Question

Topic: Advertising/PR

Money To Spend

Posted by Anonymous on 6/6/2011 at 6:34 PM ET 500 Points
I've got $10,000.00 to spend to lift a new website out of the "Ground Clutter".

Any ideas on how this could be best spent would be appreciated...
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by Gail@PUBLISIDE on 6/6/2011 at 6:42 PM Member
    You can get a lot for $10,000.00 depending on what you need. Shop around. Tell programmers/designers what you're looking for. Fees are very competitive.
  • Posted on 6/6/2011 at 7:00 PM Author
    I guess I should have mentioned that the website is already up and operating. Sorry...

    www.memorialsovernight.com

    One of my marketing problems has always been that if a potential customer hits the website and LOVES the concept... If they don't have a NEED at that moment, there's no sale.
  • Posted by mgoodman on 6/6/2011 at 7:48 PM Moderator
    How do people find your website? Who is your ideal prospect? What do you know about your customers? What motivated them to buy?

    The first thing I'd do in your situation is learn all I can about who buys from you and why. Once you have that information it will be a lot easier to lift the new website out of the "Ground Clutter."

    One thing you may need to do is create specific landing pages for your different audiences and different sources of traffic. The website now doesn't have a clear benefit promise or a clear and compelling call to action. "Honor your loved one" is very non-specific. You probably want to go for an end-end-benefit to the customer ... e.g., "friends and relatives will think you're particularly thoughtful/respectful when you ..."

    You may need a positioning project more than a website improvement. If you want more on positioning, here's a start: https://bit.ly/myLkKm . Or pick up a copy of Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind, by Al Ries and Jack Trout : https://bit.ly/clLSwK .


  • Posted on 6/7/2011 at 1:43 AM Author
    Jeez, Guys...

    Not meaning to slight your knowledge, experience, skillsets nor perspicacity here, but:

    Grisolia is talking semantics... Of course, I want a return for my $10K. Ergo, that makes it an "investment".

    I understand positioning also. As a matter of fact, I have the book you mentioned in my library. That said, if the product is positioned as well as any in the world, it is still not going to sell if nobody SEES it.

    BTW... In a perfect world, the positioning SHOULD be as an economical alternative to flowers, but in our testing... Whenever I MENTION flowers, the respondents mentally make an irrevocable jump to the mindset that I'm promoting funerals WITHOUT flowers. This is decidedly NOT the case, but once that leap is made, the mental picture is irreparable and the entire concept bites the dust.

    I'm thinking perhaps:
    1.) A quick and clean 30 second TV ad
    2.) A cable TV placement package
    3.) Solicit endorsements by major Charities and Non-Profits coupled with press releases announcing the alliances.

    Like that.

    Good plan? Bad plan? Changes? Enhancements? Comments? Questions?
  • Posted by mgoodman on 6/7/2011 at 7:35 AM Moderator
    You wrote, " ... if the product is positioned as well as any in the world, it is still not going to sell if nobody SEES it."

    I would add that if the product is NOT positioned properly, spending money to generate awareness is likely to be a waste of money.

    I believe you have a positioning problem first, and a visibility/awareness problem second. If you don't fix the positioning problem then the awareness problem is really irrelevant.

    Bump your positioning up to an end-end-benefit level. THEN we'll deal with the awareness issue. Otherwise you're going to be wasting your $10,000.

    None of your ideas about how to promote the product are wrong/bad. They could all work. But not if the message isn't right for your target audience.

    I'm not trying to make your life difficult. I'm trying to hold up a mirror on what you're doing so you can see it more objectively. Feel free to ignore me. I won't be offended.
  • Posted on 6/7/2011 at 11:36 AM Author
    mgoodman,

    I'd never ignore advice from someone with your experience and expertise...

    BTW, I agree with your... ahem, "Position"...

    Anyone else?
  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 6/7/2011 at 11:41 AM Member
    Because you agreed that "If they don't have a NEED at that moment, there's no sale" - then a TV ad is likely to be wasted money for the general population.

    Google AdWord's keywords tool shows the major keyword people are searching for are "sympathy card", "sympathy gifts" and "funeral gifts" - so PPC may be a wise investment.

    Funeral directors are another logical avenue. Consider advertising (or approaching an editor for an article) in magazines/websites dedicated to directors.
  • Posted on 6/7/2011 at 11:51 AM Author
    "Because you agreed that "If they don't have a NEED at that moment, there's no sale" - then a TV ad is likely to be wasted money for the general population."

    Our thinking at this time is that a TV ad would heighten public awareness of the EXISTENCE of the service. It would also hit SOME that DO have an existing need. Metaphorically, auto industries consistently advertise knowing that, relatively speaking, few have a need for a new car at that moment.
    Financially, if the ads DO draw orders, the profit can be plowed back into further ads.

    "Funeral directors are another logical avenue. Consider advertising (or approaching an editor for an article) in magazines/websites dedicated to directors."

    We looked at that target... Keep in mind the time factor for having a card AT the funeral is very short. The only ones doing a one-on-one meet with the Funeral Director would be the immediate family who would be the recipient of the card (so to speak) instead of the sender. We feel the general public to be the target audience.
  • Posted by mgoodman on 6/7/2011 at 12:01 PM Moderator
    On your website, you state this purpose:

    Memorials Overnight is an organization that is dedicated to finding new and innovative ways to direct additional funding to established Charities, Churches and other worthwhile causes.

