The other was the National Society of Black Engineers – Cedar Rapids/Iowa City Chapter that I presented “Building Brand You” that featured material for building a personal inside and outside of an existing work environment.

Here are some pics with the attendees. Thanks again for the outstanding hospitality and knowledge exchange.

Love it or hate it, direct mail can be an effective sales medium. In order for your direct mailers to avoid disposal, it behooves you to spend time planning an effective campaign.

Why Direct Mail?
Before embarking on any advertising campaign, it is essential to define exactly what your goals are and why the method(s) for achieving those goals will work to generate ROI. Before choosing direct mail, it is important to avoid a widely adopted fallacy that one mailing will do the trick. Direct mail is not an overnight sensation. It generally involves multiple mailings in order to build brand awareness, capture attention and to generate results whether you are engaging in business-to-consumer (B-to-C) or business-to-business (B-to-B) marketing.

Here’s a questionnaire to aid your decision making process:
•    What are your short-term and long-term goals?
•    Why is direct mail the most effective and efficient way in order to reach your goal?
•    Who is your audience?
•    Where can you reach your audience?
•    What product(s) or service(s) are you offering?
•    What is the message(s) you want to communicate?
•    What type of action do you want the recipient to take?
•    How will your campaign look?
•    How much will each mailing cost?
•    How will you monitor response and ROI?

Let’s address these items by category.

Will direct mail achieve my goals?
Direct mail is a likely solution for your campaign if it fits one of these situations:
•    A new business with a niche market.
•    An existing business launching a new product or service to a select group of people.
•    A series of special offers to spark incremental sales.
•    An exclusive invitation to become involved in a business opportunity, special event or cause.

If your goals can not be met with direct mail, then try another form of advertising.

Who is my audience?
Your target audience should contain profiles of people who you can clearly identify from a behavioral perspective. A credible list-provider will supply you with a database that corresponds to your target audience criteria. For B-to-C needs, you can buy a list based on broad factors such as zip codes. Or, you can more precisely target contacts by selecting specific criteria such as age, gender, home ownership, home value, household income, number of occupants, etc. If your campaign is geared to a B-to-B audience, then position, industry, company size, revenues, etc. will be key criteria considerations. The more detailed your list criteria, the greater its cost. Your goals and budget will influence the final campaign list.  This list will ultimately be given to the printer for the printing and fulfillment process.

What am I saying?
Keep your copy clean, simple, concise and action-oriented. People can easily become overwhelmed with direct mailers that have extensive content, multiple graphical bursts, all capital letters and multiple fonts. Catchy headlines, substantial and time-sensitive offers and a strong call-to-action message tend to generate results. Tap into an audience’s mindset in order to trigger a proactive response.

What does the mailer look like?
Your design should be modern and relate to your brand. Outdated design makes your company’s products or services appear outdated. Every component of design relates to the mailer’s overall message. Use color to your advantage to create an instant impact and emotional reaction. Utilize size and shape to stand out from mail box clutter and generate a level of interest and curiosity to increase responses. All designs should comply with postal service guidelines.

What does the distribution process entail?
The obvious starting block is to get your direct mail piece printed. Today’s technology allows for flexibility in quantities and cost-effectiveness printing solutions. Additional considerations include personalized messages and unique shapes and sizes.

Part of the printing process is the mailing component. Most often a direct mail service or printer can provide you access to their indicia or mailing permit to save postage costs. Remember to add up the cost of the entire campaign to adhere to your budget.

Did it Work?
The ultimate test is the response.  The key is to track response through codes, deadlines, phone numbers and other technology tools. An average campaign yields a response rate up to five percent; however, greater returns can be achieved with a thoroughly planned and well-executed campaign.  Adjust messaging, tracking and timing between mailings to increase response rates.

The key to success is to plan a direct mail campaign with multiple mailings that contain emotionally riveting and relevant content, time-sensitive and strong call-to-action messages, great design and a response tool in order to receive a realistic ROI.

6. Mixed Messages
Mixed messages happen when there is a lack of clarity in the message along with an inappropriate application of the message delivery. What is this like? It’s like communicating to an unknown specialized target audience through a medium that is unimportant to that audience while taking directional cues from everyone but that audience. The key is clarity with a targeted message delivered through the most appropriate channel(s).

7.  Lack of Audience Connection
This is different from tip number one and this is why. A CEO of a management consultancy asked for my helping growing the company by attracting more C-Suite prospects.  The first priority was to revamp the consultant’s web site.  Its current iteration wasn’t on target because the existing site copy was written in a vernacular that spoke to lower- to mid-management and not the primary target audience of C-Suite members. The copy did not address C-Suite issues in the tone and words that resonate with them. This story is a clear example of  understanding the importance of an audience’s needs and issues and creating communication that resonates with solutions.

8.  Low Quality Imagery
Have you ever seen an advertisement or web site that contains low quality images including blurry photos and clip art? Or images that were not in proportion? How did those images make you feel? What did you think about the brand?  Humans tend to process images more quickly and with greater depth and understanding than words. Images are a vital part of a marketing message and attention to detail like clarity, size and relevance need to be addressed.  Brands should strive for the same if not greater level of excellence as their partners, vendors, clients and prospects in this arena.

