by Christine Marr | Feb 10, 2012 | Advertising, Business Success, Social Media
We live in a fast-paced market…but when is good enough not good enough? With the new way of communication, technology has starting re-writing our language and the way we communicate, especially in professional communications. That is totally acceptable, as language too must evolve with the needs of the society it serves. It wouldn’t be the first time that the English language has changed. Today, we communicate so fast when we text message, tweet, post Facebook updates… this need for speed makes us just want to get the message out to our audience, regardless of spelling, grammar, punctuation.
Maybe I am showing my age… however, I believe that there is increasingly a blur between our personal communications and our professional communications… and really that shouldn’t be. Business is business, and if you start your first impression with a typo or poor grammar because it’s an e-zine or digital media, it doesn’t make it all right.
Is misspeling and poor grammar accepaible in bisiness? Okay, I jest. I know that this is really an extreme, but believe me when I say, even one misspelled word sends out the same message as a whole bunch misspelled words, poor grammar and even poorly written copy.
Below is an e-blast message as an example. Shouldn’t brilliant ideas also include great execution? Does having no rules imply that anything goes… and with it your brand and business? When I received this I was shocked.What is proper etiquette here; do you gently tell the sender/author that they have a typo?Recently I caught the same saw the same sort of issue on a Linkedin profile and and I sent a private message. Isn’t Linkedin a professional environment where the first impression counts
Bad spelling, poor punctuation and grammar can say many things about your business…it’s not talking about you… and it says that you do business carelessly. When we communicate on the internet, 99% of the time it is done by the written word. Spelling errors in business will make you appear unprofessional. Avoiding common misspellings and grammatical errors ensures that your writing is clear, precise, and comprehensible, making a positive impression on readers, which is particularly important in business communications. What’s the issue and how hard can it be? It couldn’t be any easier to check spell and re-edit your grammar with all the tools like spell check found in most and all software… It’s not 100%, but at least it’s a start.
The need for speed and cutting costs have made businesses accept good enough and I don’t believe that’s a good strategy. Think about the investment that businesses make about building their brands/business only to have it undermined by the need to communicate to their potential customers/clients quickly. At the end of the day that’s a high price to pay.
Am I starting to show my age? Am I not going with the flow? I’d like you to share your comments about this.
by Miriam Hara | Jan 30, 2012 | Advertising, Branding, Business Success
One of my favourite marketing statements: Having a product and not advertising it… is like well… it’s like winking in the dark. You know you’re doing it… but no one else does! Advertising your product delivers awareness and the fact is… awareness sells.
How to build brand awareness?
Get your brand out there! Converse in media (social media, print, radio, tv… or all!), engage consumers by creating brand critical mass and prompting them to go to the store… checking out an online contest or calling in for a meeting. Advertising is essential in the marketing mix of achieving and building brand loyalty. It goes without saying that you can only have brand loyalty if you have brand recognition and consumers try your brand. Advertising is really just about getting your brand and brand position out there… to reach the consumers who hold value for your brand or service. Social Media has evolved the conversation and has provided a new channel, opening a slew of possibilities in achieving brand awareness: interactive ads such as online banners, viral video and mobile apps. Your website is at the hub of all activity, whether derived from traditional or new media. All this ‘new’ is still cradled with basic marketing sense: the message still must be clear, the audience identified, the strategy must be focused and the objectives have to be defined.
Brand awareness initiatives along with a deep innate understanding of psychographics are the basis of how to market a brand, service or company. It’s imperative that your target audience identify with your brand, so that it becomes part of them, of their culture and resonates with their lifestyle. Simply stated… your brand needs to show up!
by Lindsay Sleightholm | Jan 26, 2012 | Branding, Business Success, Creative, Design
Logos house a great deal of information about a brand and what it stands for, all neatly tied up into one succinct visual. In this era of social media, it is likely the first point of contact between a market and the company it represents; for that reason, it needs to make a great impression.
A lot goes into logo creation. To the casual observer, it seems simple enough. But, there is more to a successful logo design than appears at first glance. A brand logo or company logo carries more than just aesthetic appeal. In essence, a logo is the visual representation of a brand. In other words, it is a symbol that identifies the brand to an audience. As an experienced graphic designer, I can say that every single detail matters when designing a logo, right down to the logo font. I may sound a little biased; however, I’m simply stating the facts.
For a lot of new business owners, a logo is perhaps low on the list of priorities. It is sometimes viewed only as being necessary for presenting their name on a business card. But, make no mistake, a company logo as part of a brand, is actually a living organism and speaks for the business to new clients, representing the business before any live person will.
