Good news for those of you who have struggled with the decision to add social media to your marketing mix. According to the Small Business Success Index small business adopted the use of social media at twice the rate of 2008 in 2009. These businesses are finding that social media offers them access to their market – enabling them to build their brand, engage their current customers, and attract new customers as well.
Here’s a link to useful information summarizing these finding: http://www.bit.ly/ceSbFP
It’s never too late to add social media to your marketing plan. BoyDog Design can assist you in sorting through the various social media sites, blogging options, directories, and more. Is it time to hone the social media persona of your business?
I just came across these links and thought I’d share…
2010 Online Marketing Influencers: Trend Predictions in 140 characters by Trendsspotting http://bit.ly/876UgL
TrendsSpotting’s 2010 Consumer Trends Influencers http://bit.ly/7JPMmg
TrendsSpotting’s 2010 Social Media Influencers – Trend Predictions http://bit.ly/4OWZgV
A recent post on FishbowlNY (“FishbowlNY Readers Respond: What You’ll Pay For”, 12/29/09, http://bit.ly/6zzRMv) explores responder’s views on paying for online content. As someone who has struggled on a personal and professional level with the virtues of print versus digital sources of information I find the results of their poll in line with my own preferences. However, the more I think about this I realize that perhaps I am not evaluating the benefits and flaws of both media in a totally balanced manner.
Like most of you, I come from a predominantly print background. I learn by reading books. I acquire information about current events or areas of interest via magazines, both subscribed to and purchased based on need/want. I was educated in design and how to apply that knowledge to a print medium. Flash forward and I have had to re-educate myself to know how to utilize the vast amount of information and ideas that are readily available online. Professionally I have had to acquire the skills and knowledge that allows me to successfully navigate, filter, and utilize the tools needed to provide online content and to determine legitimate and worthy content from irrelevant fluff, spin, and misinformation.
It just occurred to me that perhaps I’ve been too swift in coming to the conclusion that I prefer receiving my information via a digital source versus a print one. I’ll use newspapers as my example. I’ve been a regular reader of newspapers. Before the advent of instant info via the web, I was happy to glean the facts about local, state, national and world news from my hometown paper. Whatever wasn’t covered in print would surely show up on the daily news on television. How simple life used to be… With the breadth of a tsunami wave online content has taken over as the main distribution channel for news. I can’t say I was adverse to the thought. I happily awaited the time when I could sit down in front of my computer and peruse the news of the day, research for information, and eventually have the ability to participate on a personal level with the addition of access to online content. At that point it seemed that the circle was complete. I could see what was going in, I could pull out what I wanted, and I could add to that circle of information at will. What a perfect setup!
Time passed and I began to realize that some of the information I was reading in the newspaper was “old news”. Why should I care to take the time to read about an event that was already covered online? How could the newspaper expand on what I thought I already knew? Little by little the articles started to shrink in size. The pages were being filled up more and more by ads for local businesses and the like. That’s perfectly o.k. if you have a need for that info, but for me, it started to look more like “fill” and less like substance. I will admit I became disinterested in the newspaper. It “didn’t get it” anymore… My days of relaxing and reading the paper were numbered.
Not to be left behind in the dust cloud of the progression to digital format I readily accepted the challenge. What I hadn’t prepared for was the volume of information at my fingertips. Literally at my fingertips. With a few key strokes I could access information from virtually anywhere in the world. I could zero in on commentary that matched my point of view. I could choose to disregard anything I deemed inappropriate, inaccurate or irrelevant to my needs. It didn’t take long to realize that I had not considered the amount of time and attention this channel of information required. Now, I had to source the media outlet I would choose to receive the latest info. Now, I had to sift through volumes of online pages and determine if I found the “facts” to be just that, factual or fiction. Now, I had to scutinize the source of information to determine who the messenger really was and did they have any particular point of view or allegiance that put a spin on their material. Of course, that scrutiny applies to printed material too. Perhaps I’m naive, but I think it’s easier to hide your true allegiances online.
At this point the flow of information appears limitless. As long as you leave the faucet open there will be a continuous flow of whatever you choose to tap into. How could this be a bad thing? In and of itself online content appears to be no detriment to society. I actually hope it develops into a trustworthy, reliable, accurate, unbiased, and predominantly positive source of information. I am in no way knocking its current and potential benefits. I do, however, wish to step back from my previous line of thought that I had to choose between print or digital – one OR the other. After more consideration I am inclined to reverse my intention to drop printed media in favor of online. Perhaps it’s too soon to jump ship. Instead I think I might paddle back to printed media if for nothing else but to balance my sources. Traditional printed media has been honed from years of service to the public to offer reliable, documented, timely, unbiased, and easily verifiable news. At least that is the presumption. Until the time comes when I can know with certainty that online content follows the same parameters in the presentation of information as print, I will continue to access whatever is offered but with a degree of increased scrutiny. Online content is our present. It is our future. Until I know it adheres to the ethical legacy of print media I think I will be splitting my attention between print and digital media. As the pendulum swings I know that eventually I will be saying goodbye to the print world I’ve come to know and respect. I hope that time doesn’t arrive too soon. Online content deserves the time required to incubate and develop into the potentially premium source of information we all hope for.
