Brigitte Baron give insight into the importance of brand stories.

Does your brand have a story?  What does it tell your customers?  Is it telling a story you want heard?

The questions keep buzzing around my head after a recent conversation with Brigitte Baron, the New York Office Manager for Totem Brand Stories, an OfficeLinks client located in our Bryant Park, New York office and internationally awarded creative agency that originates branded content and custom-media programs for clients.

Totem creates branded content and custom-media programs by combining journalism and marketing talent to build meaningful customer relationships and drive clients’ business objectives. Totem’s North American client roster includes Procter & Gamble, The Home Depot, Canadian Automobile Association (CAA), Frito-Lay, Sears, Sobeys, The Principal Financial Group, Rexall, Mazda International, Aeroplan Group, Bank of America and more.

In speaking with Ms. Baron, I learned that telling a brand’s story has much to do with commanding the customers’ attention and building brand community.   Telling great brand stories starts by gaining an intimate understand of a brand and the customer. This, according to Ms. Baron, is where Totem shines. Totem’s team will sit down and talk with clients, finding out what the company’s goals are, what their initiatives are, what they are trying to accomplish, and then finding media solutions based on their priorities. And from there, they use the discipline of journalism and the creativity of storytelling to create a brand story.

How do you create a story?  Ms. Baron walked me through Totem’s strategy and process: Totem develops the “story” that is the consumer’s true brand experience by exploring and mapping out all of a customer’s touch points.  They develop a communication blueprint that involves identifying and tracing customers through their entire life cycle, from initial inspiration to post-purchase phases. Totem ensures that all creative and messaging – across all customer touch points – are grounded in business objectives. They plan content that maximizes consumer engagement with the brand and drives business objectives. Totem delivers media and advertising services and solutions to reach engaged, high-value brand communities – and this includes keeping a close eye on what’s happening with mobile apps, table media and digital solutions.

And this is imperative to business looking to thrive because connecting with consumers will keep them advocating for the brand – even after their purchase.

In the words bright and bold on Totem’s website: “Great brand stories are not merely written.  They are crafted.”  How well is yours crafted?

For more information about how Totem can help your brand story, and to view its portfolio, click here.

Her business has her working all over the world and has given her an interesting perspective on how we in the United States function – in business and life. In Jennifer’s experience, she’s noticed that Americans panic if something is not instant – we forget that many times, especially when working internationally, things don’t happen instantly simply because they can’t. 

Though the internet has changed many things for the better – everything from allowing for mobile offices to connecting to people across the world at the push of a button – Jennifer has seen this technology affect business relations.  Not only has it created this feeling that everything should be done so quickly, but it has removed some of the face-to-face time that many businesses used to have. Jennifer emphasizes that it is still important to connect with people face-to-face – especially in sales – and that an email shouldn’t replace that important time.  She also feels that businesses should not to take the easy way out by delivering bad news via email – that’s an important thing to do in person or over the phone.  Though the internet makes things convenient, it shouldn’t be the only way business is conducted.

Interested in working with the European and/Asian markets – and succeed doing so?  Jennifer strongly advises that you go there, meet people, check the facilities, put faces to names.  She believes it makes all the difference in the world.

When asked how a business can be successful, Jennifer was able to summarize in one simple sentence: Only promise what you know you can deliver; don’t promise what you can’t follow through on.

Words businesses everywhere should live by.

An expert in the travel industry with a lifetime of experience (he has literally been in the travel business since age 2!), Eric Gordon is the founder of Beyond Times Square, a destination management company that arranges New York City and Hudson Valley travel.  Eric is a friend and client of OfficeLinks.  Therefore, we were very pleased to hear that his business experienced its best year yet in 2009 (yes, you read right!).  I just had to know what Eric did to achieve this, which is exactly why I had a chat with him recently.  In Eric’s words, “everything answers to marketing.”

What Eric shared with me is that he focuses marketing efforts on specific groups, not casting a huge net and hoping to catch a random person here and there.  For instance, right now Eric is focused on students because parents want their children to be exposed to new places.  Eric admits that it is not a recession proof plan, but it is a good target group to focus on right now because parents do not think of travel as a luxury. 

Eric also prefers to use low cost means, such as trade shows, email marketing, mailings, and cold calling, which reach his targeted customer.  It is more effective and doesn’t break the bank for him to do.

In his outreach, Eric is sure that there is a consistent message coming from every piece of material, every phone call, every meeting that he has with a client.  Eric emphasized how crucial it is that businesses make sure that their company has a consistent message, in every single department, so that there is no confusion among customers.   Eric says that it is helpful to have a marketing department or team (whether in-house or outsourced) to help ensure that this happens.

What do you think, are you lightning or a lightning bug?  Beyond Times Square, located in OfficeLinks Chelsea New York office space location, sure is lightning, thanks to their effective marketing efforts.

To find out more about Beyond Times Square, click here.  To find out more about Eric Gordon’s Radio Talk Show, click here.

