PAST ISSUES: July 2006

Editor's Note:  So you want to grow?
You’re the best there is at what you do, what you produce, what you sell, what services you provide — or at least you strive to be. So, how do you get the word out to potential customers? How do you set your-self apart? Word of mouth? Advertising? Both have worked for years for smaller businesses that seek no more than a steady customer base. But, what about those that want to grow, to expand? For corporations, branding, marketing and public relations has long been an important component of their operations.

Entrepreneur Watch:  Parcxmart founder envisions coinless meters
Since 2003, a Hampton Falls company has been leading a quiet revolution to transform the common parking meter. Parcxmart specializes in smart card payment plans and it has targeted the coin-consuming parking meter industry — there are as many as 5 million meters in the country that generate an estimated $7 billion annually — as an avenue for consumers to pay not only for parking, but also for meals, coffee and newspapers.

Featured Article:  In-house advantages: Companies with marketing, PR staffs have flexibility, institutional knowledge
For companies and nonprofits that can sustain an internal marketing and public relations department, the benefits are significant. “There’s so many advantages to understanding the culture,” said Nancy Notis, manager of public affairs at Portsmouth Hospital. “Health care is complicated and the technology is changing every moment. It’s very local and it’s very personal, and it makes it important that we convey that in a meaningful way.” “Over time, our communications team gets to know who our subject matter ‘experts’ are, who is appro-priate for which interviews,” said Kate King, the associate manager of corporate communications at Timberland in Stratham.

Featured Article:  In fast-paced world: Image really is everything
Nation branding, political branding, emotional branding, e-branding. People everywhere these days are touting branding campaigns to gain that competitive edge. The marketing maneuver is by no means "brand new." A quick Google for "branding" gleans 120 million entries — scores of books, sales pitches, tales of advice, and examples of businesses seeking a better profit margin.

Featured Article:  The Creative Leap: Seacoast a magnet to marketing, communications and graphic design firms
When Richard Florida of Carnegie-Mellon University released his 2002 book “The Rise of the Creative Class,” it instantly became a topic for debate about how to measure the impact of the cultural aspects of the information age workforce on overall economic development. And whether one accepts or rejects Florida’s conclusions, it’s hard to deny that a transformation has taken place here in the Seacoast region — especially in the sector of marketing, communications and graphic design where scores and scores of companies of all sizes have taken root.

Featured Article:  Cyber sell: Web sites that provide a return on investments are integral to marketing your business
Web sites are increasingly a part of business marketing, proving a valuable tool long after the dotcom crash. And they’re not just for businesses anymore. Demand comes from municipalities, schools and nonprofits. Several Seacoast business owners say while it’s possible to run their companies without a Web site, all agree it would not be in their best interests.

Featured Article:  Swing by The Bluecanoe: Fresh ideas stand out
Tim Guen knew he had a winner when he heard customers commonly use the name of Irving Oil’s new convenience stores. With the older Irving Mainway stores, people would often say they were going to the Irving. "Mainway" became a useless appendage, a part of the business that just wasn’t pulling its weight. Today, just more than a year into the a marketing makeover, Bluecanoe is sailing along.

Politics:  RFID raise great business possibilities, but personal privacy threats
There is a technology available that could be a boon to manufactures, wholesalers, retails and even the federal government, but which gives many civil rights advocates the shivers. It is called RFID, short for radio frequency identification device. RFIDs are wireless devices, or tags, that, unlike bar coding, can be read from a distance, without an physical contact with the reader and without requiring even a line of sight to the device. The uses for this technology are virtually unlimited.

Real Estate:  Signs of the Times: Realtors using some old, and new, tricks of the trade
There were 105 single-family homes for sale in Portsmouth. Four were sale pending. There were another 60 in Rye and only one was sale pending. Add another 92 in Exeter with six sales pending and 159 in Dover with eight pending sale and you have a good look at today’s residential real estate market. The Northern New England Real Estate Network’s Multiple Listing Service listed 416 single-families homes for sale in the aforementioned towns on April 25. Nineteen were sale pending. The days of Realtors selling a home in a matter of days are gone. Homes are sitting for weeks, months and even longer.

Last Word:  Andy Beaupre has been there, done that, and can’t stop doing it
If he hasn’t personally seen it all, then Andy Beaupre, has certainly heard it all when it comes to the truly obtuse field of public relations. After all, he’s been around in the industry long enough to have met Edward L. Bernays, the early 20th Century inventor (if such a distinction can be made) of public relations.