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CSR training

How To Train My Employees Better?

By Business Planning, CSR, Training

We’ve all heard the old saying, “You only get one chance to make a good first impression.” Duffy Marketing has learned that in the business world, making a good first impression often comes down to training of all sorts.

  • Technical training for HVAC technicians and all other skilled trades employees.
  • Communication skills so those technicians can relate to clients who are often skeptical about the services you are offering.
  • CSR training for your customer service representatives who have to adapt to a wide variety of phone calls and provide excellent customer service.

The good thing is training methods come in all shapes and sizes. This allows every company, department, and team to choose the best training methods for their needs. Duffy offers many different types of training as part of our marketing services. Let’s take a closer look at some training methods available today.

Classroom-Based Sessions

These are usually led by a qualified facilitator supplied by Duffy. This learning takes place over one or more days. Classroom training means a group of employees can soak up large amounts of knowledge at the same time. However, this type of training can be disruptive because it affects work schedules, and some employees are difficult to motivate in a classroom setting.

Interactive Training

This can be a very effective training method because employees are actively involved in their own learning experience. This can take the form of simulations, real-world scenarios, role playing, quizzes, and games. The “students” are not only more engaged but more likely to retain what they’ve learned.

On-the-Job Training

This is one of the most effective training methods. It’s a little bit like being thrown in the deep end of the swimming pool. Employees are forced to learn quickly because they participate in real activities. In our experience this can be one of the most effective methods for CSR training. Just be aware that on-the-job training can be a little too stressful for some employees and it is also time-consuming.

Online Training

This has become a widely recognized method for effective employee training. Online training can include eLearning courses, webinars, and videos. The variety of training means employees can learn according to their individual style and needs. Online instruction also allows for training without disruption because employees can complete the process whenever they have time.

Let’s Train Together

Don’t forget where we started: You need your business and employees to make that good first impression. Duffy Marketing can help you explore all training methods and together determine which is best for you to reach that goal. Be sure to like and follow us on Facebook and Twitter to learn more about the many marketing services we offer.

March 23, 2021
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email marketing

The Difference Between Email Marketing & Direct Mail

By Digital Marketing, Direct Mail, Marketing Plan

“In this corner we have the old favorite, the long-time heavyweight champion of marketing…Direct Mail.”

“And in this corner, we have the upstart challenger, numbering billions and billions of sent messages every day…Email marketing.”

I hope you don’t mind this little bit of humor, but it’s a good way for Duffy Marketing to point out what is a typical mistake: Too many businesses treat their marketing campaigns as a prize fight pitting direct mail against email marketing. Instead, the goal should be to make them work together as part of an overall menu of marketing services.

Two Branches on the Same Tree

So why is it that using direct mail marketing in tandem with email marketing is so often overlooked? Duffy finds it’s because email marketing is often seen as the modern equivalent of direct mail. Many businesses end up thinking that using both channels in the same campaign is redundant. That’s wrong because you are dealing with two distinctly different mediums.

It’s About the Response Rate

Most marketing experts agree that using multiple channels will always out-perform a single channel campaign. Duffy Marketing has helped deliver many thousands of direct mail pieces. The response rate is virtually always higher when it’s combined with email. 

Always Factor in ROI

When considered in a vacuum the response rate for direct mail is much higher than for email marketing, but those raw numbers don’t tell the whole story. A mail campaign is much more expensive so the return on investment (ROI) is often higher for email marketing. That’s why it makes sense to have the campaigns complement each other. 

Real-World Example

Let’s say the Widget company sends out a piece of direct mail that arrives on Monday. Some number of recipients will read it immediately, and maybe act immediately. Others will put it aside with the intention of reading it later. Of that number, some will indeed read the mailer a day or two later, but others will forget about it entirely. That doesn’t mean they are not interested in Widgets; it just means they forgot about it. So, why not hit those same people with an email on Wednesday or Thursday reminding them about the direct mail offer? You can make it even more convenient by inserting a link to a landing page devoted to the special Widget offer.

Demographics Are Also a Factor

You need to know who’s on the receiving end of your offer. Research shows older generations are more in tune with direct mail because they grew up with it. It’s likely younger people will be in that group that delays reading or forgets about the piece of mail they received Monday. But they are extremely comfortable with that email reminder a few days later.

