Carson Blog

Inbound Marketing Explained

2011-03-22T16:44:00.008-05:00

Great infographic. This is pretty much everything that goes into a successful digital marketing strategy!

See the larger version here.

Carson Group Commercial Shoot is Electrifying

2011-01-13T16:51:00.001-06:00

Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5

The Carson Group at "A Prairie Home Companion"

2010-11-22T11:55:00.002-06:00

John and Lauren stealing a photo with Garrison Keillor.

As a proud sponsor of NPR's A Prairie Home Companion, The Carson Group had the delight to attend the LIVE recording at the Brown Theater at the Wortham Theater Center in Houston, Texas. Garrison Keillor brought Lake Wobegon news with a Texas twist.

Special guests included The Quebe Sisters Band of Ft. Worth, Texas-born mandolinist / violinist Richard Kriehn, and the Chérubin of Midland, beloved mezzo-soprano Susan Graham.

Susan Graham and Garrison Keillor

The Guy's All-Star Show Band

The Quebe Sisters Band

We had a great time and are looking forward to PHC's next Houston visit!

Use the Art of Persuasion to Entice Customers to Come to You!

2010-09-22T15:12:00.004-05:00

by Paul Carson

Wouldn’t it be great to have people seek you out…just because they want to do business with you, instead of you having to hunt them down?

During a down economy, marketers forget all about the art of persuasion and throw all their dollars at direct mail, price-off coupons and shouting at you on radio and television.

The thought is “I will force you to come and do business with us.” Or, “I will keep promising lower and lower prices until you finally succumb.”

Research study after research study shows that the old adage is true, You can catch more bees with honey.

Yes, you have to use price off when the market is down.

But, you can do it in a nice, believable way.

At the Carson Group, we follow these rules:

BE SIMPLE …so people will understand the message.

Be SINCERE …tell people the truth, because if they don’t trust you, they won’t buy from you.

RELATE to the person you are trying to persuade.... Know who you your customers are and what they are thinking. And what phrases and words they are most likely to use themselves.

Then, if you can do all the above, be CREATIVE and MEMORABLE.

We don’t start out with a sales message that is shocking or provocative just to get attention. If the message is on target, most of the time that makes it memorable.

A Message Sent Is Not Necessarily A Message Received

2010-09-22T14:27:00.004-05:00

by Paul Carson

An email was sent, but you didn't get it.

Maybe our server was down. Maybe you were on vacation and didn't get the message in time to respond...and you forgot to set up an automatic out-of-town reply.

It doesn't matter; the message was sent, but not received by the intended party.

When you advertising message is sent over the airwaves but not understood by your prospective customers, it is costly in two important ways.

First, your marketing dollars were wasted.

Second, you missed a sales opportunity that was lost. Maybe your competitor's ads worked and got the sale.

How often does this happen? Study after study suggests that upwards of 70% of all television commercials are simply not understood by its audience or didn't relate or motivate them.

If that wasn't bad enough, most advertising campaigns miss their market because the media planner and buyers bought the wrong stations or the wrong programming.

Always think of advertising as a personal sale. You wouldn't try to sell the receptionist when you really need to talk to the company president, would you?

Many marketing programs fall short because the message is never heard by the person who makes the decision to buy what you are selling.

The Magic Button

2010-09-22T14:00:00.004-05:00

... a true story by Paul Carson

Years ago, The Carson Group was asked to gelp an old line Houston retailing concern whose founder had passed away nine years prior.

the business was taken over by his two sons who decided to cut the company's marketing budget by 80% and all promotion activities.

all this in order for them to make as much out of the business as possible.

Since it was a well known old line Houston business, it took several years for sales to decline. But decline they did!

Then when a national chain that was a direct competitor moved to Houston, sales started dropping at an alarming rate.

Management was honest and frank in our meeting.

They had made a blunder and wanted help.

We told them that marketing simply sped up what was going to happen eventually, so before embarking on any advertising program, and exposing more potential customers to a business that was not physically competitive, we recommend that they "spiff" up their operation with new paint, carpeting, uniforms, and so on.

When the company was ready, The Carson Group decided we need to remind folks about how the establishment was an important part of Houston's history with an aggressive radio campaign.

