Bidding hysteria: 5 things that make you tear your hair out.

As part of my complete devotion to using social media as a route to unlimited professional prosperity (read: I'm trying justify my addiction by using it as a work tool rather than as simply a sophisticated time-wasting device), I've started taking part in a few of the discussions raised by various sales and marketing groups on LinkedIn.

The discussion that caught my eye today was entitled: What are the most common problems bid managers face? Here is my response with the top 5 things that came to mind when I saw this question...

Bids, pitches, tenders, proposals, beauty parades ... whatever you call them they can be stressful; causing you to tear your hair out at times. As a business development manager in the professional services industry, they were always the aspect of the job that kept me late in the office and most frequently dialling for a pizza to get me through the dark office hours. But bid writing also keeps your professional adrenalin pumping. They can be immensely rewarding projects to work on and once you understand the challenges it gets easier to anticipate problems and manage them. I would list my top 5 common problems as:

1. Engaging a bid team. Bid management can be lonely (and demoralising) if you try to take it all on yourself. Assembling a team, getting them excited about the potential of the work on offer and securing their commitment and contribution is an important factor in success. It also makes bids far more enjoyable to work on.

2. Keeping the momentum going. As the bid manager you are often the one who makes sure the key milestones are hit that will ensure delivery of the bid, on time and in a winning format. Keeping people interested and involved means you need to radiate energy and enthusiasm (which after a long day/evening editing technical text into readable copy can be a bit of a struggle).

3. Panic! As the deadline gets closer, people panic, the blood pressures of the interested partners rise furiously as they realise they haven't done as much as they should. And as bid manager you need to keep calm and positive and resist the urge to join the hysteria.

4. Making sense of contributed text. Sometimes it can be a few disjointed bullets and sometimes reams of complicated copy presented in the form of long sentences and jargon. Against the clock you can find yourself under pressure to convert this into sparkling, persuasive sales copy that won't send the reader into a deep, peaceful sleep.

5. Managing your time. Pulled in all directions and expected to perform miracles, a good bid manager needs to know what and when to delegate e.g. can a secretary help with the minor tweaks and amends while you focus on creating original content, can an enthusiastic junior fee earner help chase contributions etc?

And looking back over these now, I realise it is overcoming these challenges and managing them with a smile that makes a good bid manager. And also what makes their skills so in demand. Bid managers out there - Afternoon Debate salutes you!

I've taken a trip to the dark side ... and I may just stay here for a while!

Ok, the title and the Darth link are a little bit extreme; I haven't developed a penchant for heavy breathing, a powerful, bass-like voice or a habit for reckless over-usage of a light saber. Yes, you can breath a sigh of relief, the reference to my new position on the dark side is more of a metaphorical reference to my conversion to enthusiastically singing the praises of SEO (previously I whispered them out like a shy little chorister, now I'm belting them out Mariah Carey style).

However, my new dark side is just as geeky as an obsession with Star Wars. SEO has that reputation. But, and here's my first revelation, it's not rocket science. It's not a secret code or IT language that only the enlightened few can understand. It takes a bit of time and thinking but there's a lot of common sense involved. Most importantly it works.

As a writer and marketing professional I've known about SEO for a long time; I understood the theory, the reasoning and had written pieces of basic optimised copy here and there. But as someone who prides themselves on embracing new communications methods, marketing tools and best practice, this didn't feel enough. So, during a few quiet evenings in dull old January, I decided to get into the knitty gritty of SEO and optimise my own website - from key words/phrases, page title tags, meta tags and meta descriptions to internal hyperlinks and external links, I made my way through my site.

And it wasn't just good practical experience of SEO for me. My Google rankings have improved, traffic to my website has gone up (measured on Google Analytics) and I'm already receiving more work enquiries (that have good potential) directly through my website.

SEO is not a scary concept and it's not the dark art you might imagine. But it does involve a certain amount of copywriting skill. A pet hate of mine is websites that you can see have been SEO'd due to the clunky and clumsy inclusion of key words and phrases. When badly written, SEO can disrupt the flow of your text, put your readers off and give your website an amateurish feel.

There is no need to fear SEO but you do need to plan it, integrate it subtly and most importantly get the measurement tools in place so you can see the results of all of your hard work.

