The document discusses local marketing automation (LMA) and when organizations need it. LMA platforms allow companies to control brand consistency while providing channel partners tools to execute localized marketing. They promote coordination between corporate communicators and local affiliates. The document outlines benefits of LMA like improved message coordination, brand consistency, and cost efficiency. It states that companies of any size operating through distributed channels can benefit from LMA's ability to maintain brand image while enabling tailored local messaging.

1. Local Marketing
Automation (LMA)
for Channel Marketing
What Is LMA & When Does Your
Organization Need It?

2. Table of Contents
What is one of the biggest challenges for corporate marketing and corporate
brand managers?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
What is the best approach to channel marketing?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
So, what is local marketing automation or LMA?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
What are the key performance indicators (KPIs) of local marketing automation?. . . . 5
What type of company or organization can benefit from LMA?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
What is the business value of LMA?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
How is brand reputation managed with LMA?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Can an LMA handle complex brand management?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
What are some of the best ways to measure the ROI of LMA?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3

3. Q. What is one of the biggest challenges for corporate marketing and
corporate brand managers?
A. Balancing corporate brand authority with regulatory communications
compliance -- all while providing marketing materials and campaigns to a
distributed channel.
It is a conundrum. Corporate marketing wants to maintain their hard-earned brand reputation by maintaining
consistent use of brand elements (i.e., brand colors, logo use, messaging, pricing, etc.), while the channel (i.e.,
field marketing departments, partners, franchises, dealers, agents, brokers, resellers, etc.) needs the freedom
to apply localized images and messaging and launch marketing campaigns on a DIY basis.
Whether the organization is mid-market, large national, or global brand with multiple locations or distribution
channels, any organization that “thinks global, acts local” is in need of some form of localized marketing
automation.
Q. What is the best approach to channel marketing?
A. Create a “marketing pull” model, instead of “marketing push”.
In a perfect world, corporate marketing retains control of the brand. This often translates into corporate
pushing, or what many channels would consider “shoving” corporate-created marketing resources and
campaigns to the channel. Let’s think about that approach for a moment. If I push against you, what are you
going to do? Right . . . you will push back. But, if you have an opportunity to pull the marketing resources and
campaigns that you believe best fit your local needs, then you are more likely to pull these resources and
campaigns into your channel. Add the additional ability to localize these marketing resources and campaigns
within content blocks and voila - more marketing pull, more leads, higher revenue generation. This is the
essence of localized marketing for distributed channels. With the addition of mobile and social media to the
traditional marketing mix, coupled with consumers’ increasing expectation of authenticity from companies,
a fundamental change has taken place. Localized marketing, enabled with DIY channel content localization
tools, ensures that brand reputation is maintained and consistent regardless of whether the messaging was
released from corporate headquarters or from a field office or channel partner.
Pull Marketing:
Getting the customer
to come to you.
ex: advertising, word
of mouth, CRM, sales
promotions, discounts.
Push Marketing:
Taking the product
directly to the customer.
ex: trade show
zpromotions, direct
selling, point of sale, face
to face selling.
Corporate marketing
wants to maintain
their hard-earned
brand reputation
by maintaining
consistent use of
brand elements (i.e.,
brand colors, logo
use, messaging,
pricing, etc.), while
the channel (i.e.,
field marketing
departments,
partners, franchises,
dealers, agents,
brokers, resellers, etc.)
needs the freedom to
apply localized images
and messaging and
launch marketing
campaigns on a DIY
basis.
4

