Bringing You Useful Marketing Tips You Can Steal Now

Marketing Lesson of The Week

► Why Vacation Time Makes You A Better Marketer

During the pandemic, we took at least one day off a week and explored New York City on foot. So I became a tourist in my hometown. In the process, I learned a lot about my neighborhood and beyond by reading plaques on older buildings.

Further, being a carless New Yorker, it took me a lot of time to feel safe taking the subway to other parts of the city even after I was vaccinated.

Despite having worked for companies that required employees to use their vacation time and reading about the importance of unplugging from devices, I didn’t realize the true importance of time away from my usual environment.

At least not until my husband and I unplugged and drove through a totally different part of the country earlier this month. (Okay–we used our computers to get travel information and publish the AMG Newsletter.)

On the road in Red Rock country between Flagstaff and Sedona (Arizona)

Actionable Life Lessons For Marketers

• Reconnect with family and friends you haven’t seen since pre-pandemic. While I had kept up with people via phone, virtual software, phone calls and social media, it was a poor substitute for being together face-to-face. And connecting with others makes our lives richer.
• Feed your soul by spending time in nature. Until we traveled through northern Arizona, I had forgotten how calming being in the midst of natural beauty. It made me happy.
• Travel and unplug in a way that fits your interests, lifestyle and purse.

Since I always see the world through a marketer’s lens, here are a few things I learned that can help your business and marketing.

Actionable Marketing Tips

• Create offerings tailored to different customer segments. Start by understanding your potential customers and their needs to build marketing personas.For example, visitors to the Grand Canyon have the choice of a hotel inside the park, a hotel outside of the park (requiring re-entering the park every day), or camping. So visitors can decide where to stay based on their preferred method of travel and cost.
• Allow customers to choose their method of experiencing your offering. Give prospects a few different choices so they can decide what fits their budget, timetable and other objectives.BUT don’t create an overwhelming number of options. Or, people can’t decide. Also, where appropriate, add a premium-priced option to meet specific prospect’s needs.For example, the Grand Canyon Park operates a number of free bus lines along the Southern Rim. In addition, we opted to pay for a Sunset Tour with a very knowledgeable guide.

Brand Beats

► How Airports Create a Buying State of Mind

Representing “Place” in the Marketing 4 Ps, airports offer a bounty of opportunities for marketers.

Why?
Because people in airports are willing to spend money.

After getting to the airport, checked in and through security, many are in a “Buying State of Mind”. [Or, at least, they rationalize buying things to make their travel experience more enjoyable.]

Often these last minute and impulse purchases occur in a Hudson retailer, since they have 1,000+ stores in US and Canadian travel centers.

By remaining laser-focused on travelers needing on-the-go items, Hudson has built their brand and loyal following.

To better serve the changing needs of their core, on-the-go customers, “[they] changed from Hudson News to Hudson to become more travel convenient”. (Skift, April 26, 2016)

Before the pandemic severely hindered air travel, the global travel retail market was valued at $63.5 billion and expected to grow to $85 billion by 2020, according to Fung Business Intelligence Center 2014 data.

Top 10 air traveler purchases based on units sold (according to Hudson 2016):

1. Dasani bottled water (20 oz)
2. Glaceau Smartwater (20 oz)
3. Large Dasani (one liter)
4. Glaceau Smartwater (one liter)
5. Glaceau Smartwater (23.8 oz)
6. Diet Coke (20 oz)
7. Coca-Cola (20 oz)
8. M&M Peanut king-size
9. Coca-Cola Zero (20 oz)
10. The Wall Street Journal

But don’t let the sales of water, soda and candy fool you!

Hudson’s business remains focused on books and magazines because people tend to read print media when they travel. According to Joe DiDomizio, Hudson Group’s President and CEO, “Bookstores at airports and train stations are benefiting from a print revival, and this stands true for Hudson Booksellers.”

Hudson’s most popular newspapers included The Wall Street Journal, New York Post, The New York Times and USA Today. Traveler’s favorite magazines were US Weekly, In Touch, The Economist, Life & Style, Star, Vanity Fair and OK. (Source: CNN Travel August 5, 2016.)

From a marketing perspective, it’s interesting that travelers read the news and indulge in guilty pleasures. BTW, I observed this trend when I worked at The Economist where people read the Obituaries like it was People magazine.

On my way to Phoenix, I stopped at the Hudson Bookstore in Newark Airport outside of the TSA. This bookstore is a favorite stop of mine since its book collection is well curated and extends beyond the latest best sellers. I purchased Daniel Pink’s When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing, since he was speaking at CEX.

Daniel Pink with Heidi Cohen at Creator Economy Expo (Phoenix)

Actionable Brand Marketing Tips

• Remain true to your brand’s roots. For example, while expanding their offering, Hudson still sells print media including newspapers, magazines and books in travel locations.
• Pay attention and adapt to customers’ changing needs. Hudson keeps evolving and testing their product offering to meet changing consumer needs such as water post-security and products to support electronic devices.

Content Communicates

► How The Phoenix Airport Spotlights Visual Content

Did you know that the Phoenix Airport incorporates a museum?

I didn’t until I discovered it when we flew back home from Phoenix.

