by Miriam Hara | Sep 7, 2013 | Business Success, Design, Interactive, Latest
Gone are the days when having a static website was good enough – essentially showcasing an online brochure of a business. The introduction of flash animation and all the other bells and whistles have also run their course, (thankfully going by the wayside) now becoming passé. The evolution of websites and their role in the business arena has changed substantially; first playing a superficial role to one that is key in the success of any business. Business websites need to work harder to achieve differentiation and assist Marketing and PR initiatives.
A website’s relevancy in today’s business environment has become a necessity. It is no longer a nice to have to but a need to have. Here are a few elements that websites should have.
Social Media Icons: The integration of social media is key. It says a lot when you go to a site and there are no social media buttons… and at the same time that business site speaks of being innovative and cutting edge! I am not saying that businesses should include social media icons if they aren’t really doing anything on social media. But then, you must ask yourself, is this a company you want to start a relationship with?
Fresh Information: Minimally a website home page should have fresh content. That’s the only way Google will come over and visit the site.. helping the website ranking within the world-wide web. A feed from the business blog would be ideal… or a feed from a recognized industry newsletter or publication. The rotation information is also a good way to keep a site fresh, but that too needs to be updated and refreshed.
Page Naming: Website design, website navigation and website user experience are all important. However, how a site identifies and names each one of its pages is an easy way to maximize the performance of the website’s SEO (search engine optimization). Each page url on a business website should be unique and should be formulated with relevant keywords.
Build Relationships: The business website is the first step in developing some very important relationships. Websites should create valuable information for its visitors. Requesting visitors’ information through special offering such as ebooks, surveys or giveaway offers is a good way to start those relationships. Events should also be promoted, such a business milestones and contests, integrating the total digital experience for that business.
Websites are the first impression businesses make and they speak volumes about the culture and persona. As we enter the last quarter of 2013… (Bob Dylan stated so eloquently) “Times they are a-changing”. It’s time to take a good look at your business website to assess if it measures up.
by Justin James | Jul 15, 2013 | Advertising, Business Success, Creative, Interactive, Latest, Social Media
In my past blog posts, I stated the reasons why companies should rethink making their YouTube commercial stream before popular videos can be viewed. I believe that video marketing can be a very effective tool. However, like other social media, it can also backfire when done incorrectly. In order to avoid the ‘hard sell’ on viewers’ ‘me time’, there are some guidelines you should follow:
Four tips on how to have a not-so-awful YouTube commercial:
1) Make the ad enjoyable. If you are going to try to bring business into the social space, then avoid the hard sell. You want to make sure that the video is, at least, mildly entertaining. Humor can turn your video from a sales pitch to entertainment, making it something people may actually watch. If you can’t make the ad funny, at least be creative with it.
2) Allow your audience to skip the ad after the first few seconds. If you’re spending money on the ad, you don’t want people to leave halfway through—you want people to watch it! But the longer you keep the viewer waiting to see their intended video, the more intolerant they will become of your ad and message. Give them the option to skip the ad should your product or service be of no interest to them. If your product or service is relevant and they are willing to watch the full ad the first time it plays, they would already know what you have to say, and would not want to watch it again.
The optimal time your ad should run before you give them the choice to stop watching is five seconds. By then, you should have already established who you are and what you offer. If they aren’t interested in that time, you’ve already lost them. Alternatively, you can give the viewer the option to skip your ad as soon as it pops up. However, most viewers will not mind a few seconds and you have a better chance of getting your message across if you set the skip option at 5 seconds.
3) Keep it concise. YouTube is not a place for long-winded infomercials, unless you put them on your own channel. As I mentioned in #2, if someone isn’t interested in your YouTube commercial within the first five seconds, they won’t change their minds after thirty. To be successful, your ad must immediately grip the viewer and make them curious. Keeping your YouTube commercial short will ensure you don’t annoy those who are not presently interested in your message.
To get a viewer hooked, bring your message across quickly and clearly. Have a call to action – to visit your YouTube channel, your Facebook, your twitter, your website – whichever space you are promoting. If they are interested in your message, they will click through for more information. Once they are on your turf, you can offer the longer commercials.
4) Choose your music carefully. Remember that your ad could be viewed several times by the same viewer. If your video begins to play and you have a song that sounds unprofessional or unpleasant, it will become increasingly annoying the more they are forced to listen to it. Choose a popular song or an instrumental version in the music genre that best suits your target demographic, or keep the soundtrack neutral. After all, no one’s ever complained about elevator music.
