HRB Client, L.L. Pelling Wins National Website Award

February 1st, 2012 by HRB Advertising Agency Categories: News Tags: henry russell bruce, hrb, Website Design

Carrie Herrera of L.L. Pelling accepted the NAPA Outstanding Website Award

L.L. Pelling's homepage is designed to feature projects, services and news in the industry

Lanham, MD – The National Asphalt Pavement Association (NAPA) announced today that LL Pelling Co. Inc. of North Liberty, Iowa, is a winner of NAPA’s Outstanding Web Site Award for 2011 in the producer member category. The award recognizes Web site designs that promote the use of asphalt and the asphalt pavement industry.

LL Pelling Co. Inc., worked with Henry Russell Bruce, a Web development and marketing firm in Cedar Rapids, Iowa revamped its website (www.llpelling.com) in 2011 in order to provide more information to local businesses and to taxpayers about the benefits of asphalt paving.

The new site features quick links to the company’s location, projects and services as well as educational material about asphalt’s many advantages as a paving material. A revolving display of asphalt pavement images on the home page helps reinforce LL Pelling Co.’s key messages to its audiences.

Other goals of the company’s Web site redesign were to improve the channels of communication for visitors, making it easier for them to contact specific individuals via email, phone or fax.

The company’s success in this effort can be measured by the fact that it now receives weekly bid requests, general questions and sponsorship opportunities via its website. Visitor leaving feedback have expressed their appreciation for the amount of educational material that the site offers.

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Unexpected Advertising

January 30th, 2012 by Jill Mast Categories: Marketing, Social Media Marketing Tags: advertising, Marketing, Public Relations

While watching TV last night, a commercial for JC Penney caught my attention. Even more importantly, its message and execution created enough intrigue that, being curious, I dutifully followed their instructions, went to my computer and pulled up their Facebook page. (Not an easy accomplishment for most advertisers.)

So what was different about this commercial? For starters, I found it very entertaining. The images of shoppers screaming in frustration as they are bombarded with oodles of coupons and signage announcing a dizzying array of deals and offers was something I could certainly relate to. Perhaps more significant was that it was totally unexpected from a retailer like JCP. Their advertising has usually been very expected promotions of its latest and greatest door busters, early bird specials, scratch off coupons, and limited time offers.

Guess what though? It didn’t tell me everything I wanted to know but it did have me intrigued … so when directed to the company’s Facebook page, I went. There I learned that “on 2.1.12 the madness ends. But until then, enjoy our biggest and best-ever crazy and exhausting and totally confusing sale ever.” The Facebook page is interactive and asks consumers to join the “JCP Insanity.” What really surprised me was that it has more than 2 million likes, 15,000+ people talking about this and more than 100,000 visits to the page.

From a marketer’s perspective, I got an email from the American Advertising Federation this morning leading me to a New York Times article on JCP and their new branding strategies. I learned JCP has new management (executives formerly with Apple and Target) and their corporate strategy is changing to include a redesigned logo, simpler pricing of merchandise and stopping endless promotions, deals and sales. The new plan calls for only twelve sales each year. In 2011, JCP had 590 promotions!

Only time will tell if the new strategy is successful. But in my mind, they have already achieved their goal – getting consumers like me to rethink a tired, undifferentiated and unappealing brand and creating something compelling enough to get me interested (and to blog about) and even eager to see what they will be rolling out on Feb. 1.

Of course, the ultimate test will be if the new shopping experience is compelling enough to make me want to come back. Stay tuned.

Jill Mast
800-728-2656, ext. 120

Connect with me on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/jill-mast/4/928/a06

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Get the Story Behind Our Recent Rebrand

January 12th, 2012 by Steve Erickson Categories: Branding Tags: brand, Branding, henry russell bruce, hrb

View “A New Brand Story” on Scribd

Steve Erickson
Partner/Creative Director
800-728-2656, ext. 126

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The New Year is Here!

January 6th, 2012 by HRB Advertising Agency Categories: News Tags: henry russell bruce, hrb

We want to wish everyone a Happy New Year! To kick off 2012, we want to share some of our favorite apps that we think you might like, too. You might even say that these are our favorite apps of 2011!

We’d love it if you’d let us know if we’re missing something that you think everyone, or at least those with similar interests, should be using that didn’t make it onto our list. It might have a chance at making the 2012 list!

