Below the Line

The importance of tone of voice

Guest post by Kate Stendahl

“Yes, Peaches, who’s a bad girl?  Who peed on the carpet?  Who did it?  Was it you?”

Ever notice how you can speak to a dog in a happy, sing-song tone, but tell them something horrible, and they will still be really happy you’re talking with them?  Tone of voice is often more important in communication than we realize. The way we send the message is often just as important as the content of the message itself, even to those of us with opposable thumbs and the ability to understand more than a few words of language.

When training animals, consistency is key. Similarly, in order to "train" one's customers about one's brand, a company needs to have a consistent message to all customers in every interaction with every part of the business. Dealing with a company that is always changing its look, sound, and values can be confusing. If part of a business’s marketing materials are very serious, and part of it is surfer talk or chatty girl-talk, it can create accessibility problems for current and potential patrons and partners. How can you trust the company, or trust that it knows who it is and what it is doing, if it doesn’t have a consistent message? The tone of voice should communicate your brand’s values and qualities. A company needs to decide not only the message it wants to get across, but the best way to deliver that message.

Tone should be appropriate to the brand, and needs to be consistent in all communications to be effective. If you are a banker, you probably don’t want to sign your formal documents with pink ink and a heart dotting the “I”s. On the other hand, if you sell stationery to pre-teen girls, having pink lettering with sparkles on your website may be exactly what you want. This is where tone of voice and brand guidelines come in. If the rules for how to communicate with the outside world are set out, then despite having multiple authors write about the brand, the brand will retain its integrity. Another benefit of unified communications is that the company is much more agile in PR situations. It can be much easier and quicker to use language to differentiate the brand or ensure certain points are made.

The most important part is that the tone of your website, newsletters, blogs, networking websites and press releases all have the same look, feel, and message. This includes the tone used on your social media marketing. Often these documents are kept inside a company and never see the light of day.  However, we were able to locate a few online.

Canada

That’s right, Canada is not just a country, but also a brand. Rather than dealing with a government entity, they want potential tourists to feel like they’re chatting with other travellers. They want people, especially “high yield visitors” to explore, be themselves, and experience Canada in a personal way.

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easyGroup

easyGroup also knows the value of a good brand manual. In a larger corporation that includes multiple businesses, such as easyJet, easyMobile and easyCruise, it is important that the look and content of the messages coming from all of these businesses is cohesive and pointed in the same direction. It gives eight brand values, the mission statement, a strategy and even sets out rules for visual media. The tone of voice easyGroup aims for is simple, direct, fun and irreverent. They are a young company and they want to promote the idea of their great value and entrepreneurial, innovative spirit.

   

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British Airways

BA also posted its brand guide online. BA aims for a tone of voice that is straight forward, sophisticated, progressive and empathetic, and its brand guide reflects that. The BA brand is focused on quality, safety, responsibility, and even “Britishness”. BA uses a much more serious tone than easyGroup, for example. BA’s brand guide also lists professionalism as one of their core brand values. However, a misspelling on the “Our business” page lets them down. The typo is an “award-wining” (sic) example of how outside professional marketing help can help prevent future issues. 

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Need help with your brand manual?

Should your company need a new or improved brand manual that really gets to the heart of your business and unifies your tone of voice (or if you would like us to review it to make sure you don’t have any typos!), DevonInspiration would be happy to help you. We can also provide training materials to help you explain the brand manual and why using a uniform tone of voice is so very important. If you would rather, we would also be happy to conduct that training for your company as a whole or for key employees such as those responsible for customer communications.

Podcasters report their top 3 podcasting tips - part 2

Here are the rest of the top tips on podcasting that I received from podcasters. Part 1 was posted yesterday.

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from Andy Abramson Co-Host of KenRadio’s World Technology Roundup and Ken Rutkowski, WebCast Pioneer and Host of KenRadio’s World Technology Roundup

1. Record with a very good microphone. The old adage of “Garbage In, Garbage Out” applies. We like the mics that are part of the BLUE family, like SNOWBALL. They seem to have the right dynamic range and seem to reduce echo and background noise quite well.
2. Be topical and timely. No one wants to hear things they are likely to already know. By providing insight, talking to an audience about what they need to know you build a loyal and repeat following.
3. Promote. Make it easy for people to remember your podcast’s name. Make the name reflective of the topic. If you’re going to talk about cars, work the word “cars” into the title. If you’re talking about Pets, make sure that’s in the name  as well. Get a URL for the podcast and forward it to where you host the site. Make sure you also populate the many podcast directories and the iPod Podcast directory with information. Upload the podcast to as many sites as possible that handle aggregation.

