Using Technology to Promote your Corporate Voice

Lately I’ve noticed 3 very different, but related things about my life. I love my Digital Video Recorder (DVR). I don’t listen to the radio much. And I have no idea if I have a current copy of the yellow pages. Now don’t get me wrong, I haven’t gone and buried my head in the sand. But the effect of these seemingly unrelated items is that my consumption of traditional advertising is way, way down. Companies wanting to sell me their products and services really need to get creative.

So why do I love my DVR? Because when I watch TV, I can watch whatever I want, whenever I want. But what originally sold me on the technology was the ability to skip commercials. When it comes to radio, my commute just isn’t long enough for radio ads to get much play time. Not to mention the “commercial free” satellite radio options now available. And the yellow pages as “the old standby” have been replaced by a Google toolbar in my web browser. The problem is that lately I’ve noticed that I’m not as familiar with the new products and services advertised in these more traditional methods. I find myself in a strange predicament. It’s not like I want to start watching TV commercials or listening to radio ads again.

I have noticed however that I am spending more time reading the ads in the industry websites and blogs that I frequent. I also take a number of trade magazines and email newsletters where the vertical focused advertising is directed toward things I’m interested in. Instead of radio, I often listen to podcasts (short audio programs) that I’ve downloaded from the web. So what should your company do to reach my demographic? The answer is simple: Be where your customers are.

One of the more entertaining examples of using technology in this respect comes from BlendTec (www.blendtec.com). Instead of running TV ads, BlendTec is using YouTube (www.youtube.com) to distribute videos of their blenders mixing up everything from golf balls to iPods. These viral videos have taken this companies product to new consumers that may never have heard about them otherwise.

Now if creating and staring in your company’s next commercial is a little daunting, you might consider starting your own corporate podcast. It could be a weekly discussion about the benefits of your products and services. Or you might talk about other local or industry related topics that would be of interest to your customers. The key is to provide valuable information in a short and entertaining format. Remember, the immediate goal is to get your customers talking about you and wanting to learn more.

Once you have your content in place, the next step is to get your potential customers to find it. Start by finding out what websites they frequent. You need to find the industry and local websites that sell advertising or will do a review of your video or podcast. Don’t forget blogs. The more focused on your desired customer the better. Getting links and articles from these websites will help your search engine rankings, which in turn will help more potential customers to find you.

To be clear, you should continue to use traditional advertising methods. My council here is to broaden your horizons and try to add some of these new technologies to your marketing plan. Most of the time the cost is minimal and the reward could be huge.