View the full list of our favorite apps!

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New paradigm = New brand.

December 21st, 2011 by Steve Erickson Categories: Branding, Internet Marketing, Marketing, News, Public Relations, Social Media Marketing, Website Design Tags: Branding, henry russell bruce, hrb, steve erickson

It’s a well known yet seldom followed saying – “Practice what you preach.” But when we considered the prospect of rebranding HRB, we knew we had to follow ourselves the same advice we preach to our clients … that the most objective and ultimately most valuable branding efforts are done with the direction of an experienced outside advisor. You can’t read the label from inside the bottle, right?

After over 15 years with the same “label,” a logo we affectionately call “Herb” because its three letters also resemble a face, it felt like the time was right to go through our own rebranding effort. When Herb was first designed and put to work as the face of HRB, our company and the business of advertising was considerably different. Traditional media – TV, radio, print – was still king. The Internet was in its marketing infancy. The iPad, iPhone and Droid were only the distant dreams of Silicone Valley tech heads. Twitter and Facebook? Mark Zuckerberg was still playing video games in grade school.

It’s a vastly changed world now. Digitally-based, incredibly fast moving, with websites considered as the first point of brand contact instead of merely an afterthought … and handheld devices putting the power of brand engagement in the hands of millions of consumers.

To acknowledge those big changes in our industry, we decided to make a small but important change for ourselves. So we engaged the services of FUEL, a talented group of strategically-minded designers, to rethink and redesign our logo and visual brand. We vowed to be good clients and provide them with all the input they requested (which was a lengthy process), then ultimately, trust their thinking and their visual concept for our brand. Frankly, it was nice to be on the client side for once.

What you see here, the new logo, colors and look is a result of that collaboration. For us, it’s an important reminder of the new thinking we need to consider and then deliver every day. To our clients, it’s a reminder that brands aren’t static entities that can rest on their laurels. To Herb, it means a well-deserved retirement.

Wherever he is today, traveling the world or spending his pension at a casino in Branson, Herb can be confident our new logo stands for the same product we truly care about delivering … growing our clients’ brands to grow their business.

Steve Erickson
Partner/Creative Director
800-728-2656, ext. 126

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In the Customer’s Shoes

December 16th, 2011 by Jill Mast Categories: Branding, Marketing, Public Relations Tags: henry russell bruce, hrb, jill mast

Getting a different perspective can provide additional insight into the matter. Photo credit: Roadtrip North of Salta: kaartje voor mn neefje by mansszat

Let’s face it. We’re all consumers. We interact with hundreds if not thousands of brands each day. Each interaction we have, whether it’s with a customer service rep, a website or a product we are using for the first time, shapes our perception of the brand, our feelings of affinity or dislike, and our likelihood that we’re going to use that brand again.

When we work with clients on building their brand, we start with customer research. Research is critically important because although a company can do many things to shape their brand, your brand is ultimately decided by your consumers. We work with many B to B clients so I often don’t get the opportunity to interact with a client’s brand from a customer viewpoint. However, I had just that opportunity recently.

I was able to tour a client’s facility and their major competitor’s facility as a potential customer. I took the tour, asked the same questions of both, and noted how I was greeted, what information was provided to me, knowledge of the employees, and overall feelings I was left with from each experience. What I found was enlightening. Our client’s brand is all about providing a personal, exceptional experience. However, staff didn’t smile or greet us. They were cordial, but not exceptional, which is what I expected from their brand promise. In contrast, their competitor made me feel more welcomed and valued. The competitor asked me questions about what I was interested in and then provided me with relevant information. They listened to me, made it more personal and all about me. I was surprised to find that I had a superior experience not with my client, but with the competitor.

The good news is that our client is open to this feedback and already has plans in place to improve their process and the customer experience. Don’t ever underestimate the power of your customers and the value you can find by experiencing your brand from their perspective.

Jill Mast
800-728-2656, ext. 120

Connect with me on LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/pub/jill-mast/4/928/a06

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Let’s Talk About Your Brand

December 1st, 2011 by Jim Thebeau Categories: Branding Tags: Branding, henry russell bruce, hrb, jim thebeau

Customers don’t buy on price alone.

Ever selected a product that is more expensive compared to a similar one sitting right next to it? Ever wonder why you do that?

