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Stone's Throw Creative Communications

  • Small and mid-size businesses
  • Corporate entities
  • Professional services entities
  • Life science/healthcare

January 6, 2021 Comments

At every level – planning

Whether creating a single promotional piece or an integrated marketing campaign, all marketing communications efforts benefit from planning.  Of course that planning might take place in a very compressed time period (“You need that by tomorrow?”), but experienced marketers consider brand, positioning, communications objectives and audiences (among other factors) before they ever put pencil to paper or cursor to blank screen.

The plan is never written in stone (pardon the pun); it lives and breathes, allowing for changes when new data comes in or new opportunities arise. Mapping it out ahead of time simply sets our primary direction, but it goes a long way toward reducing the intimidation factor.

For some clients, we have the privilege of planning full multidimensional campaigns that build over time on the successes of key components.  We often begin with the marketing activities that help create a presence for the company or product – perhaps brand identity (logo, tagline, positioning statement), key brand messaging and language, capabilities materials, website, print and online advertising, and press releases. The second phase may include activities that soften the market for business development or sales efforts – always leveraging relevant content development – email marketing, direct mail, seminars or community programs and social media.  Finally, we explore activities and materials that will be used to fulfill the inquiries generated by the new marketing efforts – maybe product- or market-specific sell sheets or product information, packaging, newsletters, blog posts and white papers.

For others, we’re tasked with creating one special element of their marketing or promotional material.  Even in that case, we ensure our work dovetails into the overall plan and the communications strategy. It often takes only a few moments to confirm that we’re on track, and that can make all the difference.

For a select number, Stone’s Throw provides virtual CMO support, functioning as the business’s marketing department.  As a Chief Marketing Officer would, we initiate and guide marketing plan recommendations and develop communications strategies that align with the company’s overall growth objectives.  As a marketing manager and department would, we also provide the creative services, design and copywriting, art direction, production and programming that bring the company’s marketing plan to life. From broad goal setting, to day-to-day marketing tasks, we work side-by-side with you to build forward momentum. It all starts with a plan, even if that means determining a few loose parameters now, and establishing more focused guidelines later.

Over the course of 30 years, we’ve had the privilege of working with many fine businesses and organizations.  Those most successful at engaging their target audiences —  and manifesting brand language that resonates with customers — have one important characteristic in common; they understand the power of planning.

ideas-and-news 4 Minutes Read (0)

October 29, 2020 Comments

Are you missing key marketing pieces?

For a smaller business, you’re probably not going to invest in a national television ad campaign; you’re going to TARGET your efforts to more likely potential customers. Do you have the tools to do that?

Those tools may fall into three major categories:

This first category: these are the kinds of tools that lay the foundation or help you create a presence for your firm that appeals to your target audiences:

  • A revealing logo
  • A tagline
  • A CRM to track your customer and potential customer contact and contact information
  • A website

The second category: these are the kinds of tools that help you reach out to your target audiences:

  • Advertising
  • Email marketing
  • Direct mail
  • Press releases

The third category: these are the tools that help you build stronger relationships with clients:

  • Trade show or conference participation
  • Blog contribution or white papers
  • Capabilities materials, like PowerPoint presentations, a quick snapshot of your capabilities, a brochure – all the things that you might send to prospects to help them better understand how you make their lives easier

Do you see any obvious holes in your marketing toolbox? Missing any tools? If you want to reach members of a particular trade organization, have you joined the association? attended functions? sponsored events? taken advantage of member outreach? What tools do you need to support those efforts? You’ll need tools from each category. Once you’ve identified any disconnects in your messaging (see “Do you have the stomach for a marketing audit?”) and any missing tools in your marketing toolbox, it’s time to develop a communications strategy. A communications strategy serves as a guidepost to ensure that your messaging stays on track and is exposed to the right audiences in order to help meet your business objectives. Learn more about a simple and fun technique to get started. (See “What am I?”)

ideas-and-news 3 Minutes Read (0)

September 16, 2020 Comments

Is going “outside” worth it?

Whether you’ve re-engineered your workforce to meet the changing demands of working during the COVID-19 pandemic or find yourself needing new or different communications than you did pre-coronavirus, where do you begin to determine if it makes greater financial sense to tackle marketing communications projects internally or to tap the services of an outside consultant? Evaluating the cost of a product may be straightforward – adding up the expenses of research, development, raw materials, manufacture, and packaging, for example. Evaluating the cost of services takes a more roundabout route requiring qualitative, rather than quantitative, assessment. If you’re considering hiring creative support from outside your organization, the following ideas may help you determine whether the move will represent true value.

Contract with specialists.

