The decrease in commenting can be accredited to none other then social media. More and more people are opting to share posts they find interesting rather then comment. And guess what? It’s good for business! Think of it this way… having a client tell you they are happy with the work you provided them is great, but what’s even better is having that client tell 5 friends they are happy with the work YOU provided them.

Adding a sharing tool (a widget that allows your blog visitors to easily send your link out to their social networks) is a great way to get visibility and drive your brand values.  It’s also a great way to get a group of people talking about your brand who otherwise wouldn’t.  Be sure to look for sharing plugins that make it easy for you to track who is sharing your link. (AddThis is the industry standard, it’s easy to install and best of all free).

As nice as it is to hear all the positive feedback you also want to be able to track down any negative issues as well (remember social networking is a great opportunity for customer service . Add sharing tools to your blog today to open the conversation… to everyone.

Tumblr is a microblogging site that has been gaining popularity thanks to its super simple interface that allows users to post and more importantly share posts of interest easily.   Many media outlets  have started to use Tumblr as a tool to gain visibility and new traffic to their sites and blogs. Newsweek pioneered the way with many others such as NPR, Huffington Post, & the Economist jumping on the Tumblr band wagon. These companies have all been using the site to post condensed content that redirects readers to their main blogs and/or websites. This has helped them attract a newer audience almost daily.

If your blog or website views are coming to a lull you may want to look into signing up. Keep in mind as great as Tumblr is, it isn’t for everyone. Organizations that cater to mass audiences versus B2B may find more benefits to Tumblr. If you do decide to give Tumblr a whirl here are a few tips:

• Your Tumblr posts should be related to the content on your main site but not as intense.
• Try following Tumblr pages with similar content as yours.
• The more people you interact with on Tumblr the more people will interact with you (ensuring higher visibility to your brand and message.)

Following these simple guidelines and maybe Tumblr can have the blog views rolling in.

Customer Input Reinvented – Starbucks My Idea is a social community that lives on the Starbucks website. The concept is simple. Customers make suggestions on what they want to see in the stores. Sounds like any other forum right? Well the genius behind this is that Starbucks actually selects the ideas with the most buzz and makes them happen. It’s taking listening to its customers to a whole new level and paying off in a big way for the coffeehouse.

Adapting to Your Target – There is no doubt that social media had a huge part in the last presidential election. President Obama’s campaign truly embraced this new era of marketing. Not only did his campaign set up profiles on all the major social networking sites, they also used tools such as Ustream to broadcast speeches on the web and an IPhone app that encouraged people to spread the word and vote. Obama’s approach captivated younger voters and they came out in droves to the polls. His fresh approach to politics and marketing were a winning combination. Let’s see if he can use these techniques to bring up his approval ratings…

Interacting With Your Audience – When Old Spice wanted to sell more body wash they realized they had to take a new approach – they bypassed their customers and went straight to their girlfriends. Old Spice launched a comical commercial featuring a tall dark and handsome guy enticing women to buy Old Spice body wash for their boyfriends so that they could smell just like him. The commercial was a hit and Old Spice took it to the next level. Old Spice launched personalized YouTube video responses to people who tweeted the Old Spice guy. Fans of the commercial loved this unique interaction so much that the campaign gained nationwide recognition for its innovative use of social networking.

Building a Brand – Chicago-based T-shirt company Threadless lives, breathes, and eats social media. For those who aren’t familiar, Threadless is a company that allows people to submit t-shirt designs to their site. Threadless customers then vote on which shirt designs will be sold for that week and the winning designers not only get their shirts sold but also some cash. Basically the company’s website in itself is an online community. Threadless is known for using social networking to build their brand and secure brand buy in. Their customers love how accessible and interactive they are and they have the following to prove it.

As you see with the examples i mentioned social media marketing is not to different from traditional marketing efforts you are use to yet when done correctly the results speak for themselves. With a little research, time, and effort your brand could also see big results by implementing social media into your marketing plan.

As you know from my MakersMark post, I always pay attention to billboards. When I first saw this ad the first thing that came to my mind was “There is nothing natural about this picture.” I can see where Skyy vodka made their mistake. I am assuming they thought to themselves cocktails are very sleek and upscale. I’m sure they wanted a person who embodied those characteristics and being ginger-infused vodka using a “ginger” model only makes sense. I mean after all when you think of a glamorous red head the first person in everyone’s mind is the Gilligan’s island character Ginger; it seems like a no-brainer. The problem is there is a disconnect between the messaging and the image. Yes Ginger was a glamorous character but she was also incredibly superficial.

I feel the smarter solution would have been to capitalize on the natural/organic/eco green wave everyone is riding right now. I would’ve created something more along the lines of having a more carefree yet still elegant looking red head model in evening wear that was made of leaves. I mean what better way to merge classy elegance with all natural than take the little black dress and turn it into a little green gown. A solution more along these lines would have:

1. Connected the tagline to the image
2. Kept the integrity of the brand while still incorporating the current natural and eco friendly trend.

When an idea is consistently communicated (verbally AND visually) you have a better chance of getting your message across.

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.