by Miriam Hara | Sep 24, 2012 | Advertising, Business Success, Creative, Design
Just how expensive is do it yourself marketing? In an age where technology has everything accessible to pretty much everyone the question begs to be asked… is this smart or not… and how costly is it? Today business owners can create their own logos, tagline statements, ads and websites all on their own. But like everything else in life, you have ask yourself… just because you can… should you? Just like speaking English doesn’t necessarily make you a writer, knowing software such as Photoshop or InDesign doesn’t make you a designer and understanding your market doesn’t make you a “creative thinker”.
Many businesses, B2B, B2C, retail or service proudly give out their business cards or show off their website with “I did it myself” attitude. This always surprises me. Businesses who hire carpenters, electricians or decorators to do up their offices, or even pay extra in rent to be at the right location, will skimp on designing a proper logo, establish a proper tagline and develop a proper site. What is it about the creative part of the Marketing field that makes business people think that it’s just an optional expense when establishing a business? What’s the point of having a website if it isn’t user friendly or it isn’t optimized for user experience so when people actually get to your site they get to access the information that they require effortlessly? How about the copy – if your site isn’t written properly for your target, and more importantly, if the copy written doesn’t take into account keywords for ranking optimization what’s the point of having the site up anyway? Isn’t the whole purpose of having a website to inform and get found on Google in order to call or come to your store?
I once went to a spa that charged me $175 for a 1 hour massage and then gave me a brochure with all their services. The brochure was a mess! Not only was it poorly designed, but it was riddled with typos… words were cut off and even the folding of the brochure was uneven. I felt that charging that much for a massage, the least that the spa should have done is offer their customers a brochure that has the same “upscale” feeling as their pricing! It left me with the feeling that they didn’t want to go that extra mile to sell me… to convince me that they were worth those extra dollars. In this case, good enough just wasn’t.
Most people wouldn’t even consider doing major repairs or transformations to their homes. I too can swing a hammer… most times I even hit the nail. And sawing a 2×4 piece of wood shouldn’t be too complicated, at least I don’t think so… just don’t ask me to saw a right angle! I’ll get it just about right, but not quite. Ask yourself this – if every time you walk into the kitchen and see the work that you did yourself, that isn’t just so… can you live with it?
Contrary to home improvements, the creative part of Business Marketing isn’t something that you can or should ‘live with’. First of all, it isn’t just you living with it… it’s your potential clients and customers that will be subject to it. Designers, writers, and professional marketers don’t just know how to use the tools… they know how to think marketing… they know strategy and market assessment. They do their homework for your business, looking at the competition, evaluating the market, understanding your business. Each of these professional designations (writer, marketer or designer) think in a process to determine the best way to market your business or brand, visually and cohesively… dare I say strategically?
I do understand that designing a logo, developing a tagline and creating a website can get expensive and ultimately it is an expense. But ask yourself how expensive is it to get it all wrong? To ruin your business’ first impression? Or not have the desired result from your website? Before you throw your hands up in the air and tell designers and writers how expensive they are, think of how expensive it would be not to have your business seen in the best light possible, or be found? Sometimes $1 spent poorly is a lot more costly then $1000 spent wisely.
by cassandr | Sep 7, 2012 | Advertising, Branding, Business Success, Interactive, Social Media
In today’s day and age there are tons and thousands of blogs and growing. So how do you drive traffic to your blog? This is the million-dollar question that everyone asks.
Many people think that all you need is a catchy title about a popular topic, add in some popular search engine keywords and there you have it.
Well, it’s not that simple. Below are a few tips in building traffic to your blog.
Before getting started let’s begin stating the two basic reasons as to why regular readers follow blogs. Firstly, useful information is key in attaining followers and secondly highly engaging entertainment. If your blog substantially lacks either one of these don’t expect to get many followers because you won’t. You will need a different approach and a lot more brainstorming before reaching the next stage of building traffic.
Another key element in building traffic is you must be an expert in the particular topic you are talking about. There’s no sense in writing a blog if there’s no main focus. If too many unrelated topics are posted you will likely have an audience that will be very fragmented.
If your blog lacks expertise you’re just calling for trouble so, don’t expect to have an audience at all. But most importantly, have a focused direction.
If your blog offers valuable information, has a key focus then continue reading on about the tips and tricks of building traffic to your website.
1. Write Posts That People Will Want To Read
This sounds like a no brainer, but you would be surprised how many people forget to provide headlines and copy that will be interesting to your audience. If you write posts that the reader will find interesting they will likely come back and visit your blog regularly. That is only if you write often and regularly.
2. Use Twitter, Facebook and Google+ to Share Your Posts & Find New Connections
All three social networks attract a vast range of internet users around the world.
These networks which also be referred as “content distributors” meaning they can help you spread the word about your blog. Taking advantage of putting these networks will surely lead you on the path to success. Here’s how!
- Firstly, if you’re not already registered on these accounts I suggest you do so.