As marketing options simultaneously expand with today’s technological advances and narrow with new safety concerns, it’s challenging for all but the largest organizations to employ a full team of talented specialists in design, copywriting, photography, programming, illustration, and animation. One approach to curbing costs while keeping your competitive edge is through utilizing staff managers who are free to engage supplemental outside creative or contract marketing consultants who pull in team members as needed. In that way, your organization can leverage high-quality resources while staying lean and nimble.

Consider the actual money spent.

Contracting with outside creative talent can actually be less expensive than handling the same work internally when considering the actual cost of internal labor. According to Creative Business: “Most commonly, internal department cross-charges only accommodate actual payroll expenses with a small factor thrown in for overhead expenses. When all costs—salaries, benefits, and overhead—are included, studies have shown that charges for outside creative vendors actually average about 5% less than the same work done internally.” What’s more, creative fees often account for only a fraction of total costs of any marketing effort. Consider, for example, the cost of copywriting and design for an advertising campaign compared with the costs of the media space buy (paying for placement in online and print publications).

Do you have the in-house talent?

Some marketing communications projects require special know-how, some don’t. When it’s important to your business, the scales may tip in favor of engaging an outside resource. Many can attest to the experience of using available, well-meaning internal staff that winds up being an expensive choice in terms of failing to meet marketing objectives and missing opportunities. It also deflects internal staff from the jobs they’ve been hired to perform. “When effectiveness is critically important, hiring an outside specialist is always the least expensive and most productive alternative,” according to Creative Business.

Can in-house staff perform well under the extra strain?

Consider disruption, deflection, and squirrel chasing. When staff is already working at or near capacity, even a small assignment can clog the machine. We’ve seen situations in which the overworked employee simply gives the project her least attention and effort; she resents the imposition. We’ve also seen more enthusiastic responses in which the overworked employee drops her routine duties in favor of the special project, gumming up the works of the department. Unless your staff has excess capacity, think about bringing in an outside resource.

Do you want to retain more control?

Years of reports from many clients reveal that it’s just tougher to control marketing projects internally because management faces obstacles assigning tough deadlines or giving critical feedback to team members who have taken on special projects outside of their usual duties – forget navigating through office politics and disagreement around ultimate responsibility. “When you absolutely, positively have to have it done, your way, and on schedule, hire an outside vendor.”

Do you need a little objectivity?

If you’re looking for someone to stroll into the middle of your challenges and throw open the window to let in the sunshine, it may be hard to find that kind of perspective within your team. Working very closely with a product or organization over time may create blinders that you and your team no longer sense. An outside creative partner can help bring much-needed objectivity to your marketing communications and create fresh brand language that resonates with your target audiences.

ideas-and-news 7 Minutes Read (0)

July 10, 2020 Comments

How to write an effective sell sheet

These questions may help you collect and organize the information necessary to write a compelling two-page service sheet that can be used to support sales conversations with prospective customers:

Matter for the front:

What is the brand or marketing name of this service or service package? Be consistent across all mentions. Make it easy for customers to identify it.

What is the primary (or overview) benefit to the customer?

What are the individual features to the service offerings? When describing each, lead with each feature’s benefit(s) to the customer. This is not a technical spec sheet. Talk briefly about why these features matter to the customer.

What are the challenges faced by the type of customer who would benefit from this service? Provide a few sentences about why this service package assists the customer in overcoming those challenges.

Provide something extra. Briefly describe an emotional benefit to the service package, a key insight unique to the customer’s industry, or a snippet from a customer testimonial.

Matter for the back:

Why is your company uniquely positioned to understand the challenges your customers face? Here is the place to review the benefits described on the front in a broader context or pull in your company’s history with this particular service or the customer’s industry.

Cross sell. List other services your company provides and the industries that benefit from them.

Provide an invitation to discuss how this service package may help the customer.

Be sure to include your branding identity/logo, company tagline, call to action, contact information, company descriptive, and trademark and copyright notices as appropriate.

ideas-and-news 2 Minutes Read (0)

June 25, 2020 Comments

Revisiting your company identity

Clearing the way for growth

Who are you, personally? How do others get to know you?

Whether we like it or not, studies continue to show that many people make some immediate assumptions about us based on our physical appearance and our sense of style (especially our shoes, apparently).* They understand even more when they hear us speak and listen to what we say. They compare what they see and hear to our actions – how do we behave toward our families? The community? We each shape our personal identities, knowingly or unknowingly, fairly or unfairly, through the choices we make and what we show the world around us.

Similarly, your company’s identity – how it’s perceived by customers, vendors and the community – is in great part defined by its look (branding), its language (communications) and its actions (behavior). It should embody your company’s mission and values. It should also have a memorable visual component and a clear voice.

