 By: Johana M. Caba, M.A.
Public relations (PR) and marketing are practices that fall under the broad umbrella of communications which encompasses other practices including journalism and advertising. PR involves strategic communication to build mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their audiences. The focus of PR is to use various communication channels to raise brand awareness, build trust, and manage reputation. Marketing involves attracting customers through various communication channels to generate revenue by promoting and selling products or services. Marketing is a term that can oftentimes be used interchangeably with communications. Although both can focus on raising brand awareness, optimizing performance, and reaching customers or clients, the difference between them is in their purpose. Marketing focuses on promoting and selling via owned and paid media whereas communications and PR focus on storytelling and informing the target audience by conveying specific messages through owned, paid, and earned media. While they are different disciplines, they must work together in sync for optimal business success. MarCom or integrated marketing communications (IMC) is that bridge between them that uses the strengths of various communications and marketing disciplines to best connect with prospects and customers while encouraging loyalty and raising brand awareness. IMC or MarCom focuses on incorporating modern and traditional strategies to optimize the communication of a consistent message conveying the brand to stakeholders. To optimize message consistency across various platforms, a multi-channel strategy needs to be developed by being highly collaborative with teams across a business. The various MarCom disciplines include PR, marketing, advertising, branding, graphic design, web development, personal selling, social media, and digital marketing. This approach helps provide clarity, consistency, and maximum impact for your business across platforms. PR and Marketing Activities for your B2B PR and marketing activities can complement each other. Below you will find some activities that your business can implement to drive growth, raise awareness, manage reputation, and create maximum impact. Social Media Social media platforms can be used to create a two-way communication channel between your business and your audience. Of course, you do not have to utilize every single platform, always be aware of where your audience spends most of their time online. Depending on your industry, do some research to determine which platforms you should focus on. It can be overwhelming to have to create content for every single platform, and although repurposing content is helpful, from a community management standpoint, it can become overwhelming. For more information on social media marketing, visit my blog post on Social Media Marketing for Small Business. Thought Leadership Thought leadership is an effective way to establish your business as a credible and authoritative voice in your industry. It involves sharing insights, knowledge, and ideas that are relevant to your target audience and can help them solve their problems. Thought leadership is important for B2B marketing because it builds trust in the minds of customers and prospects, similar to how individual thought leaders become respected, trusted, and hard-to-replace voices in their industries. In B2B marketing, various types of thought leadership can be used to engage potential customers and build trust. These include whitepapers, blogs, speaking engagements, articles, videos, podcasts, and webinars. By creating valuable content that demonstrates your expertise, you can position your business as a thought leader and gain a competitive advantage in your industry. News Releases and Press Releases News and press releases are important components of PR for B2B businesses. They provide an opportunity to share important updates, achievements, and milestones with the target audience. Press releases can be used to announce new products or services, partnerships, expansions, awards, and other significant events related to the business. By generating media coverage through press releases, B2B businesses can increase brand visibility and credibility. Through news releases, businesses can communicate their story directly to their target audience without the need for a media outlet as a gatekeeper. In this way, their target audience can help spread the word to a wider audience. To maximize the impact of news and press releases, they should be distributed through various channels including social media, email, the company website, etc. Collaborations and Partnerships Collaborating and partnering with other businesses can be an effective way to increase your reach, build credibility, and generate new leads. By partnering with businesses that share similar values and target audiences, you can create mutually beneficial relationships that can drive growth for both parties. Collaborations and partnerships can take many forms, such as co-hosting events, cross-promoting each other on social media, or even creating joint marketing campaigns. By working together, you can tap into each other's networks and expand your reach beyond what you could achieve alone. Additionally, partnerships can help to build credibility and trust with your audience, as they see you working with other reputable businesses in your industry. In-Person Events Hosting in-person events can be an effective way to enhance your marketing and PR efforts. In-person events provide a unique opportunity to engage with your target audience face-to-face, allowing you to build meaningful relationships and establish a positive brand image. Events can be used to showcase new products or services, build brand awareness, generate leads, and create a memorable experience for attendees. By hosting