A client asked me the other day, because I work quite a bit in video, if I encouraged others to use video to generate stronger interest in their brand. Generally… YES. But why? At the time, I couldn’t give him a definitive answer. I use many sources to create interest in the brands I manage, so to single out video made it difficult to communicate the sole benefit to their brand. Eventually, the conversation diverted to other topics, but I just couldn’t forget the question. So, out of curiosity, I clicked on the YouTube link on one of that customer’s
More Marketing News →Yes. For those of you that might have been hiding under a rock on Monday, there was a HUGE disturbance in the force. It was like the voices of millions of websites cried out and were suddenly silenced all at once. Our King, our Mohamed atop the mountain was … down. For hours on Monday the King of all web domains, GoDaddy, was nowhere to be found, on the web or anywhere else for that matter. Well, at least it seemed like it. With that, millions of websites and interactive outposts such as email accounts, e-commerce sites and blogs were
More Marketing News →What is it that you’re willing to GIVE AWAY to help build your brand? Branding isn’t necessarily about you, nor is it even about making money (although that helps). Sometimes building a brand less about what you get and more about what you give. Giving part of your brand is a piece of the marketing puzzle that Michael Hyatt talks about in his book, “Platform” and he illustrates this technique wonderfully at his blog, www.MichaelHyatt.com. Here is a prime example: “7 Reasons To Buy My New Book” From my perspective, if you receive permission from your target audience to GIVE
More Marketing News →I’ve been in a bit of a trade show marketing mindset lately. Primarily, because I just helped our friends over at pcCentral with their trade show presence for the ABI “Taking Care Of Business” Conference in Des Moines. It also has to do with an ongoing, aching PAIN I have from trade show marketing. Simply put, it all comes down tho this: Why do trade shows always seem like three days of the walking dead? Why can’t exhibitors at least pretend to be excited to be there for more than the reason that they aren’t staring at a flickering computer
More Marketing News →It seems you can’t swing a dead cat these days without hitting a “Brand” expert. No cats were harmed in the writing of this blog. Seriously – type “branding” into your search engine and see what pops up! More than 10 pages of branding blogs and websites. While there ARE companies who know branding and how it works, there are also companies who just use a lot of big words and involved formulas to make them sound like they know what they’re talking about. So, how do you weed out the experts from the snake-oil salesmen? Let TRUE Branding be
More Marketing News →There’ IS a price to “FREE” media production; while it may not show on the books, it will show on your brand. Buying radio or television media production is every creative’s worst nightmare. The schedules are hard to plan – especially in the “Political” and “Sporting” blitz months. Any positive calendar can be preempted at the drop of a very well financed hat. Budgeting is often a guessing game and costly without the right media partner or a person at the station “going to bat” for you. And God forbid if the spots are produced at the station… (think
More Marketing News →If I include my college internship, this September {was} my 21st year working in, on and around marketing. I’ve seen some successful campaigns. I’ve seen some pitiful campaigns. Fortunately, I’ve learned something from them all, but the most important thing I’ve learned is how to tell them apart. (Trust me, some can’t…) So what IS the difference between a successful and a pitiful marketing campaign? STRATEGY. All Marketing Strategy Is Not The Same If you walk through any marketing department or advertising agency, without a doubt, you’ll see computers, printers, scanners, cameras and all of the nifty tools that go
More Marketing News →We all want to be liked. We all want to be the coolest and we all care what others think of us. This is true in the corporate world, as well as in our personal lives. But how do you know when to take peers’ “advice” and when to ignore it? In a previous business life, I worked in retail. Fast-paced, exciting, challenging – and Brand centered. One day, a “Secret Shopper” came into our store, quietly sizing us up, checking our customer service skills and the overall shopping experience. His “findings” were then written into a not-so-nice blog post
More Marketing News →Trying to control social media is like trying to drink the ocean one cup at a time. For successful marketing and communications, companies need to TARGET their social media efforts to their local level to better engage with their audience. Using Twitter Hashtags, Facebook Groups and Events as well as some common sense, the following video explains how to create a more focused social media marketing approach. Focus Your Social Media Marketing Hat tip to our friends at The Des Moines Social Media Club, including Tom Brazelton (@TomBrazelton on twitter_ and the whole @SMCDSM crew as well as a BIG
More Marketing News →One must be mindful of company name when joining social media outlets. Facebook and Twitter have millions of users so one assumes this tool would be on the forefront of any business person’s mind before making a huge name announcement. Alas, last week Netflix CEO Reed Hastings announced that Netflix has transformed its DVD via mail side of the business into Qwikster. This change makes sense with streaming video gaining popularity while one-day Qwikster may go the way of cassette tapes. Although, that is neither here nor there. The real issue at hand is that the people at Netflix neglected
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