Equipment Technologies (ET), the parent company of the Apache Sprayer brand, is the largest manufacturer of mechanical drive self-propelled sprayers in North America. Apache Sprayers are thousands of pounds lighter, cost tens of thousands of dollars less and deliver more power to the ground than the competition. That’s what makes Apache the best pound-for-pound sprayer on the planet.

 

THE SITUATION

 

In spring 2018, Lessing-Flynn (LF) and ET executed a three-month marketing campaign designed to reward current Apache Sprayer owners and boost mid-year sales. The promotion offered a $5,000 rebate to current owners who upgraded to a qualifying 2018 Apache Sprayer model by the end of July 2018.

 

LF sought to identify key messages that would resonate with different segments of ET’s customer database rather than sending one single, generic message to all Apache Sprayer owners.

 

THE SOLUTION

 

LF segmented current owners from ET’s customer database  into four groups based on the model year of the sprayer they currently owned. After the segments were established, strategic and customized marketing messages were created and customized to each group.

 

These personalized messages used data to send messaging specific to their model type, purchase year and even sprayer updates since their purchase. For example, we identified key upgrades within 2018 Apache Sprayers, like the precision package, that would be enticing to a 2008 Apache Sprayer owner. This customized messaging was used throughout every campaign tactic including: landing pages, direct mailers, text messages and eBlasts.

 

THE RESULTS

 

During the $5,000 Loyalty Campaign duration, we were able to provide over 150 marketing leads to the ET sales team through direct mail postcard responses, online form submissions, text message responses and phone call inquiries. This does not include leads from customers who reached out directly to their Apache dealer (which many have established relationships with).

 

In addition, LF was able to report the campaign strategy to Apache dealers during the annual sales meeting and demonstrate the value of the data that the dealers helped provide. In partnership with Apache dealers, LF and ET will be able to continually update customer data for future campaign implementation. 

 

BONUS HOW-TO

 

How can you apply this strategy to your marketing campaigns?

 

1. Utilize data strategically, but keep it updated.
Your agency is a partner that wants you to succeed. Sharing key insights into your customer data helps identify gaps or areas of opportunities that you may not see every day. Data can be a friend, but also a nightmare as it continually changes. Phone numbers become outdated, people move and individuals unsubscribe from your email list if they are no longer interested. Know that customer data is never “complete” and continually needs updating.

 

2.Speak to customers transparently and directly.
Specially curated messages can be applied to any product (not just sprayers!). This can make the customer journey feel more genuine and personable. It takes a lot of effort up-front to identify, create and execute different types of messages, but can show a big return.

 

Welcome back for the second part of Home is Where the Code Is! In this two-part blog series, we’re answering the question: What goes into building a great site? We’re using the analogy of building a home from the ground up to help explain what it takes to create a functional and well-designed website, and today we’re ready for move in day. Now that the new website is built and you’re ready to unpack those boxes — this is where the content comes in.

Move in Day: Adding Content

Content like copy, graphics, images, videos, downloads, etc. is what fills your website and makes it yours. Without it, there’s no reason for your website to exist. It’s sort of like throwing a party at your place without dishes or chairs. You may choose to transfer over content from an old website or print materials or you could create completely new content. Often, it’s a combination — updating and transferring existing content while also adding new. Whatever the case, content gives your site purpose and a reason to visit.

Home Maintenance: Upkeep, Repairs and Marketing

Finally, there’s the upkeep. Things are great now, but inevitably you’ll have to do some upkeep and repairs down the road. After all, you don’t want your website to fall into disrepair and become an eyesore — you need to keep things pristine to continue to attract new visitors.

That’s where tools like analytics tracking, search engine optimization, pay per click advertising and content marketing come into play. You want to keep people stopping by and clicking — how else will you meet those digital goals? All the above are great ways to do just that.

Analytics tools, like Google Analytics, will help you track how many people are coming to your site and what they’re doing. It’s sort of like a home security or monitoring system. Data paired with professional analysis ensures your site is threat-free and performing well.

Search engine optimization works like a phonebook listing. If someone wants to find you to stop by, they’re going to need your address. SEO assures people can find your website by helping it to rank well in search engines results and local directories like Yelp.

Pay per click advertising is another way to put your home address out there so to speak. SEO will help get out the message, but a quicker, more targeted approach is advertising. Like buying an ad in a newspaper, PPC advertising puts your website in front of a lot of eyeballs with minimal cost.

Growing Pains: Thinking About the Future

A well-built home can last you for a long time, but eventually you might need to upgrade — it’s the same with your new website. As you experience growing pains or as trends change in the digital world (and they will) it’s always good to consider the future — website redesigns, building out new pages or even new sites are renovations to keep in mind. Just remember Lessing-Flynn’s team of experts are also always here to help. Contact us today with your website “renovation” questions or any of the concepts listed in this series!

As someone who designs and develops websites, I’m often asked: What goes into building a great site? For those who don’t create website code, it can seem mysterious and unapproachable and at times the investment of time and money can seem daunting. To better explain what it takes to create a functional and well-designed website I like to use the analogy of building a home from the ground up. It’s a concept most people have experience with and it parallels building a website pretty well — so let’s break each web component down and build this house together.

Putting Together the Blueprint: Design and User Experience 

Before we begin to code, we need a design from which to work. Like a blueprint for a new home, web designers usually begin by plotting out pages on paper or using design software like Photoshop. This gives the website developer something to work from that includes specific measurements.

Many times agencies will take some time at this point to do a bit of user experience research. User experience (UX) design helps to ensure websites work in a way that users enjoy and that meets your goals. Just like you wouldn’t design a house with stairs to nowhere, UX makes sure a website functions in an expected and meaningful way.