Learn More About Marketing Synergy

Duffy Marketing is here to help you design multi-channel marketing campaigns for your business. Why limit yourself to one or the other when direct mail and email marketing can work together so well? Be sure to like and follow us on Facebook and Twitter to learn more about the many marketing services we offer.

March 19, 2021
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social media marketing

Should I Outsource My Social Media Marketing?

By blog, Digital Marketing, Marketing Plan, Social Media

It’s pretty much a given that every business needs to have a social media marketing presence. If you don’t, you are missing out on a huge resource. Unfortunately, what Duffy Marketing often finds is a social media marketing campaign that has little focus and often receives little attention in the midst of day-to-day business demands.

Consider Hiring the Pros

In those situations, the best choice may be to outsource your social media marketing. It’s one of the many marketing services Duffy specializes in. In order to make a good decision, start by answering some questions:

How much time can I devote to managing social media?

For most business owners/managers the simple answer is not enough. Social media is about more than scheduling posts. It also includes:

  • Tracking your brand mentions
  • Monitoring social conversations
  • Trying new ways to grow your followers
  • Responding immediately to any inquiries.

And remember, all of this needs to happen 24/7. You can’t just set aside one or two hours a week. It requires constant attention spread over the entire week.

Can you be a social butterfly?

There is an art to being “social” on social media. It takes energy and creativity. Be honest with yourself, and if you don’t have those traits then outsource your social media marketing content. You might also consider using a professional company to compliment your content. This combined effort can make a social strategy come to life and be successful. 

Is your brand established?

Your social media voice must support and complement what your brand is. This sounds easy but it’s not. By outsourcing to a professional you can work together to find:

  • What words to use
  • What words to avoid
  • When to be funny or sarcastic
  • When to be serious
  • Calls to action

Do I already have, or do I need content?

If there is no clear answer to this question you may want to consider outsourcing your social media content. Content can include:

  • The backstory of your business
  • How and why you operate it
  • Determining the ideal customer

Let’s “Up” Your Social Media Game

Working with Duffy Marketing we can help you answer those questions and many more. It will help you determine if adding a resource or completely outsourcing your social media marketing is the best choice for you. Be sure to like and follow us on Facebook and Twitter to learn more about the many marketing services we offer.

March 9, 2021
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market research

Is Market Research Useful For A Small Business?

By blog, Business Planning, Database Management, Marketing Plan

Our belief at Duffy Marketing is that no business is too small to enjoy the benefits of market research as part of business planning. Research reveals information about branding, product differentiation, pricing levels, and much more. It’s why research is just a big part of the marketing services offered by Duffy.

An Overview

Let’s look at some types of marketing research that can benefit you and/or the company you own or manage:

  • A specific industry—No matter what type of business you own and operate, it is just a small part of the related industry. To be an effective business owner you need to be aware of trends and patterns affecting the entire industry.
  • Your specific market—A business operates in a specific market. It can be defined as a city, county, or region. This type of research explores things like growth forecasts and the number of active competitors.
  • Products or services—You offer products and services that may focus on a specific brand name. Research is needed to estimate demand and determine if sales can be increased by changing the appearance and/or cost of a product.
  • Customers—Your business needs to know its customers. Research can determine buying power and help understand past, present, and future buying decisions.

The Payoff

Information gathered during the market research helps develop and fine-tune your business planning and help answer many questions including:

  • How will a price change affect demand in the market?
  • What kind of advertising appeals to potential customers?
  • Which media choices are most cost-effective?

Finding the answers to these questions can save your business thousands of dollars. No longer will a new advertising campaign be just a “stab in the dark” because you will know precisely what will work, and what won’t.

Explore Your Options 

Call Duffy Marketing to learn more about the market research we offer as part of our marketing services. See how that research can help you decide when it’s time to expand, consolidate or diversify the business. Be sure to like and follow us on Facebook and Twitter to see our track record of working with clients across the country.

March 5, 2021
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corporate gifting

What Are The Best Ideas For Corporate Gifting?

By blog, Business Planning, Marketing Plan, Material Design

Who doesn’t like receiving a gift? It’s why Duffy Marketing is a believer in corporate gifting as part of the marketing plan for your business. These promotional gifts will promote your brand for many weeks, and in some cases many years after they are received. 

