There is a new way to grab a hold of a large community and be able to really drive traffic to your site! We will be working with large numbers of companies and already am working with 3 large very customer facing companies and restaurants that are always looking for new ways to help out the community. We have also partnered with many of the most High Tech companies to be able to bring our clients to the best venues.
https://plus.google.com/u/1/communities/117925441699672835647
Companies have come up with some amazingly funny and creative ways to get us to remember their products in 2012.
From Matthew Broderick bringing back his “Ferris Bueller” character to hawk Hondas to dogs destined for a television showdown that might make Maury Povich blush, advertising has definitely made us laugh this year.
Many of the side-splitting commercials were part of this year’s Super Bowl telecast, combining celebrities and spoofs for memorable spots for millions of television viewers.
The year’s top print ad were sans celebrities,but that did not have them taking a back seat in the humor department whatsoever. Their stark, one-page images definitely got the attention of readers, the goal of any advertisement.
Here’s a look at the top 10 print ads and commercials so far in 2012:
Print Ads
“Spending too much time with the wife?” – Clemenger BBDO Melbourne gets the point across about the manliness of Foster’s beer with this ad. Pictures of couples with very similar outfits and hair-dos carried a strong message about how much more manly Carlton Mid and other Foster products are than other beers.
“Real Date” – A Brazilian print ad for the O Fio Brier Bar humorously targets the phony world of online dating, urging potential patrons to “Get out of web affairs. Have a real date.”
“Dogs have issues too” – It would seem somebody at the Johannesburg-based Ireland Davenport agency saw one too many episodes of “The Maury Show” before working on this ad. The only thing that appears to be missing from the ad for National Geographic Channel’s “Dog Whisperer” is Maury Povich bellowing to the male golden retriever eying the spotted pups, “Duke, you are not the father!”
“Frozen Meat” – When you are the only provider of garden fresh baby food, nothing screams it like Godzilla-size killer chickens invading a town. The Lithuanian baby-food producer Marmaluzi generated a memorable and funny ad with this ‘B’ movie spoof.
“The Wine List” – Creating a full-page ad with nary a piece of art is tough to do, but Colenso BBDO, Australia, pulls it off masterfully with this beer ad playing on the fear of any man who has taken the wine list to try and impress. Its ad also swirls around the idea in your brain that DB Export Dry is a sophisticated beverage.
Commercials
“Cape Cod Chips’ A Flock of Seagulls” – This is an example of why Al Gore invented computer-generated imagery (or was that the Internet?) A flock of seagulls rocking A Flock of Seagulls’ “I Ran” on a beach? Classic. This 30-second spot has so much awesomeness, it bears repeat viewing. In your replays, notice the lighthouse, which is identical to the one on the Cape Cod bag, in the background and the drummer going all Hollywood and knocking a cymbal of its stand. Thank you, Al Gore, this ad rocks!
“Charlie Sheen’s Reborn” – Everyone is “winning” when they see this ad for a Bavarian beer being sold in the Netherlands. Charlie Sheen pokes fun at himself in the spot as he leaves rehab promising never to be back again. However, on the way home, he thinks he is hallucinating as everyone he sees – including a pregnant woman and a police officer – are drinking beer. Sheen is so perplexed at things, including a beer bash being thrown in his honor – that he freaks out and fires off the ‘F’ bomb (a line Sheen likely didn’t need to rehearse). Everything finally makes sense in Sheen’s world (if it ever really does) when he eventually sees that what everyone’s drinking is Bavaria Global’s new alcohol-free beer, Bavaria Lemon.
“Matthew’s Day Off” – Matthew Broderick brought back his “Ferris Bueller” character in this Honda ad for the Super Bowl. Broderick takes a cue from his inner Ferris and fakes a sick day during a movie shoot. He then traipses through the city on an escapade, including a trip to the race track and singing in a Chinatown parade, that would make Ferris proud. Adding to the commercial’s humor and charm are modern day versions of the economics teacher and the parking lot attendant’s Ferrari-like handling of Broderick’s CR-V.
“Toyota reinvents everything” – Toyota had its own stellar showing Super Bowl Sunday with this ad which notes after reinventing the Camry, Toyota personnel just kept on going. They reinvented the police officer (above) to also give back rubs, couches to be made of bikini-clad babes or bathing suit-wearing, chiseled guys (the choice is yours), and drapes made of pizza. Like a politician, the ad fails to give any facts, such as what exactly has changed with the Camry, but after babes, back rubs and pizza, do you really need to know?
“Chevy Camero graduation gift” – Chevrolet made its own mark on the Super Bowl market with this ad of a starry-eyed graduate looking right past his parents’ gift and thinking a neighbor’s Chevrolet Camero was his surprise. The commercial was actually written and produced by 26-year-old filmmaker Zach Borst who won a contest Chevy conducted for its Super Bowl ad. He used friends for actors, locations and camera help. The grad commercial topped nearly 600 submissions for the competition.
