Does Your Newsletter Grab Scientists’ Attention? Here’s One that Does

by Lara Marlin Hull

Hi everyone. This is my second post on How To Sell To Scientists and it seems I will be a regular feature around here. Thanks for reading!

As a former scientist and marketing newcomer, I always have my ears open for things that catch scientists’ attention.

A while back, a scientist friend of mine gave me an animated description of an article in Science Company Newsletter featuring a mug (?)... I hadn’t heard of a Tervis tumbler but was fascinated by two things –
1. A scientist going on about marketing materials.

2. That it happened to be a statistical software company making the magic happen.

The company’s name is StatEase.

Statistical software? Really?

When I quizzed him, he explained – their newsletter always features “normal” subjects like Alka Seltzer, the Whirly Pop, or the Tervis tumbler.

Topics are interesting enough to capture scientists and non-scientists alike and then somehow you find yourself reading about thermal inertia and their DOE software.

Then the mug-enthusiast/scientist said something that blew me away – “You know, people forget that scientists are people too.”

Clarifying that as a consumer first and scientist second, he wants to be as engaged, excited and interested as any other consumer.

The whole experience reminded of the craze surrounding the famed Old Spice commercials last year ”the man your man could smell like”  (bored of those already? – here’s a lovable Grover version too!).

Blogger descriptions include phrases such as…

“…marketing gold, utter brilliance, Fantastic, Absolutely love it.  Priceless, Too bad this $&%& country of mine doesn’t sell old spice!”

Not that the “Old Spice Way” is necessarily the path for your next marketing initiative, but just ask…

“Am I making personal connections with my scientists?”

Whirly Pop

I fess up – I’ve indulged the geek inside and read StatEase newsletter articles such as the one devoted to answering the age-old Whirly Pop question “Do we really need to stand at the stove and stir the whole time it’s popping?”.

StatEase has managed to see the human side of scientists. Look past the lingo describing differences in heat-transfer properties between polycarbonate and ceramic, and you’ll see that their newsletters are just a way to have a genuine conversation with their customers.

In a continuing post – see how knowing your audience can help you create your most effective online presence.

NOTE

The author has no affiliation in any way with StatEase and can’t endorse their products since she hasn’t tried them.  She has admired the marketing from afar and has an appreciation for accessible, reliable, customer-based services.

Lara Marlin Hull

Lara has spent the last several years developing and running cell-based assays in various areas of drug and target discovery. Now, she is a student and new practitioner of marketing and social media, and still a lover of science. She is interested in how marketing concepts and practices apply to the life sciences industry and in reaching and engaging scientists - as a special kind of customer all to themselves. Lara is also on LinkedIn.

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