M&R Magazine: Issue 1

10 WAYS TO GROW YOUR BUSINESS 13

5 Reasons You Need a Marketing Plan 3

Improving Client Retention & Lowering Acquisition Cost 9

New Website, Now What?

19

Issue 1: 2018 / 2019

LETTER FROM M&R Over the years, we’ve written and shared hundreds of thousands of words around the topics of business growth and strategy. Each article is inspired by you, the great business owners we interact with every day – city officials working to boost the economy, nonprofits serving as cancer advocates, attorneys fighting for the rights of the abused, physicians bringing care to young and old, and service providers taking care of our daily needs. Your commitment pushes us to work our hardest.

Running or managing a business is a tireless endeavor and each day is full of challenges.

Have you ever found yourself at the end of the day wondering what has been accomplished?

Each day, our attention is diverted a hundred times and we lose sight of our top priority. Over the last couple of months, we’ve been encouraging our team to focus on the big rocks.

What are big rocks, you ask? The idea is that our day is consumed by a lot of small rocks, or tasks, such as emails, phone calls, and pop-up meetings. These small rocks keep us from getting to the big rocks. The big rocks usually stay trapped on a sticky note or buried in your inbox. Each day you look up and realize there’s no time left, so your most important task gets pushed to the next day.

Part of our role as a marketing agency is to help our clients with their big rocks. In the pages ahead, you’ll find four articles that will help push those big rocks a bit further: • • • •

10 Ways to Grow Your Business Today 5 Reasons You Need a Marketing Plan Improving Client Retention & Lowering Acquisition Cost New Website, Now What? 5 Ways to Optimize Your Website

We hope you enjoy reading these as much as we enjoyed writing them. And, if you find this resource helpful, share it! If you want a few extra copies, call us!

1 • M&R 2018/2019

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PG 3

5 Reasons you Need a Marketing Plan

PG 7

Service Focus & Case Study: Marketing Plan & Strategy

PG 9

Improving Client Retention & Lowering Acquisition Cost

PG 11

Service Focus & Case Study: Content Marketing

PG 17

Service Focus & Case Study: Pay Per Click Advertising

PG 19

10 WAYS TO GROW YOUR BUSINESS

New Website, Now What? 5 Ways to Optimize your New Website

PG 23

Service Focus & Case Study: Website Design & Development

PG 25

Learn More About M&R Marketing

PG 13

2018/2019 M&R • 2

5 REASONS

YOU NEED A MARKETING PLAN FOCUSED EVALUATION CREATES A MUCH DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF YOUR BUSINESS AND PAYS HUGE DIVIDENDS.

B

efore we highlight the advantages of a marketing plan, let’s quickly define what it is. Every business utilizes marketing to engage their target market. But, maybe you don’t map out your marketing for the year; maybe you approach it as you go. A marketing plan does exactly what it says, it plans your marketing and puts a strategy in place.

3 • M&R 2018/2019

It has three phases: (1) the discovery phase, (2) the creation phase, and (3) the implementation phase. The discovery phase is an important step that is often skipped. It does several things: • Evaluates your branding and current marketing • Evaluates your company’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) • Interviews key team members • Studies your analytics and other data • Studies your target market • And a few other things When your discovery phase is complete, you will have the research needed to establish your marketing plan and begin putting your plan into writing. This phase will map out every detail – target, message, timeline, budget, and responsible parties.

A marketing plan should be a roadmap for your business’ marketing. The final stage is the implementation, which is usually spread out over 6-12 months.

So, let’s dig in and discuss why you need a marketing plan for your business.

and you need to invest in marketing to your current clients. Each of these scenarios impact your budget.

When your budget is determined by your plan, you will maximize your budget and produce a higher ROI. That’s what happens with a strategy – it eliminates quick decisions that aren’t aligned with your plan and keeps you on track. A plan also helps you measure your success because you know where your money went. If you’ve ever ended your year with no idea how your budget was used, you know how ineffective and frustrating this is.

A MARKETING PLAN SHOULD BE A ROADMAP FOR YOUR BUSINESS’ MARKETING

2 Creates Consistency A marketing plan also increases the consistency of your brand and message. When we help clients plan for their marketing, the real priorities quickly surface. As we work through those areas and move into the planning phase, we create focused campaigns. A great marketing plan will have a consistent message that is aligned with your branding, will be laser focused, and will better reach your target.

3 Encourages Deeper Thought About Your

1 Maximizes Your Marketing Budget and ROI If you’ve ever renovated your home or business, you understand the importance of a budget. We recently completed an extensive renovation of our downtown office and we lived by our budget. It kept us grounded, helped us make educated decisions, created accountability between us and the contractor, and allowed us to better evaluate the end result.

