Mikula|Harris

The Amazing Power of Great Brands

Do brands matter? Ask Coca-Cola. Their brand is estimated to be worth $77 billion. That's right, billion with a "B." That's more astonishing when you consider that a brand isn't something you can hold in your hands or stash in a safe deposit box. It's the good feeling that people get when they hear the name. If Coca-Cola were somehow stripped of all of its other tangible assets — all its real estate and plants, its trucks, equipment, bank accounts and pension funds — it could still re-build by borrowing money against the $77 billion asset known as its brand.

Since this blog is read by small business people, entrepreneurs and tourism marketers and not too many high-powered soft drink executives, let's put the concept into context. As difficult as it is to comprehend what $77 billion means, the value of the Coca-Cola brand is dwarfed by the estimated $185 billion value of the Apple brand. It's all relative, you say. True. Relatively speaking, one of the things important to Coca-Cola is that none of its competitors even come close.

I ask all you tourism marketers reading this, wouldn't you love to have that kind of advantage for your community? You can. Lay the groundwork wisely for your brand. It matters so much more than the size of your annual marketing budget. Make sure your brand is truthful, engaging and differentiated from your competitors. Then be sure that your community consistently delivers on its promise. Coca-Cola’s brand represents a bond with its customers, assuring them that they can count on a consistently good product every time. Does your brand have that kind of power?

Good advice that's direct and to the point: Don't be trite

I read an outstanding essay the other day and I just had to share it with you. I see this gentleman's writing frequently on LinkedIn as I think we have several groups in common. I enjoy reading his work and think you will, too. The author is Ed Burghard and his blog is called Strengthening Brand America. A few days ago he posted an entry called "6 Things to Never Do in Promoting your Community." I think he is right on the money will all of the points, but I want to follow up on one in particular.

Don't be trite, says Mr. Burghard in the very first point, to which I say "Amen!" I have shouted this from the rooftops in my blog and when I speak to clients and groups. He is referring to community branding with an eye toward economic development. I generally write about tourism but the point is equally as applicable.

In fact, I'd like to take the issue a step further. A destination's positioning as captured in its branding steers all future communications. If the positioning is bland and meaningless, how can its advertising or PR efforts be expected to be better. Trite messages are a brand killer in positioning statements and especially in advertising. Wait there's more more. How about trite photography? Yesterday I received an e-newsletter from a destination that I will not name in the Smoky Mountains. There at the top is a big photo of lovely mountains in the background with a woman in the foreground pointing into the distance. First of all, she is alone I the photo so it's unclear for whose benefit she is pointing. I ask you, when you are driving along, even on the most scenic of byways, and pull over to admire a view of the unspoiled wilderness, do you feel the urge to point into the distance? Especially if you're alone.

Mr. Burghard believes that making trite claims suggests that you really have nothing of value to say. I agree and think that lame advertising headlines, body copy, layout and photography suggest that your destination is lackluster and boring. What makes it more frustrating is that I believe that every place has something unique and interesting to share with visitors. The communities aren't lackluster, just the marketing. I think we can all agree that using any trite idea — verbal, written or visual — is a terrible mistake.

The DMO that Followed Their Brand Strategy

This terrific article appeared in the May issue of Virginia Business Magazine. I was pleased for several reasons that they chose to write about our client.

1. I'm always happy when tourism and travel are recognized for the economic development engine that they are.
2. The two outdoor recreation initiatives mentioned in the article are the result of months of hard work by many people, including our team here at Mikula-Harris. The creative work is excellent and I believe they are going to be hugely successful. Any boost by some good press coverage is much appreciated.
3. Much has been done to promote tourism in the Alleghany Highlands since its first tourism brand launched two years ago. It should be regarded as an example for other communities around Virginia to see.

From the perspective of one who makes his living in tourism branding and marketing, there is a deeper lesson to be learned here. The Alleghany Highlands is a great example of a DMO that got its brand strategy right from the beginning and then followed the plan. Their brand promise — which is not something the visitor would see but it certainly steers the actions of the DMO, its staff, the community and the tourism advertising — states, "A visit to the Alleghany Highlands is a relaxing retreat to a scenic mountain destination with abundant outdoor recreation opportunities, charming small towns and friendly people who welcome visitors like friends." That was drafted 2-1/2 years ago, but sounds like it nailed it! Also, did you notice in the Virginia Business article that the writer consistently referred to the region as the Alleghany Highlands. She only mentions Alleghany County to put into context that the county and two independent communities make up the region known as the Alleghany Highlands. Another sign that this branding is getting great traction.

