THE MARKETING ISSUE JANUARY 19, 2018 | VOL. 6 ISSUE 3
UPSTATE BUSINESS JOURNAL
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TOP-OF-MIND AND IN THE MIX THIS WEEK
| THE RUNDOWN
VOLUME 7, ISSUE 3 Featured this issue: Greenville’s The Flat restaurant expanding to Spartanburg.............................5 Anderson University to offer coding minor..............................................................8 Doggie day care to open downtown Greenville...................................................... 11
South Korea-based electronics giant Samsung on Friday, Jan. 12, officially opened its first U.S. appliance manufacturing plant in Newberry County. The $380 million, 450,000-square-foot facility is expected to create about 1,000 jobs by 2020. Read more on Page 6.
WORTH REPEATING “In case you missed it, truth-telling is in these days.” Jennifer Oladipo – Page 16
“Advertising is just one piece of a strategy that will help your brand strengthen over time.” Marion Crawford – Page 18
“The days of hiring one person or ‘promoting’ an underperforming sales associate to oversee your in-house marketing are over.” Warren Griffth – Page 23
VERBATIM
On your News Feed “In the coming months, Facebook’s algorithm will no longer prioritize content from news publishers and brands. Instead, you’re more likely to see posts from people you’re connected to that will drive engagement through comments and Steve Kovach, of Business Insider, on the discussion, not shares latest change to Facebook’s algorithm, which “will no longer prioritize content from news and likes.” publishers and brands.” 1.19.2018 | upstatebusinessjournal.com
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NEWS |
INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Next-Level Development Influence from Inland Port terminal, BMW, and others spur newly announced Inland 86 Logistics Center, representing $194M Spartanburg investment
Rendering provided by CRG
TREVOR ANDERSON | STAFF
tanderson@communityjournals.com A multimillion-dollar logistics center is headed for 324 acres in Spartanburg County near BMW Manufacturing Co. and the South Carolina Ports Authority’s Inland Port Greer. St. Louis-based CRG, a private real estate investment affiliate of Clayco Inc., announced last week it is ready to move forward with the Inland 85 Logistics Center of Spartanburg County. The property includes multiple parcels in the vicinity of Genoble and Robinson roads near Minghua USA, Berrang, and Lear Corp. “CRG has looked for superior sites throughout the Greenville–Spartanburg industrial market and Inland 85 Distribution Center will deliver to today’s modern industrial user,” said Mike Demperio, CRG’s Southeast partner. “We see significant opportunity along the I-85 corridor with immediate access to South Carolina Inland Port, Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport, and close proximity to the Port of Charleston, Columbia, Charlotte, Savannah, and Atlanta.” “This is one more step CRG is taking to enhance 4
UBJ | 1.19.2018
its industrial portfolio in the market,” Demperio added. CRG said the first phase of the project will be construction of a 500,280-square-foot speculative, or spec, building that will be expandable to nearly 1,186,680 square feet and available for occupancy by the fourth quarter. The state-of-the-art warehouse will have 36-foot tall ceilings, ample trailer storage, and parking for associates, said CRG, which also developed a 432,000-square foot warehouse in Greenville for Bausch + Lomb, a Valeant Pharmaceuticals International company. A preliminary site plan from the company showed as many as six buildings at the center with the potential to provide an additional 2.3 million square feet of industrial space. “I think this is fantastic,” said Spartanburg County Councilman David Britt. “We’ve been working really hard with that group since this summer. This is evidence of the inland port’s and BMW’s impact. They continue to pay dividends for Spartanburg.” Garrett Scott and Brockton Hall with Colliers International brokered CRG’s purchase of the property and have been chosen to market the project.
The company did not disclose its investment in the project. County Council documents discussing incentives for the project said it would be an investment of at least $194 million. CRG said The Net Lease Group in Atlanta arranged the capital source for the project. “We are thrilled to be included in the process of bringing an outstanding institutional level development to our area,” Scott said. “We believe these types of investments continue to bolster the reputation of our market as a fantastic place to invest. The spec building they are developing is designed with flexibility to meet the needs of a number of users. It is ideally situated to take advantage of the operational and logistical services offered by the S.C. Ports Authority’s Inland Port terminal.” In addition to its headquarters in St. Louis, CRG said it has offices in Chicago, Sacramento, Atlanta, Pittsburgh, and northern New Jersey. The company said it has developed more than 5,000 acres of land and delivered about 160 million square feet of commercial, industrial, and multi-family assets exceeding $9 billion.
INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW
| NEWS
RESTAURANTS
Greenville’s The Flat restaurant expanding to downtown Spartanburg TREVOR ANDERSON | STAFF
tanderson@communityjournals.com Another new dining option is headed for downtown Spartanburg. Greenville restaurateurs Darren Sip and Nick Conte plan to open the second installment of the casual eatery The Flat by mid-2018 in the 5,500-square-foot space formerly occupied by Miyako Sushi Group at 114 and 116 Magnolia St. The Flat of Spartanburg will feature made-to-order fare and a rotating selection of craft beers, high-end whiskeys, and cocktails. It is expected to create 12 to 20 jobs. “When we started looking around [for a second location], we considered a few places,” Sip said. “Spartanburg just kept popping up. … When we got there and saw what was going on, we knew it was a good fit.” Sip and Conte opened their flagship restaurant in December 2014 at 1606 Woodruff Road. In Spartanburg, the owners plan to replicate the model that has fueled the growth of their Greenville location, but they also have a few new additions in store. The Flat’s menu includes a range of affordably priced appetizers, wings, sandwiches, burgers, sliders, rotating chef specials, and desserts. Sip said everything is made fresh from locally sourced ingredients and never frozen. The eatery cuts its own french fries, makes its own sauces and seasonings, and produces its own pimento cheese, which Sip said is a favorite among customers. “I think we’re really going to draw
people in with our food,” Sip said. “A lot of people say that our burgers are the best in town.” During the next few months, the owners will renovate the space, which housed Miyako for 19 years prior to the prominent sushi restaurant’s move next door and Harry’s restaurant during the decade prior. “It’s mostly cosmetic,” Sip said of the changes. “Nothing structural.” Sip and Conte will transform Miyako’s old sushi bar into a high-end whiskey and cocktail bar. They will leave the main bar where it is but give it a few upgrades to make it more functional. Overall, the restaurant will have an industrial, rustic vibe, Sip said. The owners will open up the building’s second floor and install an arcade with games, pool tables, and other amenities, including a small stage for live music or comedy shows, and private event space. Customers will be able to enjoy sports games on flat-screen TVs that will be mounted throughout the establishment. The restaurant will host bingo, trivia, and other group activities. Matt Yates, head bartender of the Greenville location, will take charge of the Spartanburg store’s beer and spirits offerings. Kitchen staff at the Greenville restaurant will initially oversee the food offering in Spartanburg. The Flat will join a downtown that has attracted about 16 new restaurants since May 2016, with the potential to net at least eight more during the coming year.
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INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW
MANUFACTURING
Home Appliance Hub Opens Samsung launches first U.S.-based home appliance manufacturing facility in Newberry County, plans to grow workforce to 1,000 TREVOR ANDERSON | STAFF
tanderson@communityjournals.com South Korea-based electronics giant Samsung on Friday, Jan. 12, officially opened its first U.S. appliance manufacturing plant in Newberry County. The $380 million, 450,000-square-foot facility, located in the former Caterpillar plant at 284 Mawsons Way, is expected to create about 1,000 jobs by 2020. To date, the company said it has hired 540 associates for the plant and 90 percent of them are from Newberry and surrounding communities. “When we selected South Carolina for our new manufacturing facility, we chose a state and a community that believe in the power of innovation, and has the workforce to back it up,” said Hyun Suk Kim, president of Samsung’s Consumer Electronics division, during a launch ceremony at the facility. “It is thanks to the strong partnership we enjoy that we are here to celebrate the opening of our first U.S.-
based home appliance manufacturing facility,” Kim added. Samsung announced the facility in June 2017. Since then, it has transformed the site by adding 151,000 square feet of space and installing two manufacturing and assembly lines composed of 20 presses and 30 injection molding machines, the company said. The construction phase created jobs for 800 full-time and contract workers. Samsung said plant employees have begun manufacturing ship-ready washing machines, washer cabinets, inner tubs, and bases from black steel. The company said the two assembly lines combine its made-in-house components with supplied modules, and a packaging operation that prepares products to be shipped to U.S. customers. Samsung said it plans to produce 1 million washing machines at the facility this year. “When Samsung chose South Carolina as the home for its new U.S.-based manufacturing facility, the
company chose a state and community with a passion for innovation and a dedication to building world-class products,” said S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster. “Today, we celebrate a major milestone in Samsung’s journey here in South Carolina, and together, we look forward to a bright future.” During the ceremony, Samsung announced it will donate 10 of the inaugural washing machines made at the facility to two Newberry-based nonprofits, the Boys Farm and the Freedom and Hope Foundation. The company said it will also give one inaugural washing machine to the Newberry County museum. Tim Baxter, president and CEO of Samsung Electronics North America said the company’s vision is for South Carolina to become its “U.S. hub for every stage in the home appliance lifecycle — from concept and [research and development] to manufacturing, quality assurance, distribution, and customer care.”
