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On the Psychology of Marketing: Fear, Anxiety, Profit?

The psychology behind marketing and sales

Whether a flyer for your local restaurant or a million dollar Madison Avenue campaign, marketing succeeds by stimulating triggers in your psychological make-up. “Save money.” “Feel better about yourself.” “Eat.” Often the flashpoint marketers want to reach in order to get you to act is found in your anxiety and fears – fear of being left behind, not being “good” enough, not being a part of what everyone else is doing. Whether this is ultimately good or bad is debatable, but as consumers we should be aware of how and why we spend our money. Caveat emptor. It is also something to consider when you as a marketer of your own business are shaping your brand and business culture. An essential question is do you want to meet the needs of consumers by playing off of their insecurity, anxiety or fear of the future?

The latest crop of television ads, mostly for smartphones or tech gadgets, portray people hopelessly outdated and behind the times because they don’t have constant access to pics or information that happened only seconds before. They sit sadly in the dull past of a few moments ago while their friends gloat and brag about their knowing the latest thing. AT&T’s 4G network bases their new campaign on the slogan “Don’t be left behind” – ine commercial even plays off the punchline: “That’s so 2 seconds ago.” Samsung and others are using the same approach. The fear these companies are targeting is the current, media-fed, universal concern that we are overwhelmed in a sea of quickly changing technological advancements and must struggle to stay on top of the latest trends. It is an impossible task – one that over time we will come to terms with by realizing no one can or should be on top of EVERY tech innovation. But that time has not arrived yet… we have an emotional reaction to each new app, social media site, or tech gadget that we PERCEIVE to have been adopted by all the folks on the cutting edge, therefore meaning we have failed to stay current. We’ve always tried to keep up with the Joneses, but the pace of change has made that more and more difficult.

Now the flip side of this argument is that these companies are offering you the chance to make your life easier, to stay current – rather than putting you down for not having their timesaving invention they are offering you the chance to join their team, to be part of the in-crowd. Yet the tool being used to push your emotional buttons and incite you to action is an assault on your sense of security, an attempt to speak to your fear of being left behind.

You can see this tactic throughout advertising – sometimes subtely but frequently in an unapologetic effort to make consumers feel less than whole. Are you young enough, pretty enough, thin enough? Do you dress well, have fresh breath, a clear complexion? Don’t be overweight, bald, depressed, tired, hungry, uneducated, out of touch, out of fashion. Compare yourself to these young, rich, sexy, carefree, overachieving images – feel inferior, and then react by consuming.

Not all advertising works through this channel. Marketing can appeal to the more noble aspects of the consumer and can be the basis for providing people with information they need to improve their lives, health, and self concept. Truly believing in your product or service is a great home base for starting your marketing message. A great example of a well-known campaigns that begins with this starting point is L’Oreal – “because you’re worth it,” currently celebrating its 40th year. Dove launched its Campaign for Real Beauty campaign featuring “non-traditional” or more full figured models and sought to reach women by encouraging their self esteem rather than playing to their insecurities. The first few years saw an increase in sales, but eventually the campaign tanked and critics noted Dove did not stay true to it’s insistence on the “realness” of beauty! Note that self-esteem seems to be an enemy of cosmetic and beauty supply sales!

Much marketing seeks to meet the very real needs of consumers with an appeal to logic and financial sense rather than an emotional appeal. Whenever a store offers a coupon, sale or merchandising discount, they are offering a benefit to the consumer which will save them money. It is an encouragement to make a rational decision in your own best interest which also benefits the seller. In a competitive marketplace however, marketers have learned the power a psychological approach.

The psychological component of successful marketing is a rich and interesting field. As you seek to market your own business, service or online venture, give yourself the time to consider the “voice” of your brand, the conversation you will be having with your public. Playing to fear and anxiety has proven a successful marketing strategy, but it is also not the only successful one. Many times humor is used to let us laugh at ourselves rather than feel criticized. It is essential that you be aware of the voice you give your brand. Something to consider!

