This show, sponsored by the Louisville Advertising Federation, recognizes creative excellence in our localadvertising community. It’s part of a three-tiered system. Work that’s awarded at the local level then advances to the regional level. If it wins at the regional level, it then competes in the national Addy show.

This is all fine and well if you’re an agency. But if you’re a client, a question might cross your mind: “Why should I care?”

Some people believe we admen and adwomen enter award shows simply to satisfy our creative egos. And while I will admit there’s a certain amount of ego gratification involved, that’s not the whole story. An agency that enters the work it creates for its clients is making a statement. It’s saying, “We’re proud of this work. We think it’s some of our best.”  Think about that for a moment. If you’re a client, don’t you want an agency that’s doing its best for you?

There’s another reason you should care. Last year, a new study in the UK by Thinkbox and the Institute for Practitioners in Advertising found that most creatively awarded work is 11 times more efficient at delivering business success.  Did you get that? Eleven times.  1,100% more effective. You can read a summary of the study at www.thinkbox.tv/server/show/ConWebDoc.2490.

Now back to Friday night. Our “Scrapbook” TV commercial for Kentucky Tourism brought home the gold in the special effects/animation category. It was also awarded a silver in the general regional/national TV category. (You can view it on this page.)  “Vintage Kentucky,” a video promoting Kentucky’s winemaking industry for the Kentucky Department of Agriculture won us another silver. A bus shelter poster campaign promoting the free downtown trolleys for the Transit Authority of River City earned us four more silvers. And a newspaper ad campaign for Trilogy Health Services, a network of assisted living and rehabilitation facilities, earned us our final four silvers of the night.

On behalf of New West, let me offer a hearty thank you to our clients who allowed us to do such stellar work last year. And to those of you who aren’t clients yet, maybe you should ask us to create some award-winning work for you, too.

Hundreds of thousands of visitors explored the Kentucky Experience at the FEI Alltech World Equestrian Games.

The last four weeks have been a blur of activity here at New West. And before we light out to our next assignments, we thought we’d catch our breaths for a brief recap.

It all began with the load-in of all things Kentucky into The Kentucky Experience at the Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games. Two years in the planning, the three pavilions and courtyard gardens welcomed the 500,000-plus people who visited or participated in the Games at the Kentucky Horse Park. From Corvettes to crafts and bourbon to bluegrass bands – every item, every activity and every inch of space was carefully designed, decorated and displayed to showcase the best Kentucky has to offer. For 16 days, the International (and NBC-TV) “sun” shone bright on this Kentucky home! For that work, the Kentucky Department of Travel presented New West with its “Partner of the Year” award.  Thanks for the recognition. It was FUN!

Visitors to the Louisville Water Company's 150th anniversary celebration enjoyed a carriage ride. The historic Water Tower stands in the background.

While WEG was in high gear, we were also helping our friends at the Louisville Water Company prep for a big 150th anniversary celebration. The water branded Pure Tap by New West more than a decade ago was first delivered to businesses in what is now the Central Business District on October 16, 1860. Highlights of the celebration included tours of the magnificent buildings that water company leadership has carefully preserved and maintained over the years (photos) and carriage rides around the Water Tower property on River Road. And through May of 2011, visitors to The Frazier Museum in downtown Louisville will be treated to a display of LWC firsts, facts and artifacts (See http://www.fraziermuseum.org/).

New West helped celebrate a major economic development announcement as well.  Our writers, designers and event management teams helped our GE Appliances and Lighting client orchestrate some world-class good news. It began with an early October announcement at the GE Lighting plant in Bucyrus, Ohio, that will double its workforce over the next two years and ended just last week with the simultaneous announcement at four GE facilities in middle America involving hundreds of millions of dollars of new investment and hundreds of new jobs.

Bad idea.

While it might be tempting to trim an expense that doesn’t immediately add to the bottom line, fading into the background is never the path to success. Think about it: Does hunkering down increase your sales? Do you honestly think you’ll succeed in these hard times when fewer people are reminded of your goods or services?

Marketing now, while others are following the mob into the void, will allow your company to stand out and, most important, remain viable. And when the larger economy does reawaken, you’re well positioned for serious growth.

Marketing is not merely an expense, it’s an investment. The issue is how to invest shrewdly.

For example, this might be a good time to finally jump into the social media swimming pool. A well-designed, well-executed, frequently updated blog, Facebook page or Twitter account will help you accomplish two things – you can not only speak to your customers, you get to hear directly and immediately from them what they like and don’t like. In other words, you learn how to better meet their needs, so you can sell more of whatever you’re trying to sell.

While at the checkout counter the other day, I heard an interesting conversation between two cashiers.

“I hate this place. They scheduled me an extra shift without even asking.”
“They did that to me last week. Plus I haven’t gotten a raise in two years. I’m looking for another job and I’ll be out of here as soon as I can.”

Two thoughts immediately came to mind.

1. I don’t want to hear these people complain. I just want them to finish my order.
2. If this company treats its own people this way, I’m not shopping here again.

And after overhearing that brief conversation, that company has lost my business forever.

Your employees are your most important marketers. They can attract customers to you or they can drive them away. They can make or break your image in the community.

So what do you do to help them market your company? “I pay them, and that should be enough!” may be your most common response. However, that’s not enough.

Here are four action steps you should implement with your “most important sales staff”:

• Treat your employees as a niche market. Communicate with them in a regular manner. Make them feel special. Why?  Not only are they the face of your business, but their families also are extensions of your business. The good and bad things that happen at your company will be discussed at family gatherings, parties, church functions and throughout the community. What do you want them telling other people about you?
• Train your employees on good customer service. Let them know that they represent you and educate them on how to treat your customers. Let them know how important they are to the future of your company. Give them specific ideas on ways to make your customers have a great experience and want to come back.
• Empower your employees to “market” for you. Give them coupons, special offers or other incentives to hand out to customers, friends, neighbors and perfect strangers. This gives them a stake in your success and enables them to showcase your business to people.
• Reward your employees for bringing in new customers or for exemplary customer service. They’ve just helped you make more money. Shouldn’t they get a piece of the pie? Incentives will encourage that.

Every employee you have is a potential marketer for your company. Keep them informed. Talk to them. Give them the tools that will help them – and you – succeed.

I will say it again. Your employees are your most important marketers. Help them succeed. Your bottom line will thank you.