Category Archives: Blog With BEB

Tradeshow Essentials

Trade show essentials are the key items and tools that exhibitors need to have for a successful and productive trade show experience. Some common trade show essentials include:

  1. Booth materials: This includes display stands, backdrops, banners, table covers, and signage that help attract visitors to your booth and effectively showcase your products or services.
    Promotional materials: Brochures, flyers, business cards, and promotional giveaways are essential for providing information about your business and creating a lasting impression with attendees.
  2. Lead generation tools: Tools like lead capture forms, contact cards, and a system for managing and following up with leads are crucial for maximizing the networking opportunities at a trade show.
  3. Technology devices: Laptops, tablets, chargers, and any other technology needed for demonstrations, presentations, or engaging with visitors digitally.
    Marketing collateral: Branded promotional items such as pens, notepads, and merchandise that can help increase brand visibility and serve as reminders of your business after the event.
  4. Comfort items: Comfortable shoes, snacks, water, and other essentials to keep you energized and focused throughout the long days of the trade show.

Having these trade show essentials prepared and organized can help make your participation in a trade show more seamless and successful. Call on BEB for all of your tradeshow needs.

What Is Data Driven Markeing?

Put simply, data-driven marketing is the practice of basing your brand’s marketing and communications strategies on the quantitative information you’ve gathered about your target audience.

While traditional marketing practices were based on long-held assumptions or “gut” feelings, data marketing is based on quantifiable facts from consumer data. What once would have been an untargeted marketing campaign based on an educated guess is now a factual effort based on what you know to be true.

By combining the consumer data collected by your brand and reliable third-party sources reflecting additional information about your customers’ lifestyles, interests, and behaviors—as well as consumer trends and propensities—you have all of the information you need to handcraft the perfect campaign to reach your target audience.

The benefits of data marketing are vast. When you improve both the accuracy and speed of marketing campaigns, your efforts are more efficient and effective, allowing you to:

  • Enhance targeting and personalization. Gathering and analyzing vast amounts of customer data—such as demographics, preferences, behavior patterns, and purchase history—helps guide segmentation and enables marketers to create more personalized campaigns. This targeted approach increases the chances of engaging customers, building stronger relationships, and driving higher conversion rates.
  • Improve campaign performance. Data-driven marketing empowers marketers to continuously monitor, measure, and optimize campaign performance. By tracking performance metrics in real time, marketers can quickly identify underperforming campaigns or channels and make data-informed adjustments to improve results.
  • Achieve a higher ROI. Businesses that use data marketing strategies drive five to eight times as much ROI compared to businesses that don’t. That’s because making data-driven decisions leads to increased efficiency and cost savings, as businesses use data to optimize their campaigns and target their resources more effectively.
  • Stand out against competitors. With accurate data, you can stay up-to-date with market trends and make more informed business decisions. As a result, 64% of marketing executives “strongly agree” that using a data-driven marketing strategy helps them stand out from and succeed against their competitors.
  • While you may be able to reach these same conclusions with traditional trial-and-error marketing practices, a data-driven strategy drastically improves the process and outcome.

Let us help you fill in the gaps of your in house data by applying additional data points using third-party data allowing you to get a complete picture of your customers.

The Bureau – March 2024

This year BEB-Business Extension Bureau celebrates our 75th year in business; what an incredible milestone.

First and foremost, we thank our clients and partners for your business and patronage.
We appreciate you and hope to serve you for another 75-years!

We are also grateful for our incredible staff. They are the focal point of the exceptional service BEB is known for. They value the art of true teamwork and give us the ability to be extremely agile. Thank you for all you do.

Business Extension Bureau was based in San Francisco and owned by J.C. Hendricks since 1928. They expanded operations to Houston in 1949.

Fresh from the University of North Texas, with a degree in Business, my dad, 23-year old Bob Royall, was hired to run the sales department for the Houston office.  Five years later, Jim Tardy joined the firm as a bookkeeper and in 1955, Dad was promoted to General Manager. Under their leadership, the Houston division experienced significant growth, focusing on the new lucrative domain of direct mail while the corporate office handled sales leads.

In November of 1959, Bob and Jim presented an offer to acquire the business, effectively severing ties with the San Francisco company. By 1970, they became the sole stockholders of BEB, which remains a privately-owned and operated company to this day.

We remain a family-owned business. My brother, Ro, joined the company in 1992.
In 2003, I took the reins from my dad as president and CEO, and Ro became
executive vice president.

Over the years, our commitment to continuously evolve allowed us to grow and become Houston’s most established marketing production company.

In 2004 we created a proprietary program which enables us to compile and manage national consumer bankruptcy files (now over 26 million records and growing). Our range of services extends to encompass data acquisition, digital, offset, label, and wide-format printing, promotional products, as well as interactive direct mail and cross-channel digital marketing, email marketing, social media management, and websites. We produce anything that has to do with marketing.

