The MadAveGroup Blog

Prospective buyers might be drawn to your company through your advertising, a random encounter with your social media post, an online search or for many other reasons. And they may even purchase a product from you.

But then what?

How do you encourage those customers to come back?

One answer: by providing an exceptional customer experience. According to many studies, people are more loyal to brands that prioritize positive customer encounters. They’re often willing to spend more money with those brands, too.

The opportunities to create memorable experiences are endless - from providing friendly service at the point of sale, to building an intuitive online ordering process, to producing quality products - but this post will focus on just three efforts, all of which you can write into your marketing plan.

1) Present Your Brand Consistently

Creating a memorable brand is tough enough when every campaign and all the elements are executed perfectly, but when your exterior signage varies from store to store and the brand voice changes from week to week, you make it even harder for potential customers to pick your brand out of a crowd and recall your unique value.

People WANT to encounter brands they like. They WANT to discover companies they can identify with. So, make it easier for them to find and remember you.

Maintaining consistency across all touchpoints also sends the message that your brand cares about details, that you’re reliable and, yes, even trustworthy.

2) Craft Your Messaging with Customers in Mind

Is your copy and content self-focused? If so, there’s a good chance your audience is ignoring it. But when you use your marketing and advertising to tell interesting stories, provide valuable information and even help people live and work easier, you’ll create loyal consumers of the articles, videos and ads you publish.

When the marketing channel allows, tailor your message to each customer’s position in the buying cycle. Email is especially flexible that way. CRM systems can track that position and create workflows that allow you to send messages to customers based on their readiness to buy. That personalized outreach can also prevent the burnout that comes with repetitive or irrelevant ads.

3) Act on Feedback

Do you encourage customer input via your website, social channels, surveys, review sites or comment cards? And once you receive it, how do you react?

People want to know their thoughts are taken seriously. When you acknowledge and respond to their feedback you reinforce that their time and opinions matter and that they’re important to your company. You'll help customers feel included and remind them that they play a role in your mission or culture. And that can strengthen their connection to your company.

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As a marketer, you may always be looking forward, trying to come up with new ways to present your company's product or service.

But you can find plenty of inspiration by looking backward, too.

Got milk? Whassup? Where's the beef? Think small. Those are all successful ad campaigns from decades past. By analyzing them and other examples of great advertising, you can identify the elements that made them appealing and memorable. Then, you can apply the takeaways to your own creative efforts.

Here's an example.

Stan Freberg's 1967 commercial for Sunsweet Prunes is one of my favorite TV spots of all time. Take a look at it here or above.

If you like it, too, spend a few minutes to break it down. Why does it work for you? What makes it unique? How does its style impact its effectiveness?

A few thoughts.

1) Consider the relatively conservative advertising environment at the time this first aired. Before Freberg, satire was rarely used in commercials, if at all. Throughout his career, he lampooned advertising itself, poking fun at its many conventions. In the Sunsweet spot, that skewering took the form of the disagreeable consumer, the over-the-top announcer and the melodramatic tagline.

Takeaway: When you start, as Freberg did, with the understanding that most consumers don't take advertising literally and certainly not as seriously as brands do, you give yourself great freedom to create for your audience without restraints. You won't be bound by what's "normal" for any marketing channel.

2) Freberg was not afraid to bite the hand that fed him! For nearly half of the commercial, his stuffy, ascot-wearing antagonist expressed disdain for the product, and not in a subtle way. The fact that the character referred to Sunsweet Prunes as "disgusting" was not only groundbreaking, but it was creatively brilliant.

Takeaway: By insulting the prunes, Freberg was giving voice to what his audience was already thinking. He didn't try to ignore or hide the fact that the product has pits and wrinkles; he acknowledged it - in a very funny way. By telling the truth - even if it's an ugly or uncomfortable truth - you earn consumer trust. And by making fun of the product, you can rouse empathy and even encourage people to rally behind it.

3) At 48 seconds into the commercial, the prune eater sniffs. In a late 1960s context, that sniff could have easily been seen as a mistake. In Freberg's spot for Jacobsen's Lawnmowers, a homeowner being asked about the grass in his front yard interrupts the interviewer three times so realistically that the audio is affected in a negative (but intentional) way. And in his Cheerios commercial, the woman being questioned on screen mistakes the cereal for a headache remedy.