Nostalia-style spots were created and aired in a pulsed fashion to acheive maximum exposure and frequency as fast as possible.

After three months of re-introducing Houston to our cients, we proposed a series of promotional ideas, each for duration of two weeks, one week off and then the next promotion on.

Sales result?

overall sales incresed 36%, promotional item sales more than 250%!

We were elated and thought the cient would be also. At our next meeting, the two brothers were a little subdued.

"Got a lot of complaints about he promotions," they said.

"what about,' we asked. "The pricing? The items on sale? Sales were way up, what was the complaint?"

They said no customers complained, but they employees did, they simply didn't want to work that hard.

What they wanted was slow growth.

They explained that they now thought of advertising kind of like a magic button, that they could simply push when things were slow and not push when sales were rising... not to fast mind you.

Yes, properly planned marketing is a Magic Button, but savvy businessmen know they should never stop pushing it...because the competition has their own Magic Button.

Tru Colors Apparel Redesign

2010-09-01T17:30:00.003-05:00

Tru Colors Apparel is a line of clothing that is fashion forward and trend-right; essentially fusing women’s contemporary fashion, game day apparel and team colors. The Tru Colors customer wants to show their spirit in a savvy way, without having it literally written on their sleeves like most traditional game day apparel.

We designed and launched Tru Colors Apparel last year, and we have to admit that it was pretty darn good. Tru Colors decided to get a new logo so we went all out and launched a new and improved site, complete with e-commerce, just in time for football season.

Before

After

To browse the full site and shop the collection, go to TruColorsApparel.com

Luxe Plastic Surgery TV

2010-07-08T11:41:00.003-05:00

Here's several of the TV spots we did for Luxe Plastic Surgery. We wanted them to be really natural and elegant, with a dose of humor with the play on words.

Crows Feet Are For The Birds

High Brown, Low Brow

Laugh Lines Aren't Funny

Mommy Makeover

Luxe Plastic Surgery Web Launch

2010-07-08T11:38:00.007-05:00

This week we launched Luxe Plastic Surgery's new web site.

Luxe is headed up by Dr. Malik Kutty, a plastic surgeon who brings his 14 years of experience from New York to Sugar Land-- a move inspired by his Texas relatives and the warm weather. We were thrilled to be on this project and welcome him to Texas!

To browse the new site, go to LuxePlasticSurgery.com

Before

After

Something to think about: How accurate are media ratings?

2010-06-10T15:49:00.013-05:00

By Paul Carson

At the time of this writing, there are 33 over the air television channels in the Houston metro market to choose from. Not counting over 250 cable channels. This includes affiliates and independents running 45 year old game show repeats along with Spanish, Indian and several Asian language channels.

An advertiser can schedule television commercials to run for as little as $ 8 for a thirty second airing up to over $12,000.

Who decides what each spot is worth and how accurate are they? Of course, the premise is that an advertiser wants an audience to see their commercials. The more people watching …the higher the cost of the spot. Still, who decides how many people are watching any particular show?

To answer this question, you have to start with the Nielsen Television Ratings Company….the Bible of the media buying industry. But, how accurate are they?
Consider these facts: Most of the people they contact to participate in their survey refuse, some estimates range as high as 98% of the people Nielsen contacts will not participate in their survey. So, right away, you have to ask, are those people who won’t participate any different from those who will?

Of course they are.

High income folks shy away. So do males and females in younger demos, and single women. And most ethnic groups!

But let’s make this simple.

In determining which Houston television had the highest rated 6PM News during the month of April, in the very important demographic group of “persons 25 to 54”, only 36 household meters were considered completed enough to be included in this important survey to determine ratings for the 6pm News in Houston.. In other words, out of 2.6 million persons in this age demo, 36 determined the ratings! And, shockingly the difference between the number one rated station and the lowest rated 6 PM News…was a whopping 6 meters.

Was it any better for the 10PM News? No, because only 52 persons in this demo determined the 10 PM News ratings and just 12 was the difference between the Number 1 rated news and the last place.

Is this really how ratings are determined in the 4th largest market in the United States? Unfortunately, yes.

