the most thoughtful manner when I said, “OMG that’s awesome! Do you have a broken headlight?” After explaining myself, she agreed to let me have her busted headlight and I was now prepared to set up my accident scene.

When I got home from the office the day of the shoot, I quickly changed clothes and grabbed the headlights and my baseball bat. I set the headlight down in the middle of the front yard and got ready to swing. I was pretty excited since I hadn’t swung a bat since I had stopped playing ball a few years ago. After a few hits, the headlight was busted but not into small enough pieces. I had to think bigger, I glanced over at my car and decided to put all of the headlight pieces in a plastic bag, place it in the middle of the street, and run over it with my car. I probably should’ve done this in the first place because I successfully smashed the headlights into tiny pieces and the momentum from the car spread the pieces out perfectly over the street.

So many cars drove by while I was shooting pictures that I had to continually stop and wave them around. A lot of people looked at me like I was crazy standing in the middle of the street with broken glass, headlights, and a camera, but some people actually stopped to ask if I needed any help. I got tired of explaining and soon adopted the short explanation of, “school project.”

I started taking photographs from multiple angles, but one of my favorites was with the camera positioned low on the street so I could get a longer perspective. I arranged the headlight fragments in a few different ways to get multiple scenes. In one particular series, I used a bigger piece of the headlight in the foreground. I feel like this gave a focal point for the eye and allowed for the viewer to understand and take in more of what was going on in the scene. In some of these shots, I tried to achieve a balance by having the bigger piece in the front left and a shot of the speed limit sign in the back right corner.

Overall, the shoot was a lot of fun and I loved that it allowed me to use more of my creative side. It’s kind of surreal to me that I was allowed to do all of this as an intern and that one of pictures I took is actually going to be used on a published book cover. I would’ve never gotten the chance to do this at a larger company. I’m extremely grateful for all the opportunities I’ve gotten at vitalink; to have hands on experience, learn new things and use the talent and knowledge that I have.

Do Your Press Releases Attract Media Attention?

With the decline of traditional news reporting and the increase in number of individual contributors providing information, it can be extremely difficult to capture the attention of the most influential media players. At vitalink, we write and distribute countless press releases and media kits with varying results.

Over the years, we have compiled some “best practices” that we would like to share. Even for our clients who continue to use our PR services, these guidelines may help you to determine whether or not an event would be newsworthy so that you may let us know to proceed with a PR. Here are some thoughts:

1. Is the item unusual enough to warrant the attention of the public? A milestone business anniversary, revolutionary new product, free seminar offering, acquisition of another firm, or the fact that you won a big case would likely all be of interest. On the other hand, if you write a blog post about a subject that has been covered by a hundred others before you, it is likely not press worthy.


2. Is the notification timely? Many businesses—especially if they are large—struggle with getting communications out the door quickly. With the pace of information flow these days, old news is just that. Plan ahead whenever possible and react quickly if there is no prior notice.


3. Does the item position the firm in a positive light? Ideally you want to showcase news events such that the firm benefits. There are exceptions, however, so if there is a negative item that should be addressed with a public statement, get it out there quickly. Controversy can generate a lot of discussion!


4. Is the news item a “feel good” people story? People like to know who you really are on a personal level. Showcasing employees as they give back to the community or if they have a positive event can help with relationship building.

In short, items that are interesting, relevant—and sometimes even controversial—will generate media attention and, with luck, that elusive notice by (and conversation with) customers and prospects. We'd love to hear what types of press releases you've found generate the most interest. Let us know!

Session Formats + Audience Involvement

When you attend or plan an event, you must consider the presentation format for each session. The overall size of the event, number of concurrent sessions, topics to be covered and location space must all be considered. The most common presentation settings are:

Auditorium: Generally a larger room with chairs facing a stage or podium from which the speaker delivers the presentation. Room size can vary but may include hundreds in the audience.

Classroom: Typically a smaller room with tables. Chairs face a white board or screen for presentation. Hands-on computer or training sessions favor this set-up. Room capacities are usually smaller (up to a few dozen people).

Roundtable: Most roundtables are very limited in size (fewer than 20 attendees). A conference style table with chairs surrounding it is common, though not required. Roundtables are usually highly interactive.

Panel: Panel discussions typically are held in auditorium-style settings, with at least two panelists (experts) who will answer questions and offer opinions during the session. This is an interactive format, but tends to be more structured (Q & A) than a roundtable.

Virtual or Web-based: Virtual sessions have become commonplace as companies try to curtail travel expenses. These can be done through a phone conference, webinar (using web conferencing software like Webex), or using the newer and highly functional virtual trade show software packages (for example, ON24) that have concurrent sessions in different virtual auditoriums, chat rooms, trade show “booths,” etc.

