Brand Building And Marketing As Investments

From the Brand Insider:

(1) Brand building is an investment that results in a significant leverageable asset.
(2) Other shorter-term marketing actions exist for the sole purpose of increasing sales.
(3) You can measure the asset value of brands.
(4) You can also measure the non-financial aspects of brands that drive positive financial consequences in the long term – awareness, relevant differentiation, loyalty, etc.
(5) You can and should measure ROI for other shorter-term marketing programs.
(6) Brands are a primary source of value creation for organizations.
(7) While some business people (typically finance and operations types) may view marketing as an expense without significant corresponding benefits, this is untrue. Marketing is one of the most important investments a company can make.

Implication: Don't look first to marketing (and employee training, for that matter) when expenses need to be trimmed to achieve short-term goals. This will only hamper value creation [ratings] and revenue growth in the long term. Read more

I.G.N.I.T.E Sales Tip: 10 Commandments for Using PowerPoint

From Nick Souter’s Persuasive Presentations:

Here are the ten commandments for using PowerPoint. Write them in stone.

1. Only one idea on each page.
2. Give each page a title.
3. Abbreviate.
4. Be ruthlessly relevant.
5. Use full sentences for quotes and statements.
6. Build, don’t reveal.
7. Aesthetic consistency.
8. Use icons and images.
9. Avoid dynamic typography.
10. Have a Plan B.

I.G.N.I.T.E. Sales Tip: 4 Essential Tips For Developing Excellent Client Relationships

What does it take to deepen and build client relationships? Scott Weibrod at Experience Matters offers four simple yet often overlooked ideas. They are:

1. Get out of your office (and into theirs)
2. Make yourself available
3. Go deep, go really deep (by building long-term relationships and learning the language of your client’s world)
4. Entertain them (by creating relationship building opportunities and environments outside of the office)