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ISSUE 02 2022 NEWS AND KNOWLEDGE FOR TODAY’S MARKETER How to Deliver a WONDERFULLY PREDICTABLE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

Dear Fellow Marketer: Forging and maintaining connections is crucial to industries and businesses of all sizes. While you always want to be looking for new opportunities to bring fresh clients and customers in through your doors, you also don’t want to lose sight of those people who have visited before – continuing to engage existing accounts, even those that may be dormant, can provide you with huge rewards. All the little marketing tactics add up to one big thing, the complete customer experience. Ensuring that your guests and clients have a positive experience with your brand from the jump start takes a lot of work, but the payoff is worth it for everyone. This issue of Marketing Insider features a variety of tips, tricks and other guidance on developing a complete customer experience through the power of smart marketing. Beginning on page 2, you’ll learn how you can reconnect with dormant accounts through targeted marketing tactics and outreach. From there, you’ll gain insight into how you can use personalization tactics to your advantage to develop a strong impression with your existing customers. On page 5, you’ll learn how you can clean up your customer data to avoid losing out on clients – and on profits. On page 6, take a deep dive into the big picture of the customer experience. Microtargeting your messaging is one thing, but you may gain far more insight into your clientele by taking a step back and looking at a more general image of your brand and your marketing. There’s only one shot at a first impression, so on page 10 we discuss some creative signage solutions for making a strong visual impact. And on page 12, we provide you with some trending promotional giveaway items you can use at your next trade show or another event. As always, let us know if there’s anything we can do to help you out, even if you just need a different perspective on a project. Give us a call to set up a free consultation!

ISSUE 02 2022 Contents 06 SPOTLIGHT How to Deliver a Wonderfully Predictable Customer Experience IN THIS ISSUE 02 E ngage, Revive and Thrive Learn how you can reconnect dormant accounts with target marketing. 04 V irtual Meetings Can’t Replace Face-to-Face Interaction Consider the benefits of holding an in-person meeting versus online. 05 C leaning Up Your Lists R  eflect on your customer data and ensure you aren’t losing out with dirty files. 10 First Impressions Are Essential G et back to the basics by considering creative signage solutions. 12 Trend at Your Next Trade Show Entice prospects by taking advantage of the right promotional giveaways.

GROW YOUR BUSINESS BY RE-ENGAGING DORMANT ACCOUNTS M arketers know that it can cost up to seven times more By targeting these accounts that are already in your system to acquire new customers than it does to keep the and familiar with your company’s products and services, audience you already have. While some customer and client you have a leg up on new prospects; your company should turnover is a natural part of doing business – especially due to also already have valuable sales data, such as their purchase events such as closures or relocations – too many customers history. not returning can seriously harm your bottom line. After pulling the list of customers and clients who haven’t Accordingly, a segment of your customer population that’s ordered from you in a while, prioritize your contact list in a worth a targeted marketing strategy is your existing, but way that makes good business sense. For example, dormant, accounts. 02