A marketing plan does the exact same thing. If you approach the new year without a marketing plan, you are also approaching it without an accurate marketing budget.

You may have a number listed on your spreadsheet, but how did you arrive at it?

Setting a marketing budget involves more than calculating a percentage of your gross revenue.

Until you complete your discovery and establish your plan, it’s impossible to have a true budget. Maybe you have multiple markets and some are costlier to reach than others. Or maybe you have a new service or product launching this year and you need to allocate more financial resources to it.

Or maybe your customer service is dipping 2018/2019 M&R • 4

Business and Marketing The discovery phase is a great exercise that forces you to think deeply about your business.

Despite its value, it’s difficult for business owners to allocate the time to discuss and plan.

Focused evaluation creates a much deeper understanding of your business and pays huge dividends. It also creates measurable goals that can be evaluated monthly or quarterly to ensure you are on track.

4 Unifies Your Team If your company is anything like ours, you have a team of experts who are passionate about your business, clients, and industry. Your team also interacts with your leads and clients differently than you do as a business owner, especially if you’re a delegator. There is a wealth of information within your staff and you should explore it.

As you involve your team in the marketing plan, it not only improves your marketing but it also unifies your team. When they contribute, they become invested and take ownership. As you evaluate your team, you’ll find clear areas of the marketing plan that they are best suited to monitor, carry out, and own.

This is an asset that is often overlooked.

Share your vision and plan with your team, seek their input, and engage them in its implementation. This will add a lot of value to your business and your culture.

5 Improves Your Chances of Accomplishing Your Marketing Goals When you put something in writing, you immediately increase your chances of accomplishing it.

ONE STUDY REVEALED THAT YOU ARE 21% MORE LIKELY TO ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS IF YOU WRITE THEM DOWN. Here’s some great news – a marketing plan does way more than simply write down your goals. It maps out every single detail of the plan.

When your marketing is set to this level of detail and is implemented by a knowledgeable team who meets regularly to discuss progress, you’ll be setup for a strong performance.

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5 • M&R 2018/2019

THIS IS A REWARDING PROCESS, but it requires time and dedication, and with an infinite number of responsibilities, it can often be hard to complete this process alone. For many of our clients, we lead this entire process – the discovery phase, marketing plan establishment, and the implementation. If you need help getting started, we would love to discuss it with you.

M&R 2018 • 6

SERVICE FOCUS:

MARKETING PLAN

R

egardless of the size of your business or the number of markets you serve, you will be well served by creating and implementing a marketing plan for your business. For the last 10 years, we have met with clients to help them better serve their market.

Discovery Phase Creating a marketing plan is impossible without a deep-dive into the business. During this phase, we hold 1-on-1 interviews with your staff. We work with you to select the people who interact with your clients the most – front desk, account reps, managers, and technicians, for example.

Depending on the client, the discovery phase may also include focus groups or surveys with people outside of your office walls. This information helps direct the next step.

Plan Creation Compiling the results from discovery creates a foundation to then explore your specific market in greater detail. This includes market summary, needs, trends, and growth, along with a SWOT analysis, competitor analysis, and review of current products and offerings.

With all our research and analysis complete, the strategy begins.

Our team of marketers identify your marketing objectives, positioning, and marketing mix. This strategy is based on your specific business needs and value propositions and includes recommended priorities, budgets, and ROI goals.

Presentation Your full marketing plan, now complete, will be delivered and presented to your team. This begins a healthy dialogue of findings and focus.

Execution Our team will manage every single detail, removing the burden from your team while also keeping you involved in the higher-level details and decisions. The plan keeps us focused on the primary objects for the year.

Evaluation A marketing plan is a fluid document. The discovery, analysis, and strategy create a very solid foundation, but we will pivot when the market tells us to. We will evaluate your marketing plan throughout the process by tracking goals and milestones and remaining focused on your ROI. You will receive monthly reporting.

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WESLEYAN COLLEGE Wesleyan College was founded in 1836 and their prestigious history includes being the first college in the world chartered to grant degrees to women, the world’s oldest alumnae association (1859), and the birthplace of the first sororities (1851). Their beautiful, wooded, 200-acre campus is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Wesleyan’s Need Wesleyan College sought the services of M&R Marketing to create a comprehensive marketing plan to assist with recruitment, retention, and brand awareness.

M&R’S SOLUTION Through inter views, sur veys, research, and discovery, M&R created a comprehensive, 12-month marketing plan for Wesleyan College. The plan included detailed recommendations on how to effectively reach Wesleyan’s primary and

secondary target markets. Strong emphasis was placed on the primary target market for Wesleyan – high school females. A combination of digital, traditional, internal, and grassroots recommendations made up the plan.