Top 3 podcasting tips from Lillian "Creator" Cauldwell of Passionate Internet Voices Talk Radio, Inc.

1. Know what you're going to say and say it cleanly, pronounce each vowel and consonant.  Don't read.  The listeners will know.
2. Use a LANE phone.  Do not use portables or cell phones.  They break up and the listeners won't hear you.
3. Speak up in a loud voice.  Draw your breath from your diaphragm.  Otherwise, the listeners won't hear you when using either a microphone or a telephone.

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from Stacy Karacostas, Practical Marketing Expert From Success Stream

1. Getting started, especially when it involves wading through tons of technology options, can be really tough. That’s why I highly recommend using www.utterli.com. Once you’ve set up your account you can record your podcasts from any phone and they’ll automatically post to the utterli network, your blog, your Website, and anywhere else you specify. Love it!
2. If you’re going to record your podcasts from a telephone, try to use a landline instead of a cell phone. The audio quality is much better.
3. Script out your podcasts before recording them so you know exactly what you want to say, but don’t necessarily read your script word for word. Instead be friendly and conversational. Then use your script as an additional article you can post on your blog or elsewhere online.

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from Ian Griffin of Executive Communications

1. No matter what technology you use, realize that content is king. Make your podcasts interesting, informative and even controversial to give listeners a reason to download them.
2. Carry a digital tape recorder (I use the Olympus DS-330) and a spare set of AAA batteries with you everywhere. You never know when you’ll meet someone you can interview for your next podcast.
3. If you are interviewing someone in a location with a lot of background noise, set the digital recorder on ‘Dictation’ mode if it has an option for that. Hold the recorder or microphone close to the person’s mouth and you’ll be surprised how clear it can sound.

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from David Burckhard, V.P. of Operations for National Podcasting System

1. We talk to business managers who want to produce one, two or three podcasts and "see if things work out." Don't even begin a podcasting campaign unless you commit to a regular series of podcasts on a continuing bases that will draw, inform and retain an audience over time.
2. Podcasts are not and should not be advertisements. No one will continue downloading podcasts if they believe you're only try to sell them something. Inform, educate and engage with your audience. Give them valuable and compelling information and they will be loyal listeners and viewers.
3. Respect your audience's time and they will reward you with a regular following. Make a limited set of current and relevant points. Initially, aim for business audio podcasts in the 10 - 15 minute range and adjust duration according to feedback. Keep video podcasts under 5 to 6 minutes. Any longer and your points become diluted.

Top 4 tips on podcasting from David Bridle of the Thoughts on Leadership podcast

1. Get a great media host. I use Hipcast.com.  They deliver your content and setup the feed for you, also get your feed iTunes ready
2. Use Wordpress for your blog/podcast page.  Easy to set up, and search engines love it.
3. Use feedburner to get your podcast out to all corners of the internet.
4. Another quick tip for video podcasts; publish to as many online video websites as possible, youtube, viddler, vimeo etc.  More options for the user the better.

David added: "Neither Mac nor PC are better for creating podcasts. They can both do the job, it is more down to the creative thinking of the podcast creator."

Top 3 tips on podcastins, from Joseph Vella of Vella Interactive, LLC

1. Use a digital recorder - roland edirol, zoom h4, sony digital recorders with a mic (either stereo or shot gun)
2. Mac is best and apps such as soundtrack pro, garageband are great post-production tools
3. Understand how to create the podcast feed (XML) - feeder is a great app to build your feed

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from Isa "GlitterGirl" Isaacs, founder of Temple of Poi

1. Use Wordpress and the "Podcasting" Plugin with it to start your podcast. It is free, easy to use, integrates directly into your blog and streamlines everything by integrating the blog and podcast together.
2. Flip cameras make it easy to film, edit and get video content on line fast without being a video editing expert and their high definition cameras are a steal at $230.
3. Trust that you have enough innovation to constantly generate new content and give value to your community. It's a surefire way of ensuring loyalty.This includes giving away recordings of actual sessions run with other people and getting permission from those people to post the sessions on the internet.

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from Bevin Branlandingham, of FemmeCast: The Queer Fat Femme Podcast Guide to Life

1. My tips for podcasting are to learn how to record in a way that mitigates sound echos and ambient noise as much as possible. I've learned my little iriver 800 recorder (had to buy it on ebay because it's discontinued but records cd quality sound with no need for external equipment and is smaller than 2 fingers) is great, and when I want great sound quality I try to record on a towel or a pillow to keep echoes out.
2. Further, I think anyone interested in starting a podcast should pick a topic they are totally excited about. And it's way more fun to have other people involved in the process, so I have several correspondents who contribute and a friend who does my editing.
3. Submitting to itunes is really self-explanatory and it really takes not time at all. Feedburner.com provides great feed tools absolutely free.