The Numbers Tell a Story

Recent market research shows numbers that back up the value of promotional gifts:

  • 80% of consumers have one or more promotional products in the home.
  • In a majority of cases (60%) the product is kept for up to two years.
  • A large majority (85%) of people do business with the company responsible for the corporate gifting.
  • Nearly nine out of 10 consumers remember the advertiser’s name even two years after receiving a promotional gift.

Choose Your Promotional Products Carefully

Duffy Marketing understands businesses need to do a cost/benefit analysis for any promotional campaign, but don’t cut corners by giving out an inferior product. Saving a few pennies can backfire if your clients end up thinking you’re cheap. Any product you give away should do the job it’s intended for.

Depend on Duffy

As part of its marketing services, Duffy Marketing can provide a wide range of promotional gifts with prices to fit every budget. Feel free to browse our inventory to see the dozens of available choices. Any of these products can be customized with your name, logo, or mascot photo to clearly identify your brand. In fact, a good way to think about corporate gifting is as a different and better form of business card. The difference is you don’t have to deliver a promotional product in person. The giveaways should have your contact information just as business cards do, but if you’ve chosen the right product the consumers will use it daily. Most business cards end up stuffed in a drawer and never looked at again.

Let’s Make a Plan Today

Are you ready to learn about the ins and outs of promotional gifts and why they should be a part of your marketing strategy? Corporate gifting is just one small part of the marketing services offered by Duffy Marketing. Be sure to like and follow us on Facebook and Twitter to learn more.

February 23, 2021
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search engine marketing

What Is The Relationship Between SEO And SEM?

By blog, Digital Marketing, Marketing Plan, Search Engine Marketing

In this rapidly changing world of digital marketing, the acronyms can get a little confusing. Case in point: SEO vs SEM. Translated it means Search Engine Optimization vs Search Engine Marketing. 

So, What’s the Difference?

One way to answer the question is to use the old cliche: They are two sides of the same coin. There are many similarities, but each relates to different aspects of marketing. Marketing professionals sometimes use the two terms to describe or reference similar activities which leads to confusion. Let’s take a look at how Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Search Engine Marketing (SEM) work together in today’s digital marketing campaigns.

Internet Searches

It’s only a slight exaggeration to say the world revolves around internet search engines. The research numbers are startling:

  • Google receives 79% of search traffic globally
  • Others like Yahoo, Bing, and Baidu get the leftovers
  • There are more than 66,000 Google searches every second

Those numbers are daunting for any given business trying to increase its internet presence and shows why SEO is such a vital part of digital marketing.

What SEO Means

When a person starts an internet search, the search engines “crawl” content on thousands of sites. Search algorithms assess several factors such as keywords, tags, and link titles. It’s vital to optimize your search results so your website ranks highly. Anyone can learn SEO basics but, for the most part, it’s a good idea to hire an expert like Duffy Marketing. 

How is SEM Different?

Search Engine Marketing is different in that it includes various types of paid search advertising. The best example is those ads you see at the top of the page when you do a Google search. When it’s done well, SEM will get you to the top of the rankings and because of that is great for brand recognition. Since it has to do with paid advertising, it’s easy to understand your ROI as you can monitor the traffic. Just be aware Search Engine Marketing requires extra knowledge and specialized marketing tools because of how competitive the marketplace has become today. Duffy Marketing’s team is Google Ads Certified and has significant expertise to handle these campaigns and make them worth your while. Our PPC campaigns regularly boast lower than industry standards costs. 

So, What’s the Bottom Line?

SEO and SEM can be complementary, but only if your website is SEO friendly first. In other words, Search Engine Optimization is the foundation on which good Search Engine Marketing is built. When you have harmony between the two, you have more of a chance of showing up at the top of paid searches.

Ready, Willing, and Able to Help You

Want to learn more about SEO and SEM for your business? Call Duffy Marketing or click here to request a meeting and discover how these valuable tools can be a part of your marketing strategy. We have helped our customers improve click-through rates, cost per click, and cost per conversion stats which far exceed industry average. We’d love to help your business achieve the same growth. Be sure to like and follow us on Facebook and Twitter to learn more about the marketing services we offer.

February 19, 2021
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Training

Why Is Internal Training Important In The Workplace?

By Business Planning, CSR, Training

How does your business treat ongoing training for employees? Is it something employees smile and wink about because they know it’s really just lip service on the part of their bosses? Or is it viewed as an investment in the future of the organization and the people who work there? Duffy Marketing has a long history of providing training for the entire company including CSR, technicians, sales teams for our clients as part of the marketing services we provide.

