Boxer’s maxim from Orwell’s “Animal Farm” should not be feared when visiting Bethel Mill Animal Hospital, for this animal has no intent of conspiring to purge his fellow inhabitants from this hospitable facility. Nor should you dread these kind animals morphing into humans after your pet’s stay.

Though conspiracy theories may abound amongst elephants and donkeys today, the great team of veternerians and technicians at Bethel Mill Animal Hospital have nothing short of the best intentions for your pet.

Since 2005, Bethel Mill has been a Mind The Gap client, utilizing our on hold music and messaging services to inform and educate fellow pet owners throughout South Jersey.

Listen if “Napoleon is always right.” Boxer surely thinks so.

“Workers of the world, unite!” Ah, the rallying cry of the Industrial Revolution’s bearded foe Karl Marx in his seminal work “The Communist Manifesto.” At this point, nothing will stop the wheels of the bourgeois and their means of production which Fenner Drives.

Fenner, with manufacturing sites in Europe and North America, supplies products for power transmission, motion transfer and conveying applications.

With a vast array of products for belt and chain systems, Fenner Drives turned to on hold messaging to inform their clientele about how they can keep the wheels of production turning.

Stop the rallying cries and listen to:
Fenner’s on hold messaging program here.

Just finished a series of on hold messaging programs for Nationwide Van Lines based in Florida. Julianne Kilgour, Nationwide’s Sales Manager, created messages to educate and inform their callers about the various company policies and potential hazards of moving. By improving their customers’ knowledge about moving, Julianne hopes to minimize any misunderstandings or surprises. As we know, moving can be very stressful and Nationwide is preemptively addressing this important issue.

It’s interesting to note that Nationwide’s use of on hold messages is NOT for the purpose of promotion or solicitation but rather education and instruction. In light of the stressful experience of moving, this marketing strategy might very well result in referrals and positive reviews, which can only help their bottom line.

Listen to some of Nationwide Van Lines’ on hold messages here.

Happy Holidays!

Take a listen to some of our seasonal work for our clients below. On hold holiday music and messaging is effective at expressing your gratitude and good will to customers, partners and anyone else that communicates with your company during the holiday season.

3D Collision Centers, West Chester, PA

Radisson Warwick Hotel, Philadelphia, PA

Kanaly Trust, Houston, TX

Amherst Alarm, Amherst, NY

A good blog post by Randall Beard providing an overview of in store communications including in store messaging as well as commentary on the importance of measuring its results.

Read more at:

In-Store as Advertising: A Fresh Look

I agree with his assertion that in store communications should integrate various media such as video, displays, audio and packaging to be most effective.

On hold messaging for the trucking industry can be effective in driving callers to their websites and informing them of their competitive advantages and ancillary services. The dispatching centers for these companies handle a high volume of calls. On hold messages can help manage them better by having customers submit orders on line or answering frequently asked questions (FAQs) instead of a live operator handling them.

A new Mind The Gap client, Moran Transportation Corporation, has decided to utilize our on hold messaging service on their newly installed Cisco VOIP system. For the reasons outlined above, Michael D. Moran, Vice President of Sales, wanted to take advantage of their high call volume by making the hold time for their callers more resourceful. Below are some script strategies we used in their program.

Drive On Line Traffic:

“Whatever you’re shipping, wherever you’re going, Moran makes it easy.  And now you can place an order for a pick-up with just a few quick clicks at our web site, morantransportation.com.   Just ask our customer service rep for information about online pick-up submission – and you’ll see how easy it is!”

Stress Competitive Advantages:

“Moran has the largest fleet of liftgate, straight trucks and trailers in the industry! Our “Can Do!” attitude ensures making those difficult liftgate & inside deliveries that the larger carriers won’t do.  Ask our customer service rep for more information or log on to morantransportation.com. At Moran, service isn’t just a department. It’s a commitment to quality that inspires our entire company!”

Highlight Other Services:

“Did you know that, along with our transportation services, Moran offers flexible warehouse & storage programs to meet your unique individual needs?  We have more than 500,000 square feet of dry storage space, along with the inventory control and packaging & assembly systems to handle all or any part of your warehousing needs – short-term or long-term.  To learn more about our warehouse services and locations, visit us online at publicwarehousingchicago.com and click on “service-solutions” to see all that Moran can do for you!”

