Posts Tagged ‘Marketing’

What Marketing Efforts are Wasting Your Money?

Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012

With the plethora of choices in today’s marketing arena, our clients often ask us, “what works?” We have a straightforward answer. It depends. Return on Investment (ROI) in the various marketing venues depends on your business and more specifically, on your customer.

You’ll find when you work with us that one of the first things we’ll do is gather data. We want to know what’s working now, and what’s proving to be a waste of money. We will use this data to find the path ahead and to provide the most relevant and accurate suggestions for your hard earned dollar.

We also pinpoint your potential customer. You’ll hear us talking again and again about who your customer is. We’ll be marketing directly to those customers, both current and potential. Your customers determine the venues we choose to market your company. Your customer, in fact, is king and queen of almost all of the decisions we make – even down to the color of your logo.

The most important thing for you to know about marketing your product in the many available venues is that the whole is greater than the parts. The aggregate solution for you is almost guaranteed to be a highly custom mix of marketing venues.

When we build your brand, we build it like no other.

You’ll find that when we build your brand, it is uniquely yours in look, feel, voice and in choice of venues.

So if you are looking for a cookie-cutter type website, we may not be the choice for you – but if you want to stand out above your competitors, and get the customers you know you can impress – then we are looking to help you build your brand. Call us today at 775.322.3663, or fill out our request form for more information. We look forward to hearing about your brand and your customers.

Tags: brand building, Branding, internet marketing, logo design, Marketing, Reno, reno marketing, Reno Social Media, search engine optimization, Social Media, web design
Posted in In-Bound Links, Online Advertising In Reno, Online Marketing, Social Media, web design | No Comments »

Company Website Boring Visitors to Death?

Tuesday, November 22nd, 2011

Tired of your company website?

Is your company website boring even to you? People are more and more obsessed with flashy, bright, shiny objects and websites are no different. Yes, you will need to have killer content on your website that is easy to understand and explains your product or services in a way that will make anyone want to buy it, but first – you have to get their attention – and in a positive way.

A Website is an Experience

As you browse through a site, you experience layout, colors, fonts, photographs, and content until you begin to feel a certain way. Of course, when it comes to your customers, you want that ‘certain way’ to be a positive one, one that converts to sales. Creating those positive experiences through design is what our team does best.

Remodelling: Ideas and Considerations

If you were to think about your website as the large billboard that everyone will see as they sit in a movie theatre and wait for their film to start – what would you want them to see? I use the theatre example because, in this instance, you have a somewhat captive audience and the time frame is relatively lengthy. Your website IS a marketing piece and it should fit with your branding as well as your vision and mission for the company.

However, you want more than a brochure or a static, unchanging picture as your website – you want to engage the audience and make them feel that you are right there with them. This can be done with a custom layout that makes finding information for your users simple and almost automatic, it can be done with content that makes them feel instantly at home and trusting, it can be done with colors that evoke the emotional response you ultimately want your customers to have, and it can be done with images, videos, and sharing options where they can find out what their friends think of your product or service, and inform the rest of their friends of their opinions about you as well.

Your Website is the First Touch

Your website is the first touch you have on your customer; it is extremely important for it to be a positive experience and that it entices your target audience to take that next step and contact you. Ultimately we have websites to initiate a customer relationship and to sell something, whether it is advice or kitchen spoons, we are all in a business to make some kind of money – whether sales or donations for a non-profit to support a meaningful cause, the desired result is the same. As you have probably heard in business, it takes money to make money. Designing your website is not free – but if it is done correctly, it IS worth it.

Think about it – if you wouldn’t stay on your company website for more than 2 minutes, then why would anyone else? You have a lot of competition in the online world, so make yourself stand out. If you need ideas or a quote, check out our web portfolio or call us at 775.322.3663 or 800.233.0239

Tags: blog, Design, graphic design, internet marketing, Marketing, reno marketing, search engine optimization, search engine ranking, SEO optimization
Posted in Blog Design, Design Meanderings, Online Advertising In Reno, Online Marketing, Reno Marketing Meanderings, Typography, web design, Website Copywriting, Website Design, WordPress | No Comments »

Marketing for Women by Women

Tuesday, October 18th, 2011

Women are in charge of the money more now than ever before – so it’s no surprise that marketers are targeting them specifically. Many sources (Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus) purport the differences between the sexes, and the approach from a marketing standpoint has been to speak to the heart of a woman.