 

Rely on your printer for advice and direction in shaping your brand and bringing it to life. They should be able to provide you with everything from encouragement all the way to the complete design, layout, copywriting, production, multi-purposing and distribution of your marketing outreach. If they can’t, you have the wrong printer! The best advice, always, is to ASK YOUR PRINTER!

ImageSmith is a full-service print and marketing provider located in Arden, North Carolina. Contact us at ImageSmith for quotes on all your marketing projects, and more useful tips on how to create custom, effective, high impact marketing solutions.
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Printing Custom Flyers: 7 Ideas to Get Your Money’s Worth

printed full color versatile flyers

Custom, full color flyers are a true workhorse of any solid marketing effort. They function as handouts, sales sheets, product cards, event announcements, coupons, direct mail, or invitations. Even with today’s online competitive marketplace, they remain a central, effective tool for putting into your potential customers’ hands the information you need them to have. Digital printing now allows you to customize and personlize flyers as never before for shorter runs at lower costs with very quick turnaround times.

Here are a few tips to keep in mind when designing and purchasing flyers in order to get the most bang for your buck:

Power Up Your Brand: quality graphic design is within the reach of every budget today thanks to the amazing advancements in desktop design software. Take advantage of that! Every time you are lucky enough to catch a potential customer’s eye, you want your look to be consistent and to carry the same impression. That instant of positive recognition is your brand at work. Be vigilant in making sure all your printed material coordinates with your online presence, your signage, your store displays… and a flyer is probably the easiest place to manage that look you want. Choose a printer that can assure you of the proper color match, paper choice, “look and feel” and can design everything you need with your precise brand specifications.

Repurpose as Direct Mail pieces: When you print flyers for in-store distribution or use at an event or trade show, follow up that effort with a direct mail distribution using the exact same piece. You will save printing costs by producing more at one time. Design your flyer to be a “self-mailer.” One third of the back will be a mailing panel with your return address and the mail indicia you need so that when folded and tabbed shut, it will mail at automation-compatible rates through the USPS.  Also a standard letter-sized piece of paper which is folded into thirds will fit into a regular #10 envelope along with any other pieces you want to distribute.

Consider VDP: The more personalized a direct mail piece is, the more successful. VDP, or variable data printing, uses a source spreadsheet of recipients to personalize each individual flyer you print. That can be as simple as including the person’s name in the “Dear John” salutation, to actually switching out the images within a flyer’s design, or targeting individual offers to individual people within the same printing and mailing. Remember that your database of current and potential customers is marketing gold… the more precise and detailed your spreadsheet is, the more flexibility you have in targeting specific groups with specific offers.

Connect to your website through QR codes: Ever made a QR code yourself? Go here to try it out and see how easy it is. Do people really “click” and use QR (or quick response) codes? Studies show QR code usage has exploded over the past year, and they are free to create and easy to include on your flyer, providing a link from the physical part of your marketing to the virtual. Even if someone doesn’t scan and follow the code to your website, seeing it on the product lets them know there is more to be found from you online – a fact that might influence them later on. Include the QR code!

Produce a set of matching flyers:  one each for your product lines or services, or to highlight different aspects of your offerings. When you create all of these at the same time, you will save both design and production costs, as well as ensuring a consistent branding on all the materials. They look great displayed together, or collected into a folder for sales calls.

Include a coupon: Give people a reason to hang onto your flyer. The longer it is in their possession, the stronger the impact you are making. Design an eye-catching coupon that can be torn off and redeemed. You will be able to track the results and see how effective your promotion was, whether they are redeemed online or in person. Coupons are also a good way to collect contact information from customers so they get into your database for future targeted marketing: at the very least, ask for name, address, and email on your coupon!

Be specific! Give people the information they need to know in order to do what you want them to do. Seems simple, but can so easily be overlooked! Tell them the exact price, availability, sale dates, return policy, hours of operation, delivery information, etc. If you solve any nagging questions up front, they are more likely to consider their purchase right away, or choose you over someone who’s procedures seem murky or confusing.

Rely on your printer for advice and direction in choosing and branding your promotional items. They should be able to provide you access to just about any item you can imagine. If they can’t, you have the wrong printer! The best advice, always, is to ASK YOUR PRINTER!