9. Timing
Plan work in advance in order so the audience has enough time to receive and respond to the message.  There’s nothing worse than for an audience to receive a great opportunity with an incredibly short notice.  It communicates to them that the brand doesn’t take the time to consider their life needs and demands. Now this isn’t always the case. Great opportunities can arise on short notice.  However, those last-minute opportunities should be the exception and not the rule.

10. All About You
There are many reasons to create communication, especially in advertising.  There is a business billboard that I’ve been watching over the past four years. Each billboard is all about the company and their executives with no messaging that makes their billboards of interest or worth to their customers. Their billboard campaigns insinuate that their customers don’t exist or they are not important enough to craft messages that reflect their needs or desires. Apparently, this company is a go-to source for a certain market segment. Funny, I’m their target market segment. After four years, you think that I would have gotten that message. The lesson here is to make sure that the focal point of an advertising message is directed at an audience addressing their needs and wants through message education, reminders and reinforcements.

My wager is that your brand has no intention of making this list. It is surely a list to miss. The key is to develop practice principles that address avoiding these offensive and insulting brand behaviors.

1. Cultural, Gender, Race Insensitivity
Let’s face it. Today’s audiences are more complex than ever. There are many more elements to consider in the audience engagement process.  Recently, I saw an ad that relegated its two racially diverse subjects to the lowest level of stereotypical activity through its imagery and copy.  The intention behind the ad was probably pure, but the execution was flawed by an absence of race sensitivity.  The result was an avoidable yet ill-fated attempt at racial diversity in advertising.

Here are two examples. The first is addressing the Hispanic audience.  Hispanics are not homogenous and cultural nuances need to be understood. For example, Mexicans and Cubans vary in cultural practices. Treating both groups the same will result in offending both cultures.

The second is marketing to women. Even in 2011, it is amazing how many brands still speak to women in a condescending manner. For instance, a luxury car brand’s web site suggests that the buyer can attract a mysterious woman by driving this car. Really? Women buy more than 65% of all new vehicles, and even if they’re not signing the check, they are the key influencers in the sales of 93% of all vehicles.  In fact, research shows that the 93% statistic applies to all consumer purchases.

In today’s world of instantly available research and credible experts, this type of marketing behavior is unacceptable and avoidable.

2. Graphic Design
Graphic design involves more than owning software or putting together combinations of creative elements.  The symphony of components such as design, color, imagery (illustration, photography, etc.), font, copy, placement, scale and more work together to define a design message.  Ignoring or short-changing any element of the overall process will result in an outcome that alters the overall communication and misses the accuracy mark in delivery. Just like clothing, design styles change. You can operate your business in 2011, but your design can beckon from another decade. If that is the case, then what message are you sending to your audience? Take the time to craft thoughtful and thorough messages in all communication.  You will yield a return on investment.

3.  Unbridled Creativity
Unbridled creativity generally involves lots of meaningless, graphical clutter that overshadows or excludes the necessary message that needs  delivering. People will often look at over-designed materials, but they usually experience confusion. Most often the message is usually sacrificed for the sake of an uncontrolled creative outburst. The adage less is more is worth consideration.

4. Lack of Creativity
Omitting creativity and/or an applied aesthetic in the design leads will get lost in the clutter. In today’s competitive mind share landscape, communication that lacks imagination will result in little, if any, results due to a lack of emotional engagement. I liken communication that lacks design and creativity to a clinical experience. It’s like opting to for a full mouth root-canal over a Disneyland adventure.

5.  Watch Your Words
The choice of words, intention, tone, grammar, punctuation, headers and body copy all add up to a style that should accurately reflect the communication and target audience.

There are several points to digest in Part I alone. Savor this and get ready for Part II .

Naturally, I was inquisitive about their marketing and called the venue to speak with their marketing manager. They did not have one, but the well-intended operations assistant felt that she was authoritative enough about marketing to comment about their best practices. She proudly declared that they did not have a marketing plan or a budget and that everyone in the community knew about the venue. Their approach was to rely on word of mouth (people who attend tell their friends) and believed that this approach was sufficient.  I respectfully commented that word of mouth can be effective.  I also shared with her that I actively research art experiences and venues as well as interact with other artists. After nearly four years of being in this area, I just learned about the venue by happenstance four months ago. I offered my assistance. By her response, my offer seemed as welcome as the sound of nails across a chalkboard. She defensively reiterated that word of mouth marketing was all that they needed.  I thanked her for her time and wrapped up the call.

After hanging up the phone, I set at my desk completely befuddled at her response. The venue is exceptionally beautiful and has great programming, but garners a fraction of the potential audience that it could hold. They are not even close to achieving their maximum capacity in any way – attendance, depth and range of performances let alone sponsorship, ticket, private donation and tourism revenue. Why were they satisfied with the venue achieving less than its potential? Her response, which is sure to be a systemic one, begs another question. Why do so many people to think that only one marketing tactic is necessary in today’s multidimensional society?  Guess what folks; one tactic is not enough.  The success capacity that a multi platform marketing plan and campaign can yield your company is tremendous. Companies that choose to avoid dedicating their resources to this level of communication are living on borrowed time.  This level of marketing mediocrity is bound to backfire.

