The Competitive Advantage

September 14, 2016

I have a stalker… and that’s good news!

True story… I received an email last week that began with, “Steve, I’ve been following you for a while now…” I didn’t know whether to be flattered… or scared!

As it turned out, it wasn’t me, exactly, that she was following (whew!)… it was my writing – my blog posts, articles and eBooks.

And over time, it grew the perception in her mind – and provided the proof – that I knew what I was talking about and that I might be able to help her. Guess what? That is exactly how content marketing is supposed to work for a professional services firm. (I love it when a plan comes together!)

February 16, 2016

Your Clients Don’t Have Research Problems

I know, for most firms in the research industry, that statement seems a little counter-intuitive… but it’s true. That CPG firm you work with doesn’t really care about focus groups. The automotive company doesn’t get all that excited about conjoint analysis. And that healthcare firm… let’s just say that max-diff doesn’t keep them up at night.

The fact is, your clients don’t have research problems… they have business problems – that they need research to help solve.

February 9, 2016

Content Marketing? But I’m a lousy writer!

Content Marketing is a core marketing initiative for many – if not most – firms in the market research industry. A good Content Marketing program can position your firm in the markets you serve, build awareness, generate and nurture sales leads and so much more.

But the biggest [perceived] obstacle related to content marketing – particularly among the principals of small and mid-sized firms – is this, “But I’m a lousy writer!”

And while that may be what many MR professionals believe… honestly, it’s not that true. Based on our work with firms throughout our industry and across the country, here are 5 ideas to explode that myth and get you over the hurdle:

October 19, 2015

Does anybody even care what’s on your website?

Fact… your website is your top marketing tool – the #1 place prospective clients will go to do their due diligence on your firm.

So, do me a favor right now. Click over to your firm’s website and browse around for a few minutes. Go ahead… I’ll wait!

What did you see?

If your site is like most, you’ve waxed poetic about all of the services you offer, how great your employees are, your ‘special’ internal processes and even your mission statement.

OK, I’ll say it, “Nobody cares!” Not that much, anyway.

September 8, 2015

Why Spelling and Grammar Matter in Marketing

A guest post by Debra Semans. Based in Atlanta, Debra, is the lead writer for Harpeth Marketing, as well as an independent market researcher and focus group moderator. She can be reached at Debra@HarpethMarketing.com.

I am a Grammar Nerd. I know the difference between “there”, “their”, and “they’re.” I know about the Oxford comma. The difference between active and passive voice is clear to me.

I read your Facebook posts, your Tweets, your emails, and I judge you for your typos and grammatical errors. My esteem for a company drops if they have typos and grammatical errors in their materials.

I know it is not my most endearing quality, but there it is. I admit it.

However, does any of that matter? Or, am I simply hyper-critical and old-fashioned?

Apparently it does matter – quite a bit.

July 29, 2015

Need Fresh Content for Content Marketing? Do Survey Research!

A Guest post by Debra Semans. Based in Atlanta, Debra, is the lead writer for Harpeth Marketing, as well as an independent researcher and focus group moderator. She can be reached at Debra@HarpethMarketing.com.

While the debate rages about whether “Content is King”, many marketing researchers feel like Content is some maniacal despot, or at least a weighty albatross hung around your neck. You already have a 70-hour (or more) a week job! How are you supposed to make time to produce fresh content? And how do you make it fresh when everyone else is publishing content on the same topics? How many blogs on customer satisfaction measurement can the world endure?

Ironically, marketing researchers have the best source for fresh content right at their fingertips. I’m talking about marketing research! The results of a quick survey can fuel your blog posts for weeks.

January 20, 2015

Top articles and blog posts of 2014

We spend a lot of time writing articles, blog posts and other content for our industry – at least one article every month and one blog post every week – and we have since the day we opened our doors. So, out of curiosity, we looked back to see the top articles and blog posts of 2014.

We looked at the articles on our website, posts on our blog and posts to the publisher section of my LinkedIn profile… and listed the Top 3 most popular pieces from each one:

November 11, 2014

10 Website Tips for the New Year

At this time of year, some firms will take on the gargantuan task of rewriting and redesigning their website to help kick-off the New Year. But most won’t. If that describes you, it’s still a good time to step back and take a critical look at your website to make sure it’s as good as it can be.

To help get you started, here are 10 [pretty easy] website tips that can help enhance the effectiveness of your most important marketing tool: