by Kirby Hasseman
I got a frantic text from one of my best clients just the other day.
“Can you meet me today or tomorrow?” she asked. “One of our events got cancelled and we need to do something quickly.”
To most of us, this is an all too familiar story. With the Coronavirus scare, conferences, meetings, festivals, sporting events and even small gatherings are being cancelled left and right. It is most likely the right thing to do for public safety, but it is wreaking havoc with businesses.
For businesses, these events and conferences are a chance to create relationships, form bonds, network, educate and, ultimately, sell. We host and attend these events because they give us something that emails, phone calls and even social media can’t. They represent true connection. These events can help to create brand affinity and growth.
During this time, when events are being cancelled at record rates, branded merchandise can help fill this gap.
“We had an event scheduled to welcome students who had committed to come to our university. We need a Brand Box, like you sent us,” she told me. “Cancelling the event is a bummer, but we are excited about this!”
As it turns out, Hasseman Marketing recently decided to send some of our top clients what we called a “Brand Box.” This box of Marketing Joy consisted of a very nice t-shirt, vacuum water bottle, a charging lanyard, lip balm, a pen and more. The items had the message “Be Kind. Give First. Work Hard. Repeat.” We curated the products with the idea of spreading some joy and to say “thank you” to our clients and prospects. It definitely helped us do that. And, as some of our clients have realized, this use of branded merchandise has created a brand affinity for Hasseman Marketing that they want to create with their clients and prospects.
My guess is, your company or organization has already been affected by the cancellation of events. If you haven’t, you will be. So what do you do? Instead of lamenting on social media and complaining to family and friends, I suggest you take a pro-active approach and take the #marketingjoy to your customers.
What will taking an approach like this do for you or your brand?
Surprise and Delight
Done right, a marketing box of joy like this will surprise and delight your customers or prospects. We don’t get a lot of mail these days that delight. This has a chance to turn the relationship upside down…in a good way! And because most of your competitors are not going to want to invest in this way, it will surely separate you and your brand.
Creates Brand Affinity
When you surprise and delight, you bring joy. And when you bring joy to your customers, especially in times of stress and need, you vault yourself to the top of their list. They don’t HAVE to do business with you…they want to!
Creates Long Term Value
Finally, if you select quality branded merchandise that will be used for a long time, you create marketing that works to further your story each and every day. Though everyone has to be conscious of budget, this is not the time to hand out new items that will end up in a landfill. Select items that create long term value to the customer, and you will create long term value to your brand.
I think we all would agree that we hope the Coronavirus quickly becomes a thing of the past. But in the meantime, officials are being rightly cautious. So while event after event continues to be cancelled, we can still create marketing and relationships that matter. Promotional products and branded merchandise continues to be the only marketing you you create where your customers will thank you. This is the time to leverage that tool to go on offense during these strange times.
For more information on how to create a Brand Box like ours, please contact us. You can reach out and email us at sales@hassemanmarketing.com…or you can head to our Promo page and find out more.
by Kirby Hasseman
At Hasseman Marketing, we are proud of the team that helps us “Deliver Marketing Joy” each and every day. So we wanted to introduce you to some of our peeps with our series we call “Brand-ecdotes.” Today we get to meet Kelly Bowe!
What is something fun that not everyone knows about you?
Hmmm…something fun that not everyone knows about me? I am a Nationally Certified Medical Assistant and Phlebotomist.
What is your all-time favorite Promotional Product and why?
I think my favorite product would be the Viking Tumbler from Crown. I use this every day. It has the same high quality as a Yeti tumbler at a small fraction of the cost.
What is the current product you use all the time?
Silicone Square Spoon from Bay State. I did a self-promo of these and my clients keep asking for more. I use mine every day while cooking and baking. This is a high quality item that will last for years.
What is a company or brand that you admire and why?
Showdown Displays. This supplier goes over and above to help our clients and are always doing top quality work. Javier is wonderful to work with every time. My clients will comment that their product is even better than they imagined.
What is your favorite part of “Delivering Marketing Joy?”
I have met so many wonderful people through my work and have acquired many true friends. I will carry these friendships on throughout my life.
Thanks so much to Kelly Bowe for taking part in Brand-ecdotes. At Hasseman Marketing, we love our team. Want to learn more about us? Head to our About Us page here.
by Kirby Hasseman
It’s hard to believe now, but there was a time not that long ago, when people questioned the power of social media when building a brand or an organization. Most of us now understand and acknowledge, that when done right, social media can be an extremely valuable tool in marketing and sales. There are just too many success stories to argue. But some companies still struggle to get their arms around how to make it work for them. So while they see that Social Media can be powerful, they have not learned to harness it for themselves.
