Test Your Offline Marketing Campaigns

Split testing for a campaign using offline media? There are many tools to do so with online media, but how do you measure the design of two different magazine ads? I find this question being asked by more and more people as the economy continues to raise the cost of online marketing.

I've been testing offline campaigns for over a ten years. The only change in the last few years is that many offline campaigns have been expanded to have an online component making it easier and quicker to track results. A good example is when you send a post card or publish and ad and have individuals fill out an online request form. This shows you quickly what type of results your campaign is generating in real time.

I recommend that you read, "Tested Advertising Methods" by John Caples the father of direct response marketing. You'll learn the methods John has used to evaluate campaign effectiveness. When marketing offline, you should always test one element at a time such as your headline. Split test ads or run them consecutively within the same publication.

Your direct marketing should always have a direct response mechanism. This can be an eight hundred number, an email address, or business response card. By having a direct response element, you can always test the response of your print campaigns. Different methods require different measurement techniques.

Test your print campaigns by publishing multiple versions of your creative in each campaign. Put in some type of mechanism to measure results that you can tie back to the unique version of your post card, magazine ad, or prospecting letter. You'll always be able to test and improve your print campaigns.

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Posted in: direct marketing

Improve Your Marketing Results Via Demand Generation Tools

In today's difficult economic times, generating more leads for your business is essential for survival. I've consulted with a large number of businesses who struggle to do more with less and nothing could be more essential when it comes to website traffic and leads.

The good news is that online marketing has become incredibly sophisticated, allowing small to large businesses to identify true opportunities that can generate sustainable revenue. Tools such as demand generation and lead management help companies focus on prospects with the greatest chance of conversion.

Using lead management tools and identifying segments for growth enables marketers to execute, automate, track, and analyze online lead generation campaigns. This boosts revenues through increased sales efficiency and shortened sales cycles. Vitally important given the current climate we're facing and something that is rarely implemented by even the top marketing professionals.

In my opinion, if you're not engaged in lead management, scoring, or prioritization, you still have a significant opportunity to grow your business - even now. Start researching the different ways you can improve the effectiveness of your marketing and learn more effective ways to find those prospects with the highest probability of conversion.

One of the quickest means of success is by focusing on both lead generation and lead management. In combination, finding the "right" leads, evaluating them in real time, and putting follow up processes into play can be your formula for success. The fact is that the more you learn about your lead flow and the type of prospects that convert, the more effective your marketing spend can be.

After learning more about these marketing concepts, start reaching out and finding vendors who can both educate you about making improvements in your marketing systems as well as provide affordable tools that can take your business to the next level.

I personally recommend Manticore Technology for demand generation and lead management tools. Alternatively, you can work with your existing vendors to learn more about these marketing disciplines.

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Posted in: demand generation,lead generation,lead scoring

Original Content is King

One of the most important things you can provide on your website is original content. Original content, information that is unique to your website, is one of the most effective ways to improve search rankings and build a loyal following.

If your site is simply repeating what is found elsewhere on the web, there's really no differentiation. Blog readers and web site loyalists want relevant information they can't find anywhere else.

Some proponents to this idea or concept make reference to sites that aggregate content. I will admit that some sites do a good job of aggregating content and presenting it in a meaningful way. However, over the long term, these sites can't succeed. They offer nothing original and provide questionable value.

In addition to the benefit of building a loyal base of followers - finding value in the information you provide, original content helps with search ranking. Google looks for new and unique content and rewards sites that provide it on a regular basis. Think unique and you'll have website success!

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Posted in: content