Takeaway: The sniff, the interrupting and the confusion are all very human. They added a sense of realism and a unique twist that was notably odd for TV commercials of the era. What "mistakes" or human characteristics can you add to or leave in your advertising? Think of how they might draw attention or differentiate your work and how they might surprise your audience.

4) Visually, the Sunsweet commercial is just one steady shot with two quick right pans, two quick left pans and a product shot at the end. No fancy set. No special effects. No animation. The remarkable writing and perfect performances are allowed to shine even brighter because of the sparse presentation. That style makes it easy for viewers to focus on what the characters are saying and retain the message.

Takeaway: A big budget and elaborate concept don't automatically produce a great campaign. As Stan Freberg showed in so much of his advertising work, a fresh idea executed well can produce effective, memorable work that we can all learn from.

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Are you considering a career in marketing? Whether you’re about to graduate from college, transitioning from another type of work or ready to move from the client side to the agency world, read these tips before you start your job search.

Define Your Value - Think about your potential employer’s needs and pains first. Research what they do well, but focus on how you might fill a void at their agency. You’ll make a strong impression if you can say to an interviewer, “I believe I can help you in this area or with that problem.”

Then, back up your assertions with samples of your work, relevant solutions you’ve developed for others and testimonials that support your claims. In other words, show your unique and specific value.

Choose Carefully - If you’re not in a hurry to find your next job, take the time to look deeply into each agency you might join.

Learn about their culture, financial health, the industries and clients they serve. Have they had any public relations or legal issues? On average, how long do clients and employees stay with the agency? Can you talk with their current and former team members to get a sense of what the environment is like?

By doing your homework, you have a better chance of identifying the agency that’s the best fit for your skills and work style.

Here are a few thoughts from other MadAveGroup team members.

Michael Seay / Director

Ask Questions - Begin by asking yourself, “Why do I want to work in marketing?”

What is it about the field that excites you? Which of your skills and qualities would be valuable to an agency and its clients? How would you define a successful marketing career? 

If you can’t answer those questions, marketing may not be your true calling.

And then, do you like working alone or as part of a team? That answer can help you decide if you should join an agency or cut your own freelance path.

Gwen Hagen / Senior Marketing Manager

Present Your Virtual Self Well - Be careful how you present yourself online. The digital impressions you leave behind are fair game for any employer evaluating everything from your personality to your language skills and opinions.

Make sure your social media pages showcase the person you want your potential employer to see, even if that means removing potentially objectionable content. Update your LinkedIn page to share stories of how you thought creatively and solved problems. Post testimonials from former managers and clients who can attest to your past work experience and successes. And consider presenting your ideas and work samples creatively on your own website or in a blog or portfolio.

Those efforts can round out your digital footprint and give you more opportunities to show your talent and versatility to potential employers.

Jon Marker / Director of Business Development for SensoryMax

Follow Your Passion - If you’re just starting your career, don’t make the mistake of simply chasing the money. Find something you're passionate about and then find an agency that will give you the best opportunity to excel in that role. Your 45-year-old self will be very glad you pursued work that’s important to you. The financial wins will come when you show up every day, invest your care and creativity and enjoy what you do.

Most importantly, when you’re interviewing for that role, prove your passion. Show your potential employer how the work you’ll be doing is important to you and how that commitment will benefit the company.

Learn about working at MadAveGroup. 

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What Matters to You?

“In the middle of The Great Resignation, our team is growing,” said Jerry Brown.

In fact, since January 2021, the size of our staff has increased by 25%.

“I’m convinced it’s because of our unique culture,” said Brown, MadAveGroup's CEO. And once again, there’s evidence to support that belief.

For the third consecutive year, MadAveGroup has been named one of Toledo’s Top Workplaces.

Since 2006, Energage has compiled their Top Workplace research by surveying 23 million employees in 70,000 organizations. That insight has allowed the company to identify “15 culture drivers that are critical to success in any organization,” according to Energage.com.

“When we first meet people who want to work here, they’ll often say they’ve heard great things about our environment. And when they factor in the variety and quality of the work we do, they can’t wait to be a part of this agency,” said Brown.

Interested in joining the MadAveGroup team? Learn more and take the first step here.

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Do you allow yourself time to be inspired?

