Okay, you’ve got it. You have the perfect message (and ravishing design to go along with it) and now you are charged with the task of figuring out which medium works best for your message/design. All mediums are not created equal for every message, idea or campaign.

Picking the right medium means you have to be smart. You certainly wouldn’t want your best marketing efforts to call out to a crowd that can’t hear you, do you?

Looking at your various options (and thoroughly examining them) will give you better insight into where you can put your message so that it gets you the most bang for your marketing buck.

Example: You have a creative series of images, all of which need to be seen to fully understand the concept, and you have enough text that you need at least 30 seconds for people to read your whole message. Putting this on a billboard probably won’t work out for you. People only have a few seconds to glance at your billboard ad, and they aren’t really able to piece together a stream of images and text in the short amount of time it takes them to drive by. However, a catchy idea like this would work great on a postcard. Let’s face it, most postcards don’t have the most attention-grabbing images. The ones that do tend to stand out. If your images are strong enough, and your message clear, putting your design on a postcard is likely to be your best bet. Plus you’ll have gotten their attention with your images, and your copy can pull them in and make them want to learn more about your products and services.

Another example … say you have a single captivating image and under ten words in your whole design. This will likely translate better onto a billboard than our last example. With billboards, you have to keep it short and sweet, while still being striking enough so that your audience takes notice. Postcards, brochures and flyers give you the option to add support text to more abstract images that need a bit of explanation, where you can’t do that with billboards. Make sure your message, design and ideas translate into mediums that can actually help your marketing efforts.

Creativity doesn’t have to get lost on mediums, like billboards, and it shouldn’t. You simply have to be careful to make sure you pick the right medium for each message you have.

Example contest web page

If you are looking for a way to encourage people to visit (and revisit) your web site, try an age-old marketing tool: a contest.

Think of a simple give-away item that relates to your business – small items could be: a book by an industry author, a how-to publication that you wrote, a white paper, t-shirts, other promotional items; larger items could be: a plane ticket, a vacation package, cash, etc.

Now create an enticing and simple online form on your web site, and make sure it is easy to find.  Post links and “ads” about the contest on your homepage and other popular pages.  Make sure the rules and dates of the contest are nicely spelled out and do not scare your participants away.  Include a newsletter subscribe option in the form.  Make the confirmation page (thank you page) of your form valuable also – direct the user to particular information that you want them to see.

Take advantage of any marketing channels you have to announce the contest and create buzz about your business – submit the story to your Chamber newsletter, post it on networking web sites, mention it in your e-mail newsletter.

Once your contest is over, remember to follow through with the promise of selecting a winner and delivering the prize.  Take the opportunity to follow up again with your customers and mailing list contacts by announcing the winner in an e-newsletter and other marketing media.

What this does for your business:

• Creates brand (and web site) awareness
• Offers opportunity to gather new contacts for your mailing list
• Invents an excuse to contact and follow up with people
• Generates news about your company
• Increases traffic to other areas of your web site

People are always trying to keep up with the latest trends. Whether it’s the latest trend in handbags or shoes, people are stopping to take notice and see what is emerging on the fashion scene. For all of the fashionistas out there, this post is for you. Let’s take our fashion sense and translate it to what works for our businesses and website design. Stay with me as we touch on the top trends and translate them into design that works!

Trend #1: Canary Yellow is hot hot hot! Use splashes of color within your website design to create contrast and highlight important services or features. A pop of color is not only visually pleasing, but can also help you stand amongst the millions of other websites on the Internet. (Keep in mind, I said to use a POP of color – you don’t want your whole website to be a montage to a bright color that blinds your visitors.)

Trend #2: Braids, braids & more braids. It’s all the rage to braid your hair and I don’t mean the boring, one big braid we saw in the 1990s. Now it’s all about being creative with your braids – maybe it’s a small, side swept braid on just one side of your head or intricate braids tied into an up-do that paint a beautiful weave. Whatever the choice, there is something very hip about being creative with your braids. You are probably thinking how does this translate into my website’s design. It’s simple. While you want your design to be clean and modern, you also want a design that is creative and shows off your personality. Even when it is simple, creativity must be integrated into your website’s design.