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from Derek Ross of the RaceRemote™ Motorsports Media Network

1. Use the Levelator Software to easily adjust sound levels - and make the recording sound better: And the price is right! - No Charge
2. For portable easy recording with a phone system - use Pamela with Skype
3. Third tip and maybe the most important - is just be yourself. There is already enough "over produced" content out there that is "painful" to listen to.

Top 4 tips on podcasting, from Jarrod Skeggs, V.P. Sales and Marketing for Digital Design Solutions

1. Get a MacBook or MacBook Pro, Rode Podcaster Mic or Blue Snowball, and an iPhone. With these three tools you are prepared to capture and produce a podcast just about anywhere anytime. No additional software or equipment required.
2. At a minimum, we recommend doing an enhanced podcast. An Enhanced podcast is one that includes audio tracks along with graphics and hot links so that folks are stimulated not just audibly but visually too; also they have the opportunity to take action by clicking on the hot links. Remember that most podcasts are consumed on a desktop or notebook computer, not a personal media device, iPod, or iPhone. (Although I believe this trend will move to mobile devices rapidly over the next year or two).
3. If you follow step 1 above, it's fairly easy utilize some good intro, outro, and transition music bumpers cause GarageBand comes with thousands of them. Use these to make your podcast sounds professional and standout. Without a doubt, podcasting is about quality content, but if that quality content is packaged right, the consumers experience is so much better that they are far more likely to continue listening to your podcast.
4. Keep your podcast to 10 minutes or less. 5 to 8 minutes is optimal. You've got to have really, really, really good quality content to keep a listener on the hook for more than 10 minutes. If you have more than 10 minutes worth of information to share, divide it up into multiple podcasts. This will keep folks coming back to hear the conclusion.

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from Jeff Glasson, Director of Social Media & Technology for PerkettPR, Inc.

1. Pick a topic you are passionate about: Be sure your podcast focuses on a topic that you are passionate about. While there’s a level of fun and excitement in producing a podcast, in the end its still quite a bit of work. Selecting a topic that you are truly passionate about will help you stay on track when you feel like quitting.
2. Focus on the content, not the equipment: There is virtually no limit on how much money you can spend on gear for podcasting. Regardless of how much you spend on trying to sound good, listeners will tune you out if your content offering is poor. A $30 Noise-cancelling headset from Plantronics and a free copy of Audacity (Mac/PC) is more than enough to get you going.
3. Consider doing a live podcast: If your podcast will include guests in remote locations, are not technically savvy or you would like to have a more interactive experience with your show then consider doing a live podcast with the blogtalkradio.com or talkshoe.com platforms. These services eliminate equipment related hassles by allowing you to conduct your podcast over the telephone. They also allow for audience participation by simulating a radio station type environment where you can bring callers in and out of the conversation. All live shows are recorded and made available for future listening.

If you have any more podcasting tips, please leave a comment!

Podcasters report their top 3 podcasting tips - part 1

Is your client considering starting a podcast? The medium has been around for a few years now, so it's well past early adopter stage. That means expectations are high in terms of quality and content. I asked podcasters for their top three tips on putting together a podcast. Here are the responses I received -- some over achievers even provided four tips:

Top 3 tips on marketing your new podcast, from Mike McAllen of Meetings Podcast

1. Look into Trade Forums in your niche, build relationships and fans! Also a great place to find topics and interview subjects for your podcast.
2. Make alliances with other bloggers and podcasters in your niche. This will work to both shows/blogs benefits. Cross links and even inviting each other on each other shows.
3. Ask for comments, call in questions and e-mail questions and ANSWER them on the show. This will build fans! Also playing the recorded questions is a big plus to convert listeners to fans!

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from John Rarrick of Bullseye Productions

1. If you are producing a podcast for client or third party, take the time to first learn on your own dime, NOT the client’s. When we noticed that podcasts were going to be something that more people were going to want us to do, my partner and I started producing a show that we’d record on Saturday mornings when the phones weren’t ringing. At first, it was a production train-wreck. But over a few months, we blundered our way to first “acceptable”, and finally, “good” status. That show, by the way, which we didn’t even really mean for anyone to really hear, now has over 18,000 subscribers and a sponsor. Go figure.
2. Have realistic expectations for revenue. Some new podcasters think they should, in a just a few short weeks, be able to quit their day job and join the podcasting elite. Think again. This is still a new medium. Advertisers are still being made aware of what a podcast is. In these tough economic times, podcasters should present their shows as “low-cost options” to advertisers. Our rates for episode sponsors are rarely over $200.
3. Content is King. A boring show with great production value is not a recipe for success. We meet a lot of producers who are so obsessed with audio quality that they forget what the show was supposed to be about. Good content, as with any show (TV/Radio/Web) starts with good research and show prep. If you are interviewing an author and haven’t read the book, your listeners will know that in a second. Since most podcasts cater to a niche audience, staying informed on the subject matter is the key to getting new subscribers and keeping the ones you have.