Society has repeatedly stereotyped women as the emotional sex and men as the logical sex, but in real life things are never so succinctly divided. However, much research has gone into finding messages that reach women in particular and how to tap into their emotions in order to make the sale. Studies show that women will be engaged more by how a product/service will support their family & relationships (whereas men will connect more with how a product/service gets to a desired end result, and how well it does that), so stories/anecdotes will be more engaging for women (rather than performance stats). Also, how a product/service will help a woman be a better wife, mother, daughter, sister, etc., will speak to women more than men (again, the “relationship” piece). This is a gross generalization, of course, but there’s a lot out there that’s been expanded since brain research has shown some clear gender differences. For instance, look at this excerpt from a blog we enjoy(One Woman Marketing):

Women make up just half the population, but they make over 80% of all household purchases. And they’re not just shopping for stereotypically feminine products such as clothing and cosmetics. Women also make:

65% of new car purchases

91% of travel purchases

57% of electronics purchases

63% of all purchases made online

Despite their consumer power, most women feel that marketers and advertisers just don’t get them. (91% of women, according to one recent study.)

Angela Shupe’s blog post discusses how consultants Sandie Glass and Laura Wolfram head up a consultants group run by women in order to provide solutions to marketers looking to reach their female audience.

What do you think? Do you have to be a woman in order to reach a woman? Share your comments with us below!

Tags: internet marketing, Marketing, Reno
Posted in Reno Marketing Meanderings | No Comments »

Social Media Marketing for the B2B Crowd

Tuesday, October 4th, 2011

In the new world of social media marketing, there are several challenges for business-to-business marketers. Bryan Brown, on VentureBeat.com, in his guest blog post, “What ‘marketing automation’ means for the well-rounded B2B marketer,” talks about how to use marketing automation to your advantage.

Bryan discusses ways to use social media for Data Collection and building your database with more information than was ever available to marketers prior to social media platforms – the ease of users or fans or followers to ‘sign-in’ to your site with their platform credentials allows for more information to be had by you on their behaviors, demographics, and interests than ever before.

Lead management is more efficient and better aligned between sales and marketing departments in this new world of social technology. Apps are available (often for free) to compile data and use it to make decisions about buyer interest. Marketing efforts toward specific demographics are also easily analyzed, which leads to faster decision making abilities within your company.

Engagement covers two of the sections Bryan writes about, “Cross-Channel Campaign Management” and Social Marketing. Engagement is definitely a new field for business-to-business marketing, many top B2B companies are still not on board with the idea of using social media for marketing and staunchly express that it only makes sense for B2C businesses.

Hopefully, these businesses will realize they’re mistaken before the early adopters in their industries run away with their share of the market. The truth of the matter is that all businesses can benefit from social media marketing because all businesses are run by PEOPLE and all products and services are bought by PEOPLE – whether for a company purpose or a personal one, people are always the deciding factor.

If you are a B2B company that wants to take the lead in your industry and begin utilizing the amazing social tools of our time for marketing purposes, please let us know!

We love talking about how social media can help you be more successful and how we can help you get there. Check us out on Facebook, Twitter, and Linkedin.

Tags: blog, Marketing, Reno Social Media, Social Media
Posted in Online Marketing, Social Media | No Comments »

Relationship Marketing vs Social Media Marketing: Oxymoron or Redundant?

Tuesday, September 27th, 2011

Clarifications, first.

We all know a typical oxymoron, right? Words and phrases that seem to cancel each other out: military intelligence, jumbo shrimp, old news, practical joke, peace force.

We also know about redundancy, or saying the same thing twice, as in: basic fundamentals, actual experience, advance planning, free gift, frozen ice, general public.

These two odd word pairing categories are opposite sides of the same coin, so I will flip the coin, and you can call it in the air….

Are Relationship Marketing and Social Media Marketing the same or opposites?