And in my crystal ball I see happy clients who love our services more than anything else in the whole wide world

I'm a bit of a sceptic when it comes to the mystical world of psychics - a load of old gobbledygook if you ask me. I believe (and this is my opinion only) that they simply help you to believe what you want to think of as the truth. And what's the point in that? It's not reality and it's not solving the problem.

And (yes, here comes the connection to marketing) many of us also rely too much on our psychic abilities when defining key marketing messages, strategies and value propositions. We form them based on what we think our clients should need, why we think they want to use us and what we believe they should value in our offer. But, it's time to resist the allure of the crystal ball and build your marketing from reality - from the people who you are selling to and who use your products/services.

Marketing should not be about guess work, it should be grounded in facts. Do you really know what your customers are thinking? Do you know what they need, what bothers them, what keeps them in the office late at night? Do you ever ask:

• What they think of your service - what impact it has had on their business? Anything tangible?
• Is there anything they would like to see more of for you? Anything they aren't happy with or you could do better? 
• How you differ from your competition and what makes them keep coming back to you?
• What challenges are they facing at the moment? How could you help?
• What are their objectives? Is there anything you could be doing to help them achieve them?
• What are their personal priorities - saving time, keeping the boss off there back, reducing their budget? How could you help them with these personal 'hot buttons'?

It may feel like a brave move but asking clients these type of questions can help you when you're creating your marketing messages and tools. It will provide you with robust knowledge that can help you create materials that speak directly and persuasively to the critical issues your existing and prospective customers are facing. By understanding value as your client's see it, you will be able to present a much more compelling case to prospective customers.

A new toast: Good riddance frivolity & a heart-warming welcome to savvy marketing

Let's embrace the madness and raise our teacups to marketing on a budget.

Do you remember the days when marketing budgets allowed for flamboyancy? When frivolous hospitality ruled and rounds of drinks consumed in the name of business development could be slyly signed off as a marketing expense. But it's frustration rather than a haze of nostalgic fondness I remember - cringing awkwardly as I watched marketing spend rise that was impossible to measure and flinching at the dubious disrespect for return on investment.

Well, those days are over. Phew. Being more creative with a limited budget could actually be a good thing for the role and credibility of marketing in your organisation. It's an opportunity to strip out the habitual activities that deliver little more than a few tipsy smiles and focus instead on finding new ways to build lasting relationships that will ultimately lead to increased revenues and profit.

Here are a few ideas:

1. Proactively manage your referral network.
An enthusiastic endorsement from a third party is an influential and cost-effective marketing tool. So often people say - "most of my work comes from referrals" - yet do you ever actually ask for referrals? Why not? Could you be collaborating closer with intermediaries to unlock more potential from word of mouth? Is there an opportunity for them to facilitate introductions to their client base for you? Referrals are based on your reputation and trust between the two parties; so why not treat these relationships with the same care and attention you treat your clients?

2. Seek opportunities to collaborate (but be selective).
Creating strategic alliances with compatible partners not only offers an opportunity to share marketing costs and effort but can also bolster your brand and profile. Could you piggy back the marketing activities of a bigger brand that would enhance your credibility and reputation? Do you have a niche expertise or offer that a bigger brand would be interested in? Could you win more work or deliver it more profitably by developing a more joined up approach with a niche supplier? What can you do together to craft an irresistible proposition to a new client? After all in these tough times, half of the work is better than none at all. For shared marketing efforts to work both parties have to benefit, so think what you can bring to the collaboration and what you would like in return.

3. Write articles, speak at events, get your PR up to scratch.
Advertising and sponsorship is a luxury for most firms at the moment. But instead of shrinking into the background, use your expertise to propel you into the spotlight. Yes, it takes more effort, but good quality editorial coverage and speaking slots at key industry events are a far more credible and focused way to communicate your capability and raise your profile within your target market.

To bid or not to bid … that is the question

Deciding to bid can be a huge investment of time and resource - you need to make sure you are investing wisely. Your win rate could also be greatly improved by identifying and eliminating bidding opportunities that you have little chance or interest in winning.

Key questions

Do we want to win the work? Can we win the work?

Acting quickly 

The key to making the bidding decision is to make it quickly. Timescales for submitting bids are often short and the quality of your submission (and hence the chances of you winning) can be reduced by delaying and producing a bid at short notice.


