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By Pitney Bowes

Are you inspiring your customers—or royally ticking them off? In a recent 2012 survey, Pitney Bowes surveyed 6,000 consumers in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, and France to find out just what customers expected, liked, and disliked about interactions with businesses. Findings show that even though a marketing trend may be wildly popular, it just may be sending the wrong message!

I’M DOWN WITH THAT

Customers don’t mind these types of communication:

75% – Customer satisfaction surveys

74% – Keeping in contact at an appropriate frequency*

59% – A certain level of personalization and familiarity**

Customer Turnoffs

Actions seen as negative:

89% – Sending weekly emails

84% – Asking customers to support a brand’s charity or ethical concerns

83% – Sending offers from third parties

81% – Encouraging interaction with other consumers via an online community

71% – Encouraging customers to attend branded lifestyle events

70% – Call center reps getting too chummy on the phone

*Customers say an offer sent monthly via postal mail is appropriate.

**Consumers say they appreciate online personalization on websites, such as “Welcome, Jane.”

 Source: Pitney Bowes, Report: Why Some of Your Customers Are Just Not That into You, March 12, 2012.

By Martha Spizziri

Maybe you’ve heard someone mention that business websites should be “508-compliant.” But what does that mean? Does it matter to your business?

The term refers to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. The amendment mandates that any electronic or information technology the federal government uses be accessible to people with disabilities. That’s according to the U.S. Access Board, a federal agency that sets accessibility standards.

Though compliance is required only for government sites, it’s also good business sense.

“The 508 compliance potentially can open up your business to … a larger range of [customers],” points out Daniel Hagman, VP of user interface production for the Boston web-service firm Verndale Corp.

The return on investment might not be immediate—though if your target audience is, say, retirees, who are more likely to have vision or hearing problems, that could change.

“You’re going to want to make the site be more compliant, obviously, and that would show an immediate turnaround,” Hagman says.

Many of the factors that go into 508 compliance also make a website more user-friendly for everyone. An example would be the ability to hit the Enter key to submit an online form.

“A lot of websites and companies just implement that thinking it’s good practice,” Hagman notes.

Compliance helps ensure a site will be viewable on mobile devices. It can also make the site more visible to search engines, says Hagman.

Compliance is a collaborative effort between business and site designer, he says. The vendor takes care of the code; the client makes decisions about how to present content. Usually, a marketing person is involved—“someone in marketing who has the high-level understanding of the desires of the business,” says Hagman.

Compliance needn’t add a huge time or cost burden if done early in the site’s development, Hagman says. But even if it’s not done early on, there are elements you can add later; accessibility isn’t an all-or-nothing proposition. If you approach a vendor with a list of items you want to implement, that vendor should be able to estimate the cost and time for each item and advise you on which are most important.

“[A business] can pick and choose exactly how far they want the vendor to go,” Hagman says.

It’s hard to picture today’s youths without their thumbs attached to a smartphone or some other electronic device. Products of the digital age, our young people—labeled “millennials”—often prefer digital formats of traditional paper documents. According to a recent study of 16 – 23-year-olds, 79 percent receive electronic bank statements, 67 percent use digital coupons, and 61 percent say they read newspapers online.

While technology may be the first language of millennials, they’re not writing off paper just yet. Yes, they’re deeply connected through social media websites, text messaging, and email, but the same study shows they prefer paper for basic personal and business communications—a fact that increases with age and employment. Here’s a quick look at when and why millennials prefer paper.

In Paper They Trust

Millennials hold their trust in paper, compared to digital documents. According to TRU, a division of TNS Research Global, paper is seen as more official (88%), more trusted (82%), easier to keep confidential (78%), and safer/more secure (74%).

In addition:

77% – Say documents are less trustworthy in digital format because they can be altered without your knowledge.

63% – Often print out documents for their records, even if they have them saved electronically.

90% – Prefer to have hard copies of important documents.

65% – Number of millenials that find it easier to view or read something on paper than on a computer screen or other tech device.