Is there are better way?

Yes, The Carson Group develops and executes media strategies using proprietary methodology that has helped our clients’ realize sales increases of 20-30 and over 40% in this year over last.

Please remember that advertising that produces results is less expensive than advertising that doesn’t. Chasing low cost spots can be a very expensive habit.

Happy Birthday Lauren!

2010-06-02T09:58:00.004-05:00

Lauren's having a great time at La Hacienda!

Carson Group 1974

2010-06-01T09:49:00.006-05:00

KPRC has a great Facebook page sharing their old photographs from their news rooms, talk shows and studios. Our very own Paul Carson was snapped in August, 1974 filming a meat commercial for Randall's Food Market. See more here.

Carson Group Launches Two Houston Restaurant Web Sites

2010-03-17T13:08:00.004-05:00

The Carson Group and Adair Restaurants have announced the launch of two new Web sites for the Los Tios Mexican and Skeeter’s Mesquite Grill restaurant chains.

"The sites really capture the unique energy of these eating establishments", said John Carson, principal of The Carson Group, "The websites use graphic elements from the tablecloths, maps and hand-painted designs found in the restaurants"

The two sites include email loyalty programs, special-offer sections as well as embedded Twitter feeds.

Both Web sites were developed to complement the existing TV, radio and social media campaigns.

About Adair Family Restaurants
Adair Family Restaurants is a family-owned, Houston-based restaurant group
that opened its first restaurant, Skeeter's Mesquite Grill, in 1988. Skeeter's is known for pleasing kids and parents alike with its laid-back atmosphere and smoky South Texas grub. Over the past 22 years, Skeeter's expanded with five other locations around Houston.

In 2000, Adair Family Restaurants acquired one of Houston's oldest Tex-Mex
establishments, Los Tios Mexican Restaurant. Los Tios has been a staple in the local restaurant scene since 1970. Los Tios operates four locations.

John & Jay

2010-03-01T12:53:00.005-06:00

John Carson caught up with The Tonight Show host Jay Leno back stage at Coushatta Casino Resort in Kinder, La.

Before performing at The Pavilion at Coushatta, Leno discussed his new show that debuts March 1, "We're going to keep the elements that people like, Headlines, Jaywalking, stuff like that," said Leno.

"We learned some things from the other show. We'll bring some new comedy elements too. We got some new writers and some new people so hopefully it'll be kind of a better version of what we use to do."

Carson Group Brings Home The ADDYs

2010-02-16T16:55:00.001-06:00

The American Advertising Federation of Houston presented The Carson Group with two ADDY Awards at the 48th Annual AAF-Houston ADDY Awards on Feb. 13 in Houston.

The Carson Group was awarded a Gold ADDY award for the Becks Prime “Culinary Romance” local television campaign. The campaign will be submitted to compete in the American Advertising Federation’s Regional ADDY Competition.

The second award was a Citation of Excellence for a single 15-second television commercial created for Houston-based Gabby’s BBQ.

AAF-Houston is one of the oldest professional organizations in Houston, and the AAF-Houston ADDY Awards are celebrating its 48th year. The ADDY Awards is the advertising industry's largest and most representative competition, attracting over 50,000 entries every year in local ADDY competitions. The mission of the ADDY competition is to recognize and reward creative excellence in the art of advertising.

Paul Carson To Speak at IABC Luncheon

2009-12-09T15:15:00.001-06:00

Listen to Paul speak at the International Association of Business Communications January Luncheon:

Identifying Problems & Opportunities From a Client's Success

Thursday, January 14, 11:00am-1:00pm

La Griglia
2002 West Gray
Houston TX 77009

It is easy to assume that successfully helping a client grow will result in a rewarding and solid relationship with ever-increasing work.

Paul Carson advises consultants about the importance of sensing when a client may require your leadership and dexterity, or risk losing the opportunities you helped create.

For more details, or to sign up for the event, visit the IABC Houston site here.

A Fake Tree & A Real Christmas

2009-12-08T17:40:00.001-06:00

Here's two of our Christmas Tree commercials we created for Houston Garden Centers.

