Mixing Traditional and Non-Traditional Advertising

For example, have you considered changing a typical brand awareness campaign from targeting non-users to intersecting consumers already in the consideration phase? It's easy to consider something like this today because digital has become second nature for both consumers and brands. Implementing this kind of strategy now (and in the future) can help you save money, get more immediate results and grow your consumer base to include like-minded influencers as well as those with less brand awareness.

In addition, utilizing a unique mix of traditional and non-traditional tools will help establish healthy marketing habits to keep you on the path to success regardless of extenuating circumstances. Consider these tips:

• Go direct. Digital media has opened up a whole new world of direct marketing tactics, everything from search to email to online lead generation and more. And, don't forget traditional direct mail. It's still a highly effective, trackable, one-to-one option. But, be sure you have a strong segmentation strategy to help cut through the clutter. This is especially important when you need your marketing dollars to work harder than ever.

• Know your consumer. Examine how your target's spending attitudes and behavior are changing. You may need to adapt your messaging and offers/promotions to make them relevant for now. While "12 months same as cash" may have worked to drive business for scores of big ticket items in the past, it may not work as well today. Establishing a system to continue to garner insights will help you massage messaging appropriately and keep engaging consumers for the long haul.

• Evaluate the POS experience. Now that it's more critical than ever to convert your store traffic to sales, reevaluate the experience at the point-of-sale to make sure you're delivering the best customer experience.

• Make CRM a priority. Not only do you want your existing customers to buy more, you need them to be your advocates. You must let them know that you know who they are, what they want from your brand, and most important, that you appreciate them. Consider giving them an incentive to recommend your product or service to other consumers. Having a CRM gut-check in place and a two-way dialogue will ensure continued loyalty.

• Join the new media revolution. Don't stop experimenting with new media and other innovative methods. The digital world continues to change at lightning speed. If you don't keep pace, you might find yourself lagging light years behind your competitors sooner than you think - not just 18-months from now but quite possibly two months. And if at first you don't succeed, keep trying. Learnings from each initiative will help inform future new media programs and keep your brand and sales on-point.

• If you can't track it, don't do it. You must put measures in place to track the effectiveness of the campaign while it's in the marketplace. Tracking provides short-term indicators and the opportunity to adjust campaigns midstream for better results."

The two strategies that stand out to me are knowing your consumer (when is the last time you have taken out a blank sheet of paper and viewed your client's business like it is the first time you have been there?) which relates back to observation, questions, and maybe short post-purchase surveys.  The second item that stood out is track the effectiveness of the campaign.  How hard is it to type a tracking sheet out for your client, put your properties on top with another space for hash tally marks beside it and list each advertising media they use in their marketing plan.  It is simple, get management on board to make their people ask the question and you will find that the business will feel much more engaged if they can substantiate their buy with prospects through the door.