Top 4 tips on marketing your podcast, from Scott Fineout, CEO of 607 Media

1. Make sure your Podcast is available through Apple's iTunes. You can do this by simply going to apple.com/itunes
2. Create a blog. This might be the single best way to establish yourself and be easily accessible. Many believe that these go hand and hand which is the influence behind blogtalkradio.com
3. Social networking sites are rapidly becoming a successful (and more affordable) option for companies of all sizes and industries. Simply starting a group on Facebook will allow you to e-mail members and let them know when updates or new shows occur. That is the beauty of Podcasting, you can connect to the host easier.
4. Build a network. You can do this by simply writing for different blogs, or being an occasional guest on a related Podcast.

Top 4 tips on podcasting, from Tom Johnson of I'd Rather be Writing

1. Best portable microphone: Zoom H4. Its versatility and sound quality is unmatched.
2. Best audio editing tools: Audacity, Soundsoap, and the Levelator.
3. Use Feedburner's podcasting settings to automatically-insert the correct iTunes specifications in your feed. (Feedburner makes it easy.)
4. Create a WordPress blog with the Audio One Pixel Out player to broadcast your podcast.

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from Nancy Munro, CEO of Knowledge Shift

1. You don’t need to invest a lot of money in hardware or software – we use the free Audacity software to record and edit all audio podcast.
2. Use an outline or script in order to produce a good product.
3. Use HipCast to convert MP3 files to RSS feeds for both audio and video.

You can also download their white paper on How to PodCast for Free.

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from Bob Knorpp of The BeanCast: A Marketing Podcast

1. Consistency – You can’t expect an audience to commit to you, if you don’t commit to them. When I started The BeanCast, I knew I would have to commit to being there on a set schedule (for me, it was every week) and busyness or vacations or me losing interest would never be an acceptable reason for not putting out a show.
2. Sound Quality — You would not believe how important having your show sound good is to the audience. A quick search of podcast comments on iTunes reveals it as one of the top factors in dropping a show, even if the content is well-regarded. Make an investment in a good condenser mic, get a small sound board and experiment in balancing bit rate with file size to find the optimal combination for you.
3. Have a Plan — This is addressed both at the overall show and the individual episodes. No successful podcaster completely wings it. For The BeanCast I had a clear understanding of the format of the show before I recorded episode one. I also roughly plan out each episode and provide detailed notes to participants, even though it’s an open roundtable. You have to be intentional with content. Rambling only gets you so far.

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from Darrin Guilbeau, President of Silicon Advantage

1. Normalize! Most audio software should have a function that will normalize your audio tracks. This will bring your audio levels to a more consistent and, surprise  - “normal” level for listening.
2. Trim! It is easy to look at the waveform and determine where long periods of silence are. Select the “flat line” areas that represent silence and cut them out. Especially look at the beginning and end of your files.
3. For voice-only podcasts, record in mono. This can reduce your file size potentially by one-half!

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from David Hooper of Music Business Radio

1. Make it sound professional. Hold your podcast to the same standards as you would something on broadcast radio. Just because you can release it to the world doesn't mean you should.
2. Provide bonus content that people can't get elsewhere. Special shows, behind the scenes, etc.
3. Promote via YouTube and other social media to further the relationship with fans.

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from Nandini Shastry of Intellipodcast

1. Use an online service to create podcasts easily. The free Intellipodcast service allows you to record your podcast directly from a microphone connected to your PC or to upload an audio file if you want a more professional sound. The site also generates iTunes podcast XML files that you can submit to the iTunes Podcast directory and get your show into iTunes right away! You don’t have to write your own xml file.
2. Use a good microphone for the best sound quality. We recommend USB microphones like Samson audio C03U which is available from Amazon and many other places online for under $100. If you prefer a headset microphone, we recommend the Plantronics DSP500 which is also available online widely.
3. Use Audacity or other free programs to edit your sound files and add an interesting intro musical sequence and so forth. It’s the most widely used and easiest audio editing program on the internet.