Pantone announced today that Turquoise is the 2010 Color of the Year. It will be interesting to watch how the color trends in design and advertising. For more info: http://bit.ly/80Fw1O
(9/15/09) Here’s a great example.
(10/9/09) UPDATE: The promotion was a huge success – now what? http://bit.ly/1A3OCL
Thanks to www.mediabistro.com
What Adobe’s Omniture Acquisition Means for Advertising
http://adage.com/digital/article?article_id=139041
Give Them What They Want – Eliminate What They Don’t Want
Crowdsourcing – what is it? Basically, it’s the appropriation of opinion from a large group of people, with or without a background in the topic being focused on, with the intent of creating a consensus as to the solution to a specific problem or task. The term was coined by Jeff Howe in a 2006 article written for Wired magazine. Its application can be applied to business practices, but for now I am contemplating its use/misuse and potential benefits and long-range damage to media content. Advertising, news, commentary, etc.
I’m all for a group effort in finding a solution to a problem. Everyone has their chance to offer their ideas and as a group you have the opportunity to create a new product, solve a task, or develop a new procedure. I was involved in this type of group effort when I worked in a manufacturing industry. Groups were put together to address various “problems”. There was an Increased Output Team, a Cycle Time Reduction Team, and a Quality Improvement Team. Everyone had a base knowledge and background that enabled them to participate and ultimately solve their team’s specific task.
Crowdsourcing on the other hand puts together a large group of people without assessing their knowledge base and background for the purpose of finding a solution to a proposed task. In this context I am having some difficulty finding value to the process. Particularly when the outcome of crowdsourcing results in advertising, editorial, and deciding what is newsworthy. I admit I’m a newbie to this concept, but I already see the potential for a negative impact down the road.
Everyone wants to save a buck. So I can fully understand a company trying to find an economically beneficial solution to their marketing/advertising objectives. What can they do? Well, they can come up with contests that offer a prize for the winning advertisement for their product. Get as many people as they can to send in ideas and they pick the winner. Let’s go one better, offer a prize to the person who can pick the winner. The idea being that the crowd will ultimately know what it likes and deliver the right message and eliminate what it doesn’t want to know/hear/see. Sorry, just the thought of this process being considered a legitimate way to solve one’s advertising objectives makes me very sad.
There was a time when unsolicited ideas sent in to a company or agency were never opened. Never considered. Now, you’re telling me that you are willing to review material sent in by anyone. There was a time when you had to have some background in your field in order to be considered worthy of offering an opinion. Worthy of review. Anyone who trotted all over town with their portfolio after college knows exactly what I’m talking about. So now I’m to understand that for the purpose of saving money companies choose to not utilize the talents of the truly talented (and educated) and the universe would prefer to consider the offerings of anyone with a pulse.
I read every day about the changes in journalism. The advent of instant media seems to be stampeding over the conventions of journalistic output. Faster is better. Cheaper is better. Being noticed is more important than being accurate, balanced, and providing full disclosure. I’m not saying online journalism is corrupt or flawed to the point of being a bane to society. I am considering how its evolution may deteriorate into a worthless pulpit that provides the public with what they want to hear and not necessarily what they need to know. I hope a balanced approach to the dissemination of information will always be the benchmark of the integrity we hope for in our news outlets.
What happens then when in order to prop up sales the media decides to give the public what they want? Do you want random groups of people responding to questions about media deciding what is considered newsworthy? Could that be a potential result of crowdsourcing the news?
What if there were a predominant sentiment in editorial submissions? Would that sentiment become the ultimate solution? How would you know that was the predominant sentiment? Who decides? Can the use of crowdsourcing truly provide the answer in an editorial format? Who is moderating the discussion? Is it even a discussion anymore?
These are some of the things that have been rattling around in my head lately. While I can see the benefits of a group consensus when that group is qualified to be considered a worthy source to tap into, I still can’t see how a random group of people processing information – with all of their biases and personal objectives – could be the best way to put together an advertising campaign. I don’t understand how the potential elimination of information (due to a random group’s interests being focused on some of the information and not all of it) could possibly offer me news that is fully fashioned, properly vetted, without commentary, and without the inclusion of an unbalanced agenda.
No answers here – just some thoughtful consideration… I will continue to seek out factual data that will enable me to come to some conclusions about crowdsourcing. For now, I wait, I watch, I read, and I scrutinize the media that comes my way. I guess I could do a little crowdsourcing myself right now. I’d like to hear from you – any and all of you . What impact will crowdsourcing have on advertising, news, and commentary?