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UBJ | 1.19.2018
INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW
| NEWS
Young-jun Kim, Korean Consul General in Atlanta; Joon So, president of Samsung Electronics Home Appliances America; U.S. Senator Tim Scott, R-S.C.; Newberry County Administrator Wayne Adams; South Korean Ambassador to the U.S. Yoon-Je Cho; president and head of Consumer Electronics Division of Samsung Electronics H.S. Kim; Gov. Henry McMaster; U.S. Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C.; Ian Steff, deputy assistant secretary of manufacturing at the U.S. Department of Commerce; and Tim Baxter, president and CEO of Samsung Electronics North America. Photo by Renee Ittner, McManus/RIM Photography.
“South Carolina’s business community welcomes Samsung’s operations to the Palmetto State,” said Ted Pitts, president and CEO of the S.C. Chamber of Commerce. “Samsung is a true innovator and, with its exceptional history, is the type of company we want calling South Carolina home.” “The commitment and investment Samsung, Newberry, and the state have made to each other will be transformative for both the region and company,” Pitts added. Samsung operates a customer call center in Greenville that employs 800 people. In December, the company announced a new research and development (R&D) partnership with
the state, Clemson University, and the University of South Carolina to create the Palmetto Consortium for Home Appliance Innovation (PCHAI). Samsung said PCHAI is a robust R&D program that seeks to “catalyze innovation, foster public/ private collaboration, and nurture the next generation of manufacturing professionals in South Carolina.” The company touted the more than $10 billion it has invested in the U.S. during the past two years. That investment includes its $8 billion acquisition of Harman International, a $1.2 billion commitment to internet of things R&D investments, a $1 billion commitment to expanding its semiconductor facil-
ity in Austin, Texas, and its purchase of California-based Dacor. Samsung said it hosted or participated in seven job fairs and built an entire curriculum for workforce training for the Newberry plant since June. “I am thrilled to help welcome Samsung to Newberry County and South Carolina today,” said U.S. Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., in a statement. “I look forward to a productive partnership for years to come, as our world-class workforce and competitive business environment mixed with Samsung’s innovative ideas will produce amazing results.”
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INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW
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Anderson University to offer minor in coding According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there will be an estimated 1 million more computing jobs than applicants to fill them by 2020. To help fill that need, Anderson University has joined with Apple to launch a minor in coding and app development for all students pursuing any major. “We believe this opportunity will allow us to do something truly unique in liberal arts education and demonstrates Anderson University’s commitment to integrating the newest technologies with 21st century disciplines,” AU President Evans Whitaker said in a news release. “Our goal is to fully prepare our students for their careers, and having them learn a marketable and highly sought-after skill like coding will help them in whatever field they choose.” The program will launch this fall and will require students to complete 18 credit hours of coursework related to app design, web management, computer coding, and product development. That includes Apple’s Swift programming language and Xcode, a suite of app development tools. “Students in any field will be able to bring the thinking skills and disciplinary expertise they learn from their major to this minor,” said Wayne Cox, dean of AU’s College of Arts and Sciences. “Then they can tailor the strengths gained from the coding minor in a way that enhances their marketability and gives them coding and development experience. And they’ll have a finished product that illustrates their abilities.” In addition to the minor, the university plans to provide summer coding programs for K-12 teachers and students. It also plans to transform one of its existing Digital Media Labs into the App and Media Development Studio. –Andrew Moore
HEALTH CARE
InvestSouth acquires Interim HealthCare of Greenville Drop in and network…
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Greenville-based InvestSouth LLC has acquired Interim HealthCare of Greenville. The acquisition became effective Jan. 1, according to a news release. Interim HealthCare of Greenville provides home health, hospice, and personal care services across six Upstate counties. The company’s name will be changed to Interim HealthCare of the Upstate, but local leadership will remain the same. Charyl Schroeder will continue as CEO and member of the board of directors, and Ray Schroeder will serve as a consultant for Interim HealthCare. “We believe that Interim HealthCare and Hospice has built their leadership position in the health-care market by innovating, providing exceptional service and care, and maintaining strong relationships within the community they serve,” said Chris Lupo, manager of InvestSouth. “We feel strongly in the value proposition of home health as the lowest-cost setting for providing many health-care services and fulfilling people’s desires to be treated at home whenever possible. Having had a parent requiring personal care services and then Interim Hospice for the past year, I fully appreciate the need for these services and the difference it makes in people’s lives.” –Andrew Moore
UBJ | 1.19.2018
INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW
| NEWS
FINANCE
United Community Bank’s lending services to grow through acquisition Greenville-based United Community Bank Inc., the holding company for United Community Bank, announced on Jan. 8 it agreed to purchase NLFC Holdings Corp. for $130 million. NLFC is the parent company of Florida-based Navitas, a specialty lender founded in 2008 that provides equipment finance credit services to small and medium-sized businesses nationwide. Navitas will continue to operate under its original banner as a separate subsidiary of the bank, and will be managed by the Navitas senior management team, United said. As of Sept. 30, 2017, Navitas reported outstanding loans and leases of approximately $350 million in the aggregate comprised of a diversified group of business borrowers operating in multiple industries and geographic markets. The company serviced more than 17,000 finance contracts valued at more than $750 million for 14,500 business customers. “This transaction is consistent with our commitment
to grow our specialty and commercial lending business,” said Lynn Harton, president of United and CEO of the bank, in a statement. “Navitas will be a strong strategic addition to our existing platforms, providing attractive risk-adjusted returns and enabling us to further expand our client offerings.”
Gary Shivers, president and CEO of Navitas, said his company had “enjoyed tremendous growth since its inception.” To continue that growth, he said, the company needed “access to more permanent capital and lower cost funding.” “Our partnership with the United team provides
us with just that,” Shivers said in a statement. “Additionally, we are very excited about synergies that we believe exist between our commercial lending businesses. … This combination is clearly a win-win for both sides.” United said 35 percent of the transaction will be paid in its common stock, with the remaining 65 percent paid in cash. The company anticipates its earnings to increase by 20 cents per share during the first full year of operations. The transaction is expected to close during the first quarter. Morgan Stanley & Co. advised United, and Troutman Sanders served as its legal advisor. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods served as Navitas’ financial advisor, and Greenberg Traurig served as its legal advisor. –Trevor Anderson
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REAL ESTATE DEALS AND DEVELOPMENTS ACROSS THE REGION
ARIEL TURNER | STAFF
aturner@communityjournals.com |
@arielhturner
Locally owned KidZone drop-in day care to open this spring The second hourly drop-in day care to enter the Greenville market is under construction at 21 Orchard Park Drive, near Haywood Road. KidZone, a non-franchise concept owned by local residents Brock and Donna Quinn, will open this spring in the former grocery store space in the Orchard Village shopping center. The first drop-in day care option to enter the Upstate market, Giggles Drop-In Childcare, is a North Carolina-based franchise that opened its first Greenville location in December 2017 on Augusta Road and has a second location under construction at Pelham 85. The Quinns will be transforming the 5,000-squarefoot space in the same retail center as Outback Steakhouse into a child care center that can care for infants as young as 12 weeks on up to 12-year-olds. The play space will have a completely separate area for infants and toddlers, per Department of Social Services regulations. Donna Quinn saw a need for short-term, short-no-
tice child care while her husband, who has spent the last 14 years in the Air Force Reserve, was deployed twice. “During these deployments and monthly duty, he is away, making child care arrangements difficult,” she says. After stumbling upon an hourly child care business, she determined it was a service Greenville could use. “If I, myself, need this service, so do other parents,” she says. Donna Quinn, who will serve as director and owner of KidZone, has an associate degree in early care and education from Greenville Technological College and more than 14 years of child care experience in day cares, churches, and private homes.
