Case Study Papers - How to make them a killer marcom tool

 Recently the design team at my client eNoah Solutions wanted to pick my brain on the case-studies they would like to have on their website. I told them I will come back to them with a structure and sat down to write the salient points of a good case-study paper.
Then it dawned on me "Why not use this opportunity to practice what I preach!" So here its a sample case study on case-study!
(Right Click on the image below and open in NEW WINDOW for a readable view)

CASE-STUDY PAPER

Had fun doing this.. so more to follow on similar communication tools
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Please leave your comments and suggestions below.

If you like this post, share it with your friends using the Social links on the right side of this post

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SreeRam is a marketing communications consultant for SMBs – based in Chennai, South India.
The work of his consultancy firm can be viewed by clicking on NATHAN’S MEDIA GROUP.
He can be reached by calling 0-934 000 66 00 or mailing - nathansmedia@gmail.com

5 ways to be a success on Facebook

5 ways to be a success on Facebook -

         1.       Be Regular

         2.       Be Relevant

         3.       Be Fun

         4.       Be Varied

         5.       Be Family

Earlier I had given tips on better blogging, effective emails and productive PR. Now I share a few tips on facebook marketing, after running my personal page and a page for passion/business- since 2008.

Be Regular -

·         * Anything done in a sporadic manner lacks credibility.

      Your audience will start doubting your commitment to them.

·        *  Even in bad times don't stop communicating.
      A classic example from politics is DMK leader Karunanidhi. He was out of power for 14 years when MGR was Chief Minister of TamilNadu. But Karuna held the DMK party together through the trough. DMK's vote share took only a small beating, since he was engaging his cadres with activities. Eventually, when MGR died, Karuna could win the next election easily – after 14 years!

That’s the power of constant engagement.

Be Relevant -

·        *  Fix objectives for your page.
Ask yourself "Why I am communicating on FB? What am I trying to achieve?" Once the goal is defined, all your posts, replies and comments should reinforce that objective.

·         * What could be the Objectives, is a separate post, which will follow at a later date.

·         However tempting it may be to post something interesting but not relevant to the product / service, DON’T post.

You are giving your audience opportunity to go off on a tangent.
If it happens regularly, your community will stop looking at you as a subject-matter expert. The intense committed audience will go away and you will be left with the periphery crowd.  

Your rejoinder may be "Won't I bore my audience?!"

Be Fun -

·         * Sticking to the objective doesn't necessarily mean you have to dour and monotonous.
 Change your tone and let your hair down once in a while. That will be refreshing.

·         * Take off the Teacher or Parent hat and wear the Friend hat once in a while
Being academic and always advising is one of the effective ways of putting off your people. Haven't we seen enough self-righteous Teachers and Parents!

Be Varied -

·        *  Engage your audience with multimedia.
Even while not deviating from the core offering, give images, jokes, real incidents, blogs, news and videos. Research has clearly shown that a post with visual content has higher chances of getting read than a plain text one.

·         * Remember you are creating touch points with somebody
Even if you don’t see Likes or Comments don't give up. Be pragmatic to the fact that majority don’t take the effort to react openly in a forum.
I post cartoons regularly on my personal page. When I meet some friends they mention they loved some cartoon of mine, even though they haven’t responded on the page. That’s how some people are! Accept it.

Be Family -

·         * Do NOT assume all conversations have to originate from you.
Encourage people to have their own discussions, as long as it is relevant.

·         * It’s a sign of a good healthy community, when all participants talk and interact amongst themselves.
You can be happy you have done your job in converting 'your' facebook page to 'their' page

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Please leave your comments and suggestions below.

If you like this post, share it with your friends using the Social links on the right side of this post

……………………………………………………………………………………
SreeRam is a marketing communications consultant for SMBs – based in Chennai, South India.
The work of his consultancy firm can be viewed by clicking on NATHAN’S MEDIA GROUP.
He can be reached by calling 0-934 000 66 00 or mailing - nathansmedia@gmail.com

TIPS ON BLOGGING

"Ever since her grand son taught her to blog,
she never pampers us"

Everybody and his uncle is into blogging.. 

which just shows how dormant creativity is waiting to be unleashed inside everyone of us.

