From self taught makeup artist to comedians the popular video website has become a 15 minutes to fame express lane. You’re probably reading this wondering what in the heck this has to do with you and growing your business. Many companies have also been using video as another component to their marketing efforts. Video can help your company feel more relatable. By putting face to your organization people feel like you are down to earth and trustworthy. A short video on your website (when appropriate) can also add a dynamic element to help it stand out from the rest. If you are in a more creative field a more whimsical and kitschy approach can be taken. Go out and find yourself a camera, get strategically creative, and who knows your video could go viral and your company could be the next internet sensation.

Being that I’m a PC user and that I have a Droid phone any devoted Apple fan reading this is probably saying “She just doesn’t get it.” Perhaps it is the age old PC versus Mac battle that prohibits me from running to Apple’s website every time they drop a new product. Despite my tech preferences, working at a company that focuses on strategy & communications means I definitely have noticed that Apple does a fantastic job at creating buzz for their brand. I think a huge part of the company’s success is their clean design and sleek communications. Everything from their website, to their television ads, down to their packaging is always consistent and simple. Like I stated before the Iphone4 is just a cell phone but Apple makes us feel like it is a part of life as we know it. It doesn’t just have longer battery life; it has longer battery life so we can talk to our grandmothers longer. The phone doesn’t just shoot HD movies; it vividly captures your child’s first steps.

You don’t have to be selling an expensive high tech gadget to get people talking about your brand. Take into consideration banks.  They all do the same thing and give or take, offer the same services.  With campaigns geared towards the convenience of having the most ATMs available across the U.S. or telling us how savings accounts are how dreams start, banks are also selling us lifestyle versus financial services.

Whether it’s a new product or service you are launching just remember using strategic marketing geared towards your targets lifestyle and pairing it with beautiful design will always get you good buzz.

As a business person reading this I’m sure you are thinking ‘That’s great in theory but I don’t have the time or money to sit online and chat with everyone in my network.”  Interacting on social networking sites does not always mean mindless chit chatter. Take a page from companies like Dell and Comcast who both use Twitter for customer service.  Twitters search options makes it easy for any company to type in their name or product names and see what people in the twittersphere are saying about them.  If you happen to run across a customer who is complaining about your products or services you can @ reply them instantly and take care of the situation.  Most likely other people in the customers’ network will see this interaction and appreciate your company taking the time to resolve the matter.

Good customer service is an essential component of any successful business.  Using social media as a way to provide customer service will not only help you keep existing costumers happy it will also prove to potential customers that you are a company that cares about its clients.

Hire Professionals! – Probably the number one step people feel they can bypass is hiring professionals to help them launch their brand. Most people avoid this step because they want to keep cost low. At first consultant fees may seem like a pretty penny but in actuality the money you will spend hiring experts is nothing compared to the money you could potentially lose by blindly going into a new venture. I recommend you seek out someone who can help you with the strategy of your launch as well as someone who can help with the look of your brand. In fact save yourself the hassle and hire a company that can do both!

Know your competition- Almost every wonderful idea you can think of belonged to someone else 5 minutes ago.  Competition is everywhere and it’s important to know whether you stand a chance in your market or not.  Research is critical in order to create a smart plan that stands out.

Strategic planning is your friend – Take your time to develop a thorough strategic plan. Most launches fail because the people behind them never bothered to create a plan. It’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of a great idea which can sometimes lead to off-the-cuff decisions. Just remember all buried treasures require a map to get to them.

Baby steps- If your idea or product is as good as you think it is what’s the rush? There is no need to make a full investment right out the gate. A soft launch or test run to see how your new brand fares in low stakes situation will save you and your wallet from any unexpected curve balls.

Time to assess – Once you have taken all the above mentioned steps take a step back and assess what you have learned. If people are raving about your soft launch it’s a good time to start making a significant investment into your brand. Did your test run fizzle? Perhaps it’s time to tweak a few things and go for a round two.

Launching a brand can seem a little overwhelming but a good idea paired with a good plan is always a success.

The ad is part of the new anti-smoking campaign from the city’s health department showing shocking photography of exactly what smoking does to your body. This is not the first time the health department has taken this type of controversial approach. Last year the NYC health department had advertisements warning of the health risks of soda. The ads depicted soda bottles filled with body fat being poured into drinking glasses. New York also has free condoms available at stores through out the city to promote safe sex. A lot of people think these sort of initiatives are vulgar but I find them not only refreshing but totally appropriate. New York is known for being this sort of gritty and real city. Deemed the city that never sleeps, everyone in NY is always on the go and in hurry. New Yorkers get a bad wrap for being “mean” but in actuality they are just so on the move they don’t have time for unnecessary pleasantries and small talk. A feel good wordy advertisement would be totally wasted on this fast-paced community.

Here at Blue Daring we really value information consumption. We think it is important to understand your target audience and deliver your message in a consumable way that resonates with them. The NYC Health department presented a real in-your-face ad approach to a real in-your-face city. Would this campaign work in a small middle-of-nowhere town? Fuggedaboutit no chance. But it is right at home in New York. Knowing your audience and adapting to their tone and lifestyle is a sure fire way to have a successful campaign.