This plan included interviews with current students, alumnae, faculty, and school leadership. It also included 8 survey groups: • Prospective students • Prospective students who chose another school • Current students • Alumnae • Parents • Faculty & staff • Middle Georgia community • Young professionals

Choosing M&R Marketing to assist with Wesleyan College's marketing and branding efforts was a great decision. The team is sharp, clever, and creative. Their personal attention and customer service is second to none. We are enjoying the relationship and look forward to continuing the partnership in the future.

Mary Ann Howard Director of Communications Wesleyan College

This discovery phase provided tremendous clarity on where Wesleyan should focus to create the most impact in class recruitment.

2018/2019 M&R • 8

IMPROVING

CLIENT RETENTION & LOWERING ACQUISITION COST

F

WHY IS RELATIONSHIP MARKETING VALUABLE?

rom a 30,000-foot view, every business essentially has two markets: current clients and potential clients. A lot of businesses focus their advertising efforts on acquiring new clients and overlook the importance of marketing to their existing clients, which is known as relationship marketing.

WHAT IS RELATIONSHIP MARKETING?

Relationship marketing focuses on your existing clients by finding ways to consistently add value to them and the method and frequency with which you communicate with them. Relationship marketing requires you to have a deep understanding of your client’s needs and how a consistent use of your services can grow their business.

Above all, relationship marketing is focused on cultivating three things: customer loyalty, increased business, and establishing long-term relationships with clients. Whether you are B2B or B2C focused, relationship marketing will add value to your company.

9 • M&R 2018/2019

The cost of a renewal is

11%

of the cost to acquire a new customer.

A five percent increase in customer retention can increase a company’s profitability by

75%

It Creates Loyalty. When you are focused on your client’s needs, you will create customer loyalty. As you develop a deeper understanding of your client, coupled with a knowledge of your own product and how it impacts their industry, you will add a tremendous amount of value to your clients and nurture loyalty.

It Leads to Referrals. Relationship marketing takes care of your current clients, which leads to referrals. The key to gaining a referral is to provide excellent service and remain top of mind. The more positive interaction you have, the more they’ll think of you when a colleague presents a need that aligns with your solutions.

It Has a Lower Cost of Acquisition. The cost and time it takes to acquire a new client varies by industry, but most research says it costs 4-10 times more to advertise to a potential client than to a current client. There are a lot of formulas available to help determine your customer acquisition cost, but know that it is significantly higher than maintaining an existing client. Additionally, some research also says that existing clients spend more on average than new customers.

It Hedges off the Competition. If you work in a competitive space, it’s important to keep your customers happy to prevent them from considering your competitor. There’s an old quote that sounds right out of Office Space, but it’s accurate: “If you don’t take care of your customers, someone else will.”

*Source: https://blog.drift.com/the-power-of-relationship-marketing/

HERE ARE 5 WAYS TO START USING RELATIONSHIP MARKETING

Relationship marketing doesn’t just happen. It must be part of your company’s culture and strategy. Here are a few ways to get started: 1 Place customer service as your top priority.

Maybe you already tell your team that customer service is important, but how apparent is it within your culture? It should exist within every aspect and department of your business. And it must be authentic and consistent. With relationship marketing, you should never make a recommendation for the sake of your own business’ revenue – it must add value to your client. One of the most essential aspects of customer service is caring for the health and growth of their business.

2 Provide free resources.

Knowing your client’s needs allows you to provide applicable resources – and that may not always involve a service. You’ll need to think through the free resources you can provide: helpful blog articles, eBooks, video series, or webinars are all great resources to start with.

As you consistently educate your clients through resources, it will keep you top of mind, demonstrate your expertise, and create trust.

3 Keep data on your clients.

You should know everything about your clients’ business and interactions with them – which services you’ve completed for them, which services you’ve proposed that haven’t been implemented, and what their growth goals are, to name a few. You should also keep centralized notes from your conversations. A good CRM, such as Hubspot, will help you manage a lot of this data.

4 Be where they are.

For example, your clients are on social media and are viewing their email multiple times a day, so you need to engage them in this space.

Even though these are digital interactions, they can still help cultivate relationships. Social media and eNewsletters both offer a low cost, consistent communication method.

RELATIONSHIP MARKETING IS FOCUSED ON CULTIVATING THREE THINGS: CUSTOMER LOYALTY, INCREASED BUSINESS, AND ESTABLISHING LONGTERM RELATIONSHIPS WITH CLIENTS.

CULTURE SHIFT? Relationship marketing may require a cultural shift for your business and a realignment of your marketing efforts, but research shows that it will be a valuable pivot. If you need help establishing and maintaining a relationship marketing strategy, don’t hesitate to contact us.