One of the most cost effective ways to reach out to current and potential customers is to communicate via e-mail to a deliberately chosen mailing list. In the same manner direct mail sent via the postal service has benefited businesses in the past, e-mail marketing can also reap the same benefits but at a fraction or no cost to you.
Depending on the frequency and size of your mailing list you can either send out e-mails using your current e-mail service or purchase or pay to use a software program designed specifically for larger quantity e-mail distribution. Always adhere to the rules of etiquette and the law when initiating an e-mail marketing program.
Here is a list of some of the things you can accomplish utilizing an e-mail marketing program:
1. Announce new products and services – Why wait for a print ad to be published or a new brochure or catalog to be delivered when you can announce a new product or service in real time?
2. Generate sales leads – If you have a unqualified list of potential customers you can e-mail them an offer for something of value and in return require them to sign up to receive your newsletter, blog posts, e-mails, etc.
3. Promote a conference or webinar – Use your current mailing list to generate a larger audience at conferences and to participate in webinars that you are conducting. Any event can be announced and promoted via e-mail.
4. Offer demos and samples – Offer to demonstrate your product or provide a sample to allow a potential customer to overcome any doubts regarding your product. It allows them to become familiar with what you are offering.
5. Solicit newsletter subscribers – E-mail a sample of your current newsletter and offer the opportunity to subscribe. It’s a wonderful way to share information and build a relationship.
6. Conduct surveys and research – Collecting data on trends and attitudes about your brand are a key component of your marketing strategy. Surveys conducted via e-mail are a cost effective way to reach out to your target market. You may want to offer a small reward to encourage participation.
7. Direct offers – With an established mailing list you can offer current customers the opportunity to purchase your product or service when running a promotion. You can encourage usage or upgrading of a product they currently use.
8. Offer a new catalog or sales literature – Announce the availability of a new catalog or literature about your product. Cut down on the expense of mailing out these items by offering it via e-mail and providing a link to a pdf of the literature. You can always offer a print version in your e-mail too.
9. Increase trade show booth traffic – Pre-trade show marketing using e-mail to announce your participation and booth assignment for a trade show can increase traffic. Offer a personal demonstration, valuable information, or redemption of a promotional offer which can only be acquired by visiting your booth.
10. Educate customers and prospects – Provide information that helps your market understand your product more clearly. Focus on the features of your brand than are of value to the consumer. Provide the links to online tutorials, tips, and learning programs associated with your product.
Part of any marketing agenda is the need to create and measure awareness of your brand. One of the current media outlets that you can employ is a blog. A blog created to promote your product or service can benefit your business in a number of ways.
1. Search Engine Marketing – Your online presence via your blog will increase search engine activity and ultimately should result in higher rankings on search engine return pages.
2. Direct Communications – Your postings allow you to speak directly to your potential market. If you speak honestly, openly, and with authority you will instill the perception that you are an authority within your product or service category.
3. Brand Building – Blogs are another media outlet to promote your brand’s core values and how they will positively impact a potential customer.
4. Competitive Differentiation – How you present your brand in your blog in comparison to your competition will help you promote the ways in which your product or service is different and more relevant to a consumer’s needs.
5. Building a Relationship – By presenting your brand with an honest approach to your target market and promoting trust in the benefits you are offering you can eventually build a long-lasting relationship with your customers.
6. Niche Marketing – Tap into an underdeveloped niche for your brand category by using your blog to reach a niche market you may otherwise be missing.
7. Media & Public Relations – Blogs offer a free opportunity to spread the news about your brand. Regular press releases reinforce your brands accomplishments and place within your category.
8. Position Yourself as an Expert – Your blog will enable you to establish your level of knowledge and expertise pertaining to your brand category. It helps in demonstrating to your market that you are a source of information they can benefit from.
9. Reputation Management – A blog allows you to build on the perceived image of your brand. It also allows you to state your position if your brand is perceived negatively.
10. Low cost – It doesn’t get any better than FREE. Most blogs can be set up using existing online publishing platforms.
I routinely suggest the creation of a blog for a client. More often than not I receive a lukewarm response to my suggestion because there is a false assumption that blogging requires extra special skills. If you know enough about your product or service to offer it to the public you should have the required knowledge to write about it. If you aren’t comfortable with the idea of creating and operating a blog there are professionals to help you. I admit that most likely includes a fee, but the potential benefits should outweigh the initial cost.
Don’t lose out on a wonderful opportunity to promote your brand by eliminating a blog from your marketing mix. With some thoughtful preparation and a little practice anyone can master the art of posting on a blog. If the thought of doing it yourself is still something you prefer not to tackle remember that you can always hire a blogger to promote your brand for you. By educating a blogger about the benefits of your brand and setting boundaries for the blog’s performance you never have to give up control of your brand’s voice. Ultimately, isn’t that what your crave for your brand? At the forefront you want to establish a dialogue with your target market that allows you to build trust and brand loyalty for the present and into the future.