“I love to work with children, and it truly is my passion,” she says. “I enjoy watching children discover and learn new things.” KidZone will have free play but also structured craft times that go with the theme of the week appropriately designed for all ages. Structured playtimes may include hide-and-go-seek and tag, Brock Quinn says. He says a main goal is to keep the children active while they’re at KidZone. “KidsZone [will] help parents get life done while their children have fun with active and social play,” Donna Quinn says. Planned hours are Monday to Thursday, 7 a.m.-10 p.m., and Friday and Saturday from 7 a.m.-midnight. Sundays will be reserved for afternoon birthday parties from 1-6 p.m. Prices are $9 an hour for the first child older than 3 years old or $10 per hour for the first child younger than 3 years old. Additional children are $4 per hour for the second child of any age and $3 per hour for any number of children of any age after that.
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REAL ESTATE DEALS AND DEVELOPMENTS ACROSS THE REGION
ARIEL TURNER | STAFF
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Dog Culture day care to open downtown this spring
A new dog day care with grooming and training services, Dog Culture, was scheduled to break ground this week at 627 W. Washington St. across from the Main Post Office with a projected opening later this spring. Owners Steve and Megan Mussman plan to update the exterior of the existing building and completely renovate the 4,700-square-foot interior along with a planned 7,800-square-foot outdoor area. The interior will be separated into a front retail area, the middle indoor day care space, and the back area, which will be for grooming and training. The indoor day care area will be broken up into four separate play areas where dogs will be split up based on size, temperament, age, and activity level. The outdoor area will be broken into three separate areas. Two, totaling 3,500 square feet, will be for day care services, and the third – Culture Courtyard – at 3,300 square feet, will be used as a flexible space for events and training and will also be available to rent out on an hourly basis or for special events. Dog Culture will be able to accommodate 50 dogs a day. The Mussmans, who have a 6-year-old son, two dogs, and foster through Lucky Pup Rescue, began actively working on a plan for a dog day care about a year ago.
Bee
Megan, who formerly worked for McNair Law Firm, says she would often find herself needing to help fellow employees take care of their dogs during the work day, and could see a need for a dog day care downtown. Steve, a residential real estate agent with Coldwell Banker Caine, began surveying downtown apartments and condos and found that in some cases, 70 percent of the residents owned dogs. Megan says, like a preschool, Dog Culture will have scheduled activities and rest times in order to do what is best for the dogs. They hope to promote dog-friendly culture throughout the community while also using Dog Culture to enhance the relationship between dog and owner. Megan will be the full-time manager/operator of Dog Culture and is planning to hire 12-15 staff members for the day care, along with groomers and trainers. Dog Culture will not provide boarding services but will be open 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday-Friday, and additional hours on the weekend according to demand. The cost will be $30 a day per dog, with discount packages available.
G R E E N V I L L E L I T E R AC Y A S S O C I AT I O N P R E S E N TS
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SAVVY SHINE &
Equal parts relationship building and nimble pitch skills, Taryn Scher of TKPR has made a career of making Greenville sparkle Words By Jordana Megonigal | Photo by Will Crooks
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THE MARKETING ISSUE 1.19.2018 | upstatebusinessjournal.com
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Y COVER |
THE MARKETING ISSUE
TARYN SCHER
ou could say that Taryn Scher fell into her career by accident. Working as an executive at a fashion company in New York, she realized that the company’s retained public relations firm wasn’t quite pulling in what it should. She challenged her manager about it, and he gave her three months to see whether she could do better. Those three months later, the company fired the PR firm and retained Scher to keep doing what she had proved she was good at. When she moved to Greenville a few years later, that fashion company was her first client as she began her own business — TKPR — at age 24. That was in 2008, as advertising and public relations budgets were slashed to compete with the looming threats of a global recession. Although her own client list didn’t take a hit, getting new clients was harder, so she decided to volunteer with a local event called Southern Exposure, which would, over time, grow to be known as Euphoria. “They didn’t have any PR, and they couldn’t afford any PR, but I didn’t have any friends, and so it was a tradeoff,” Scher says. “Little did I know what that would mean for me ultimately, but now, every client I have gotten can be traced back to the fact that I worked on that festival.”
Taking what she knew of national PR — that it’s built on sustaining relationships with the right journalists and publications, and that it requires looking at the bigger picture, not just an event — Scher grew her pitches of Southern Exposure to include Greenville as a whole as a destination location. Soon, she was hired by the Convention and Visitors Bureau to represent the city on a more formal basis. Today, after working with the office, now called VisitGreenvilleSC, for almost eight years, TKPR has helped bring to the city a long and still-growing list of national (and global) accolades.
“I have the most fun showing off Greenville, because it’s not work,” Scher says. “It didn’t start off as a job, either; I was doing it because I got to bring people here and show them a place that I chose to live that I love, and that wasn’t because somebody had hired me to do it. … It was because I was doing it already.”
Today, her client list includes a few Upstate groups — represented in addition to VisitGreenvilleSC are now the burgeoning art festival Artisphere and restaurant group Table 301 — but they are the clients that excite her at a different level, because she gets to know them and their local impact in a much different way. “Getting to play tourist in a place that you live is amazing,” she notes of Greenville and all it offers. “We get to play all day long. Yes, it’s work, but we also get to play.” While Scher sees a number of trends in the marketing and PR industries — namely, the need to expand social media offerings or content creation — they aren’t trends she chooses to participate in. Rather, her focus remains on what she calls “traditional PR” — building portfolios of earned media that isn’t paid for, but is earned by the validity of her clients, their products, and their services.
“ In 2018, you can’t just blind-copy 50 journalists with your pitch. You can’t send out a press release and think that you’re going to get any response.”
“It’s important to know the difference,” she says, between earned media and paid content. “A lot of people do paid content now. We don’t even work in that space. But we will focus on one thing and do it well, and people will hire us because we’re the best at it.” Still, she is quick to acknowledge that times have changed, and getting true, national impact on your story is not easy. “In 2018, you can’t just blind-copy 50 journalists with your pitch,” she says. “You can’t send out a press release and think that you’re going to get any response.”
Instead, Scher touts a different approach, one that hearkens back to the 1960s-era, Mad Men-esque advertising firms. That, she notes, requires building relationships with journalists, news groups, publications, and producers.
“One of the largest stories the city has gotten to date is because we saw a byline of a journalist who had written about another South Carolina city, and we reached out,” Scher says. And although she thinks the city deserves every piece of coverage, she’s quick to note that these opportunities don’t fall out of the sky. “These things don’t just happen; there is a lot of work that goes into them behind the scenes.” With cries of “fake news” at every turn, digital offerings getting most of the praise, and people disputing the validity of media across the globe, Scher says that businesses can still gain traction by telling their story through the more traditional formats. She notes that one of her clients saw a one-weekend spike of $20,000 in sales after being featured in the Chicago Tribune, proving that print and broadcast still have a strong influence. “I very much believe in real journalism,” she says. “Someone’s reading it. Someone’s paying attention.” 14
UBJ | 1.19.2018
THE MARKETING ISSUE
TARYN SCHER
| COVER
10 Ways to Increase Your Odds of Getting Media Coverage
1. 2. 3. 4.
Be prepared: Don’t start reaching out to the media until you have a website that you are proud of and
5. 6.
Don’t ever try to sell the media. You aren’t trying to get them to BUY your product or service; you
7.
ind something newsworthy. Every once in a while, even if you have a product that is perfect for a F PR campaign, you might need to be creative. In looking for a way to stay relevant for a client that makes custom superhero capes, I found out that National Superhero Day is April 28. So, I began contacting every TV station nationwide and asking their anchors if they would consider wearing a custom superhero cape on April 28 to celebrate.
8.
Know who you are pitching. The best thing you can do is familiarize yourself with the publications
9.
Quality, not quantity. Don’t waste your time blanketing every publication east of the Mississippi.
10.
Know how to pitch a journalist. If you can’t sum up what you’re trying to say in three or four sen-
that clearly represents your brand. Also have a sample inventory that you can send out for photoshoots/ testing, clean product photographs (preferably shot on a white background), and a digital media kit.
Know who your spokesperson will be. In a perfect world, the owner or founder of the company is
the spokesperson, but in certain circumstances you might want to think about someone else who is more camera-friendly.
Drop everything when the phone rings. If a reporter calls you, you need to call them back within hours — minutes if possible. They are always on urgent deadlines, and if you don’t call back immediately, they will find someone else (probably a competitor) who will.
Position yourself as an expert in your industry. Some businesses may not lend themselves direct-
ly to PR opportunities. Financial planners, lawyers, doctors — you might not necessarily be able to get a PR campaign around your specific business or practice. In this circumstance, you, the individual, need to be the one getting the PR. You should position yourself as an “expert” in your field and try to be quoted whenever possible when your area of expertise is on the discussion board. simply want to inform them about why it’s better than or different from what’s already out there. If your product/service is that exceptional, they’ll be able to see that based on the information alone.