You work hard to make your business a success. You put the hours in to make sure the job gets done right. You go the extra mile to make sure your customers are satisfied.
But with all of the time and effort you put in, how do make sure that your business keeps growing? How do you ensure that a steady stream of customers continues and increases?
You have to promote your business, get the word out there about your company. Let people know why you are the go-to source, the expert in your field.
Few people have a ready-made pulpit to get the word out about their business. Few business owners have free access to share information regarding their services and products with the masses.
Promoting your business is a complicated effort that can be a confusing maze of ads, media outlets and price ranges. How do you promote your business in the most cost-effective manner? How do you know you are getting the most bang for your buck? That likely depends on your business, your budget and your desired audience.
There are multiple avenues to consider when looking to promote your business. Here are some promotional tools and questions to ask yourself:
Billboards: Very high-visibility tools, but could be out of some business’s promotions price range. Can you afford the cost? Can you boil down what you need to tell your potential clients about your product or service to just a few words? Can your message be quick enough to be noticed and remembered by a motorists on a highway at 55 mph? Is there a billboard location near enough your business to make the expense worth it? Are you willing to commit to a billboard lease agreement, and the time frame that goes along with it?
Social media: A growing promotional tool that can get your business’s name in front of potential customers several times a day. Do you have products that would work being pictured on Facebook? Do you have a Facebook presence currently, with your business being “Liked” by customers? Do you have someone who can update your business’s Facebook page regularly? Would purchasing an ad on the side of Facebook pages benefit your business? Do you post updates and news about your business on Twitter? Do you have the time to do that? Do you have a Linkedin account? Do you use it to let connections know when you have picked up a big new client or other news? Is there a YouTube video posted of what you do and who you are as a business?
Website: That same video of your business doing what it does on YouTube should also be on your business website, along with plenty of other information about your company. Do you have a strong web page that draws in potential customers? Is your domain name the same as your business name, making it easy for customers to find you? Are your keywords strong enough to get your listed in search engines?
Print ads: Do you have a lot to say about your product or service? If so, print advertising might be a good option for you. Do you have listings of products, such as a car dealership, that would be beneficial to have before the public in print form? Is your product pretty stable, where it would be good to have it listed in a publication that might be on an end table for a week or month? Or is your product supply always changing and not geared for such longevity advertising? Are you a smaller company that could benefit from getting your message out through a lower-cost medium. Do you want to use coupons to gauge the response?
Broadcast ads: Using radio or television can get word out about your product or service to a wide audience. Is your product message succinct enough for a 30-second radio or television commercial? Can you afford the mass-marketing effort, which often includes hired talent? Do you want to reach a broader audience or would a more-targeted audience (watchers of college football, etc.) be better?
Direct mail: Letting people know about your product and your sales can be achieved by sending the information right to their doorstep. Would targeting certain ZIP codes be beneficial to your business? Then, direct mail could help. Like print ads, coupons can be a way to know how receptive people are to your message. Do you want to offer coupon deals? How many homes do you want to reach? How much of a discount do you want to offer on the coupon?
Flyers: Paper pieces can be handed to people or put on their cars or in their mailboxes with your information and deals. Do you have the manpower to target certain areas at certain times with your flyers? Are those the best times or simply the most convenient for your staff? Can you afford the manpower to put pieces in mailboxes and in doors?
Business cards: A great way to get your business’s name out to people you meet. Is your business card unique enough to get noticed? Is all your company’s information, including your website, on your card? Do you make sure to always have cards with you?
Vehicles: An eye-catching way to promote your business is to paint a car, van or truck with your business logo and information. Do you have a company vehicle to which you can do this? Is your business along a major roadway, where a painted vehicle parked near the roadway would serve as an ongoing advertisement? If you are not along a thoroughfare, is there one nearby where you could park the vehicle at the close of business?
Samples: People love free stuff. Handing out free samples of your product will get people’s attention. Are you willing to give people a taste of your product free of charge? Are you near a high-pedestrian-traffic area where providing samples would be worth your company’s time and effort?
Contests: Having a contest with your product as a prize is good, low-priced advertising. Whether you or a third-party, like a radio station, conducts the contest, it will get attention if the prize is good enough. Are you willing to give up product for the publicity? Is there enough name recognition for your product that it carries value and weight with the public?
I’d be interested in your responses. Send me your thoughts at manageyourtwitter@gmail.com. And, as always, I would love to be a sounding board for ideas about promoting your business.
Having a social media presence is vital for a business today. With Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Pinterest, Foursquare, YouTube, Google+, blogs, e-newsletters and websites, it is hard to imagine that you can overdue it with your posts, but you can.
Be an annoyance or narcissistic and your gains in social media numbers can disappear in a heartbeat. Good social media skills, like proper manners, are never going to steer you wrong.
Knowing when your social media efforts are going over the top is key to understanding how to effectively use these emerging communication tools.