- Make sure you fill as much of these profiles as you can otherwise they will not look credible.
- Remember to connect with users on these sites whom already share a professional relationship, and begin following industry luminaries, and influencers.
- Share content with your peers especially anything that you feel is interesting enough to possibly go viral.
3. Optimize Your Posts for Search Engines
It is important when writing blog posts that you remember to optimize your pages for search engines to find them. I can’t stress this enough but you must include relevant keywords. A rule of thumb is to not overload your post with too many keywords or words that have not relevancy with what your talking about.
4. Tag Your Posts
It takes literally a few seconds to do yet people still don’t spend the time doing so. Adding tags to your blog posts is worth the time in terms of building additional traffic to your blog. They’re also key to helping readers find your blog when they are specifically searching for a topic, and can be easily picked up by search engines.
There are plenty other tips and tricks for building traffic to your blog. These four tips mentioned above are simply a good place to start and by no means the only ones. The blogging world is constantly changing and if you want to get to the top you must continue to read up on these trends.
How do you build traffic for your blog?
by cassandr | Sep 5, 2012 | Branding, Business Success, Interactive, Social Media
Have you ever wondered how to tell a real account from a fake account? The tricks they use, and the game they play? Well you’re not alone.
Unfortunately many fake Twitter accounts pop up everyday, some harder to spot than others.
The downside to fake followers for brands is significant. The number of followers a brand has becomes irrelevant if the followers are fake. Measuring social media is already a difficult process, but once you throw in accounts that add no value other than a number it becomes even more difficult.
How do you truly measure social media success if a brand gets nothing in return from its Twitter followers?
StatusPeople is an App that is a social media management tool that can easily help businesses and brands track their social media communities and if they are real or not. Over 150,000 people have used the Fakers App to find out what the quality of their followers is.
Barring the use of any Faker App, here are some online do-it-yourself identity checks to help you spot the fakers, right off the bat:
1) Style and Personality
Before following a Twitter account make sure to do a quick review of their biography. It is also very important to check out their tweets and the daily conversations they engage in. This can easily display the style and personality of the individual you want to follow.
2) Huge Amount Following, Small Amount of Followers
This is a pretty self-explanatory indication if an account is fake. If an account is following thousands, while only a few are following back, this is more than likely a fake account. One of the first things to check is if they truly work for a specific company; you could possibly expect to see other employees following them.
3) The Follow/ Unfollow Game
Have you ever had someone follow you on Twitter and then unfollow when you don’t follow back? Some people do this in order to have a positive ratio of followers to follows. These types of accounts wait a couple days for you to follow them, and then unfollow the people they recently followed. They continue and repeat the process until they have the desired number of followers.
4) No or Very Few Photo Uploads
Many fake accounts do not post many or any photos at all. Fake accounts typically have pictures of different people; this gives the illusion that this is in fact a real person.
5) More Than 50 Tweets a Day
Many fake accounts use services that provide them with automated tweets. These accounts do not target their tweets nor do they write there own content. In other words, they just let the software do all the work and send out as many spammy messages as possible.
Fake Twitter followers negatively affect both consumers and brands; brands in particular should remember quality is always better than quantity.
How do you use your Twitter followers to enhance your business strategy?
by Madi Secareanu | Jul 5, 2012 | Branding, Business Success, Creative, Interactive, Social Media
The Brand Follower Relationship is the modern day Love Story.
Social media has enabled the breakdown of walls between brands and consumers, so a true relationship can develop packed with emotion, trust and love. No longer can Brands push out their one-way communications to their consumers. Consumers expect to be seen, heard and listened to… in short, acknowledged. They want to be actively involved in the brand story and the conversations; they want to contribute but they need a good reason to do so. It’s not enough to just start a brand page, your brand must regularly engage its social media followers consistently with its <a< span=””> title=”Brand Voice: How to Create It. Build It. Maintain It.” href=”http://www.3h.ca/blog/branding/brand-voice-the-how-to/”>Brand Voice – always exercising new and creative ways to speak to followers… and engage them.
Since each social media platform is different, the way people engage is going to be different as well. Here are a few ways you can engage successfully with followers and keep your Brand Follower relationship strong on Facebook Pages, Twitter and Pinterest.
Facebook Pages
- Build momentum: Run contests. Running a contest won’t only increase the number of followers a brand has but it will keep current followers engaged and excited. Keep the buzz and momentum going by asking questions and generating content that revolves around the brand and the contest. Don’t just let the contest live on its on – make a lot of noise about it! Use Facebook ads to reach your demographic profile… and remember to further focus your efforts with the use of psychographics!
- Build a following: Get “Likes”. Followers want quick and easy ways to interact with brands. Asking them to “Like” a post is as quick as it gets but it still generates stories and gets the word out. Similar to commenting, when followers “Like” a post, it will show up on their friends’ news feeds giving your post the opportunity to go viral.