Pay attention to the news. When William and Kate got married, everything British became HOT
— so any opportunity to promote anything Kate was wearing or “honeymoon destinations for royalty” were opportunities to pitch the media. There is always something fresh and relevant for TV and newspaper coverage, too.
or TV programs you are trying to pitch. As a rule of thumb, they’re only going to cover topics that are relevant to their content. Don’t waste your time reaching out to publications that are too much of a stretch. Go for the obvious choices. Where are your customers hanging out? What magazines are they reading? What TV shows are they watching? Make a Top 20 and pitch each one differently and targeted to its readership/viewership. What good are 5,000 media placements if no one is reading those magazines? tences, you are definitely going to lose interest. Reporters barely make it past your first sentence. Keep it short and to the point. If you get a bite, the reporter will ask for more information.
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LOOK WHO’S TALKING 7 Local Voices, 1 Universal Truth: Marketing Matters
HUGHES AGENCY
Jennifer Oladipo
Is honesty the best policy? (Spoiler alert: YES)
O’NEAL INC.
CRAWFORD STRATEGY
Brian Gallagher ROI: Changing Rules, Not the Game
Marion Crawford Therapy for Your Brand’s Identity Crisis
ENGENIUS
Chris Manley Your Digital Strategy: Awesome Isn’t Enough
3FOLD
Tim Joiner
For Fresh Eyes, Unschedule Your Schedule
THE MARKETING BEACON
William Russell
Need Fuel for Your Marketing Plan? Go High
FUEL
Warren Griffith
“Are we there yet?” If you’re not going digital, then nope.
Sincerity Sells, so Dig Deep In marketing efforts, transparency is a worthwhile strategy By JENNIFER OLADIPO Senior Account Executive, Hughes Agency
In case you missed it, truth-telling is in these days. The “flawsome” trend that emerged a few years ago when a series of large companies began being more open about their missteps and mistakes has evolved into sincerity becoming a pillar of marketing. The simplified explanation is that people’s buying decisions are, in the end, emotional. Even in an information-heavy business-to-business buying journey, the reason people ultimately pull the trigger on purchases from laboratory equipment to automotive parts to staffing services is the way they feel about it. The feeling you want to foster in 2018 is trust. But, what about when it feels like there’s nothing special to be honest about? You’ve got no major mistakes, no expansion or consolidation, no big initiatives, no redesign. You’re just showing up every day, marching toward success, pretty sure nobody’s interested in trudging along with you, right? Wrong. When there’s no “news,” you’ve got the perfect opportunity to pull back the curtain on what makes your organization tick. It’s time to look back, dig deep, dissect, and share. In your personal life, think about the stories you know 16
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best – the ones you tell again and again, and ones you don’t mind hearing every so often. We don’t need these stories to offer us novel or exciting information. Rather, they tug on a string somewhere inside you that resonates, and for whatever reason, you like the sound. That feeling should be your guide when introducing transparency into your marketing efforts. Consider telling your audience stories spurred by: • Hard-won successes you find yourself referring to again and again among peers and colleagues • Experiences that, in hindsight, turned out to be defining moments for your organization • Discovering a new product, process, or a missing link in serving your clients • A time when your company needed to pivot to a new direction • How your company was founded • How a product or service came to define your work • The inspiration behind your mission statement What will make this work is sincerity and honesty. Remember the stories you love and share? Remember that resonating string? It’s made of true human experience – the only kind of communication that will have real staying power. When you’re thinking about these topics above, dig deeper than just the narrative of A
happened, then B, then C. Ask yourself questions like: • What was most exciting about this experience? • What was painful? • What lesson did it teach? • What was surprising or completely unexpected? • What visible or invisible changes resulted from the experience? • What was funny about the experience? • Would you go through it again if given the choice? • How many people were involved, and how many were impacted? There are countless more questions to ask, but I hope you get the main idea: Find a deeper meaning for yourself, and you’ve potentially found a deeper meaning for your audience. Keep in mind that transparency works in many different types of marketing content. The stories you generate by taking a closer look at your history and environment can generate fodder for advertising copy, promotional videos, YouTube channels, social media posts, and more. I promise, you have at least a few of those stories lurking around, unexamined, in your business. What’s more, a significant portion of your audience is likely open to hearing them. All you need to do is take the time to look back, dig deep, dissect, and share.
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The Top B2B Marketing Trends of 2018 From video content to SEO, these are the some of the year’s most popular tactics By BRIAN GALLAGHER Vice president, marketing, O’Neal Inc.
Technology and consumer behavior continue to evolve, having a significant impact on how business-to-business marketers plan and execute their tactics. The “rules” change on a regular basis, so keeping a pulse on current trends will help firms improve their marketing effectiveness in 2018. Key trends to watch:
These tactics tie into one of the most touted terms in the business world: ROI. Increasingly, marketers — like other business professionals — are focusing on tracking the return on their investments. Factoring marketing into a firm’s overall ROI tracking can help guide strategies and improve results.
1. Content Marketing Content marketing will be the cornerstone of B2B marketing efforts in 2018. According to the Content Marketing Institute (CMI), content marketing is a strategic approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience — and, ultimately, to drive profitable customer action. CMI recently reported that 80 percent of B2B firms are focused on building a content marketing strategy. 2. Video Content The use of video in B2B marketing has gained considerable popularity. Studies show that video content engagement levels are far higher than they are for standard content. Video consumption is increasing on mobile devices, as well. Subject matter that addresses clients’ challenges and problems will be the most successful — after all, construction processes are complex, and visual demonstrations can be invaluable. Video content must be relevant, clear, and concise and have a call to action (CTA). Subcategories of video marketing that are expected to expand include:
ive Streaming: Streaming video will conL tinue to become more popular in 2018. B2B marketers will stream more events such as webcasts, speaking engagements, product overviews, presentations, events, and more. xplainer Videos: A growing trend is exE plainer videos. These relatively simple videos describe a company’s product, service, or project. While typically of short duration, these videos are very effective because they get viewers’ attention and can quickly, effectively convey messages and concepts.
3. SEM/SEO/Targeting Marketing (SEM), Search Engine Optimization (SEO), and retargeting will continue to be critical to a firm’s marketing success. Over the past few years, considerable attention has been paid to managing title tags, headers, and meta descriptions while posting content online. And these strategies remain as important as ever — after all, what good is it to create great content if no one can find it? Web searches drive most traffic to B2B online content, therefore higher SEO rankings typically result in higher traffic and more customer conversions. Algorithms will continue to change in 2018, so marketers will have to remain vigilant in their response to those changes. Targeting—Without diving into the nuances of differences between search, behavioral, and contextual marketing strategies, targeting will continue to emerge as a key tactic for marketers. Targeting involves processes by which visitors see specific and relevant advertisements based on their browsing history, content engagement, or other online behaviors. Targeting is a powerful way to remind past visitors to re-engage. It is driven by the insights and analytics provided by big data. Fortunately, setting up and managing a targeting program has become very easy. Marketers will seize on this effective approach to focus on relevancy, connect and engage with viewers, and convert them to customers. 4. Integrated Marketing Communications Marketers are embracing the concept of “integrated marketing communications” (IMC) as a systematic way to coordinate their efforts
across all possible channels. While IMC is not a new concept, the application of IMC has fresh relevancy as new channels emerge. IMC is a strategic approach designed to harness advertising, direct marketing, public relations, sales promotion, digital marketing, content marketing, and other programs to work in coordination as a unified force. This approach enables the consistent delivery of coherent brand positioning through all media. An integrated effort consists of planning, coordinating, and controlling the communications process with the result being a synergistic, seamless, customer-focused marketing program. 5. Big Data/IOT Marketing Applications Big data provides actionable insights and predictive analytics. The internet of things (IoT) is a network of physical devices, wearables, and other items that are embedded with electronics, software, sensors, and actuators. With network connectivity, these objects can exchange data, and this interconnectivity provides opportunities for marketers to listen to their clients and more effectively respond to their needs. Firms who leverage the IoT and Big Data will focus more on buyer personas and the customer’s journey, thereby increasing engagement. All of the above tactics tie into one of the most touted terms in the business world: ROI. Increasingly, marketers — like other business professionals — are focusing on tracking the return on their investments. Factoring marketing into a firm’s overall ROI tracking can help guide strategies and improve results. By quantifying the achievement of specific goals and targets, ROI helps ensure that campaigns are effective … because what can be measured can be managed. 1.19.2018 | upstatebusinessjournal.com
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Beyond Advertising 5 steps to holistically elevate your company profile As businesses grow, they face the question of how to begin investing in marketing to support their progress and build their brand. For many businesses, paid advertising is a good first answer. It offers the opportunity to reach a targeted audience quickly and with your preferred messaging. But advertising is just one piece of a strategy that will help your brand strengthen over time. Long-term brand awareness must be approached holistically. Thinking strategically and thoughtfully about how you’d like to be perceived will help to not only grow your business but zero in on the core values that will define your company. By creating a strategy around elevating your profile, you create a long-lasting identity for your company that will resonate with your target audience. By MARION CRAWFORD president and CEO, Crawford Strategies
AUDIENCE The essential first step is to identify and understand your audience. Who is your current audience? Are you reaching the audience you want, and if not, who do you want to reach? Try to be as specific as possible as you narrow this down. Once you’ve identified who you are trying to reach, you can start to think about how to engage.