Making the decision 
Consider:

Capability: Your ability to demonstrate that you can perform the work better than your competitors.

Probability of winning: Based on existing relationships, the competition, the client's motives behind the tender and your ability to put together a document in the time available.

Strategic fit: How well the opportunity fits with our objectives and interests as a firm.

Feasibility: How well you can respond to the requirement based on the client's criteria.

Risk: Would this work expose your firm to any risks (that you are not happy can be effectively managed)

Opportunity cost: What (if any) would be the impact of declining the opportunity to tender.

It's time to detox: flush out your bad bidding habits

Bids, pitches, proposals, tenders, beauty parades … whatever you call them, they can dominate the working lives of business development teams. And most of us have a love-hate relationship with them. Whilst winning is incredibly rewarding, bids are also the aspect of the job most likely to involve late-night pizzas in the office and tear your hair out frustration as the deadline gets closer.

To be competitive in a challenging market place and continue to win more work, firms need to be bidding selectively, effectively and efficiently at all stages (from pre-qualification questionnaires, through to more detailed documents and presentations.) I know, easier said than done. Everyone is under pressure to win more work and procurement teams seem to be on a mission to make this as difficult and time-consuming as possible. Which is why it is so important that your bid process (the way you identify and manage tender opportunities) delivers winning results.

And this means recognising and addressing bad bidding habits. I have listed a few of the big ones below - some may seem familiar!

Panic! - bidding sporadically and hastily for everything rather than focusing your time, energy and money on winning the best opportunities.

Cloning - cutting and pasting from old documents (come on some originality and thought please!)

Convenience over quality - moulding old documents/information to fit new requirements. Is that really going to persuade a client you are the firm with their best interests at heart?

The "thud factor" - the more is better approach. How would you feel about reading the bids you produce. Inspired? Or bored?

Poor document structure - savvy bidders will be thinking about how to craft a persuasive document that will keep their readers hooked.

Self-centric corporate blurb - you know the 'we-are-great-me-me-me' blurb you roll out in every pitch document. Too many bids read like corporate brochures. What the client is interested in is themselves and how you can specifically help them to save money, resolve a problem, make them more profitable etc.

Have you got a reputation?

More to the point, is it the reputation you want? No. Oh dear. You shrug, sit back and do nothing, tightly crossing your fingers, saying a little prayer and hoping for a miracle. Unfortunately miracles don’t happen while you wait. 

What you can do is start working more proactively to manage and shape your reputation through your communications internal and with the outside world.

It’s easy for businesses to get pigeon-holed based on their origins and history. But where you’ve come from and what you did to get there, are often very different from where you want to be and what you want to do in the future. Times change, ambitions grow. And to achieve these goals you sometimes need to leave an old reputation behind and build a new one.

So, is it time to ask?

• What is your reputation?
• What are you known for doing?
• What do you want to be known for?
• What does your PR and marketing currently say about you?
• What are others saying about you?

When you understand this you can proactively start to shape your business personality and build a reputation that fits your future.

Make every word count

In the hectic urgency of creating a brochure, website or flyer, it’s tempting to spend all of your creative time on the design. The task of writing good quality, persuasive copy often gets overlooked, which means a mad panic, rising stress levels and rushed wording.

“An attractive design, an eye-catching image, an amusing graphic; the aesthetics of your marketing materials are what first grab a potential new customer’s attention,” Laura Jane Johnson, a freelance journalist and copywriter admits. “But dull, sloppy or clumsy content will soon turn them away. Design is important, but it needs to be supported by compelling content if you want a reader to actually be convinced to take action and make the move to get in touch with you.”

Copywriting is something many of us try our best to avoid. With so many other things to do in a working day, it’s easy to relegate writing the content for a new web page or newsletter to the bottom of a long to do list. But it’s getting harder to escape. The rise of social media, blogging and various other online communications has made copywriting more important than ever. Search engine optimisation (SEO), rankings, Tweets and all those other baffling terms are becoming impossible to escape. And the secret to all of this is a professional understanding of how to apply writing techniques that enhance your visibility in a crowded virtual world.

“It’s an exciting time; especially for writers, whose skills are increasingly in demand,” Laura says. “Social media and online communications when used cleverly are extremely powerful marketing tools. They offer the interactive elements that many people now expect, an effective way to improve Google rankings and increase the number of visitors to your website.”