These spots were created to give people reasons to buy real Christmas trees this holiday season. It was such a fun way to get into the Christmas spirit.

Fake Tree

Real Christmas

Want to go behind the scenes?

To see more of our TV spots, go to The Carson Group's TV portfolio.

Houston Snow!

2009-12-04T11:40:00.001-06:00

Now how do we drive in this stuff?

New York, New York

2009-11-17T15:06:00.000-06:00

On location in New York for BrightHome commercial shoot:

So this is what Fall in New York looks like? Beautiful weather, and we have to admit the vehicle wraps look pretty great too!

Houston Garden Centers Christmas Shoot

2009-11-06T14:00:00.002-06:00

We may have just entered November (where did 2009 go?), but we're in full-on Christmas mode. For this years Houston Garden Centers' Christmas Tree commercials, we hooked up with Mr. Claus himself and his buddy Roger Elf to create the magic of Christmas. Here's some behind-the-scene photos:

Joy wrapping presents for the Christmas morning set. If you've ever been in her office, you would know Christmas is her absolute favorite holiday!

Joy posing with Santa & Roger Elf during a break from shooting.

We had so much fun on this project. Back to the editing room-- final cut coming soon!

Introducing... The Carsons!

2009-10-29T12:01:00.001-05:00

Congrats to Leta & Paul!

The two married Sunday, October 25, 2009 in Boerne, Texas, surrounded by friends, family and their adorable dogs, Allie and Duffy.

BrightHome at Westchester Fall Home Show

2009-10-16T13:36:00.002-05:00

Our super green East Coast client, BrightHome Energy Solutions, made their trade show debut at the Westchester Fall Home Show at Pace University in Pleasantville, New York on October 9 & 10.

We are thrilled to hear that BrightHome's super sales team landed 46 solid leads for Comprehensive Energy Assessments-- a home evaluation to check for energy efficiency and safety.

Over the course of the trade show, they distributed 178 Compact Fluorescent (CFL) light bulbs to homeowners. We kind of impact does this make? It's all in the numbers:

178 CFL bulbs will last 1,602,000 more hours than 178 incandescent bulbs.
178 CFL bulbs will save $15,664 over 178 incandescent bulbs.
178 CFL bulbs will save about 175,864 lbs. of CO2 over 178 incandescent bulbs.

Great work BrightHome!

To see more of our print work, go to The Carson Group's Print Portfolio.

Delicious Tweets

2009-10-16T09:25:00.001-05:00

Since its inception, Twitter quickly became one of our favorite new tools of communication. We've created accounts for clients in all areas of business from restaurants, to non-profits to home service providers and have found nothing but success in all of these markets.

The most interesting trend has been the marriage of chow hounds and Twitter. As foodie culture continues to grow, all types of people are "tweating out", or tweeting short reviews of their last dine-out meal, often posting delicious pictures that will have you planning your next food adventure in no time!

The natural enthusiasm from fans of @SkeetersGrill inspired us to create a Twitter commercial:

Since the commercial, the Skeeters Grill Twitter following has nearly doubled in size and has been a great resource for spreading the word on special deals, happy hours and cheap-tweets promotions.

On October 9, Skeeters ran a Twitter deal giving away free chicken sandwiches at their Town & Country location for its followers. Even on this rainy day, Skeeters was packed with patrons chowing down on mesquite-grilled chicken sandwiches and clicking away at their iPhones and Blackberries. Be sure to follow @SkeetersGrill to see what they do next!

Some of our favorite Houston Foodies to follow:

Robb Walsh : Houston Press food critic and author of Sex, Death and Oysters and Are You Really Going to Eat That?

Alison Cook: The Houston Chronicle's food critic. Check out her review of Skeeters Cheeseburger, where she says "The burger is so well-balanced it requires no embellishment."

Addie Broyles: Food writer for Austin American-Statesman. Get the dish on where to go for your weekend getaways to the capital city.

To see more of our television work, go to The Carson Group television portfolio.

Kaneka QH Commercial with Peggy Fleming

2009-10-07T12:21:00.001-05:00

We were thrilled to work with Olympic Medalist Peggy Fleming and Kaneka Nutrients on this national campaign. Japan based Kaneka is the world's largest manufacturer of CoQ10 and the new energy-lifting QH Ubiquinol. Peggy laced up her famous skates and hit the ice at Memorial City Mall's Skate USA.