NY ANTI SMOKING POSTER

In the past Maker’s Mark advertising has been consistent with the look and feel of the product — a very classic, refined and exquisite spirit. They usually pair their classic image with tongue-in-cheek copy to keep it current, modern, and with the times. While out and about our president Melissa noticed this new billboard and snapped this photo with her cell phone.

This ad is a prime example of a company trying to keep up with changing trends but losing their brand consistency in doing so. Simply slapping what appears to be a cut-and-paste friend request button onto an existing company stock photo not only lacks creativity but weakens the company’s brand. If I could give this ad a makeover I would love to see a picture of someone serving a Maker’s Mark cocktail and copy along the lines of “Watch the friends start pouring in.” with a URL to their social networking site.

It is important to be conscience of the delicate balance between current trends and your brand’s integrity. I commend this company for including social media into their marketing approach but what looks like a lack of strategy and creativity has left them with an ad that has missed the mark.

Traditional networking sites are a great venue for social media marketing but there are also other sites that are a bit more dynamic and can enhance your organization’s social media strategy. For example using Youtube can really enhance your social media plan. Youtube allows you to upload short videos and share them with your network and the web. Making a little video update and incorporating it into your company’s e-newsletter will make it stand out from the text-only newsletters in everyone’s inbox. Another social media tool that businesses often overlook is Flickr. Flickr is a photo hosting and social networking website. This approach seems the trickiest for businesses but it is very simple. Think of your organization’s products and/or services. Than go out take and upload pictures that showcase or directly apply to those products and/or services. The trick here is to take advantage of the tag options. Tagging your pictures with relevant keywords will make them pop up in search engines. Be sure to make your Flickr name your company’s URL so when these pictures do come up in web searches people’s curiosity will lead them to your website.

The beauty of these alternative social media options is both of them are easily integrated into your current social networking sites or official website. These creative approaches to social media will set you apart from other organizations and give your target audience yet another opportunity to get to know you.

Immediately my first thought was “it is too cold to have these poor employees out here on the street.” My next thought was “this is a terrible marketing campaign.” I could easily think of a few reasons why it was not an effective plan.

1.There is no way to track the campaign’s success
The employees who are out in the street do nothing but simply dance around and hold up the mentioned sign. Lawrence & Western is a busy intersection so when a car honks there is no real way of telling if it was because of traffic or whether they truly love Liberty Tax Services.

2. There is no strong call to action
Liberty Tax Services committed a common mistake which is to roll out what they think is a great campaign with no call to action. Let’s say someone in their car was driving by and loved the idea of the dancing Statue of Liberty. They honk their horn and drive off smiling. What if that person went home and wanted to know more about the company behind this campaign? How would they find you with no URL or phone number on your sign?

3. A single layer campaign
The Statue of Liberties focus all their energy on shaking their signs and trying to get the attention of people in their cars. Several mornings I have found myself standing shoulder to shoulder with one of these employees waiting for the traffic light to change. There currently is no interaction with pedestrians. Having a handout for foot traffic would cover all bases and get them better results.

Had the good people of Liberty Tax Services taken the time to map out a strategic AND creative marketing campaign they could have had wonderful results. Granted some could argue their goal was merely to get noticed. To that I say well done and congratulations! You just got featured in my blog!

Shortly after the news about the earthquake hit, the American Red Cross sent out a tweet letting their followers know they could help by donating $10 and all they had to do was simply text “Haiti” to 90999. By the same time the following day the Red Cross had already raised 800k. Red Cross efforts continue to be re-tweeted everyday and currently have raised nearly $20 million (and counting!) The Red Cross has also used other social media platforms to help generate awareness such as their Flickr photo stream and YouTube channel that both aid in showcasing just how crucial donations and volunteering are at this time.

Social media can be an effective tool for non-profits to bring awareness to their mission and help generate donations for their causes. For more information on the earthquake and how you can help Haiti visit http://www.redcross.org/.

Take for example Groupon, a social networking site where members living in the same area come together for group purchasing in search of discounts. The way it works is once a day Groupon announces a local deal that members can choose to purchase. If enough members purchase the offer it becomes valid (if not the offer is void and people who have already purchased do not get charged.) People interested in certain offers will reach out to their personal networks and try to get more people to buy in on the deal. Another site Foursquare is also all about your location and great discounts. On Foursquare you “check in” at certain locations in your area such as bars, restaurants, stores, etc and you receive points. Once your points exceed a certain amount you than are granted honors such as becoming “the mayor” of a location. This title comes with perks as mayors often get discounts to their favorite places in the city. Naturally this sparks a sense of competition and pride in members who will continue to support their favorite local businesses in an attempt to hold on to their title (or in some cases attempt to dethrone the current top dog.). Both sites are examples of how all over the internet people are coming together for the sake of a good deal.

You can apply the same motto to your social networking as well. Do you want to increase your twitter following? Run a promotion where if you reach X amount of followers you will issue a discount code. People interested in receiving the deal will surely promote the offer to people in their network helping generate awareness of your organization. The only thing people like more than a discount is a freebie. Host a giveaway on any of your social platforms and just watch how your network increases. Cutting your target audience a deal every now and then is something they will appreciate. In turn they are more likely to stay loyal and even spread the word about you. Happy clients and increased awareness is a deal you should never pass up.