Important People on Your Marketing Team

As I was walking my dog yesterday morning, an attractively decorated semitrailer rolled past us. On the side of the trailer, three life-sized pictures were framed in a sky-blue background. Each picture was an attention-getting scene of rich, wood windows or doors. "Kolbe Windows and Doors" was written next to these scenes. The vibrancy of the scenes kept my eyes riveted on the truck as it rolled past, leading me to fully absorb the message it conveyed. I instantly received a strong, positive impression about Kolbe and its products. Whoever applied those scenes to that trailer did a beautiful job, and, in the process, accomplished Kolbe's goal of communicating its message via the trailer.

Thinking about this trailer, my mind skipped back to seeing three vehicles in the Best Buy parking lot, all of which had the Geek Squad logo displayed in a prominent position. I remembered noticing the vehicles. Of course, the marketer in me remarked how Geek Squad is an excellent name. In addition to getting your attention, the name accurately gives you the intended communication. However, the consumer in me noticed the logo because it was clear and easy-to-read. These factors contributed to the logo’s standing out, getting my attention, and reinforcing the Geek Squad image in my mind.

While my dog and I walked back to the house, I mulled over the importance of those who apply these scenes and logos. Although I suspect many of us do not give this importance much thought, the clarity of these applications on a vehicle and their design determine the effectiveness of the communication. If the work is sloppy rather than being crisp, the communication is interrupted. In fact, the communication even may be negative rather than positive. We all expect this work to be done well, but do we truly appreciate its impact?

That applies to screen printing and embroidering on clothing as well.

I am fortunate to work with a screen printing and embroider company, Paw Prints, which does excellent work and goes the extra mile for clients. Recently, I asked the owner, Sue, to embroider shirts with my Monarch Tree Publishing logo on them. I told her there was no rush. Today, she unexpectedly handed me two shirts with the logo embroidered. "You'll notice that I had to adjust the font for Monarch Tree," she said. "Your original was too thin to embroider. So I played around with it and found a similar font that does embroider well. Let me know what you think of these."

I was surprised and impressed. The embroidery is attractive and beautiful. Just as with the Kolbe trailer, the embroidery on the shirts gets attention and communicates the message. The person who created and applied the scenes to that trailer, the person who designed and applied the Geek Squad logo, and Sue all have excellence in common.

With that in mind, I called Sue to express my appreciation for her work. She is an important person on my marketing team. Her initiative to fix the font before it is a problem and her focus on excellence make my marketing effective. I know that we all are very busy, and noticing the work of these important people sometimes slips by us. Has this slipped by you? Have you shown your appreciation to these important people on your marketing team lately?

If not, do it today.