1. Most don’t want a relationship with you. They want easy shopping, good value (different from cheap prices), and to be treated with respect. Make everything as simple and quick as possible so it is easy to be your customer.
2. The few who do want a relationship with you, don’t want to be managed. They want a real connection with a real person. If you are afraid to empower your team to be personable and approachable, stay away from social media.
3. Every time you change your website to make it fresh, they have to relearn how to use it. If you keep making changes because you’re bored with the look, they’ll stop visiting
4. You can reach out to them more often if the information is timely and targeted. Bombarding them with the same old marketing may generate short-term revenue gains, but it doesn’t build loyalty.
5. They don’t expect perfection in every transaction. They do expect quick resolution to all issues. This means only one contact is needed to get a satisfactory solution.
6. Most prefer self-service to direct contact (57% according to a survey by Customer Contact Council). Make sure that you have tools available for them to use.
7. They don’t care how your systems work. They do care about how it affects them. If your system issues keep you from providing the right service, design manual work-arounds to fix it.
8. The only difference between you and your competition is the service that goes along with the sale. If your focus is on price, someone will come along with a lower one.

Related posts:

1. When Customers Behave Badly – 3 Reasons to Fire Your Customers
2. How to Show Your Customers You Care (Even When You Don’t Have to!)
3. Direct Marketing & Blogging: Engaging Customers One Post at a Time

Launching an ebook is a scary process.

When you finish spilling your blood across the pages, sharing your expertise and experiences, there is a unique product ready for public consumption. The work that went into your manuscript is only the beginning. The next step, marketing your guide, is the hardest part. At least, it was for me until I discovered the best kept secret in social media.

Please bear with me a minute while I share a little history. I promise to tell you the secret and how to use it in a bit. It’ll be worth the wait. I’ll even include the results from my tests.

“Social Media 4 Direct Marketers” (SM4DM) is not my first venture into the world of ebooks, but it is my most successful. Each of the guides I created has the elements required for a successful information product. They are written for a specific market. They provide actionable information for growing companies, improving service, and increasing profits. The people who bought them became active participants in my community. But, none of them came close to the success of SM4DM.

There were two differences – participation and promotion.

Previous efforts were created and released with limited views prior to the launch. Perhaps it was the fear of criticism or theft that kept me from reaching out. Maybe it was just lack of time. Whatever the reason, the guides were written and released without external review.

When SM4DM was finished (or so I thought), I reached out to a select group of people for feedback. A few didn’t respond to the request. The ones who provided assistance were invaluable. Here’s a quick shout-out to the people who gave their time to improve my guide:

Amy Africa’s encouragement and wisdom improved my focus, content, and marketing.

Ernie Schell provided detailed notes on things that needed improving and promotion.

Jay Baer reminded me that some people aren’t fluent in direct marketing terminology.

Lisa Petrilli provided the title, emotional support, and promotion.

Mack Collier offered suggestions and promoted it on twitter.

Nathan Hangen said that I needed to make my PDF “pop” and provided referrals to amazing graphic artists.

Sharon Mostyn helped me edit the manuscript, review the graphics, and promote the guide.

After a rewrite and graphic redesign, SM4DM was ready for a soft introduction. I chose to start slow instead of having a major launch because I wanted to test my marketing strategy. You can take the girl out of direct marketing, but it’s impossible to get the direct marketer out of the girl! If there is a way to test something, I’m going to find it.

A guide written to help people improve social media’s effectiveness and efficiency needs effective and efficient marketing. My tool of choice was Objective Marketer (OM) because of the scheduling and landing page features. My travel and work schedules don’t allow me to maintain a constant online presence. OM allows me to schedule my informational tweets so my available online time is spent on one-to-one interaction.

It was through the use and testing of this software that I discovered the secret.

I’ve been a fan of OM since first testing it last year. My only issue with the software was that it was in beta testing mode. Normally I avoid beta products because of the challenges that randomly appear. I rarely have time to test software. The feature rich tool reduced that resistance with scheduling options, analytics, and page frames. Sometimes during the testing process, it seemed that there were as many bugs as there were features. This always happens with new software. Problems appear when users push functionality beyond the programming limits. I’m very good at pushing limits so I found several challenges.