    That's the first problem. You're setting yourself up as the "traffic cop" to direct additional funding to charities, churches and other worthwhile causes.

    Why wouldn't you be dedicated instead to providing a distinctive and tangible way to show that a person cares deeply about the loss of a friend or loved one, so that the immediate family will immediately understand that the donor is genuinely connected to their loss.

    When people send flowers, cards, food or other gifts, they want to be noticed and valued themselves, and to be appreciated for their expression of loss to the family. They're not so much interested in making sure that their money finds its way to a charitable cause.

    You're missing the boat, in my opinion, when it comes to the mission/purpose -- and the benefit positioning. It's all about WIIFM.
  • Posted on 6/7/2011 at 12:03 PM Author
    EXCELLENT !! Home run !

    This is EXACTLY the type of input I need !

    MANY thanks !

    Keep 'em coming...
  • Posted by Peter (henna gaijin) on 6/7/2011 at 1:15 PM Member
    I agree with the others that looking at what media to use to promote the venture may not be something right for you yet. I went to your web site and wasn't exactly sure what you were doing. My first impression is that you arrange for memorials (like benches with deceased person's names on them in parks). Only when I read the answers from the others did I realize that you are arranging for donations to charities.

    Mgoodman is spot on about how you should be framing this.

    I saw very little usage of any of the standard steps for search engine optimization used (for example, you have a 0 page rank - which would be normal for a new site, but it where you want to be). Could be worth spending some of the money to do that. Even without doing this, there are many are simple steps, such as changing the Title HTML tag from "<title>Memo Inc.</title>" to something more descriptive like "<title>Sympathy charitable donations for the loss of a friend or loved one</title>" (this was just a quick throw together - think through what mgoodman said and make this part of it).

    BTW - what is "Memos Inc". Being a different name, I think it could confuse people. If memorial overnight is owned by Memo Inc., may be better to just put this info on the About Us page, unless there is some synergy benefit to being known as part of Memo Inc.
  • Posted by Gary Bloomer on 6/7/2011 at 6:57 PM Accepted
    TV ads will help you spend a lot of production money very quickly.

    But unless you can buy a good amount of cheap air
    time to go with that production money (to sustain your visibility—which will decline the farther into the wee small hours you go because although airtime will be cheaper, fewer people will be watching), you'll be wasting your money with very little return on your investment.

    Car dealers (and furniture resellers) spend lots of money on television advertising because (through incentives and their ability to pass on costs and to buy large blocks of time at discounted rates) it costs them little to do so.

    At the moment your website offers no clear, instant message as to what you offer, who you offer it for, or where you offer it.

    The main headline "Memo Inc" tells me nothing about who you are, what you offer, or why your products ought to matter to me as your potential buyer.

    When you make buyers trawl for the information they'll skedaddle PDQ. Engage me as your audience! Your message needs to talk to me about me and about my needs. You don't do this.

    Your site also has no personality and as such it evokes no connection. Without something to build relationships, your message ain't going anywhere any time soon.

    Your site also has no link structure to talk of. You have one incoming link (I know. I checked). Y'all need to fix that if you want any visibility online.

    Your key phrase structure is all over the shop. No one's looking for Memorials Overnight. What are you offering?

    And then there are your social media connections ... all of which lead nowhere.

    I'll gladly write a detailed positioning strategy for you.
    My terms are $10,000, with 50 percent up front.

    Gary Bloomer
    The Direct Response Marketing Guy™
    Princeton, NJ, USA

  • Posted on 6/7/2011 at 7:23 PM Author
    Thanks, Guys !!

    This is the type of constructive criticism I need !

    Keep it comin'...
  • Posted by Gary Bloomer on 6/7/2011 at 7:37 PM Member
    My terms to write a detailed positioning strategy are $10,000, with 50 percent up front.

    Gary Bloomer
    The Direct Response Marketing Guy™
    Princeton, NJ, USA

  • Posted on 6/7/2011 at 7:43 PM Author
    I believe you may have mentioned that somewhere along the line...
  • Posted by Gary Bloomer on 6/7/2011 at 10:12 PM Member
    Really? Wow. If this is the snarky way you respond to
    the people trying to help you no wonder you have so few customers. Go spend that cash on those TV spots now
    while it's still burning a hole in your pocket.
  • Posted on 6/7/2011 at 10:57 PM Author
    I belong to other "Help" forums of various natures and it's against their rules to solicit business directly. There's usually a separate place for advertisements and solicitations.

    With that in mind...

    Sorry if I offended you... I thought you were joking.
  • Posted by Harry Hallman on 6/8/2011 at 8:51 AM Member
    I agree with Gary Bloomer. The site is a mess. It took me a long time to understand that you sell a card for $29.95 and that the main benefit is it is at the Funeral home the day of the wake. I think???

    When I first saw the page I thought you were selling cement benches as memorials. The order process is also difficult and has lots of barriers to finalizing the purchase.

    I think you should spend some of that money on a marketing strategy and a redo of the web site before you spend on marketing communications. I think (hope) that was what Mr. Bloomer was trying to convey in his pseudo sales pitch post. I am sure he was joking.
  • Posted on 6/9/2011 at 9:46 AM Author
    I appreciate ALL your critique, ideas, suggestions...

    I thought Gary Bloomer's to be the most comprehensive.
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