Get Inspired to Reach Out to Someone Today

It’s been a while since I’ve sat down to write down my thoughts here. Over the last few months, I found myself busy like most of us working full-time while juggling my day-to-day activities that I have not contributed to my blog. It’s funny, I hear time and time again busy professionals not having a moment between work, assisting their families, spending time with friends, enjoying their hobbies and side projects that there is no time to for social media and explore all the new technological advancements at one’s fingertips. Now I can understand what they all meant. I missed blogging but I was occupied with other things that needed my attention. I realize it’s important to express one’s thoughts and get inspired to reach out to someone. It can be damaging to one professionally and personally when not actively learning about new advancements, trying new things, and exploring this new digital playground. It’s important to stay abreast of the new things on the horizon and how society is adopting new forms of communication to reach the masses. In fact, it could alleviate the necessary time for one to conduct his/her daily activities, as well as discover it to become more manageable.

There is still something to be said for those that have a good balance between the virtual and the real world. We rely a lot on our cell phones and other technical toys. I admit that I love my new iPhone, but you won’t find me hugging it at the end of the day!

This digital and mobile world opens our eyes to consider new ways of engaging with others more personally for when we dream, love, listen, satisfy a need or a want, explore, and perhaps help us learn a thing or two about others and ourselves.

The George Clooney movie Up in the Air  features him traveling around the world having to bring bad news to those people being laid off from different companies. Many of us over the last year have had to face that same reality. I’ve learned from each encounter and knew it was God’s way of looking out for my best interest that something better was around the corner.

Eventually in the movie, George’s side-kick felt strongly about adopting new digital media to help make the process of letting people go from companies more efficient. She was young, savvy, smart and determined to prove him wrong and perhaps even drive him out of a job. However, after her reality of facing numerous employees day after day to be laid off, she learned that no computer could replace such a personal matter. Still to this day, there are certain things that will NEVER replace those personal interactions. However, we need to embrace the new and make sure to balance it with the old in a way that helps to do good for others, grow businesses and learn from one another.

Even if one takes a half-hour a day to comment on a blog, twitter a thought, check out a new perspective on an article and provide feedback, or learn about a new start-up in the social media space, could help you and your business. Do take a step each day to reach out into the digital world, try something new. Go out there to share your perspective. We can all benefit from each other’s digital footprints, as well as embrace the handshakes, personal interactions and of course someone’s smile.

Marketers Eyeing Online for 2009

A New Year Brings A New Beginning

Be happy knowing that 2009 will be a great year of new technology usage as more B2B marketers experiment with online mediums. At a time when advertisers are re-evaluating their marketing spend and travel may take a deeper downturn, the internet is the way marketers are turning to promote their business. For the most part it’s measurable, in some cases with social media usage it’s less expensive, it’s where people are going when logging on with their computers and/or their mobile phones at work, or for their personal usage. Feel free to add your own comments here where you think are the best areas for marketers to focus on in the coming year. Share some of your own examples that have had great success.

Any questions pertaining to these topics below I can point you in the right direction.

Keep Your Eyes Open to Competitors: Don’t forget to put together a competitor analysis by signing up for their services to learn from others and how to do it better!

Webcasts Are Where It’s At: So you may find that trade show bookings are in a slump for both exhibitors and attendees. How about adding webcasts to your site? Think of ways to provide your audience video teasers to the show that will attract them to register, but also give them the opportunity to register for webinars with exclusive interviews with an industry professional. How about offering your clients the opportunity to promote a new book, product and/or service and create sponsorship opportunities for others to discuss the health of the market, best practices in the industry, as well as demonstrations of new products/services that could be entertaining to audiences. People can’t make it to the show, don’t leave them in the dark. Recently, eMarketer reports, “Marketers in the US will take a closer look at online video in 2009, according to a survey conducted in December 2008 by PermissionTV. More than two-thirds of respondents said they would focus their budgets on online video this year.”

Let’s Be Social: Think about creating an online community. If you don’t have this already on your site, start utilizing some services that are currently on the market through LinkedIn, Facebook, Meetup.com, or a trade association to promote your organization. You can easily add an icon to your site with a little description to have audiences go to your community on these external sites, as well as make sure you continue to contribute and monitor the activity on these other public community sites. Look at these popular social media networking sites as a billboard to promote your business.