They’re also cost-effective methods of marketing, something that is welcomed by many businesses struggling to build their market profile on a minimal budget.

As the economy is slowly struggling out of recession, more businesses are daring again to consider growth and the future. As we get less prudent, marketing will once again find itself nearer the top of the agenda. But for a small business, without the luxury of a marketing department, this can present challenges in terms of the availability of the time and skills to deliver projects.

“When it comes to developing a website, brochure, flyer or newsletter, most businesses wouldn’t think twice about employing a graphic designer,” Laura says. “But many cut corners when it comes to developing the content; they take a DIY approach rather than employing the professional skills of a copywriter.”

As a result, many businesses are not creating that great first impression they’d hoped for and are missing an opportunity to communicate their skills, messages and key differentiators loud and clear to new customers. Laura warns:

“Just crossing your fingers and hoping an eye-catching design will distract readers from the content is not enough. The world is not quite as shallow as you may think – most people can see beyond a pretty exterior!”

Laura Jane Johnson works with publications and businesses to create commercial copy and editorial that captures the interest and imaginations of their target audience. For more information on Laura and to get in touch visit www.laurajanewrites.co.uk.

You got it! You got the meeting

You are triumphant. After some savvy networking and diligent keeping in touch, you have been invited in; you have your first sales meeting in the diary with a new customer. Yipee. But restrain yourself from punching the air and breaking into your favourite celebratory jig just yet. Firstly, because, well, we don’t want you to embarrass yourself by revealing your David Brent tendancies.  And secondly, because there is lots to do before the meeting. It’s not just a case of turning up at the right time and rambling on about how great your organisation is.

To help you along here are a few reminders:

1. Do your research. Find out as much as you can about your prospective customer – get their accounts, scan the press, research your contact, does anyone else at your organisation have any information that could help you? Think about their issues, their problems and how you can help them. Then prepare some good open questions.
2. Set your objective. What information do you want to have by the end of the meeting? What outcome are you aiming for? And then think about open questions that can help you achieve this.
3. Consider preparing an agenda and sending it in advance for their feedback and additions. It gives the meeting an objective and ensures both parties are clear about their intent.
4. Prepare your introduction; it will give you confidence. In your introduction focus on the value you can bring to the person you are talking to rather than simply your job title.
5. What messages do you want to get across? Remember to focus on benefits rather than features – don’t just run them through your product list, think about what value you can specifically offer their business. 

And finally, if you really need to do that air punch and jig thing, maybe head to the toilet and get it out of your system in privacy!

Feel the fear ... and network on

Take a few deep breaths. Give yourself a quick, silent, confidence-boosting pep talk. You can do it. Rehearse your introduction line and pray nerves don't induce any embarrassing stuttering and stumbling. Double-check your pocket for business cards. Readjust and straighten your name badge one final time, hoping it’s in an appropriate and visible position. And go.

Walking into a room of strangers, armed with nothing more than a wodge of business cards and a name badge for comfort is daunting, but business networking has become an unavoidable recession reality for many people. In the world of competitive job-hunting and promotion-seeking, the old rule applies more than ever; it's often not just what you know but who you know. So, instead of looking on enviously at a colleague who always seems to know all the right people, it’s time to start investing time in building your own personal network. A well-stocked network could provide a vital lifeline in the event of redundancy and will help bring in the new business opportunities you’re feeling under pressure to deliver.

A few confidence tips for the nervous networker

• Arrive early - it's harder to enter a crowded room where everyone is already settled in conversations.
• Smile.
• Prepare open questions in advance to avoid awkward pauses and to generate conversation. 
• Be interested. Listen to answers to your questions. Nerves can cause you to focus completely on what you're going to say next rather than pick up on hooks to build interesting conversations.
• Set targets. How many people would you like to meet? Don't get too comfortable with one person, keep moving and keep to your objectives. Having a structure gives you a mission rather than floundering aimlessly (or hiding in a corner, then sloping off early).

And when the event is over don't just breath a sigh of relief and pat yourself on the back,  go over the business cards you've commected and plan your follow up actions to ensure you get the most from your networking effort.

