We talked to several larger, more traditional marketing firms before electing to go with London, Ink. The first thing that struck me about Bob’s approach were the following questions he asked me and our team during our first “get to know you” meeting:

• “Why do you think you’re ready to invest in marketing?”
• “Do you already have a marketing strategy (i.e. do you know what you don’t know?)”
• “If you hire a traditional agency, who internally is going to manage them?”

So here’s someone who makes a living helping companies develop marketing strategy and manage marketing execution, but rather than focusing on tactics like radio, print, web, Bob started by getting us to look at our motives. In other words, spending a dollar on traditional marketing meant not investing that dollar on, say product development, support, or an additional sales person.

That approach helped build trust right from the start of our relationship. And the question about who within ServerVault would manage a traditional agency, if we went in that direction, was poignant. We needed a resource that could span marketing strategy to planning to execution, including program development and management and creative services.

A year later we remain convinced we made the right choice with London, Ink. Bob’s “virtual vp of marketing” model plus London, Ink’s agency-style capabilities, is the right combination for a growth-stage company like ServerVault.

Learn more about London, Ink at www.londonink.com.

Bob London is president of London, Ink, a Maryland-based marketing and communications consulting firm, and serves as a Virtual VP of Marketing for growth stage companies that need an injection of marketing experience and leadership to drive key initiatives and results.

You may have heard the expressions, “we’re drinking our own Kool-Aid,” or “seems like we’re talking to ourselves,” referring to a business plan, market assumptions or even brochure copy that doesn’t seem grounded in the customer’s reality. These cliché’s exist for a reason: too often, companies use only internal assumptions, layered with gut instinct and perhaps an excerpt from a Forrester Research report to formulate their plans.

To help shed some light on why and how emerging companies should go to the marketplace to validate and refine their basic assumptions, the Northern Virginia Technology Council’s (NVTC) Emerging Business Committee asked Bob London, President of London, Ink LLC, to be the featured speaker at its Spring, 2005 event.

The event, titled, “Don’t Fear the Research,” was an engaging discussion of the importance of doing primary research and solid market analysis to back up projections and assumptions without significant expenditures. Subjects covered by Mr. London included:

• What prospects or relevant subjects have critiqued your product?
• How can you approach these subjects to turn them into prospects?
• From what public sources can information be mined with little or no expense?
• How can you construct a basic, credible situation analysis?

Those who missed this informative event can download a copy of the PowerPoint presentation here.

See the PDF at http://www.londonink.com/pdfs/WSJ%20Case%20Study%202.pdf

Bob London is president of London, Ink, a Maryland-based marketing and communications consulting firm, and serves as a Virtual VP of Marketing for growth stage companies that need an injection of marketing experience and leadership to drive key initiatives and results.

NEWS ADVISORY:

London, Ink Direct Mail Campaign for McKinley Marketing Partners Wins Award for Third Consecutive Year

Awards don’t make a campaign successful, but winning an award for a successful campaign can increase awareness of the client’s product or service—especially when the client is McKinley Marketing Partners. McKinley Marketing Partners is the leading provider of Interim Marketing ManagersSM (IMMs®) to Fortune 2000 companies and government agencies.

McKinley 2004 direct mail campaign, created by its agency of record, London, Ink LLC, was named by the Service Industry Advertising Awards (SIAA) as one of the best in its class. Other winners included industry and category leaders such as Verizon Wireless, JetBlue Airlines, Ritz Carlton Hotels, the National Football League and MetLife.
While awards don’t increase revenue, this one helped increase McKinley’s visibility among its core target audience: senior marketing decision-makers who need interim marketing expertise for a wide range of marketing projects, from strategy and product management to public relations and lead generation.

“Bob London’s understanding of McKinley’s business goals and our marketplace, plus fantastic creativity, resulted in a campaign that directly supported our growth last year.” said Marcia Call, McKinley’s President and Chief Marketing Officer. “We’re pleased to have London, Ink as our agency of record—and the subsequent direct mail campaign for McKinley has only reinforced our satisfaction.”

Bob London is president of London, Ink, a Maryland-based marketing and communications consulting firm, and serves as a Virtual VP of Marketing for growth stage companies that need an injection of marketing experience and leadership to drive key initiatives and results.

COMPANY PROFILE: McKinley Marketing Partners, Inc.

Leading National Provider of Interim Marketing ManagersSM to Fortune 2000 companies.

SITUATION:

McKinley’s crack business development/sales managers are responsible for the target businesses in their respective geographic territories.

To raise awareness among the target audience prior to follow up calls by the sales team, McKinley has been doing a successful quarterly direct mail campaign.

SOLUTION:

For 2005 we took a step back and spoke to prospects about how they make decisions regarding interim marketing resources.

We found that, since their needs are event-driven (new launch, key manager on maternity leave), McKinley needed to increase mindshare, thus increasing the odds that they will contact the prospect when the need is active.

Since the business development managers cannot physically call each prospect every month, London, Ink recommended increasing the frequency of direct mail from four to ten per year.

Additionally while awareness of McKinley’s overall value proposition was high, there are many benefits that were not as well known. The increased frequency of mailings was an opportunity to showcase different key benefits and support points.

RESULTS:

The increased frequency of the direct mail campaign has been a better fit for the McKinley sales team, since they no longer have to contact each mailed prospect each quarter. The mailings do the work for them by keeping the McKinley name and benefits in front of the prospects.

Bob London is president of London, Ink, a Maryland-based marketing and communications consulting firm, and serves as a Virtual VP of Marketing for growth stage companies that need an injection of marketing experience and leadership to drive key initiatives and results.

COMPANY PROFILE: Media/Professional Insurance
Leading national underwriter of media, professional and cyber liability since 1979. A division of AON Corporation.