events, you can also position yourself as an industry leader and establish your business as an authority in your field. In-person events allow you to stand out in a crowded digital landscape and create a lasting impact that extends beyond the event itself. Participating in Industry Events Participating in industry events such as tradeshows, conferences, and workshops can be an effective way to enhance your business’s reach. Industry events provide a unique opportunity to network with other professionals in your field, allowing you to build meaningful relationships and establish a positive brand image. Events give you the chance to showcase your products or services, demonstrate your expertise, and generate leads. By participating in industry events, you can position yourself as an industry leader and establish your business as an authority in your field. Attending industry events can also help you stay up-to-date on the latest trends, technologies, and best practices in your industry. This knowledge can be used to inform your marketing and PR strategies, helping you to stay ahead of the competition. Working in Synch to Achieve Business Goals Integrating PR and marketing efforts through an IMC or MarCom approach can provide businesses with a powerful tool to maximize their communication and marketing efforts. By working together, PR and marketing can complement each other and drive business growth, raise awareness, manage reputation, and create maximum impact. By implementing the activities mentioned in this article, B2B businesses can create a strong brand presence and build trust with their target audience. By focusing on modern and traditional strategies, businesses can optimize their communication and marketing efforts to achieve their goals, while also establishing themselves as thought leaders in their industry.
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By: Eleanor Wyatt In today's fast-paced digital landscape, businesses must adapt swiftly to stay afloat during turbulent times. One of the key tools in your arsenal for maintaining business continuity is your website. In this article, we'll explore how strategic website adjustments can not only help you weather the storm but also thrive. From enhancing website navigation to bolstering cybersecurity, we've got you covered with actionable insights to ensure your online presence remains robust and secure. Simplify and Enhance Website Navigation Streamlining your website's navigation is crucial for delivering a seamless and user-friendly experience. By implementing clear menu structures and logical categorization, visitors can effortlessly navigate and locate the information they seek. Intuitive pathways within the website not only enhance the user journey but also facilitate quick access to desired content. This approach to simplified navigation plays a significant role in reducing bounce rates and motivates users to engage more deeply with your website's offerings. Take Care of Broken Links Discovering and repairing broken links on a website is an essential task for maintaining its functionality and user experience. Initially, one needs to methodically scour the website to identify any links that lead to non-existent or moved pages. Once these broken links are identified, the next step involves either updating them to point to the correct, existing pages or removing them if they're no longer relevant. For those seeking assistance or further guidance in this process, the website Code Profs offers a wealth of resources and tutorials specifically tailored for coding and fixing web pages. Boost Website Loading Speed A fast-loading website is a pivotal element in maintaining user interest and minimizing bounce rates. To enhance loading speeds, it's essential to optimize images, utilize content delivery networks (CDNs), and minify code. These improvements not only elevate the user experience by providing quick access to content but also contribute to higher search engine rankings. In essence, faster websites not only satisfy users but also boost visibility in search engine results, creating a win-win situation for both users and website owners. Implement SEO Strategies Effective Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is key to enhancing a website's visibility and attracting organic traffic. It involves conducting thorough keyword research and optimizing critical on-page elements such as titles, meta descriptions, and headers to align with search queries. Beyond these technical aspects, regularly updating the website with high-quality content that appeals to the target audience is crucial. This approach not only draws in visitors but also keeps them engaged, thereby establishing a strong online presence. Craft Compelling Website Content Engaging, relevant, and informative content is the cornerstone of retaining and attracting website visitors. Utilizing storytelling techniques, incorporating multimedia elements, and employing persuasive language can significantly captivate and hold the attention of your audience. Such well-crafted content does more than just inform; it establishes your authority in your industry and builds a sense of trust with your audience. This trust and authority are key in turning casual visitors into loyal followers and customers. Set Up an Efficient Web Store with Easy Checkout Integrating a web store into your website can be a strategic move for facilitating direct sales and expanding your business reach. It's crucial to ensure that the checkout process is smooth and intuitive, requiring minimal steps to avoid customer frustration. Offering a variety of payment options caters to a broader audience and enhances the convenience of transactions. Additionally, providing transparent shipping information upfront can significantly improve customer satisfaction and increase the likelihood of successful