Here are 10 ways businesses overdue social media:
One of the 10 most popular social media websites is www.pinterest.com. The site states that it’s a virtual pinboard. It allows users to get a free account and share beautiful things (including articles and pictures) that the users find on other websites. Users may browse boards that are made by other users, to find new things and get new ideas from other people who have some of the same interests. Some Pinterest users use their boards to plan weddings, decorate, and share recipes.
A pin is any image that a pinterest user adds to his or her board. A pin may be added from any other website, by using the Pin It button. A user can upload pictures from his or her computer. Each pin that is added, using the Pin It button contains a link back to the original site.
A board is a set of pins that each user can create. A board can be created about any subject, including recipes, churches, or political views. A user may add as many pins as he or she chooses, to his or her board.
Unlike many social media websites, Pinterest is mainly a visual site. If a user wants to post information and doesn’t have any pictures, he or she won’t be able to contribute, well. Each user needs to choose interesting pictures to pin.
Some Pinterest users get accounts because they want to use the site to post offers from their businesses. It’s usually difficult for users to do that, since the majority of users find other pins on which they want to comment. Users usually find that they enjoy the site more, if they discuss other pictures.
Users should notice many things that others posted and comment on them. If you use the @ sign, the person you mention will be tagged. Users usually think that is a compliment.
Google follows Pinterest, so users should use keywords, when they create a pin. From an SEO standpoint, this is great news, since it may cause your link to be found by others. This may change.
The majority of Pinterest users are women. This is important for business owners who consider using Pinterest to promote their business. They should do that, only if they think that the majority of their customers are women.
Many people think that Pinterest is addicting. Pinterest users spend an average of 15 minutes, each day, “pinning.” Since this can be done while users use other sites, that time may be higher. Facebook users spend an average of 23 minutes, per day, on that site, but Pinterest is doing well, for a new site.
Few social media sites list etiquette, for those sites, but www.pinterest.com has a page “Pin Etiquette.” It states that the rules were sent by their users. That page reminds users to be polite and honest. That page reminds users to cite the original site, for each of their pins. That page asks users to report objectionable material, since they don’t allow nudity or anything that encourages violence.
These facts should help readers decide whether they want to user www.pinterest.com. If you want to know more information, please read the site and views some boards.
One of the most popular video websites is www.hulu.com. It allows users to watch TV shows, movies, and concerts, for free.
Although users may watch some videos for free, there are some advantages to paying for an account. If someone has a facebook connected account, the user can log into a personalized homepage, where the user can see his or her friends’ favorite shows. Only people, who have accounts, can have conversations, via hulu, with other users, who follow the same shows. Each person, who has an account, can maintain a video queue and add videos to it. Each user, who buys an account, can use parental controls, to control what their children watch.
The hulu staff tries to keep the videos, on the site, for as long as possible. However, the length of time that the videos are on the site is determined by the content partners. The hulu staff tries to get more time, for each video, but, sometimes, they must take the videos from the site.
The site allows someone to buy an account, for someone else, as a gift. Hulu has
recommendations page. It suggests new videos that a user might want to watch, based on videos he or she already watched.
This information should help you decide whether you want to use hulu. If you want more information, about the site, please read www.hulu.com.
Two important companies, who can help businesses use social media, are Alterian and Raven Tools. Here are some details about both companies.
Customer Relationship Management, CRM, is an information industry term for methodologies, software, and usually Internet capabilities that help an organization manage customer relationships in an organized way, which usually includes organizing a list of potential clients and their contact information. Here is some information about two of the most popular CRM companies.
SugarCRM sells a new service, Sugar 6. It helps companies use social media sites, including twitter, facebook, and linkedin, inside the companies’ SugarCRM interface. Sugar6 extends the existing SugarCRM social platform, encompassing more external data sources to foster social business value. Sugar 6 includes some new features. That includes the ability to quickly monitor individual and company activates, on many sites, including twitter, facebook, and linkedin, by using Sugar Cloud Connectors. Another new feature allows a user to see social feeds inside the Sugar 6 user interface, increasing CRM use, productivity, and return on investment.
Radian6 was founded in 2006 because the founders thought that business owners should know what is said, about their company, industry, and competitors, online. They built a listening platform that can help companies do that. Radian6 helps businesses measure, analyze, and report on their social media work. Radian6 helps businesses gain
insights from that information. Radian6 uses all areas that social media affects, including customer service, sales, public relations, and marketing. Radian6 is owned by Sales Force. That company’s site, www.SalesForce.com, includes Chatter – the company’s private and secure corporate social network.
This information should tell the reader enough information about SugarCRM and Radian6. This should help readers decide whether they’ll use either of these services
One of the newest social media sites is www.flickr.com, a site that allows users to post photos so that the pictures can be see by anyone, who uses that site.
These facts should show that Flickr is a useful website, for people who want to post pictures, view photos, from others, or both. If you have any questions, about the service, please read the site, www.flickr.com.
