Evaluations from Marketing Workshop conducted by Kordell Norton for the Pennsylvania Chambers of Commerce Executives

The following are unedited comments from the evaluations sheets.

Pennsylvania Chambers of Commerce Executives

Making Your Chamber Grow and Membership Increase - Marketing Workshops

August 6, 7, 9^, 2007 - Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Philadelphia

By Kordell Norton

What did we do today that will help you?  What insights will help you get better results and improve?

·         The use of You Cans!  Changing the same old things we always do, getting a tag line, and focusing on the “third column” . . . which is the things that matter to the customer and focusing on the future results for the customer.

·         The “you cans” help change my perspective on marketing.  It helped to target our top headnodders (customer’s wishes and needs) too.

·         Realized the importance of “you cans” – how to revitalize some of our events that have passed down year after year – “Branding” the chamber more. . .  that we need more “wow”

·         The You Can statements were great.  As a sales person the Posey Grid information was helpful and will help me target and better prospect.

·         Think with a different perspective.  The “You Cans” were great.

·         Kordell turned the lights on and help us see.  He showed us how to identify our strength and “shave the fat”

·         You Cans – You Cans . . .and the Posey Grid

·         The Posey Grid and “You Can” statements are great!

·         The START and STOP card and its ideas.  Great ideas for possible new events.  Ask members what they like and dislike about us.  Cater to members needs.  I like the interaction and group discussions.  The Posey model was great. 

·         The START/STOP card helped me prioritize ideas.  “You Can” statements – GOOD.  The Posey Model – GOOD.  I liked the examples of bad marketing.

·         The insight sheet is great!  Our evaluation sheets are too long.  The START and STOP card seems valuable.

·         1. “STOP” ideas and “START ideas need to happen at least every 3 to 5 years.  2. YOU CANs. . . helped me change my way of thinking . . . .

·         Features vs. Benefits – We/I vs. “You Cans” – The DRASTIC model is AWESOME!

·         DRASTIC, You Cans – More interaction with other chambers – split multiples from the same office.

·         Excellent marketing tips & techniques.  Made me think about what we are doing right & wrong.  Very interesting information on marketing trends & history.

·         The ‘You Cans’ – we are in the process of rebranding and this has been VERY helpful.

·         “You Cans” – START/STOP cards

·         I will start to create ‘experiences’ in all we do & communicate those cleanly

·         “The use of Features and Benefits in a sales call” – You Cans . . . are a great marketing tool.  Reversing the chambers focus to member focus

·         #1 – DRASTIC, #2 You Cans, #3 Posey Grid

·         “You cans” to update and improve our marketing message, focusing on what our members perceive to a value.  Recognizing how to engage our members in Chamber events to turn them into an experience. 

·         The Four Quadrants – how to sort members/prospects.

·         #1 the You Can marketing tools and #2 DRASTIC

·         The “Awesome Insight Sheet – The You Cans – The Posey Grid

·         Converting benefits to “you cans”

·         The Posey Grid was great.  Wish I could do this for entire membership.  The You Cans will help focus information for potential members.  We will also personalize our information and include more testimonials.

·         Add “You Cans” to everything – use testimonials – the Posey Grid

·         The concept of C.A.S.E. – referral marketing – The Posey Grid

·         We need customer testimonials in our literature pack – the use of “You can” statements – I need to change my voicemail and email

·         Taking a look at what we do that is stale and can be revitalized.  Lots of good ideas.

·         Creating an experience in an experience based economy.  The use of You Cans versus “we offer”

·         You changed my thinking and I know I will get better results with the “you cans” thinking

·         Selling benefits, benefits, benefits

·         I love the Posey Grid, DRASTIC, You Cans and white space is O.K.

·         Presented new angles to chamber marketing and helpful hints for chamber growth.

·         We will be revamping our marketing materials thanks to Kordell’s insightful exercises.

·         We need to de-clutter our marketing materials.  We also need to evaluate our customers more to see how and from whom we’ll be making money.

·         It was good to get the insights on our marketing materials.  It made us rethink our message

·         Looking more closely at the things we need to “stop” doing, and our You Cans.  We will continue to look for ways to create DRASTIC change. 