Trend #3: Watch your step with those 4 inch heels. The world can be tricky to navigate, especially in four inch heels. However, the height advantage can really work for us shorter folks. However, don’t make your website a maze. Make it easy to navigate. Granted heels make it easier to see farther, but our feet can start to hurt if we have to walk too far. Your website navigation should be a breeze for visitors. The easier it is for them to find the information they need, the longer they will stay on the site.

Trend #4: The oversized handbag is your secret weapon. Inside your oversized handbag is all of your tricks. Use your website to hold a similar arsenal. Not only do you want to have the necessities in your purse (wallet, sunglasses, cell phone) and on your website (contact information, information about the company, products & services), but you want to have the helpful extras. For your website, this means having useful information and links readily available for your customers. It also means highlighting your own expertise for the visitor; you can do this easily through a blog or through posting helpful articles on your website.

Trend #5: Printed graphic tops show what you are made of. One of the most defining aspects of your website is the photography you use. You want to use high-quality, professional photography. Stock photography is very reasonably priced and provides you with the professional look that is necessary. The last thing you want is a website with low resolution images that provide an unpleasant viewing experience for your visitors, who are often potential customers. Fashion rewind … just as your photography translates into what people think about your website, your graphic tops should have prints that are meaningful and reflect your personality. Otherwise, who are you trying to show off to?

Trend #6: One shoulder, please! The perfect top … one shoulder exposed … stunning! Plus, it’s a sassy and fun summer look. Your website should show off your best shoulder. You want to highlight the important information about your company, the products & services you offer, and why folks should choose you.  However, you don’t want to give everything you’ve got away. Use your website to drawn them in. Make sure there is a clear call to action. Basically, you want to entice them to want more, so they will contact you directly.

It is fun to see how two completely separate items – fashion and web design – can relate to each other on so many levels and how you can translate that to success for your business’ web presence.

On a side note, remember to be fashionable in all that you do!

Last Thursday, the first finger on my left hand somehow got smashed in the bathroom door and has been in pain ever since. (Literally, I’m still feeling pain now.) I’m not sure if it is just me being clumsy, or if I’m in too much of a rush to do everything. There is an upside to this whole ordeal, I have found my inspiration for today’s blog post. The lesson I learned is that we must all take more care with our everyday activities – this includes our professional marketing activities.

We live in a society where all we do is multi-task. It’s not normal to not multi-task. We work hard and are constantly bombarded with more items to add to our ever-growing to-do lists. It can be hard to keep up. Often times, we are rushed and can become careless with our activities. Smashing my finger is my personal case-in-point for how carelessness can effect someone. My finger will stop hurting (eventually). I’ll eventually forget it happened and my life will continue just fine. The same cannot be said for your business if you make careless marketing mistakes.

A company is defined by its personal brand, reputation, people, actions, strategies, marketing tactics, principles and so much more. Each and every company needs to take care with how they represent themselves in all professional aspects.

The first example that came to my mind was the ever-growing-in-popularity social media tool known as Twitter. Twitter is a great way to communicate with your network, both personally and professionally. However, as fun, effective and mainstream as Twitter is, businesses need to take special care with how they use the micro-blogging tool. Companies should keep their professional Twitter account separate from any personal accounts, whether the personal accounts belong to the CEO or the Office Manager. Things should be kept separate. This provides a clear distinction between which voice represents the company and which voice is representative of the employee. Any gray area can lead to miscommunication and often misrepresentation.  Just keeping separate accounts is not enough. While you want your tweets to be genuine (if they aren’t, you won’t be worth following and your message will never reach it’s intended audience), you must also set high standards for them. You need to talk in your professional voice, one that is well-represented by your company. Try using punctuation and proper grammar as much as possible. I know this can be tough with only 140 characters, but do your best.