ranking customers based on sales volume or frequency. purchased from you in the past. These kinds of touches From there, consider how you can use the following tips to can ensure that your customer knows that you’re thinking help re-engage these customers and bring their business of them specifically, rather than just trying to blanket an back through your doors. area of your community or a demographic with the same boilerplate message. ENGAGE Direct mail can also be used as part of a multi-channel Ready to reach out? Think about sending a short survey via campaign for even greater effectiveness. Want to instantly email, conducting a phone interview or send a direct mail drive business? By including something like a QR code piece containing an incentive coupon for collecting some on your mailers, customers can easily scan it back to your additional information your business can take advantage website for a special offer catered to them. of. Ask these contacts why they stopped patronizing your business – perhaps you stopped offering a product they THRIVE loved, they had a budget adjustment or a change in staff. Let’s face it – everyone likes getting something for free. While the purpose for such outreach can be simply to Including branded promotional items in your marketing ensure that customer contact information is still up to efforts is a great way to get old accounts thinking of date, these efforts can help yield a much better definition you again. for their absence at your business. Whatever their reasons may be, you can use this as an opportunity to reconnect Consider sending something small in the mail to create with some contacts and move others out of your address a “lumpy” mailer. Not only will this make your direct book. For example, if customers have relocated far out mail piece stand out that much more in a mailbox, but it of town, they may have switched suppliers or where they can create a big impression on your dormant customers. patronize because it is no longer convenient to use your Promotional products stick around for months and services. While it’s unfortunate when this happens, it is still sometimes even years, so putting even the simplest items valuable data that can help you more clearly define your (like magnets, pens or chip clips) in a mailer can be just marketing strategies. the push these dormant accounts need to reach out to you. REVIVE If you have high-end clients that you haven’t seen in a long Once you’ve determined which set of your customers fall time, a corporate gift may be the way to go. Combining into the category of a dormant account that still carries simple office necessities like stationery with things like tech potential for future business, consider running a direct items or drinkware can create a mail campaign to help reforge the connection they had huge impression and can remind with your brand. You want to make a personal, lasting these clients of why they trusted connection with these customers, but making potentially you with their business in the hundreds of phone calls is costly and time-consuming. first place. Direct mail can have the same kind of personal and individualized impact, but take up far less of your time Attracting new business is and resources. important, but bringing old business back is key to the Something as simple as a postcard that says “we miss you” continued success of your can bring your company back to the front of their minds. company. If you need help But you can go the extra mile with variable data printing creating a strategy to help and personalization. Contemporary direct mail technology re-engage dormant accounts, can easily target customers by adding their name, as well give us a call – we can help! n as highlighting specific products or services that they’ve ISSUE 02 | 2022 03

VIRTUAL MEETINGS CAN’T REPLACE FACE-TO-FACE INTERACTION Five reasons why in-person meetings still work Good communication is the key to supporting strong 3 Problems are solved faster. With two parties relationships with your customers, clients and seated together and focused on the same issue, vendors. When time gets tight, it’s easy to default to a you’ll save time compared to the time it takes to quick email or text – but face-to-face meetings still drive compose several emails or play phone tag. more impactful meaningful business relationships. Here are five benefits to scheduling that in-person meeting: 4 You gain an insider view. It’s easier to understand the perspective of your client when you can see 1They create a bond. The simple business of doing what they’re referring to in person, versus simply talking business inspires better interactions in person. You’ll on the phone about what you know from your existing learn more about the personal style of the other party and viewpoint. get a better feel for their culture and organization. 5 It builds trust. Taking the time for an in-person 2 You’ll avoid miscommunication. It can be all too meeting develops a deeper relationship that builds easy to misinterpret the tone or the message itself better trust in you and in your business. And with that when reading a hastily-written email. But when you can trust comes loyalty that turns into long-term successful observe body language and facial expressions, as well relationships! n as hear the tone of voice, these misunderstandings are avoided. 04