It’s because you have got an emotional connection with the brand. It takes unique insights about your customers to build those kinds of brands. And, talented people who know how to utilize those insights.

Because the purpose of a brand is to differentiate a company and its offerings, we use a proven proprietary process called the HRB BrandPlan™ to build strong brands. The process includes research, brand building, repositioning, management and communication. It also features workshops and seminars to educate your staff on how to “live” your brand.

Who’s thinking about your brand?

Photo Credit: Jacob Bøtter.

Isn’t it wonderful how all of your prospects and clients rolled out of their beds this morning, rubbed the sleep from their eyes and immediately thought to themselves, “Gosh, I sure hope I’ll see an advertising message from fill-in-your-brand-name-here.” Wow, that makes your job so much easier, knowing every one of them is totally psyched to hear from you.

Okay, so that didn’t happen, nor will it ever. But surprisingly, some companies really do act like that implausible event occurs in their marketplace every morning. They believe that whatever message they put out, in whatever medium, no matter how trite, complex, boring or forgettable it might be, viewers and readers will be attracted to their brand like geeks to a Star Trek convention. Bless their pointy ears, but no way. Sorry, Spock.

What does attract viewers and readers are messages from brands they know and respect. Brands that provide them with an expectation of being rewarded … with valuable information, by being entertained or by something that will make their job or life better.

It starts by using words and images they haven’t read or seen hundreds of times before. By not force feeding them more details than they can possibly consume. By engaging them in unique and uncomplicated ways that say “we respect your time, your intelligence and what you care about.”

Your brand is not* what you say it is.*

Remember, your brand is not what you say it is, it’s what your customers and the marketplace says it is based on their experiences and connections to your company. Ultimately, it’s about differentiation – how your brand stands out in a crowded marketplace. You must claim a unique position in the market. What is your point of difference?

Jim Thebeau
Partner/CEO
800-728-2656 ext. 121

Follow me on Twitter @JimThebeau

Connect with me on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/jimthebeau

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Being Part of Something Meaningful

November 14th, 2011 by Jill Mast Categories: Media Buying, Public Relations Tags: advertising, henry russell bruce, hrb, Public Relations

My mom died of cancer when I was three years old. I didn’t understand the full magnitude of it until I became an adult and realized just how young 28 is to die. I probably still don’t fully understand, but as I grow in age and experience, I’m beginning to fully understand how precious each day of life is.

Cancer is one of the most profound, devastating and pervasive diseases in the U.S. I don’t know anybody that hasn’t been touched by it in some way. Cancer numbers are growing, but so are survival rates as new and better detection methods and treatments are developed. I get to work with Mercy Medical Center, which is in the process of building the Hall-Perrine Cancer Center – an amazing new facility that will provide world-class cancer care to Eastern Iowans. Equipped with the latest technology, dedicated staff, and amenities based on what patients and their families have said is critical to the treatment and recovery process, it will be an invaluable resource to current and future cancer patients.

Over the past 6 months, HRB has collaborated with Mercy to develop a marketing campaign to launch the center and promote the unique benefits it will provide. This campaign was built from the ground up, just like the center. We gathered input from Mercy and from patients and potential patients and developed concepts and themes around what they told us was important. The various creative executions were tested in focus groups and one rose to the top. “Expectations Met” is the name of our campaign and provides a promise of what the center will deliver: world-class, personalized cancer care.

Over the summer, we worked with a talented production crew out of Minneapolis to bring the campaign to life. We shot the TV spots over four days in locations all over town. We developed radio, print ads, outdoor boards, building signage and Internet marketing campaigns designed to drive patients and potential patients to a new, focused Hall-Perrine Cancer Center website. The campaign launched the last week in September, just in time for breast cancer awareness month.

I’m in advertising. My job is to create preference for brands and motivate customers to buy from my clients. This is extremely important; however, I’ve never been involved with something as personal to me as this. Having the opportunity to be a part of something that is truly meaningful to so many is incredibly fulfilling and an experience I will never forget.

