[Nfb-web] Poor Marketing & Communication Efforts

[Mike Freeman]

But it is ... JAWS reads it just fine. And, frankly, we are not certain 
that Zoomtext isn't rendering it correctly, either. If it isn't, is that 
the page's fault or that of Zoomtext's creators?

Mike

  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: C. Smyth
  To: NFB Webmaster's List
  Sent: Sunday, November 11, 2007 1:42 PM
  Subject: Re: [Nfb-web] Poor Marketing & Communication Efforts


  Everett,



  I am in total agreement with you about people identifying in the 
beginning
  what letters or abbreviations stand for in their messages, and I like 
the
  way you stated it.



  It would be nice to know what a fully sighted person sees on the page, 
but
  the point is that the entire page should be accessible to all.



  Charlene





  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: "Everett Gavel" <EverettG at SuccessfulAdaptations.com>
  To: "NFB Webmaster's List" <nfb-web at nfbnet.org>
  Cc: "NFB Fundraising Mailing List" <nfb-fundraising at nfbnet.org>
  Sent: Tuesday, November 06, 2007 3:05 PM
  Subject: [Nfb-web] Poor Marketing & Communication Efforts


  > Hello,
  >
  > Since they've now given me nothing more than a bit of
  > frustration, I'm going to use "the CTEVH Conference" as
  > an example of how *not* to market your chapter or
  > events.
  >
  > In the October '07 issue of the Braille Monitor, in the
  > "In Brief" section, it said:
  >
  >
  > "2008 CTEVH Conference Ready to Go:
  > The forty-ninth annual CTEVH Conference will be here
  > before you know
  > it. The upcoming conference will be held at the Los
  > Angeles Airport
  > Marriott from February 28 to March 2. The Ready To Go
  > theme encompasses the
  > spirit of this year's conference, which will aim to
  > provide attendees with
  > the tools and motivation they need to hit the ground
  > running in 2008. At
  > the conference you will learn about the latest trends
  > in software and new
  > federal procedures; hear about the latest research;
  > explore topics of
  > interest to administrators, related professionals, and
  > parents; and learn
  > about the latest teaching methods and tools. If you're
  > ready to explore the
  > dozens of workshops available and meet other
  > professionals and volunteers
  > who share the goal of improving the education of
  > students with visual
  > impairments, then the 2008 CTEVH Conference is for you.
  > Registration
  > packets will be mailed by November 1, or you can
  > register online at
  > <www.ctevh.org/conference.htmafter January 17. To
  > receive additional
  > information or to request a registration packet, please
  > call Christy
  > Cutting, conference registrar, at (702) 293-7625 or
  > email
  > <conferenceregistrar at ctevh.org."
  >
  >
  > Now, I'll tell you, I can't be the only one who doesn't
  > know what "CTEVH" stands for.  Since it was in the
  > Braille Monitor, I'm going to guess the VH stans for
  > Visually Handicapped.  This is terrible, yet all too
  > typical, marketing.  Perhaps they think because they
  > are used to the acronym, that everyone else in their
  > supposed industry must surely know them, too.  So it
  > seems.
  >
  > I went to their Web site to find the full, written-out
  > name.  I didn't.  There doesn't seem to be a banner or
  > logo at the top, as is the norm.  Though there did seem
  > to be some blank space at the top so maybe their logo
  > just took forever to load?  There was no outline of a
  > graphic though, and I do have DSL so it should've
  > loaded in the time I spent there, no matter what.
  >
  > Additionally, there wasn't even the name at the bottom,
  > in the copyright notice.  That "company" name was just
  > as vague and uninformative.  On the top-fold of their
  > home page, they say, "CTEVH Is. . . A Unique
  > Organization of. . . blah, blah, blah."  More diatribe,
  > that is so normal in the nonprofit arena. Still, no
  > name.
  >
  > I have now read a notice that was meant to inform and
  > motivate and excite people.  I have gone to and read
  > through some of their home page of their Web site.  I
  > still do not know who "CTEVH" is.  And I'm much further
  > down the road of not caring now, because of their poor
  > marketing and communication skills.
  >
  > My point here is, please, don't do this with the NFB,
  > with your chapter, or affiliate.  Make sure that, as
  > normal common-sense protocol says, you spell-out the
  > name the first time it's mentioned, with the acronym.
  > Then use the acronym every time after that if you want.
  > But in the beginning, say the name for God's sake.  And
  > for our sake.  Your Web site logo says the name in
  > full, visually.  But if you don't have Alt-text saying
  > the name behind the logo, then write it out in the
  > first fiew lines at the top of your pages text.
  > Everywhere else you can use the NFB acronym.  But in
  > the beginning, spell it out.  It's that simple. In your
  > promotional pieces such as this text ad to get us to
  > want to register, though space is tight in advertising,
  > they should have said the name right at the top, first.
  > And even if they make the mistake there and don't do
  > that, it surely should be spelled out somewhere on
  > their home page.
  >
  > Also, in marketing your events and chapter, do not be
  > so vague as they are above.  They talk pretty,
  > mentioning hitting the ground running, and the latest
  > research, yada, yada, yada.  They do not once mention
  > the organization's name.  The closest they come to lett
  > ing someone outside their circle know what they
  > actually stand for is when they say, "volunteers who
  > share the goal of improving the education of students
  > with visual impairments."
  >
  > Okay, that gives me a clue I might be interested. Yet
  > I'm still not sure who this is talking to me through
  > their print ad, and through their Web site.  Don't make
  > that same mistake.  Be smarter.  Be clearer in your
  > writing, in all your communications.  You'll draw
  > people in then, rather than push them away.
  >
  > This marketing and communication screw-up might be the
  > fault of one or two people put in charge.  It might be
  > this "Christy" that we're asked to contact.  But due to
  > this one (or more) possible person, this looks bad on
  > the organization.
  >
  > That's another point I want to make.  Be careful what
  > you do in the name and with the name of the NFB.  It
  > does reflect as a whole, to those who don't yet know
  > us.  I don't know the organization above, for whom
  > Christy is the contact person.  But it's not Christy
  > I'm frustrated with as much as the organization, for
  > letting such poor marketing go out in their name.  The
  > same happens, or can happen, with the National
  > Federation of the Blind.  You do something on a shabby
  > level, and it can hurt the NFB's efforts as a whole.
  >
  > Just do your best, be aggressive in your marketing and
  > assertive in your actions, and most of all, be clear in
  > your communications!  Be the best you can be, with and
  > for the National Federation of the Blind, not just "the
  > NFB."  (smile)
  >
  >
  > To Your Success!
  > Everett
  > www.everettgavel.com
  >
  >
  >
  > _______________________________________________
  > Nfb-web mailing list
  > Nfb-web at nfbnet.org
  > http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-web
  >
  > __________ NOD32 2646 (20071108) Information __________
  >
  > This message was checked by NOD32 antivirus system.
  > http://www.eset.com
  >
  >