My father remained actively involved in the business until his passing in 2015 and Jim Tardy retired after contributing significantly to our success. Sadly, he passed away in 2020.

We take great pride in our company’s rich history and the entrepreneurial spirit that has been passed down to the next generation. We remain focused on prioritizing our clients’ interests and forging valuable partnerships that foster
growth and success for their businesses. We hope that 2024 is a very good year for you and yours.

Thank you again for your business and partnership.
Ron Royall

BEB TURNS 75

This year represents a remarkable milestone. BEB-Business Extension Bureau celebrates 75yrs in business!

First and foremost, we thank our clients and partners for your business and patronage. We appreciate you so very much and hope to serve you for another 75-years!

We also thank our incredible staff. You are the focal point of the exceptional service BEB is known for and because you display the value of true teamwork; we are also known for our agility.

San Francisco based Business Extension Bureau owned by J.C. Hendricks and operating since 1928, opened their Houston division in December of 1949.

Fresh from the University of North Texas, with a degree in Business, 23-year old Bob Royall was hired to run the sales department for the Houston office.

Five years later, leaving the University of Arkansas, Jim Tardy joined the firm as a bookkeeper. In 1955 Bob was promoted to General Manager and with Jim as his right-hand man, the Houston business grew.

The corporate office was focused on sales leads while Bob and Jim were concentrating on the new and more profitable medium known as direct mail.

Together Bob and Jim made an offer to buy the business and in November of 1959 they took ownership removing any connection to the San Francisco company. By 1970 they were the sole stockholders and the company remains privately owned and operated today.

Business Extension Bureau (BEB) has grown into the most established direct marketing company in Houston. Today our service offerings cross over multi-media such as list compilation, digital, offset and wide-format printing as well as interactive direct mail and cross-channel digital marketing, social media and website creation.

Bob remained involved with the business until he passed away in 2015. His second of three sons, Ron Royall, serves as President and CEO with Bob’s youngest son, Ro Royall is Executive Vice President.

Jim was involved with the business until his retirement. He passed away in 2020.

We are so proud of our rich history and the entrepreneurial spirit that has been passed to the next generation. We will continue to keep our clients interest first and foremost and bring a partnership of value that will enable our businesses to grow and flourish.

What Is Up With Houston USPS Delivery?

HOUSTON, TX- Houston residents have been facing USPS shipping delays for almost two months.

The delays are from a backlog at the North Houston and Missouri City processing centers. Packages are taking an average of 15 – 18 days to wind their way through the system for delivery.

Poor planning around the installation of a parcel sorter, and staffing shortages resulting from the USPS yearly lay-off of seasonal workers are the primary reasons for the delay.

Old sorters were removed from the North Houston plant to make way for the new parcel sorter, only to discover the new equipment couldn’t fit. As a result, North Houston did not have the capacity to process parcels and the backlog began.

North Houston and Missouri City facilities are undergoing major changes as part of US Postmaster General DeJoy’s Delivering for America plan.

The plan is to create new facility types called Regional Processing and Distribution Centers (RPDC) and Local Processing Centers (LPC). TRPDCs are the hubs for long-distance travel. LPCs bridge RPDCs and the path to final delivery. The North Houston facility is in the process of becoming the North Houston Regional Processing and Distribution Center. The Missouri City facility has turned into the South Houston Local Processing Center.

The idea is to reduce transportation. Long haul transportation is run between 200+ facilities today. DeJoy wants to reduce that number to 60.

U.S. Rep. Troy Nehls sent the Postmaster General a letter last month demanding answers to the cause of the problems and when to expect a solution.

When will the issues be resolved? That answer is unknown. Most don’t believe that it is going to be a quick fix either.

We will keep you abreast of delivery issues and resolutions as they occur. In the interim, plan your campaign deliveries based on slower than normal delivery.

 

What Is XR Marketing?

Marketers are embracing extended reality (XR) technologies to enhance their campaigns, products, and services. XR includes augmented reality (AR), virtual reality (VR), and mixed reality (MR), and it allows for immersive consumer experiences. This technology has enabled  marketers to overcome geographical limitations and reach a broader audience.

Major brands like Etsy have leveraged XR for their marketing efforts, offering customers a unique experience. Experts believe that XR is the future of marketing and project the technologies will transform how brands build and maintain customer relationships by creating virtual worlds for brand followers.

Marketers have a range of XR technologies at their disposal, including Augmented Reality (AR), and Virtual Reality (VR). AR allows for realistic digital content creation, interactive games, and 3D brand experiences. VR provides fully immersive experiences in virtual environments. Emerging technologies like generative AI and real-time rendering are expected to play an increasingly important role in XR-based campaigns.

Apple’s upcoming Vision Pro headset is generating excitement among marketers, as it promises
immersive experiences and interactions with friends, apps, entertainment, and brands.

