Tips for marketing to new movers

If you market your products or services to consumers, there’s a viable opportunity for expanding your customer base right in your own backyard. The target: New movers. With more than 35.5 million Americans moving annually—the majority in June, July and August—this consumer demographic offers immediate potential this summer.

Eager to establish themselves in their new homes and communities, new movers are prime new-customer prospects for a variety of businesses:

• Home services contractors: Landscapers, pest control, painters, plumbers, interior decorators
• Retailers, restaurants, food delivery services
• Banks/financial institutions
• Physicians, dentists, emergency-care clinics, fitness centers/gyms
• Salons/barbers, dry cleaners, tailors
• Schools, daycare centers, kids’ camps and enrichment programs

New mover campaigns bring a higher ROI than other customer acquisition methods. If you can capture the business of a new mover, you have a higher chance of keeping that business for as long as the consumer stays in the home.

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So, how do you make that initial contact count? At Shamrock, we help businesses make powerful connections with consumers through integrated branded marketing campaigns. Here’s a few new mover campaign tips:

Start with solid data. Using data analytics, gather information about these potential customers—details that will help to shape focused, targeted messaging and delivery methods that resonate with new movers and bring them to your business.

Speak their language. According to realtor.com, millennials will lead the way in number of mortgages in 2019, accounting for 45% of the market. They’ll be followed by Gen Xers at 37% and baby boomers at 17%.

With millennials leading the new mover demographic, be sure to engage with them using channels where they spend their time: video, email and social media.

Maintain brand consistency. Integrated campaigns include multiple touches: Direct mail postcards, emails, social media, event-based marketing, and signage. While messaging should vary based on channel and target audience, be sure it remains consistent with your brand.

Test and redeploy. An essential part of comprehensive program management is post-campaign reporting—and then redeploying in segment areas, as appropriate (i.e. follow-up email or social media touches)

If you’re interested in learning more, I’d like to share with you some of our new mover marketing success stories. Connect with me jbanks@shamrockcompanies.net or call me direct at 440.250-2166.

John Banks

Choose your words wisely for stronger brand connections.

Have you ever watched or read an ad only to immediately forget the advertised product or brand? I know I have.

As marketers, we’re tasked with making memorable brand connections. So, how do we improve our chances of creating content that sticks? In part, it requires using the right words.

         Click here to access a list of the 15 most powerful words in marketing and SEO.

There are also guidelines that can help frame marketing word choices. Below is information summarized from a SalesForce article that details the types of words you can use to drive your brand’s message home and evoke desired emotions from your audience:

Words That Resonate with Consumers. Put things in terms of “you” instead of “I” or “we.” In other words, speak directly to your customers about what they can gain (Value) from doing business with you, rather than explaining what your business does.

Words That Grab Readers’ Attention. Words like “free” and “discount” naturally resonate with customers because they automatically make a purchase look more attractive.

Words That Create a Sense of Fear or Urgency. Some words may convey your message to customers, but don’t really do much to convince them to act. That’s where phrases like “limited time” or “don’t miss out” or “now” come in, tapping into the fear of missing out.

Example: Spotify offers weekly playlists for its active listeners based on their specific tastes and listening habits. The company could create one personalized playlist and update it every so often. But instead, each playlist is only accessible for one week. Then it’s gone. Spotify encourages users to access their weekly playlists based on that fear that they’ll miss out on something great if they don’t.

Words That Promote Exclusivity. If you’re offering a deal specifically to your best customers or to a select number of people, you can use words like “exclusive,” “select,” and “limited” to make an opportunity seem more special. When customers feel like they are valued enough to be granted special access to products and services, they may be more likely to purchase.

American Express is an example of one company that successfully uses this tactic. “Membership has its privileges” and “Are you a Card Member?” are some of its popular taglines. These words create a sense of exclusivity that makes people want to join.

Words That Position Your Brand. Carefully select words that make your brand stand out, either against the competition or to a specific type of consumer (proven, dependable. Depending on the way you’d like to appeal to customers, you can use creative wording to position your brand.

Example: Coca-Cola used to call itself the “Official Soft Drink of Summer.” Is there an official governing body that decides which soda gets to represent summer? No. But by using these words, Coca-Cola paints itself as the only real choice for families who want to enjoy some fun in the sun.

Are there other word rules you’d add to the list? Join the conversation on Shamrock’s Facebook page.