- Be Authentic: Keep it real. Followers don’t want to be sold to on Facebook. They follow a brand page because they are already sold on that brand and they are most likely already loyal customers. Speak with them not to them and don’t use traditional marketing speak. Finding a voice for your brand, an authentic voice, is essential to successfully engaging followers on Facebook
Twitter
- Keep talking: Talk to followers. Follow them back. Retweet them. Listen to them. It’s a sure way to keep them engaged and interested. The lifespan of a tweet is generally a few seconds, making them a thing of the past almost instantly, but if your brand acknowledges a follower’s tweet it adds value and gives them a reason to keep following and engaging with your brand.
- Generate excitement: Run contests. Twitter is great for running impromptu contests. It’s a quick and fun way to keep followers on their toes. Offer a free giveaway by asking them to tweet an answer or retweet a tweet or ask them to help you reach a certain follower milestone for a chance to win a prize.
- Just ask: Asking followers to retweet, mention or just help get the word out about a brand generally works very well. Communication is key – ask and you shall receive. Again, it’s a simple way but an effective way to engage with a brand and followers are quick to jump on board.
Pinterest
- Visual Momentum: Run Contests. Pinterest is a great place to run visual contests. Asking followers to create boards or repin a pin is an effective way to not only get your content out there , gain new followers and of course, to engage with existing followers.
- Give control: By allowing followers to create boards on your Pinterest profile, followers feel like they are contributing, again, to the brand story. It’s also a great way for a brand to diversify its content. A brand can also ask followers to share its content on Twitter and Facebook, creating a cross-platform campaign that generates engagement throughout a brand’s social media presence.
- Be exclusive: Pinterest is a great for a visual brand to get their followers engaged by giving them exclusive looks into the brand – a “behind-the-scenes”. Think about using Pinterest and the idea of exclusivity to run focus groups. For example, showing followers a product redesign on Pinterest before they see it anywhere else and asking for their input by commenting or repining can show followers and consumers that their input really matters to your brand.
Starting a social media platform can be a significant milestone for a Brand, but it involves more than just opening a new account or starting a new brand page on Facebook. Be sure to develop a holistic strategy and employ all the channels available in social media. Knowing the tactics and using the platform isn’t enough. Plus, like any other valuable relationship, the Brand Follower relationship needs work, passion and communication to endure and remain strong at heart.
Do you have a complete social media strategy with a strong Brand Follower relationship? Share what has worked and what hasn’t for your Brand and your followers.
by Christine Marr | Jun 11, 2012 | Branding, Business Success, Interactive, Social Media
Are you going app-crazy? How many apps do you have downloaded on your iPhone, iPad, Blackberry or Android? Surely you’ve contributed to the latest stats that I’ve been hearing… to date, Apple has surpassed 25 billion (BILLION) apps downloaded, and 60,000 more added every month! I probably don’t need to tell you that mobile apps create interactive experiences. It goes without saying that they improve your business’ visibility. Today it’s all about 24/7 access to instant information and location sensitive content. In the not so distant future, mobile devices will replace traditional computers completely.
Being in business (B2B) or having a brand (B2C) there is ultimately one question to answer and deliver on: How do you break through the app clutter?
Well, just because it’s a new channel doesn’t mean you need to throw away traditional techniques. In fact, they are even more important to adhere to. To effectively market your app you must use a consistent, measured approach to best guarantee long-term success. Taking the time to ensure adequate support of the product, considering your market and designing a marketing strategy is vital. Understanding the value of the channel and the media properties you employ is key so that you don’t spend your entire marketing budget in the first few weeks.
Tips to successfully market your mobile app:
1) Build your website: I know it may sound crazy, but make sure your foundation is sound. You may have a great app, but eventually you’ll want to turn that app subscriber to a customer and client, and that takes a solid website ready and positioned to handle incoming traffic and lead generation.
2) Blog and update regularly, connect with like-minded blogs to promote your app. Your profile or company profile for each blog should always speak to your app, with a link to download it now.
3) Be the first! Be unique! It’s tough to be the first to come out with your type of app in an already saturated market , but you can offer an existing concept in a different way or be innovative taking an existing app and making it better.
4) Develop and Implement a Strategy: I won’t belabour this point. Let’s just say Marketing 101.
5) Shout it out! Being first or being unique doesn’t get you anywhere if people don’t know about it. Don’t wink in the dark! Consider a pay-per-success campaign where you are only required to part with money if the advert leads to a direct download. Don’t do it yourself… if you can’t. Enlist the services of a promotional tool to toot your horn to targeted audiences.
6) Build up hype about your app launch: A combined approach incorporating word-of-mouth, viral marketing and advertising is the best way to keep your downloads high and think long-term sustained success by staggering your message.
No shoemakers children here at 3H: Following our own advice, we have a just launched our new marketing app : Hoopla…. download it now! Just click here.
What is your favourite business app?