With these tips, you can advertise to YouTube audiences more effectively—without driving potential customers away.
by Justin James | Jul 12, 2013 | Advertising, Business Success, Interactive, Latest, Social Media
If you read my last blog, you would know that I am not a fan of video ads on YouTube. Not only are they irksome to the viewer, but they may actually hurt the company’s reputation and cause ill will.
Luckily, Google ads allow advertisers to reach their audience through YouTube without disturbing the video viewers. The two preferred alternatives to YouTube commercials are:
Post original content – Creative YouTube Videos
Companies can post as many commercials as they want, as long as they’re on their own channel. For example, Pepsi has a four-minute long commercial with over 130,000 likes and 37 million views! The reason this commercial is so much more successful than other paid commercials on YouTube is (1) because the video is humorous and (2) they invite you to come see it, rather than hunting you down.
The point of using social media is to have people share and discuss things that interest them. Offering a more entertaining option instead of a ‘hard sell’ video on a social site can lead to greater success when people share the video with friends.
The alternative method would be…
Pay for static ads –
To reference my last blog post again, the door-to-door salesman is back, but he hasn’t rung your doorbell. You can see him through the window, sitting outside your house with his big sign and briefcase, but at least he’s not harassing you while you eat. This salesman is still making you feel slightly annoyed, especially when he begins to dance around or tries to make you play a game (gif ads), but at least he’s willing to be courteous enough to let you choose if you want to hear what he has to say.
Alternatively, if you have a static ad, perhaps in a sidebar or underneath the video, it will not directly interfere with the video the viewer is trying to watch. Even a pop-up ad on the video is acceptable, since a viewer can just click the “x” in the top right corner to close it.
Static ads are less engaging than videos with original content. However, they are also less expensive. If the tag lines of the ad are interesting enough, a few people may actually click through and read what you have to say about your product.
If you feel compelled to make YouTube commercials anyways, I will offer some tips in my next blog post on making your video ads as palatable as possible.
by Justin James | Jul 11, 2013 | Advertising, Business Success, Interactive, Latest, Social Media
If your company is trying to market in this digital age, you have likely heard of social media marketing. Using social media to reach out and connect to your audience is wonderful —it can turn a boring ad into an amazing interactive experience! Engaging an audience with Facebook and Twitter is something anyone can do, but you need to be careful when trying to sell your product through YouTube —or you might be spending your budget on ineffective infomercials!
Defenders may argue that “YouTube is the second largest search engine. Of course having ads on here would benefit my company!” Although Mr. Advertiser is right to think that YouTube has a lot of marketing potential, he’s is probably using the wrong type of advertising.
Yes, YouTube has more than one billion unique visitors a month. Yes, YouTube reaches more adults ages 18-34 than any cable network. Of course, more than a million advertisers use Google ad platforms. However, if you are trying to reach the young demographic with windy infomercials, you may end up driving them away instead.
Why YouTube Ads are Less Effective Than you Think
Think of how you use YouTube. You’re relaxing in the comfort of your home and need something to do. You don’t want to commit to watching an entire movie, so you log onto YouTube and see that one of your favorite YouTubers has uploaded a new video.
5 minutes! Wow, perfect! You’re excited now—the video’s title promises a cute cat doing funny things! You hover your mouse over the title and click the video and then…
“Hi. I’m Doug from x company, and we want to sell you y.” Your muscles tense as a large man in a suit bombards you with special offers for a product that cleans goldfish bowls. You’re growing impatient now; you want to watch your cat video and not this interrupting salesman.
Once the ad finally finishes, you get to enjoy your cat video. Great! Then you look, in the related searches bar—what’s that!? A dancing bear? You just have to click it, and— No! Why? The exact same ad begins to play again. You’ve already suffered through the salesman’s irrelevant spiel once, and now you are forced to watch it again!
Now, not only have you decided:
1) ‘I want to enjoy my personal time.’
2) ‘I do not care about this product.’
But you’ve also developed another reaction: The company has actually angered you with their intrusive videos and so:
3) ‘I am so annoyed with this company that I am less likely to involve myself with this or other products they carry.’
Sound familiar? So what should your company do?
YouTube is a massive website that reaches billions of viewers. However, YouTube often reaches people during their “Me-Time.” It’s the same concept as door-to-door salesmen knocking on your door at supper time. It’s intrusive and could hurt your company’s chances at gaining customers.
Check back on Hoopla as I reveal how to successfully advertise on YouTube.
by Lisa Wedmann | Jun 27, 2013 | Advertising, Business Success, Creative, Interactive, Latest, Social Media
Which do you want to know first? The good news or the bad news? I like to hear bad news first in order to assess damage control. And I still have something to feel enthusiastic about since the good news is yet to come. so, since this is my blog… here’s the bad news… first. The bad news is that those who study how to go viral are almost unanimous in the conclusion that going viral is a result of synchronicity, that simultaneous occurrence of events that somehow appear related but have no understandable connection. It’s about being in the right place, at the right time with the right material and a little bit of luck.