When you see your company’s logo, read its tagline and core messaging, and review its print and online content, does it all reflect your company well? If it’s no longer in sync with where your company stands today (or where you’d like it to be tomorrow), perhaps it’s time to refresh or recreate your company identity.

Begin with a review.

Take your company’s temperature. Are all your key team members on the same page? A fairly quick way to find out is to ask your team to describe the company’s identity. Then, ask your clients about their perceptions of your company. You can accomplish both tasks with a short electronic or printed survey. Then tally up the results. Where do things gel? (Does everyone see your company as a trusted industry thought-leader?) Where do you find disconnects? (Does the executive team see the firm as a fresh and responsive problem-solver, while a few core clients see the company as an aging, albeit wise, traditionalist?)

Define your company vision.

How long has it been since you went through this process? Talk with your team about your company culture, your motivators and your goals for the future. What business are you in, and why? We find that asking these questions during a workshop-style meeting can yield very good results. Whether we help you facilitate the meeting or not, talking about what defines your business typically uncovers hidden obstacles and new thinking, and can clear the way for more than a new logo – it can clear the way for growth.

Develop a communications strategy.

What’s your business’s history? Who are your clients? What do you do for your clients that no other provider does? Building a strategy begins with asking the right questions and being brutally honest with your answers.

Keep your customers in mind.

No matter where the process of recreating your company identity takes you, ensure that everything you do focuses on your clients and partners. Test your results by asking: Will our ideal client understand our message and tone – immediately?

Case study: New Jersey law firm

Working with a well-regarded, ninety-year-old law firm, Stone’s Throw was able to help guide the process of rebranding, beginning with garnering communications strategy planning feedback from each member of the executive team. We then distilled the team’s contributions into a communications strategy summary that was used to build consensus and set guidelines for the creative. With the strategy approved by the executive team, we worked with a smaller marketing committee to set priorities and keep things moving. In so doing we worked closely with the law firm’s marketing director to create a new company identity, including logo, stationery system and collateral materials (firm overview brochure, practice area brochures and more). We helped foster understanding and enthusiasm among the entire staff by writing and designing communications that clearly explained the new company identity, how it would be implemented and why. Making the link between a new company logo (the company’s public face) and the company’s evolved culture and attitude toward its clients enabled the staff to rally behind the new identity.

* Studies cite height, weight, posture, grooming and clothing as some of the first filters people use to assess someone’s competence and trustworthiness (among other qualities).

© Stone’s Throw, Inc. All rights reserved.

ideas-and-news 7 Minutes Read (0)

April 23, 2020 Comments

A message from Deanne Napurano

It’s a scary time right now. A lot of people are suffering. Our focus, like yours, is on keeping ourselves and the people we care about – our communities – healthy and safe. A lot of our clients are suffering. As they pivot to set up efficient and remote workspaces for employees, they are making hard decisions about laying off or cutting back employees and employee time. They are cancelling all kinds of contracts from building maintenance to marketing communications, which is the business we’re in. Some businesses are moving forward with their communications as though it’s business as usual.  Others are taking a good look at what their gifts are, what their strengths are, and framing their communications so people can hear that they understand that we are all in this together…so people can hear that they plan on responding appropriately to support their clients, customers, and community. They are working hard to be here for the long run even though we don’t know what our state of commerce will be after this pandemic.

If we can give any support or advice to the clients who have turned to us for marketing execution (writing and design) or marketing strategy (consultation) over the past three decades, it is that you be extra careful not to appear tone deaf (we know no one is), but look carefully at your language. People are making decisions now based on how their partners, vendors, and colleagues are responding. They are making decisions based on the experiences they’re having right now with, and the pandemic response narratives emerging from, the people who provide services to them and their businesses. So we say, if you haven’t reached out to the people you do business with, do that. Do that. It’s not the time for marketing as usual…or worse, radio silence. And, as you reach out there’s every reason to think about how your bundle of services or products can support folks, if not now, then for where we are going to be a few months down the road or next year. I wish you all well and I hope you stay safe.  I’ll see you on the other side.

Listen to Deanne’s message

ideas-and-news 3 Minutes Read (0)

April 1, 2020 Comments

Curbside marketing communications services are just a stone’s throw away

We hope that you are doing well. These are extraordinary times and we’re all doing our best to take care of each other while keeping our spirits up. As we all adjust to stay-at-home status and try to ensure that we’re keeping ourselves, our families, and our communities safe and healthy, we’re all also being hit hard logistically and financially.