As one of the largest airport art programs in the US, the Phoenix Airport Museum contains 900 works of art in its collection and 40 exhibition spaces spread across 6 buildings.

According to its website:

“The mission of the Phoenix Airport Museum is to enhance the Airport visitor’s experience by creating a memorable environment that promotes Arizona’s unique artistic and cultural heritage through an Art Collection, Exhibition Program and the Aviation History Collection”

I love how they’ve used otherwise utilitarian walls to spotlight local artists including street art to engage travelers.

Even better, they provide guides to the different art installations. Their take-ones include a free postcard of a work of art that you can detach and send. (They’re shown at the bottom of the photo on the left.)

The Phoenix Airport Museum also highlights Aviation History.

Actionable Content Marketing Tips

• Spotlight your organization’s history on empty physical walls and/or spaces to educate visitors. Alternatively, use bulletin boards to spotlight employees and upcoming events.
• Showcase and/or sell artwork by local artists. Restaurants often do this to decorate their walls.

NYC Marketing Minute

► Dance Parade New York Works With Communities

Dancing in the streets has been an integral part of life and personal expression in New York City. Immortalized in movie classics such as On The Town, West Side Story, and Saturday Night Fever, the city is not only an integral part of these films, but it also provides the backdrop for memorable dance numbers.

On Saturday, May 21st, over 10,000 dancers showed off their skills in the 16th Annual Dance Parade.

Dance Parade New York, a Not-For-Profit organization, supported the presentation of 100+ unique styles of dance that exist in the city.

To celebrate dance as a form of personal and creative expression, Dance Parade New York was founded.

DanceParade’s Mission is:

“To promote dance as an expressive and unifying art form by showcasing all forms of dance, educating the general public about the opportunities to experience dance, and celebrating diversity of dance in New York City by sponsoring a yearly city-wide dance parade and dance festival.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7O6ymbTXyak

Many of the Dance Parade’s organizers had worked to change New York City’s Cabaret Laws that restricted dancing in a variety of venues.

Originally targeting jazz clubs, the Cabaret Law was passed on December 7, 1926. Its major impact was on Greenwich Village folk clubs and 1970s and 1980s discotheques. In September 2017, Mayor Bill de Blasio signed legislation establishing an Office of Nightlife and a Nightlife Advisory Board. (Source: NPR)

Why does a New York City based Not-For-Profit matter to your marketing?
Because purpose matters to your brand and your audience cares about it.

The 2021 Porter Novelli Purpose Premium Index (PPI) found, based on a sample of 6,000 US adults via a 2021 online survey conducted by Dynata:

• 69% are less likely to support companies that only focus on making money.
• 73% said companies must support the community and environment.

Actionable Cause Marketing Tip

• Show how your organization supports the community and environment. To accomplish this, work with relevant not-for-profit organizations.

Marketing Reads

► 100+ Free Summer Content
Titles To Make You Look Good No Inspiration Required

Since Memorial Day is around the corner, now is a good time to get a jump on your summer content marketing regardless of which content format you choose and what platform you publish it on.

Even if you don’t use a specific title format, it will get your creative juices thinking about better options tailored to your audience and business. As a bonus, some of these titles will inspire you to develop content that extends beyond the summer season. 

This article shows how to streamline your content creation process.

► How To Create Winning Co-Marketing Partnerships: What You Need To Know
To Improve Your Results

To expand your marketing reach, create win-win partnerships. Work with not-for-profit organizations, local community groups and/or other businesses targeting similar audiences with different offerings from your own.

So everyone involved builds awareness and broadens access to new prospects. 

In AMG’s April 5, 2022 issue, we spotlighted how Razom, a not-for-profit organization, created a “must-attend” event to raise donations for Ukraine by using co-marketing.

►  Heidi Cohen Around The Web

Big Shout out to Lillie Vogt of Collato for naming Heidi Cohen’s Actionable Marketing Guide in her article, The Best Marketing Blogs That Aren’t Hubspot. Kudos for presenting a diverse and useful set of marketing blogs to keep readers up-to-date.

Marketing Training

►  How To Be A Content Entrepreneur?

                                                          [Affiliate Offer]

► Personal Branding Masterclass

Create your powerful personal brand with expert Mark W. Schaefer

August 2nd through August 18th, 2022

Plan Ahead: Mark Your Calendar

► West Virginia University – Integrate 2022 – June 2-4th.

Connect and learn from the best Marketing Communications leaders from across the country. I’m speaking here.  Register Here.

► Content Strategy Collective Live – June 8-9th.

Organized by MarketMuse, it will explore the strategies that content marketers and SEOs use to succeed.

► Omnichannel X 2022 Conference – June 13-16th, (Virtual).

► VOICE Global – June 15-16th,  (Virtual).

Join Voice enthusiasts around the world for 24 hours of insights and interviews about the fast-growing Conversational AI market. It’s free!   Register Here 

► MAICON 2022 – August 3-5th, 2022 in Cleveland, OH

The Marketing Artificial Intelligence Conference (MAICON), returns to an in-person event this year. Check out MAICON’s schedule of upcoming webinars.

♦ ♦   Special AMG reader discount: Get $150 off — Use code: AMG150   ♦ ♦