February 16th, 2012
NewBlue is at its best when working on behalf of clients who promote individual, social and environmental change.
Our clients often come from the following sectors:
- business coaching, training, psychotherapy and counselling
- family therapy and mediation
- health, education and the arts
- environmental services
- political/charitable campaigning
If you’re in one of these fields, you’re passionate about changing things for the better. We’re equally passionate about helping businesses and organisations transform their identities, improve their communications (online & print) and enhance their marketing skills.
About NewBlue: We provide marketing strategy, branding and creative design for print & the web.
Categories: Uncategorized
December 14th, 2011
Marketing can appear an uncomfortable area for practitioners working in the caring professions. But counsellors can attract greater client numbers by using marketing techniques, if as with any other small business owner; they base their marketing approach on their values.
As with all individuals who work for themselves, counsellors should:
1. Perfect their service by reflecting on the current value of their ‘product’ and ask themselves the question - am I continuing to appeal to my prospective clients? Carrying out a simple SWOT(Strengths/Weaknesses/Opportunities/Threats) analysis will help, as well as considering the price and how the service is delivered (location, etc)
Simply focussing on a niche, without perfecting the ‘product’ will not be sustainable in the long run, as the ‘product’ will very possibly not satisfy the needs of this niche.
Once the above preparatory work is complete, counsellors and psychotherapists should;
3. Work out the best way they are to connect with prospective clients. For example, are they to base their marketing approach on networking and personal recommendation, or is their approach simply to be based on promotional media, such as a website or on flyers and brochures
4. Consider how they are to build a profitable, sustainable business
Experienced counsellors with full Practices tell me that they tend to use a balanced marketing approach that includes a mix of networking, recommendation and promotional tools. With regard to promotional tools, most say, a website that is highly ranked in Google’s organic searches is key, followed by entries on directory sites – as long as these are also well positioned on Google. Printed material, such as leaflets come next.
1. It is more beneficial to have a website that is well positioned for Google searches, than having an expensively designed site. It is therefore important to check that your website developer is skilled in using the latest coding techniques – these are generally more Google friendly. My advice is to also ask if your chosen web company sub-contracts work overseas. Sites built overseas can look OK, but they are invariably based on out of date development methods.
2. Directory entries should be well written and client focused, prose should not based on the counsellor but on the counsellor’s clients.
3. Leaflets should be simple and easy to read. Contact details should be prominent. Don’t be afraid to be different.
Finally, be bold and take the required action towards a full, sustainable practice.
To find out about my marketing, print and online services, please call 01273 691 589. Alternatively you can email enquiries@newbluemarketing.co.uk
About NewBlue: We provide marketing strategy, branding and creative design for print & the web. We believe that people’s lives would improve if there was greater individual, social and environmental change. We are therefore at our best when working on behalf of businesses and organisations that promote positive change.
Categories: Uncategorized
November 7th, 2011
The Counselling Directory was set up to connect visitors with a wealth of information and the ability to search for the most suitable counsellor or psychotherapist. The directory only list counsellors and psychotherapists who are registered with a recognised professional body or those who have sent them copies of their qualifications and insurance cover.
The Counselling Directory have an obvious empathy for counsellors and the counselling & psychotherapy profession. The directory invests heavily in furthering their listings in both Google’s organic searches and in the paid Google Adwords.
So, my advice is as a precursor to getting your own website up the search engines it is definitely worth paying for a listing. It is also worth considering investing in one of the top three places on the directory. For example it is around £60-£80 for a number one place for a particular city search, such as Brighton.
If you need assistance, I can help you to write your profile. I can also provide you with the support to enable you to gain the optimum benefit for your Counselling Directory entry.
Categories: Uncategorized
October 17th, 2011
1. Get to know your Core Values or the Values of your business/organisation
To develop an effective identity you will need to understand what it is that motivates and drives you. A Value free identity is simply a hollow collection of words, colours and designs. Discovering your Values is the first step that a genuine marketing or creative design agency will take when developing your brand.
2. Distinguish your unique qualities
While developing your brand identity, explore and highlight specific qualities that are unique to your product or service. What is it that will help you to stand out from the crowd.
3. Identify who are your customers
Your identity must reflect the buying motivations of your clients. An identity that genuinely speaks to your customers will be more successful than one that is created blind.
4. Continually remind your customers
Successful branding strategy requires you to create a lasting impression of your company amongst potential customers. Repeated use and display of the brand name will remind people of your company. Over time it will kindle a desire amongst prospective clients to buy your services.
5. Professional approach
Your brand needs to maintain a corporate professionalism. Professionalism entails quality. Quality is the key to the majority of consumer buying decisions.
