Data to Print

I recently came across an article about leadership influence, the go-giver way. The article highlighted a book written by Bob Burg and John David Mann titled "The Go-Giver".  This book focused on the "go-giver" theory and how it is related to business...

Everyone is familiar with a go-getter, someone who goes after what they want and in doing so makes things happen for themselves. A go-giver is different but comes up with the same, if not better, results. Someone who lives the go-giver way works with the theory of shifting your focus from getting what you want (me, me, me approach) to giving and putting other's interests first (them, them, them approach). They end up adding value for others and living a life of fulfillment but also having success while doing so and most likely making more friends along the way.

I found this "go-giver" perspective to be interesting and nice value to live by. I also couldn't help myself from relating this attitude to the customer service and sales aspect of business. For those of us who have chosen the sales and customer service field at Allied, we work with this giving mentality everyday.  And in doing so, we turn our customer service interactions into valued partnerships that will continue to grow.

The core of customer service and sales is valuing your customer and and putting their needs first. Whether their needs are about small business supply chain management, corporate marketing communications, data to print programs or helping them redesign their websites. If you value your customers needs before your own, they will notice and in turn will enjoy working with you going forward.  This will also make them want to be more than just your customer, they will start to look to you as a valued partner.

And, once this shift happens you will begin to notice that they value your opinion and look for it when it comes to their business needs. The most valuable gift you have to offer to your clients is yourself. Once we realize this as customer service and sales professionals, people will start to view us as partners and that's when the fun of being a strategic print and marketing partner really begins.

“Why Won’t People Listen to Good Ideas?” discussed research showing that those with strongly ingrained views won't mentally process sound evidence presented by the other side. Is there anything we can do to encourage parents, students, colleagues or faculty to consider solid facts we raise?

First, it’s important to understand why many won’t listen. One reason became apparent in a series of studies starting in 1959. Eminent social psychologist Dr. Elliot Aronson explains that research began in a southern town deeply divided over racial segregation. Most today clearly recognize the evils of apartheid, but in 1959 it was a burning issue, particularly in the South. Researchers selected people with strong feelings for or against segregation. Then they presented a series of arguments on both sides of the issue. Some were plausible, others were lame. A survey on the points each recalled was telling. People remembered the logical arguments supporting their position and the illogical arguments that backed the opposing view.

A number of follow up studies produced similar results. The answer was clear. People ignored or quickly forgot points that might prove their opinion wrong. They focused on the opposition’s lame arguments because these strengthened their position. This phenomenon is called Confirmation Bias. Finding the right answer took a back seat to proving they were right. The highly respected Dr. Aronson explains:

During the past half-century, social psychologists have discovered that one of the most powerful determinants of human behavior stems from our need to preserve a stable, positive self-image. Most of us want to believe that we are reasonable, decent folks who make wise decisions, do not behave immorally and have integrity.

Thus, when confronted with factual information that might show us mistaken or foolish, we automatically tend to ignore or dismiss it, focusing instead on any piece of data that might prove us right.

One study found smokers who tried but failed to quit were least likely to recognize the dangers of smoking. Clearly, dismissing inconvenient facts can prove destructive to individuals and businesses. It’s important, then, to recognize that while those on the opposite side of an issue may ignore sound evidence, we too are fully capable of making that mistake.

Removing the blinders

First, we must realize that every party in a discussion, including us, may display confirmation bias. How can we combat it? One way is to remind ourselves that our willingness to honestly consider all evidence takes moral courage and strength, highly admirable traits. That realization may help us past the tendency to protect our ego by defending a position. Researcher Dr. David Myers recommends that senior managers require their staff members who present arguments to give one good reason why they could be wrong.

To help others avoid ignoring valid evidence, we can try a psychological technique called “labeling.” We could begin a discussion by praising our associates for the open-mindedness and fairness they’ve previously shown. This technique was used to great advantage by former Egyptian President Anwar Sadat. Communications psychology expert Robert Cialdini, PhD relates,

Before international negotiations began, Sadat would assure his bargaining opponents that they and the citizens of their country were widely known for their cooperativeness and fairness.

Did his technique work? Despite the notoriously entrenched positions in the Middle East, Sadat and former hard-liner Menachem Begin negotiated the only modern peace treaty between an Arab nation and Israel.  I rest my case.

