Josh Sommers

Goshen, N.Y. – July 15, 2010 – Focus Media, Inc., a leading Hudson Valley-based public relations and advertising firm, has been selected as advertising agency of record by Combined Energy Services (CES). CES, which started as a one-truck business, is now one of the largest gas and oil suppliers in the region, providing dependable propane … Continue reading “COMBINED ENERGY SERVICES NAMES FOCUS MEDIA AGENCY OF RECORD”

I’ve always been of the mind that well-run political campaigns are on the forefront of the latest in effective research, branding, marketing, publicity and social media strategies. While creating general awareness through television, print and radio are important components for many campaigns, the marriage between research and the targeted marketing in politics is intriguing. Political … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: Politicians’ campaigns show marketing genius in action”

Your brand is not necessarily your own. Imagine comparing your reaction to seeing the BP logo a year ago to how you would respond today after the environmental disaster the company created. And I bet the warm-and-fuzzy feeling a Tiger Woods picture gave you last year likely gives you a different feeling now. BP and … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: Controlling brand takes effort”

Granted it might not happen every day, but many of us have, at some point, been so touched by a television commercial that it moved us to tears. That’s pretty amazing for a 30-to 60-second advertisement. I bet an Internet advertisement or piece of direct mail never had the same effect on you. Last week, … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: Do TV commercials right – or not at all”

The other night I was doing my part and sitting through a dreadful television show my wife couldn’t wait to see. I don’t think I was exactly the target demographic the TV producers had in mind for this particular show. A commercial break came on, and in rolled the advertisements for products such as fabric … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: TV advertising reaches your target audience”

The Great Recession may be over, but it will continue to impact how we think, and rethink, our business strategy for years, even for the remainder of our careers. One thing that certainly did test us during the recession was change, and how we communicated it. While change done strategically can create better efficiencies and … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: Internal communication crucial”

Staying on message is one of the most fundamental rules of any type of external and internal communications. IBM repeated the word “excellence” in its advertising during the 1980s until the lines became part of pop culture. Martin Luther King Jr. repeated “I have a dream” in his famous speech at the Lincoln Memorial in … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: Consistent message is key to garnering support”

By Josh Sommers Published: 05/21/10 The BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is now considered the nation’s worst environmental disaster in decades and will have devastating consequences for years to come. Ever since the April 20th fire on an oil rig that killed 11 people, an estimated 210,000 gallons of crude oil a day … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: Lessons from the Gulf spill”

By Josh Sommers Published: 05/14/10 Marketing is about presence. Are you the company that the marketplace thinks of for your product or service? Well, that certainly is where you want to be. Part of creating that top-of-mind awareness is event marketing. A great place to do that is at trade shows and consumer expos. Expos … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: Trade shows can be key tool!”

By Josh Sommers Published 05/07/10 When marketing your business, you have to think big. Part of thinking big is investing marketing resources to create “buzz.” While traditional advertising always remains important, many companies enlist event marketing to generate that all-important buzz in the market. Do you now have a new product or service you are … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: Create buzz with market events”

By Josh Sommers Published:  04/30/10 Marketing and positively positioning your firm in the market starts at home. You can have the best business-development program, but if your team isn’t equipped to serve the new clients you earn, you’ll go around in circles. A good marketing plan includes equipping your service team to succeed. That’s why … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: Put high priority on training your staff”

Focus Media CEO Josh Sommers told the Orange County Chamber of Commerce Marketing Seminar attendees to put any lingering Great Recession bunker mentality behind them, and go forth and pursue new business. In a presentation at the Hilton Garden Inn Hotel in Newburgh NY, Sommers gave numerous examples of how carefully targeted and well developed creative … Continue reading “Josh Sommers tells Marketing Seminar it’s time to gear up efforts”

By Josh Sommers Published 04/23/10 Most often, 80 percent of a company’s business can be attributed to 20 percent of its customers. OK, that’s no big revelation. But when developing strategies to grow your business, it’s vital to market with the 80/20 rule in mind. Going after new business through advertising is important. But the … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: Devote time to your biggest customers”

By Josh Sommers Published: 04/16/10 As a “PR man” and marketing strategist, I’m an optimist and positive thinker. I try to bring that vibe and culture to the companies I work for. Late last year, I wrote, with some level of prematurity, that the worst was behind us. This was part of my advice that … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: Post-recession marketing begins with your image”

By Josh Sommers Published: 04/09/10 No business, whatever its size, has unlimited resources for marketing. That’s why every dollar spent on promotion has to count. If your company was advertising accounting services, you wouldn’t buy ads on MTV. Similarly, promoting auto parts in a magazine focused on early child years also would not be the … Continue reading “Targeted advertising can yield top results”

By Josh Sommers Published: 04/02/10 Social networking is sweeping across all industry sectors in the Hudson Valley at a speed I’ve never seen before. Over the last three weeks, we’ve created six Facebook pages for clients, and coached many others on Twitter and other forms of social media. It’s a fascinating time as businesses rush … Continue reading “All sectors gravitating to social media”

2010 represents a major milestone for the Villa Roma resort in the Sullivan County Catskills. Villa Roma is celebrating its 40th anniversary! To commemorate the occasion, Focus Media designed a special 40th anniversary logo for the resort  which you will see in Villa advertising and e-newsletters. Focus Media will assist Villa Roma in leveraging its … Continue reading “Villa Roma Celebrates 40 years in 2010”

March 26, 2010 Walk down any main street and ask people to name their representatives in Congress, the state Senate or the local municipal board. Most people won’t know, or are simply confused about who sits in what seat. I’ve run my share of political and public perception polls. In general, people are unengaged, don’t … Continue reading “Focus on Marketing: Health care needs education campaign”