While we are on the subject of grammar and punctuation, businesses should also take care with editing the content in the marketing materials they send out. There is nothing worse than a typo or spelling mistake. This sounds like a no-brainer but people often don’t thoroughly proofread and edit their materials. Relying on spell check is not a sufficient editing method, nor is relying on a quick, five second read-through of your work. Spend time with your copy and make sure it is spotless.

Moral of today’s story … take care with your efforts and what you say.  You don’t want a smashed finger (or company for that matter), do you?

Having trouble deciding on a particular domain name to represent your business?  Keep in mind that you do not have to decide on just one – you can have more than one domain name pointing to the same web site presence.   Your primary domain is usually the one that you use to advertise on business cards and to host your email (bob@mysupergreatdomainname.com), but as you come across great ideas to sell your product (myproductname.com, myindustryname.com), we can set up those additional names to direct traffic to your site as well (and even forward email if you like).

Anyone can have a website. However, not everyone has a good one. There lies great potential in your website and there are many ways you can tap into your website’s potential and increase its effectiveness.

• Make it easy to navigate: You want viewing to be a breeze for your visitors. If navigating your site is as easy as 1-2-3, visitors will retain more of what they see and they will stay longer. If navigating your site is a maze that leaves them lost and dizzy, they will most likely just leave, never to return again.
• Use high-quality photography: There are tons of cheap stock photography options that allow you to have professional photographs on your website. It adds to the reputation of your site. Images with low resolutions often look unprofessional and can have an negative impact on the type of impression you want your website to make.
• Keep your contact information where they can see it: People need (and want) to know how to contact you. Keep your contact information accessible so visitors have easy access and don’t have to dig around to find out what your phone number is.
• Write articles for your website: Be a knowledge base for your customers. You are an expert in your industry and people want the latest scoop from you! Keep your visitors, clients and potential clients abreast of what is happening in your industry, what’s new with your business and what continues to set you apart from your competitors.

Remember … your website is an online version of your company’s brochure. Use it to highlight what you do best and teach visitors about why they should use your company and the products it has to offer.

Every business needs a media/press kit (the two names are interchangeable). Your media kit is a go-to guide for others to learn about your business. It should be enticing and informative. It should provide viewers with a good snapshot of your company, and make them want to learn more about your company, products and services.  You want your media kit to shine and stand out amongst others.
Traditionally a press kit was used to pass to journalists and media outlets to give them quality information about your company. Many times this was used as filler information for their stories about you. It also helped when you pitched them on a story because you already had all the information they need to know. Granted a good reporter will verify your information, find supporting evidence and back it up (or refute it, if that’s the case).

Today there are vast ways you can expand your media kit’s reach and expose it to larger numbers of individuals. A key medium to tap into is the Internet and your website. Your website is already an important tool for marketing your business, now you can add to it.  You can include a press section on your website, and provide these resources for your customers and your prospects with the click on a button. Having a press section on your website provides easy access for your clients, prospects, business associates, etc. to get needed information any time of day.

Key features to include with your press kit:

• Backgrounder – this is a short biography of your company
• Company timeline – this can be a brief, bullet-point list of the major happenings your company has experienced over the years
• Key facts – include important, and relevant, information that consumers need to know about your products & services, and your company.
• Price sheets – use this for your products and services
• Staff biographies – if you have a key employees that you want to spotlight, or all of your employees – this is a good way to put a face with a name
• Product / Service Sheets – keep it concise, but this is your chance to showcase what you have to offer
• Recent Press Releases – you want to show you are generating buzz
• Testimonials – ask your customers to share some kind words about you and how you’ve helped their business
• And more — add items that you feel are pertinent to your company and what will showcase your offerings.

It’s always good to have “paper” versions of your media kits so that you have tangible items to pass out. Don’t forget to tap into the resources you have and get that kit on your website. The exposure it will get is unmatched. A good design company will be able to help you integrate the new press section into your existing site fairly easily.

One reminder: once you get this press room open on your website, don’t forget to update it. There’s nothing worse than old news!

You always hear the term “brand” and “branding,” but have you figured out how that translates to your company? You might think your brand is strong but you should consider giving it a good critique to see if its living up to the expectations you have for it.