According to David, CDM Software Solutions, Inc.’s approach to business, though simple, is absolutely essential to their success: Listen to clients. Understand what “keeps them up at night”.  Use the firm’s expertise to identify the root of the issues, map the plan and deliver the services to eradicate the issue and optimize performance.  Then, invest and stand by the client.  For CDM Software Solutions, Inc., listening to clients allows them to provide comprehensive, yet efficient and user-friendly software solutions that meet the clients’ needs and help them to achieve their business objectives.  Committing to stand by their clients allows CDM Software Solutions, Inc. to provide the necessary technology innovation that helps them as their needs evolve.

In our conversation, David shared with me some of what I’d like to call “pearls of wisdom” – and I just had to share them with you because they are just that important:

• Be patient – as an entrepreneur, you know that the marketplace is dynamic. Charter your path and stay the course while being nimble and patient.
• Perform your due diligence. Meaning: learn about your clients – research them, ask them questions, get to know everything about them. Utilize your skill and core competency to provide real value. A solution that they would otherwise not realize.
• Show loyalty - it will make a difference and pay off in the long term. And this again wraps around to patience – you may not see the pay off tomorrow, next week or next month. But, you will see it. It will return dividends.
• Be flexible and dynamic. Success isn’t a formula written in stone. You may have a standard model or approach but adapting that approach to the unique needs of your client will yield the greatest success. Being flexible and dynamic allows you to add significant value to each and every client.

There’s a valuable lesson in what David shared with me: it’s not about giving the client what you think they want or need, it’s about truly listening to the client and committing to giving them what their business actually needs.  Now that’s what makes a business a success – no matter the economic situation.  To learn more about CDM Software Solutions, Inc., click here.

Nicholas founded Dignitas to bring a diverse array of life management and high-end concierge services to clients and to orchestrate an exclusive collection of business and personal services to truly support a client’s whole life needs – from stocks to speeches, bonds to Bond Street, taxes to travel.   His services are available to no more than 100 clients at a time – a commitment that Nicholas has made so that the personal relationship with Dignitas’ sophisticated network of advisors is not at risk for being spread too thin. 

Not only are the services unique, but their approach is unique, too.  Unlike the traditional method that many businesses use, pre-packaging products and services for their clients, Nicholas feels strongly that empowering their clients with choice by offering an “a la carte menu” of services allows Dignitas to give each client the personalized services they need and want.   

And sometimes, the services they need and want aren’t in Nicholas’ area of expertise, and he’s OK with that.  He recognizes that being an expert and practitioner does not necessarily mean you have the skills required to be a good executive or entrepreneur, so he has embraced an esteemed team of advisors to give his clients the services they ask Dignitas to provide. 

Located in OfficeLinks’ Chicago office location, Dignitas welcomes the opportunity to discover and discuss how wealth and life can be optimized in order to live life to its fullest and enjoy the riches that it offers.  Learn more about Dignitas by clicking here.

Fortune magazine quoted that 50% of the Fortune 500 were founded during recessionary times. I thought to myself, that’s interesting. Then, while driving down the Turnpike in New Jersey I saw a billboard that boasted “Bill Gates started Microsoft during a recession”. This all makes total sense to me. During these challenging economic times, thought-leaders are channeling their entrepreneurial spirit to gain control over their destiny, forge new ground and re-inspire. For many of these customer-facing industry experts, adding “business owner” to their resume enables them to service their clients according to their vision, rather than fulfilling someone else’s.

For one OfficeLinks New York client, the decision to start their own firm was fundamental – to connect with the people they want to help.  Last week I sat down to speak with Subir Grewal, CFA and Louis Berger, principals and co-founders of Washington Square Capital Management, an independent advisory firm providing Investment Management and Financial Planning services for private investors and institutions, located in the heart of “Manhattan West” – in the OfficeLinks Chelsea office location. After meeting while working at UBS in 2006, Subir and Louis formed a partnership that resulted in Washington Square Capital Management, named to pay homage to their alma mater: New York University.

Subir and Louis credit their dedication to honing in on their client’s life visions and financial goals and objectives for enabling them to provide their clients with more than the standard investment management and financial planning many businesses have come to expect. Through this very crucial time in our economy, Subir and Louis clearly saw that their unique, personal approach was now, more than ever, critical to bringing their clients’ goals to fruition. Their clients are looking to them for their insight and guidance, Subir and Louis give them what is truly important: a meaningful level of investment through more frequent personal contact to understand where their clients are. Their willingness to bring “personal” back to wealth management allows Washington Square Capital Management to “get into the heads” of their clients: Subir and Louis know it’s the only way they can truly advise them.

Washington Square Capital Management has also adapted to the times by providing clients with the option to invest in socially conscious funds. With a keen eye on your overall goals and objectives, Louis and Subir are able to take your personal interest into account when crafting your overall strategy. Whether your focus is on environmental causes, fair trade practices or corporate governance, Subir and Louis can work with you to include these factors in the investment process. They can employ a strategy that uses screens (avoiding or focusing on certain types of business activity) or one focused on shareholder advocacy (actively engaging with management to modify practices). These are fabulous options for those who are looking to invest in socially conscious funds.

OfficeLinks is delighted to have Washington Square Capital Management in its Chelsea office space and enable them in providing their clients with incredible guidance and extraordinary customer service, especially in an ever changing economy. To learn more about Subir, Louis and Washington Square Capital Management, click here.