Sometimes it’s not just about what to do…it’s about what NOT to do. So here are 3 mistakes I see organizations make on social media.
Always Be Closing
In this iconic clip from the movie Glengary Glenn Ross, Alec Baldwin gives a struggling sales team a speech that is for the ages. He says that those of us in sales (and we are all in sales) should “Always Be Closing.” While I think the cast is incredible and the scene is powerful, I don’t think that’s a great way to build a brand…especially on social media. So many organizations treat their social media platforms as another place to put up commercials. It’s not. You can’t always be selling or your prospects and customers will turn you off. They have that power now. If you want to create real business relationships, you need to provide value before you sell. You need to “give first.” Don’t “always be closing.” Always be giving value…or you won’t get the chance to sell.
I Wanna Talk About Me
Sure, it’s hard to get this Toby Keith song out of your head. But when it comes to social media (and marketing in general) when all you do is “talk about me” it can be a turn off for prospects and customers. Sure, you need to tell your story. But how you tell it matters. It’s important to consider why this matters to your customer. How does this help them? When you create social media and content marketing, make sure you do so with your customers in mind.
Ghosting
If you have not heard of it, one of the ways to define “ghosting” is to just leave a gathering or party without any communication. Sometimes that’s a great way to get through a business trip without a hangover. But it’s not a great way to treat your “audience” on social media. We have all seen that business that decided they were going to “be great at social media” and then go hog wild posting to Facebook. Then after a few weeks, the whirlwind gets in the way, and they “ghost.” No announcement. No explanation. They just stop posting anything for months. As you might expect, this is not a great way to build an audience or add value. Consistency is a powerful tool. Organizations that create a consistent plan, and execute on it, have the best results.
In many ways, it’s about treating your audience like you would want to be treated. You don’t want to be sold to all of the time. Most of us don’t want someone to only talk about them. And we certainly don’t like it when we are ignored. So consider that, as you look at your social strategy moving forward!
Thanks for reading! Want more content like this? Check out our blog page here. And if you just can’t wait another day without checking out my new book, you can find that here.
by Kirby Hasseman
Welcome to our awesome blog post series for Hasseman Marketing called:
“Brand-ecdotes!”
Each week we will talk to a branding all star about what makes the Promotional Product advertising media so special!
This week we talk with Sam Kabert. Sam is a leader at ValueBP, a great promotional products distributor in Silicon Valley. He is also a leading content creator and podcaster. You can listen to his podcasts here. My personal favorite is Mojo Mondays!
What is your all time favorite Promotional Product and why?
The “Executive” Sticky Wallet from Handstands AKA the Kanga!
I haven’t carried a wallet since at least 2014 or so. Prior to the groundbreaking release of the “sticky wallet”, I used a phone case brand that shall rename nameless that had a credit card holder built in. While this worked great, eventually it broke my iPhone. I took my phone to AT&T and they said they actually heard several cases of this and it was the case that pushed up the phone screen and broke it. SO, now we have this amazing sticky wallet that works perfectly with my “minimalist lifestyle” and I don’t have to worry about my phone breaking! I love this specific one from Handstands because you get double the mileage and for a “fidgeter” like me (that despises fidget spinners) I can fidget with the strong (and sleek) black strap!
Can you name a Promo Product that you have that STILL reminds you fondly of an event, person, organization? If so, can you tell us that story?
YES!
My rally towel from Kaepernick’s breakout game against the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football. Several reasons…
1) The game from Kap was unexpected and a breakout!
2) I was actually there with a promo friend – Mike from OrigAudio
3) It’s usually somewhat rare to get a gameday giveaway at an NFL game (vs MLB/NBA)
4) I used that rally towel at the gym for at least a year (washing it occasionally of course) until that sad sad day I lost it :/
What is the current product you use all the time?
Next to my Exec Sticky Wallet – my PopSocket. Like literally next to it. Making the switch to an iPhone PLUS I realized how small my hands are and that my fingers get sore typing on my phone without a PopSocket… yes, that’s right I love it for “health” related reasons!
What is an idea/product that you think organizations UNDER use?
Bags. I’m not a bag guy. Love backpacks but don’t use enough re-usable grocery shopping bags.
What do you think is the best thing about Promotional Products as an advertising media?
People love them! There’s a reason why an arena full of 20,000 people “Stand up and Shout” to get a shirt that doesn’t even fit them. I mean c’mon it’s like a Hanes Beefy T and an XL or even a 2XL!
And…that’s another awesome edition of Brand-ecdotes! Thanks to Sam Kabert for taking the time to jump in!
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