Why it pays.  A true story

If you’re a homeowner, I’m sure you know the anxiety of facing a household emergency in which you need an expert  — a plumber, electrician or in my case a drain and plumbing specialist to fix a  sewer that backed up in my basement from a cracked and root infested 100 year old sewer pipe. What to do? Who to call?

Fortunately, there is one company in the GTA that is easy to remember and has the service to back it up.  They are a regular advertiser on 680 news using vivid sound effects of gurgling water to a baby giggling.  They have created a strong brand identity to match—“look for the baby on the side” (of our trucks).  Even the company name stands out from the usual plumbing company names you see using forgettable initials.  To further differentiate itself, the company also has a story behind its name. “ We are New Canadians working hard as proud Canadians to promote the growth of our business”. 

In the midst of my emergency, recall was instant.  For many many years, I’ve heard their radio ads and seen their trucks on the road—silently hoping, I would never have to call them.

Well the inevitable happened—and now they are outside digging to find the “root” of my problem—the truck with the baby on the side is out front too for all to see and take note.

Nothing is as impactful as repetitive advertising backed by integrated marketing and communications. The more you see or hear something, the more likely you are to make it part of your household.

That’s why continual advertising to stay top of mind pays off.  Even for a small business or a plumbing company.

The name of the company is New Canadian Drain and Plumbing. I would be pleased to provide a recommendation –another important word or mouth marketing strategy—if you’d like.

In today’s competitive marketplace businesses may want to consider trade marking their products or services as a way to distinguish their business from their competition.

According to Wikipedia, a trade mark, is a distinctive sign or indicator used by an individual, business, organization, or other legal entity to identify products or services to consumers and indicates the trademark originates from a unique source.  It is also used to distinguish products and services from those of other entities.

I recently explored this concept with two of my clients. One I suggested applying for a trademark to protect a process related to a training approach.  The other, a phrase that can be used to distinguish the way the company promotes its services as a specialist.   In both cases, a trademark will give the company an added advantage –it can be used in promotional materials and prevent competitors from using the symbol, phrase or work and most importantly set the company apart for its competitors.

According to lawyer, Michelle Wassenaar, an international Trademark and Intellectual Property lawyer at Johnston Wassenaar, “It can be very effective to register a trade-mark since it gives the owner the exclusive right to use the trade-mark across Canada.”

A trademark is typically a name, word, phrase, logo or symbol or a combination.  It may be designated by the following symbols:

• ™ (for an unregistered trade mark, that is, a mark used to promote or brand goods)
• ? (for an unregistered service mark, that is, a mark used to promote or brand services)
• ® (for a registered trademark)

 The process starts with researching whether the trademark is registered; if it’s not then an application is made for a registered trademark.  “ When a company makes application for a registered trade mark (or simply decides that they have a common law trade-mark), they can use the symbol ™ “ says Michelle Wassenaar “ and when an application is registered, which typically takes about 2 years, then the ® symbol can be applied. “

Developing your key messages is the most important first step.

As you rush to launch a product or expand into new services, it is tempting create a marketing plan and promotional strategy before determining how you’re going to communicate to your customers.

Often clients come to me when they are just about to launch their product or service and wanting a marketing strategy.

When I asked them what is their message. What is it they want to communicate to their customers –they are more likely to give me a slogan, or something that is more about their business, or their mission and vision not about how the product or service helps the customer.  In other words I am likely to hear a ‘me message ’ or a message about the company rather than providing a  ‘you  message ‘ or how the product or service fulfills the need of the customer.

A marketing message is meant to grab the customers’ attention, resonate with their needs, identify how your service or product will help solve their problem and give them a reason for choosing you to do business with.

I recently reviewed a friends marketing materials only to find the copy was loaded with corporate jargon, referenced the company’s’ business proposition in a generic way with no reference as to what made my friend, a business professional, different and how he could meet his customers’ or prospects needs. 

Imagine if you had a cough and went looking for an over the counter remedy at the drug store.  The packaging contained  information only about the company and not who the medicine is for and how it will help you? Would you buy it?

Here are a few questions to ask yourself when creating your marketing messages.

1.     Who is your target market? Geographic? Age? Gender? Income? Etc.

2.     What are their need(s)/problems facing your customer?

3.     How does the problem or need affect your customer?

4.     What is the emotional or key need behind your product or service that touches at the core of your customers’ psyche?

5.     How will your product or service help them/resolve their problem/issues?   What are the benefits?

6.     What is different about your product/service from the competition.

7.     Do you have facts and examples to back up you claims? Testimonials.

Once you’ve answered these questions, you can begin to craft your messages and start creating your marketing communications strategy.  Combine this with solid thinking about ways to market your product or service and you will have a winning strategy.