Promoting your Brand Identity. Once developed, your Brand Identity can be rolled out across your internal and external communications. A professional logo, business stationery & business cards, brochures and most importantly your website. All should reflect your distinct identity, or the identity of your company.
About NewBlue: We provide marketing and creative design for print & the web. We believe that people’s lives would improve if there was greater individual, social and environmental change. We are therefore at our best when working on behalf of businesses and organisations that promote positive change.
Categories: Uncategorized
October 10th, 2011
Contents for this article
- Conduct a market audit
- Produce a mission statement for your business
- Analyse your current marketing position
- Formulate a marketing overview
- Write a SWOT analysis
- Use your knowledge and experience to make assumptions
- Develop clear objectives
- Broadly state how these objectives will be achieved
- Consider your human and financial resource requirements
- Decide how you will track progress and measure success
- Write an introductory paragraph and executive summary
1. Background research: the market audit
Before you write your plan, you may not have a clear idea of where your business sits
in your specific market place. A market audit will enable you to identify the social and
economic trends that could affect your business in the future. It will also provide you
with an understanding of your likely clients and competitors.
The audit will not appear in the final document, but the data gathered will be used throughout its development.
2. Mission statement
Using no more than three or four sentences, clearly explain the role of your business. Your mission statement should be inspirational, bold and single-minded – this will act as an ongoing reference point when making strategic decisions about your business.
3. You and your marketing
Using the information attained from your market audit, you should now have a clear understanding of the current position of your business, in terms of marketing activity.
It is now time to examine the Marketing Mix – the so called 4 P’s – for your business:
Product: How desirable is your service to your prospective clients. To retain
competitiveness, it is usually desirable to differentiate your product from your competitors.
Price: The importance of setting the ‘right’ prices for your service should not be under estimated.
Place: What is the optimum way to deliver your service? Should services be delivered online, face to face or via the telephone? Do clients come to you, or do you need to go where the client congregates.
Promotion: What are the best ways to promote your service? A certain degree of crossover will take place, but usually promotion includes four distinct elements: advertising, public relations, personal selling or networking and general selling.
4. Marketing overview
Use the information from your market audit to summarise where you see your key markets and what you expect to be the key changes in these markets. This will help you to identify the major products and markets that are likely to bring you the best return on your investment.
5. SWOT Analysis
Again using data from the market audit, write a concise list of the internal strengths and weaknesses of your business together with the opportunities and threats you face from external forces.
(The strengths and weaknesses are in your control, whereas you cannot influence-but should be mindful of – the opportunities and threats)
6. Assumptions
Marketing is not an exact science; therefore a certain amount of your planning will involve your intuition. Here include your personal assumptions.
7. Objectives
Your objectives are quantitative statements of what you want to achieve, such as the numbers of additional clients required or simply, increased sales or market share.
8. Strategy
This is where you broadly define how you will achieve your objectives. You should use your findings from your SWOT Analysis to help you choose the market segments in which you will compete, and help you to determine how to position your business against the competition.
9. Resource allocation
In order to keep your plans realistic, it is important that you consider their overall financial impact. For example, do your plans require recruiting staff and can you afford to do this.
10. Measurement and control
As with all planning, you will need to monitor your activities against your objectives on a regular basis. That way, if things are not going to plan, you can put things back on track before too much damage is done. If goals are not achieved by their stipulated timescale you should question if, indeed, your objectives were actually achievable.
Executive Summary
Once you have pulled together all the required sections of the marketing plan, write an introductory paragraph which puts the plan in a business context, and an executive summary presenting your plan in easily-digestible bullet points.
Categories: Uncategorized
October 6th, 2011
Some words from Steve Jobs, who sadly passed away today.
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”
Taken from the commencement address delivered by Steve Jobs on June 12th, 2005, at Stanford University.
Categories: Uncategorized
September 27th, 2011
NewBlue client, LearnButeyko UK is exhibiting at the Mind, Body Soul exhibition. The exhibition takes place at Olympia in London from 30 September to the 2 October.
In preparation for the exhibition, NewBlue created a new design identity for LearnButeyko. The identity was specifically devised to create an established and reassuring impression.
As part of the project we provided our client with a new logo and a series of large format posters, which illustrate the work of LearnButeyko.
About NewBlue: We provide marketing and creative design for print & the web. We believe that people’s lives would improve if there was greater individual, social and environmental change. We are therefore at our best when working on behalf of businesses and organisations that promote positive change.