Top 3 tips on podcasting, from John Shay, President/Founder of Headzup Entertainment

1. Collaborate. Find other sites that would be interested in adding your content to their site. Not only does collaboration improve your search engine standing by increasing the number of links that point back to your site, but it provides you a broader and deeper understanding of your audience.
2. Google. Your very first collaborative act should be to sign up as a Google adsense partner. Not only does it provide an early source of revenue it gives you a rapid introduction to how third-party widgets can be used to enhance your site. Furthermore, establishing an early record of interstate commerce will help establish and defend your trademark filings.
3. YouTube. Your second collaborative act should be to set up a YouTube channel. Even if your podcast is strictly audio recordings you can quickly convert those recordings into video using inexpensive authoring tools such as QuickTime Pro. YouTube will greatly expand your audience reach while at the same time set you on a path to become a YouTube partner channel. Coupled with your adsense partnership a YouTube partnership opens more doors to monetize your podcast, including mobile and third-party web sites.

Top 4 tips on podcasting, from Handyguy Brian of The Handyguys Podcast

1. Don't just podcast about anything. Narrow your focus, find your niche. Make sure you know you niche well and always podcast within that niche. The Handyguys Podcast only podcasts about Home Improvement topics.
2. Publish regularly. Pick a time/day and always publish at that time. For example, if you have a weekly podcast always publish it at the same time on your chosen day of the week. The Handyguys Podcast goes online every Thursday at 5PM.
3. Create subscribe buttons on your web page that are obvious to your site visitors. Tiny chicklets go un-noticed. Check out the cool subscribe buttons at The Handyguys Podcast.
4. Learn about meta data associated with your mp3 files. Be consistent in using and applying meta data. Make sure you have Album art.

I'll be back tomorrow with more tips!

Where to find Inspiration

Here’s a quick list of places to find inspiration for those in creative, strategic or account management roles – and client side roles as well! Use this list if you’re feeling stuck or want to get “out of your head”.

As I’ve mentioned previously, I think it’s important for the account team to add value to the client. So get inspired, come up with a few ideas and let your client know you are thinking about their business goals, not just the current job numbers you’re working on. Don’t guard your ideas – share them with your client. One thing I’ve found is that when you share ideas, more are sure to flow in.

·         Take a walk outside. Take a walk with no purpose. Meander around. Notice interesting architecture at the tops of buildings, the color of leaves, the noises, the smells. For an added challenge, take a camera with you and try to come up with the most interesting picture of “nothing” that you can.

·         Change your mode of transport. Some people get their best ideas in the shower; I seem to get mine in the tube. Maybe it’s because I wish I were somewhere else. The bus is great for staring out the window and observing human behavior from a safe distance.

·         Magazines. Read a general business magazine like Business Week to get back in touch with what’s happening in other industries.

·         Fiction. Read a fiction book that has nothing to do with your job, your industry or your client’s industry. It will get your mind working in a different way.

·         Visit a museum. Notice the unique shapes, styles of dress, colors, patterns, technological innovations, etc.

·         Go retro. Shut off your laptop. Get out your pen and paper or a typewriter if you’re trying to write some clever copy. Forget online image banks and go back to the old-fashioned way of creating a mood board – clip images from magazines, books, your own photos, etc.

·         A mile in their shoes. If your client has a physical location (e.g. retail store), visit the store as a customer. What kind of people are shopping there? What kind of people are working there? What do you notice about the way the store is set up? What would make you want to visit this store, or buy more?

Please leave a comment with any suggestions on where to find inspiration.

As for where not to find inspiration: marketing trade journals, television shows or existing ad campaigns. Everyone else is looking at those things, too – that’s how we end up with an advertising “Hundredth Monkey Effect” with many different agencies creating similar campaigns.

Project Management Tools

I recently evaluated the free version Basecamp as a project management tool for a web site launch I'm working on.

Here are some thoughts on how it stacks up against Microsoft Project.

Pros
+ Good snapshot of milestones on the calendar; plus it can send reminders automatically 48 hours before the milestone
+ Milestones link to iCalendar so if anyone uses it, they can set it up to have the milestones automatically populate their own calendar
+ Easy to read to do lists for each person
+ Good drag and drop functionality
+ Fairly easy to set up and learn to use
+ Can set up To Do list templates that can be used for each month’s ongoing tasks

Cons
- Only one person can be assigned to a task or a milestone
- You can’t link tasks together
- You can’t include durations for tasks or milestones
- Only milestones have due dates. Tasks are just lists
- You have to put action items as either a Task or a Milestone – they can’t be both. That means, people have to look at all tasks and milestones to get a sense of what they need to do. Or, you can list everything as a Task (but no dates attached) or a milestone (but this could create an extremely messy calendar)

In the end, we decided to stick with Microsoft Project for critical path tasks and use an existing project wiki for general task lists. I would be interested in hearing from anyone who has experience with these or other project management tools.