Marjorie Wallens, is principal and founder of MJW COMMUNICATIONS an experienced Toronto public relations/marketing communications company that helps make contacts, and build the relationships needed to create awareness or promote products and services – leading to increased sales.   Services include: Marketing, Web Development, SEO & Social Media Marketing, Promotion, PR/Media Relations, Copy Writing,

These are difficult and challenging times–for employers facing an uncertain economy and for employees picking up on divergent messages they’re getting from their employers or hearing from family and friends.  We don’t live in isolation. So whether your company is experiencing real economic hardship and facing job cuts or just trying to keep employees on track and focused—keeping employees in the loop with frequent, honest and open communications can help your company through these uncertain times and bring business benefits too.

A recent and most vivid example of how transparent and honest communications to employees at all levels and the public can help a company survive is Maple Leaf Foods. A deadly outbreak of the Listeria bacteria at the company’s Toronto plant was linked to the deaths of 20 people.

Maple Leaf Foods CEO Michael McCain’s practice has been to send regular Friday emails to thousands of his employees.  He shares details of his week, projects underway and upcoming challenges.  The memos to employees about the outbreak and how the company was proceeding were recently revealed in a Toronto Star article. They show a ‘level of frankness that was meant as a private, intimate conversation between the people of my organization and myself ‘ said McCain, in an interview with the Toronto Star.  “ A level of frankness that we would probably not replicate in the outside world.” Nevertheless, the emails show that McCain’s candor and honesty and frequency in which he communicated with his employees and the public will help the company recover, as recent surveys indicate 90 per cent of Canadians have a high regard for how the company weathered the storm and 80 per cent will buy its’ products again.

Candor and honesty is an all important factor in all communications with employees. “Employees are increasingly skeptical, if not cynical, about the communications they receive at work,” says Roger D’Aprix, a well-known author and leading authority on employee communications. “Company leaders need to recognize the change in the employee/employer relationship in which talented and knowledgeable workers have become the very means of doing business in the Information age.”  D’Aprix offers a logical and tested methodology to inform and engage skeptical employees in times of turbulent change. It includes a discussion of how information should be handled, understanding the communication needs of the workforce, the need to and power of engaging employees in face-to-face communications, being open and transparent when communicating, doing audits and employee research and developing a clear and compelling communications strategy

“In my experience,” says Janet Candido, whose company Candido Consulting, works with CEO’s and company HR departments on employee related issues such as compensation and organizational design, “you need to constantly keep employees in the loop.  Talk to then about what you know, be honest about what you don’t know and make sure your CEO engages employees on an on-going basis.  If you don’t, your employees will just find other sources for their information and plug the rumor mill with misinformation.”

Six tips on communicating with employees in turbulent times.

1.    First assess your communications processes and procedures. How are you currently communicating to employees? How often and by what means.  How effective is the process? This might require an audit or employee surveys to determine how relevant and effective your messages are and whether your communication vehicles are effective or need to be revised.

2.    Pledge to deliver transparent and honest information to employees and to share information with them first before going public.  Remember your employees are the key interface with your customers, and will be the first ones to be asked by customers about company issues.

3.    Create a targeted strategy to address the issues and solutions or challenges the company is facing.  Be open and honest.  Develop messaging to each target audience that will answer the questions that are on employee’s minds and want to know.  Keep the messaging focused and consistent.

4.    Communicate often.  It takes time for messages to be absorbed and integrated into the workforce.  Communications should on going and two-way. Think of setting up regular all employees meetings where the CEO and senior team hold information and question- answer sessions face-to-face with employees?
5.    How skilled are your middle managers in communicating company messages and gaining buy-in from employees.  Managers need to be supported and equipped with not only the right messages that will resonate with employees but have the skills to deliver the content. They may need to be trained to understand that effective communications is part of building and sustaining an open and positive corporate culture and helping employee cope with change.

6.    Consider using social media via your company intranet to gain feedback. Develop an internal site and post FAQ’s, with answers, solicit feedback and comment and respond to issues and questions as they arise.

By Marjorie Wallens,  MJW Communications. Published in Workplace, November 2008.