Go on, show them you care

Selling professional services has distinct challenges.  Knowledge is undoubtedly a hard thing to sell.  Buying decisions in this sector are based on building trust, demonstrating understanding and personal chemistry.  So, a successful sale is unlikely to be achieved through a cheap and cheerful generic email shot or price driven special offers.  It’s all about relationships.  And with all firms raising their game, it’s harder than ever to compete and differentiate your offer.

But let’s not get too preoccupied with the challenges.  Self-absorbed analysis of the difficulties and procrastination are not remedies.  It’s a proactive approach and positive solutions that will drive successful sales activity.  Although it’s easy to be reactive and take the “they’ll call me if they need me” approach, in a competitive market place you can’t rely on this to deliver.  Focus needs to shift to getting out there, understanding the issues your clients face and proactively providing them with solutions – good reasons to buy your services. 

It’s more important than ever to keep contact going with your clients – existing and potential.  If you’re not talking to your contacts regularly, there’s a good chance one of your competitors is.  Many businesses are facing tough times.  It’s a slight cliché but people buy people.  We prefer to work with people we like and who care about what we are trying to achieve.  So, why not call a contact and ask how things are going? Offer congratulations or a sympathetic ear depending on the tone of their news; people will remember who supported them through the bad times as well as the good. 

And don't make the contact a one-off. Keep it regular, keep it relevant and keep it coming!

  

My article in this month's Professional Marketing Forum magazine

Take a few deep breaths. Give yourself a quick silent, confidence-boosting pep talk. You can do it. Rehearse your introduction line. Be prepared to say no, fight your corner and be impervious to the incredulous stares you are likely to get when you present the facts. It’s time to go. It’s time to talk marketing plans and budgets with your partners.

As we trudge into the final quarter of a particularly difficult year, the time has come to contemplate a new future. Like every other year, your managing partners will be encouraging you to set up marketing planning meetings with your department heads and sector leaders. The format and conclusions of these meetings are predictable. You uncomfortably wince at overspend caused by unplanned, expensive partner pet projects (of dubious value). Everyone at the meeting makes solemn commitments to be more rigorous, more robust and more measured in the year ahead. Then drained of all inspiration due to the depressing reality that budgets are going to be slaughtered once again, you resign yourself to do the same as last year but more economically: a few seminars, minimal advertising, refreshed brochures and an entertainment box at the firm’s favourite sporting event. Long disillusioned sighs are audible across the professional services marketing world.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. 2009 has been a landmark year; the most difficult of decades and not one we are easily going to forget. Is now the time to break the cycle and inject some originality into our marketing plans? Redundancies, recessionary caution and spending cuts have changed the face of business. An adapt or die mentality has got the survivors this far and the same commitment will accelerate prosperity in the recovery era.

During the boom times marketing became an ego-driven pursuit of supremacy; shouting about successes and demonstrating superiority over competitors with over the top hospitality. For marketing, some of our biggest decisions involved pondering whether to choose pricey champagne or whether a good cava would be acceptable. But gone are the days of endless rounds of drinks frivolously consumed in the name of business development, extravagant hospitality packages for events favoured by partners (rather than their clients) and expensive gimmicky campaigns (that were forgotten far quicker than hoped). Tried and tested formulae of previous years suddenly seem insensitively outlandish, a little crass, unjustifiable and far too predictable. With our comfort blanket whipped from under our noses, things could now get interesting.

The case for originality is clear. The delivery will be more challenging. Originality is not about eye-catching gimmicks; it’s about getting the basics right and delivering carefully crafted messages that will attract and engage clients and targets.

What do your clients really want?

Imagine the scenario: you’re in a marketing planning meeting when an enthusiastic partner buoyantly jumps into the conversation. “Why don’t we do something different this year?” Great, a breakthrough. “How about we abandon a few of our regular seminars and hold a cocktail party instead; get a high profile speaker and show everyone just how strong and resilient we are by making a bit of a splash?” Oh. Your heart drops. Not exactly the inspired idea you’d hope for. Instead you face a bitter battle to prove that a cocktail party is probably not the best option.