ImageSmith is a full-service print and marketing provider located in Arden, North Carolina. Contact us at ImageSmith for quotes on all your marketing projects, and more useful tips on how to create custom, effective, high impact marketing solutions.
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Writing Brochure Copy? 5 Tips to Ease the Pain.

Brochures before and after

Often the first and most lasting impression of your business comes from a company brochure. Telling the story of your business in a compelling way, visually as well as literally, the company brochure establishes who you are, how your product or service can be of benefit, and why customers should look to you for help ahead of other competitors – important stuff!

Both the design and the writing of copy for your brochure need to be done with your overall branding requirements in mind. A powerful brand must be consistent across your marketing efforts. Printed materials should consistently match your online presence, both in tone and appearance. These printed materials will connect in a way online marketing cannot — by physically placing your brand and information into potential customers’ hands, to be read at their leisure. Its physical nature establishes a sense of permanency and credibility in the public’s mind. writing brochure copy

Often we feel overwhelmed when trying to focus our thoughts about our business into the content of a brochure. Below are a few quick tips to think about as you start to prepare your brochure copy:

5 Tips to Writing Effective Brochures

Set the tone – Energetic? Cutting edge? Warm and fuzzy? Know the impression you want to leave in your customer’s mind and set the tone at the outset for the overall text of your brochure.

Be clear – How will you benefit the reader? That is what you want to state clearly and consistently. Be sure to keep their perspective in mind when you plan your content — not necessarily what is most important to you. Think from your reader’s perspective – and give USEFUL information that will benefit someone looking for the services or products you offer. If your copy lapses into “sales” talk, you may be defeating your purpose.

Get personal – Highly technical information or simply too much information bores and even alienates the reader. Your copy should be readable, relatable and enlightening without being dull. Remember that the scope of a brochure is fairly limited – you do not need to try to provide all relevant details, but rather to outline your major points with an appropriate amount of elaboration.

Get organized – Lead your reader through the information in an organized, logical way. If they get lost or confused along the way, you’ve lost your reader. Sketching out your main points in a brief outline format (yes, on actual paper!) can be a great way to get and stay on track with what you want to get across. And always end with a ‘call to action’, encouraging them to make contact for further assistance.

Make it easy – If you have done your job well, your customer will want to reach you… make that easy with a map or directions to your location, your web address, phone and fax numbers.

 

Print is a vital component of any successful integrated marketing campaign. It works in tandem with your website, email, signage and other outreach – yet the unique power of print lies in physically reaching the hands of your potential customers. Rely on your printer for advice and direction in the creation of all your marketing materials. They should be able to guide you in everything from copy writing to the latest technology to help get your message out… if they can’t, you have the wrong printer! The best advice, always, is to ASK YOUR PRINTER!

ImageSmith is a full-service print and marketing provider located in Arden, North Carolina. Contact us at ImageSmith for quotes on all your marketing projects, and more useful tips on how to create custom, effective, high impact marketing solutions.
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Pursuit Horizon: Cross country documentary in the making

Documentary travels through Asheville

Ever wanted to shove off and hit the road to see what lies out there for you? That is a popular fantasy for most of us working stiffs – some folks actually make that dream come true.

Enter Zach Settewongse and Amanda Pollard: they decided to grab life by the handlebars, heading out on their high tech motorcycles on a journey of over 8,500 miles around the US, filming their own adventures for a documentary, blogging and exploring the frontier of the information revolution. They camp when they have to, and let circumstances take them where they need to go – a brave adventure that brought them through Asheville and for an overnight stay here at ImageSmith. We were inspired by how they are exploring where technology and a sense of adventure can lead you.Mary Smith, Zach Settewongse and Amanda Pollard

You can follow Zach and Amanda’s crosscountry odyssey at their daily blog and through weekly podcasts, or check out interviews on YouTube. Remember to “LIKE” them on Facebook.com/Pursuit Horizon or “Donate” to their trip and help keep Pursuit Horizon on the road longer.

