Fast Company Says Major Media Should Chill Out

I’m a big believer that in this environment, there is no one way to get to market. Both online and traditional media work in unique ways. You need to find the right mix of both that will serve and reach your audience.

But right now, major media has a problem, and it isn’t necessarily the internet. Sure, the internet has changed how print media needs to do business. But much of the problem for major media is that they are fighting the need to realign their old model to fit the contemporary model.

They still don’t know how to capitalize or monetize the edge they have. A recent study done by Cornell researchers shows that there is indeed an edge for traditional news outlets. Fast Company’s Kit Eaton says “it’s a sign that the old guard should chill out about blogs and how they’re destroying the news world.”

Read more about Old Media Still Powerful: Blogs Follow News Outlets 2.5 Hours Later – Read more…

Everyone in Your Company Is in Marketing

Every business does its commerce in some community square, just like the grand old days. It may look and feel different, but the principles and fundamentals are the same.

I have worked on projects where the shipping department said “that’s not our job, that’s marketing’s job.” But Good to Great companies know that everyone is in marketing.

When working on a project for a company that supplied Dell computer, I remember you could walk through the Dell offices and anyone could pick up a phone to listen in on sales calls. Every computer that came off their line was for “Someone,” not just for inventory.

It’s important to remember that for any business, the most important asset is the customer. After all, the profits that a business makes has a direct correlation to how well they satisfy their customers! Unless every employee in every department in your company is concerned about addressing the needs of your customers, your profitability will decline.

Customer loyalty is certainly key to this issue. The Customer Collective recently posted an article entitle “Five ways to manage customer loyalty” – read more…

Redeeming the Creative Process SyFy

Working in creative endeavors has always been interesting. Balancing art and commerce is a fine line, and when it applies to advertising, promotion and marketing, it can get very blurry.

You can always tell the ads and creative marketing ideas that had “too many chefs.” I had an embarrassing moment one time when looking at a magazine ad. I commented on what a piece of garbage it was, only to hear the person standing next to me say “I shot the photo for that ad.” Naturally, I responded, “well, it does have some redeeming qualities!”

Whenever I start a project working with a new art and design group, I often have to temper their attempts to redesign the logo. Seldom have I worked on a project where the logo was so bad that it was bringing the company down. However, most designers are apt to consider their opportunity to have lasting impact on the company.

Good creativity needs to focus on the audience and the story we are telling. You can always go back and worry about the logo later.

Recently I noticed that the Sci-Fi network changed their logo, and I have to agree with graphic designer Ken Carbone. “Dear SyFy, Imagine Greater – Please!” – read more…

Email Campaigns for Success

Emails. Some businesses cringe at the thought of sending emails to their customer list. They’re afraid that their customers, like themselves, are so inundated with inbox messages that they’ll annoy the people they want to attract.

But emails are an effective means of building relationships with your current clients, adding to your potential client list, and offering information that will help the people you can serve.

To get you started with an easy method for building your email list, sending regular emails, and tracking the performance of each email, try Constant Contact. They have a 60-day free trial account so you can try it out with no obligation.

Small Biz Trends has some good tips for email campaigns: “Though it may sit in the shadows of today’s shiner marketing techniques, email marketing continues to be an effective, low-cost way for SMB owners to reach out to, inform and retain current customers. In fact,…” read article…

Pixar Wins With Up

Pixar has done it again! With great story tellers and consistent delivery, they have continued their movie success with Up.

No doubt, one of the reasons Pixar scores so high with their movies is that they are dedicated to creating great stories. Poignant characters and a solid plot are regular Pixar qualities. The casting of just the right actors to supply characters’ voices add to the movies, as well as the creativity applied to character details. And, of course, the quality of the animation and soundtrack is always top-notch.

Then there’s the marketing side of the films. On this latest film, Northwest Airlines teamed up with Disney and Pixar to create the “Up Adventure of a Lifetime” sweepstakes. To enter, users had to be registered on MySpace, list the Up MySpace profile page as one of their top friends, and add a comment to the Up profile.

Up’s MySpace page let visitors view trailers of the film and watch short episodes, download wallpapers, posters and buddy icons. And its dedicated movie page on Yahoo had videos, stills and a countdown widget. Up also premiered 40 unfinished minutes of its story at numerous events around the country earlier this year.

Hollywood has lost trust with most people, but Pixar continues to own it with their audience. Go see Up!

Rotten Tomatoes gives it an astonishing 97% – Read more, see trailer…

The Beauty of Ugly

I just received a retail catalog in the mail. You know the kind – the one with trashy jewelry, unbecoming apparel, and nick knacks to help clutter your home in easy installment plan payments. It made me wonder who would buy this ugly stuff! And then I remembered the old adage, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” This retail store has an audience that has kept them in business for decades.

There’s a lesson to be learned here: you need to stick with your audience. Whatever products you market, you need to know who you’re selling to and why they’re buying it. If it isn’t the beauty of theitem, what is it? A connection they make with the product? A usefulness that goes beyond the design?

Fastcompany.com has a great article on “Why Ugly Sells” and the author says, you need to “understand the emotional sources for taste so that you can appeal to them.” Read Article…

Building Your Audience Preso

I recently spoke to the Tech Strategies group of the Brentwood Chamber of Commerce this February. The subject was Building Audience ~ Creating and Engaging Experience, and below is the Preso including the Strategy Canvas and the Power Point slides of my presentation Building Audience Preso.

This is a large presentation and you have to manually advance the slides.