Beta users expect issues. They report them and wait for a response. It often comes with excuses or notification that the bugs won’t be fixed any time soon. OM was different. Amita Paul, the CEO, is extremely responsive. Most problems were corrected within hours.

My investment in testing OM was rewarded when I discovered the landing page functionality. Quite frankly, the other issues didn’t matter anymore because this one feature is a game changer. OM allows you to share content without sending people away from your site.

Did you get that? It is the best kept secret in social media.

It is so simple, it almost sneaks by without being noticed. Instead of sending your customers and prospects unaccompanied into the World Wide Web jungle, OM allows you to be their escort! They can go where you take them and find their way back to you with a click.

Navigating people away from my site (or my clients’) has always been a point of frustration for me. It contradicts everything I know about marketing. If the goal is to engage people in your community, how do you do it when you send them away?

I know all of the theories about how they’ll find their way back and be grateful for the detour. Some of them do come back, but how many get lost along the way? Why not make it easy? The landing page frames in OM allow you to simultaneously share content and guide people to your site and/or products.

The concept to frame the page is brilliant. You create a header that appears over the content you’re sharing. It can be simple with a link and a logo. Objective Marketer provides a form that allows you to add basic information. Or, with a little html, you can create a sophisticated header that features banners, imbedded videos, and subscription forms.

My first effort at framing was almost subliminal. I was very nervous about including anything remotely promotional. The frame included the Wilson & Ellis Consulting butterfly logo and links to our website, blog, and sales page for SM4DM (See red arrow on image of Yahoo! with my header):

Click on the image to see it live!

Receiving the first click was quite exciting. Unfortunately, the excitement faded quickly. The first click was also the last one. Hundreds of impressions yielded only one click for a 0.05% click through rate.

The next step was to increase the prominence of the links and improve the SEO. Notice that the title is “Content shared by Wilson & Ellis Consulting”. This is text indexed by search engines.

Click on the image to see it live!

It provided a better click through rate of 0.37% . The improvement was encouraging, but it wasn’t enough to celebrate.

It was time to get more aggressive. The boxed links were replaced with a promotional banner.

Click on the image to see it live!

The response shot up to 4.54%. But, I wasn’t finished. The gloves were coming off. I added a blue background, social media links to the frame, and keywords to the title. “Content shared by Wilson & Ellis Consulting” became “Mobile Marketing Article shared by Wilson & Ellis Consulting.” Keywords were chosen based on the content being shared. “Mobile Marketing” is changed to “Email Marketing” or “Integrated Marketing” depending on the featured article.

Click on the image to see it live!

Click through rates skyrocketed. They consistently range from 26.67% to 55.17%!

Sales of the SM4DM guide begin to increase, driven by the traffic generated from framed links. It was a heady experience that is sustainable because the story doesn’t end there. In true direct marketing form:

“But, wait! There’s more!”

Adding the title to the frame with specific keywords improves your search engine optimization. There’s been an increase to the natural search traffic to our website. Sales of the other guides are increasing. And there haven’t been any complaints about the header. It’s a winning strategy.

Whether you’re launching an ebook, promoting a product, or offering a service, adding a header is a great way to guide people to your website when you share links. Here are some tips to help you do it well:

• Create multiple headers to coordinate with the content you are sharing. The better they match, the higher the click through rate.
• Don’t make your header too big. People clicked your link to see the content. If the header is all they see when they land, you’ll lose their confidence.
• Test, document, compare, retest. Testing helps you improve with every link.
• If a printable version of the article or post is available, use it. This provides more visibility for your header.
• Add appropriate keywords (yes, OM has a place for that) with each header. Limit the list to six and don’t place a header on content where the keywords don’t match. (We don’t want to confuse the search engines.)
• Don’t be afraid to be creative, but keep it consistent with your brand.

UPDATE: Objective Marketer 3.0 has been released. It is out of beta and fully loaded to make your social media efforts efficient and effective!

Now get out there and start guiding your community. How do you think it will help your business?

Click here for more information about our best selling guide:

Check out Objective Marketer for yourself by clicking here:

Related posts:

1. Why Social Media Matters to Direct Marketers
2. How to Measure the Unknown for Social Media Initiatives
3. How to Move Beyond the Cluetrain Manifesto to Get Results from Social Media

When “The Cluetrain Manifesto” appeared in the spring of 1999, early adopters embraced it as the marketing guide for the new millennium. Web 2.0 started to change the way people interact online. Social networks began to appear and be embraced by people seeking connections with others without boundaries.

