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Gratitude Attitude, More Thank You's.
September 10, 2009
Thought it might be time to give thanks again to some people who have helped GWDC along.
Thank you to Joni Caldwell for bringing Scalo Northern Grill to us as a new client. We look forward to doing more for Scalo and more for Caldwell Media's accounts in the future.
Thank you to Rita Graham at Casey Optical who not only became a new client but is having GWDC as a guest speaker at her Lion's club this month.
Thank you to Melanie Majors from Cordova Public Relations and Major Works for bringing GWDC the NMBA training opportunity. A big thank you to Anne Monson for introducing us to Melanie.
Thank you to Patricia Brkich at Ronald McDonald House of New Mexico for pushing for GWDC to be in the budget for 2010. Thank you also to Maryle Barber at Casa Esperanza for reconnecting us with Patricia!
Hiring an intern? Really? WHY?
August 31, 2009
A lot of companies are now hiring interns for Social Media. Today in fact I saw on a photographer's web page that they weren't going to pay. Your pay will be experience.
I really feel the need to caution you against this. Sure all the kids today know how to work MySpace, Facebook and the like.
But for business, it's different. You are allowing someone who will not get paid, to be in charge of your brand image. Or someone who works for very little money, will be in charge of your public face.
Would you allow a college freshman to create your television ad? How about brochures and sales pieces for your business?
No?
So why do you think they'd be great at facebook? Because they know how? Any monkey can make a page on facebook, twitter, etc. I assure you, you can do it yourself. And I am not calling you a monkey.
But not just anyone should be writing about your business, whether it be on your annual report, on your brochure or on your facebook page.
Social Media is different from others because in this medium, people talk back. You need an expert at customer service and customer experience handling your image. You need a professional writer who can write for different audiences. Those that will be learning and reading about your business on Twitter aren't always the same on facebook, MySpace, or LinkedIn.
I have a chart that breaks down what an intern would cost to hire at minimum wage for Social Media. I'd appreciate the chance to save you money on hiring an intern, while giving you better results.
OOOO Social Media is Scary!
August 6, 2009 10am
I just saw a newsletter from a competitor warning their clients that Social Media success is few and far between. They showcased United Airlines breaking Dave Carroll's guitar and the year long viral video and social media that resulted. The also stated that there were little success stories out there.
There are success stories on social media. www.mashable.com has a whole section of their website dedicated to businesses doing social media properly and having success. http://mashable.com/2009/02/06/social-media-smartest-brands/
Here's why social media is scary to ad agencies:
It's new and they don't know how to harness it yet.
It's word of mouth and they are uncomfortable with messages they can't control.
It's time consuming and free and so they don't know how to charge for it or believe the ability to charge for it isn't worth the work involved.
There's nothing really to "produce" and agencies make the most money off production of print and television ads.
They are afraid of the voice of the crowd.
Doing it wrong would result in a public relations issue that they don't know how to handle.
Here's why I'm not afraid of social media:
It's not new to me.
It's a chance to harness word of mouth which has never been available before.
I know ways to manage the time in updating various sites.
I don't have alot of mouths to feed so charging a small amount works well in my business model.
I welcome conversations and interactions
Doing it wrong is so easy to fix, it takes honesty, transparency and doing what is right for the customer.
If your ad agency is talking you out of Social Media, or scaring you with horror stories, come talk to me. I'll show you success stories. I'll show you how the horror story could have easily been avoided. I'll charge a smaller fee and harness the power of the crowd.
Another Success Story: Coldstone Creamery's use of MySpace: http://social-media-optimization.com/2007/07/social-media-marketing-success-stories/
Social Media Marketing Testimonials: http://www.biztimes.com/news/2009/4/17/social-media-success-stories
Masi Bikes Social Marketing Success: http://mediahunter.typepad.com/media_hunter/2008/07/social-media-su.html
They said, We said: The gap between advertisers and consumers
July 30, 2009 9:00am
There seems to be a miscommunication in the communications field. The ads that advertisers believe are effective, consumers say not so much.
http://press.linkedin.com/LinkedIn-Harris-survey-advertiser-audiences-differing-views
LinkedIn and Harris did a survey in June and it turns out that advertisers believe (over 50%) that ads that make you stop and think, or give new information, or are integrated into the context of the show or content are effective, while consumers aren't that interested in those ads.
So what works? Humor, funny, ads that doon't take themselves seriously. And while consumers don't want to see companies showing empathy or motivating them regarding hard times, they do want to see value type ads, coupons, and luxuries that are discounted.
