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Call for Workshop
Proposals
Residential Design and Construction
2008 April 2-3, 2008 Seaport World Trade Center,
Boston
Residential Design and Construction 2008 (RDC),
the Boston Society of Architects' spring convention and
tradeshow seeks proposals for workshops, panel discussions and
seminars. RDC attendees are design and construction
professionals who seek relevant, practical information and
tools to help them better serve their residential clients and
manage successful small practices. Workshop panels that are
multi-disciplinary, interactive and include case studies are
encouraged.
The deadline for workshop proposals is
September 10. For more information, including the submission
form, go to www.architects.org/proposals. With questions,
call/write program manager Mark Kalin FAIA, FCSI, LEED AP at
617-964-5477/ mkalin@architects.org
.
"None of us is as smart as all of
us."
- Ken Blanchard
Copyright 2007
Chris Joy
Marketing Communications.
All rights reserved. You may
reproduce content included in the Brand Guardian e-newsletter
by including this copyright and, if reproducing it
electronically, by including a link to www.chrisjoycomm.com.
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Hello,
Today's
newsletter is about making sure your marketing is working to
introduce the real you. Hope it's helpful!
All the
best,
Chris Joy
Principal
Chris Joy
Marketing Communications
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Getting
to Know You, Getting to Know All about You
My dad's
a big musical theater buff.
Three weeks ago, he went
to see The
King and I at the Robinson Theater in Waltham, a terrific
performance by the Reagle
Players. The thing is, ever since he mentioned this, I
have had this song stuck in my head - you know the scene where
the schoolteacher Anna is singing to the king's children?
"Getting to knooooooooow you, getting to know all about
yooooooooouu. Getting to like you, getting to hope you like
meeeeeee."
The song has been haunting me. I'm
singing it in the shower. Every time I get in the car. As I
unload the dishwasher. But yesterday, I was reviewing a
website for a new client and the lyrics in my head suddenly
became very apropos.
So I'm reading the copy on the
website, and having gotten to know the company, I felt like
there was a disconnect. Yes, it covered the basics but it felt
like it did little to capture the real essence of the company,
nor did it appear to do much in the way of tapping into the
true motivators of clients who might do business with them.
I talked to the owner about this and found out it was
written by a national company out on the west coast who writes
copy for lots of remodeling companies across the
country.
You've probably been solicited by companies
like this who, for modest fee, will be happy to write the copy
of your website, generate a set of postcard mailers, or do
some other one-off project. They're "qualified," because
they've provided copy for hundreds of sites just like yours.
Sounds like an efficient way to go, but here's the thing.
That's a sure-fire way to sound just like everyone
else. Don't fall into that trap by accepting copy that
does not sound like you - using words that are not your words.
Messages that do not reflect the language of your company.
Features that do work to appeal to the priorities of your
clientele.
The purpose of your marketing materials--
your brochure, your website, your ad, your newsletter-- is
to introduce you to a prospect before they meet you in
person.
So when they do meet you, they're
thinking, "Hey, don't I know you?!"
If your
website, or your postcards or your speeches don't sound like
you, how can you expect a prospect to make that
connection?
So take a look at your marketing materials.
Do they help a prospect in really (cue the music) "getting
to know you, getting to know all about you?" Or does it
just give a laundry list of the things you do, which probably
sounds like everyone else?
Yes, having a professional
make sure your copy is polished and on message is smart. But
allowing someone to censor your voice is not. Make sure
your tone and voice come through.
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Quick Tip
A Little Penguin Told Me
So
A number of companies I've talked to lately are
migrating to online communications in one way or another.
In some cases, it's a good idea, but I still think
this sector benefits from hardcopy collateral, so I wouldn't
abandon those efforts, but rather augment them perhaps, with
online communications.
If you are planning to begin an
e-newsletter at some point, I highly recommend the company
that I consulted in creating mine, Blue
Penguin Development.
Principal Michael Katz is
outstanding at helping clients articulate their goals for the
newsletter, and working with them to achieve those objectives
through whatever level of hand-holding the client needs or
wants. And he's terrific to work with.
If you do
nothing else, check
out his website to see how good an e-newsletter can be.
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Does this Message Pop or Flop?
Thyssen
Krupp has a
new ad campaign for its Lev brand home elevators. I think
there's a lot to like about this campaign.
We all know
that homeowners have an insatiable appetite for the next
luxury amenity, and Thyssen Krupp is happy to deliver.
With it's tongue in check headline: "Home
elevators. Just another crazy idea in homebuilding" the
firm likens its product to other innovations that were once
thought to be over-the-top - a toilet, a dishwasher, a garage
door opener - unquestionable must-haves in today's home by any
standard.
The campaign is beautifully aligned with the
brand's service promise: LEV, The Next Level. Literally, the
product transports you from floor to floor. And figuratively,
it raises the bar, offering a new standard in luxury homes.
Pretty good timing, given the price of land and the aging
population.
Hmm. I'd say those home elevator guys are
crazy alright. Crazy like a fox. What do you think?
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