5 Involve them in your business.

Some great ways to do this are through taking pictures with them to post on social, hosting contests together, and conducting customer surveys where you directly seek their input on matters related to your services.

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EACH OF THESE SUGGESTIONS WILL ENGAGE YOUR CLIENTS AND SHOW THAT YOU VALUE THE RELATIONSHIP. 2018/2019 M&R • 10

SERVICE FOCUS:

CONTENT MARKETING

C

ontent marketing is the creation and distribution of free, contentrelated resources that are used to inform clients and gather leads. The general public is obsessed with research and data, most of which they complete before ever contacting you. They are informed and knowledgeable, and it’s your job to provide them the research they are seeking.

HOW DO I SHARE IT? Content marketing is presented in lots of different ways: 1 Blog Article Provide helpful information to your clients through weekly or monthly articles on your website that cover a topic. We recommend a minimum of 300 words. This is a great platform to produce a series of articles around one topic.

2 Top 10 Lists & Checklists These are a combination of content and graphics and are typically confined to 1 page. They take a large topic and break it into actionable steps.

3 Whitepapers These are heavy on content and can be anywhere from 3-10 pages; typically these cover a more in depth topic that has accompanying research or case studies. There is little design work involved in this process.

4 eBooks This resource is usually 15-30 pages and follows the general format of a physical book – cover, table of contents, content, back cover – but has a heavier design focus. The pages are organized graphically to be more engaging.

5 Infographics Typically used on social media, these present a topic or data graphically and are heavy on imagery and charts.

6 Videos More and more, video is being used to communicate a message.

Creating a video tutorial, a product demo, or office tour can be a very succinct and memorable way to communicate information.

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11 • M&R 2018/2019

After you’ve created your content, you need to share access to the information. There are several great ways to do that, including a monthly eNewsletter, social media posts and ads, Google AdWords, and Bing Ads, all linking to a landing page.

DO I GIVE IT AWAY FOR FREE? Yes! For your larger content pieces, it’s important to make the information a downloadable resource so that you can capture the contact information of the person who downloaded it and add them to your leads pipeline.

Typically, your longer form content is reserved for download, such as whitepapers and eBooks.

You can setup a workflow so that when they download the resource, their email address is automatically added to your eNewsletter contact list.

SERVICES PERFORMED Website Design & Development

Graphic Design

Social Media Design, Advertising, & Management

VIZITECH USA Vizitech USA focuses on 3D technology, augmented reality, and virtual reality learning programs. They work a lot in the educational and training space and take complex topics and expensive learning experiences and recreate them virtually for interactive, safe, and cost-effective learning demonstrations.

Vizitech USA’s Need The topic of technology as a training platform in the educational and training space is heavily researched.

Because Vizitech is at the forefront of this technology, it’s important for them to remain a trusted voice and thought leader in this space.

Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Marketing

Content Marketing

eNewsletter Design & Distribution

M&R’S SOLUTION On top of writing monthly blog articles, we created 3 eBooks to capture lead information: • Bring Learning to Life Like Never Before • 5 Ways Virtual Reality Is Revolutionizing Business • 4 Innovative Ways Businesses Are Benefiting from Augmented Reality We created a Google AdWords and Social Media Advertising campaign that directed a hyper-focused market to landing pages. On these pages, they are given access to the free eBooks by submitting their email address and name. This information is then funneled to Vizitech USA’s sales team and into a MailChimp list specific to the eBook they downloaded for future communication.

2018/2019 M&R • 12

WAYS TO GROW YOUR BUSINESS

I

f you are a small business owner, you know the importance of growing your business. You also know that the responsibility falls on you and it can be a heavy burden. You’re so preoccupied with operating your business and serving your clients, you don’t have the time to work on your business. You’re spending all your time working in your business and none of your time working on your business.

This article highlights 10 activities that will spur growth in your business. The good news is that many of these recommendations are inexpensive and just require your time, hard work, and determination.

13 • M&R 2018/2019

1 Aggressively & Strategically Post to Social Media Regardless of your industry, social media is an effective and necessary advertising channel for your business. Over 65% of all adult internet users in the U.S. are using social media and you need to be part of their conversation. With social media, we recommend starting with 1-2 platforms and managing them well, and then adding to your social mix as you have the resources.

There may be some social channels that are specific to your industry and it’s always good to consider those to reach any niche markets. But don’t overlook the big guys, such as Facebook and Instagram. They are very relevant; in fact, Facebook use accounts for nearly 16% of all time spent on the internet.

Once you’ve chosen your platforms, you need to determine your strategy: • What will you post about?

• Who will you target?

• How will you capture their interest?