 

Rely on your printer for advice and direction in deciding what options are out there for your marketing budget. They should be able to provide you with the latest information and innovative ideas in print and integrated marketing. If they can’t, you have the wrong printer! The best advice, always, is to ASK YOUR PRINTER!

ImageSmith is a full-service print and marketing provider located in Arden, North Carolina. Contact us at ImageSmith for quotes on all your marketing projects, and more useful tips on how to create custom, effective, high impact marketing solutions.
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Presentation Folders: Create a Branded Marketing Presentation Kit

Present a fresh image with branded full color folders

Every business needs a branded, high-quality, printed presentation folder to be used by all sales staff and marketers whenever making a call or attending a conference or seminar. Develop a set of innovative, interesting presentation kits all using the same branded folder and you can ensure your customers feel special when they receive this packet. The best strategy to leverage ROI:

Brand. Custom design your folder and make it be an eye-catching, classic representation of your business and your look. You can choose from many different sizes, paper types, and pre-diecut designs in order to save cost but still be unique and true to your own style.

Order a large quantity. The folders are multipurpose and can be used consistently by all staff for many purposes, thereby ensuring one look, one standard, one brand. It is the same reason UPS dresses their workforce in a recognizable uniform and why Target stores are synonymous with their large red circle logo. You want your business to maintain and further its brand recognition, and presentation folders are a great way to help establish that for yourself. By ordering a large number, you will be using them over a long period in a consistent manner.

Make it (and fill it with) something people will want to keep. A quality folder will be remembered and used by your clients, and you want them to travel home with them. Fill them with all the information you DIDN’T have time to cover in your face-to-face meeting, but also include giveaways or gifts to stimulate even more interest and use from your folders. Consider customized flash drives, key chains, pens, notepads… there are an endless variety of promotional products to make your message more powerful and successful, and to make your customer feel special.

To browse through the huge selection of presentation folders, and promotional products available, go online here. Also, check out our blog for information and ideas on branding, promotions and integrated marketing or visit our website.

 

Rely on your printer for advice and direction in choosing and branding your promotional items. They should be able to provide you access to just about any item you can imagine. If they can’t, you have the wrong printer! The best advice, always, is to ASK YOUR PRINTER!

ImageSmith is a full-service print and marketing provider located in Arden, North Carolina. Contact us at ImageSmith for quotes on all your marketing projects, and more useful tips on how to create custom, effective, high impact marketing solutions.
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Design by committee – what do you think?

A camel is a horse designed by a committee

Old adage: a camel is a horse designed by a committee. And it’s true – good design struggles to survive the committee. In the art world, creativity is generally under the direction of one artist or auteur, occasionally it’s a collaboration or the work of a highly skilled, carefully chosen team. But in the world of graphic and commercial design, when a new product, print project or website is presented, generally a committee of people unfamiliar with design is brought together or asked for input. The result, not surprisingly, is less that it could have been. The challenge… to recognize where the committee approach lacks effectiveness and direct the project with a clear focus.

When presented with design, the committee approach starts on the wrong foot by asking the wrong question: “What do you think?” Can you imagine the financial forecast of a business being placed in front of people unskilled in finance and asking them for an off-the-cuff gut reaction at first glance? What this solicits is a round of strange, subjective reactions: “I don’t like blue.” “Why is it so busy.” “Can we put more ‘oompf’ into it?” “I want it to look more modern, but with an old-fashioned flavor.” All reactions may have some truth to them, but are unfocused, random impressions that are not guided by a sense of the overall purpose of the project.

Misstep 2 follows in the wake of these comments when the committee doesn’t really know how to process their own critique or trust their spoken and unspoken reactions. Typically, any real decision gets tabled. “Hmmmm. Let’s think about this for a while. I want to show it to a few folks.”

Now the committee expands. People go home and show the design to their spouse, their kids, their dog. They stop people at the checkout line, email it to Aunt Gladys in Pensacola, post it on Facebook. Again, the question: “What do you think?” And all of that feedback, whether pro or con, begins to color their decision on the design. It’s like crowdsourcing an opinion rather than relying on the skill and aesthetic of a design/marketing team who have worked through the process of why a design is what it is.