TORONTO, ONTARIO- Marketwire- April 2008. Eco-Lawn, developed by sustainable landscape specialist Wildflower Farm, is a specially formulated blend of seven fine fescue grasses that thrives in all climates and conditions, including full sun, part shade and even deep shade. The lawn is virtually maintenance free as it germinates quickly but
turns into a slow growing grass once its takes root.
Environmentally Friendly: Eco-Lawn reduces green house gases, as it only needs to be mowed once a month at the most. Did you know that a lawn mower running for one hour emits the same amount of pollution as 40 automobiles running for one hour?
Economical. A real cost comparison. The cost of installing and maintaining an Eco-Lawn over at ten-year period is $1,499.75 including maintenance costs and mowing four times a year. A savings of $6,575.25 over ten years! (See cost comparison)

While the cost of installation and maintenance of a typical 1-thousand sq. foot traditional lawn is $8,075, over a ten-year period. This includes, site preparation, installation, seed and irrigation, as well as mowing ten times a year, fertilizer/herbicides watering and core aeration.

No Fertilizers or Chemicals: Eco-Lawn, has deep root systems that enables it to naturally source the nutrients it requires from the soil so there is no need to add chemicals or fertilizers. unlike traditional turf grasses. It will make roots up to 9 inches (22.86 cm) deep in hardpan clay soils and up to 14 inches (35.56cm) in deep in sandy soils.
Drought Tolerant: Eco-Lawn produces grass blades that are very thin; therefore it doesn’t require the amount of water that typical thick bladed lawn grasses demand.
Eco-lawn is perfect for areas where water conservation is important and is excellent in quickly establishing new lawns, or used as erosion buffers and for riverbank stabilization. It is also ideal where water conservation is a necessity.
Less Vulnerable to Grubs: Grubs are the larvae of June Bugs and non-native Japanese Beetles. The larvae live as grubs in moist soils for two years and then emerge as adult beetles in early summer. The adults only live for about 6 weeks, so their number one goal is to reproduce! The female beetle lays her eggs in the moist soils of pond edges and stream banks as well as in well-watered lawns. Since Eco-Lawn requires very little, if any watering once established, the surface of the soil is hard and makes it less attractive for the beetles to lay their eggs. So you will be grub free.

Too good to be true? See our photo gallery.

Who benefits. Municipalities. Companies. Homeowners. The Environment.
Proof positive that Eco-lawn is environmentally and financially effective comes from our many satisfied customer testimonials. Eco-lawn has been installed at a number of large-scale municipal projects throughout Canada states Miriam Goldberger, President of Wildflower Farm, the company that developed the sustainable Eco-lawn product, ten years ago.
“As more and more municipalities ban pesticides or institutions look for ways to reduce costs, sustainable landscaping is gaining ground.” Goldberger adds. Other facilities using Eco-Lawn include Toyota Canada in Toronto, the new Cirque de Soleil headquarters in Montreal and the Canadian Air force base in Shiloh, Manitoba. See o
More questions? FAQ
Did You Know? Eco-facts.
1. The typical lawn is Oil & Water. Our lawns were founded on a dream based on having two resources our world is rapidly running out of - Oil and Water. Keeping a traditional Kentucky Bluegrass or Perennial Rye grass lawn takes one to two inches of water per week; for the average 1,000 square foot lawn, that easily adds up to over TEN THOUSAND gallons of water a summer! Less realized is that, like a fully loaded luxury sedan, traditional lawns are dependent on fossil fuels. It takes natural gas to produce lawn fertilizers, petroleum to power lawn mowers and oil to keep the weed whackers, and blowers buzzing. (Excerpted from the book “American Green” by Ted Greenberg
2. Pesticides are big business. Did you know that in 2001 the U.S. Home & Garden market spent over 2 Billion dollars on pesticides! (Source: U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)

3. Lawn Mowers are big polluters. Did you know that in one hour a conventional lawn mower pollutes as much as driving a car for 100 miles! (Source: US Environmental Protection Agency)

About Wildflower Farm:
Wildflower Farm is a horticultural company specializing in innovative sustainable landscaping techniques, products and green solutions. Wildflower Farm offers a unique selection of hardy perennial wildflowers, native grasses, seeds, meadow mixes and Eco-Lawn, an innovative low maintenance turf grass.
Embraced by landscape architects, high profile corporations, municipalities and home owners, Wildflower Farm products are sold at selected retailers throughout North America and on-line at www.wildflowerfarm.com.
Sales to its many US customers are processed through Wildflower Farm’s warehouse and fulfillment facility in New York State. 1-866-476-9453 Wildflower Farm Is located near Orillia, Ontario, North of Toronto Canada.
The Canadian Chamber of Commerce and Pollution Probe have cited Wildflower Farm as a Canadian business generating a positive impact on climate change and the environment by reducing greenhouse gases.
To learn more about Eco-Lawn and Wildflower Farm go to www.wildflowerfarm.com