KEY MESSAGES The second, and equally as crucial step, is to identify your key messages. You may find this difficult to narrow at first, but like the first step, the more specific you can be, the more you can differentiate yourself. What truly defines your company? What are the main ideas that you hope your customers, partners, and competitors associate with you? Once you’ve nailed down these key messages, it’s important that all members of the company internalize them and are prepared to share them when appropriate.
Being thoughtful about elevating your company profile can provide long-term benefits to your company. A truly successful strategy integrates paid, earned, shared, and owned media.
AWARDS After you define your key messages, you will want to seek out third-party endorsements of those same themes. It’s one thing for you to say your team is talented, but an award in your industry confirms this notion. If you want to communicate your success and rapid growth, apply for consideration in a fastest-growing-companies competition. If you are looking to elevate your profile within the geographic area, focus on honors that are specific to your community. Think about where your audience lives.
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT Choosing to sponsor or support events that align with your company and audiences serves many purposes. You not only earn goodwill in the community, but you are able to give back to the community that supports you and your team. By being thoughtful about which events or groups you get involved with, you can participate in causes that are aligned with your key messages. Community involvement is also a great way to build team camaraderie through group volunteering or attending community events. While you are giving back and developing your team, you are also making a statement to potential customers and partners that these things are important to you as a business. 18
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SHARE YOUR MESSAGE Finally, you want to share those carefully curated key messages where your target audience will see or hear them. When you narrow down your key audiences, you can potentially also identify where those audiences receive information or spend time. This can take many forms. For some, demonstrating industry expertise is best done by speaking at a conference or industry event. If you are seeking regional awareness, publishing in your local paper or serving as a subject matter expert will generate recognition among your local business community. And don’t forget the digital world – use this platform to develop a consistent social media or blog content strategy where you can share your key messages frequently. Being thoughtful about elevating your company profile can provide long-term benefits to your company. A truly successful strategy integrates paid, earned, shared, and owned media. Through the identification of your audience, key messages, and the best ways to connect one to the other, you will ensure that your brand voice is consistent as your company grows and succeeds.
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Incorporating the ‘Glowing Rectangles’ No business is exempt from a digital marketing strategy By CHRIS MANLEY CEO, Engenius
I’ve got a good friend who refers to digital devices as glowing rectangles. It’s an interesting way to think about it. Whether you’re holding a phone or tablet, staring at a laptop or a widescreen monitor, all of these are, in essence, glowing rectangles. Take a moment and think back to last year. How often did you find yourself in front of a glowing rectangle? How many hours of the day did you spend with it in the palm of your hand? Sitting at your desk with it in front of you? Americans spent an average of five hours per day on their mobile devices in 2017, according to Flurry. In fact, we spent, on average, an excess of 6.5 hours per day on computer devices as a whole, including mobile, according to Global Web Index. The Bureau of Labor and Statistics reports that Americans sleep for about 8 hours and 43 minutes per day on average. Doing some quick math, this would mean Americans spend nearly half of their waking hours looking at a glowing rectangle. In fact, there is a significant chance you’re reading this on a digital device. Imagine for a moment: You are a business leader and your goal is to get eyes on your brand – to increase awareness and demand for your products and services. Where do you look to do this? How do you accomplish your goal? There are numerous answers to these questions. The one thing that is certain: No matter your industry, product, or service, you cannot successfully promote your business without a strategy that incorporates glowing rectangles.
A digital marketing strategy is far more than just throwing up a website or following the latest trends you read in a business magazine. In fact, blindly following the “Go do this! It’ll change everything!” bus can lead to a lot of unmet expectations and wasted resources. The best digital strategies are built by asking a series of critically important questions:
1
WHO WILL BUY FROM YOU?
The easy answer is “everyone,” but that’s likely not the case. Think about your existing clients. What types of companies buy from you? Are there individual demographics, such as gender, age, level of education, income level? Common job titles? Frequent ZIP codes of buyers?
2
WHY DO CUSTOMERS BUY WHAT YOU’RE SELLING?
In what situation do your customers need your product or service? What precipitates the need for your product or service? Is there a certain trigger point where they can’t live without what you sell? Or is it an everyday need? Sure, you know that people need what you sell – but what actually motivates your customers to buy it?
3
WHY SHOULD CUSTOMERS BUY FROM YOU?
You think you’re awesome. You believe wholeheartedly that you are the best vendor. Most of us think that about ourselves. The problem is nobody else knows that. Think beyond buzzwords like “reliable,” “trustworthy,” and “high quality.” If your product or service isn’t those things, you should really do yourself a favor and either fix it or close shop.
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You have to ask yourself, “What really sets me apart?” What makes you unique versus your competitors? Be honest – it’s easy to trash your competition, but if others are buying from them, chances are they’re not as bad as you think. Or, the reasons you think a consumer shouldn’t work with your competition simply don’t matter to your buyers. These three questions are the foundation of any solid marketing strategy. When answered well, they tell you what you need to build that strategy. The first question gives you a profile of your buyer, which then helps you determine where you can reach them. For example, if your primary demographic is teenagers, you can quickly rule out LinkedIn as a primary way to get your brand in front of them. It’s easy to listen to the hype surrounding digital marketing — services like SEO, AdWords, retargeted ads, geofencing, social media, and iPhone apps – and want to try them all. Most likely, you’ll end up a lot poorer with little to show for it. Being strategic is critical; while it’s more intensive than going forward without a strategy, it typically has a far better payoff than throwing money against a wall, waiting for it to give you a return. The next time you glance over and see someone peering into a glowing rectangle, take a moment to ask yourself, “Do I have a well-thought-out strategy for reaching my buyers through those?” And if you think you don’t need to reach your buyers through those rectangles, just remember how much time we spend on them regularly, and how many opportunities that gives brands to influence our decision making.
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Effective, or Just Efficient? The key for business leaders is to focus on balancing both By TIM JOINER Founder and CEO, 3Fold
I’ve always been one of the busiest people I know. There are always more things on my to-do list than hours in the day, and it’s been that way since I was a teenager. I often pride myself on being “productive,” also known as being busy, overscheduled, and stressed. But I’ve noticed something: Some of the most successful people in the world are not always stressed. They don’t career from one activity to the next, never coming up for air. They project a sense of calm, of purpose, of direction and stability. They don’t fall prey to the myth of productivity, which says that you win by being the busiest, most “productive” person. Instead of focusing on doing things the right way, enormously successful people focus on doing the right things. They’re busy, for sure, but not chaotically so. And everything they do has purpose and intentionality. They’re strategic. So over the past few years, I’ve focused less on efficiency (though that is still important to me!) and more on effectiveness. And it’s made a huge difference in my life, both personally and professionally.
Triggering Change Indirectly, effectiveness led to a pretty significant transition in our organization, as we moved from being a website company to a marketing company and now to a growth agency. In just a few years, we’ve gone from providing custom websites to engaging with clients at a strategic level, tackling business challenges and seizing opportunities far beyond websites. Part of that transition was recognizing a weakness in our business model. Maybe you will recognize this situation: You spend months developing a major campaign with your marketing team (could be internal or vendor). You’re excited to launch it and finally solve your cash-flow problems, get a leg up on your competitor, and feel like you have a little buffer. And then, after all that time and money, you see little to no return on your investment. Is it because you have a bad campaign? Maybe. But for our clients, we could track visitors coming to the website or members joining, but they just weren’t buying. 20
UBJ | 1.19.2018
When those situations happen, the data tell us the problem isn’t in marketing. It’s usually operational. Our client needs to improve something outside of marketing — often pricing, customer service, or sales. Our work may have been efficient, but not effective — it didn’t produce the bottom-line growth we were seeking. As a marketing company, those ineffective campaigns left us in a bad place. We hadn’t been engaged to improve a sales department or offer operational consulting. We also couldn’t encourage our clients to undertake time-consuming and expensive campaigns that wouldn’t deliver bottom-line results. Now we focus on effectiveness first. We partner with clients to establish brand goals and discuss achieving those with a wide range of tools, of which marketing is only one.