A Bond that can’t be Broken

Millennials have a powerful attachment to paper.

• Eight out of 10 say they can’t imagine their lives without paper.
• Nine out of 10 say that despite today’s technological advances, they doubt they will ever give up paper completely.

Millenials still prefer paper over digital when it comes to:  books (78%), magazines (71%), and newspapers (52%).

Perhaps the strongest bond with paper is emotional. If forced to choose, the majority would rather receive: a birthday card in the mail than via email (87%), a mailed invitation than an evite (57%), and a handwritten letter than an email (55%).

Source: “Millennial Paper Usage and Attitudes (2011),” TRU, a division of TNS Research Global

By Martha Spizziri

Venture capitalists and job seekers have them; businesses need them, too

It’s a truism: Everyone needs an elevator pitch—a way to describe what they do that takes no longer than the average elevator ride. But every company needs an elevator pitch, too.

Why?

Obviously, salespeople must be able to state their organization’s significance succinctly. But an elevator pitch also helps reinforce the company’s value with existing customers, says Richard T. Cole, a professor at Michigan State University’s College of Communication Arts & Sciences. Beyond that, it can help inspire the employees who give the pitch, which can affect the company’s bottom line. Gallup research shows that highly satisfied, loyal employees usually have a strong understanding of the enterprise they work for, Cole says.  Employee satisfaction, in turn, has been found to be strongly linked to customer satisfaction and loyalty.

“Whether you’re in the mailroom or the boardroom, it’s really important for the employee to understand the role that he or she plays in achieving the mission of the organization,” Cole says. 

What makes a good elevator pitch?

An elevator pitch may sound similar to a mission or vision statement, and those certainly can inform the pitch. But an elevator pitch is more specific and immediate. It communicates the company’s unique selling proposition and—this is key—how that proposition can help the listener.

Composing the statement should probably begin with the CEO, who might delegate it to the chief PR officer, says Cole, “but it’s not something that can be created in a vacuum.” Soliciting employee input helps ensure a good pitch. Avoid buzzwords, like “world-class,” he adds.

“[The pitch] can’t be hyperbolic or overstated,” he says. “Something that…people aren’t comfortable saying is not going to be said with the kind of passion that you need to make it an effective statement.” And, he adds, “it has to be well-enough rehearsed to appear spontaneous.”

The measure of a good pitch? The listener should feel as if he or she needs to hear more, “at the risk of otherwise not having some need met,” Cole says.

Ultimately, says Cole, “If you can’t say what’s important about your organization and how it makes a difference in 30 seconds, it’s probably not worth saying.”

It has to be well-enough rehearsed to appear spontaneous.

~  Richard T. Cole, professor,  Michigan State University

By Laurie Hileman

If you’re looking for a way for your marketing and brand messages to make a lasting impression, you’re looking at it.

(No, seriously. You are. Like right now.)

In a world turning digital, printed publications and other printed marketing materials are enjoying a renaissance. And for good reason. Studies show magazines rank No. 1 in reader engagement, and the average reader spends 40 minutes reading each issue.

But it’s not just magazines. Print in general sticks in our minds. It draws readers in, awakens our senses, and makes meaningful connections in our brains—connections that enhance a brand experience in ways digital cannot. Viva la print!

80% K-12 teachers who say their students comprehend info better when they read on paper.

5 Reasons Print Trumps Digital

1. Engagement time

People spend more time looking at print than digital content.

2. Emotional stimulation

Print is more likely to elicit an emotional response.

3. Memory speed and confidence

When people read printed content, they recall information more quickly and are more confident in their knowledge.

4. Desirability

Quite simply, people prefer printed products.

5. Value judgment

Printed content is perceived as more valuable.

The top 25 magazines reach more adults and teens than the top 25 regularly scheduled primetime television shows. 

Why print?

Readers tend to skim on screens, distraction is inevitable, and comprehension suffers.

Michael S. Rosenwald for The Washington Post.