For most volunteer-governed organizations, marketing & communications provides the vital link connecting members with each other, and with their industry or community of interest. In addition, there is unprecedented competition today for member time and dollars. To develop a competitive edge in their marketplace, successful organizations are using marketing & communications to create a strong brand and communicate their value proposition in powerful, effective ways. At the same time, increasing numbers of association professionals have discovered that outsourcing marketing and communications functions can improve quality, offer greater flexibility and reduce costs.

Whether your organization needs expertise in branding, event marketing, membership recruitment and retention, or membership communications, SmithBucklin's Marketing & Communication Services unit delivers the talent and experience to help you succeed. SmithBucklin offers associations, professional societies and technology user groups access to the largest team of communication specialists in the industry. Our staff includes experienced marketing plan experts, campaign strategists, event promoters, writers and editors, graphic designers, direct marketers, telemarketers, media specialists, and more.

As a team, we work closely with our clients to ensure that they achieve the goals of their marketing and communications efforts - whether full-blown marketing campaigns, Web site content and design, or effective invitations to special events.

Specific service areas offered by SmithBucklin include:

Marketing Planning and Strategy
Convention and Event Marketing
Membership Recruitment, Retention and Marketing
Branding Services
Creative Services
Membership Publications
Public/Media Relations
Market Research
Promotional Products

Our marketing specialists methodically approach each marketing challenge by asking the right questions, such as:

• What are all the relevant facts?
• What is the essence/positioning of the product/event being promoted?
• What are the goals and objectives of the campaign or promotional piece?
• Who are the audiences our client is trying to reach?
• What are the strategies and targeted messages that will deliver maximum impact?

Marketing Planning and Strategy
Two key forces driving marketing today are 1) understanding and controlling what, where and how key audiences want to access information and then customizing the information to elicit the desired behavior, and 2) breaking down "information silos" to more efficiently market an organization's total portfolio of products and services. This approach is SmithBucklin's specialty. It's called integrated marketing communications and it is a customer-centric, data-driven method of communicating with target audiences. Typically, one or more target segments are selected through analysis of data, list acquisition, etc. The message and content are then customized to promote the features and benefits that are most desirable to the audience. This approach provides low-risk, high-reward ways to grow membership, conference attendees and trade show exhibitors.

Convention and Event Marketing
The Marketing & Communication Services unit markets more than 50 events and conferences each year, in each case tailoring our approach to fit the unique audience, offerings, history and "culture" of the conference or event. Critical to a successful outcome is a data-driven strategic plan based upon trends from past events, attendee demographics, new prospects and audience segmentation, and a clear messaging strategy for each audience segment. Our typical marketing plan strategically balances frequency, reach and mix with available resources. Tactics generally include a combination of direct mail, email marketing (using Lyris software to deliver text or HTML messages), Web site promotions, telemarketing, print and electronic advertising, and trade media relations. Our marketing and communication specialists also support events on-site by managing and scripting general sessions, writing and editing daily conference/show publications and assisting with speechwriting.

Membership Recruitment, Retention and Marketing
SmithBucklin's Marketing & Communication Services unit has extensive experience in developing and executing successful membership marketing, recruitment and retention campaigns for a broad range of associations. Our marketing specialists work hand-in-hand with headquarters staff and volunteers to conduct interviews, then analyze existing data and industry information to fully understand the trends, challenges and opportunities for growing an organization's membership. This analysis and understanding drives the development of audience segmentation analysis, communication strategies and messages, as well as compelling creative platforms and high-impact tactics.

Branding Services
SmithBucklin's marketing professionals have directed numerous branding programs for clients. For some, we focus on brand identity - the graphic treatment of an organization's brand, including its logo, theme, design and graphic standards. For others, we conduct a strategic branding effort, which includes comprehensive research, insight and understanding of the profession/industry to create a compelling, sustainable brand positioning that serves as the "center of gravity" for all communication efforts, including the brand identity. Smith Bucklin's approach combines the leading branding approaches from the commercial world with the unique needs and perspectives of not-for-profit organizations. Our branding specialists help associations identify, build, and evolve strong organizational brands that:

• Make outreach and education more credible and effective
• Encourage greater member participation
• Retain members and recruit new ones more easily and effectively
• Generate multiple revenue streams
• Drive conference/meeting attendance

We invite you to learn about how SmithBucklin helped Car Care World Expo double its size through re-branding. Learn more.

Creative Services
This in-house design and production group manages the design process from conception and production to distribution and warehousing. Our full-time designers are experts in all aspects of visual communication for associations and are adept at cross-media design. Our graphic designers and production artists create logos and other graphic identity elements, event promotion materials, newsletters, journals and magazines, print and electronic advertising, Web site design, HTML and Flash email.

Membership Publications
This specialized group within SmithBucklin's Marketing & Communication Services unit focuses on delivering high-quality membership publications. Working closely with our production artists and designers, as well as our marketing specialists, our Editorial Services staff write, edit and produce both electronic and print publications including magazines, journals and other periodicals. In addition, we have a successful record of self-publishing journals, which our staff create by working closely with volunteer authors, editors and committees responsible for content. Our Editorial Services staff is able to deliver against a wide range of writing styles, ranging from technical/scientific writing to journalistic news writing.

Public/Media Relations
Industry, trade, and professional news media offer important vehicles for promoting your association to current and potential members, as well as other key audiences. SmithBucklin's Marketing & Communication Services unit understands how to effectively develop and leverage media relationships within a specific industry or profession. Our staff is skilled at using media relations to pre-promote conferences and trade shows, driving awareness and generating press clippings that complement direct-to-market efforts. We also set up and manage on-site media centers to meet the needs of media attending your event. Our staff offers experience in a wide variety of industries and topic areas, having publicized scientific and research findings presented at medical/health, technology and other professional conferences.

Promotional Products
Offering hundreds of options ranging from mouse pads and laptop bags to creative neckwear and never-seen-before innovative premiums, this convenient service allows organizations to extend their brands in clever and cost-effective ways. Our staff has more than 20 years of experience in advertising specialty and promotional products services, and is committed to meeting your deadlines and expectations.

Please contact us to learn how SmithBucklin can serve your marketing & communications needs.