Blog

Developing Your Buyer Personas & Demand Generation Process: An Event Recap

November 19th, 2015

by Carrie Brown

Jay Hidalgo, President of the Barzel Group, joined us last week to present on demand generation at New Vintage Place on the West Side of Grand Rapids. He walked us through the components marketers can use to create a demand generation program, and then showed us how to apply what we learned. Jay has provided a summary in easy-to-follow, implementable steps: Knowing the Buyer – Defining Buyer Types or Personas  This is a biographical sketch of the target buyer(s) that provides information about their background; challenges they face, typical daily activities, motivations, and defines their buying roles. Understanding the Buyer’s Thinking – Buying Process/Journey Status Quo and Problem Awareness are examples of phases that the buyer goes through when deciding to make a purchase. Content – Drafting a Blueprint/Outline  Developing the... Read More

Recap: Empathy as a Competitive Advantage for Corporate Growth, featuring Martha Pease

October 21st, 2015

by Marjorie Steele

Last week, corporate consultant and CEO of DEMANDWERKS Martha Pease shared with audiences her tools for leveraging empathy to boost bottom lines with the AMA and ACG West Michigan. In our first event partnership, both our local AMA and ACG chapters brought attendees to a new venue: New Vintage Place, on the West Side. As an experienced consultant who’s worked with many Fortune 500 companies, Martha outlined some of her insights and strategies for leveraging customer empathy to quantitatively impact return on investment. As technologies move us toward less and less customer interaction, Martha pointed out, consumer demand is moving towards more hands-on customer service. This presents companies with a challenge to develop a company culture that can meet that demand, or become... Read More

PR and Content Marketing for B2B Marketers

September 28th, 2015

by Rebecca Dutcher

B2B marketing is about cultivating thought leadership. You are still marketing to people who make the buying decisions and other influencers within an organization. Still, when 90% of customers will contact you when they are already ready to buy, you have to create content for them to find you in the first place. When you’re found online through search engines or relevant social channels, this can help you make RFP short lists, too. Highlight things in your industry, trends, even other companies (non-competitors) who are doing something new and interesting Share success stories and case studies of those who’ve used your products or services. Identify new applications for existing products/services Talk about the industry, it’s future and how you’re prepared B2B Marketing & Connecting with... Read More

PR: The Original Content Marketing Recap

September 28th, 2015

by Rebecca Dutcher

Public Relations today is far more than news releases. Really, they are the reference point to a story – but it is the story that people connect with and engage with. News coverage or sharing by influencers in the social media space doesn’t start with your press release. It starts with building relationships, and maintaining them overtime. The Internet has changed the jobs of PR professionals (and marketers) over the last 10 years. Brands and companies never had to worry about those who did not like their products/services having a voice – however, the invention of the Web changed all of that. Robyn Luymes talked about how the web, influential bloggers and their voice forced brands to reevaluate the way they did business, their... Read More

Getting more out of Google Analytics with Adam Henige – April Luncheon Recap

May 4th, 2015

by Marjorie Steele

Our April luncheon, featuring Adam Henige of Netvantage Marketing, was a roaring success! Adam discussed how to get more out of Google Analytics, providing a good mix of high level insights and actionable steps virtually any marketer can take to step up their digital marketing game. You can view the slides for Adam’s presentation here. In the slides, Adam provides step-by-step instructions for implementing some of the tracking that’s summarized and mentioned below, so be sure to check the slides out to dig deeper. Set your goals Whether you’re tightening the bolts or setting up website tracking from scratch, the first step is the same: establish your goals. Examples Adam provided include: sales goals signing visitors up for an emailing list having visitors fill... Read More

Transform your relationship habits | Transform your career

April 28th, 2015

by Nicole Huston

On April 16, we joined authentic relationship expert, Ken Fortier of NetPlus Connections at Grand Rapids Brewing Co. to learn what it takes to form deeper, more meaningful connections with other professionals to achieve networking and business results. Personal and business relationships are closely tied. Technology, smartphones and our fast-paced culture have changed the way we relate to each other, so it’s important to make an effort to be present and authentic in all our relationships. Following are questions with tips from Ken on how to get started. Here are three questions you can ask people while networking or prospecting. What is something you’re trying to accomplish within the next 12 months? What is going well for you, right now? What is not... Read More

SEO Smackdown Panel – March Luncheon Recap

March 19th, 2015

by Marjorie Steele

During last week’s monthly luncheon, we were joined by four experts in the SEO community for our SEO Smackdown Panel Discussion. Mike Wolf (The Stow Company), Sarah Mackenzie (FINE Design), Mike Buczek (Summit Sports) and the AMA’s own Jason Dodge (Black Truck Media) took the stage to field questions about the marketing industry’s great unknown: search engine optimization. Industry Basics On managing SEO for a local business with multiple locations: Make sure all your local listings and citations are consistent. Really leverage Google+ by using custom images, making sure all fields are completed and get as many reviews as possible. It’s also important to make sure all your location details are included on-page as well, in page titles, etc. – Sarah On how... Read More

Moving Donors Up the Giving Pyramid with Angel Aloma – February Luncheon Recap

March 2nd, 2015

by Marjorie Steele

Last week, we had the distinct pleasure of learning from Angel Aloma, Executive Director for the international Christian aid organization, Food for the Poor (FFTP). With 96% of donations going directly to services, FFTP is both highly efficient and effective at cultivating its donor base. In his engaging, energetic manner, Aloma walked us through a complete journey of how FFTP cultivates its donors up the giving pyramid. Read our quick recap below and download the presentation slides here. Here are few great quotes from the presentation: People don’t give to organizations, they give to people. Let your copy and conversation be truly donor centric. Talk about THEM, not your organization. You have to treat each donor as if they are million dollar givers. See you... Read More

Print & Everything Else with Daniel Dejan – January Luncheon Recap

January 26th, 2015

by Marjorie Steele

Last Tuesday over 100 local marketing professionals listened to Daniel Dejan, print and creative manager for Sappi Fine Paper, present compelling data supporting strong demand for print and direct mail media. Titled “Print & Everything Else,” Dejan’s over ninety minute presentation looks at the neuroscientific research and series of national studies Sappi invested in to better understand the future of print. From a preference among Millennials for brands to communicate via print to a 400% increase among high end lifestyle magazines, Dejan made a strong case for the future of print—as long as it’s part of an integrated strategy. Watch Mr. Dejan’s entire presentation here on his website, or read highlights of the ideas behind “Print & Everything Else” on the Grand Rapids Business... Read More