Our clients’ needs can be overlooked when developing new marketing ideas. We are often too focused on delivering projects based purely on what one partner thinks their firm should do to make them look bigger and better than their competitors. Instead the focus should be on delivering relevant, timely and insightful information that facilitates new enduring relationships with clients and prospects. Let’s take an example:

Through client service reviews you’ve learnt that a number of your clients, forced to cut their teams due to redundancies, are now under-resourced. Your contacts are struggling to juggle their workload and have limited time to coach the junior members of their team that they desperately need to rely on. Providing a helping hand would definitely win you favour. A chat over a glass of wine at a lavish drinks reception will only offer a short-term distraction from the problem, a whole day out at the races could actually make it worse and a secondment may seem politically inappropriate and costly. But if it’s a common trend amongst your clients maybe you could develop a mentoring offering, where fee-earners are trained as mentors and made available to help your clients develop their junior talent. For your stressed-out clients, this could relieve pressure on their time and present a compelling incentive to appoint you on bigger projects in the future.

Embracing change

Keeping up with change can be a challenge, particularly in the unsettling times we are experiencing. What may have worked six months ago could prove to have no relevance today. And who knows where we will be in the next six months.

As new communications channels have emerged, they have revolutionalised how we receive information, how we find it and how we interact. Traditional communications tools such brochures, press releases and seminars suddenly seem mundane, static and slow. Empowered by the internet, the rise of social media and our unnatural attachment to Blackberrys, everyone has the ability to get to the most current information quickly, when they need it, without even leaving their desk. We no longer rely on printed newspapers and trade publications for our news feed – more up-to-date information is always only a few mouse clicks away.

The internet has enabled the democratisation of information. As soon as anyone hears rumblings of a change in legislation or a rumour in the market, they have the power and the technology to find out more instantly, respond with their own views on comment boards and spread the news further. There are dangers associated with this, but also the opportunity to spread your news and opinion far quicker than via a press release, raising your profile and reaching whole new markets with minimal cost and effort.

Instead of focusing solely on traditional print media, savvy marketers will explore new ways to leverage the profile-boosting power of electronic word of mouth. So, look for new media outlets to channel your messages. Consider hosting a webinar (that clients can log into real time or at their convenience) instead of resorting to a static, traditional seminar. Maybe even post it on your own YouTube channel. Use social media (blogging, Twitter, LinkedIn etc) to boost the number of touch points you make with your clients, targets and other connections. Make bold, pithy, informed tweets and status updates an engaging way to attract your target audience’s attention, encourage interaction, drive traffic to your website and improve your search engine rankings. As new ways to communicate open up, work alongside the new emerging media and become a trusted source of reliable and timely information for your clients.

No firm is an island

Your firm doesn’t exist in isolation; it’s not untouchable, it’s not self-preserving, it relies on others to grow. Which is why strategic marketing alliances could be an interesting twist on the typically lone stance most professional services firms take to marketing.

Collaborating with competitors may seem a controversial step too far – although a lively, debate between a panel comprising representatives from competing firms would undoubtedly attract an audience of prospective clients eager to witness sparks fly. But alliances with clients or members of your referral network offer a safer place to start. Maybe hosting joint events (and sharing costs) with an intermediary you would like to develop closer ties with, making a client panel a focal point of an event, piggy backing a bigger brand to attract a wider audience, sharing targets with a multiplier with complimentary interests, arranging joint sales missions or seeking public speaking opportunities at esteemed industry events. Applied with thought, collaborations are a cost-effective and powerful way to boost your credibility and demonstrate thought leadership, without overtly selling.

Appeal to your clients’ emotions

We’ve all heard it before - people buy people and sales decisions are driven firstly by emotions and then the rational appraisal of capability. This is nothing new. But still so many marketing campaigns are stiff, formal and bland.

If you remove your logo what distinguishes your materials from that of your competitors? Often very little. In the days where print and post were the main medium of business communication this could be excused. However, with diverse multimedia platforms now at our disposal, the opportunity to inject our firm’s distinct personality into marketing is only limited by our willingness to experiment.

Most firms now have websites. But they are often little more than online corporate brochures. There is nothing wrong with this - it’s a good base - but there is potential to do more by using carefully applied audio, video, animation, blogs and comment boards to bring your brand to life. Your marketing should give prospective clients an insight into your people and style of working. Webinars, podcasts, Twitter feeds and video client testimonials are all ways to add colour, interest and personality to your communications. Used effectively, strategically and consistently, they can help initiate relationship building and ignite the preference of a prospect before you’ve even spoken in person.