Jill Mast
800-728-2656, ext. 120

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How to See Who’s Linking to Your Site

October 26th, 2011 by Kurt Zenisek Categories: Internet Marketing, Internet Technology, Public Relations, Website Design Tags: brand, henry russell bruce, hrb, Internet Marketing, kurt zenisek, Public Relations, search engine optimization, social media

A site that’s online isn’t much of a site unless people go to it. The raw website visitor stats that services like Analytics and Quantcast provide sometimes aren’t enough for gauging the traffic flow to a site. A “link” is a fundamental way in which visitors reach a site, and direct links (typing in the web address) and search engines are the two other ways. Of course, there’s “good company” and “bad company” online that could be linking to you. I’m not going to discuss right & wrong in this article, but I will go over how to be more aware of one factor that affects all sites… backlinks.

Which method is best?

There’s a few different ways to find who’s linking to a site. Some are tools made available by search engines like Google while some are various services that are available online.

Google’s link:* command (perfect for URL-specific stats)*

Using link: as part of a Google search will list the webpages that have links to that specified webpage. For instance, link:www.google.com will list webpages that have links pointing to the Google homepage. Note there can be no space between the “link:” and the web page url. It’s also important to know that this finds the backlinks for that one URL, and doesn’t provide matches for every URL on the site. By the way, you can use the number of matches below the search box to get a rough number for assessing the online penetration of that webpage.

Google Webmaster Tools (perfect for site-wide stats)

As part of Google’s Webmaster Tools, they have “Your site on the web” => “Links to your site” in the side navigation that shows backlink stats for a site as a whole. Essentially, this provides:

A list of sites and what pages they’re linking to
Which page is being linked to the most
The terms being used for the links
and you can get fairly granular with each data set

Everything else

The above methods obviously depend on what Google has indexed, and similar tools are available using Bing and other search engines so one can diversify their data set. There’s also a great service from SEOmoz called Open Site Explorer that’s worth looking into.Unfortunately, searching for a tool that accumulates these stats resulted in finding a lot of adware/junk sites so your mileage may vary depending on the service being used.

Knowing who’s linking to a site a good way to understand what sort of company that site is involved with, and this can be helpful when working with the public relations & marketing for a website. It’s also a decent way to see what others are saying about a particular site, but do keep in mind that this is just one way that websites establish a connection with one another.

Kurt Zenisek
Lead Web Developer

Connect with me on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/kzeni

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6 Tips for the Budding PR Professional

October 21st, 2011 by Shelby Kraus Categories: Public Relations Tags: henry russell bruce, hrb, Public Relations, shelby kraus

It's not really worth your time to avoid an issue.

It’s been a few years since I entered the PR world (well, more than a few) and I had forgotten what it is like to be new to the field. I was speaking to a former intern the other day and she asked what advice do I have for a budding PR professional. I pondered this for a bit, but off the top of my head, here are a few nuggets:

Be a sponge – read up on your employer’s business and the industry so that you can get a good foot hold on what you will be up against in the competitive landscape.
Get to know the product or service inside and out – spend time with product managers, the sales team and any executive that will talk to you about the product or service. Find out why they were developed in the first place and where they want to take them.
Write, write and then write some more – everyone is going to have his or her materials edited. Don’t take it personally. One of the best assets a PR professional can have is his or her writing skills.
Pay attention to detail – you may think this is just in writing, but it is not. You are now in a professional world and much like your professors there are protocols to what you develop and deliver to your supervisor. Don’t be sloppy. Everyone at the company is a client and you need to present your research, writing, strategies, ideas, etc. in a clear and concise manner that is formatted professionally.
Make sure your enthusiasm for new media stays in line with corporate philosophy – you may be very excited to assist with social media or mobile public relations, but keep your passion in check if your employer is skittish about it. Rome was not built in a day and if you take the right approach, in time, you will get to expand your company’s presences.
Never stop learning – keep filling your toolkit with new skills and teach others too.

Landing your first public relations position is very exciting. Remember, that the classroom is not a clone of how the real business world operates. It is like an incubator, preparing your for the next chapter in your career. Have fun and stay inquisitive!

Shelby Kraus
Vice President, Public Relations
Account Manager
800-728-2656, ext. 125

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Customers don’t buy on price alone.

Who’s thinking about your brand?

Your brand is not what you say it is.

Which method is best?

Google’s link: command (perfect for URL-specific stats)

Google Webmaster Tools (perfect for site-wide stats)

Everything else

Your brand is not* what you say it is.*

Google’s link:* command (perfect for URL-specific stats)*