Here are some tips to make your blogs more engaging.. 

Imperative if you are blogging with a commercial agenda …
just useful if you are blogging to make the world know your viewpoint.

MAKE YOUR BLOG POSTS SHORT

• Ideally the posts should be between 300 to 500 words.
• Don't demand people's attention for more than a few minutes.

TREAT BLOGS LIKE A SHORT STORY

• One Post = One Idea
• Take one idea and stick to it. No need for extensive elaboration.
  
  in other words...

 ENTER LATE. EXIT EARLY

• This is a rule in constructing a scene in movies - Without getting embroiled in what happened before this scene, the narration starts with some minimum cues to make sense for the viewer..and, once the purpose of the scene in the story is served, narration moves on to next scene.
• Similarly, edit your preamble and summing ups.

ATLEAST BE HUMOUROUS, IF YOU CANNOT BE FUNNY

• Everybody likes to smile..so avoid being morose and monotonous.

IF YOU CAN’T BE HUMOUROUS, ATLEAST BE PASSIONATE

• Bare your heart and be provocative
• Remember, you can be either loved or hated, but never ignored.

IF YOUR SUBJECT IS SERIOUS OR ELABORATE, MAKE IT AN EXTERNAL LINK

• If your subject is serious and cannot brook any dilution, make the blog post short and indicate what the reader can expect if he wants to dig down further, by clicking that link.

BE CONSISTENT IN TONE & CONTENT

• Branding is a long term exercise and it’s all about taking up a Character & Attitude.
• So your language and presentation should be consistent enough to reinforce the mental image you want to portray.

BE REGULAR

• ..unlike me.

     SreeRam, Communications Consultant,
Chennai, India.

     9340006600, nathansmedia@gmail.com
FACEBOOK - http://bit.ly/nmg_fb
LINKED IN -  http://in.linkedin.com/in/ksr96
TWEET - @kravMagaSreeRam

Is it PR? When courier boys become power brokers!

When courier boys become power brokers

"...in any ministry, if there is no vested interest in a proposal, nobody is interested to push it forward and upward. It gets a silent burial."

Last month, just a few days before the Nira Radia tapes kicked up dirt, I was in a radio debate on the "future of PR", which was moderated by Sanjay Pinto, of NDTV.
Sanjay Pinto, at one point, strongly made a statement that the PR fraternity were mostly doing a 'courier' job. Oh yeah! I smugly smirk now since Nira Radia just proved what heights a proactive 'courier' girl can reach!

Lobbying - is the second oldest profession
Lobbying to get the attention of powers-that-be towards an issue did not start with Nira Radia. All the industrial bodies were formed to collectively conduit the aspirations of an industry. What do CII, NASSCOM or any industrial body do in the months before the March budget presentation? Go to Tirupathi and pray?
Come on now, grow up, please. Accept the reality in any system where there is concentration of power, influencers will thrive like amoeba. In the corridors of power at Delhi or any nation's capital, every file in every ministry has the tag of a lobbyist.
In fact, in any ministry, if there is no vested interest in a proposal, nobody is interested to push it forward and upward. It gets a silent burial.

Have’t YOU lobbied?
Everybody who snort self-righteously and bemoan the state-of-the-nation should ask themselves whether they have patiently waited for the school's decision in giving admission to their son or daughter. How many contacts they would have tapped into to reach the correspondent or the Head mistress?!

Don’t equate PR with lobbying
PR is much more than mere Lobbying. Content marketing or collaborative marketing using social media apart from traditional channels will become the mainstay of the PR industry.
Unfortunately, since PR industry has no entry criteria, the influencers who have no other apparent skills, cloak their murky services under the euphemism of PR. That provides them a formal front.