The Allied Group is a marketing communications company providing integrated marketing communications programs and full service fulfillment services including Search, Stealth and Yield programs as well as publication design, printing and distribution to colleges and universities.

As Student Search letters hit the mail, it’s important to recognize what many institutions are up against. Students may have never heard of the college that would prove to be their best choice. If they choose a better-known institution that’s not a good fit, both they and their ideal school will lose. How can worthy but less-than-famous colleges get students’ attention?

Direct mail is still the best way to reach out to students initially. In a College Board survey, 81% of students said that personal letters from colleges increased their interest. Another 75% indicated that brochures mailed to them had a similar effect. Emails came in at 61%.  All should continue to be employed by many institutions.

But crowded mailboxes are the bane of lesser-known schools. One study presented at NEACAC this year found that 40% of prospects’ names were available for only one year. Institutions must therefore make the best use of their opportunity to engage these prospects. Time-pressed Millennials often take mental shortcuts and choose brand name institutions. Many rely on the advice of parents and friends. Although 74% respected their guidance counselor’s recommendations, these alone may not be enough to help unknown but creditable institutions.

Getting noticed in a crowded Search market

After PSAT, SAT and ACT results become available, many students are deluged with Search letters and emails. As these crowd their mail boxes, two types will stand out: 

• Those from familiar institutions   
• Those whose message is relevant

The first point is obvious. It’s also proved by research. When students feel overwhelmed with choices, familiar names will stand out. But if your college is not a household name, personal relevance may be your best chance at getting your letter or email opened. Studies cited by eminent social psychologist Dr. Elliot Aronson reveal that when a message is personally relevant, people will pay attention to it even if the presenter doesn’t have the benefit of fame and prestige.

How can you know what’s personally relevant?

Relevant text and/or photos on a mailer or envelope will make it stand out and increase its chances to be opened and read. But what’s relevant? If Search names are from a recent test, student-provided data on intended major, sports and extracurricular interests are likely to be fairly accurate. This information could be an excellent source of relevant data to be used in a one to one communication campaign starting with Search letters and emails. If test results are not recent, data on intended majors will spoil rather than improve with age.  How can institutions make sure student interest information is up-to-date? 

Some college websites employ a Stealth Program, offering visitors a customized electronic, and sometimes printed, brochure. Students wanting to receive one must give contact information and indicate their intended major and extracurricular interests. This tool can be used effectively in a number of settings.

Links included on college Facebook pages and targeted display ads can turn an electronic brochure offer into a great outreach tool. It gives students exactly the information they request, gets institutions the fresh data they need, and has proved to get substantially higher conversion rates than traditional Search. And, of course, prospects requesting e-brochures have thereby inquired and may not need to be searched again.

Could a relevant message help your institution stand out in a crowded field?

The Allied Group is a marketing communications company offering award-winning Search, Stealth, Conversion and Yield Programs for traditional and nontraditional college admissions.

• Research and Analysis:  who are your best prospects?
• Data Appending:   what is of interest to them?
• Nurture Marketing: how best to speak to them?
• Lead Generation:  how can they easily interact with you?

 "Consumers May Not Pay for Content Online, but They're Happy to Purchase for Mobile

Everybody knows digital media's arrival hasn't exactly been easy on magazines. Ad rates on the web couldn't match their levels in print, many magazines struggled to build compelling websites and web design branding, new competition strove to steal readers' attention, and the web itself engendered an attention-atrophied reading style that undermined readers' very ability to settle down with a good, fat print issue.

But as mobile devices added capabilities, app stores took off and the dawn of e-readers and tablet computers finally arrived, magazines have pushed aggressively to participate, experiment and hopefully make money from the new opportunities presented. And with an emerging economy of app "stores," they may have found a way to get consumers to pay once again.

Despite some stragglers, it seems like nearly everyone has an app out by now, at a minimum reinforcing readers' relationships with their brands. But magazines' push into paid digital content, in the form of apps that carry price tags, is looking even more interesting.

