Golden Rules
01/09/2005
Find out about the 'golden rules' of marketing communications
Put the audience first
Your marketing must be led by your audience and not your product. You need to know who your customers are and then target them carefully. You need to have an understanding of who they are, where they are, their needs and desires and the media they respond to in order to produce compelling marketing.
Find a compelling offer
Use your insight into your customers to deliver something that really motivates them into action.
Send out one clear message and get straight to the point
Avoid clutter and confusion with one clear and simple message. You must be able to grab the reader's attention at the start.
Make it obvious what you want the reader to do
Every communication should direct your audience to do something e.g. taking advantage of a money-off offer or telephoning a hotline or visiting a website. This is called a `call to action' and is vital to successful marketing.
Use clear and simple language
Your reader should be able to understand what you are trying to say in just three seconds. Keep your language simple and avoid jargon or vocabulary which they will not understand.
Think visually
Think carefully about the best way to present your message visually. A simple image often works best. Remember that you should always complete the planning procedures, including what you want your customers to think, feel and do before designing your marketing material. Consider what images you have at your disposal and make sure you have the legal rights to use them. There are many websites that offer royalty free images, www.superstock.com is a good place to start.
Manage the branding
Be conscious of how much branding you are using. In some cases using too much will turn off the reader. Be sensitive to their needs and try to find a balance which still gets your message across.
Give your customers a right to reply
Ensure there is always a way for customers to respond. Not only does it help you capture vital data on your customers, it also helps you learn how people are reacting to your work. You can collect names, addresses, e-mails and vital information to help you target them in future.
Set targets and measures
Set targets and measures from the outset and monitor these throughout the process, not just at the end. Compare results from different mailings and look at the way people respond best - by phone, fax or e-mail.
Test your ideas
Printing in-house allows you to run off small numbers and test the creative discretely. Try it out on your staff or small groups of consumers and use their response to refine your ideas.
Be consistent in all your communications
Speak with one voice. Customers trust and appreciate continuity so make sure the tone, feel and look of each item fits with the others. If you don't yet have a company look, tone or feel put in the preparation and create them.