Starting Construction: Building with HTML and PHP

Now that the plans are in place, it’s time to start building. When it comes to web developers, that usually means HTML and PHP. These two coding languages provide the basic structure for the website.

HTML, or HyperText Markup Language, serves as a building block for any web page. It determines where content goes and how various elements fit together. Think of it as creating the rooms and boundaries. HTML helps to construct areas for things like the navigation, sidebar or footer.

PHP (which originally stood for Personal Home Page) compliments HTML and works alongside it to make things easier. Using our analogy, PHP acts like prefabricated construction materials. When crews are building a house, they don’t usually construct a door or cabinets from scratch. Instead, they use doors and cabinets that are pre-built to help speed up the process. PHP works similarly by allowing developers to reference pieces of code many times throughout the site.

Interior Design Time: Styling with CSS

The walls are up, so it’s time to get creative and add some style — that’s where CSS comes in. CSS, or Cascading Style Sheets, help a design come to life. Without it, your website wouldn’t be much more than a blank white page with text and links. Just as an interior designer makes a house more attractive by adding paint, light fixtures and flooring. CSS makes a website more attractive by adding colors, images, fonts and other styles.

Hooking Up the Utilities: Adding JavaScript for Functionality

If HTML was the structure and CSS was the style, JavaScript is the utilities. It would be pretty inconvenient to live in a house without electric lighting or running water. You could survive, but not without having to make some major adjustments. Like electricity, JavaScript adds functionality to your site to make it more interactive.

If you’ve ever visited a website using animations, photo galleries, pop-ups or other interactive elements, chances are it was using JavaScript. You might take these little touches for granted, but they do a lot for creating a cohesive user experience. You might take turning on a light switch for granted, but think of life without these luxuries!

To Be Continued… Moving In

We hope this house analogy helps you understand the basic building blocks of a website, but Lessing-Flynn’s team of experts are also always here to help with questions on any of the concepts listed in this article. Check back for part two to better understand what happens after your website is built!

Notice any changes to Google Search Results in the past few weeks? We did. While there’s been no formal announcement yet, most marketers have noticed the new format at least a handful of times (it’s likely just being tested), but check out all of the boxes! This is a significant change from the all-white background we have grown accustomed to.

Earlier in 2016, Google announced the removal of ads on the right side of desktop layouts to match the mobile format. A puzzling decision as it would clearly result in a loss of profits. However, when the change was implemented it became clear more changes were on the way to maintain their primary source of revenue: ad clicks.

Google’s dirty little secret is their method of camouflaging ads as organic listings —statistics show searchers “trust” organic listings more than ads. The testing of this new box format falls in line with that assumption. The uniformity of the borders makes all listings appear nearly identical. If you look closely, there is a very tiny (and shrinking by the day!) green box that reads, “Ad” next to the top three listings.

To Google’s credit, the right side organization of Product Listing Ads and Places are visually appealing and will easily transition to the mobile format, so it’s not ALL about the Benjamin’s! But what does this mean for marketers?

Well, if you haven’t already convinced your clients to advertise with Google, the time is now. The amount of ad space is quickly diminishing and it is very difficult to overtake top positions from established ads. To put things in perspective, imagine if your favorite print publication suddenly removed half its pages and told new advertisers they would have to pay double or triple the cost for exposure. You’d surely wish that you were already in the club.

No clue where to start? Contact LF’s team of digital experts here and we will show you some of our search engine advertising successes and help you create a strategy for your brand.

From Facebook’s annual F8 conference to yet another exciting Snapchat update, this week has been a big one for the digital world. With things seeming to change on an almost daily basis, it’s hard to keep up. That’s why we here at Lessing-Flynn help you stay on the cutting edge by summing all the week’s biggest digital news in our “Digital Download.” So without further ado, here’s what you need to know this week:

The Future of Facebook

Facebook held its annual F8 developer conference this week where it made several product announcements and talked about the future of the social network. Perhaps the most noteworthy announcement was the planned launch of a Messenger platform with chatbots. The bots will be able to handle customer service for businesses or even help you make a reservation at your favorite restaurant. Other announcements included Instant Articles opening up to all publishers, the introduction of sponsored message ads and an open source virtual reality camera. I wonder if those chatbots will eventually be able to do my laundry for me…

Go for the Goal

The Google Calendar app for iOS and Android has a new feature that helps you stick to your resolutions. It’s called Google Goals and should be rolling out to users in the next week. Basically the new function will help you set up a time to accomplish your goal — like exercising, studying or cleaning out the litter box — by finding free time in your schedule and penciling it in. Great, one more thing to make us feel guilty about not going to the gym!

Snapchat Stickers Get an Upgrade

Have you ever used Snapchat to slap a funny emoji sticker to your friend’s face? How about adding that pizza emoji sticker to a snap of your empty plate? Well now inserting stickers into reality just got a whole lot snazzier. In its latest update coming to users this week, Snapchat is adding 3D sticker functionality. Now you’ll be able to pin stickers to objects (or people and pets) around you and watch as they stay glued to the object even if you move your camera.

Emoji Revamp

Android users rejoice. New emoji designs are coming. It appears the days of the yellow lumps with faces are numbered. According to those familiar with the next iteration of the Android operating system, the blobs are being replaced with emojis that look a little more human and shrinking the emoji design gap between Apple and Android. As long as the poop emoji doesn’t get any more realistic, I’m all in favor.

Snapping into the Lead

If you want to reach teens on social media these days, Snapchat is a great place to start. According to a new study, Snapchat now ranks as the favorite social media network among teens with 28 percent saying it’s their top choice. It’s followed by Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. The study also showed teens are generally more interested in looking at pictures and videos than text. Snaps for Snapchat.

Have something to add? Something you think we missed? Let us know in the comments below!