The Alleghany Highlands experience is validation of two deeply held beliefs.
a. A smart and comprehensive brand image and strategy provides direction and purpose for all marketing and communications. Operating without one means undisciplined messaging to the consumer. It’s like a ship adrift at sea.
b. Small to medium-sized destinations need branding as much as, if not more than, big cities and states.

Our Proprietary 3-60 Rule for Tourism Branding

The debate rages on. What is more important to successful branding, research data or creativity? I think both are equally important as well as a couple of other ingredients tossed in for good measure. That brings me to what I like to call the Mikula-Harris 3-60 Method for Tourism Branding and Advertising (copyright 2013 Mikula-Harris).

• First, look at every place through the eyes of a 3 year old
Since tourism brands are discovered and not dreamed up, it helps to genuinely believe that the community you are branding is unique and magical. We like to look at the destination with the same sense of wonder that a 3-year-old child sees the world. If you’ve ever observed a child watching a spider weave its web you’ll know what we mean. At that age, almost everything they see they’re seeing for the very first time and to them it’s the most fascinating thing in the universe. We believe that every community has a unique story, so we allow ourselves to be captivated. We love learning those stories and telling them to the world.

• Next, combine childlike excitement with 60 years of experience
Depending on which team members assist with the research, analysis, strategy, writing, design and other elements of a brand development project, an average of 60 years of experience is probably a conservative estimate. That kind of expertise helps us zero in on what’s important in every community’s brand. It also allows us to know what will resonate with consumers. Experience also helps bring the brand to life with a powerful and compelling message and identity.

Everyone would like both youth and experience, but we all know it's not always possible. Having a youthful outlook, on the other hand, is an option we choose.

2012 – A Year of Change

What a year 2012 was. In fact, I can’t wait until next week to post this year-in-review summary because who knows, those Mayans might be right and next week may be too late.

We had a secret when 2012 began. We were quietly working on changing our company name from Inprint to Mikula-Harris. It was an easy decision but tough to get used to. We had been Inprint for 20 years. Much had changed in those 20 years, including the scope of services we offer clients — and the name Inprint suggested to many that we focused solely on print media. Nothing could be further from the truth. While we believe in the value of print and produce excellent print media advertising and collateral work, we also produce web and video content, not to mention strategic branding, social media consultation and much more.

The name change was publicly announced in March in Tunica, Mississippi, where Mikula-Harris was a proud sponsor of the Southeast Tourism Society Spring Conference. We kicked it off with a small campaign about change, giving out very cool posters steering people to a special landing page created just for the announcement. Also at the conference in Tunica, I received certification as a TMP (Travel Marketing Professional), earned by completing three years of Southeast Tourism Society Marketing College. I’m convinced it is the finest continuing education program for tourism professionals in the country and I’m proud to serve on its board of trustees.

Creatively, our team continued to produce great work in 2012. The big ideas and excellent design we develop for our tourism clients as well as our legacy clients just keeps getting better. Early in the year, our work for the Alleghany Highlands was in DC Metro stations as part of the Virginia Tourism Corporation’s DC Blitz. This campaign rocked with web traffic, inquiries and social media interaction going through the roof.

Mid-simmer saw the launch of a beautiful new website for Luray & Page County in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. The website reflects the brand strategy we developed for this client. Despite some minor backsliding, the site remains a monstrous marketing tool for tourism in the county. It’s rich in content, easy to navigate and, most importantly, powerfully sells the many great opportunities in the county. Shortly after launching the site we compared a 30-day period to a comparable period the year before and the average time on site and average page views per visitor increased significantly and inquiries (either requesting a visitor guide or signing up for the e-newsletter) increased an astonishing 350%.