Daily Effectiveness for Business Leaders What does effectiveness look like in your day-to-day life as a business leader? If you’re anything like me, your days are tightly scheduled with meetings practically atop each other from start to finish. Any breaks are filled with a task list that grows exponentially. That’s not to mention the unexpected demands from clients and employees. You’re so busy keeping your head above water that you can hardly remember what day it is, much less reflect or plan ahead. In my early days of leading 3Fold, I spent tremendous energy keeping my head above
water efficiently. I focused on systems for email, for task management, for running meetings better. I obsessively tracked the best routes around town so I could shave off a few minutes every day. But I never caught up. Now, I schedule time nearly every week to spend away from the office with a notepad. If I’m lucky, I get several hours at a time; sometimes it’s less. As a business owner, it is probably the most effective thing I do, but conversely it is probably the least efficient thing I do. Taking time away from that “must-do” task list on my desk is not easy. I feel selfish about it. I feel like I am letting people down. And I feel like it must be done. When I brainstorm away from the near constant buzz of a marketing firm, I make my company better. In those times, I recognize the destructive patterns in my business, the misalignments. In that inefficient time, I recognized the need to transition 3Fold beyond the marketing space. My return on investment (ROI) from being effective has been enormous. What could focusing on effectiveness do for your business? How much money could your company save if you focused on being effective? Doing the right things makes your work more efficient. To get to that efficiency, you have to be willing to give up your precious time. Dedicating time for doing the right things is radical, a stark departure from our overscheduled calendars. But it’s the best thing you’ll do this year.
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Ready, Set, Go Creating marketing fuel for your business development and sales engine By WILLIAM RUSSELL Managing partner, The Marketing Beacon
Your sales and business-development engine is a machine with great potential, but it requires proper marketing fuel to run well. An engine without fuel is just a big block of metal that does nothing. That engine is designed to perform at its highest level, which means not just any fuel will work in it. Filling your engine with the wrong type of fuel will result in mediocre performance. Instead, pump it with high-octane marketing fuel. This means having the right marketing strategy and tools in place to equip your sales team for success. How do you decide what type of marketing tools and activity are needed to fuel your engine? You’ll determine this by developing a strategy and purpose that defines your market, identifies potential buyers, and outlines how and why they buy. Once you know this, you can develop the appropriate marketing tools that connect your business with your buying market. The goal is to have well-positioned and strategically aligned marketing activity in place designed to generate business opportunities and create successes.
Create the connecting points
Consider the connecting points that are necessary for bridging the gap between your business and your market. The tools you develop will draw you closer to your market. For example, suppose your business struggles with market awareness or brand recognition. You may need to address a worn-out or dated logo and refine your brand message. Once you refresh your brand identity, a well-defined public relations plan can address the awareness and recognition issues. Such a plan would identify ways to gain media coverage in key markets that raise visibility for your company. Being recognized for accom-
plishments, company developments, and customer successes are a few ways to feed your public relations efforts, which provides great marketing fuel for your business development engine. Perhaps the need is in lead generation and prospecting. Campaigns that target a specific group can create opportunities for your sales team. Through e-blasts and cultivating activities that have clear call-to-action components, the fuel will continue to flow. You may also find that marketing tools are needed in the form of collateral. With digital and print-based materials, you can tell your business story in a way that connects well with your market. This allows you to showcase your expertise, convey the value of your solutions, and demonstrate results that existing clients have realized. Of course, there are several other important marketing communications tools and components that you will need to properly connect with your buyers. The list is long, but typically includes websites, e-blast campaigns, special events, newsletters, social media, digital marketing, etc. The point is to know what works for your market and use only the marketing fuel that makes sense for your sales engine. Don’t contaminate it with subgrade fuel that leads to engine sputtering or lackluster performance.
Fuel up for peak performance
While a strategy and plan are necessary, neither is beneficial if they’re sitting on idle and starving your sales engine. You have to keep your business development engine fueled and running at peak performance. Marketing activities have to be implemented logically so that all components are positioned to maximize opportunities for business development and sales. Monitoring and measuring your sales engine performance is obviously an important activity. It cannot be neglected. If you’re experi-
encing engine sputtering, then a tune-up will reveal where the unwanted sludge exists. You can then clean it out to remove underperforming marketing activities and replace them with refined marketing fuel. For example, your company may participate in trade shows, but the results from these events are less than stellar. You need to know why by asking your team: • Are the events the right ones for our market? • Are the attendees those who have buying power or can influence a buying decision? • Does our show presence engage visitors through strong messaging and visual appeal? • Is our follow-up strategy the right one, and are we converting opportunities? These are just a few questions you can ask. The answers will help you determine if this particular marketing activity is worthwhile or an underperformer that creates drag on your sales engine.
Engage the pit crew
Your business development and sales support team also plays an important role in keeping your engine finely tuned. This “pit crew” is normally involved in the daily marketing activity execution and is on the front lines of tactical implementation. The advantage here is that your team will be able to identify any problem areas right away while also recognizing what is working well. You’ll know things are going well when the expected results roll in. Keeping your sales and business-development engine running at peak performance requires the right kind of marketing fuel. With a well-designed strategy that includes the necessary marketing tools for your business, your sales engine will generate revenue opportunities for your company while outperforming the competition.
1.19.2018 | upstatebusinessjournal.com
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C O M PA N Y S P O T L I G H T – A D V E R T O R I A L
The strong relationships Bradshaw, Gordon, and Clinkscales’ partners develop with clients are what sets them apart from other CPA firms. They promise, “The reason our clients find us, choose us, and stay with us is that we don’t simply offer commodity services. We’re not just number-crunchers. We roll up our sleeves, stand beside you, and help you solve problems, big and small, so that you can grow.” Founded in 1980 to provide personal and small business tax and accounting services, this CPA firm has grown with the city of Greenville to become one of the largest accounting firms in the Upstate. The growth has created more opportunity and resources for the firm to expand its services to larger companies while still maintaining personal relationships with clients. The people at Bradshaw Gordon & Clinkscales (BGC) have seen just about everything. The Firm
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serves businesses in a wide range of industries from distribution to manufacturing, construction, retail and non-profits. Chances are if you name an industry, BGC is currently serving clients in that area. Also, BGC provides more than just tax and accounting services – the Firm helps clients with bookkeeping, payroll, buy-sell agreements, internal control implementation, business valuations, forecasts, financial statement audits, compilations and reviews.
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Peter Tiffany, a managing partner, says, “Our primary goals are to build personal relationships with our clients and to have a fantastic team at BGC to serve our clients and the community. I think we are succeeding on both goals.”
,
•BGC was founded in 1980 by Del Bradshaw. • BGC’s first client is still a client today. • BGC employs 39 people. • In addition to serving its clients, BGC’s people volunteer for various community organizations including: Meals on Wheels, Rotary of Greenville, the Chamber of Commerce, Metropolitan Arts Council, the Better Business Bureau, Compass of Carolina, Carolina Youth Symphony and the Greenville Jazz Collective.
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A New Necessity Digital marketing is critical to business success in 2018 (and beyond) By WARREN GRIFFITH President and CEO, FUEL Digital Marketing
Perhaps the one question I hear more than any other is, “Dad, what are we doing this weekend?” The second is: “Does my business really need digital marketing?” While the answer to the former question varies, the latter does not — it is always, “Yes, you definitely need digital marketing.” The reason for that is simple: Digital marketing has changed the way people consume information. Advancements in technology, particularly mobile, have enabled people to look for and access the information they seek in entirely different ways. They’re doing their own research and forming their own opinions about your company before you or your sales team is even aware. As a result, the sales cycle is no longer linear — it has shifted or flipped sideways or been turned upside-down altogether.
Prospects and leads are entering the funnel at different points, in different ways, for different reasons. The key to success today for every business — both B2Cs and B2Bs — is reaching these prospects, your potential customers, where they live.
Truth be told, few companies can afford to hire in-house marketing experts in every area. It’s much more feasible for a company to find an outside resource that has all the necessary pieces of the puzzle in place. Either way, it’s crucial that all of these pieces work together.
It takes a team to make digital marketing work
Digital marketing can help you untangle the knot
The days of hiring one person or “promoting” an underperforming sales associate to oversee your in-house marketing are over. When it comes to executing and sustaining a successful digital marketing strategy, no one person can do it all. There are too many silos of specialized knowledge that have to be leveraged and integrated in order to be effective. It takes a team that not only understands digital marketing, but can integrate both digital and traditional services to give you the precise mix of solutions to build awareness, drive new leads, establish loyalty, gain market share, increase sales, and so on. Success today depends on having a talent arsenal in a variety of areas.
