Sally's take on...

...being contrarian and making it work

When it comes to the PR side of the equation, there’s a lot of cookie cutter work going on out there. It’s a business that many equate with endless press releases and relentless haranguing of journalists to write about clients. On both the agency and often the corporate side, it tends toward reactive, rather than proactive tactics, carried out by order takers, not strategically designed by generals.

That more negative than positive image is not one with which any self-respecting professional would normally want to be associated. So our approach has been to do things differently. As a contrarian, I often say, “Oh, everyone else does it like this? Let’s do it the opposite way, then, to see how it works.”

That approach helps differentiate a business, and it seems to work for us. In this issue of POV, we take a look at two sides of that coin. In Market to a different drummer, Principal Judi Schindler tells how a comfort with the counterintuitive can result in standout business and business communications. And in The power of client/reporter relationships, I share how we buck common PR practices to help our clients forge strong relationships with high priority journalists. Enjoy, and remember that we always welcome your feedback.

Best,

Market to a different drummer

By Judi Schindler

Sometimes the best marketing strategy is to be a contrarian. If all your competitors have sales in May, you’d have the edge in April. If everyone advertises in newspapers, radio would separate you from the pack. And, while Christmas cards get lost in the shuffle, Halloween cards do not.

The point is that your marketing dollars are better spent on tactics that stand alone. Your efforts will have greater impact and higher recall if they don’t have to struggle for attention among dozens of copycat efforts.

When Water Tower Place, one of the world’s first vertical shopping centers, opened, rents were more expensive for locations closer to street level. One of our clients, a retailer, considered taking space on the third or fourth floor and then had second thoughts.

While she was certain that most people would shop from the ground up, there were bound to be some who would take the elevator to the top and work downward. So she opted for the highest floor and enjoyed a steady flow of customers who did exactly as she thought they would.

So how do you make sure you stand out from the crowd? A good place to start is with a competitive analysis. Compare your marketing brochures, Web sites, ads and promotions to that of your competitors. Do they look and sound alike? What would it take to distinguish you? A different size? Different copy? Different format? Different color?

In a world of four-color photography, arty black and white shots are highly distinctive. When every brochure is 8 ½ x 11, the 10 x 10 piece becomes memorable. And when every company describes its capabilities as “cutting edge,” “full-service,”  “hands-on,” “24/7” and “state-of-the-art,” it’s time to open a Thesaurus.

Finally, you want to look at your marketing program for the full year. What overdone tactics could you eliminate? What fresh, new ideas could replace them? Have you thought about social marketing? Could you add a blog or video posts to your Web site? Would mobile phone marketing be effective for you?

The power of client/reporter relationships

By Sally Saville Hodge

As a PR agency, one of our main responsibilities is to help our clients stand out with the media. Since our firm leadership includes three former journalists, we understand from direct experience how, and from whom, reporters really want to receive information.

A better way (but counterintuitive to most PR firms) is to send the prospective source/expert to the journalist directly. We monitor what particular beat reporters at certain high priority publications are writing about, and help our clients craft direct responses that in some way advance the journalist’s article, if not knowledge base. Comments that are on the money make the reporter take notice that our expert took the time to comment directly. And they’re often very receptive to hearing more and using them as a source in the future.

For example, in the first six months of working with us, we successfully used this approach with luxury brand consulting firm 400twin with Women’s Wear Daily, which regularly covers many luxury brands. The quotes (along with some bylined articles we placed) increased her Web presence, leading not only to calls from other journalists, but also to a panel seat at the Beverly Hills Chamber of Commerce Luxury Summit 2008. And that appearance led to quotes in the San Francisco Chronicle and Forbes and a recent spot on Fox Business News.

We initiated this approach a few years ago with Prophet, a brand, marketing and innovation consultancy. It helped grow some nice relationships with reporters at the Wall Street Journal and New York Times, and to a higher profile that led to regular columns in Ad Age and Marketing News. This strategy, augmented by our own media relationships and traditional and new media capabilities, has helped make Prophet a household name in the marketing community.

Could clients do this themselves? Maybe. But few will, for the same reason most businesses don’t promote their own businesses without professional help. By doing the heavy lifting and reducing the effort for the client to a few mouse clicks, we speed the profile-raising process, and facilitate authentic relationships between them and those who have the power to make public their thoughts and expertise.

Sally Saville Hodge is the president and owner of our agency.

Jouzaitis joins Hodge Schindler

We recently welcomed public relations specialist, writer and independent consultant Carol Jouzaitis as a senior vice president. Carol has been charged with helping to lead the continued expansion of the firm’s business base and add to its capabilities.

Carol has worked on both the agency and corporate sides of the business since leaving her first career as a long-time journalist with the Chicago Tribune and USA Today. She brings a strong knowledge base in communications strategies for startup and growing businesses, having been a founding member of the Orbitz management team as vice president of corporate communications. Her award-winning PR programs quickly turned Orbitz.com and Orbitz for Business into nationally recognized brands in a highly competitive sector.

She also brings credentials on the business-to-business side, having served as senior vice president of public relations at the leading b-to-b marketing agency Slack Barshinger after leaving Orbitz. Her clients included Underwriters Laboratories, Diebold, Business.com, InXpo, Vacation.com, Hoffman Enclosures, Dairy Management Inc. and SourceForge.com.

Check our blog for her periodic posts that share the thinking she brings to the party. She can be reached at cjouzaitis@hodgeschindler.com.

Short takes

Distinguished achievement, indeed
The integrated program Hodge Schindler created and has executed over the last year for Alternative Reproductive Resources (ARR) has been recognized with a Silver Trumpet award in the marketing category by the Publicity Club of Chicago.

ARR is an agency that matches intended parents with egg donors and gestational surrogates. Our program, “Creating a Community Around Conception” encompassed traditional media relations, Web site (www.arr1.com) redesign and the design and ongoing management of “Conception Connections,” a blog sharing stories and opinions from egg donors, surrogates and intended parents and ARR’s team. The program has resulted in news coverage from media such as Reuters, Chicago Tribune and more, while also creating significant viral buzz.

"Heroes" all
Hodge Schindler client GO Airport Express of Chicago honored three individuals as positive role models at its 15th Annual “Heroes in the ‘Hood” awards program in April. The program recognizes young Chicago adults – as individuals and in groups – who volunteer to help support and improve their communities. Hodge Schindler, which has organized the event since its inception, welcomed more than 125 teens to a reception and ceremony. The three honored role models: former Chicago Bulls forward Bob Love; First Deputy Fire Commissioner John Brooks; and PepsiCo Vice President Terry Thomas. For photos of the event please visit the Heroes in the 'Hood flickr page.

Tips for marketing on a budget
In an article in University Business, Hodge Schindler Principal Judi Schindler offers suggestions on how smart marketers can invest ever-scarcer resources in a down economy, illustrating her piece with real-life examples from the field.

How to contact us

Hodge Schindler Integrated Communications is located at 900 N. Franklin St., Suite 200, Chicago, IL 60610. Our phone is 312.666.6662; fax is 312.666.1670.

To contact any of our team members via e-mail, please use their first initial-last name-at-hodgeschindler-dot-com.