Do you put yourself in situations to experience everyday life in new ways?

Especially if you’re a writer, designer, videographer or anyone else who makes something from nothing, seek inspiration often.

When you have more experiences to draw from, you have more perspectives and solutions to offer.

I encourage our creative team to explore music, fine art, nature, even unique foods. Then, I remind them to keep their senses tuned into those experiences. The sights, sounds and flavors can inform their work and infuse it with a fresh excitement.

One example: our agency’s writers spent a recent afternoon at a glassblowing studio, learning how to make glass paperweights. (Watch the video.) That work has nothing to do with the marketing services we provide, but it put our team into an unusual creative atmosphere for a few hours and allowed them to use their imaginations in a different way.

And at least twice a month, we analyze the work of creators from many diverse disciplines - never to copy it - but to expose ourselves to other points of view and see how we might apply the essence of what we like about it to our own content.

You can't pull water from a dry well. So, regardless of what you do, give yourself and your team permission to refill your creative tanks now and then. Read. Travel. Learn a new skill. Work with a different set of tools. Volunteer. Talk to strangers.

Actively seek inspiration.

It’ll be time well invested.

We had fun with this three-spot TV campaign for MadAveGroup. 

The goal: drive curious viewers to the humorous HangTheWreath.com website where they could vote for #TeamDoor or #TeamWall, send us comments, download screensavers and meet the cast of the commercials.

At the bottom of the site, we reveal that MadAveGroup is beind the cryptic commercials. If visitors appreciate that we drew them to the site, they might engage our agency to create similarly effective content for their companies. 

Watch all three 15-second spots below and then visit HangTheWreath.com. 

UPDATE: This campaign won a 2022 Telly Award. Read the story. 
 

During my lunch at a local restaurant yesterday, the waitress asked me three times, “Is everything fine?”

Yet, each time she posed the question, she was walking away from my table.

It was clear she didn’t care about my reply. In fact, she was almost out of sight each time I answered.

She was merely checking a box.

And checking boxes doesn’t produce memorable experiences, in a restaurant or any other kind of business. It won’t create loyalty or spread great word-of-mouth, either.

Doing only “what you’re supposed to do” will never surprise and delight a customer. And it won’t encourage your audience’s empathy. (Read how Minneapolis residents came to the rescue of a beloved local shop in May of 2020.) 

Is a similar lack of sincere interest in your customers’ feedback showing up anywhere in your organization?

• Have you buried your company’s contact information deep within your website?
• Do you purposely keep callers on hold for long periods so they’ll hang up?
• Are you ignoring comments on your company’s social media pages?
• Have you avoided asking key customers for their input before developing a new service?
• Do you quickly email customers post-sale for their positive feedback even without expressing concern for their needs before the sale?
• Have you delayed training every member of your team on how to respond to customer complaints?

It’s important to always be asking some version of “is everything fine?” But it’s even more important to actively listen to each customer’s reply, then respond in a way that makes them glad they answered your question.

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Have you ever wondered what happens when a videographer goes rogue in the editing suite?

Probably not.

But this video will give you a taste of the level of terror that can ensue. 
 

“When I would be at conventions, I’d tell people about the kind of On Hold Messaging we have. Then, when I was out in Vegas one time, I called back to the office and had myself put on hold so the people at the convention could hear it. And they were laughing because it’s just so funny. Your service is very valuable to us.”

That’s a quote from Dan Kazmierczak, CEO of Binkelman, and a long-time believer in Humor On Hold™ from BusinessVoice, our caller experience marketing agency. 

Dan knows first-hand how his customers respond positively to a creative and memorable caller experience.

The judges at the 2021 MarCom Awards see the unique value, too. They named three of our Humor On Hold™ productions winners in this year’s competition.

• Platinum MarCom Award: Binkelman Corp. - "The Binkelman Bus Tour"
• Gold MarCom Award: Med-Line Express Services - "Communal Shower"
• Honorable Mention: Town and Country Resort San Diego - "Drunken Monkey"

Listen to the winning work in the videos below.

We're always encouraging our copywriters to "refill their creative tanks" by exploring art, music and nature and by experimenting with different types of creative expression.

On November 10, 2021, they spent some time at the Gathered Glassblowing Studio in our hometown of Toledo, Ohio. Thanks to Mike and his team for the great experience.