Your brand is compromised of many elements – your logo, color scheme, tag lines, design elements and more. It is the meaning behind your company. It helps define the attitudes and associations individuals make about your company. It encompasses all that your company is.

You have a “brand” in your head and you hope most people think of your brand when they hear your company’s name. Hoping and knowing are two completely different things. The best way to build and strengthen your brand is to critique it and make sure it is clearly defined.

To have a well-defined brand that everyone recognizes can be tough, but you can do it. Your brand should be everywhere! You can’t let it slide on this or that, you have to keep it consistent through everything you do. From letterhead to your blog’s color scheme … your brand should be there. Your website should be an extension of your brand, as well as all of your other marketing materials. Even your word choice on your marketing materials defines your brand. Your brand should clearly shine through all of your messages.

Building a brand is tough. The key is to have a clear, concise theme and message behind your brand  — that will take you further than some sloppy ole’ mess thrown together in a paper sack.

This morning, I got bit by the April Fool’s bug… clocks got set ahead, and I thought I was late. It took me about 10 minutes (and 4 coworkers playing along with the joke later) to get it. It gave us all a good laugh, and it made me start thinking … one thing no one wants is for their marketing efforts to make them the laughing stock of the show.

Your marketing efforts should serve a variety of functions. Here are a few tips to help with your efforts:

• Enhance your brand: Don’t work against the foundation you’ve already laid … instead, build onto it with your marketing tactics. You want something that works well with and adds to what you already have.. Remember, your brand is more than just logos and color choices. It is so much more. It is your word choice, your presentation, your value and your personality.
• Emphasize the value: Your marketing efforts should show off your company, product and services. You want to give clear, tangible reasons about how your product or service will help your customer, and why they should buy/use it. The more clear your message, the greater the value.
• Entertain your audience: You want creative, snazzy promotional materials. Be catchy and make it memorable. Don’t go too crazy, just make sure your efforts stand out above the rest.
• Exercise your rights: Marketing should be continuous … branding should be continuous. You can’t wake up one day and decide, “oh I want the XYZ brand to look like this and everyone know it’s out there.” You need to build and work on it overtime – this means keeping your marketing efforts going on year around, not just whenever the fancy strikes you.

Channeling your creativity for your marketing efforts can be tough. Maybe its because of budgeting, maybe lack of time or even lack of resources. Regardless, the most effective marketing is creative, and functional. That should be your focus and the 4 E’s above should help you rev things into high gear.

The proliferation of social networking throughout the internet has lead to a sharp increase in social marketing. Whether this marketing comes in terms of social networking profiles, viral videos, or blog entries companies are striving to meet their customers where they are–online.  While this type of marketing effort is a necessity, companies have to be careful about how they do it.  Most corporate social networking campaigns are failures because they do not understand the social dynamics associated with an effective social networking campaign.

The success of social networking sites comes from the user generated aspect of the service.  Each individual can control their own experience and create a community of friends. If companies overdo their efforts by constantly spamming people with advertisements they run the risk of alienating their audience by making them feel like they have invaded their turf.  It is similar to product placement in movies.  There are numerous examples of this technique done well but the examples of it being done poorly are the ones that are remembered.  When done correctly the placement seems minor and doesn’t draw attention to itself.  Unfortunately, when done incorrectly, product placement in movies tends to alienate viewers who dislike having their entertainment time violated by such obvious commercial interests.

The steps necessary for a good social networking campaign are very similar to those needed in a traditional advertising campaign. You must understand your audience, their needs, and what level of advertising they are willing to accept.  The difference is that you are no longer directly advertising–you are interacting with your audience and the people who follow you become your best advertisement.  So make it easy for them to advertise for you by starting a Facebook group.  Let the group members leave reviews of your service or helpful tips on your page. Interact with professionals in your field or others.

Remember that you must actively participate in social networks to maintain your presence. If you stop interacting with people they will quickly lose interest and move on. Above all, be interesting and relevant.