Imbalanced Agency/Client Relationships

The final type of agency/client relationship I’ve identified is the imbalanced relationship.  The following are examples of things that can create an imbalance of power between the agency and the client:

• The client is given too much power over internal agency decisions, e.g. resourcing and hiring.
• The client’s business accounts for too large a percentage of the agency’s business.
• The agency has locked the client in to a contract (as may be the case with large global accounts) and sets the job budgets and timing plans unchecked.

Which of the five relationship types (adversarial, partnership, confused, integrated and imbalanced) do you have? If you want to improve your relationship, try to get a sense of the root cause and it may help you to shift to a new, more positive way of working together.

Feel free to leave a comment or send an e-mail if you have experienced an agency/client relationship that doesn’t fit into one of these categories. Also get in touch if you need advice on how to improve your agency/client relationship.

Integrated Agency/Client Relationships

We’ve covered adversarial, partnership and confused agency/client relationships.

Another kind of agency/client relationship is an integrated relationship. This is when the agency functions as an internal marketing department which is fully integrated within the client’s business. The agency might only be a separate business for financial reporting reasons or the client may have purchased a small agency and incorporated them into the business.

This type of relationship may help to keep costs down, but it could result in the agency being less “hungry” and placing less value on keeping the client happy (because they can’t lose the business). It’s important to establish the hierarchy within this structure.

Confused Agency/Client Relationships

We’ve looked at partnerships and adversarial relationships. The third type of agency/client relationship is a confused relationship. Confusion can stem from a lack of knowledge by either party or both parties. For example:

• The client doesn’t understand agency processes.
• The agency doesn’t understand the client’s business (this could mean the industry, the internal politics, etc.)
• The client doesn’t understand basic marketing principles. This can happen at junior or senior levels, e.g. an entry-level client who has no experience in marketing is hired or a Finance Director assumes responsibility for the marketing department.

A confused relationship can lead to an adversarial relationship.

Partnership Agency/Client Relationships

Last time, we looked at adversarial agency/client relationships. The second relationship type is more positive: agency/client partnerships. In a partnership, representatives from both the agency and the client side work together as a project team. For the partnership model to work, the following elements must be in place:

• The project hierarchy/organizational chart is established
• A clear decision-making process is in place
• Both parties are responsible for and passionate about a shared goal
• Both parties feel an ownership and pride in the work produced

It helps if both parties have a vested interest in achieving the goal, with metrics for success clearly defined at the outset.

Adversarial Agency/Client Relationships

In agencies, the term “difficult client” gets bandied about frequently. While there are plenty of studies and training courses on adapting your style to different personality types, I think it’s useful to look at the overarching relationships that exist between clients and agencies. I’ve identified five types of agency/client relationships, which I’ll post about in this new series.

Adversarial Agency/Client Relationships

An adversarial relationship is usually the result of one of the following factors:

• The client has unrealistic expectations about timelines and/or budget.
• The agency consistently can’t meet the timelines or stay within budget (even when the timelines and budget are reasonable). This is often because the agency’s processes are not defined or are inefficient.
• The agency is not focused on delivering quality.
• The agency prices the business incorrectly. Price the business too high, and the client feels ripped off; price the business too low and the agency is under strain and can end up being inflexible.
• Past actions have marred the relationship but the two companies are contractually bound to continue working together. This is a risk with large global contracts.

Account Management Basics - The Bigger Picture

For the final post in this series, I've included "the bigger picture". How do you find time to think about the bigger picture and to come up with the big ideas? Often this is difficult with day-to-day deadlines taking precedence. However, it is a vital part of the agency/client relationship in order for the agency to be adding value and developing the business. Work with your Account Director to make sure “thinking” time is set aside.

Account Management Basics - Project Debrief

At the end of a quarterly or other major project, it is useful to conduct an internal Project Debrief (also called a Post Mortem).

1. Successes: What did we accomplish? Did we meet our goals? What activities or tactics worked well for us?
2. Challenges: What difficulties did we encounter?  How did we resolve them or workaround them? Were all issues resolved in a timely manner?
3. Weaknesses: In what areas was our performance less than satisfactory? What aspects of team functioning need improvement?
4. Plans: What are the plans for improvement?
5. Process:

·         Was the process clear to the entire team at the outset?