And both advertisers and consumers agree that ads that make you uncomfortable or make you scared or feel guilty are not effective at all. I know from personal experience that sad doggie and kitty ads about abuse make me turn off the television, even tho I already give money to those types of organizations.
Hope this helps you in creating your ads, and if you need help, don't hesitate to call. Everything at GWDC, LLC is done from the customer's point of view, not an advertisers'.
All Atwitter about Social Media Marketing
July 21,2009 12:12pm
Social media marketing is great! Love it. Addicted to it. Twitter gives you great info and allows you to brand yourself as an expert in your field. Good for coupons too. Facebook is my favorite because of the ease of use and the Facebook insights that allow you to see the intereactions with the info you put up.
While social marketing is all the rage, there is so much more to branding, working the earned media, etc on the internet.
The number one way people prefer to hear from a company is still email. People still prefer to visit your website and size you up based on it.
When looking at your site, people will gauge whether you are reputable by the look and feel of it. They will conisder you a valuable source based on the ease of finding what they want. And they will consider your product to be credible based on what people are saying about you. Make sure they are saying htat on your site and not someone elses.
It all works together, social media marketing, your website, your web advertising and your advertising in traditional media. Wherever your customer wants to find you, is where you should be.
Freeconomics and Time Is Money
July 16, 8:45am
I see alot of resistance to "freeconomics". That is giving something away for free. People are afraid if they give something away for free that they will never get people to purchase their items. It all depends on what you are giving away for free and what you are charging for.
Expertise and content is what you should give free and willingly. Especially if your knowledge base can be found somewhere else on the web for free. That is why you will see alot of savvy marketers online giving away free advice on twitter, facebook, blogs, etc.
So if you are giving this all away for free, what do people pay for?
The two things people have always paid for. Time savings and service.
For years now, people complain, I don't have time to _____ (fill in the blank). If you offer to do it for them, have a system to make it faster or easier or both, people will pay.
I saw a great blog on www.mashable.com. There was a case study on a web service in the UK called Stream. Gamers online can find lots of services to illegally download games to their system. This involves, alot of time, searching for the game, finding the tricks to get it free, serial numbers, etc. Stream instead charges you one price per year and you play the games online. No downloading, no searching, no massive drain on the memory and resources on your computer. So guess what happened? Less and less UK gamers are illegally downloading games. To save time, and to get all the games they want, they paid.
Think about how this can affect your business and how you can model your service or product this way.
This is the model I have used to start my business at GWDC, LLC. Everything I do, I teach you how to do it yourself. The reason you will use my services, is so that you do not have to do it yourself. You also don't have to take the time to read all the data, articIes, and blogs. I save you time and energy. You don't have time to be on 3 social networks, 3x a week touting your business, service or expertise. But I do. You don't have time to create a website, worry about how it's doing in search engines or updating it. But I do.
So think, how can you give something away for free (knowledge) and have people pay you for a service or product? Time is money, and free is good. Embrace it.
Who do you trust Online?
July 13, 2009 at 8:45am
I have always told my clients and prospective clients that you have to have reviews on your site, both good and bad. Now Nielsen Online supports that with a new study done last April.
The number one recommendation that people trust online is their friends. The second...reviews from strangers who have used the product.
And the numbers are substantive. 90% of respondents said they trust a friend recommendation and 70% said strangers reviews or a known brand website.
Compare that with a television ad. Only 62% trust a television ad. Newspaper 61%.
At the bottom of the list is online ads, online videos, and text messaging. However I wouldn't dismiss any of these just yet. Instead learn how to do them right. Text messaging that wasn't requested is mistrusted, but when opted in, it often reaches the consumer faster than any other type of ad. Online ads and videos are best for branding, and we now know that a branded website is highly trusted.
Email me, send me a message on twitter or facebook, or call. I'll be happy to help you sort it all out.
Why are People Online, What do they Want?
July 6, 2009 at 10:30am
There is a new poll (Rudder Finn) out that shows over 90% of the time people go online to connect with other people. This might explain the other statistic that facebook as grown 700% in the last year.
100% want to pass time, 82% want to be entertained. 62% want to give their opinion - politics, response to a blog , or an opinion on restaurants, or products.
This confirms what I have been telling my clients. If you do not allow for reviews and responses on your site, if you only show the good reviews, what will happen is that your customer will go somewhere else to give their review if it is a bad one. They will go to other blog sites, sites that carry your product and do allow for reviews and ratings, or put it up on their facebook, MySpace and Twitter accounts.