Ellen Moriarty

Grow your customer base: Tips for marketing to new movers

If you market your products or services to consumers, there’s a viable opportunity for expanding your customer base right in your own backyard. The target: New movers. With more than 35.1 million Americans moving annually—that’s 15.3 million households—this consumer demographic offers great potential, as they’re eager to establish relationships with businesses in their new neighborhoods.

Consider that 65% of moves are interstate (MyMovingReviews Data Report 2017). So, it’s likely these consumers are new to the area—thus, are not familiar with local businesses and services—making them prime new-customer prospects for a variety of businesses:

• Home services contractors: Landscapers, pest control, painters, plumbers, interior decorators
• Retailers, restaurants, food delivery services
• Banks/financial institutions
• Physicians, dentists, emergency-care clinics, fitness centers/gyms
• Salons/barbers, dry cleaners, tailors
• Schools, daycare centers, kids’ camps and enrichment programs

Click here to view

New mover campaigns bring a higher return on investment than any other customer acquisition method. If you can capture the business of a new mover, you have a higher chance of keeping that business for as long as the consumer stays in the home.

So, how do you make that initial contact count? At Shamrock, we help businesses make powerful connections with consumers through integrated branded marketing campaigns. Here’s a few new mover campaign tips:

Start with solid data. Using data analytics, gather information about these potential customers—details that will help to shape focused, targeted messaging and delivery methods that resonate with new movers and bring them to your business.

Maintain brand consistency across all channels. Integrated campaigns include multiple touches: Direct mail postcards, emails, social media, event-based marketing and signage. It’s important to not only identify the channels that best connect with your demographic, but also to create content/messaging that speaks to that audience, while being true to your brand. 

Test and redeploy. An essential part of comprehensive program management is post-campaign reporting—and then redeploying in segment areas, as appropriate (i.e. follow-up email or social media touches).

If you’re interested in learning more, I’d like to share with you some of our new mover marketing success stories. Connect with me at tconnor@shamrockcompanies.net or call me direct at 440-250-2155.

Tim Connor

5 Digital Advertising Tips To Maximize Your Next Campaign

Digital advertising has hit its stride—and shows no signs of slowing down. As consumers, it feeds our desire for on-demand information; and as advertisers, digital channels deliver instant gratification through real-time feedback. Unlike the old days of launching campaigns and waiting on outcomes, modern digital advertising provides campaign tracking and results that help us to make stronger and more immediate brand connections.

As with any channel, it’s smart to stay apprised of best-practices. If you’re ready to brush up on your digital advertising skills—rules that also apply to digital marketing—a recent Forbes article offers five tips to help you maximize your next campaign:

1. Use Clear Calls-To-Action. Tell your audience what you want them to do next: Upgrade today. Book now. Get involved. Successful campaigns include a call to action (CTA) that is clear, concise—and brand-driven.

Consider that your message is likely being viewed on a device that’s also displaying pop-up ads and alerts, so make your CTA stand out with clean, crisp graphics: It should funnel the reader to the next step, which is closer to the point of conversion.    

2. Create Compelling Messaging. A study from Microsoft Corp. found that people generally lose concentration after eight seconds. So, keep it simple; and always, make it relevant. Consider that digital advertising doesn’t offer much space to work with: Make every word count by using colorful language, evoking emotion, highlighting value, providing incentive, or making a strong brand connection.

3. Link to Designated Landing Pages. You’ve got your audience knocking at your front door; now, you need to welcome them in: Drive users to a landing page on your site that is relevant to them—this will help with user engagement, strengthen brand identity and boost conversion rates.

4.Imagery Matters: Make It Memorable. Capture the user’s attention by using graphics and images that resonate. Again, your ad is likely competing with other online content, so use images that draw the user in and that tell your brand story.

5.Test, Monitor & Redeploy. Start by paying attention to the finer details: Test your campaign first by deploying and making sure that all links function properly and that messaging is targeted to the correct segment. 

After launching the campaign, track results. If one segment is out-performing another, take a look at the messaging and consider retargeting. The beauty of digital is the real-time tracking and the ability to edit and then quickly redeploy to deliver the right message, to the right audience, at the right time.

The Forbes article offers some great examples of digital ad campaigns done right. To read the entire article, click on the link below:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/gabrielshaoolian/2017/04/24/5-digital-marketing-tips-to-increase-your-brands-growth-online-and-improve-ad-results/

Do you have digital advertising tips or rules that guide your campaigns? Please share your thoughts at tconnor@shamrockcompanies.net.

All the best,
Tim Connor