The first thesis in the manifesto, “markets are conversations” morphed into the mantra “it’s all about the conversation.” Advocates of the new social media marketing world cried for the elimination of direct marketing, calling it obsolete and archaic.

They got it half-right. Conversations are invaluable to building relationships between your company and customers. Social media provides unprecedented access to people with needs and wants that your organization can fulfill.

The new gurus missed one key point when they redefined marketing. Tools change, but human nature remains the same. There is a reason that the promotions created decades ago still work. They use the emotional triggers hard wired within our DNA.

Social media enhances direct marketing.

It doesn’t replace it. It makes it more effective. The combination of an interactive social media presence with proven direct marketing techniques improves customer loyalty, expands the marketing reach, and reduces costs.

When I started my social media experience several years ago, I began by studying the activity in the web 2.0 world. I found that there were continuous cries for keeping direct marketing out of the conversations. How-to articles said that if you provided good content in your blogs and conversations, it would naturally progress into sales.

But when I studied the leaders, I found that their behavior didn’t match accepted social media guidelines.

While the steps varied, every one had a systematic approach that moved people from conversations to sales. They also had an established infrastructure that supported their marketing efforts.

My move from observation to participation began with the creation of the Multichannel Magic blog. It was designed to provide tips and tactics to help people grow their businesses. After three months of writing posts with few readers, I joined Twitter. I tweeted and posted for another three months with very little effect on my traffic and no lead generation.

The purpose of business is to serve customers at a profit.

This is when I went back to the basics. The purpose of business is to serve customers at a profit. My social media efforts weren’t serving or profiting. Conversations don’t motivate people unless they include a call to action.

Clients started asking me about social media. They wanted to know if there was any value in it. My instinct told me that there was, but I didn’t have proof to support it. Actively testing it as a viable marketing tool was the only way to know for certain. If I could use it to grow my business, then we could adapt the process for our clients.

It’s always best to start with what you know. Being a diehard direct marketer, I started a free gift campaign. My gift was a series of marketing and operations tips. The product was newsletter subscriptions. It was a systematic approach designed to introduce my consulting firm to a broader market and provide lead generation.

The experiment has been successful. It has created speaking and writing opportunities and attracted new clients. There have been missteps along the way, but the experience has made me a passionate social media advocate.

Integrating social media into your marketing mix remains a trial and error process.

What works for one company will fail another. There are ways to minimize the time and resources required to find the right mix for your organization. Start by learning from others who have gone ahead. Then create your own strategy.

The best strategy will not work without execution. Finding the right balance between conversation and conversion is the key to a successful integration of social media and traditional marketing. It is different for every organization. Testing and measuring the effect is the only way to find your perfect balance.

Note: This post is an excerpt from “Social Media 4 Direct Marketers“. In it, you’ll find information about platforms and tools to minimize your learning curve. There are examples of companies doing it well and steps for creating the best strategy for your organization including how to measure the unknown. I’ve done the heavy lifting so you can move quickly into a successful implementation.

Related posts:

1. Finding the Best Social Media & Direct Marketing Strategy for Your Company
2. Why it’s Hard to Sell Social Media to Direct Marketing Management
3. Why Social Media Matters to Direct Marketers

An open letter to direct marketers…

There are those who say that direct marketing is dying. It is being replaced with a new “unmarketing” philosophy embraced by consumers and forward thinking companies. There will be no room in the future for the tactics that used to motivate people to respond to corporate messages.

The opposing viewpoint is that social media is a fad that will disappear like pet rocks and the Macarena. This group argues that most of the people tweeting, linking, and nudging are kids with nothing better to do. Before long, we’ll be back to normal.

Which side is right?

Neither. To paraphrase Mark Twain, “The report of direct marketing’s death has been greatly exaggerated.” If you dig deep into the stories you’ll find that most of the people calling for a memorial service don’t understand direct marketing. And they definitely don’t know how to use it to grow a company.

Direct marketing works. Whether it is catalogs, postcards, letters, or email, it generates revenue. And, any tactic that delivers a return on investment will be used. When someone tells you that your marketing is dying, you know better because you see the results every day.

