RHetoric

The books are closed on 2009, and the various account teams at RH Strategic have been busy working with clients on their 2010 PR and marketing plans.  Here are some tactics we are recommending to clients and anyone else who wants to compete more aggressively for business in the healthcare, government, and technology markets this year.

This checklist is not a carbon copy of last year's recommendations.  That is because the landscape has been altered by current events (recession, stimulus spending) and the new ways prospects are gathering information (Twitter).

With that, here is the short list:

Move your best customers to the front.  In 2010, buyers will be cautious and looking for evidence that your solution is low risk - particularly in the government and healthcare markets but anywhere the recession has had a deep impact. Document your customers' best successes and market them through online case studies, speaker placements, press coverage, and awards. Sometimes a single case study becomes industry lore that generates returns for years!

Catch up with Twitter.  If you are still a cynic, it's really time to take another look.  Chances are good to excellent that some of your prospects are being heavily influenced by just a few people on Twitter.  You should be one of them - however avoid the bland corporate tweets that read like press releases. Focus on issues and ideas.  If you're already tweeting, focus on tagging to build followers.  Healthcare is surprisingly Twitter-friendly.

Update your web site with an inexpensive video or two.  The days of the $50,000, 15-minute corporate video are long, long gone.  The cost of web-quality video capture and editing has come way down.  Like down to a few thousand bucks.  And it turns out web visitors are much more likely to watch a 30-second video than they are to read web copy for 30 seconds.  Get a product developer on camera, a customer service rep, or your best customer.

Tie your messaging into what's happening in D.C. Let's face it: D.C. is the private sector's new partner in capitalism.  Buyers are looking for clues that you are in tune with directives coming from the top.  Creating jobs, fostering transparency, keeping Americans safe, improving patient safety - the list goes on.  Work it into your collateral, web site, and talking points.

Spruce up your proposals.  It will be important to show that you not only survived 2009, but you are leaping ahead in 2010.  A fresh, professional look and updated messaging communicates confidence and permanence.

Keep your web site current.  A regular drumbeat of press releases announcing customer wins, events you will be attending, and blog posts all show your company is current, relevant, and has momentum.  No one wants to call on a company whose last press release was April of 2008.  Regular content updates also do wonders for your search engine rankings.

And of course I would be remiss if I didn’t note that RH Strategic is happy to help with these or any of your communications needs in 2010.  All you need to do is drop me an e-mail at john (at) rhstrategic (dot) com, reference this blog post, and leave me an e-mail or phone number.  In most situations we would have a conversation about your needs and review some initial ideas from our team.  Then we will quickly craft a proposal that includes pricing for you to consider.  It’s pretty simple!

All the best for 2010.

If you do business with the government, and 2009 was decent for your business, get ready for a blockbuster 2010.  Because of the delayed effect of the stimulus, 2010 will introduce us to the businesses that will lead the government market into the coming decade.

That is because most of the stimulus money has not even found its way through the labyrinth of red tape that exists between the passage of the Recovery Act early this year, and the actual awarding of contracts to prime and subcontractors in cities and towns across America.

We know this because our client, Onvia, is tracking this stuff closely - more closely than even the federal government itself.  When the administration proclaimed the stimulus had created or saved hundreds of thousands of jobs already, the analysts at Onvia were wondering how that could be possible given that much of the stimulus had not left Washington - and the money that had was still a long way from reaching the contractors that actually crate or save the jobs.

Democrats and Republicans in Congress have really gone after the administration on this point.  It makes for tantalizing news stories - but the good news for businesses in the government space is that 2010 is where it’s at.

So now is the time to get ready.  Get your competitive messaging down, make your brand more relevant to the times, enhance your web site with simple video and social media tools, get your customer testimonials in place, start talking to reporters and bloggers about your offering, and equip your salesforce with good research tools.

If you wait until January or February you will be playing catch-up in a furiously competitive - and potentially lucrative - market.

The first debates revealed a huge gulf between the candidates’ messaging styles. While McCain is deeply savvy on policy nuances and could entertain any audience of policy wonks for hours, Obama cuts through the white noise and reaches right to the individual voter’s pocketbook. Look at each candidate’s response to the moderator’s question about what they would do to lead the country out of the financial crisis:

McCain: “Well, the first thing we have to do is get spending under control in Washington. It’s completely out of control. It’s gone — we have now presided over the largest increase in the size of government since the Great Society.”

Obama: “What I’ve called for is a tax cut for 95 percent of working families, 95 percent. And that means that the ordinary American out there who’s collecting a paycheck every day, they’ve got a little extra money to be able to buy a computer for their kid, to fill up on this gas that is killing them.”

Neither candidate really answered the question. But while McCain delivered a compelling talking point, Obama dropped in on your family, helped you help your kid, and even went with you to the gas station. In doing so, Obama showed an absolute mastery of what I believe to be one of the golden rules of public relations: explain everything in the context of the individual.

The strongest messages are always those that speak directly to one’s sense of economic security, physical safety, and physical health. Take any subject and boil it down to this basic level, and your message will be heard.

While many experienced politicians have this wisdom programmed into their DNA, it is not so intuitive for business executives, particularly those who are not selling directly to consumers. But the rule applies in business just as in politics.

Try selling a new software application to a hospital CEO, and you will be far more successful if you can speak to the dramatic improvements in patient safety, enabled by your software, than if you simply highlight the features and benefits of the application. Even though a patient will never buy your software, your company’s appreciation for their safety will win the day.

When you are segmenting audiences for your own corporate messaging, don’t leave out the consumer at the end of the supply chain — even if they are not the ones writing the check.