Wouldn't you rather see it on your site so that you can respond? If you make an unhappy customer happy, you realize they are more likely to be a loyal customer, right? Make them happy on your site, rather than unhappy on someone elses.
Part of managing the customer experience, which is what I truly love to do, is helping your website become a better place for your customer, and in the long run, a more profitable place for you.
I've learned that no matter how much I want to help people turn visitors on their sites to customers in their business, what people want to know is how to do Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, MySpace, etc.
What I learned is to share. Tell your tips and tricks, give examples. The way to good business is no longer secret sauce, but sharing the recipe.
So, let me share my recipe. The best advice I've seen and given is just jump in and do it. Try it out personally with your own interests on twitter, your own page on facebook, etc. Then find some tricks of the trade. The best source for learning how to do it better is www. mashable.com. You can find Mashable on fb, twitter, etc.
Now that you've tried it on your own. . . put your business up. Now you're ready to start sharing your secret sauce too.
More Great Things Happening at GWDC
May 20th, 2009 at 5:45pm
As if giving a presentation in week two of being open and getting great ink weren't enough, here are some more exciting things!
I'll be doing pro bono work for Casa Esperanza. Look for them on twitter and facebook soon. www.casaesperanzanm.org
My new client, Y-Not Cater will be up on facebook soon. We'll also be working on a brochure, business cards, twitter and a website. Michele Marcon has an exciting story to tell and I can't wait to make you aware of it. Lets just say she catered for Christian Bale on the set of Terminator 4.
Michele is also excited to be involved with Monie Vie. Contact her for more information on this energizing fruit juice! Call me for her info.
I'm helping out my friend Bob. I call him Rattlesnake Bob. He's the owner and curator at the International Rattlesnake Museum. I doubt I can get him the type of free press that he gets from the rattlesnake mug that sits on Craig Ferguson's desk, but I will be helping him put together a presentation on why a city or local agency should make the museum their own. www.rattlesnakes.com
I have been recruited to work on a charitable golf tournament for the Military Religious Freedom Foundation. I will send you more info as that comes about. http://www.militaryreligiousfreedom.org/
Commercial Bankruptcy attorney, George "Dave" Giddens has hired me to work on his site. We're currently looking into the company that did his site to see what magic I can perform for him. www.giddenslaw.com
And web designer extraordinaire, Andy Lim, (along with his peeps, Corey Fiala and Marcus Muldez) will be working together to get great designs and easy to use sites for my clients. www.limwebdesign.com
I have quite a few things percolating, including a redesign of this very site.
Thanks for checking in, I hope the good news continues.
A huge gratitude attitude to my current clients and partners!
May 20th, 2009 at 5:25pm
File this one under gratitude!
I took part yesterday, in the NM Advertising Federation's panel of experts regarding Social Media Marketing. I was honored to be asked, considering GWDC has been open since...MAY 11th! Not so long, really. I felt that I had something to offer, as I rounded out the panel, talking about Social Media Marketing from a strictly advertising point of view.
I have so much to be thankful for so please indulge me.
AD FED: Thank you to Erika Swan for the invite to sit on the panel. Thank you to Sophie Martin for the mentoring. Thank you to all of Ad Fed for the stunning speaker's gift, a lovely crystal Nambe candle holder.
THE 'FRIENDS OF GWDC' TABLE: Thank you to Carolyn Fishman from Clear Channel Outdoor for creating the signage at the table and for live shots on Facebook. Thank you to Elizabeth Jeppesen of Wilger Enterprises for spearheading attendance at the table. And to my fellow Cash Club Networking Group members for their attendance and support: Jennifer James (not the chef) of Clear Channel Radio, Kitty Leslie of USI, Charlotte Lane of Brycon Enterprises, Laura Cowan of RJC. And thank you to the few people at the table I didn't know. It took guts to sit there!
TO KOAT: A big shout out to Adeline Herrera and Sherri Trujillo Hall. Both reps are more than willing to help you with an internet campaign on KOAT.com. Thank you ladies for the moral support, good to see you. Hope the plug here makes a sale for you.
TO MY COMCAST PEEPS: OMG what a surprise to see you there! Thank you for coming! Thanks to Danielle Jojola, Debbie Sanchez, Peter Clarke, Ethel Menning, Adrienne the Intern, and Luis Ruis!