Attracting new business and maintaining a favourable public profile is a top priority for professional services firms at the moment. Even those who were previously cynical about the value of marketing, have been infected with a sudden sense of urgency to present a competitive and compelling public profile. Maybe it’s time to capitalize on this willingness and push the boundaries.

So, back to those planning meetings. Is it time to shake things up? Yes. So, take a few deep breaths. Give yourself a quick silent, confidence-boosting pep talk. You can do it.

Do you want to inject more originality into your marketing?

As we trudge into the final quarter of a particularly difficult year, the time has come to contemplate a new future. Like every other year, you will be setting up marketing planning/budget meetings with your department heads and sector leaders. The format and conclusions of these meetings are predictable. You uncomfortably wince at overspend caused by unplanned projects (of dubious value). Everyone at the meeting makes solemn commitments to be more rigorous, more robust and more measured in the year ahead. Then drained of all inspiration due to the depressing reality that budgets are going to be slaughtered once again, you resign yourself to do the same as last year but more economically: a few seminars, minimal advertising, refreshed brochures and an entertainment box at the firm’s favourite sporting event.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. 2009 has been a landmark year; the most difficult of decades and not one we are easily going to forget.

Is now the time to break the cycle and inject some originality into our marketing plans?

The case for originality is clear. The delivery will be more challenging.

If you are looking for support with your marketing planning I am offering a special offer on my Brainstorm & Blitz product - a fast-paced, action-focused half day planning session. For more information on what the session includes and to find out more about me, please visit - www.laurajanejohnson.co.uk. Or you can give me a call on 07803 926 239.

What's happening to business news?

The media is changing; regional newspapers are dropping like flies as advertising revenue evaporates, print publications are getting thinner and more and more of us are relying on the internet to feed our hunger for business news. The business news world is changing so does business need to respond by updating its approach to media relations and PR too?

I went to an interesting panel debate this morning at the University of Warwick. Chaired by BBC Media Correspondent Torin Douglas, a panel of experts (David Arnott – Associate Professor of Marketing & E-business, Warwick Business School, Marc Reeves, Editor of the Birmingham Post and Richard Lambert, Director-General of the CBI and former editor of the FT) debated:

“Does business news no longer make for good business?”

The answer … in its current form no. The media world as we know it is balancing precariously on crisis point. No longer subsidised by advertising revenues, the traditional style daily business pages are no longer profitable or sustainable.

David Arnott started his opening presentation with the Chinese letters for crisis: one symbol representing danger and the other opportunity. His message – look for opportunities in the danger the internet presents to the dissemination of business news. Marc Reeves’ explanation of the struggles the Birmingham Post is experiencing in finding a profitable business model for regional news, clearly demonstrated this is easier said than done.

What is the danger? The internet has enabled the democratisation of information – if someone hears about something they have the power and the technology to find out more about this and spread this further. We no longer rely on newspapers for information.

As marketing professionals, we need to accept this reality. Instead of focusing all of our time and PR effort on the traditional print media, we should embrace and leverage the new ways to build profile through electronic word of mouth. Look for new media outlets to channel our messages. Use social media (blogging, Twitter, LinkedIn etc) as signposting tools to grab readers' attention and drive traffic to our websites. Make our releases and posts stand out amongst the masses of information by saying something exciting, insightful or challenging. As the media changes, work alongside it to become a trusted source of information and build your own followers (and in turn customers).

The recession has attacked our budgets and resources, don’t let it take our creativity too!

Brand, reputation and profile – they all need to be managed but now on a much tighter budget. It’s a competitive and tough market out there. The recession encourages clients to question what they are spending their depleted funds on and forces them to consider alternatives. And in many markets the difference between the actual product or service on offer is negligibly small.

So, why should your clients stick with you? Why should new customers abandon their long-trusted supplier and take a chance on you?

This is where effective brand management – which encompasses your reputation, your values and the emotional appeal that leads people to buy – becomes crucial. Even more so in these current times of economic stress and strife than ever before. But to complicate the situation, falling profits mean marketing budgets have been brutally cut. Spending on flashy campaigns and impressive hospitality packages suddenly seems reckless. And maybe a bit insensitive to market pressures too. The result – marketing teams slip into being reactive fire fighters rather than go-getting entrepreneurial types.