Be Personable: One size does not fit all when it comes to promoting your business online. People want messages that are tailored to their interests. The easiest approach to segmentation is creating campaigns that are focused on driving people to specific areas of your website that meets the needs of that audience. Create unique newsletters for different audiences to subscribe, use giveaways as a way to attract distinct groups of people and make one feel important. Additionally, think of a ways to invite people to an exclusive community to participate and welcome their peers. Perhaps you wish to create an exclusive webcast, or local networking event/seminar in a certain region of the country. Think of ways to reach out to people’s emotions, whether it’s online, direct mail, or a combination of both on and offline tactics. Sometimes the littlest things can make a big impact on some individuals. Cards, expression of thanks, amusing stories are some inexpensive ways to make people feel good and valued. Everyone wants to feel special especially when times are tough.

Baby Start Blogging!: Whether you want to create a name of your own online, or for your business, don’t get left out in the crowd and start blogging. Check out this cool service from Yahoo called MyBlogLog. It’s a way to connect with others in the community, but sharing comments, blogs, videos, pictures, or other contact information. Check out the Recent Reader widget that allows you to post the icons of others reading your blog. Twitter also offers a service like this so you can see who is twittering about the topics on your blog.

Gotta Love the Links: Link building is key to spreading the news about your business. Look for ways to reach out to potential partners by encouraging better visibility placement on your partner’s sites and follow the proper directions to make sure your partners code their images and links properly. Make things right so it worth your hard efforts contacting others.

Provide directions to optimize links with proper HTML code and reference image name:

• Hyperlink description (i.e. Join us at our exhibit Add your URL)
• Image: <ahref= “http:yourbrandurl.com”><img src= “name of logo.jpg” alt=“Title for logo”></a>

Lead Generation and Cost Per Lead Calculations:White papers, webcasts, and online contests are some ways to generate leads through sponsorships. Dont’ forget to consider ways you can barter with others to promote your business.

Cost per Lead = (campaign cost/ # of responses)

Sales Lead Calculator for Marketers – MacMcIntosh B2B Sales Lead Experts offer this guide for marketing professionals to better assess their budget and get the best bang for their buck!

Results to the Rescue: Don’t forget the value of A/B testing of your campaigns. Mix things up a bit with different audiences and see what provides the best results. So if the industry says this is the way to do it, SO WHAT if you are doing things with great success. Keep up the good work! Yet, how do you know until the proof is in the pudding and one starts analyzing the email results (Click/Open Rate, Uniques, Hard Bounces, etc,), as well as your website activity, the increase in leads, or revenue generated? Don’t be afraid to dive into the sea of knowledge and analytics that are at your fingertips with the tools available.

Video:

What Recession? – December 17, 2008 – WATCH ARCHIVED VIDEO PRESENTATION

Contact:
Keri Singer
Emails: kerisays@gmail.com, kerisays@yahoo.com

What’s All the Buzz About?

Good marketers act as entrepreneurs seeking new ways to promote their message to the audience. More professionals are adopting social online community mediums in their personal lives and in their professions. It’s important to keep a breast of all the new digital avenues arising and available. Test a few to see what works best for your brand. Always be on the lookout for new ways to market your businesses and create a two-way dialogue with your target market online.

• Find the talkers: Look for those people who love your product or service and aren’t afraid to share their thoughts with others
• Give talkers a topic: Make sure they have news to share such as new product information, special offers and promotions that makes this group feel privileged
• Provide conversation tools: Make it easy for your brand ambassadors by providing them with easily forwarded e-mails, feedback areas, message boards and other web tools that establish community
• Take part in the dialogue: Let audience know you’re listening and you care. When appropriate, jump into blogs and message boards to provide answers to questions, announce industry developments, or promote your team’s personal blogs
• Track the response: Use tools such as blog searches, e.g. Technorati and Blogpulse, as well as more advanced analytics BuzzMetrics, Radian6, etc. to determine if your efforts to address perceptions are effective and if you need to better target your activities

Generating Buzz & Monitoring the Viral Spread Of Your Business

 

Tactics to Take On Your Own

• Create a social media strategy and make sure to have people internally pay attention to your audience’s comments
• Add an area on your website for audience to rate videos or articles
• Start searching for blogs in your industry and consider both your editorial team and marketing team to contribute, or create one specifically for your brand
• Test different social media sites to promote your brand and see which one works best. Don’t be afraid to start spreading the word on LinkedIn, Twitter, Meetup.com, etc, because more business professionals are going there to reach out to others to share their thoughts and opinions
• Create a way for your audience to subscribe to RSS feeds where one can pick out keywords to subscribe to their specific interests
• “Digg” your own website: Showcase the most read articles or popular areas visited on your website to share with your audience
• Recognize when someone promotes your brand on other blogs by quoting the source on your website with a link to the report, as well as publicize in your magazine
• Gather blog conversations as a basis of conversation for a special session at your next trade event
• Create a link building strategy