Print and mail are essential to XR marketing as printed materials can be enhanced and augmented with extended reality technologies like QR codes or AR markers, allowing for a seamless integration of digital and physical experiences for the audience.

2024 Letter From Ron Royall

Greetings from Houston! We hope that 2023 was a good year for you, and we thank you for your business and partnership.

The renovation of our building after the fire on Veteran’s Day 2021 was completed and we took occupancy in April of last year. It is quite a different look than before, and we absolutely love it. We hope that you will come by for a quick tour when you can.

2024 marks our 75th year in business and we start the year with cautious optimism. Throughout 2023, the economy avoided a recession, consumers reportedly continued to spend, and inflation slightly cooled. Seemingly, those are signs of stability. However, the threat of a recession still lurks, and many of us anticipate a bumpy year ahead.

The Conference Board (a global, nonprofit, business think tank) published a survey of the biggest risks for businesses in 2024. They surveyed more than 1,200 US executives and learned that recession is their top concern. 37% of executives surveyed said that they are bracing for a recession in the coming year.

Households are acquiring more debt as they begin to deplete the “free money” collected during the pandemic. Meanwhile, banks are toughening their lending standards.

The second biggest concern is inflation. Inflation has retreated since exploding nearly three years ago, but remains above anything we were used to before the pandemic.

The direct mail and printing industry continues to struggle with higher labor costs and finding qualified candidates for job openings. The “work from home” profile doesn’t fit within a manufacturing environment and we find that our teams work better when we are together and exchanging ideas.

Then there is the US Postmaster General who continues to deploy his “Delivering For America” plan by redefining delivery standards and raising postage rates.

The thing is; direct mail still draws a higher ROI than most other platforms. Point in case, we conducted an ROI analysis for one of our non-profit clients last year. Their investment of $110,000 (which included postage) resulted in collecting over $700,000 in donations. That is a 536% return.

We are committed to finding new ways to partner with our existing and future clients. During the process of expanding our products and services we have become the premier marketing production company of Houston. Our offerings have expanded to include data compilation, analysis, digital, offset, envelope, and label printing, promotional products, signage, digital marketing, email blasts, social media, hand fulfillment and even websites and SEO.

As we celebrate our 75th anniversary, we thank you for your patronage and trust. We look forward to serving you with new and innovative ways, and we hope to continue to serve Houston area businesses for another 75-years.

Sincerely,
Ron Royall
President

Almost 1 in 5 Stay-At-Home Parents Are Dads

It’s interesting to see the trends and changes in the share of stay-at-home parents over the years. According to a Pew Research Center analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data, the share of parents in the United States who are not employed for pay has remained fairly stable in the last five years. In 2021, 18% of parents didn’t work for pay, which was unchanged from 2016. However, there are differences in the share of stay-at-home parents between men and women, with 26% of mothers and 7% of fathers choosing to stay at home.

Looking at the data from 1989 to 2021, it’s clear that the share of stay-at-home parents has fluctuated, rising during periods of higher unemployment. Interestingly, while the share of mothers who were not employed for pay decreased slightly from 28% to 26% during this period, the share of fathers who were not working increased from 4% to 7%. These diverging trends have resulted in an increase in the proportion of stay-at-home dads, from 11% in 1989 to 18% in 2021.

When it comes to the reasons why parents choose to stay at home, there are differences between mothers and fathers. In 2021, the majority of stay-at-home moms (79%) cited taking care of the home or family as the reason for not working, while smaller shares mentioned being ill or disabled, unable to find work, retired, or being students. On the other hand, stay-at-home dads had more varied reasons for not working, with 23% staying home to care for the home or family, followed by reasons such as illness or disability, retirement, inability to find work, and going to school.

In terms of demographics, stay-at-home dads differ from dads who work for pay. Stay-at-home dads are less likely to have completed at least a bachelor’s degree, with only 22% having this level of education compared to 42% of working dads. Additionally, stay-at-home dads tend to be more economically disadvantaged, with 40% living in poverty compared to only 5% of dads who work for pay. Stay-at-home dads also tend to be older, with 46% being aged 45 or older, compared to 35% of working dads.

Lastly, when it comes to race and ethnicity, stay-at-home dads are a more diverse group compared to working dads. Non-Hispanic White fathers make up half of stay-at-home dads but 60% of dads who work for pay. Non-Hispanic Black fathers have a larger share among stay-at-home dads (18%) compared to working dads (9%), while Hispanic fathers represent 21% of both groups, and non-Hispanic Asian fathers account for 7% of stay-at-home dads and 8% of working dads. It’s also worth noting that a majority of stay-at-home dads (68%) and dads who work for pay (85%) are married.

These trends highlight the various factors influencing parents’ decisions to stay at home or work outside the home, as well as the differences between stay-at-home dads and moms, and the implications for their education, economic status, and demographic characteristics.