Fargo INC! February 2016 | Página 6

E D I TO R' S N OT E Navigating The Our cover story this month really centered around one question: If I'm running a company – whether it's an agricultural equipment manufacturer, a restaurant or an electric utility – how do I market my business in 2016? People are listening to radio on their phones, watching TV on their tablets and reading the newspaper on their Kindles. Their attention spans continue to decrease, and their eyes and ears are being pulled in an ever-increasing number of directions. So how do you get them to pay attention? To answer this question and many others, we turned to experts from local marketing and advertising agencies. We spoke with CEOs, marketing advisors and creative strategists – with decades of combined experience in a variety of industries – about what works and what doesn't in our fractured media landscape. Some of the agencies focused on specific case studies and others on more general marketing information and advice, but the Photo by Paul Flessland Marketing Maze common thread is that they all focused on one of their real-life clients: companies doing business right here in the Red River Valley. Companies that, just like yours, have had to learn to find and engage their audiences in more effective and efficient ways. Some of their answers will surprise you, others maybe not as much. But at the very least, you'll gain some behind-thescenes insight into the marketing process and develop an appreciation for the amount of resources, time and attention that successful marketing requires in today's business world. Enjoy! Nate Mickelberg Editor, Fargo INC! [email protected] NateMickelberg linkedin.com/in/natemickelberg