4. Q. So, what is local marketing automation or LMA?
A. Local marketing automation (LMA) platforms promote coordination between
corporate communication decision-makers and local affiliates, allowing a company
to control brand consistency while providing channel partners the tools they need
to execute more effective localized marketing campaigns and marketing materials
across traditional and digital channels.
Having a system of record that enables the management of brand marketing content, multi-channel (email,
print, web, social, events) marketing campaigns, marketing collateral, and product information, as well
as localized marketing assets including: head shots, regional images, addresses, product selections, and
business hours; all rolls up to help align channel marketing efforts and track performance -- both on the local
and corporate levels. This allows a brand to capitalize on local marketing growth and individualized trends,
while retaining its message and brand identity. By thinking global, but acting local, channel marketing at the
local level can be improved dramatically with measurable outcomes, saving overhead costs in the process,
and reaching your customer directly. The ability to distribute brand-approved, reliable, accurate marketing
information across multiple locations is invaluable for brand authenticity and trust.
Q. What are the key performance indicators (KPIs) of local marketing
automation?
A. There is “tangible justification” for a national or global company with multiple
locations to adopt local marketing automation, according to a report from
Gleanster Research (link), businesses “who localize marketing communications
report an 18% higher response rate over generic corporate communications.”
Today’s consumers are rewriting the way they interact with brands and it is important that they focus on local
opportunities to directly communicate to their target audience in relevant ways —the critical moments
when customers interact with the organization and its offerings on their way to purchasing decisions. Google
refers to this as the Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT) link. With LMA, an organization that reaches beyond its
corporate campus and into a distributed channel can develop and maintain a seamless and effective customer
experience and maximize the potential for repeat business.
Applied Local Marketing Automation Use Examples:
• Brand Compliance Error Reduction
• Regulatory Communications Requirements
• Trademark and Copyright Statements
• Use of Brand Elements (corporate positioning content, logos, fonts, colors, images, etc.)
• Product and Services Boilerplate Messaging
• Standardized and Streamlined Approval Workflows with Audit Logs
• Marketing Resources and Campaigns
• Turnaround to Revise Collateral and Marketing Materials for Specific Channel Use
• Faster Turnaround to Deploy a Marketing Campaign to the Channel
• Number of Campaigns and Materials Resources Made Available for Channel Localization
The ability to
distribute brand-
approved, reliable,
accurate marketing
information across
multiple locations is
invaluable for brand
authenticity and trust.
5

5. Q. What type of company or organization can benefit from LMA?
A. Mid-market to global brands can benefit tremendously from local marketing
efforts.
Marketing needs vary widely across local networks that may include dealers, sales, remote operations,
and retailers. Using an LMA platform will allow a company to maintain a corporate brand image while
providing these local offices with the ability to tailor the message in a way that is most effective for clients or
customers. Automating the creative process ensures brand message consistency while allowing the type of
personalization that can drive customer acquisition, retention, and loyalty.
Organizations that are able to effectively manage the entire consumer experience reap immense rewards
including enhanced customer satisfaction and increased revenues. When local marketers do not have to
reinvent the wheel, they are more likely to focus on their sales and outreach, finding more effective ways to
collaborate with corporate brand initiatives that deliver gains throughout the company. As large brands face
maturing markets, heightened competition and escalating costs, utilizing a whole new way of managing its
brand marketing operations ensures continuous adherence to brand standards and provides enough local
ownership and coordination to facilitate team building and raise morale.
Any company, mid-market to global, operating within a distributed channel where both corporate and local
marketers are delivering brand/marketing communications will soon see the benefits of LMA including better
message coordination, brand consistency, and cost efficiency.
Q. What is the business value of LMA?
A. LMA provides solutions that regular marketing automation misses including
improved message coordination and consistency.
Lack of alignment with corporate marketing and branding strategies can lead to many challenges that involve
delays in approval, customer dissatisfaction, and higher production costs resulting from redundant time and
effort spent on developing and ultimately recreating resources. Automating marketing collateral and other
marketing initiatives can keep costs down while retaining global brand equity at the local level.
To effectively meet the needs of the consumer, a brand must be able to consistently engage on the local
level, which includes lifestyle, values, language, culture, and other local concerns. When localizing a global
or national brand, empowered channel partners and affiliates can act as a conduit to consumers. They are in
constant communication with customers, know their service area, and can effectively model the authenticity
of a large brand.
Organizations that
are able to effectively
manage the entire
consumer experience
reap immense
rewards including
enhanced customer
satisfaction and
increased revenues.
6