In this process, I often struggle with what I would call “invalid” feedback. Yes, everyone can have an opinion on how a design project “looks.” But unless they have some insight into what their reaction means, how the project can be improved, why a certain aspect fails while another succeeds, then their input is what I must deem invalid. For example, I once worked on a committee where someone’s first response to design proposals was: “I don’t like them. I can’t really tell you why I don’t like them, but I think we need to see other choices.” That is not valid feedback. It serves no purpose in furthering the work. Someone has to take the initiative and have the vision to say what they want and why.

Also, some people think the “perfect” design concept will leap out at them if they only see it. It follows that same line of thought that designers dread: “I can’t tell you what I want until I see it, I’m a very visual person.” I once encountered a client who requested a design by saying “Show us 25 or so examples and we’ll pick which ones we prefer.” 25? If only they had agreed to an unlimited budget to create that scenario.

Committees often tend to pick and pull at details rather than controlling the overall vision. They rarely see the entire picture or have all the information necessary to evaluate decisions about function and form, and the process suffers. Feedback can often be colored by the inherent power sturcture: the need to impress superiors or establish authority, to appear knowledgeable rather than uninformed, to contribute something… anything rather than be perceived as not participating. In such a situation, who is accountable if the project fails? Everyone chipped in an opinion but no one claimed to be in charge. This “anonymous” or leaderless decision making leaves no one accountable. The result? Bad design, failed projects… and another committee meeting.

So it’s clear I have no solutions here. The committee approach isn’t going away. Facing the pitfalls of the “design by committee” approach can be a good start however. Good design decisions are unique, informed “leaps of faith” that rely on an understanding of the desired aesthetic, full knowledge of a project and ultimately the bravery of making the call on what the design will be. For some great analysis of the topic check out Smashing Mag’s article “Why Design by Committee Should Die”, or another great one from Boag called “Death to Design-by-Committee.”

For help? Rely on your printer for advice and direction in making branding and design decisions. They should have years of experience to share with you. If they can’t, you have the wrong printer! The best advice, always, is to ASK YOUR PRINTER!

ImageSmith is a full-service print and marketing provider located in Arden, North Carolina. Contact us at ImageSmith for quotes on all your marketing projects, and more useful tips on how to create custom, effective, high impact marketing solutions.
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Generosity – good for business, and…well, just good!

Generous Business Practices and Marketing

Your business reflects your principles. They are part of your brand – the basis of how you interact with your customers and your community. Putting a spirit of generosity in the way you work will always in the end bring benefits to you, your customer, and your bottom line.

Now generosity doesn’t have to mean giving away the farm with some wacky doorbuster special. It means finding ways to show appreciation for each customer – value-added services and perks that can range from something as low-cost as friendly customer service at every contact, all the way to valued gifts and rewards. Your budget and resources will determine what level you can invest in, but the point is to act on a generosity of spirit regardless of the economics.

At ImageSmith, we have sought ways we can show consideration for our customers above and beyond providing quality services on schedule.

  • Friendly, helpful customer service – when you put yourself in the customer’s place, you can see many ways to provide information and guidance to meet their specfic needs, rather than just direct them in a way that will profit your business. Dealing with them while keeping their schedule and priorities in mind will go far in creating good will. generosity is good for business
  • More than expected – seek to give your customers more than they expect. Often for us, as printers, this can mean packaging a few extras from a print run for delivery – pieces that might have just been thrown out as extras can be given free of charge as a way to say “thanks.” When we are embroidering items and have an extra, we include it with the customer’s order as a nice surprise and a way of saying “thank you for your business.”
  • Advertising that is also beneficial to our customers – this means promotional products. The exposure and advertising we receive from our branded promotional products is married to the usefulness of the products themselves. Sports cups, bandage dispensers, t-shirts, office supplies… the variety of available promotional products is vast. Think about which ones best fit with your brand and enjoy the process of giving them out to your customers.
  • Information & “paying it forward” – We live in an information age, and being generous with knowledge and expertise has a greater value than ever. I think there is often an old-school tendency to try to “guard” knowledge – when you have figured out a better way to accomplish a task, you don’t want your competitor to learn it and benefit from your struggle. But here again, being generous with your expertise builds good will, and, perhaps more importantly, establishes your authority and skillfulness in your field. To be a source people trust and turn to for information is a benefit to both them and you. As printers, we specialize in marketing and communication skills. We want our customers to turn to us a marketing consultant who has their best interests in mind.