TO AD AGENCIES: Thank you Raschel Gardner of Kilmer & Kilmer, for the thought provoking questions and Frank Duran of Kilmer & Kilmer for the support. Thank you to Peggy Schmidt and Patt Hall from Complete Advertising for the questions and support as well.
If I missed anyone, my apologies and thank you too.
BIGGEST THANK YOU OF ALL - - THANK YOU TO THE NEW MEXICO BUSINESS WEEKLY FOR COVERING THE EVENT.
I got quoted. Hee hee. Rock on.
Here's the link: http://tinyurl.com/NMAFsocialmediapanel
April 12th, 2009 at 12:45pm
In considering your online endeavors you need to think of your personna. How do you want to present your company to the world? Where do you want to present your company to the world? But also the customer experience. How will you be percieved?
All of these things must be managed online. It's no longer a matter of putting up a website, doing some search engine optimization, putting up a banner ad, and waiting for the dollars to come in.
You need to engage the customer in a conversation on a community on your site, in Twitter, on Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, etc. To engage them, you must know them and know what they want to hear from you. You must be real and transparent and real transparent.
When they find your ad or your keyword on Google, what happens when they arrive at your site? Did they come to a Home Page and find everything but the kitchen sink? Or have you created new doors for them? Was the info relevant to what they wanted?
If they are shopping how easy was it for them to browse? Could they see everything you have? Could they narrow by color, price, and several other attributes? Did they seal the deal and make a purchase or abandon their shopping cart?
So they made a purchase. Did you get feedback? How? Did you publish the feedback? Did you allow for a rating system and for those reviews to be listed on your site under the product?
Did you thank them? Ask them for feedback? Ask if they want special discounts? Did you allow them to be a fan of your company so they can brag to their friends? Did your site and your product give them a story to tell in a blog or on Twitter? Was it a good story?
There's alot to consider in managing your company on the internet. The key is to remember the customer experience.
If you can't answer any of the questions above, come see me. Call me, email me, IM me. Catch me on Facebook or LinkedIn.
My tagline is: Success on the internet includes content, relevance and experience. How was your experience with me today?
I want to know.
November 24th, 2008 at 4:40pm
Just read an article in the NY Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/11/23/magazine/23roundtable-t.html?_r=1
It's an interview with some heavy hitters.
Jack Hitt - NY Times writer
Benjamin Palmer - CEO Barbarian Group, know for the Subservient Chicken online campaign for Burger King.
Lars Bastholm - Chief Creative Officer at AKQA known for doing campaigns for Xbox, Coke and Motorola.
Rober Rasmussen - Executive Creative Director at R/GA, an agency specializing in digital media and doing campaigns for ESPN, Sega, and JetBlue.
The article basically answers the question, with so many screens in the world, that's a good thing for marketers, right?
And we've seen a proliferation of screens in our town too. Billboards are digital, your phone now plays video, today, I saw an article that gaming equipment - - WII, playstation, etc, will allow you to watch video.
So what's a marketer to do?
Some answers from the article.
Love this quote from Rasmussen: "So advertising is by neccessity a fractured narrative. We have a story we want to tell, and we use different media channels and different touch points to tell it. We have to rely on the consumer to pull the story together."
Palmer talks about how this is nothing new to marketers. Advertising has always had to come up with different stories based on different venues of delivery. A billboard message was slightly different from a television commercial, or an ad in a magazine. The difference now is that in addition to seeing advertising in many different places - - - people are seeing CONTENT in many different places.
All agree though, that back in the day, there was a brand monologue. You told people what to think about a product. Now with the internet and transparency, you have to have a conversation with your consumers.
The smart marketers are listening to that conversation. You no longer have to pay lots of money for a focus group. Listen to the comments, twitter and blogs.
Example. EA games had a "glitch" in their Tiger Woods game. Some gamer put up a video on YouTube laughing at how Tiger - in the game - could walk on a pond and shoot his ball. EA cashed in on that. They took Tiger - in real time- showed him walking on water and hitting the ball out of a pond. Withe the tagline: "He's that good".
The point though, is that with online marketing you know right away what is good and bad about your product. You know what people are saying immediately.
That's a good thing for feedback, but it can be messy if things go wrong.
However, I believe, if you fix a problem for a customer, they are more loyal to you and your product. These companies are practising that policy.
The products doing well, are the ones willing to change and adapt as those conversations with your customers take place.
In these economic times, you definitely want to be the company changing and adapting.
The article goes on for a few more pages on other subjects. It's worth checking out.
Hope this makes you and your business better with online marketing.