There are other on hold strategies to use depending on the clients’ needs, but these address critical areas regarding call management, operational efficiency and marketing in the trucking industry.

Hear the Moran Transportation on hold messaging program.

Lincoln Property Co. in Phoenix, AZ has been a client of Mind The Gap since 2007. They provide commercial real estate services to a plethora of buildings and properties throughout Arizona, Nevada, Utah and New Mexico.

We recently updated their on hold messaging program featuring new music and messages. Andre Gardner continues to be their preferred voice talent. You can listen to LPC’s on hold program here.

For years, LPC has utilized on hold messaging to reinforce and build their credibility and brand in the commercial real estate industry. It’s tactically exhibited in the following excerpts:

 “In fact, National Real Estate Investor has ranked Lincoln the #1 Real Estate Services Firm in the Country.”

“Lincoln Property Company Phoenix recently received their first NATIONAL AWARD from the National Council for Public-Private Partnerships.”

“…LPC is leading the green movement in commercial real estate development. LPC’s Platinum Certified build-to-suit, The Arizona Game & Fish Department headquarters received the prestigious LEED Certified Building of the Year…”

In the commercial real estate industry, reputation is integral to your brand and the above excerpts corroborate LPC’s reputation. It’s interesting to note that their on hold script does NOT outline the services they offer. Instead, it lets the various awards and accolades speak for themselves. This tactic impresses the listener. Providing a laundry list of LPC services would have diluted their message and brand.

Team, well done! Now on to the next production…

In January 2010, Mind The Gap submitted an on hold messaging production to the annual 2010 OHMA MARCE Awards competition. (You can click here to listen to our submission.) Even though we have been working in this industry for over 15 years, Mind The Gap is not a member of the OHMA. Regardless, we wished to see how our work compared to our peers.

In March, we received a letter from the OHMA advising us that we did not win a MARCE Award. In addition, it outlined the judges’ comments about our work and provided scores from each judge and an aggregate score. Even though it was expected that we’d receive notification of the result, we were surprised and thankful to see the judges’ comments and scores.

Overall, our score was poor, 35 out of 100, the latter being the highest rating. Judge #1 had the most favorable score, 62, and comment, “Script was fine. Messages were appropriate. It was well produced……” Whereas, Judge #3 had the worst, 17, and “no comment.” We figured Judge #3 thought it sucked.

I have been in the professional recording industry for 25 years and understand that there are many specialties involved in producing an excellent audio program. It includes the vocal talent and performance, music composition and production, copywriting and mastering. Each one of these specialties requires unique skills and years of experience. Typically, no individual can be an expert in them all.

Regarding the OHMA judges for the MARCE Awards, it appears they’re written on a whim with no reference to their expertise. Though there is a brief biography for each judge on OHMA’s site, identifying “who said what” and specifying their skill sets would lend credibility to their assessments.
With any competition, it’s important to augment subjective commentary with an objective criterion. Specifically, OHMA should have at least five key areas to reference:

• Vocal Talent & Performance
• Copywriting
• Music Composition & Production
• Technical Production
• Creativity & Originality

Each one should be rated from a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the best. Now, there may be other areas to include or some to be replaced but at least these key areas and their ratings will serve as a frame of reference for each production and support the judges’ comments. In addition, these ratings should be added to each entry’s overall score.

Finally, in spite of these omissions and limitations, I think this competition is good for our industry and we look forward to participating in the future.

During this production, it occurred to me that most marketing directors in the hospitality industry stress the convenience and comfort of their accommodations in these programs but overlook the equal importance of using specific messages to attract visitors during big events. Whether it’s a convention, a political rally or a theater show, these events drive hotel reservations. So it makes sense to keep your on hold messaging timely and market your hotel’s availability while your callers are on hold. Centering it around key events in your area will assist your overall advertising strategy in driving hotel reservations.

Now with that, it’s late and time for bed. I have awesome accommodations!