You might be surprised at the answers I found!

Redundant (Heads)

Mari Smith, speaker, author, and social media guru, has recently written a (not yet released) book titled, “The New Relationship Marketing”. Considering the source’s area of expertise, it would appear that the book will be about nurturing relationships to social (online) connections and turning that into a profitable business, at which Mari has been extremely successful. Mari shares some of her life story in this video, and talks a bit about her new book which has the subtitle: “How to Build a Large, Loyal and Profitable Network Using the Social Web”. It is clear as she describes her approach to relationship marketing (in a beautiful Scottish / Canadian accent) that she would be of the camp that this is a redundant relationship. She talks about how she believes that social media marketing is about building those relationships with all people online and leveraging (my words) that relationship to be ethically profitable.

Oxymoron (Tails)

On the other side of the coin, would be Naomi Dunford of IttyBiz, who is decidedly less glamorous and more punk than Mari Smith. However, Naomi is very passionate and (apparently) knowledgeable as she has become an expert at being overtly honest and downright open on how marketing for small businesses works. Naomi’s guest blog on Copyblogger.com about Relationship Marketing, “7 Ways You’re Screwing Up Relationship Marketing”, is in line with the oxymoron stance on our topic.

The 7 ways, are easily the complete opposite of the (widely accepted)point of social media (to engage, connect, build relationships), in that she feels (strongly) that relationship marketing is solely about what makes the customer make a purchase of your product and how can you get them to do it again. It has nothing to do with relationships, communication, being social, authenticity, transparency, equality, or having a connection. It is about THE relationship of a customer to your product and their purchase of same. Period. That’s it.

What do YOU think?

What is your take on this question? Is all marketing becoming social? Should it? Or are we too caught up in this ‘relationship’ business with online media that we are incapable of talking about marketing without describing some inner bond between brands and consumers?

We’d love to hear your side, so leave us a comment!

Tags: Marketing, reno marketing, Reno Social Media, Social Media
Posted in Online Marketing, Reno Marketing Meanderings | No Comments »

Social Media Pays it Forward

Tuesday, September 20th, 2011

Social media has opened new doors for people and businesses alike.

Whether you are a large corporation, like Skittles, or a startup looking to expand your audience; whether you are a motivated individual looking for a way to stand out from the crowd during our currently challenging economic times, or one of the many computer savvy people looking to be your own boss, social media can help.

In Brad McCarty’s blog post, 6 stories of life-changing social media connections, 6 stories are shared about how social platforms positively affected someone’s life or career. As marketers we understand the importance social platforms can play in business.

Social platforms have the ability to change everything.

It has already changed the way businesses interact with their customers, the way families stay in touch, the ability to get honest and unfiltered feedback on a host of topics, a transparency for human and business interaction and the idea that all businesses have people behind them. Social media goes beyond the idea that a business has a ‘culture’ – it reinforces the idea that even large corporations are made up of people and that all business decisions and interactions with consumers are done on a human level.

More now than ever, social platforms use the power of communication to create honest interactions between businesses and consumers. As a business owner – why wouldn’t you utilize these new tools to get the most from your life and your work? It reduces the gap between ‘professional’ and ‘personal’ but in a good way. Social media promotes the underlying belief that not only are we all ‘in this together’ but that we are all the same – human – and we should connect on that level. The implications are endless.

So enjoy the stories that Brad McCarty wrote about – and then, we invite you to go make your own success story – isn’t that still the American Dream?

Tags: internet marketing, Marketing, reno marketing, Reno Social Media, Social Media
Posted in Do Good in the World, Inspiration, Online Advertising In Reno, Online Marketing, Social Media | No Comments »

Innovative Marketing

Tuesday, September 13th, 2011

Recently, I came across a blog post that got my attention. 9 Ways to Keep Innovation Alive in Your Marketing Organization, posted by Matt Heinz from Innovation Excellence, he writes about Innovation and Marketing, two things I find very useful and interesting.

Several of the ‘9 Ways’ are things that most (successful) companies are already doing – things like tracking progress, predicting trends (or at least watching them), and focusing on teamwork as a way to brainstorm diverse ideas. My favorite, though, is number 5 – let everyone contribute, even (or especially) employees outside of the marketing department.