What the PR industry should do
Like the advertising industry which has unified to provide diploma courses, the PR industry should come together and make a curriculum. At least a short course will set the path for giving a semblance of professionalism and be a step in regaining respectability. 

SreeRam, Communications Consultant, Chennai, India.
9340006600, nathansmedia@gmail.com

MARCOM BLOG -  http://marketing-communications-ksr.blogspot.com/
FACEBOOK - http://bit.ly/nmg_fb
LINKED IN -  http://in.linkedin.com/in/ksr960
TWEET - @kravMagaSreeRam

How to write better Email that retains the reader?

The 13 points which will hold a reader, who is making a choice of what to read from the numerous emails flooding his in-box -
   1. Ask the 4 Key Questions before you begin to write -
          * What am I selling (at emotional level)?
          * To whom am I selling?
          * Why am I selling this now (will it make sense to the customer)?
          * What do I want my reader to do (Calls to Action)?
   2. Consider Your Font Style: Sans-serif fonts, such as Arial, Verdana and Helvetica, are easier to read online than serif. If people find it difficult to read your copy, they won't!
   3. Read Your Copy out loud: This will help you hear what your readers hear.
   4. Cut the Clutter: William Zinsser wrote that "clutter is the disease of American writing." The quickest way to improve your copy is by removing any uneccesary words such as "that"or "to."
   5. Use the Rhythm of 3: List your examples in groups of three. The Rhythm gives a great cadance to your copy.
   6. Use Bucket Brigade Words: Bucket brigade words help you move your copy forward. They include remember, and, but, consider, however, for example..and more!
   7. Vary Sentence Length: It is important to vary your sentence length to hold your reader's attention. And don't be afraid to use sentence fragments - this isn't your college English class!
   8. Differentiate Between Features vs. Benefits: Features are what the product has. Benefits are what it will provide the customers. The customer will always ask, "What's in it for me?" Be sure you tell them.
   9. Write In the Second Person: Focus on one person (you/your) rather than a group (our customers). This makes your reader feel special and highlights how the product can benefit them.
  10. Write Less Copy: People read 25% slower online than offline, so you need to write less copy so they will read it.
  11. Don't Hide Your Key Points: Keep your most important points at the beginning of paragraphs, bullets and lists.
  12. Keep Paragraphs Short: Make sure your paragraphs are no more than 3 lines long. Otherwise you might lose your reader's attention.
  13. Remember Odd vs. Even: Odd numbers are easier to remember than even, so use an odd number whenever possible.
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SreeRam, Communications Consultant, Chennai, India.
9340006600, nathansmedia@gmail.com

MARCOM BLOG -  http://marketing-communications-ksr.blogspot.com/
FACEBOOK - http://bit.ly/nmg_fb
LINKED IN -  http://in.linkedin.com/in/ksr960
TWEET - @kravMagaSreeRam

PR nightmare vs Opportunity PR - on Social media

UNITED BREAKS GUITARS - How a PR nightmare for United Airlines became a dream-come-true PR opportunity for Taylor Guitars

The PR Nightmare for United Airlines

The song "United breaks Guitars" made YouTube history in 6th July 2009 by garnering 1,50,000 views within a day.  Since then it has propelled a little known musician to big time, Dave Carroll -who today has become synonymous with a disgruntled customer taking on a big corporation - the typical David vs. Goliath story which public love.

It all started with some baggage handlers' negligence in an airport. (If you are not already familiar with what actually triggered this fiasco, click on this). 

Anyway, this is NOT about how United Airlines mishandling of a customer grouse has made viral-marketing case history with 9.4 million views and many TV shows

This is about

How Taylor Guitars created the PR opportunity

In a classic case of ambush marketing, Taylor Guitars reacted really fast. They put on their own YouTube video on 10th July 2009, within 4 days of "United breaks guitars" coming online.