Once this is determined, it’s time to start aggressively posting, at least 3-4 times per week.

2 Create A Monthly Budget for Pay Per Click Advertising One of the most cost efficient and highestyielding forms of advertising is Pay Per Click (PPC).

It works exactly like it sounds – you create an ad, place it in front of your demographic, and you pay when someone clicks your ad. The two most popular channels for PPC advertising are Google AdWords and social media advertising. Both channels offer great reporting that allows you to track how engaged your audience is. You’ll want to get familiar with Google Analytics and Facebook Insights, among others.

PPC advertising is highly targeted and allows you to place your ads in front of people based on what they searched, where they live, what their interests are, and much more. It’s also very flexible and offers a defined budget – you can set a daily spend, a per click spend, and utilize their tools to maximize click rate and price. PPC also creates instant traffic to your website and, most importantly, it’s the right traffic.

You can run a successful PPC campaign with just a few hundred dollars a month, and it will be much more targeted than traditional advertising.

2018/2019 M&R • 14

3 Maximize the Use of Your Website When done well, a website will inform leads about your services, share positive experiences from your clients, demonstrate your quality of work and expertise, and show the personality of your company. Your website should also be easy to use, which means it must be mobile-friendly, and it should work to improve your online Google ranking, which happens primarily through maintaining an active blog.

Your website should also serve as the hub for all your advertising efforts.

One way to do this is by creating landing pages, which provide specific and detailed information about a promotion, have multiple calls to action, and allow you to closely track the activity on the page through contact form submissions, call tracking phone numbers, and more.

Your website is the front door to your company. Even if a lead is referred to you by a trusted colleague, their first activity will be to visit your website, and it should be inviting, engaging, and professional.

4 Protect & Build Your Brand We can’t over emphasize the importance of your company’s brand.

Often, it’s easy to be so focused on serving your clients that you forget to serve yourself. It’s like the landscaper whose front yard is full of weeds, the plumber who has leaky pipes at the office, or the hair dresser with split ends and 3-inch roots. While growing your business and fighting hard to gain new clients, don’t forget to protect your brand.

This means your messaging should be consistent, your marketing material professional and innovative, and your value propositions consistently displayed. It’s a good practice to evaluate your brand once a year and make an honest assessment on how everything looks and whether you have everything you need to properly promote your business … and it’s never a bad idea to get an outside opinion or two.

15 • M&R 2018/2019

BUILD A TEAM OF TRUSTED ADVISORS WHO WILL BALANCE OUT YOUR WEAKNESSES AND KEEP YOU FOCUSED ON YOUR STRENGTHS.

5 Build a Team of Trusted Advisors Business owners are highly driven people who are accustomed to hard work. These same people tend to believe they can do it all themselves and trust in their own abilities more than they should. When you’re starting out, you are often operating on small budgets which requires you to do everything yourself.

We strongly recommend that you build a team of trusted advisors who will balance out your weaknesses and keep you focused on your strengths.

The three areas that should be outsourced as quickly as possible are legal, financial, and marketing.

• When you’re setting up your business and establishing your contracts, spend the extra money to hire a skilled business attorney.

• When it’s time to begin invoicing, invest in a good program like Quickbooks, and delegate your recordings and tax filings to a CPA – they will pay for themselves by finding mistakes.

• When your business is off the ground, find a marketing company who can help establish your brand, setup a good website and social platforms, and offer guidance on your target market and advertising budget.

OUTSOURCING THESE AREAS WILL ALLOW YOU TO FOCUS ON GROWING YOUR BUSINESS THROUGH PROVIDING EXCELLENT SERVICE AND WILL BROADEN YOUR TEAM. SPENDING TOO MUCH TIME IN AREAS THAT DON’T PLAY TO YOUR CORE STRENGTHS WILL SIDETRACK YOU AND TAKE YOUR ATTENTION AWAY FROM WHAT’S MOST IMPORTANT.

6 Connect With Other Small Business Owners Business owners and entrepreneurs are a rare breed and it’s helpful to be around like-minded people who can offer encouragement, accountability, and wisdom. You’ll find just as much value in meeting with people within your industry as with people outside of your industry.

Whether it’s discussion about HR problems, cash flow management, growth strategies, or networking, having a group of people that you meet with monthly can extend your team.

9 Read Often To intelligently outsource, you need to have a good knowledge of the topic so that you can ask the right questions and understand the data.

Your understanding of legal issues, financial options, and marketing trends is deepened by what you choose to read and the questions you choose to ask. Good focuses include books and resources on leadership, marketing, anything written by CEOs of major corporations, industry magazines and blogs, and videos on Lynda.com and TED.com.