·         Do not keep doing what is not successful!  Don’t be afraid to drop event or programs – Create more for current members.  Reaffirmed where the true values are for members.

·         Made you look at what you do or could do in a more realistic simplistic manner.  Found the marketing materials suggestions VERY helpful.

 

What do you wish you had gotten more information on?

·         I can always use more info on marketing.

·         More “you cans” suggestions and where to use them.  Other chambers ideas and how they changed their ‘old’ programs.

·         More sales material

·         Ideas for Chamber from other Chambers

·         More interaction between the chambers – Mix up the tables.

·         Take this seminar to the next step

·         New events for my chamber – new ideas for ways to market

·         New events for chamber

·         I wish we were able to see other Chambers’ marketing materials that were “great” and that “work”

·         Break up large Chambers and make us separate!!!!

·         Creating more active Board Members – TIME. . . we needed more time with this material

·         Chambers are unique. . . . we are seen as the end all, be all, so some of the information was difficult to apply

·         Ideas to make events more of an experience.

·         The “Ps”

·         The information was sound and presented in an entertaining and engaging fashion, however, it most easily translates to tangibles.  More tailoring to the intangibles of the chamber world may be beneficial.

·         Ramping up events.  We heard many events but only 2 ramp-ups from Kordell . . . would have liked to hear more.

·         More info on what works for other Chambers, so we can come up with ideas to adapt to our own.  Overall, great presentation.  The presentation gave us great new and fresh marketing ideas.  I will take back to my Chamber a plethora of new ideas including ways to maximize our member’s exposure & member to member discounts, as well as creating an experience.  I will stop busy work and stop focusing on what makes our chamber qualifies and how we deliver it and START focusing on what the results are and what values our members from us.

·         More time to share best practices.

·         The Sales Grid. . . I wished we could have spent more time here.

·         I would like to see more interaction with other Chambers.  I would spend half the time with our chamber and half the time with others.

·         I would have like to practice translating benefits into “you cans”

·         The only thing I could think of:  More on DRASTIC . . . I read the Throwing Gas on the Fire book and was so excited after reading it and was ready to put it to work.  I thought you might go more in depth.

·         Referral marketing ideas

·         Hear other Chambers problems, items and have Kordell’s ideas on them.

·         More on business development => new customers, new products.  Would like more instruction specific to our organization and the topics were broad, as they needed to be

·         I would have like to have more critiques of my marketing materials. 

·         Less economic strategy/more workshop exercises with specific critiques.

·         None, it was very insightful

·         We will continue looking at how to convey our message in other mediums

·         Would like to see samples of marketing materials and more handouts for reference later.

 

Do you have any thoughts for Kordell?

·         “Kordell . . .  you need to speak to Institute & ACCE in Pittsburgh.  You are awesome, likable and insightful!!

·         Good speaker . . . but I wish we had known to bring marketing materials.  It would have been great to have them looked at like the few we did in the workshop.

·         “Kordell.  . . you shouldn’t have thrown away that dollar!”

·         You need to speak @ Institute

·         Come back for “sales”

·         You should come speak with our Chamber & do Strategic Planning

·         Very dynamic.  Best speaker I’ve heard in quite a while!!

·         “I thought Kordell was wonderful.  I would like to have him come to speak to our Annual Meeting!  Well done!!”

·         Great Job!

·         “Kordell’s session was very enlightening.  I learned a lot of new selling techniques that I’ll take with me, use and get results.”

·         Nice job.  Enjoyed the sound marketing principles. 

·         Thank you for an innovative, thought provoking seminar.

·         Great presentation

·         Kordell gave great examples that we can use to build our business.  In addition you did a great job of talking to us, not at us.

·         “Kordell.  . . you gave us lots of things to think over and sent us back to the drawing board.  We’re inspired!”

·         This was the second time I heard Kordell.  I enjoyed hearing him the 1^st time so much that I wanted to make sure I didn’t miss a thing.

·         You did a great job!

·         “Kordell made learning real, simplistic, easy to understand, easy to put into use and FUN.”