"Feeling Young Again"

Want to go behind the scenes?

To see more of our television work, go to The Carson Group television portfolio.

FTC Publishes Final Guides Governing Endorsements, Testimonials

2009-10-05T12:51:00.001-05:00

Changes Affect Testimonial Advertisements, Bloggers, Celebrity Endorsements

The Federal Trade Commission today announced that it has approved final revisions to the guidance it gives to advertisers on how to keep their endorsement and testimonial ads in line with the FTC Act.

The notice incorporates several changes to the FTC’s Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising, which address endorsements by consumers, experts, organizations, and celebrities, as well as the disclosure of important connections between advertisers and endorsers. The Guides were last updated in 1980.

The revised Guides also add new examples to illustrate the long standing principle that “material connections” (sometimes payments or free products) between advertisers and endorsers – connections that consumers would not expect – must be disclosed. These examples address what constitutes an endorsement when the message is conveyed by bloggers or other “word-of-mouth” marketers. The revised Guides specify that while decisions will be reached on a case-by-case basis, the post of a blogger who receives cash or in-kind payment to review a product is considered an endorsement.

Celebrity endorsers also are addressed in the revised Guides. The revised Guides make it clear that celebrities have a duty to disclose their relationships with advertisers when making endorsements outside the context of traditional ads, such as on talk shows or in social media.

The Guides are administrative interpretations of the law intended to help advertisers comply with the Federal Trade Commission Act; they are not binding law themselves.

Becks Prime Food Love Campaign

2009-10-04T13:04:00.001-05:00

Becks Prime has been seducing Houston for more than 20 years. For these spots, we matched the critics' praise of Becks Primes favorite dishes with love songs that are sure to tap into your deepest cravings.

"Make It Last"

"Just Tonight"

"You Sure Look Fine"

"I'm In The Mood"

To see more of our television work, go to The Carson Group television portfolio.

Kaneka CoQ10 Commercial Shoot

2009-09-29T13:37:00.001-05:00

Ok, now we're blushing. Here’s a little souvenir from our latest project, which brought us work with the fabulous 1968 Olympic Champion Peggy Fleming.

Peggy came down to Houston to shoot a commercial for Kaneka CoQ10, a vitamin that increases energy and offers a strong protective defense against oxidative stress and age-related conditions.

On location in Houston, Texas:

Post-Production: We're still wrapping things up, but we can't wait to share the final cut!

BrightHome Vehicle Wrap

2009-09-15T13:07:00.001-05:00

How cool is this Honda Fit?

The Fit placed first in a Car and Driver comparison of seven Economy cars and Kelley Blue Book's kbb.com named the 2009 Fit one of its 2009 Top 10 Green Cars.

If you're in New York and you see one of these cruisin' in your neighborhood, honk for energy efficient homes brought to you by BrightHome!

To see more of our work, go to Carson Group Advertising print & outdoor portfolio.

Tru Colors Apparel: Now Online

2009-09-12T10:24:00.001-05:00

New Orleans based Tru Colors Apparel is now online, just in time for football season.

Tru Colors is a line of tops and dresses offered in teams’ easily identifiable color combinations – which are often hard to find. Tru Colors offers cool, stylish options that women WANT to wear, not what they are forced to buy.

We designed their web site to be clean and modern, just like their own designs.

To see more of our work, go to Carson Group Advertising digital portfolio.

BrightHome Energy Solutions : Now Online

2009-08-07T10:35:00.001-05:00

BrightHome.com provides all the information to allow homeowners to learn about the best ways to make their homes more energy efficient, more comfortable and healthier. The site also offers homeowners a convenient way to schedule an appointment online.

What’s an energy audit? What’s a comprehensive energy assessment? BrightHome.com has all the answers to today’s home energy questions. The site features energy solution information for your home, do-it-yourself energy saving tips, and helpful tax information that could save customers thousands of dollars.

To see more of our work, go to Carson Group Advertising digital portfolio.