7 Invest in Your Local Community Your local community supports your business and it’s important to give back.

You have a special skillset and the best way to improve your community is to share it. Having a vibrant community will impact your business. Joining the local chamber, serving on non-profit boards, and donating your time, services, and financial resources are great ways to give back.

10 Nominate Your Business & Your Work for Awards Getting your business name out in the community can offer a nice boost in awareness and revenue. One of the best pieces of information to share is a recent award or press coverage of your work. This may not be the determining factor in someone deciding to use you but it certainly adds to your credibility and your perceived level of experience.

It’s another form of testimonial.

There are awards for every industry, both locally and nationally, and many of them are inexpensive to enter. Early on you may have to nominate yourself, but don’t let that deter you!

8 Become a Local Expert & Trusted Voice Through Speaking Engagements & Featured Writing As a business owner, you can command an audience through speaking and writing intelligently about your specific area of expertise. As you evaluate your business and services, take a minute to think about the different areas that you can become a local expert in.

The simplest place to begin is on your personal platforms. Begin posting weekly blog articles on your website and sharing them on social media. Or buy a cheap video camera and tripod and begin recording tutorial videos to share on YouTube. Once you begin to develop a following, it will lead to other opportunities to write and speak more publicly.



EACH OF THESE RECOMMENDATIONS WILL PLACE YOU ON THE RIGHT PATH.

2018/2019 M&R • 16

SERVICE FOCUS:

PAY PER CLICK ADVERTISING

E

veryone uses the internet to obtain answers to their questions and solutions to their problems. If you want to be the one to answer them, you need to advertise online.

Pay Per Click (PPC) advertising places you in front of the people seeking your services; the two most common PPC models are Search Engine Marketing (Google AdWords and Bing Ads) and social media advertising.

With Pay Per Click, you literally pay for your clicks. So, when your ad appears online, you only pay if someone clicks on it. And you can be hyper targeted on where your ads show up.

86%

HOW ARE GOOGLE & BING ADS TARGETED? • Geography – pick a city, zip code, state, region, or a radius around a given point • Keywords – choose the words you want to show up for on a Google or Bing search • Ad type – choose call-only ads, text ads, video ads, or visual ads • Budget – spend as little or as much as you want each month • Interests – have your ads show up on websites that your buyer is interested in

of consumers use the Internet to find a local business.

72%

Social ads are targeted in a similar way. You decide who your ideal client is and target them by selecting locations, age range, gender, household income, interests, and more!

You then design an ad that speaks to this market, set your budget, and track the results.



of consumers prefer to find information on local merchants via search.

WHY IS PPC A GOOD ADVERTISING MODEL?

Targeted

Flexible

Defined Budget

Strong ROI

Instant Traffic

Measurable Results

*Source: https://www.hubspot.com/marketing-statistics 17 • M&R 2018/2019

LANGFORD ALLERGY Langford Allergy has 5 offices throughout Middle Georgia and provides allergy care to all ages.

Langford Allergy’s Need When Dr. Langford started his practice in 2014, we were tasked with launching his brand and creating awareness throughout the Middle Georgia area. He had a strong reputation as an allergist at another practice and needed to capitalize on this while stepping out on his own.

M&R’S SOLUTION

M&R established Langford Allergy’s branding and advertising, with a heavy focus on PPC advertising.

In the last few years, we’ve generated over 2,000,000 views for his ads and over 75,000 engagements.

Langford Allergy’s overall click through rate for Google AdWords is 4% in a very competitive industry, more than double Google’s preferred average of 2%.

When I launched my allergy practice in 2014, I partnered with M&R to establish my branding and begin advertising. They’ve been an important part of our team since day one, from creating our website and branding to managing our social media, blog, and advertising. I continue to see the value in their services, more than four years later. I’ve increased my services with them each year.

M&R’s social media and blog management saves our team a lot of time; even though it’s a priority, if it’s left to us it will get overlooked and become outdated quickly. I’m still able to contribute when I want to, but the burden and responsibility is on M&R, not my staff. They’ve also managed our Facebook advertising and this has allowed us to market to each of our 5 locations more uniquely. M&R writes our blogs each month, which has improved our Google ranking and provides great resources to our patients.

I have been very pleased with my return on investment through M&R’s services. A lot of our patients say they found us through a Google search and on our Facebook page. M&R understands our practice and our market and I have a great deal of trust in their services – they’ve allowed us to focus on what we do best.

Dr. Jeffrey Langford

WE WANT TO BE YOUR

MIDDLE GEORGIA ALLERG Y TEAM!