conversions. Head Back to School to Sharpen Your Skills Returning to school to enhance web and IT skills is a strategic move for managing your business's technological needs. By pursuing an online computer science degree, you can gain comprehensive knowledge in IT, programming, and computer science theory, which is essential for today's digital landscape. The flexibility of an online program allows you to continue running your business while simultaneously upgrading your technical skills. The benefits of pursuing an online computer science degree include not only a deeper understanding of technology but also the ability to apply these skills directly to your business challenges. This educational path is a valuable investment in both your personal growth and the future success of your business. In turbulent times, your website can be a lifeline for your business. By implementing these strategic adjustments, from simplifying website navigation to fortifying cybersecurity measures, you can not only survive but also thrive in the digital landscape. Remember, adaptability and a user-centric approach are the keys to resilience. Stay agile, keep your website secure, and watch your business flourish in any environment. Ready to elevate your brand and connect with your audience like never before? Discover how JM Integrated Marketing's unique blend of public relations and social media expertise can transform your business – visit us now to start your journey towards impactful, data-driven marketing success!  By: Carmen Whalen
In the current competitive landscape, your engagement with customers is key to the growth and endurance of your small business. Cultivating a loyal customer base is a gradual process that demands a strategic and committed approach. This guide from JM Integrated Marketing provides you with potent strategies to build robust relationships with your customers. By applying these methods, you ensure enduring loyalty and the ongoing success of your business. Deliver Exceptional and Unique Products or Services Your offerings are the cornerstone of your business. To make a mark, ensure they are not just high in quality but also unique. This distinctiveness sets you apart in the marketplace, making your products or services memorable. Strive for excellence in what you offer, and your customers will appreciate and remember the effort, quality, and uniqueness. Enhance Marketing Skills through Online Learning Keeping pace with the latest marketing trends is vital for your business success. By pursuing an MBA degree or engaging in similar online courses, you can greatly enhance your marketing skills. This advanced education provides you with essential strategies and insights, enabling you to effectively reach and captivate your target audience. As a result, you'll likely experience an increase in both customer engagement and sales figures. Maximize Social Media Engagement Harness the power of social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. These platforms are not just promotional tools; they are gateways to building personal connections with your audience. Share your brand's story, engage in conversations, and listen to customer feedback. This two-way communication fosters a deeper relationship with your audience. For help growing your business through social media, contact JM Integrated Marketing today! Develop a Captivating Brand Identity Your brand identity is more than just a logo or color scheme. It's about the story, values, and emotions that your brand evokes. By crafting a compelling and relatable brand identity, you create a connection with your target market that goes beyond the transactional level. A strong brand identity resonates with your audience, making your business unforgettable. Highlight Customer Testimonials Displaying authentic customer testimonials significantly enhances your business's trustworthiness and credibility. When you present positive feedback from satisfied customers, it acts as compelling social proof, persuading others to explore your offerings. Allow these testimonials to be your business's voice, eloquently conveying customer satisfaction. Observe as they effectively transform potential customers into devoted followers of your brand. Implement Attractive Promotions and Offers Utilizing special promotions and time-sensitive offers is a superb tactic for drawing in new clients and keeping your current ones engaged. When you craft irresistible deals, you're likely to witness a surge in both customer visits and sales figures. Such promotions double as a gesture of gratitude towards your loyal clientele, reinforcing their connection with your brand. This approach not only boosts your business's appeal but also fortifies the loyalty of your customer base. Initiate a Rewarding Referral Program Harness the power of word-of-mouth as a key marketing strategy by introducing a referral program in your business. When you reward your loyal customers for attracting new clientele, you're not just expanding your customer base, but also strengthening the allegiance of your current customers. This approach results in a mutually beneficial scenario, enhancing the growth of your business. Such a strategy effectively nurtures a network of dedicated brand advocates, integral to your business's success. As a small business owner, your path to sustainable growth is rooted in effectively engaging with your customers and cultivating a community of loyal supporters. By diligently applying these strategies, you establish robust bonds with your customer base, anchoring the long-term prosperity of your enterprise. Keep in mind, engaging with customers is not a fleeting task; it demands your continuous attention and innovative approaches. Your commitment to this ongoing process is pivotal in maintaining and enhancing customer relationships. Image via Pexels 
Johana M. Caba, M.A.