Digital marketing, when done right, will put you on the fast track to success. It’s all about getting the right message to the right audience(s) in the right way. The following are three specific ways digital marketing can help your business.
Digital marketing helps you find “quality” leads All leads are not created equal. Just because you are driving hundreds of new “prospects” to your site does not mean they are qualified. Just because you have a zillion “Likes” on Facebook doesn’t mean these people are engaged or have any intention of doing business with you. It is imperative to target and track the right mix of prospects — only those NECESSITY continued on PAGE 24
A BLOOD DONOR IS THE FIRST FIRST RESPONDER 4.5 million Americans will a need blood transfusion each year. Someone needs blood every 2 seconds. Only 37% of the U.S. population is eligible to donate blood – less than 10% do annually. About 1 in 7 people entering a hospital need blood. If all blood donors gave 3 times a year, blood shortages would be a rare event. #idonateblood #isavelives #givelife
Sharing Life, Saving Lives
864.255.5000
TheBloodConnection.org 1.19.2018 | upstatebusinessjournal.com
23
FORWARD |
WHAT ’S NEXT FOR THE UPSTATE, AND HOW WE’LL GET THERE
THE MARKETING ISSUE ing is always getting more efficient and effective.
Brands can no longer stand on high shouting about how great they are. It’s no longer about them. It’s about the customer.
Why? Because customers, not brands, control the message..
NECESSITY continued from PAGE 23
who are identified as qualified prospects based on established criteria. And once you have attracted these potential customers, make sure they “stick” by 1) providing content to engage them, 2) designing strategic landing pages to get them to take a desired action, and 3) turning them into loyal customers for the long haul.
Digital marketing will help you engage your audience Digital marketing, especially when combined with effective traditional marketing, presents many options for engaging your target audi-
ence(s). That’s the good news. The bad news is that unless you have a high level of expertise in data analysis, content marketing, AdWords, and SEO/SEM, then it will be next to impossible to ensure that you are driving qualified prospects, converting more leads, or building long-term relationships. The first step is identifying your target segments and truly understanding their needs/wants/desires. Once that has been established, a sound digital strategy will enable you to implement and track specific initiatives that will allow you to see what’s working, what’s not, and how to adapt. Remember, successful digital market-
Digital marketing will help you sustain ongoing success Marketing today should be an ongoing dialog with customers. Customers don’t think in terms of “seasons” or “quarters” or startand-stop campaigns. Their lives are fluid and crammed with continual activity. They don’t want to be preached to or sold. When they go online to conduct a search, they are looking for help of some sort — whether it’s a product, service, or simply information. Brands can no longer stand on high shouting about how great they are. It’s no longer about them. It’s about the customer. Why? Because customers, not brands, control the message. They want dialog, two-way communication that they control. And they want real answers and solutions. To accomplish that you must be ever-present — you must understand their ongoing needs and provide them with ongoing solutions. Otherwise, they will find what they are looking for elsewhere.
50 5
Celebrating Celebrating
PLAY-BY-PLAY OF UPSTATE CAREERS
HIRED
ELECTED
EARNED
APPOINTED
| ON THE MOVE
HIRED
ERIC JENNINGS
THOMAS M. BATES JR.
ROBBIE TEMPLETON
TED GENTRY
BRITNEY BARNES
Has been hired as a transaction advisory associate at RealOp Investments. Jennings earned his bachelor’s degree from Furman University with a major in business administration. Jennings previously worked at the Harper Corporation and the Orr Group.
Has started his term as the chairman of the board of directors of State Property & Casualty Independent Agents Association. Bates is the vice president and COO of Herlong Bates Burnett Insurance. Bates has been in the insurance business for over 40 years.
Has earned the designation Certified Builders Insurance Agent (CBIA) through the company-sponsored educational division, Builders University. Templeton works for Builders Mutual Insurance Company, a partner of Countrybanc Insurance Services.
Has been named to the GLOW Lyric Theatre board of directors. Gentry is an attorney at Wyche Law Firm. Gentry has been actively involved in the Greenville arts community over the years, serving on the boards of the Peace Center, The Greenville Little Theatre, and the Carolina Youth Symphony. He is a graduate of Wake Forest University and Yale Law School.
Has been hired by the Greenville office of Civil & Environmental Consultants Inc. (CEC) as a project manager in the firm’s environmental engineering and sciences practice. Barnes has more than 17 years of experience of environmental consulting in the Carolinas, Georgia, and Tennessee.
VIP STEVE SELLERY Sports marketing veteran Steve Sellery has been named the executive director of the BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by SYNNEX Corporation. In a press release announcing the appointment, Bob Nitto, president of BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by SYNNEX Corporation, cited Sellery’s past experience as director of sports marketing at the Golf Channel and director of event marketing and partnerships at The Cliffs. “We are confident that Steve will utilize this wealth of experience and leadership to elevate the visibility of our tournament while further maximizing the financial support we are able to offer our charities,” he said. Since its inception in 2001, the BMW Charity Pro-Am presented by SYNNEX Corporation has donated more than $12.7 million to Upstate charities.
Ameris Bank has added Beth Troxell and John Bostin as mortgage bankers for the Greenville Ameris Bank location. Troxell has been a mortgage banker for over 10 years in the Upstate. Bostic has over 30 years in the mortgage industry. Gallivan White Boyd has announced the additions of attorneys Michael A. Johnson, Jr., Gregory Donaldson, and J. Collier Jones as associates. Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP has promoted Allison Crawford and Winston I. Marosek to of counsel. The two were previously associates. Crawford joined the firm in 2015, and Marosek joined the firm in 2011. DEVITA, a Greenville-based engineering firm, has named four new principals in its precast engineering and mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and structural divisions. They are Steven Grzybowski, Patrick Milne, Chris Rollins, and Don White. Hollingsworth Funds has announced the appointment of Richard (Sean) D. Dogan and Jo W. Hackl to the Hollingsworth Funds board of directors. Dogan is the senior pastor of the Long Branch Baptist Church, and Hackl is a corporate attorney with Wyche. Dogan is a graduate of Clemson University and Shaw School of Divinity in Raleigh, N.C. Hackl is a graduate of Milsaps College and earned a law degree from Yale Law School.
CONTRIBUTE: New hires, promotions, & award winners may be featured in On the Move. Send information and photos to onthemove@upstatebusinessjournal.com. 1.19.2018 | upstatebusinessjournal.com
25
#TRENDING / NEW TO THE STREET |
INFORMATION YOU WANT TO KNOW / NEW FACES OF BUSINESS
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1. G reenville’s The Flat restaurant expanding to downtown Spartanburg
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of The Future
INE MEDthIC e Upstate in
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5. S ix Upstate medical technologies
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UBJ | 1.19.2018
2. Dunkin’ Donuts has opened a new location at 3421 Highway 153 in Powdersville. For more information, visit dunkindonuts.com. CONTRIBUTE: Know of a business opening soon? Email information to aturner@communityjournals.com.
EVENTS YOU SHOULD HAVE ON YOUR CALENDAR
DATE
EVENT INFO
Tuesday & Saturday JEHM Wealth & Retirement’s Baby Boomer Retirement Course PRESIDENT/CEO
01/20 & 27
Mark B. Johnston mjohnston@communityjournals.com
| PLANNER
WHERE DO I GO?
HOW DO I GO?
Webster University 124 Verdae Blvd, Ste 400 1/20 and 1/27 (9-11:30 a.m.)
Cost: $49 For more info: www.simplifyyourretirement.com/greenville
Tuesday
01/23
Piedmont SCORE’s Business Planning Seminar
Greenville County Library Augusta Road Branch 100 Lydia St. 6–8 p.m.
Cost: Free For more info: www.bit.ly/2zFFZcP, 864-271-3638, info@piedmontscore.org
Wednesday
01/24
Greenville Chamber of Commerce’s Pulse Leadership Luncheon
Kroc Center 424 Westfield St. 11:30 a.m.–1 p.m.
Cost: Free for members, $25 for nonmembers For more info: www.bit.ly/2pLLv92, 864-239-3730, eaustin@greenvillechamber.org
Monday
Greenville Chamber of Commerce’s Gubernatorial Series Lunch feat. Kevin Bryant (R)
Greenville Mariott 1 Parkway E 11:30 a.m.–1 p.m.
Cost: $40 for investors, $80 general admissions For more info: kbusbee@greenvillechamber.org; www.bit.ly/2B1JPJ9; 864-239-3748
Thursday
02/01
Greenville Chamber of Commerce’s Annual Meeting
TD Convention Center 1 Exposition Drive 5–8 p.m.