Why is cross-contributing so important?

Because, as Heinz describes, many of these employees have ideas about how to reach your audience. I would specify that the user-facing employees know more about what the customer is looking for or what things push them to buy your product over another brand than your marketing department. This is valuable information that is available to your company! However, the company culture has to be supporting it, asking for it, rewarding it and following through on the ideas they get for this to be truly successful.

As any good marketing professional would tell you – knowing what your target audience wants is imperative for creating a marketing strategy that will tell the story of how your product or service can fit into the lives of your consumers and why they need to purchase what you have to offer.

Innovation Speaks to All of Us

Innovation is something that speaks to all of us – we are all interested in the newest, shiny, tech savvy bauble; the more bells and whistles (or functionality as we have come to know it), the better. Humans are observant and have a relatively natural ability to look at something they are doing and see how it could be done better. Utilize these instincts and ideas to find new things that will resonate with your audience in a new way, or explain the use of your product or service in new terms.

What kind of innovation does your marketing need?

Give us a call at 775-322-3663 and we can help you find out!

For the full blog post from Matt Heinz, please click here.

Tags: blog, internet marketing, Marketing, reno marketing, Reno Social Media, Social Media
Posted in Inspiration, Online Marketing, Reno Marketing Meanderings, Social Media, Uncategorized | No Comments »

E-Mail Marketing, E-Newsletters – Permission Marketing Works!

Tuesday, September 6th, 2011

Personal Marketing that’s Still Viable After All These Years

E-mail marketing is one of your best, personal marketing tools on the Web. We integrate it with your marketing strategy to reach new customers, build customer connections and to create a one-on-one dialogue. We use it because it works, and when done right, becomes a valuable resource for both you and your customers.

Our Email Marketing Strategies Work to:

Drive direct sales to your door
Create a loyal customer base, and develop trust
Develop relationships for long-term and repeat sales
Customize your message to the various segments of your audience
Integrate e-marketing promotions with corresponding landing pages on your Website
Position yourself and your company as industry experts and leaders
Support sales, market sales and events and drive traffic to your doors and your Website.
Track your customers’ needs and desires, with detailed reports of open and click-through rates

No matter how clever we get with Twitter and Facebook and other public media, E-mail marketing remains the most personal tool in your Internet marketing toolbox.

How Do We Know that Email Marketing Works?

The Proof’s in the Documentation. We’d like to share some recent surveys with you.

The Ad Effectiveness Survey commissioned by Forbes Media in Feb/March 2009 revealed that email and e-newsletter marketing are considered the second-most effective tool for generating conversions, just behind SEO (reference).
A November 2009 survey of B2B marketers found that email marketing was likely to see more spending increase than any other form of online marketing, second only to Website development (report).

Modern Email Marketing Solutions

Email Marketing is a contemporary and powerful promotional tool that incorporates a ton of nifty technology. Here are just a few of the things you can do with email marketing:

Database integration
List segmentation
Pre-scheduled delivery
Analysis of open and click-through rates
A/B testing
On-the-fly customized email based on individual profiles
And so much more!

Plus every email campaign you send out generates actionable data you can use to refine your approach to future messages. All in all, a pretty good way of going about your marketing business!

Ready to launch an effective email marketing for your business?

Contact us today at 775.322.3663 or 800.233.0329, or email us, and we’ll get you started.

Tags: Design, email marketing, internet marketing, Marketing, reno marketing
Posted in Online Marketing, Reno Marketing Meanderings, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »

Posts Tagged ‘Marketing’

Company Website Boring Visitors to Death?

Tired of your company website?

A Website is an Experience

Remodelling: Ideas and Considerations

Your Website is the First Touch

Marketing for Women by Women

E-Mail Marketing, E-Newsletters – Permission Marketing Works!

Personal Marketing that’s Still Viable After All These Years

How Do We Know that Email Marketing Works?

Modern Email Marketing Solutions

Ready to launch an effective email marketing for your business?

Web Support Services

Online Marketing

Graphic Design Services

Strategic Marketing Services

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