Cleaning Up YOUR LISTS Better data management drives better marketing results Every good marketer knows the importance that issues may end up being, you can use this information customer and client data has for businesses. to pivot your marketing strategies to better reach these Companies of all sizes rely on this data to make decisions customers – and, in the process, hopefully get updated about what products to order, what services to offer and accurate information from them. and how best to advertise these goods and services to the public. You should try and set a benchmark across your entire set of data to adhere to, which can involve verifying email But simply having the data available isn’t enough on its addresses and standardizing mailing address formatting. own. Without proper organization, you can quickly become This process can help you quickly eliminate invalid emails lost in a sea of demographic information, email addresses, that will simply bounce back to you, remove duplicate phone numbers and more. It can be overwhelming to addresses and overall clean up your data. try and sort through it all to find the critical piece of information your marketing strategy really needs! However, the best kind of data management goes further than doing a big mass audit of your lists every so often – AccuData reports that faulty data – data that ideally, data management is a consistent, ongoing process contains incomplete, outdated or otherwise incorrect for you and your team. Your company should aim to have information – can cost businesses up to 12% in revenue a process for standardized data entry, which can help every year1. alleviate future pain points from even occurring. This can be achieved in a number of ways: training manuals to So how do you make sure your data isn’t inadvertently outline processes, vinyl decals that adhere to counters or costing you money? even handouts that you can distribute at staff meetings. Prevent data errors and inconsistencies from happening Start by auditing your data. This process will help you through proper training and educational materials. evaluate the data you have and filter out outdated and inaccurate information, narrowing your scope down to If you need a little extra help in working through your data what’s actually useful for your business. While auditing, or training your staff, reach out to us for a free consultation. n you may find some common pain points to examine further, such as outdated addresses or incorrect emails. 1 www.accudata.com/blog/data-hygiene Are you finding that too many emails are bouncing back? Or perhaps you’re discovering that many of your old clients have relocated to new addresses. Regardless of what the ISSUE 02 | 2022 05

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How to Deliver a WONDERFULLY PREDICTABLE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE Make a lasting impression T oday’s marketers understand the opportunities and challenges that come with fragmented audiences, those smaller groups of customers who share common characteristics. Looking at a customer base in narrow slices has spawned terminology like “hyperlocal” and “microtargeting,” meant to condense what can be wasteful mass marketing to reach only those most likely to act with meaningful messages. In a competitive marketplace, customers and prospects have come to expect a personalized experience with your brand. This can be hard to do without robust and reliable data that defines your segments (e.g., college-educated men who are renters, middle-aged women who only shop online or Great Dane owners). So, rather than taking a micro view, let’s pull back the lens to address some of the intricacies of audience fragmentation by focusing on the bigger picture, the total customer experience. ISSUE 02 | 2022 07

You probably have a friend or colleague who is How do you achieve this level of familiarity with your comfortably knowable. When people describe them, brand? It starts with consistency. it’s with words like, “steady,” “predictable” and “dependable.” It’s effortless when you have a solid THE BASICS: MAKE IT EASY sense of what the conversational vibe is going to be. You don’t have to think too much; it’s just easy. Over time, you may begin to overlook branding basics because they are just expected. After all, you see your We know that fragmenting your audiences is an company logo every day, know your campaign taglines by effective way to add value to your marketing heart and have heard the jingle hundreds or thousands of messaging based on the buying habits of past times. While these marketing resources are commonplace purchasers or the characteristics of prospective for you, they aren’t for your target audience, unless yours customers. Delivering a fragmented customer is a mature business with a long history and polished experience where your target audiences are left promotional strategies. unsure of what to except from you? Not so much. Repetition builds recognition. So, pick your lane and try The last thing you want is to confuse people with your to stay in it. This means consistent usage of your logo marketing, especially if your competitors offer more or logos, your brand’s family of colors, fonts, graphics, clarity and purpose. They are literally just a click away. imagery style and voice. When people interact with your company – your Conduct a brand audit. marketing messages and the people – they can find Review your assets for consistency comfort in predictability that’s part of building interest across both online and offline marketing toward having a long-term relationship with your materials. Ensure that all assets are up to brand. In the best of worlds, it should require little date in terms of brand standards, keep those thought for your audience to understand what you’re that are compliant and update or remove all about and how you can take care of their needs, those that are not. even if your product or solution is complex. 08