SERVICES PERFORMED Website Design & Development

Social Media Design, Advertising, & Management

ALLERGIES

ERNATE DON’T HIB TER

MULTIPLE OFFICES IN & AROUND MACON

Search Engine Optimization

Ad Design

Search Engine Marketing

Online Listings & Review Management

Videography & Photography

JEFFREY W. LANGFORD,

M.D., A.E.-C. MIA H. KILBY, FNP-C | JENNIFER HAMES, PA-C CHRISTI MCPHERSON, FNP-C

LANGFORDALLERGY.COM | 478.787.472

8

Today Book an Appointment

RDALLERGY.COM

478.787.4728 | LANGFO FORSYTH | GRAY

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GO BEARS!

FOR THE WIN

LE | WARNER ROBINS

| MACON | MILLEDGEVIL

2018/2019 M&R • 18

NEW WEBSITE, NOW WHAT? 5 WAYS TO OPTIMIZE YOUR NEW WEBSITE

19 • M&R 2018/2019

L

aunching a new website is an exciting time.

You’ve spent the last few months thinking through what makes your business unique and how you want to present yourself to the masses, and now it’s ready for everyone to see! You’ve made an important investment with your new website and, like any other investment, you want to protect it and utilize it as best you can.

Here are 5 ways to put your website to work for you and start attracting new leads and better educating your current clients.

1 Use Your Blog to Share Resources The majority of the pages on your website are rarely updated – your About page, Services pages, and Contact page only change if you add a new staff member, revise how you approach a service, or change your address. So, how do you create repeat visitors to your website? A blog!

As you write articles that are relevant to your ideal client, you will become a trusted expert and create sharable content that will generate new leads. Additionally, a regularly updated blog is one of the best ways to improve your SEO. Your blog topics should be relevant to your industry, thorough, and thoughtful – don’t repeat information that is already on your website.

Make it new and insightful!

At M&R, our primary client is a small to medium-sized business owner, so our articles are focused on how they can grow their business.

Determine who your primary target market is and start writing directly to them! As you write your article, ask yourself what they need to learn more about as it relates to your service offering.

2 Spread the Word & Direct People to your New Website for Resources Your new website will likely feature information that your previous website did not. Hopefully, it will also feature a blog with lots of great resources for them to read and share. Make a list of your new features and share those with clients and colleagues. There are several easy, effective ways to do this: • • • •

Send out an email inviting them to visit Post the new link on social media Update your email signature to include a link to the website Update any directories if your URL changed (Chamber, Associations or Memberships, Google, YP.com, etc) • Send out an eNewsletter promoting your new website • Make sure your print material includes your website address (it’s also a good time to consider updating the design of your brochures and stationary to match your new website) These are all great ways to reach out to clients who you may not have engaged with recently. One of your primary goals with a new website is to serve existing clients, so spend some time thinking about how your new website does this, and then let them know!

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3 Capture User Information Your website should also serve as a lead generator.

The best way to capture information from a website visitor is through a downloadable resource, such as an eBook, whitepaper, checklist, or landing page. The information included in these resources will not be available elsewhere on your website and will be hyperfocused on one topic.

Once these resources are developed and the workflow for download and follow-up is established, you will need to direct people to these resources. A great way to do that is through a Google AdWords campaign.

4 Study Your Google Analytics Report As you put more referral channels in place for your website, it’s important to track and analyze how your website is being used through a Google analytics report. When it comes to your website, information is power. A Google analytics report will provide you with a lot of information, such as: • Locations of your users • Mobile versus desktop usage • Total number of pageviews, including a ranking of your most popular pages • Average time spent on website • Referral sources so you know where your traffic is coming from – Facebook, LinkedIn, Google AdWords, organic, and more

We Have Designed

200+ Custom Websites For A Wide Range Of Industries & Needs

There’s an endless amount of data available and, if you study it properly, you can make decisions about what to discuss on your website, which referral channels to invest more time and money in, and much more.

5 Double Check Your Online Listings & Monitor Your Online Reviews An area that is often overlooked, but very important, is your online directory listings. Similar to how phone books used to operate, these directories list all of your information and appear when someone types your business name into a search engine. Often, a business will have incorrect information on these directories.

When you launch a new website, it’s a great time to check your online listings.

There are over 100 directories that you can list your business information on to help attract customers. As a bonus, the more external websites that include a link to your website, the better your SEO score.

Just as important as your online listings are your online reviews. When someone Googles your business name, they will see your online profile and your review score. It’s important to focus on increasing both the quantity and quality of your online reviews.

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GETTING STARTED As you can see, launching a great website is just the beginning.

There are so many ways to put your website to work for you.

If you would like to discuss implementing any of these features on your website, give us a call at 478-621-4491.