A few more ultra-cool initiatives developed in the final quarter of the year. In Abingdon, Virginia, the Convention & Visitors Bureau and a local non-profit partnered to promote locally grown or manufactured food products. Our assignment was to create a campaign that promotes establishments that serve local products, thus creating a demand for them to use more local product and entice more establishments to get involved in the program. It’s called Rooted in Appalachia and it turned out to be a fun campaign that has a lot of local buzz. We think it’s going to be a huge success that will eventually take root (pun intended) all across southwest Virginia and northern Tennessee. In November we launched a new website for a four-county tourism group known as Virginia’s Western Highlands. If you’ve never heard of this region, be patient – you will. It is a beautiful portion of the state along the border with West Virginia. It has great small towns, interesting historic sites, outdoor recreation and unspoiled views that go on forever. I’m pleased to say that the website appropriately captures the charm and beauty of the region. A visitor guide and perhaps even more marketing will be out next year.

So, what’s next? I’m not at liberty to reveal the creative work yet, but let’s just say that we’re going to showcase Abingdon, Virginia, as you’ve never seen it before. And the Alleghany Highlands is about to take a couple of big steps toward securing their reputation as the next great destination for outdoor enthusiasts. As for Mikula-Harris, we’ll continue to introduce ourselves to DMOs and CVBs across the southeast who are serious about taking their tourism marketing to new levels just like the examples highlighted here.

Happy Holidays! 

The Importance of Branding to Small and Mid-size Destinations

Branding is a terribly misunderstood subject. One of the worst misconceptions is that it requires such an enormous investment that only large organizations should attempt it. The truth is that smaller organizations need the benefits of branding and a solid brand strategy more than anyone.

As all who read this blog know, a brand is not a logo or a tagline. A brand is the reputation that a company — or in the tourism industry, a destination — enjoys in the marketplace. It's the way people feel and react when they hear a name. The act of branding involves discovering what makes a destination special and worth visiting. It requires assigning the destination a personality, a voice and a recognizable identity. If it's done right, branding will ensure that the personality, voice and identity are unique and differentiated from competing destinations. The branding process brings clarity and direction to all future advertising and marketing initiatives.

Who needs a clear strategy and differentiation more — a smaller community or Chicago?

I don't think it's a question of whether the small to mid-size communities can afford to tackle branding. I think they can't afford not to.

Branding and Advertising – They are not the same thing

I saw an interesting discussion in a LinkedIn group the other day. The question posed to group members: What is advertising?

Answers ranged from concise ("Ability to make people like the product.") to technical ("A series of integrated actions to most effectively and economically communicate... [yawn]") to witty ("A lot like Disneyland, only with pressure."). Every response has some validity. After all, it's a group for advertising professionals. None of the answers defined advertising exactly the way that we do here at Mikula-Harris.

Our team does branding, brand strategies and brand images as well as complete advertising campaigns. Sometimes clients wonder about the relationship between branding and advertising. Some even think they are the same thing. It's a topic that we have given much thought.

• You all know that a brand is much more than a logo, name or tagline. It's the way that people feel about a product, or in the case of our tourism clients, a destination. It's the emotion they feel whenever they are reminded of the product or destination. So, the verb "branding" is the act of helping people arrive at the right conclusion. It's about defining, establishing and keeping the right reputation.

• Advertising is a creative interpretation of a brand designed to reach a specific goal. A goal of advertising is often to make a sale — plain and simple. If a product has a longer sales funnel, another goal of advertising may be to motivate prospects to sign up for a newsletter or request a brochure. In case you're wondering, it is perfectly acceptable for the goal to be general awareness and brand building. In all cases, no matter what the specific goal, advertising must be consistent with the larger brand objectives. It has to support, not contradict, the positioning and the reputation of the brand.

So you see, the two are closely related but definitely not the same thing. The influence of the branding efforts on the advertising is profound. Without a brand strategy behind it, advertising is like setting a ship adrift without a rudder.

The difference between advertising reach and advertising that reaches consumers

Advertising outlets charge a lot of money to allow you, the advertiser, to reach your audience. I have no doubt that rates for each and every media outlet are quite fair. After all, their prices are market-driven. With enough money, advertisers can reach a lot of consumers. That is to say that your ad will be seen or heard by large numbers of people. That's what they mean by "reach." I want to draw a distinction between being seen and truly reaching the consumer in a way that stirs emotions and inspires action.