In case you’re in need, we continue to provide communications support to our clients and have added some extras that may be helpful at this time:

  • Writing and editing for public-facing COVID-19 messaging
  • Complimentary consultations via GoToMeeting/computer video
  • Free project planning and estimating
  • Preferred pricing
  • Curbside pickup for copy and design (it’s actually delivered via email or secure online portal)

Please stay safe. We look forward to seeing you soon.

ideas-and-news 1 Minute Read (0)

March 20, 2020 Comments

We hope you are well and staying safe.

We’re already seeing communications needs being dramatically affected in response to COVID-19. Some of our clients are rethinking investment in tradeshow materials, for example, but are reinforcing public-facing messaging about their commitment to employees, clients, and community. We know that even if the vehicle for the conversation is changing, the importance of your voice remains vital to your business relationships.

We remain here to help. As the focus of homebound employees narrows to essential client, customer, and patient work, outside resources may be more useful than ever. We value your trust in us. Below, we’ve listed a few areas in which we can provide support, but if you’d just like to strategize a bit over the phone or via video conference call, we’d be more than happy to talk with you.

Consultation, writing, design for:

  • Website messaging/content
  • Social media planning and content
  • Email messaging and development
  • Blog planning and content
  • Online advertisement/announcement
  • Press release writing and submission
  • White papers and thought-leadership materials
  • Employee and member communications
  • Questionnaires and surveys
  • Staff training course creation via learning
    management platform

ideas-and-news 1 Minute Read (0)

March 11, 2020 Comments

What am I?

Once you’ve identified any disconnects in your messaging (see “Do you have the stomach for a marketing audit?”) and any missing tools in your marketing toolbox (see “Are you missing key marketing pieces?”), it’s time to develop a communications strategy. We need guideposts to ensure that our messaging stays on track and is exposed to the right audiences in order to help meet your business objectives.

To do that we go back to a questioning strategy. One simple and fun technique that we’ve used successfully is to ask “If your business were an animal, what kind of animal would it be and why?” Sit with that for a minute. You may instantly see a fox running nimbly over a forest floor, smart and quick. You may see a seal gracefully thriving in waters too cold for other species. The idea of the fox or the seal may better help you visual your company’s brand and help you assess whether that brand is manifesting in your communications. Don’t limit yourself to animals – use whatever works for you. Whatever you do, can you liken it to something even more familiar? Think about how that metaphor speaks to your customer’s needs. Keep bringing it back to your client. Again, keep your ideal customer in mind. How does this speak to them?

ideas-and-news 2 Minutes Read (0)

February 7, 2020 Comments

Do you have the stomach for a marketing audit?

How do you know where you are and if what you’re doing is in alignment with what you’re trying to achieve? We recommend an audit – not a financial audit – but an audit of your current practices. And I know that some people think that they don’t have marketing practices to audit, but they do. (See “I don’t do marketing”.)

When we’re called into a prospective new client, we typically walk into a scenario in which the firm owner or company leadership see the need for better marketing and don’t know where to start – or restart – or don’t have the internal resources to sustain the effort necessary to create forward momentum. They may even have exhausted their internal team already and cracks in performance are beginning to show, either because the internal resource is crying uncle or opportunities are being missed.

A scenario we encounter less often: the company owner believes that better marketing will help her grow her business, and she’s been marketing the firm herself. She doesn’t want to invest more money in marketing, or any money in marketing, but she believes she’s willing to invest her own time in the process.

And, still, another scenario is that the company leadership does not believe that they need to improve their marketing efforts, but internal forces (sales people, business development folks) are demanding some kind of action or support.

In all of these situations, we ask the same questions in order to quickly audit the company’s marketing status. We ask questions that inform our internal judge and assessor. But first we ask them to show us or tell us what they’re currently doing to market the firm. Let’s list what we’re talking about so you know what to put out on the table in front of you.

  • Your company name
  • Your logo
  • Your tagline, if you have one, or often-used “brand” language
  • Website
  • Social media accounts
  • Advertisements
  • Email marketing
  • Letters and communication to clients and colleagues
  • White papers or blog posts
  • Etc.

All of this should be collected and put out in front of you in some way.

Now, we ask:

What do you do? What markets do you serve? Who is your ideal client or customer? Describe her workstyle, education, type of business or industry, etc.

Why does that client prefer to work with you? What makes your relationship work? As we ask these foundation business questions, we look and read the current marketing materials against the answers. Do the answers to your questions appear in your marketing materials?

Ask further: What feedback have these materials garnered? Do prospective customers respond to any of your marketing tools? How? How are you measuring the success of your marketing materials?

Right away you may be able to see where there’s accord and traction, and see where there’s a disconnect. That should begin to give you insight into your next steps.

This is something that any business can do for itself, whether you’re a solopreneur or run a fully staffed team: audit your marketing. Do this audit and be honest with yourself.

ideas-and-news 5 Minutes Read (0)

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Cranbury, New Jersey

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