Word of mouth is an excellent tactic to implement across social media platforms, email and through other forums. In fact, it is a far more sophisticated tool than people realize or credit.  However, a rudimentary word of mouth plan (like the one this venue uses) does not always ensure that different target audiences will gain access to the primary audience that is circulating most word of mouth information. Word of mouth marketing generally correlates with other tactics to maximize the message impact. In fact, excellent word of mouth marketing is based on a strategic plan that is precisely implemented. It is not some haphazard, passive tactic that most people, like this venue, treat it.

Your business success equation is too valuable to skimp on making every marketing tactic work to your company’s advantage or relying on one avenue to reach consumers. Consumers live and behave in a multidimensional world. If your company ignores that fact and isn’t poised to reach target audiences where they are, they will ultimately ignore your company.

I admit to being a creative who explores many outlets.  However, as a seasoned marketing expert; I finesse my work and that of my fellow artists’  to focus our creative energy on being of service to the project. Some unchecked artistic talents can quickly become unbridled selfish downloads. Creativity in and of itself can easily become a futile exercise if it does not clearly and poignantly convey the message’s true intention.

Let’s take it to a higher scale. If the creativity and messaging fail to mesh with the medium, recipients can become confused, mislead or disconnected. In turn, critical opportunities are lost and brands can sustain some damage. Sadly, if creative projects along these lines hit a sour note, the powers-that-be may retreat to their safe place, which most often is one that borders on the mundane.

My stance comes down to this – creativity is king when applied with purpose.

As I listened to the story, I flashed back to the myriad of unconventional advertising methods that have cropped up over the last few years. Some clever. Some cute. Some ridiculous. Here is a short summary of some of the ones that have caught my attention:

• Advertising on baby diapers.
• Human ad placement, namely temporary tattoos on foreheads.
• Jazzing up those ominous port-o-potty things into glamorous, ad wrapped personal waste portals.
• Advertising on nearly everything that is used in a classroom – rulers, notebooks, lesson plans, etc. This stuff is way beyond the classic Booster Club chotchkes. It only makes sense for rand fatigue to set in at younger and younger ages.
•  T-shirts gone digital
• Product placement in Britney Spear’s “Hold It Against Me” video.
• WAP ads on your mobile phone.
• Moving vehicle ads with full on mini-art gallery brand displays.

At this point in life, it is obvious that there is no sacred space. In my opinion, brands and their agencies will continue to explore new ways to place, position and promote messages. What may look like the edge of over-abundance today, may just be the beginning of tomorrow.  As I pause to sip my coffee, I wonder what is next, where it will appear and who will be the innovator? You never know;  maybe it is you or me.

As a marketer and artist, I remain fascinated by the recent legal activities between the tattoo artist, who created the iconic Mike Tyson tribal facial tattoo, and Warner Brother’s “Hangover Part II.”  The tattoo artist is claiming that Warner Brother’s prominent use of a derivative of his work, the tattoo that appears on Ed Helms’ character’s face in the movie, is copyright infringement. The artist filed in a “reckless copyright infringement” claim in Federal Court in May against Warner Brothers.  Although I am unable to substantiate it, some sources say that an out-of-court settlement looks eminent. More about this riveting story is found here.

Nonetheless, this entire case has sparked my intellectual curiosity. Trademark, patent and copyright law is quite complicated, which is why I always suggest to my clients to hire the best.  In our world of constant creative collaboration in person, video, social media, etc., it seems logical that new parameters of copyright ownership will continue to evolve.

Let’s face it, if you or I were to get a tattoo similar to or exactly like Mr. Tyson’s, what are the chances of the artist knowing about it? Would this artist take legal measures to pursue a copyright infringement claim without a celebrity or corporate conglomerate involved? Does a “layman”copying an artist’s work without attribution make it right to do so?  If you create designs or original content, do you know your protection rights? What if someone else innocently copied your work only to discover so later? Should they change it, ask for usage rights, etc.?

Will we see more copyright protection collaboration between artists and their owners, especially with body art? In a world of tattooed people – the well-heeled are one of the fastest growing tattooed segments – will we start suing each other over replicas or derivatives of work? If a woman can get millions of dollars from McDonald’s for allegedly not knowing the hot coffee she ordered was hot, I’m concerned about the future. More about U.S. copyright laws is available here.

Artists are typically inspired from many sources, but there is mounting importance in our dynamically digital world to create original work more than ever. Inspiration can cross the line, even when it is a parody.  All I know is that this business of art can quickly become complicated. My walk away from this issue is that when you create from the heart, it is good to know the laws of your art.

Listen, it is clear that I have lots of questions and no solid (definitely not legal) answers.  And, I am pro-artist. What’s your viewpoint?