In a world of media, video, visuals and text rather than face to face communication, a logo actually ranks above personal contact as a first impression. With that said, here is my short list of ‘must haves’ for any successful first impression.
A brand or company logo must be:
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Unique: It must differentiate itself amongst the competition: Just like your USP (unique selling proposition), your logo has to embody the brand persona.
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Simple: It has to send a clear message about the brand: Just like your marketing plan it needs to speak to its potential consumer/client base.
- Versatile: It needs to suit a variety of uses: Just like business, it needs to ‘live’ well in all kinds of applications: social media, web design, print, signage, one colour, 4 colour.
- Timeless: It has to age better than people: Just like any product life cycle, the logo has to live a brand life and have the potential to change slightly to reach new markets without losing its existing brand franchise and recognition.
But, don’t take my word for it, see for yourself. Let me introduce you to some of what I feel are the best logos you have already met… what are your faves!
Target
Major League Baseball
Nike
by Miriam Hara | Jan 25, 2012 | Business Success
January has come…and almost gone, and with it, all the heartfelt declaration of personal and business resolutions. I totally understand personal resolutions, it’s the onslaught of “business resolutions” and more specifically brand resolutions that have been making their way into my inbox that I really don’t get.
I’m the first to state that Brand is a living organism. I stand by that adage. However, saying that doesn’t mean that brand gets to act like an individual! All good intentions and no follow through! That’s really my point. It comes back to the basic question of what defines a marketing plan and what is branding?
Brand needs to be guided with a marketing plan with defined marketing strategies in hand and established on-going protocols for measuring the success and failure of initiatives and the next step forward. Resolutions, especially when referred to within the business arena, in my humble opinion, implies that strategies and tactics that should of been implemented were somehow lost sight of. Not a good sign! Afterall, my newly formed annual resolution of losing 10 pounds has come about because I haven’t exercised as I said I would (followed through on my plan and implemented my tactics) and quite frankly, I have been eating way more than I should (not measuring ROI)! Sorry, I am human! 😉
A brand should always follow its exercise routine (marketing strategies) in order to reach its ideal form (objective). In order to do that, it needs to show discipline and track results (post-initiative analysis) at specific points in time. If that isn’t done routinely…. then you’ve set up your brand to fail.
So this year’s business resolutions aside… exercise your brand all year around… every day…with intent… with follow through. That way you know your brand fitness level. If you do that, no matter what time of the year it is and what business challenges your brand faces…. trust me, nothing will sneak up on you like 10 pounds does… and you definitely won’t need a resolution!
by Christine Marr | Jan 23, 2012 | Business Success, Interactive, Social Media
It’s so easy to get caught up in the number of “likes”a Facebook page has or doesn’t have… Businesses should ask themselves is the number of “likes” they have really all there is? Is it even possible to over value the worth of a “like”? We all know that utilizing Social Media for business and brands is more than just Twitter and Facebook. It’s about having a good social media strategy, listening to the online conversation, engaging in and setting objectives with measurable results… and having a next step.
Last week the marketing world learned of a Facebook marketing strategy that had gone seriously wrong. For simply “liking” their Facebook page, the company had promised a free gift that was worth about $17.95. For some reason the company forgot the basic marketing premise of never disappointing their customer base. Just a simple disclaimer: “while supplies last” or “for the first 100 people” is what it would have taken to make this promotion a success. Three days later this company realized their blunder, achieving their forecast number of “likes”. They compounded their lack of accurate forecast by waiting about 3 weeks before they initiated dialogue to customers that had liked the page but wouldn’t get the freebie; far too long a response time. The damage was done… twice they had not delivered on their marketing promise to their potential customer.
It’s a known tactic that offering consumers free stuff engages response and trial… and in today’s world, the word gets out fast on contest-aggregating websites! A lack of understanding of the media and how the audience engages is sure way of failing. Success of any marketing initiative, social media, print, TV or radio…still remains in the planning, execution and details.
A marketing plan is fundamental and the social media plan needs to be folded into that. Freebies, giveaways, free stuff…. it’s great to see how many people are listening to you, and dive in! Yes! But at what cost? What price? Premiums, giveaways….they’re investments in building a relationship to further promote customer engagement and customer’s experience towards your brand.
What is your USP? Who is your target market? What is your budget? Setting objectives is mandatory for long term vision. Set sharp, clearly defined goals that are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, time-bound (trackable)… just as you would in traditional marketing.
by admin | Nov 24, 2011 | Business Success
Our warmest wishes to our American colleagues and clients that are celebrating Thanksgiving today. We hope that today is filled with family and friends and that everyone embraces all that there is to be thankful for.
A day dedicated to giving thanks for what we do have, rather then focusing on what we do not have.
Enjoy.