I have never understood advertisers who will spend six-figure amounts buying media space but settle for bland (let’s not mince words – I mean amateur) advertising to fill the space. Advertising works. Great advertising works better. Recently, one of our tourism clients concentrated on a defined target market for a one-month blitz of advertising that included print, online, social media and out-of-home displays. The advertising featured professional design to capture the consumer’s attention, great photography to help them picture themselves in the scene, and clever writing to make them smile and remember the message. Traffic to the client’s website tripled during the month of the blitz.

Improving the response rate by even a small margin can mean the difference between wasting money on big media buys and generating a real ROI. Don’t just “reach” the consumer as media outlets define it, reach out and grab them.

Random Thoughts on Branding, Advertising and Design

• If two heads are better than one, why is trying to undertake any serious and significant project by committee a horrible idea?

• I always chuckle when someone declares that print is dead. The declarer is clearly trying to be provocative and/or appear smarter than he or she really is. Readers spend an average of 41 minutes with a magazine (anybody have a website that can top that?). 92% of Americans read magazine including hard-to-reach millenials. Sure, print media is changing, but it’s far from extinct. Not including it as a part of an integrated strategy is a major mistake.

• I believe in the power of great design, smart typography, excellent photography and compelling copywriting. Yet, all of these things are rendered pointless without solid positioning and differentiation from competitors.

• “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results,” according to Albert Einstein, which is why it is so frustrating that a client will hire us as outside experts to set them on the right strategic path and almost immediately after we finish our work they are right back to doing things "they way we've always done it." Clearly “the way we’ve always done it” is one of the most powerful forces in the universe. Shame.

• Creativity sells! No matter what the product — from conservative topics like financial planning to personal items like skin care (think of those Dove commercials) to fun things like travel and tourism — figuring out a unique way to position your product and a memorable way to pitch it will work 100% of the time.

Behind the scenes at www.luraypage.com

Have you ever heard of Page County, Virginia? Probably not, although chances are good that you know of the county seat Luray, Virginia, because of Luray Caverns and their abundance of billboards along I-81. Well, it's time for everyone to know more about the charm of Luray and the indelible beauty of every square inch of Page County. About two weeks ago we launched www.luraypage.com to tell those stories to the world. I’d like to take you on the insiders tour of the website.

• The first thing on travel website visitor's minds is what is there to do at this destination. They are less interested in background, stats, amenities, etc. The bottom line is what can my family, friends and I do. With that in mind, this site places the Things to Do menu first where that question is answered in many ways and organized by subject. If the viewer’s eye is drawn to the unique Choose Your Level option first, those three pages are entirely about what exciting things there are to do.

• A focus group conducted by a state travel office revealed that visitors can’t get enough photos. Good photos help visitors project themselves into the scene. Even though some web “experts” suggest keeping photos to a minimum because too many can potentially slow the loading time, the focus group proves that rule simply doesn’t apply to tourism sites. The Luray & Page County site has lots of great photos that show a mix of beautiful scenery and people engaged in fun activities.

• The site plan was designed for easy navigation. Our objective was that a visitor could find whatever information they wanted within three clicks. Other times, viewers like to browse travel websites. This one sure is fun to browse. It’s rich in content with plenty of photos and concise, easy-to-read copy.

• Luray & Page County is a fantastic destination for families (although it’s also great for couples, seniors or a girlfriend getaway). Kids are as computer savvy as anyone, so we dedicated a page to telling young folks what they can do when they arrive in Luray & Page County. The Kids Page is designed and written specifically for kids. Of course, parents need to be assured that there are plenty of fun and safe things for their kids to enjoy. The Parents Page addresses that topic in detail.

• Multigenerational travel is a rapidly growing trend. Grandparents are frequently included on vacations and in many instances they’re footing the bill. Luray & Page County is ideally suited to multigenerational travel parties because of the opportunity to rent a cabin where family members can have private rooms but also share common kitchen, living room and porch/deck space. This site includes a Grandparents Page to explain exactly why Luray & Page County is the place to make memories with the grandkids. Note: Kids Pages on a travel site are few and far between, but I personally have never seen a Grandparents Page. I think it’s a unique and valuable addition to this site.

There is a lot more strategy and planning built into every section and page on the site. I could go on and on, but you’d probably prefer to just click around on the site at your own pace. Once you do, we’d love to hear your thoughts. Post them here on the blog or on our Facebook page.