Categories: Uncategorized
September 20th, 2011
The Charity Social 100 Index: Charities need to develop more effective social strategies for a cash-strapped age 
Anne McCrossan and Steve Bridger – Guardian Professional
The Charity Social 100 Index is the result of six months of study looking at how charities in the UK are using social media. We looked at 300 charities, and the results reflect 100 of those.
Charities have been assessed on their strength of income, strength of brand and social performance across social networks including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube, and general social media behaviour. This covered things like responsiveness and how charities demonstrate social leadership and engagement as part of their corporate communications style.
We’ve discovered that the top 100 charities in the index collectively receive £12.4bn in income, have nearly 2m followers on Twitter and 3.5m “likes” on Facebook between them. Yet our study suggests that charities may be neglecting social culture as an element of their brand and the development of communities as part of their social media mix.
The study revealed charities in the 100 Index have an average of 18,929 followers on Twitter. The average number of “likes” of a Facebook page is 35,360. The average number of followers for a charity organisation on LinkedIn is 165, and the average number of subscribers to a YouTube channel is 809.
Behind the numbers, it’s possible to discern some trends and realities that cast doubt on whether charities are using social media to its full potential.
For instance, the results suggest that while the majority of charities are actively engaged in social media, their involvement with users is mainly at arm’s length. Only 21% of the charities in the top 100% have their own hosted community.
There’s an argument that a community isn’t necessary or appropriate in some cases – the policy adopted by many charities is that they should “swim where the fish are”. If they want to develop in-depth interest, a sense of belonging, support and long-term loyalty however, charities do need to connect with the kind of people who are active social contributors and who care about the charity as stakeholders too.
Charities using social media to raise their levels of share of mind, fundraising support and engagement are fighting shy of recognising the more compelling relationships that are also a part of that picture.
Inbound communication is a big missing factor in the conversation at the moment, as is social CRM as a way of joining all the dots together. The opportunity exists for far greater social involvement with people as part of a strategy that encourages the organisations themselves to become more communal and human.
The study also raises deeper questions for charities in terms of how they factor social media into the workings of the organisation. We’re at the stage now where identifying where the talent is within their organisation as a community of interest, both inside and outside the walls of the building, and creating long-lasting relationships and partnerships, is becoming more valuable in a cash-strapped age.
Some charities are aware that a social brand is a devolved brand, but that doesn’t mean it needs to be an unstructured one. The architecture of these emergent networks is something charities must think about developing, and soon, if social media is to deliver a viable payback.
The strength of cultural charities in the index shows how compelling experiences and content are, in terms of social appeal. Charities that want to connect with supporters using social media do need to think about how they develop their communication and bring out their personality as part of the user experience. The temptation is for charities to outsource their social voice, when really the value of network effects comes from many voices, real voices, all connected together so charities can organise for effect, socially.
The real question for the future is how charities can do more with social media, It delivers a greater level of connection and buy-in than conventional media, but many charities aren’t ready to fully tap into and develop it beyond having a presence. The question about the relationship to income, attention, and the ability to make change is coming into sharp focus in austere times. A greater level of supporter expectation will inevitably come into play as a part of that.
Source: Guardian Professional, via Nick Fry Communications
Categories: Uncategorized
July 29th, 2011
The marketing blog is on summer recess. Back in mid September!
Categories: Uncategorized
July 5th, 2011
1. Get to know your Core Values or the Values of your business/organisation
To develop an effective identity you will need to understand what it is that motivates and drives you. A Value free identity is simply a hollow collection of words, colours and designs. Discovering your Values is the first step that a genuine marketing or creative design agency will take when developing your brand.
2. Distinguish your unique qualities
While developing your brand identity, explore and highlight specific qualities that are unique to your product or service. What is it that will help you to stand out from the crowd.
3. Identify who are your customers
Your identity must reflect the buying motivations of your clients. An identity that genuinely speaks to your customers will be more successful than one that is created blind.
4. Continually remind your customers
Successful branding strategy requires you to create a lasting impression of your company amongst potential customers. Repeated use and display of the brand name will remind people of your company. Over time it will kindle a desire amongst prospective clients to buy your services.
5. Professional approach
Your brand needs to maintain a corporate professionalism. Professionalism entails quality. Quality is the key to the majority of consumer buying decisions.
Promoting your Brand Identity. Once developed, your Brand Identity can be rolled out across your internal and external communications. A professional logo, business stationery & business cards, brochures and most importantly your website. All should reflect your distinct identity, or the identity of your company.
About NewBlue: We provide marketing and creative design for print & the web. We believe that people’s lives would improve if there was greater individual, social and environmental change. We are therefore at our best when working on behalf of businesses and organisations that promote positive change.
Categories: Uncategorized