Crafting a new brand identity can be an exciting and fear-provoking initiative. A brand identity is defined as the way in which an organization presents itself to the public through visual elements (typography, color palettes, icons, images, etc.) that come together to create a distinctive image in the minds of consumers and clients. Branding is an important component of any organization. But, how do you know when it is time for a rebrand? A rebrand is not only about updating visual components of an organization, but it is also about maintaining the voice and personality of the original identity. It can be a tricky process, but it can also be an exciting new avenue of creative expression. Below, you will find a rebrand case study of a tech startup. Towards the end of 2022, I began working on a rebrand of a fairly new organization. The tech startup had been around for a few years, and through their change of leadership they were motivated to update their brand identity. The goal was to take the existing brand and modernize the visual components as well as re-launch their entire website. The original branding consisted of two different logos, no distinct color palette, mismatched typographies, and no consideration for the user experience on their website. The look and feel of everything was that of a share drive where information was offloaded without branding consideration. Honestly speaking, it took time to figure out how to position everything and work towards creating a new, modern, and sleek feel with a pop of vibrant color. Working with a team of web developers and designers, we created a strategy that completely transformed the brand of the organization while staying true to its core identity. A Step-by-Step Discussion of the Results Although everything was worked on simultaneously, the logo was the first piece of the puzzle. The organization had two different logos that they were using interchangeably. As organizations grow and develop, they can have different logos, but the logos need to connect seamlessly with one another in the eyes of consumers and clients. The problem here was that the two logos were completely different and were used interchangeably throughout the business. To create a more modern logo that paid homage to the original two, we merged the two logos together and flipped their designated icon to create a more modern illusion. After the logo, we focused on the color palette. Originally, the brand would stick to black and white, with shades of dark blue here and there. We decided to bring a pop of vibrant color while staying true to the original dark blue. Our palette focused on a deeper hue of blue with hints of purple as the primary color along with a medium purple, dark green, and light green as accent colors for depth and vibrance. 
For the typography, we stayed true to the original typography but added a few different fonts to create a more modern feel. The font families we paired were Sans Serif and Serif. The fonts we chose were PT Serif, Roboto, and Open Sans.