If the most important asset of your company, your people, are going in different directions with different messages, you can never achieve the greatest success possible. 

Let’s Count the Ways

When internal training is done correctly, there are many benefits for the company and for the employees:

  • Have a purpose for what you do every day
  • Stay up to date with consumer and industry changes
  • Build relationships with other employees
  • More productive employees
  • Establish organizational direction and expectations

Now for a closer look at how all these things can be accomplished.

Increase Retention

Every business owner knows hiring new employees isn’t like buying a Slurpee at the 7-Eleven. HR managers say it can often cost several thousand dollars when you add up separation costs, temporary overtime, recruiting costs, and onboarding. Training helps retain employees by allowing them to meet and ultimately exceed job expectations. When companies demonstrate that employee development is a priority, employees are more likely to commit long-term.

Everyone Benefits

The benefits go way beyond teaching new skills. CSR training is vital to produce high performing teams. This critical role is your “front door”. Increasing even a small percentage of success here can add thousands of dollars more to the bottom line without spending additional marketing funds. This is a WIN WIN!  

Important topics include:

  • Communication
  • Conflict resolution
  • Problem solving

Internal training helps employees bond and get to know one another. When they have a workplace buddy, suddenly those daily challenges aren’t so daunting. And when you give them the tools they need to have success in this sometimes difficult position, it can make all the difference in the world for your employee retention levels. Happy and successful people will resonate throughout your company increasing the culture internally.   

Efficiency & Productivity

Training is the ideal opportunity to learn new skills and stay current on the latest trends in the industry. Smart employers schedule training on a regular basis to refresh skills and practice new ones. When training is a regular part of the work process AND addresses needed skills and perceived weaknesses, productivity can be significantly increased.

Intellectual Stimulation

No, we’re not trying to compare ongoing training to a college classroom, but it can provide a fertile atmosphere to create a think tank for employees. When employers use training to solicit ideas and concerns from workers, it can provide new solutions for ongoing problems.

Waiting For Your Call

Let’s talk about the CSR training Duffy Marketing can provide for your business. Call now to learn more about keeping your employees happy, productive, and sharing in the process of making your business successful. Be sure to like and follow us on Facebook and Twitter to learn more about the marketing services we offer.

February 9, 2021
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social media

Social Media and Direct Mail: A Powerful Combination

By Digital Marketing, Direct Mail, DMI

Today’s consumers interact with a variety of media every day. So, it only makes sense to reach out to them across multiple channels. Duffy Marketing knows direct mail and social media can work together in a lot of ways. For example, you can:

  • Use social media to tease and/or promote an upcoming direct mail offer.
  • Prominent placement of social media icons on direct mail pieces to encourage sharing.
  • Make sure to post direct mail campaigns directly to social media pages.
  • Utilize the Duffy Mail Integration DMI product which takes your direct mail list and identifies the social accounts and display your ads directly to them and their friends. 

Let’s look at some specific ways to make your marketing services even more effective.

Combine Data Bases

Are you aware social sites like Facebook allow you to upload an existing physical mail list to find ideal matches? Matching information from a mailing list to social media, users can create more relevant ads custom designed for those prospects. Ask Duffy Marketing about Facebook’s Direct Response Advertising platform. You can discover how this works and how to choose the right type of ads to meet your goals.

It’s a Two-Way Street

The data sharing can go both ways. If your direct mail information can enhance your social media outreach, social data can also be used to improve a direct mail database. Whenever someone clicks on your social ads, he or she is expressing interest in your product. Your social ads can be set up to click through to a dedicated landing page including a field for entering a mailing address. Once you have their physical address, you can send direct mail with the same look and feel as your social media ads. Utilizing the DMI product takes care of this automatically with your direct mail campaign.

Valuable Insights

If you don’t want to go that far, you can still use the social media analytics you capture to improve your marketing services. Sites like Facebook let you drill down into basic demographics—education level, hobbies, buying habits and more—allowing you to create messaging and offers that are more relevant.

Marketing Services for You

Some of these concepts can get pretty complicated to manage, but you can depend on Duffy Marketing to help you create a campaign that coordinates your efforts in social media and direct mail marketing. Be sure to like and follow us on Facebook and Twitter to learn more about our track record of successful marketing for companies around the country.

February 5, 2021
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