REPETITION BUILDS RECOGNITION. SO, PICK YOUR LANE AND TRY TO STAY IN IT. CONSISTENCY COUNTS Don’t overlook your team because ACROSS CHANNELS your customers sure won’t! Your customer-facing staff can be coached to Coordination. This is where some marketers stumble use the same language that’s found on your and miss opportunities to have uniformity across website and in printed materials. Logoed channels. There are few organizations today that apparel can also add a professional touch for rely on just one channel for promotion and customer in-person interactions. engagement. More than likely, you are using three or four with some regularity. MINE THE MAIL Whatever channels you choose, have measurements Another “in real life” marketing channel that proves its in place to gauge the effectiveness of your efforts, value year in and year out is direct mail. According to a and create ways to capture more audience information recent study by PLF and Demand Metric, 84% of survey at each touchpoint to refine your strategies. Just participants (primarily marketers and business owners) guessing about what connects with your customers said that direct mail improves multi-channel campaign and drives decision-making is both time-consuming performance. For reaching the executive or C-suite and expensive when you consider wasted resources audience, 75% said direct mail is their best channel. that fail to deliver results. Marketers like mail because it’s flexible, affordable and Assuming you have a physical location from which you measurable. Business buyers and consumers like to get consult and/or sell, let’s make this the jumping off point mail because it’s tactile, engaging and lasting. for building brand consistency with: When you partner with a mailing expert who can • Signs, posters and banners – Humans are visual source lists, understands postal regulations and knows creatures and respond to images. When graphics opportunities for savings, you can focus on putting are big and bold, you can set a mood, reinforce together a killer campaign. your brand or sell a product or service. Create a brand awareness campaign • Displays – At the point of sale, displays help you featuring a series of postcards that segregate products or highlight a particular service. have the same look and feel. Deploy them a Position your displays where foot traffic flows for a week or two apart to the same target list, but can’t-miss branding opportunity. highlight different benefits or offers. Drive recipients to your website using QR codes for • Window and floor graphics – Consider all surfaces easy engagement. to be fair game for graphics. They can simply be decorative and mood-setting or used to capture Looking for ways to bring consistency to your branding? the attention of passersby with special deals or Need a direct mail pro to manage your next campaign? featured products. Let us know. We can help. n • Vehicle graphics – Take your brand experience ISSUE 02 | 2022 09 on the road with vehicle graphics. These rolling billboards never rest and add mojo to local marketing. If you don’t have a dedicated company vehicle, repositionable graphics can give you some flexibility. Just apply and remove as needed.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS ARE ESSENTIAL Draw them in with impeccable signage W hat do your signs, graphics and other visual Do you want to convey an air of sophistication? Perhaps communications say about you and your you’re looking to show off how modern and cutting-edge business? Your signs are often the first glimpse your business is? Or maybe you want to show that your that prospective customers and clients get of your company is down to earth and easily approachable? business. How do you want to be perceived? 10

The stats make it obvious: high-quality, visually-appealing signage attracts more customers and drives stronger sales for your business. Regardless of what industry you’re in, signs and graphics $ 10% increase in sales should be playing a vital role in your overall marketing when signage is repaired strategy. However, signs are sometimes so obvious – or seen so often – that they can simply become visual sometimes necessary for such a significant visual overhaul wallpaper to the people who see them the most. due to changing your logo or company colors, other situations may instead call for a different approach. Since you see your signs every day, small but gradual changes such as color fading aren’t going to be as Repairing an existing sign can save you and your business noticeable to you as they are to a customer who only money over a full replacement. If your branding and sees your location every so often. But you shouldn’t logo hasn’t changed since the original sign was installed, let your signs fade into the background. providing it with the right repairs and maintenance can keep it looking its best for longer. The Sign Research Whether you’re looking to showcase how artistic or Foundation saw in its studies that 60 percent of accessible your business is, you’ll be sending the wrong businesses that repaired their signage saw a 10 percent message if your signs and graphics are faded, worn-out increase in sales. or damaged. A study from the Sign Research Foundation found that 20 percent of consumers enter a store based The stats make it obvious: high-quality, visually-appealing on the quality of its signage – which means that a fifth signage attracts more customers and drives stronger of your audience could be passing you by if your signs sales for your business. Under-investing in your signs aren’t creating a good first impression. and graphics can be a costly mistake, especially when considering how much of an impact they have on your Taking on a complete signage refresh and replacement audience’s impression of you and your brand. can sound challenging – and expensive. While it’s If it’s time to repair, refurbish or replace your signage, 1/5 of potential customers might pass give us a call – we can help identify and provide a you by because of bad signage custom solution tailored to your company’s specific needs. n ISSUE 02 | 2022 11