Taking a back seat and removing your brand from the spotlight can be equally treacherous. It communicates a lack of confidence and acceptance of the situation. Whereas carefully targeted and imaginative plans can maintain profile, a self-assured approach and a determined defiance to conquer the economic gloom that adds endearing credibility to what you are offering.

The question is: Do slashed budgets really have to amount to a cull of our creativity? Maybe not. It’s all about injecting a bit of originality into our ideas and focusing as much on the message as the medium. It’s about being honest – did the expensive campaigns of the boom times deliver real return on investment or were they just a way to show off and indulge in an interesting project for the marketing team? By cutting back on the frivolities and ending the back-slapping bravado of recent years, is the recession an opportunity for marketing to being taken seriously?

A legitimate business tool or a passing trend?

It’s hard to escape it. Conversations and the press are liberally scattered with references to Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and blogging. Everyone has a view on it and more and more people are dabbling in it. Some commentators are even arguing it could transform business interaction, providing a new way to promote businesses and keep in touch with clients. And more and more businesses are signing up. Let’s face it, we’re in a recession and any free form of marketing is worth considering.

But is the business legitimacy of social media limited to the digital and creative industries or can all businesses benefit? A thought-provoking presentation by Kirsty Farrelly of The Open Book Agency convinced me social media is worth serious business consideration. By having a professional social media strategy (e.g. a carefully defined market to target regular insightful updates) and tools in place to measure its effectiveness (e.g. Google Analytics) social media can offer a unique and cost-effective way to spread PR messages, start conversations with market press, build a reputation as an esteemed commentator on a topic and initiate relationships with potential clients and new recruits.

However, it remains a relatively new phenomena that still has stronger links with the celebrity world than professional marketing at the moment. This is where the challenge for marketers lies. In all but the most progressive of corporate firms, I can imagine requesting work time to dedicate to updating social media will prompt raised eyebrows from an organisation’s leadership. Convincing sceptics that social media has a real business value is still hard at the moment. The tag “social” media and playful terminology (such as tweeting) don't exactly help the selling of these potentially useful marketing tools as serious profile raising, reputation enhancing methods.

So the question is, is social media worth the effort? And with the longevity of these sites still uncertain, are companies that don’t sign up really missing out or is social media simply an over-hyped passing trend?

Keeping it real

I like to think of myself as an optimist; the type of girl whose wine glass is always half full. But I also believe there is a time and a place for honesty. Even if it presents a less than appealing reality that I would rather fling off my stilettos and run away from than face head on. It's all a matter of balance and having a solid connection with the real world. In the corporate world it could be called emotional intelligence - something that is instinctive in all great internal communicators.

I am a great believer in the power of internal communications - employee engagement is so important in driving forward a united, motivated workforce. But it's not easy. Especially at the moment. Honest communication with staff is a lot more scary when things aren’t going well. The sound of lively chatter and champagne corks popping to celebrate a new deal have in the last year gradually been replaced with miserable silence. The carefully thought out newsletters, intranets and forums that thrived in the good times are now a chore as you scramble around to find any good news stories to cover up the grim reality of the recession.

The question I pose is: Should we be trying to fool our employees by providing communications that offer them nothing more than rose-tinted glasses?

Not in my opinion, although others may disagree. Burying our heads in the sand and trying to pretend the good times never ended isn't going to engage disgruntled employees. But it may just insult them. As companies face unachievable bonus targets, pay freezes, redundancies and reshuffles, staff are left unsettled and disillusioned.

But they’re not delusional. Morale won’t suddenly rise from the deepest of ditches and reach an all time high just because a communication goes out about a new contract and inviting them to a cake sale. No matter how yummy the baked produce is.

Employees will, however, want to know the true situation, understand the impact on them and the role they can play in recovery. Internal communications, therefore, need to be balanced to be meaningful and honest in order to motivate the support of employees. Otherwise all the effort to create glowing intranet stories and amusing newsletter features risks being dismissed as leadership propaganda.

I'm not trying to spread doom and gloom, but we shouldn't be too scared to cover the difficult subjects too. They are after all, the ones that will dominate water cooler gossiping and feed a potentially morale murdering rumour mill if allowed to fester.