·         Were the responsibilities clear?

·         How well was the team able to respond to requests?

·         How well did the team work together? Were they responsive and flexible?

·         Was the process effective?

6. Questions to consider:

·         Were there organizational obstacles that made it difficult or impossible to conduct any part of the process?

·         Did you have the right information and tools to do the job well?

·         Were communications adequate in all activities?

·         Did the project meet all original scheduled milestones/deadlines?

·         Did the project receive all the necessary approvals to proceed in a timely fashion?

·         Was the project staffed appropriately?

·         Was quality of the deliverable adequate?

·         What have we learned from this project?

·         Has all the documentation been completed and saved?

Account Management Basics - Finances

·          Work with the Finance Manager to understand your project’s budget. Find out what is included in the retainer, and make sure that the client is clear on this as well.

·          Ensure the resources booked in do not exceed the budget.

·          Anything that might push the project over budget should be flagged up to the Account Director as soon as it is discovered.

Account Management Basics - Production and Data

The more you know about the other aspects of the business, the more value you can add to your client by ensuring that procedures are streamlined, quality checks are in place and that your client is getting the best service possible.

·          Production: while the Production manager is the expert in the latest techniques, machinery, suppliers, etc., the following information is useful for the account team:

o         What are the options for printing my mailing?

o         What is the most economical way to print my mailing, e.g. 16-page booklets are cheaper to run than 20-page booklets.

o         What are the postage options for my mailing?

§          What is the maximum weight to maintain the existing postage rate? If the weight was decreased would the postage be cheaper?

§          For foreign mailings, is it faster, cheaper etc. to use Royal Mail or direct entry?

o         For ongoing projects, arrange for a visit to the printer to see your mailing in process.

o         Where is the inventory stored? How often is it counted? What is the client charged for stock/storage? How often does Production receive an inventory report?

o         Are inventory items weighed in?

o         Are mailing elements checked against a mailing grid and sample enclosing pack?

·          Data: it is important to understand the following in order to prevent errors and troubleshoot as necessary:

o         Who generates the file?

o         How is the file transmitted? FTP? Disk?

o         What is done to the data by each supplier/client department that handles it?

o         Who reviews the reject files?

o         How long is the data kept on file at each place that receives it? Are data protection laws/rules being followed?

Account Management Basics - Coordinating with the Creative Team

·          Create a “Crib Sheet” to refer to at the beginning of each project.  This should summarize in a few bullet points what the project is about, the brand positioning and any other details pertinent to your client.  This will help freelancers or anyone else who works on the project quickly understand the framework in which they are working. 

·          Conduct internal status meetings as required with your Designer, Copywriter, Production Manager, etc. to ensure that the project moves along according to schedule.

·          Creative Sign Off:

o        Ensure the sign-off process is understood by the team so that changes happen at the right stage, i.e. not five minutes before it is due to the client!

o        Don't skip proofreading.

o         The Account Handler should always ensure that the creative is on brand, and should review each execution thoroughly for factual errors, omissions, etc. The Account Handler should also check each phone number and web address to make sure it is correct and up and running.

Account Management Basics - Internal Meetings

Here's a quick tip for internal meetings:

Make the most of internal meetings by being organized, letting the team know in advance what will be covered (create an agenda if necessary) and follow up as soon as possible with a contact report so everyone knows what their action points are.

Account Management Basics - Building Trust with Clients

In this new series, I'll post some wisdom I've collected over the years on account management. Comments or additions are welcome, of course.

Building Trust with Clients

One of the most important roles of the account handler is to develop the client relationship. Besides building personal rapport, there are some things you can do to build your client’s trust.

·          Client meetings

o         Ensure the client knows what to expect at the meeting.

o         Ensure you are prepared.

o         Ensure the client is never put on the spot.

o         For meetings where your direct contact’s boss will be present, review the content of the meeting with your client in advance. Make sure s/he understands all of the concepts to be presented.

o         Always bring extra copies.

·          The approval process

o         Clients may have many things on their plates, and they may be working with many agencies. Make things as easy as possible for your client to review and approve. For instance, if sending over a second round for review, highlight the changes (either on the document if appropriate or in a covering note). While this takes extra time upfront, it speeds the approval process. Once the client is comfortable that you are ensuring his/her changes are made the approvals will be much quicker.

·          Agenda: if you have a lot to cover, write up an agenda. If your client may think this is too formal, then just keep it as a crib sheet for yourself in order to organize your thoughts and ensure the meeting progresses smoothly.

·          Adding value: clients like to see that you are thinking about their business. Bring along a new idea, a relevant article, etc. whenever possible.

