CCI News :

• CCI was hired by the Concrete Industry Management (CIM) Program – a business intensive program that awards students with a four-year Bachelor of Science degree in Concrete Industry Management – to promote and expand their program. For more information on the CIM program, visit www.concretedegree.com.
  
  
• CCI has been recertified by The Women’s Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC) for another year.
  
  
• Kimberly Kayler was recently featured in the May 2008 edition of A/E Rainmaker with the article “Advisory Boards Prove Beneficial for Business Development”. Click here to read these articles.
  
  
• Wendy Ward was also featured in the February/March 2008 edition of The NAWIC Image newsletter with the articles “Creating Effective Project Sheets” and “How to Get the Most out of Your Association Membership.” Click here to read these articles.  
  
  
• CSI National Conference: Kayler was selected as a speaker on the topic of “How to Gain Recognition for Your Projects through Public Relations” for the CSI National Conference, held in Las Vegas June 4.

And The Survey Says…

CCI recently conducted an online survey of approximately 29 editors in the building, design and construction industry. The purpose of the survey was to determine what public relations professionals can do better to ensure editors’ needs are met. Interestingly, approximately 52 percent of respondents said that public relations firms do a good job of pitching story ideas and concepts. Other results include:

• Respondents noted that most story ideas originate in the following manner:
  - 38 percent hunt down the stories
  - 28 percent get their stories from industry contacts
  - 10 percent receive pitches from companies
  
  
• Approximately 80 percent of those surveyed responded that they do not want public relations people to follow up on information sent.
  
  
• When asked “How can public relations companies improve their communications in regards to reaching the media,” those surveyed said:
  - Review editorial calendars beforehand and research what the editor is currently working on to have a better chance of having your story picked up.
  - Do your homework – understand the publication and their audience and pitch a story that is appropriate for the audience. Don’t send blind pitches.
  - Provide a short synopsis of the story in the pitch e-mail. Provide the entire story in an attachment.
  
  
• “If you could educate the industry about one thing regarding how to be successful with your publication,” responses included:
  - Spend time reading our publication and get to know the content and our needs.
  - Contact us periodically to find out what our publication is working on.
  - The input from engineers is essential – they provide the technical detail that editors thrive on. Trade magazines are read by trade professionals who love technology and hate generalities.
  - Our readers are busy people. The stories that appeal to them are ones that succinctly explain new technologies, provide step-by-step instructions and how-to information.

Q&A:

PR challenge got you stumped? Send your question to Wendy Ward and we’ll respond as well as consider it for a future newsletter so others can learn as well.

Q: Lately, I have been reading several articles about the concept of customer segmentation. Why should I be implementing a customer segmentation program and what are the benefits?

A: Customer segmentation is a process by which you organize your customers in terms of their needs and your services. The process allows a company to select and de-select customers to service, prioritize customers, define and deliver tailored value propositions for customer segments, as well as develop and manage effective channels for serving these customers.

The first step in segmenting your customer base is to identify what you view as important in a client. Make a list of the things you deem important. Ideas include understanding the value you bring to the table, referrals, willingness to pay, provides challenging work, possibility for a long-term relationship, and is a strategic fit in terms of market niche goals.

With this list of desirable attributes complete, go through and weigh your clients on a one to 10 scale in terms of how they perform. Many find it simple to group the tallied numbers at the end in three categories – A, B and C clients. It is likely that you’ll be surprised by the immediate realization that you cater to many of the undesirables. Now, with the criteria established and a basis for where each client falls, determine what level of service is a fit for each category. This is often challenging for service companies to identify, but extremely necessary.

The end result from this planning process should be a customer action plan for your firm that guides your standard operating procedures for all clients. While such tactics may seem out of the norm for your firm’s culture today, most firms report that customer segmentation improves customer service since it enables you to better focus energies on tasks and communication vehicles through more effective allocation and utilization of resources. But, most important, customer segmentation directly links customer behavior and their potential profitability to customer loyalty – the key to success in today’s highly competitive marketplace.

Client Q & A

This issue, we interviewed Tom Merritt, Chief Administrative Officer at H.R. Gray (www.hrgray.com). Read on to learn more about his marketing viewpoints:

Q: Why do you think public relations is an effective marketing tool?
A: Increasing awareness any time you are selling your services, especially professional services, is critically important. Public relations is effective in informing both current and potential clients about your firm and the services you provide.

Q: What advice do you have for someone just embarking on a PR program?
A: Target your audience. It is important to know who you need to be communicating with to sell your services and to understand their issues. What keeps them awake at night? Create a message that explains how your firm addresses their needs and how your firm’s services will let them sleep better at night.

Q: What will you do differently from a marketing communications perspective during the balance of 2008?
A: We plan to simplify our message to develop an easier way to convey the value of our services without getting into too much detail that overwhelms our audience. It is important to convey the message that our services are beneficial simply and succinctly. We will also be updating our printed material and the H. R. Gray website.