Blogging is a great way to provide information to customers – and to receive feedback from them. Also, the world of social media allows you a powerful venue to help establish your principles in the minds of your customers. Use it to attract attention with helpful information. Being generous just makes good business sense. Box of printed material with sticker

 

ImageSmith is a full-service print and marketing provider located in Arden, North Carolina. Contact us at ImageSmith for quotes on all your marketing projects, and more useful tips on how to create custom, effective, high impact marketing solutions.
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White Space – Minimalism in Graphic and Web Design

White space in design

Why Less Can Be More

They say nature abhors a vaccum… apparently so do graphic design clients. For many, the impulse to fill up every available space with type or artwork can clutter or completely derail a project. A staple of good design, the wise use of white space can lend an air of sophistication to a layout, and should always be a consideration in any style of design. But when a specific minimalist look is desired, editing and balance are crucial in order to maintain the open real estate needed to create an effective version of this classic look. Its usually helpful to agree upon that basic style at the onset – otherwise the need to “fill in” generally takes over.

White space - minimalism
Great use of white space in cocollective.com design

Many years ago in my first contact with graphic design, I was on the “annual staff” at my high school, creating the page layouts for the yearbook. Now this was the late 70s and well before computers or software. Page elements were sketched out on actual size graph paper in blue pencil. Measurements for the printer were done in picas. Photos and text were given corresponding numbers for placement, and the photos were “cropped” by marking the actual desired size on the developed photo with a grease pencil. Wow – seems primitive now. Anyway, my point is one of the ideas we were presented with as students was a page layout they called “isolated element” – one side of the layout might have a collage of pictures or text with the other side having one single photo. Clearly, the isolated photo was the focus of attention. We were told to use this design idea sparingly, if at all. Minimalism –they thought it was a little bit radical I guess.

minimalist design of studioantwork.com
Minimalist design of studioantwork.com

What I did not understand at the time was that the space in between the photos was an element as well. An essential point in this creative process is seeing that the “empty” space is really not empty at all. It exists in contrast to the other elements on the page as well as being defined by them – it has “weight” and structure. Similarly, it does not even have to be white. Minimalist design can use black or any color as its base. The open areas exist visually in the design as powerfully as any other element.

Generally employed when a more upscale or luxury approach is desired, minimalist design relies on structure, great typography and an understanding of balance. Some white space is considered passive – such as the space between the lines of type or the border area of a page. By contrast, active white space would be the territory left open on purpose between design elements. Both passive and active white space are planned and controlled in a well-designed piece of work. Though not a solution for every project, minimalist design with an effective use of white space is a powerful technique.

One good habit you will develop as you explore a minimalist approach is the necessity to prioritize and condense. The design itself requires you to decide what information is essential, and what is fluff – a good practice on any project. It reminds me of an episode of “Absolutely Fabulous” where Edina is running around her apartment knocking things off of counters saying “Surfaces! I must have surfaces!” Or even better, when she flashes back to her college days where her minimalist friends had an apartment totally white with nothing in it but a tiny picture hanging by a thread.

 

A successful minimalist design is:

Confident. Clean. Structured. Stable. Elegant. Fresh. Pure. Cogent.

 

Minimalism can also convey attributes that are less desirable. Without a proper focus and balance, minimalism can be:

Mysterious. Cold. Obscure. Vacant. Deserted. Uninviting. Unhelpful.

 

The first step toward effective use of white space in design is to see that open space as an element itself. Great articles are easy to find online about the use and theory behind white space in design, as well as inspiring galleries to convince you of the beauty and functionality of this style of design.

 

ImageSmith is a full-service print and marketing provider located in Arden, North Carolina. Contact us at ImageSmith for quotes on all your marketing projects, and more useful tips on how to create custom, effective, high impact marketing solutions.