To bring everything together, we had to create a new user experience for the website. This is where we created a new content hierarchy to strategically arrange information with the most important information emphasized with designated headers up top while other information was displayed less prominently towards the bottom. We also arranged the navigation menu in a way that made sense for users as well as strategically linked important content throughout different webpages for ease of use. Refreshing the Core: Moving Past the Visual Although the visual elements of a brand are important for customers and clients to distinguish one brand from another, it also becomes important to re-evaluate the core of the brand. The core of the brand consists of the mission, positioning, tagline, core values, brand personality/voice, and value proposition. To deliver a consistent brand across all the various customer/client touch points, it is important to clearly understand the purpose of the organization, what they are offering, how their offering benefits their target audience, and how an interested person can get the offering. Assuming a startup or a new company already has their mission, personality, value proposition and so forth, refreshing this content will focus on simplifying it. The more complicated or complex an organization’s mission is, the harder it is for the common person to understand. Some organizations have very complex missions because they offer their products or services to a specific niche. But, simplifying a complex idea will make the organization’s purpose easier to understand and the mission much more memorable and effective. To refresh the core of a business, you need to first understand how everything works. You will need to take a deep dive into the organization, but the outcome will be positive. For example, the tech startup that I worked on had a very complex mission because they were offering their services and products to a very specific niche. Furthermore, that niche consisted of very intellectual individuals that could understand the mission and vision of the startup. That’s perfectly fine when a startup is just launching and it wants to target that specific group. But, as the startup grows and expands their offerings, it becomes more important to simplify those complex ideas. This is important not only for the external audience of the organization, but also for the internal audience of employees that might find it difficult to explain what they do to other colleagues. We decided to first understand the company, diving all the way back to the purpose of its founding. We simplified the mission and made it more specific so that everyone that crossed the various touch points could understand their purpose and what they offer. To take things a step further, we also simplified the mission statement to one sentence that could be displayed on all social media channels. While their longer mission statement lives on their website and print materials, the shorter mission statement can be used on social media. The one-sentence mission is also beneficial for their employees to simplify the complexity of the business when they are speaking about it to others. After the mission statement, value proposition, core values, and brand personality are established, the copywriting will be much easier for those creating the marketing content. It might take a few rounds of editing and speaking to all stakeholders, but it is all a part of the process. After everything is set and approved, the final step is to create a brand style guide that the company can use moving forward to ensure their branding remains consistent. A brand style guide will be very useful as the organization continues to grow and expand their marketing departments or when hiring consultants to help with their marketing.  By: Eleanor Wyatt
As a small business owner, you have customers, and you can always use more. You are also obligated to keep these customers happy so that you can sell more, improve brand awareness, and earn enough money to pay yourself and your employees. But How? Enter technology. You live in a digital world, and that means you no longer have to wait for the right opportunity to come along. You create opportunities yourself. Today, JM Integrated Marketing offers a few ideas of ways you can put tech to work for you. In Marketing When it comes to marketing your business, your first goal is to identify your marketing goals. Then, you need to make sure that your sales and marketing teams always work together and don’t inadvertently duplicate the efforts of each. Consider investing in a marketing automation platform that keeps everyone on the same page by automating certain tasks and following your customers throughout their purchasing journey. If you’re not familiar with marketing automation, this is a good one to consider. Email marketing is another way to get your message across, especially if you already have a database of existing customers. There are many different options available, and these range from free to thousands of dollars per month. Money Management Your bottom line is built with the dollars and cents your customers give you, and it’s torn down by the dollars you spend that you don’t have to. Make sure that you capture every penny by investing in a point-of-sale system that does much of your financial work for you. Forbes explains that some systems streamline workflow, create customer loyalty programs, and even track inventory. You can also use accounting software (there are free options that help you cover the basics). Look for a program that scales, is accessible via the cloud, and is compatible with your current bookkeeper's capabilities. Remember, if you don’t manage your money, you may wind up in a situation where you don’t have the capital to expand when opportunities come to call. Customer Engagement Customer engagement is crucial to all businesses. After all, if you don’t talk to your customers, the competition will. A great place to enhance your customer engagement efforts is social media. JM Integrated Marketing can work with you to identify the platforms where your customers are most likely to be. Then, you can spread content that converts and bring more customers into the fold. If you operate a brick-and-mortar, look for technology that captures attention. Spectrio recommends digital signage, which gives you an opportunity to create a slideshow of your best products by utilizing images, videos, and animation. Your digital displays can also show customers where they are in your service queue so they are never left wondering “when’s my turn?” This is crucial in a service-based environment. Instant Access Last but not least importantly, look for services that give your customers instant access to your business. Your website and social media will be the foundation of this, and there are many tools you can add to these to make your customers happy. Chatbots that answer common questions, click-to-call buttons, and online order tracking can all reduce the time people have to wait for a response, and instant gratification is golden in today’s fast-paced world. Even if you are a solo operation, you have a customer base that you must cater to. From utilizing your online real estate (your website) to creating automated marketing, today’s tips are a few ways that you can engage your clients, increase customer satisfaction, and scale back your bottom line so that you can enjoy your earnings. Image via Pexels |
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