SITUATION:

For 25 years Media/Professional Insurance (MPI) has been a pioneer and innovator in underwriting media liability insurance for many of the country’s leading media companies. MPI has leveraged its leadership position in media liability into two other very successful businesses: Cyber Liability and Professional/Specialty Liability.

The company’s new CEO and his leadership team faced a series of challenges in adjusting sales and marketing operations to market expectations, specifically among its key distribution channels.

MPI also needed to enhance its positioning and messaging to the market to reinforce and extend its leadership position.

SOLUTION:

With the CEO, London, Ink defined a Phase I in which a situation analysis and marketing plan would be delivered. This analysis and plan became the company’s road map to enhancing market performance via a number of high priority initiatives.

Bob London serves as the company’s Virtual VP of Marketing and leads or supports several critical programs, including:

• Restructuring the way MPI manages its main distribution channel;
• Working with its marketing partners to drive awareness and new business; and
• Developing the company’s marketing and sales support materials with an upgraded positioning and messaging.

RESULTS:

MPI’s CEO has reported that, due in large part to the new situation analysis and marketing plan, the company has become more focused on its new mission and has successfully reshaped its priorities. As a result MPI now views marketing as a pro-active, value-added function.

As a result, the bottom line is that MPI’s new business numbers—which account for approximately half of its annual revenue—have already shown significant upward movement.

London, Ink is now developing a Phase II marketing plan to build on the current momentum by developing several key marketing awareness, acquisition and retention programs.

Bob London is president of London, Ink, a Maryland-based marketing and communications consulting firm, and serves as a Virtual VP of Marketing for growth stage companies that need an injection of marketing experience and leadership to drive key initiatives and results.

See the PDF at http://www.londonink.com/pdfs/search%20engine%20article%20quotin g%20BL.pdf

COMPANY PROFILE: MAP ROI Systems, Inc.
(Now Synchris, Inc.)

Emerging leader in government business development and capture management solutions.

SITUATION:

MAP ROI is a Sterling, Virginia-based company that has developed G-Force, the first end-to-end system for identifying, qualifying, proposing and managing Government business.

SOLUTION:

I was introduced to MAP ROI’s founder and CEO, Christopher Stahl, by one of his key advisors, a very senior public relations executive in the mid-Atlantic region. At the time this self-funded company was considering hiring a Vice President of Marketing, but the advisor recommended Mr. Stahl discuss the Virtual VP of Marketing concept with London, Ink.
Upon meeting with Mr. Stahl, it was apparent that MAP ROI needed help prioritizing and executing some of the key marketing initiatives that had been lagging.
The initial priorities were to:

• Determine the company’s ideal go-to-market positioning and messaging;
• Incorporate the positioning/messaging in the company’s first corporate Web site;
• Develop sales support materials that reflected the company’s value proposition and key benefits; and
• Perhaps most importantly, reduce the CEO’s day-to-day involvement in marketing planning and execution.

RESULTS:

London, Ink first designed the company’s first corporate Web site and sales literature, including entirely new messaging that delivered the company’s value proposition and key benefits.

Based on the success of these projects, Bob London was then retained as Virtual VP of Marketing to lead the company’s key marketing initiatives, manage its existing staff and drive day to day progress on all branding, partner marketing and infrastructure such as the sales and lead generation process.

COMPANY PROFILE: Digex, Incorporated
Leading provider of managed Web hosting services for Fortune 2000 companies.

SITUATION:

One of several national tier-one ISPs in early 1997 with annual sales of approximately $20 million, competing against larger firms such as UUNET, AT&T, Sprint, GTE, IBM & Exodus.

Digex became the leading provider of managed Web hosting services to Fortune 2000 and other web-reliant companies, including financial services and insurance firms, retailers, business-to-business firms and technology firms.

SOLUTION:

Joined as virtual VP of marketing to drive upgraded sales support, corporate identity & lead generation. Subsequently hired as FT VP of Marketing; built marketing department & developed new positioning in <45 days. Positioned Digex as the hosting company of choice for companies with high-investment Web businesses.

Digex had just gone public in late-1996 and was having trouble ramping up its marketing programs. After its first marketing executive didn’t work out, I was called in to serve as Virtual VP of Marketing to organize and lead execution of several key deliverables, starting with the company’s first corporate brochure and including successful direct mail initiatives for both its Web Site Management and Business Internet Connectivity divisions.

RESULTS:

During initial six-week engagement created company’s first integrated marketing program.

Success led to full-time VP of Marketing position, in which I served for two-and-a-half years.

During that time, built the company’s first corporate marketing department and launched all key marketing infrastructure components.

Let do annual revenue growth in excess of 100% for 3 consecutive years. Digex became known for its expertise in managing Web sites, which became the high value, high margin sector of the hosting business. Subsequent IPO raised $175M and resulted in market cap of over $2B.

COMPANY PROFILE: MCI

Nation’s 2nd largest long distance company.

SITUATION:

In late 1990, MCI was under attack from a $400M negative advertising campaign by AT&T causing stagnant market share at approximately 9%. Consumer long distance was effectively a commodity business.

SOLUTION:

Launched new consumer long distance service, MCI Friends & Family, to establish a powerful brand in this commodity category.

Mr. London was responsible for the $100M advertising and branding program from its inception.

Ran tv commercials featuring celebrity spokespeople to boost awareness of new service and its benefits. Created warm, soft sell commercials to communicate the emotional benefits of being able to “talk more with your friends & family” while saving on long distance costs.

RESULTS:

MCI’s credibility and awareness ratings grew by 25% within 3 months. Awareness of the “Friends & Family” service grew from zero to 65% of US households within 5 months.

In just the first 18 months, MCI signed 8 million new subscribers and gained 11 market share points worth a total of $550M.