TREND ATRTAYDOEURSHNOEXWT Entice them with top promotional giveaways ndustry expos, trade shows and other events are a ENJOY THE OUTDOORS Many people took great place for your business to make a strong first to exploring the great outdoors during the impression on new and returning customers alike. One pandemic, creating habits that are unlikely to of the best ways for you to make that connection is die down anytime soon. Appeal to this part of your by featuring a promotional item to give away to show audience by providing them with practical items they attendees to help keep your brand at the top of their can use, like beverage koozies, lunch coolers, or hats minds long after the event ends. or sunglasses to help keep the sun out of their eyes. But not every giveaway is built the same – and choosing TREND WITH TECH Technology-related the right one that works to complement your branding branded items have been around for a few years can be a challenge. When thinking about your trade show now, and have fast become a staple of trade planning, keep the following trends in mind to help your shows. You can’t have too many charge cables for your business stand out on a busy show floor. smartphone, but consider going the extra mile with a charger that’s compatible with multiple devices. Portable GO GREEN Consumers are more concerned power banks and branded headphones can also feature about the environmental impact of their your branding and see frequent use. purchases than ever, so featuring a promotional product made of recycled materials can show how much By taking advantage of contemporary trending you care, too. Branded tote bags, backpacks and pens are giveaways, your business can make a strong, positive all easy ways to showcase your company logo and tagline first impression on everyone you meet at your next while highlighting your care for the environment. Even industry event. Need some help determining what kind paper products that feature a “recycle me!” message can of promotional item will work best for your branding? make a connection with your eco-conscious audience. Give us a call – we can help! n 12

Five Steps to Take in a COOKIE-FREE World The digital marketing ads. Make sure your clients know you value landscape is changing – don’t them by sending a small promotional gift to let your edge crumble away. keep your brand top-of-mind. You’ve probably heard by now that Google has 3 Build customer loyalty. An easy way to opted to phase out all third-party cookies by strengthen your relationship with your 2023, and will not be building alternative tracking audience is through a loyalty program that identifiers with similar tracking abilities either. rewards them for frequent visits to your shop or to your website, keeping them engaged But do you know what this means for you as a with your brand. marketer or advertiser? Simply put, you won’t be able to reach your audience on Chrome (which has 4 Meet them at the mailbox. Use the power about 65% of the internet browser market share) of direct mail to stay in touch. If you already through cookies and will need to find a new way have a database full of addresses, something as to attribute conversions and target site visitors. simple as a postcard with a special offer attached can be a cost-effective way to drive repeat In a digital landscape that’s increasingly cookie- business. free, what should marketers do to prepare for this shifting environment? Here are a few tips you can 5 Refresh your email list. Audit your data take advantage of now to get ahead of the curve: and make sure you’ve cleaned out and gotten rid of any invalid or duplicate email 1Update your data. Cleaning up your data addresses. This data doesn’t do anyone any now and focusing on what kind of approach good, and scrubbing it can help you narrow you’ll want to take in lieu of cookies is crucial. your focus in future marketing efforts. Knowing what works well now – without cookies as user-identifiers – can give you the advantage in future marketing pushes. 2 Monitor your relationships. Turning first-time buyers into repeat customers has always been more involved than just using cookies to retarget If you need an extra hand to help get your data in order – whether you need to clean it up or build new relationships – reach out our way! We have the expertise to ensure your customer data is benefitting your business.

© AFB IP Holdings LLC. All rights reserved. DID YOU KNOW? 7 IN 10 PEOPLE wish they received promotional products more often. – PPAI