THE GOOD NEWS ABOUT VIRAL MARKETING
However, where they do agree is that you can position yourself to be in the most fortuitous place to make going viral happen.
Below are a few viral marketing tactics that can help in your quest. They may seem elementary but they are the type of tactics that build a foundation and that is always a good place to start.
VIRAL MARKETING TACTICS
Think carefully about your topic.
First, understand that not everything has the ability to go viral.
I mean, come on now did you really think your thesis on Greek Social History would go viral? That means before we start fantasizing about our success we have to consider is it reasonable to expect that your project can go viral. You need to choose your topic carefully. At the same time, in all fairness, none of us know which things can and will go viral. I find it hard to believe that a 15 minute video of a women trying to parallel park went viral but it did.
Experiment, test and then test again.
Next, be prepared to experiment.
Try different approaches. Don’t be satisfied with one idea. Put two or three or more ideas out there and if you don’t get results, or as my Dad used to say, don’t flog a dead horse. Try a different approach. Experiment, test, refine, and then test again.
Turn the ordinary into extraordinary.
I never relate to those articles that tell me how easy it is to get that killer app or that killer eBook or that killer product and all you have to do is have a unique idea, or create memorable content. Duh. That’s what having a good product is all about. Face it guys, you are preaching to the converted.
But you can borrow from a few standard marketing techniques. Techniques such as turning the ordinary into something beautiful, take Apple and their visually beautiful line of products or Dove with their real beauty campaign.
Give your idea a partner.
Here’s an easy way to get that extra push. Pair your idea with something unrelated but totally relatable. A bit of an oxymoron? Not really. Think of Maxwell House Coffee and the positive little girl who loves her house and just about everything in it.
MORE GOOD NEWS ABOUT VIRAL MARKETING
Viral marketing makes your business visible.
There’s one more aspect of viral marketing that makes me want to stand up and jump HOORAY! When you create a viral marketing campaign you are creating awareness and increased visibility for your business.
Do you have any ideas on how to make a campaign go viral?
by Stephanie Fasulo | Jun 12, 2013 | Branding, Interactive, Latest, Social Media
As most people have heard, former CIA technical assistant Edward Snowden became an overnight household name and acclaimed “whistle blower” when he decided to inform the public about a government database that collects our private information.
Any analyst at any time can target anyone,” Snowden said. “I, sitting at my desk, had the authority to wiretap anyone, from you or your accountant to a federal judge to even the president if I had a personal email.”
A million different thoughts ran through my mind. But mostly, I wasn’t surprised at all. The government has always been one step ahead, collecting our information for years to protect us.
But you can’t deny that social media helps government agencies collect our information much more efficiently as we give it right to them. But it’s not only government officials whom have our seemingly private information at their fingertips.
Private companies – big online businesses – Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn have our information because we are freely giving it to them. At any time these multi-million dollar companies know which cities we live in, what we’re interested in and who our friends and family are. Oh, and that picture of your meal you posted from the restaurant down the street? You just told them where you are.
Everything is uploaded to a giant server in a private company where we only assume the information is protected and our lives are private, as possible.
But as people working in a social media environment, making our money influencing each other on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn – is it too late to turn back? Could you give up the social influence you’ve built on the Internet? The businesses we’ve built, the reputations and our clients? Would we be okay giving up social media if it ever inflicted on our overall privacy and wellbeing?
A part of me thinks it may be too late. Too late to step back and unplug social media from our lives even though we know it brings a sense of danger to our personal security. There are start-up companies every day, building and being inquired, all promising to bring social media to corporate environments. As ethical as these practices may be, we have to at least be aware of the possibility of every company dipping into social media our private information is being spread further and further away from us.
CNN reported some social media reactions to the CIA whistleblower: http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/07/tech/social-media/snooping-web-reaction/index.html
@mattdizwhitlock #NSACalledtoTellMe that after 4 trial memberships on eHarmony I probably should just give up.
@IIzThatIIz #NSACalledtoTellMe What Happens in Vegas, stays in our Utah data center.
@andishehnouraee The most important question: How will my presence on #PRISIM affect my @klout score?
It’s a scary thought to think that it may be too late to turn back from the social media presence we all work towards daily. If we monitor what information we put online, maybe you can better protect yourself but it’s always best to stay informed. So, what do you think?