6. Q. How is brand reputation managed with LMA?
A. Managing the reputation of a corporate brand requires that the company
messaging is consistent, yet tailored, to the local market and culture. A LMA
platform should streamline many corporate operational processes while enabling
local marketing efforts for affiliates and channel partners.
Corporate marketing simply does not possess the customer knowledge or resources to scale brand messaging
to local audiences. Trying to apply a one-size-fits-all messaging model will not speak effectively to local
consumer needs and cultural realities.
Building a global brand requires organized marketing efforts at the local level. However, the reality is the
“think global, act local” mantra generates challenges for marketing executives across their organizational
processes, agency relationships, and technical infrastructure. These challenges are frequently compounded
by distributed, market-by-market budgets which can hinder the adoption of central governance structures
and weaken global campaign authority. Additionally, some content might need to be carefully controlled and
managed due to regulatory and company guidelines. Forward-thinking brands owners are moving to LMA to
balance local, multi-channel applicability with global storytelling, brand consistency, and economies of scale.
Q. Can an LMA handle complex brand management?
A. This is an area that sets LMA systems apart from the pack. Complex brand
management and multichannel marketing materials and campaigns require a
powerful variable data composition (VDP) engine.
Global companies constantly grapple with the ability to maintain a local brand presence by leveraging
independent dealer’s physical locations and associating them into the brand. At the core of the Pageflex
Pando Platform is a patent VDP composition engine, relied on by many household global brands. The
“magic” of this VDP engine, referred to as “Flex Technology” is a rules-based responsive design and content
environment that not only creates and manages digital content, but production-ready files for print and
large format signage. Pando Platform simplifies the process of creating personalized/customized/localized
marketing materials, promotion items, signage, labeling, and digital or print marketing campaigns by allowing
the channel to access corporate-created items that can be personalized to fit the local market needs. Local
affiliates generally have a better understanding of local target audiences than corporate marketers and are
able to establish the brand’s presence in their local market, wherever they may be.
It is worth noting at this point that target customers are besieged with messages of all types, including: email,
printed material, push messaging, and outdoor billboards, etc.. To be effective, marketing campaigns have
to stand out, be highly targeted, and relevant. Increased participation and engagement of field marketing
activities will result in highly targeted relationship-based communication campaigns that allow brands to
retain their top-of-mind presence.
Forward-thinking
brands owners are
moving to LMA to
balance local, multi-
channel applicability
with global
storytelling, brand
consistency, and
economies of scale.
7

7. Q. What are some of the best ways to measure the ROI of LMA?
A. For a company to maximize its distributed, localized marketing efforts,
marketers must adapt to and embrace new technologies and methods in order
to attract leads or even retain customers. When a new technology, like Pando
Platform, is adapted the data shows that customizing corporate content for
specific markets and cultures dramatically multiplies the desired effects in these
key metrics:
• Revenue growth
• Local market engagement
• Cost savings
• Employee satisfaction
With unrivaled capabilities to empower local marketing as a revenue driver, while enabling local affiliates
to create and disseminate branded materials, the Pando Platform makes the most of a brand’s distributed
marketing investment. In the process, it helps the local entities grow their businesses while removing the cost
of redundant technology and design modification expense, saving brands considerably on overhead. At the
same time, self-sufficiency at the local level provides the flexibility to deliver appropriate and timely messages
to local target audiences.
Bottomline: The core value proposition that
justifies local marketing automation is efficiency
and effectiveness, which can impact revenue
through measured customer engagement.
8

8. USA
200 Nickerson Rd
Marlborough, MA 01752
7021 Portwest Dr
Houston, TX 77024
Israel
20 Alon Hatavor St
Caesarea 30889
+1 713.589.7160
Pageflex Inc. | pageflex.com