  _______________________________________________
  Nfb-web mailing list
  Nfb-web at nfbnet.org
  http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-web
-------------- next part --------------
But it is ... JAWS reads it just fine. And, frankly, we are not certain that Zoomtext isn't rendering it correctly, either. If it isn't, is that the page's fault or that of Zoomtext's creators?
 
Mike
 
----- Original Message -----
From:
mailto:cs.nfbwv at verizon.net C. Smyth
To:
mailto:nfb-web at nfbnet.org NFB Webmaster's List
Sent:
Sunday, November 11, 2007 1:42 PM
Subject:
Re: [Nfb-web] Poor Marketing & Communication Efforts
Everett,
I am in total agreement with you about people identifying in the beginning
what letters or abbreviations stand for in their messages, and I like the
way you stated it.
It would be nice to know what a fully sighted person sees on the page, but
the point is that the entire page should be accessible to all.
Charlene
----- Original Message -----
From: "Everett Gavel" < mailto:EverettG at SuccessfulAdaptations.com EverettG at SuccessfulAdaptations.com
>
To: "NFB Webmaster's List" < mailto:nfb-web at nfbnet.org nfb-web at nfbnet.org
>
Cc: "NFB Fundraising Mailing List" < mailto:nfb-fundraising at nfbnet.org nfb-fundraising at nfbnet.org
>
Sent: Tuesday, November 06, 2007 3:05 PM
Subject: [Nfb-web] Poor Marketing & Communication Efforts
> Hello,
>
> Since they've now given me nothing more than a bit of
> frustration, I'm going to use "the CTEVH Conference" as
> an example of how *not* to market your chapter or
> events.
>
> In the October '07 issue of the Braille Monitor, in the
> "In Brief" section, it said:
>
>
> "2008 CTEVH Conference Ready to Go:
> The forty-ninth annual CTEVH Conference will be here
> before you know
> it. The upcoming conference will be held at the Los
> Angeles Airport
> Marriott from February 28 to March 2. The Ready To Go
> theme encompasses the
> spirit of this year's conference, which will aim to
> provide attendees with
> the tools and motivation they need to hit the ground
> running in 2008. At
> the conference you will learn about the latest trends
> in software and new
> federal procedures; hear about the latest research;
> explore topics of
> interest to administrators, related professionals, and
> parents; and learn
> about the latest teaching methods and tools. If you're
> ready to explore the
> dozens of workshops available and meet other
> professionals and volunteers
> who share the goal of improving the education of
> students with visual
> impairments, then the 2008 CTEVH Conference is for you.
> Registration
> packets will be mailed by November 1, or you can
> register online at
> < http://www.ctevh.org/conference.htmafter www.ctevh.org/conference.htmafter
January 17. To
> receive additional
> information or to request a registration packet, please
> call Christy
> Cutting, conference registrar, at (702) 293-7625 or
> email
> < mailto:conferenceregistrar at ctevh.org conferenceregistrar at ctevh.org
."
>
>
> Now, I'll tell you, I can't be the only one who doesn't
> know what "CTEVH" stands for.  Since it was in the
> Braille Monitor, I'm going to guess the VH stans for
> Visually Handicapped.  This is terrible, yet all too
> typical, marketing.  Perhaps they think because they
> are used to the acronym, that everyone else in their
> supposed industry must surely know them, too.  So it
> seems.
>
> I went to their Web site to find the full, written-out
> name.  I didn't.  There doesn't seem to be a banner or
> logo at the top, as is the norm.  Though there did seem
> to be some blank space at the top so maybe their logo
> just took forever to load?  There was no outline of a
> graphic though, and I do have DSL so it should've
> loaded in the time I spent there, no matter what.
>
> Additionally, there wasn't even the name at the bottom,
> in the copyright notice.  That "company" name was just
> as vague and uninformative.  On the top-fold of their