Cost: $95 for investors, $150 noninvestors. For more info: www.bit.ly/2A8oPjL; 864-271-0718
MARKETING REPRESENTATIVES
Thursday
Urban League of the Upstate’s Annual Equal Opportunity Dinner Awards Gala
TD Convention Center 1 Exposition Drive 6 p.m.
Cost: $75 for individuals For more info: www.2018wmyeod.eventbrite.com
ART & PRODUCTION VISUAL DIRECTOR
Monday
Greenville Chamber of Commerce’s Gubernatorial Series Lunch feat. James Smith (D)
More information coming soon noon–1 p.m.
UBJ PUBLISHER
Ryan L. Johnston rjohnston@communityjournals.com
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT Susan Schwartzkopf susans@communityjournals.com
ASSOCIATE EDITOR
Emily Pietras epietras@communityjournals.com
ADMINISTRATIVE EDITOR
Heidi Coryell Williams hwilliams@communityjournals.com
COPY EDITOR Rebecca Strelow
01/29
STAFF WRITERS
Trevor Anderson, Cindy Landrum, Andrew Moore, Sara Pearce, Ariel Turner
MARKETING & ADVERTISING SALES MANAGER Emily Yepes
John Clark, Donna Johnston, Jonathan Maney, Leigh Miller, Heather Propp, Meredith Rice, Caroline Spivey, Liz Tew
Will Crooks
LAYOUT
02/08 02/12
Bo Leslie | Tammy Smith
VICE PRESIDENT OF OPERATIONS
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ADVERTISING DESIGN
FEBRUARY 9 COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE ISSUE
Holly Hardin
Kristy Adair | Michael Allen
CLIENT SERVICES
Anita Harley | Rosie Peck | Jane Rogers
MARCH 2 INTERNATIONAL ISSUE
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NEW HIRES, PROMOTIONS, AND AWARDS:
1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
UBJ milestone
UBJ milestone jackson Marketing Group’s 25 Years 1988 Jackson Dawson opens in Greenville at Downtown Airport
1988
Kristi Fortner
EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT
IN THIS WEEK’S ISSUE OF UBJ? WANT A COPY FOR YOUR LOBBY?
Got any thoughts? Care to contribute? Let us know at ideas@upstatebusinessjournal.com.
1997 Jackson Dawson launches motorsports Division 1993
1990 Jackson Dawson acquires therapon marketing Group and moves to Piedmont office Center on Villa.
>>
Chairman larry Jackson, Jackson marketing Group. Photos by Greg Beckner / Staff
Jackson Marketing Group celebrates 25 years By sherry Jackson | staff | sjackson@communityjournals.com
Solve. Serve. Grow. Those three words summarize Jackson Marketing Group’s guiding principles, and according to owner Larry Jackson, form the motivation that has kept the firm thriving for the past 25 years.
Jackson graduated from Bob Jones University with a degree in video and film production and started his 41-year career in the communications industry with the U.S. Army’s Public Information Office. He served during
Vietnam, where he said he was “luckily” stationed in the middle of Texas at Fort Hood. He left the service and went to work in public affairs and motorsports at Ford Motor Company in Detroit. After a stint at Bell and Howell, where he was responsible for managing Ford’s dealer marketing and training, the entrepreneurial bug hit and he co-founded Jackson-Dawson Marketing Communications, a company specializing in dealer training and product launches for the auto industry in 1980. In 1987, Jackson wanted to move back south and thought Greenville would be a good fit. An avid pilot, he
learned of an opportunity to purchase Cornerstone Aviation, a fixed base operation (FBO) that served as a service station for the Greenville Downtown Airport, providing fuel, maintenance and storage. In fact, when he started the Greenville office of what is now Jackson Marketing Group (JMG) in 1988, the offices were housed on the second floor in an airport hangar. “Clients would get distracted by the airplanes in the hangars and we’d have to corral them to get back upstairs to the meeting,” Jackson said. Jackson sold the FBO in 1993, but says it was a great way to get to know Greenville’s fathers and leaders
>>
with a majority of them utilizing the general aviation airport as a “corporate gateway to the city.” In 1997, Jackson and his son, Darrell, launched Jackson Motorsports Group. The new division was designed to sell race tires and go to racetracks to sell and mount the tires. Darrell Jackson now serves as president of the motorsports group and Larry Jackson has two other children and a son-in-law who work there. Jackson said all his children started at the bottom and “earned their way up.” Jackson kept the Jackson-Dawson branches in Detroit and others in Los Angeles and New York until he sold his portion of that partnership in 2009 as part of his estate planning. The company now operates a small office in Charlotte, but its main headquarters are in Greenville in a large office space off Woodruff Road, complete with a vision gallery that displays local artwork and an auditorium Jackson makes available for non-profit use. The Motorsports Group is housed in an additional 26,000 square feet building just down the street, and the agency is currently looking for another 20,000 square feet. Jackson said JMG has expanded into other verticals such as financial, healthcare, manufacturing and pro-bono work, but still has a strong focus on the auto industry and transportation. It’s
2003 motorsports Division acquires an additional 26,000 sq. ft. of warehouse space
1998
2009 Jackson Dawson changes name to Jackson marketing Group when larry sells his partnership in Detroit and lA 2003
1998 Jackson Dawson moves to task industrial Court
also one of the few marketing companies in South Carolina to handle all aspects of a project in-house, with four suites handling video production, copywriting, media and research and web design. Clients include heavyweights such as BMW, Bob Jones University, the Peace Center, Michelin and Sage Automotive. Recent projects have included an interactive mobile application for Milliken’s arboretum and 600-acre Spartanburg campus and a marketing campaign for the 2013 Big League World Series. “In my opinion, our greatest single achievement is the longevity of our client relationships,” said Darrell Jackson. “Our first client from back in 1988 is still a client today. I can count on one hand the number of clients who have gone elsewhere in the past decade.” Larry Jackson says his Christian faith and belief in service to others, coupled with business values rooted in solving clients’ problems, have kept
2009-2012 Jackson marketing Group named a top BtoB agency by BtoB magazine 4 years running
him going and growing his business over the years. He is passionate about giving back and outreach to non-profits. The company was recently awarded the Community Foundation Spirit Award. The company reaffirmed its commitment to serving the community last week by celebrating its 25th anniversary with a birthday party and a 25-hour Serve-A-Thon partnership with Hands on Greenville and Habitat for Humanity. JMG’s 103 full-time employees worked in shifts around the clock on October 22 and 23 to help construct a house for a deserving family. As Jackson inches towards retirement, he says he hasn’t quite figured out his succession plan yet, but sees the companies staying under the same umbrella. He wants to continue to strategically grow the business. “From the beginning, my father has taught me that this business is all about our people – both our clients and our associates,” said his son, Darrell. “We have created a focus and a culture that strives to solve problems, serve people and grow careers.” Darrell Jackson said he wants to “continue helping lead a culture where we solve, serve and grow. If we are successful, we will continue to grow towards our ultimate goal of becoming the leading integrated marketing communications brand in the Southeast.”
2011 Jackson marketing Group/Jackson motorsports Group employee base reaches 100 people
2008 2012 Jackson marketing Group recognized by Community Foundation with Creative spirit Award
pro-bono/non-proFit Clients American Red Cross of Western Carolinas Metropolitan Arts Council Artisphere Big League World Series The Wilds Advance SC South Carolina Charities, Inc. Aloft Hidden Treasure Christian School
CoMMUnitY inVolVeMent & boarD positions lArry JACkson (ChAirmAn): Bob Jones University Board chairman, The Wilds Christian Camp and Conference Center board member, Gospel Fellowship Association board member, Past Greenville Area Development Corporation board member, Past Chamber of Commerce Headquarters Recruiting Committee member, Past Greenville Tech Foundation board member David Jones (Vice President Client services, Chief marketing officer): Hands on Greenville board chairman mike Zeller (Vice President, Brand marketing): Artisphere Board, Metropolitan Arts Council Board, American Red Cross Board, Greenville Tech Foundation Board, South Carolina Chamber Board eric Jackson (Jackson motorsports Group sales specialist): Salvation Army Boys & Girls Club Advisory Board
November 1, 2013 Upstate bUsiness joUrnal 21
20 Upstate bUsiness joUrnal November 1, 2013
AS SEEN IN
NOVEMBER 1, 2013
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publishers of Copyright ©2017 BY COMMUNITY JOURNALS LLC. All rights reserved. Upstate Business Journal is published weekly by Community Journals LLC. 581 Perry Ave., Greenville, South Carolina, 29611. Upstate Business Journal is a free publication. Annual subscriptions (52 issues) can be purchased for $50. Postmaster: Send address changes to Upstate Business, P581 Perry Ave., Greenville, South Carolina, 29611. Printed in the USA.
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