Condé Nast Publications, which has taken heat for focusing too much on traditional ad pages, was the first to deliver issues as apps, starting with GQ's December issue. By mid February, it had sold 6,835 copies of the December app and 15,068 copies of the February issue at $2.99 each. That's small potatoes compared with the magazine's print circulation, which averaged 193,440 single-copy sales per issue over the second half of last year. But Condé calls it a start, a play to get in position for the iPad, and probably a net positive in any case, arguing that many of the app purchases will come from people who don't buy GQ in print already.

"We still be studying carefully both through research and analysis and the data we have, but we suspect it's going to be a mix," said Condé Nast Digital President Sarah Chubb. "Maybe a newsstand buyer who bought it on a newsstand sometimes but maybe someone who'd been interested in the GQ brand but for whatever reason never picked it up." ~ AdAge.com

For more information on marketing and sales support, contact The Allied Group.

One of things we pride ourselves at here at The Allied Group is our listening skills. We figure we have two ears and one mouth for a reason. We should listen twice as much as we talk. And by listening, we mean listening to the wants, desires, and needs of our customers and clients. We want to be able to be responsive to you. As your customer service specialists, we feel the best way to do that is by listening to you.

The Allied Group has a variety of different value added services from inventory management, data to print, web design branding and fulfillment projects. I support all of these functions in my customer service role. Every service listed above has to be personalized based on each customers needs and if we aren't listening, we may miss an opportunity to provide you with what it is you are looking for.

Customer feedback from one client gives us an inside scoop into what some of our other clients may be looking for from us as a partner. For example, if we hear you talking about other projects you are working on, we may be able to provide an innovative solution that has worked for another customer. We may also be able to offer you a different product in our service line that may be helpful in that project.

Plainly stated, customer service is about listening and taking action based on each and every one of our customers feedback. So please feel free to talk with us and tell us what your needs are. We’re here (hear) to listen!

A lot of people are competing for the attention of your prospective adult students.  Each day, every one of them may see or hear hundreds of advertisements for a dizzying array of products.  Some may be from competing institutions seeking to enroll students who might be a perfect fit for your program.  Are there effective ways to rise above the clutter and effectively communicate with them?

Your marketing communication strategy, the media you use and the marketing tactics you choose can make a big difference.  Sending the wrong message to the right people can make you look bad to your best prospects.  Sending the right communication to the wrong people wastes both opportunities and limited resources.  Using the wrong media may mean that your best prospects may never receive your message – or won’t act on it if they do.

And, if your message is the right one, how you present it can make a big difference.  An experience from private industry illustrates this point.  When sales of their Wave Radio were flat a few years ago, Bose Corporation of Cambridge, Massachusetts hired persuasion expert Robert Cialdini, PhD to review their advertising.  He recommended changing one line, the headline on their print, Internet and public advertisements.  Store traffic increased so much that sales rose by 45%.
 
One to One Communication Gets the Right Help to the Right People

In establishing a marketing communication strategy for your program, it is, of course, vital to accurately assess the needs of the groups you’re trying to reach.  Are you trying to promote a graduate or degree completion program? Your prospective students recognize the value of higher education; with this group you need to differentiate your institution from your competitors. But if you’re trying to reach students who have no college background, discussing your programs’ merits will mean little.  These prospects might need to be convinced that furthering their education will truly help their job opportunities. Or they may need to be helped to see that college is not beyond their reach. 

How can you deliver the right message to the right people?  Having the right data can make all the difference.  Knowledgeable marketers can access data on the demographic groups that live within certain zip codes.  They can help you narrow down lists for targeted direct mail campaigns.   Is this approach truly effective?  Professors George and Michael Belch of San Diego State University reported,

Porsche developed a direct-mail piece that was sent to a precisely defined target market:  physicians in specialties with the highest income levels.  This list was screened to match the demographic of Porsche buyers and narrowed further to specific geographic areas.  The direct-mail piece was an X-ray of a Porsche 911 Carrera 4 written in the language of the medical audience.  This creative campaign generated one of the highest response rates of any mailing Porsche has done in recent years.

You may feel that students have little in common with doctors shopping for sports cars.  But studies with college students show that they really do pay attention to relevant communication.  No medium can do this better than customized, personalized direct mail.  Integrating this approach with other media and using research to further focus your message can magnify its effectiveness.  You’ll see how in Part Two of this series.