> home page, they say, "CTEVH Is. . . A Unique
> Organization of. . . blah, blah, blah."  More diatribe,
> that is so normal in the nonprofit arena. Still, no
> name.
>
> I have now read a notice that was meant to inform and
> motivate and excite people.  I have gone to and read
> through some of their home page of their Web site.  I
> still do not know who "CTEVH" is.  And I'm much further
> down the road of not caring now, because of their poor
> marketing and communication skills.
>
> My point here is, please, don't do this with the NFB,
> with your chapter, or affiliate.  Make sure that, as
> normal common-sense protocol says, you spell-out the
> name the first time it's mentioned, with the acronym.
> Then use the acronym every time after that if you want.
> But in the beginning, say the name for God's sake.  And
> for our sake.  Your Web site logo says the name in
> full, visually.  But if you don't have Alt-text saying
> the name behind the logo, then write it out in the
> first fiew lines at the top of your pages text.
> Everywhere else you can use the NFB acronym.  But in
> the beginning, spell it out.  It's that simple. In your
> promotional pieces such as this text ad to get us to
> want to register, though space is tight in advertising,
> they should have said the name right at the top, first.
> And even if they make the mistake there and don't do
> that, it surely should be spelled out somewhere on
> their home page.
>
> Also, in marketing your events and chapter, do not be
> so vague as they are above.  They talk pretty,
> mentioning hitting the ground running, and the latest
> research, yada, yada, yada.  They do not once mention
> the organization's name.  The closest they come to lett
> ing someone outside their circle know what they
> actually stand for is when they say, "volunteers who
> share the goal of improving the education of students
> with visual impairments."
>
> Okay, that gives me a clue I might be interested. Yet
> I'm still not sure who this is talking to me through
> their print ad, and through their Web site.  Don't make
> that same mistake.  Be smarter.  Be clearer in your
> writing, in all your communications.  You'll draw
> people in then, rather than push them away.
>
> This marketing and communication screw-up might be the
> fault of one or two people put in charge.  It might be
> this "Christy" that we're asked to contact.  But due to
> this one (or more) possible person, this looks bad on
> the organization.
>
> That's another point I want to make.  Be careful what
> you do in the name and with the name of the NFB.  It
> does reflect as a whole, to those who don't yet know
> us.  I don't know the organization above, for whom
> Christy is the contact person.  But it's not Christy
> I'm frustrated with as much as the organization, for
> letting such poor marketing go out in their name.  The
> same happens, or can happen, with the National
> Federation of the Blind.  You do something on a shabby
> level, and it can hurt the NFB's efforts as a whole.
>
> Just do your best, be aggressive in your marketing and
> assertive in your actions, and most of all, be clear in
> your communications!  Be the best you can be, with and
> for the National Federation of the Blind, not just "the
> NFB."  (smile)
>
>
> To Your Success!
> Everett
> http://www.everettgavel.com www.everettgavel.com
>
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Nfb-web mailing list
> mailto:Nfb-web at nfbnet.org Nfb-web at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-web http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-web
>
> __________ NOD32 2646 (20071108) Information __________
>
> This message was checked by NOD32 antivirus system.
> http://www.eset.com http://www.eset.com
>
>
_______________________________________________
Nfb-web mailing list
mailto:Nfb-web at nfbnet.org Nfb-web at nfbnet.org
http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-web http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/nfb-web