In this video Bob Taylor reassures all guitarists how they can restore their damaged instruments. He also guides guitarists to the company website where advice on transporting guitars and airlines' policy are available. Bob goes further to promise support for even guitars of other make!

That’s pretty efficient.. considering within 48 hours they sensed an opportunity, wrote a neat script, probably updated their website, shot the video in the factory, which makes it very credible.

And till date (1 Nov 2010) this video has got more than 0.5 million views and the positive vibes are evident from the viewer comments.

Forget Crisis PR for the moment. Let’s talk Opportunity PR

Tons of advice is available on handling disappointed customers. Especially I have hinted at negative repercussions of Social media earlier. I may probably add more tips on Crisis management using social media later. But this article is more to highlight the other perspective - that’s jumping at a remote opportunity and getting a positive rub-off using social media.

What’s evident is Taylor Guitars has been active on social media since 2007, going by their YouTube channel establishment. They give tremendous visibility to musicians with Taylor road shows. These road shows are also featured on YouTube and promoted in FaceBook.

The inference is Taylor Guitars seem to have invested some dedicated resources for social media. This makes sense, since creative professionals and musicians relate to social messages more intensely, than a left-brained professional.

And its evident Taylor Guitar kept its eyes and ears sharp with constant monitoring of the web-landscape. So when "United breaks guitars" video started gaining viral popularity, they were able to identify an opportunity to seize and leverage it asap.

SreeRam, Communications Consultant, Chennai, India.
9340006600, nathansmedia@gmail.com

MARCOM BLOG -  http://marketing-communications-ksr.blogspot.com/
FACEBOOK - http://bit.ly/nmg_fb
LINKED IN -  http://in.linkedin.com/in/ksr960
TWEET - @kravMagaSreeRam

Why should SMB invest in social media?

Till now I was analysing Social media from the perspective of the advertising professional. Now I am viewing it from the Client's angle; especially the SMBs ( Small & Medium Business) who lack the resources of big business.

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Why should SMB invest in social media?

To get our perspective right, at the outset, let’s first ask –
What has happened to the consumer?!

In Phase 1 - from 1900 to 1940s
The market was NOT crowded.
The consumer readily lapped up if the product/service addressed his real/latent need

In Phase 2 - 1940s to 1990s
The consumer had choice. So s/he bought products/services based on tangible differentiators

In Phase 3 - since 1990s
Choices are aplenty and even the differentiators are blurred.
So the consumer has started making decisions based on intangible factors.

The business house of today cannot sit back complacently just because they have a quality product/ service and they advertise it . You will end up as 'One among the Many".
They have to relate to The Consumer and make him feel “Ok. These guys are not just trying to sell me something; they also listen to me and go that extra mile to address me as a person rather than a nameless consumer."

So the key actions to build a bonding have become 'Listening' and 'Interacting'.

The business has to look beyond one transaction and endeavour to build a relationship through 'Collaborative Marketing'.
Collaborative marketing, using social media tools, apart from placing you in the consideration list of The Consumer, ensures two additional benefits -

• Repeat transactions 
• Referrals, which are much more powerful than paid advertising

The critical relevance of Social media for SMBs (Small & Medium Business)

Big business, with deep pockets, can afford to spend on paid advertising using mass media. In contrast, SMBs cannot “Spray & Pray” using mass media.
In fact, SMBs don’t have a need for mass awareness. Even if they attempt it for creating initial awareness, it’s tough to sustain the spending.

Most of the small businesses depend on a niche or community. It makes financial sense to use targeted communication, which does not require big budgets.
This is where Social media steps in for SMBs.

SreeRam, Communications Consultant, Chennai, India.
9340006600, nathansmedia@gmail.com

MARCOM BLOG -  http://marketing-communications-ksr.blogspot.com/
FACEBOOK - http://bit.ly/nmg_fb
LINKED IN -  http://in.linkedin.com/in/ksr960
TWEET - @kravMagaSreeRam