In our experience, the most effective seminars or presentations involve the audience to some degree. How you encourage participation is often dictated by the presentation setting. In an auditorium setting with 200 attendees, asking for and receiving input has traditionally been done by asking participants to hold questions until the end of the session and then having a moderator carry a microphone from person to person so they may ask their questions of the presenter. A current popular option is to ask participants to send (or “tweet”) questions via Twitter using a pre-defined hashtag. In a virtual setting with a large number of attendees, online chat or tweets are also common. The best option for true interaction is still the roundtable. This format encourages back-and-forth discussion that is not as easily accomplished in other settings or using Twitter.

Most event agendas will specify the type of setting for each session. This gives attendees a good idea of what to expect. If you are planning an event, in addition to the factors mentioned above, consider also the style of your speaker and audience expectations. To learn more about our professional speakers, please visit The Expert Speakers website.

Tips for Delivering Bad News

By Guest Blogger Kathy Horn

As the president of my homeowner’s association board, I recently had to deliver news regarding the need for a special assessment to cover unanticipated repairs to our pool decking. Two-thirds of homeowners would have to approve the special assessment for us to be able to make repairs. Given the current economic environment, the timing couldn’t have been much worse. I tend to be very analytical and my approach to problem resolution follows: research the issue, determine options, and select the “best” option from the bunch. Unfortunately, when you ask the owners of 225+ homes for money, their opinions and emotions come into play!

So, what’s the best way to deliver tough news? In my experience, whether you are delivering news that your audience considers negative or simply explaining change (we all know how much most humans like change!), there are some basic protocols that can help:

1. Do your homework! Ask questions of the “experts” you’re dealing with. Don’t be embarrassed if you do not understand what they are telling you or their recommendation. Make them explain. You can’t know everything. The Internet is a great resource to gather information, but you may find that the answers you get conflict by source. Log all your questions and add to the list as you go. Answer the old basics: who, what, when, where, why and how.


2. Lay out all your options. You don’t have to like them, but you should consider ALL options (including “do nothing”—what if we don’t open the pool this year?).


3. Investigate any vendors you deal with. Check the Better Business Bureau and ask for references. Get everything in writing.


4. Be prepared to have your audience question what you did and why you made a particular choice. If you’ve done your homework, you will have most of these answers. The goal is to build your case and show that you have done the necessary due diligence. Several owners came to the open meetings intending to vote against the assessment. After hearing the presentation and getting a better feel for the amount of research we had done, they all changed their minds.


5. Communication is paramount. Communicate early and often, and keep records of everything that is communicated. When confronted with change, people tend to push back. It’s important to give them sufficient information to gain their acceptance and trust that you have made the best decision.Note that you may not want to communicate 100% of the information you have garnered through your research, but you should provide documentation that explains the options you considered and justifies your decision.

If you have to present information that you feel will be negative, controversial or are concerned that people will be upset, plan out how and when you will deliver the news. Ideally you will not deliver the news until you have done your research, but sometimes it gets out anyway; be prepared to hold a pre-meeting meeting. If you don’t know the answer, say so and then find out.

Include in-person meetings whenever possible to allow the audience to ask questions. You do not want to be in the position of answering questions one at a time via email! I have found face-to-face meetings to be much more effective than phone calls, email or video conferencing. When all else fails, a large bottle of Tums just might help!

TV Viewing Habits are Changing

While overall TV Households have decreased (for the first time in years), the Hispanic, African American and Asian TV Households have all shown growth. Check out the latest numbers from Nielsen:

A comparison of the Advance/Preliminary 2012 National Universe Estimates with 2011 National Universe Estimates for Total TV Households, Black or African American U.S. TV Households, Hispanic or Latino U.S TV Households and Asian American U.S. TV households is provided below:

Total U.S. TV Households
• The advance Total TV HH estimate decreased to 114,700 (000) from 115,900 (000).
• Persons 2+ in U.S. TV HHs declined 1.8% to 289,290 (000) from 294,650 (000).
• Overall, we are seeing the aging of the U.S. population, with Baby Boomers “aging out” of some traditional buying demographics and fewer Gen-Xers to replace them.

Hispanic U.S. TV Households
• Hispanic TV HH experienced an increase of 5.2%.
• Growth remains strong at 3.9% for Persons 2+ in Hispanic TV HHs. Strongest increases were demonstrated for older categories where Age 55+ increased by 11.1%.

Black or African American U.S. TV Households
• Black or African American TV HHs experienced an increase to 14,230 (000).
• Persons 2+ in Black or African American TV HHs remained relatively stable, increasing to 37,613 (000) from 37,596 (000). The largest population gains were in 18-34 and 55+ showing increases of 3.8% and 2.8%, respectively.

Asian U.S. TV Households
• Asian TV HH growth saw the largest increase of 9.8%.
• Persons 2+ in Asian TV HHs showed 9.0% growth from the official 2011 Estimates. Gains were predominately in the younger categories, where 2-11 increased by 10.8% and 18-34 increased by 16.2%. While Asian populations outpaced Hispanic populations in terms of total population growth, this should not be interpreted as a single year change in U.S. populations as adjustments due to the integration of the 2010 Census data contributed heavily to the increases in the Asian UEs.