Brainstorming

Most agencies conduct brainstorming sessions on the fly. Creative teams have gotten used to just getting into a room and hashing around ideas. Introducing a structured brainstorm can be a challenge, so if you plan to do so, I suggest pre-selling in the concept at least so the key players know how the session will be run in advance to set expectations.

I’ve run a few brainstorming sessions for clients recently so I've consolidated some options for brainstorming here.

Observe brainstorming basics:

• Observe best practice brainstorming rules, e.g. timing, facilitating, and encouraging participation
• Develop problem/opportunity statement
• Defer judgment (of others’ ideas and of your own)
• Look to generate many ideas
• Look for unique and different ideas; don’t worry if an idea might be “out there”
• Build on others’ ideas
• Record all ideas
• Ensure the group is clear on the session’s expected outcomes

Possible brainstorming techniques include:

Timed speed idea generation

• Each person starts with a sheet of paper and lists as many ideas as possible within 30 seconds. After 30 seconds, everyone passes the paper to the person on the right and builds upon the previous person’s ideas.
• This method produces a large quantity of ideas which can uncover hidden solutions but also requires time to sift through the ideas.

Target audience role playing

• Using the model for ideal affiliates, each participant is given a set of characteristics to "role play". The facilitator asks questions and poses scenarios/options and the participants must respond "in character".
• This allows for people to participate and not feel as if their ideas will be judged. It also discourages participants from holding onto their pet ideas.
• After the role play, the participants can discuss the ideas that were generated and suggest new ideas that may not be "in character".

Six Thinking Hats

• Using Edward de Bono’s model, different perspectives are explored.
• The participants represent the following points of view: objective facts, emotions/ feelings, logical – negative, logical – positive, creative, process.
• This allows participants to contribute to the discussion without risk and provides a convenient mechanism for changing points of view.

Improvisation

• I’ve developed a technique for a session in which participants role play different scenarios using aspects of improvisation such as "yes and" and "character wants".
• This creates a feeling of working together and allows creativity to flow.

Additional tactics include:

• Roadblock removal/ roadblock introduction
• Appointing a devil’s advocate to prevent “groupthink”
• Utilizing Game Theory to help determine what decisions affiliates are most likely to make (i.e. “rationality” – making the decision that benefits them the most)
• Developing "homework" that participants will be asked to complete before the brainstorming session

Rolling out a global campaign

One great thing about doing consulting work is that I’m usually brought in at an exciting time for the business, for example when the business is growing rapidly, or when a new campaign is launching. When an agency wins a piece of business, they may find themselves faced with new challenges. One of these is how to roll out a global campaign.

Here are some general thoughts and tips for account people who are rolling out a global campaign.

• Country adaptations:
  • How much can each country adapt the creative developed by HQ?
  • Can imagery be changed? This may come up as some images may not be seen as a cultural fit.
  • Who will review and approve country adaptations?
  • Will any new copy need to be back translated?
  • Who has the final call on country adaptations?
• Translations:
  • Will translations be managed centrally or locally?
  • What are the timelines for translations?
  • Who pays for translation costs?
  • Will some executions require a re-design or revised copy if the translated copy is too long/short?
  • Who will proofread translated executions?
  • Do all appropriate parties have the necessary character language fonts installed?
• Assets:
  • Where will assets be stored?
  • Who pays for data storage space?
  • Do you need low res and high res versions?
  • How will the country teams be notified when there is a new asset?
  • How can you ensure that old logos, etc. are removed from everyone’s system?
• Conference calls:
  • What time works best for most time zones?
  • Is a virtual meeting space needed?
  • What conferencing technology will be used? Who will pay for it?
• Issues list:
  • Who owns the issues/resolutions list?
  • Will all issues be communicated to the whole team?
  • Who pays for the central account management team time to resolve local issues? Often one or two countries cause a bulk of the questions/issues/problems. Will those costs be passed along to the local country?
• How can you keep track of account management time spent dealing with each country?

I still find it quite shocking how many agencies don’t have any tools in place to enable efficient communication. Yes, we all have phones and e-mail, but if you’re rolling out a large-scale global campaign with multiple elements, you need more. There are web-based tools available today that weren’t available even just a few years ago. Think about setting up an internal blog or wiki to document all decisions made for each campaign, and to link to stored assets. This will prevent you being asked the same question by multiple countries, or the alternative which is sending out long, frequent e-mails to every possible stakeholder. If your boss or I.T. department is not up to speed on these technologies, then be the champion for them in your organization. It will save time, money and headaches in the long run.

Please add your thoughts and additions by clicking on the “comments” link below.