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SERVICE FOCUS:

WEBSITE DESIGN & DEVELOPMENT

W

ebsites are no longer an optional component to your marketing strategy. Now, everything directs people to your website – print material, social channels, pay per click ad campaigns, traditional media campaigns ... everything!

Even for industries that rely heavily on referrals, your website is still the front door to your business. People are visiting you online before they ever pick up the phone to call you. Your website is the first impression someone receives about your business, and it should be one that represents your level of service.

Award-Winning Website Design & Development

WHY USE M&R? When you work with M&R Marketing to build a website, you are hiring our entire marketing team: an account manager who will remain your primary point of contact on all your projects and a team of graphic designers, copywriters, and web developers, all located in-house at our downtown Macon office.

Best Legal Website Design

Besides a great team, here are a few other benefits to working with M&R: • Custom Design: We only build websites that are 100% custom designed. We never have and never will use a template to design and build your custom website.

• Industry Expertise: We were one of the first in our market to introduce responsive, mobile design and are leading the way in today’s environment of ADA compliance, SEO practices, security, and design capabilities.

• Experience: We have designed websites for all needs – information, eCommerce, listings, membership, directories, registration … you name it!

• Innovative Work: We are an award-winning agency, both regionally and nationally.

• Usability: We provide training on our user-friendly platform after your website is built so that you can easily make updates to your website.

• Support: We offer full website management, including hosting and security updates throughout the year, updates to content or design layout as requested, and monthly marketing packages suited to your needs.

• Reporting: We provide monthly insight into your website’s traffic.

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2016-2018

SHERIDAN CONSTRUCTION Sheridan Construction has provided construction management services for over 70 years. They’re an employee-owned company with a longstanding tradition of excellent work in K-12, higher education, medical, municipal, and other market segments.

Sheridan’s Need Sheridan came to M&R in need of a new website that would match the level of expertise and service they provide each of their clients.

They wanted to give a special focus to their completed projects and have an easy way to present their portfolio, while also making it easy to update with future projects.

M&R’S SOLUTION With an emphasis on photography from their completed projects, M&R created a custom designed WordPress site that highlights Sheridan’s history, as well as its appreciation for its employees and customers. The main feature of the site is their portfolio, which highlights over 40 projects in 9 market segments. Using responsive technology, all information, including project profiles and images, can be viewed on any device.

M&R has been a pleasure to work with, not just on our new website project but all of our marketing material.

We are pleased with the high quality of work and client service that they provide. They work very hard to meet every need in a timely manner.

Brittney White Marketing Manager

SERVICES PERFORMED Website Design & Development

Graphic Design

Ad Design

Proposal Development

Search Engine Optimization

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ABOUT US & OUR SERVICES

M

&R Marketing was founded in 2008 to fill a great need in Middle Georgia: to become the only full-service ad agency with an inhouse team of experts who can handle every marketing need a small to medium sized business has.

We started M&R in our hometown of Macon, Georgia, where we celebrate the Allman Brothers, Otis Redding, H&H Restaurant, and the world-famous Nu-Way Weiners. We are energized by Macon’s stunning architecture, deep musical heritage, delectable local eateries, and a downtown that is experiencing major revitalization.

In the last 10 years, we’ve grown our in-house team of web developers, graphic designers, copywriters, and account managers, and transitioned from a team of 2 working out of a spare bedroom to a thriving team of 17 who now call downtown Macon home. In 2017, we were awarded the Historic Macon Preservation Award for the restoration of our downtown office.

Our agency’s creative work has also been recognized, both regionally and nationally. We are honored to partner with exciting clients in a diverse range of industries here in Middle Georgia and across the United States.

OUR SERVICES Website Design & Development

Graphic Design & Printing

Branding

Online Listings & Review Management

Social Media Design, Advertising, & Management

Search Engine Optimization

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Search Engine Marketing

AT M&R, WE LIVE BY TWO WORDS:

WANT MORE.

Videography & Photography

WE WANT MORE FROM OURSELVES AND MORE FOR OTHERS. Content Marketing

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1

A full-service, in-house, dedicated agency. When you hire our team, you’re hiring web developers, graphic designers, copywriters, and marketers.

Regardless of the project, we’re all hands on deck.

WHY M&R?

2

A protector of your brand. From day one, we’ve focused on helping clients discover what they do, how they do it, and why it matters. Knowing the answers to these questions helps us protect and grow your brand.

WHEN YOU PARTNER WITH M&R, YOU RECEIVE THREE THINGS:

3

A clear, unified goal. We’re driven by your success and nothing else. As an unbiased party, we’ll never make a recommendation based on how it benefits us. Whether it’s radio, print, television, billboard, social, or another digital format, we make recommendations that benefit you.

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mandr-group.com 331 3rd Street | Macon, GA 31201 478-621-4491

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