Social media works, too. It’s different from direct marketing, but every bit as effective because it humanizes companies. Customers get to know the people behind the products and promotions. It creates a connection that won’t be broken by lower prices. It makes your company more attractive to your competitors’ customers.

What happens if you ignore social media?

If you think that I’m going to say it’s the end of your world, you’re wrong. It’s not (at least not today.) But, it is the start down a slippery slope because social media is here to stay. The platforms may change, but the concept and ability to really connect with your customers won’t.

Ignoring social media will put you behind any existing competitors who are embracing the channel. Even worse, it allows new companies to build relationships with your customers, charming them away from you.

Social media is the venue that changes the world’s marketplace into corner stores.

Imagine that your company has a store in a small town. A new fellow comes into town and introduces himself to everyone. He attends functions with a smile and helping hand. He seems to be everywhere; chatting with your neighbors, leading fundraisers, and offering information. Everything seems harmless enough, helpful even, until he announces that he is opening a store as your competitor. He has clearly established credibility and your revenues will suffer.

The same thing will happen to the business you are managing today if you fail to join the social media world. People who are in it now are looking for opportunities. You will provide them one.

You have an advantage, if you choose to use it.

You know direct marketing. You know how to plan a campaign, test variables, and measure the results. Social media marketing isn’t that different. It requires a different tone and focus, but it still needs planning, testing, and measuring.

The combination of direct marketing and social media is what we have been seeking for so many years. We wanted the ability to connect with our customers, learn from them, and provide exceptional service. The new platforms provide the tools to do just that with customers around the world. It is hard for me to imagine why everyone in the direct marketing industry isn’t jumping for joy.

Instead of elation, there is a lot of explaining why social media doesn’t work.

“My customers aren’t involved in the social media scene.” (Have you looked at the demographics lately? You may be surprised.)

“I don’t know what to do. “ (Let someone teach you. There are plenty of us around who understand social media and a few who understand how to make it work with direct marketing.)

“It takes too much time.” (In the beginning, it is time consuming but it is manageable. When you are established, it saves time and money because you can resolve issues quickly and economically.)

“I don’t see a return.” (You will. It takes time to build relationships. Once established, your customers’ lifetime value increases.)

Social media matters to you whether you accept it or not. It has the potential to move your company to new levels up or down. You choose.

Choose wisely.

Note: If you aren’t sure where to start or you’re not seeing progress with your current social media strategy, check out my new guide “Social Media 4 Direct Marketers“.

Related posts:

1. Why it’s Hard to Sell Social Media to Direct Marketing Management
2. Telling Your Story Using Direct Marketing & Social Media
3. Finding the Best Social Media & Direct Marketing Strategy for Your Company

Capturing information to confirm point of origin for sales is challenging. The most accurate method is asking customers to enter a keycode or embedding one in the URL.

When all else fails (and even if it doesn’t) look at your direct marketing segments before and after your social media campaign. Usually there is a consistency in average order, response rate , and ratios from one campaign to the next. The numbers in the following chart are the results from one test.

In this example, X, Y, and Z represent the top three segments for a business to consumer company. The before and after numbers and ratios are consistent for these groups. The average order is slightly higher in the after column, but it was expected. The retail offering was higher for the second campaign, which accounts for the variance.

The Unknown segment is orders placed without a keycode. They could come from anywhere. The average order is higher on a larger scale. The percent of the total sales for this segment has a jump of 22%. While it isn’t conclusive, it implies that social media is pulling new customers in.

This is when your benchmarks pay off. Update your key metrics every month for a social media before and after comparison. Overlay the analysis with your social media activity. Did your email subscriptions increase when you promoted the sign up online? Is there an increase in sales without an increase in direct marketing promotion?

If you are promoting specific items via social media, monitor the sales curve around the same time. Extend it out two to four weeks after the promotion. Our tests have shown that tweets are clicked up to a month after they were posted. (We found that very surprising.)

Compare your web analytics, too. Social media increases traffic. If you are seeing a bump in sales from natural search, track it back to the source. You may just find that it was from a conversation! (Reminder: It will only happen if you include links in your tweets.)

Note: This is an excerpt from Social Media for Direct Marketers. You can purchase a copy at http://sm4dm.com

Related posts:

1. Does Social Media Encourage Anti-social Behavior?
2. The Best Kept Secret in Social Media
3. 8 Steps to Selling Social Media Marketing to Decision Makers