Starmedia Communications Infographic Software Piracy

Social Media Marketing - The Top 10 Mistakes People Will Make in Social Media in 2010

Social Media Marketing- the Top 10 Mistakes People Will Make in Social Media in 2010


Some wonder why they are not getting the traction or friends that they thought they would according to their Social Media marketing efforts. The main reason is that they continue on making the same mistakes in Social Media.
Although, you can increase speed of your Social Media Success at this moment by avoiding these

Top 10 mistakes made by people in Social Media in 2009.
Here they are :


1) Lack of Consistent Visibility.

You cannot make a path and create a presence in Social Media, without CONSISTENTLY being SEEN and HEARD with your message. You MUST create a Presence on the web DAILY- and be seen and heard as part of the community. A tree does not grow part time. It must be consistent in it’s efforts. It is the same with your Social Media marketing.


2) Focusing too much on being heard.

Joining the conversation is not optional anymore. But remember to LISTEN first and THEN talk. Brands have now the opportunity to be a major part of a user’s conversation on Facebook (Twitter, etc.) so take advantage of it. Social Media is about Listening to what is being said- by your prospects and customers- and social media in general. You would never enter a party or social event and immediately start yelling out what you wanted to talk about.
Conversations are through a two way dialogue. By listening to others you will also LEARN. Then you can let your voice be heard and remember only as a part of the existing conversation. Your time to start the conversation will come.


3) Taking, instead of giving to the Social Media Community.

You cannot TAKE without GIVING. You do not want to be part of those who just want, want, want. In the world we live in, it is by giving that you shall receive. As Albert Einstein beautifully said “The value of a man resides in what he gives and not in what he is capable of receiving.”
Therefore, Give advice, ideas, recommendations, support, news, possibilities, etc. Also do Give words of Gratitude, as it is a means of Retrospective sympathetic affections. Words of Wisdom to carry on insight
Remember not to take continuously - you will be avoided and branded as spam.
This is the way to go if you want to create a POWERFUL influence.
Remember, excessive daily interactions can result in a significantly dimished per-interaction value. The best online marketers know their limits, and they do their best to ensure that they do not exceed them.
As a tip, you should create a publishing schedule for your posts. You can spread updates out so that you carry on a persistent but unobtrusive dialog with your Fans.


4) Not Joining groups.

Groups are where you can have some of the greatest growth and learning. You learn from others and CONNECT with them.
Groups are a “secret weapon” that you should use on as many social sites as you can. They will make you GROW.


5) Not attending Events.

You should be attending at least 1 event a week to do 2 things: 1) Become more Visible 2) To learn from people that know things you don’t.
Events can be seen as a “Hidden University” of Social Media.
Look at the events that interest you. See if you can learn something.


6) Not enough value in what they are doing.

VALUE governs in Social Media. The type of value that is so sublime, distinguished and unexpected that it surprises the person that discovers it. Show your WORTH. Increase your Value in your POSTS, podcasts, conversations, articles, recommendations. This value will represent Your value and will show what you will be giving to Social media.
Like all authentic and rewarding business relationships, online networks must be nurtured. This way you will also have potential connections find you. Be appealing.
That is how you will become unforgettable.


7) Joining Too Many Social Media sites.

There are about 3,600 Social Media sites. You need 5-7 PRIMARY Social Sites. Then you need maybe 25-30, or even 50 Secondary sites for Link Building (seach engine purposes) and traffic purposes. The main sites that you should be a part of- is up to you. As an example, you can take part these Social Networking Websites : Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, LinkedIn, Stumbleupon, Plaxo, and Wordpress, Mashable. They can become the body of your Social Media Marketing.
Remember, Facebook alone can keep you busy with over 200 million people. I started by mastering one Social Networking site –Facebook- while continuying on mastering Social Media and then another Social Networking site and so on. This way you will build your primary Social sites.


8) Focusing too much on Monetizing Social Media.

There is nothing wrong with monetization on the internet. It is being done daily and in abundance. But it cannot be your main focus in social media. People do enjoy knowing about new products and sales. But again it comes down to giving it Value before anything else. Then you can invite them to an event, and then at the end of the conference call or webinar-give them a chance to purchase your produst.
We see everyday messages about SELLING SELLING SELLING! Just looking at those 3 words right now does not make me feel good. It is way too obtrusive and noisy.
A better way of doing it would be to GIVE some info about your product and then letting the person ask you for it if they are interested. That represents human interactions….!


9) Thinking that You are Nobody and Social Media Success is for other people.

Ask Chris Brogan. Ask Scott Monty. Ask Alejandro Reyes. Ask Brian Solis. Ask Dave Taylor. Ask Shama Hyder. EVERYONE has a great possibility to becoming SOMEBODY in Social Media. THAT is the beauty of the culture. Everyone who contributes Value and Connection- is more than welcome to achieve whatever they want. Chris Brogan once had 10 readers of his blog. Now he has almost 40,000 people following him on Twitter alone. Brian Clark of copyblogger fame once had 10 readers. The list is endless.
We all have our own strengths - UNIQUENESS and that is where our greatness belongs. Your greatness is the biggest contribution you can give to the world and there is no better place than Social Media to unleash it UPON the world.


10) Not Branding Yourself Strong Enough.

Branding is a tool that we all use in Social Media. To succeed in branding you must understand the needs and wants of your customers and prospects.
Your brand resides within the Hearts and Minds of customers, clients, and prospects. It is the sum total of their experiences and perceptions.
It will be the one thing people will remember you as. The objectives that a good brand will achieve is : delivering the message clearly, confirming your credibility, connecting your target prospects emotionally, motivating the buyer and unite user loyalty.


“Nothing great in the world has ever been accomplished without passion.”
Hebbel

When the times are tough: get tougher

Complacency has never been a viable approach in the world of marketing. During an economic recession when consumers and businesses alike are spending less it can take more to get noticed. Unfortunately this can be a difficult prospect for many businesses as the inclination is to keep one’s purse strings closed.

One solution: digital. As always, it’s a good idea to keep an eye on your competitors to see what approaches they’re taking and where they’re succeeding. The current trend is definitely to stick with the cost-effective marketing options offered by digital technology. The obvious benefit of digital forms of marketing is their cost-per-impression. From websites to newsletters to social network marketing, advertising online generally lets you reach an unlimited audience for a set expenditure, a benefit that print media cannot give.

The flipside of this is that, as many companies are shifting their focus from print to web, the few print pieces that customers receive stand out more. We’ve seen an increased interest in media kits since they allow the best of both worlds. They can be designed as PDFs that can either be emailed or posted online, while also being printed for mail-outs. New advancements in the world of digital printing allow for affordable high quality small print runs. Ask us about the many options available for any print project from stationery to catalogues to trade show materials to unique self-promotional ideas that may never have seen before by you or your customers.

From strategies to the implementation of these strategies, we can steer you towards the highest return on investment solution. However you want to push yourself, be it online or through printed materials, ask us what Starmedia can do for your business today.

Tips and Tricks to get your product some "Face Time"

When you are bombarded with messages everyday, it’s paramount to be able to stand out in a crowd. Consumer brands have struggled with being able to captivate the attention of the public, and as a result marketing efforts have shifted towards getting “in the face” of the buyer.

Face-to-face marketing is more personal and more effective than email, phone calls, and direct mail. Sounds great, doesn’t it? Well, keep in mind that it’s also more expensive and time-consuming. Pricing aside, let’s look at what makes this marketing concept so effective.

A unique face-to-face marketing campaign can create a personalized brand experience that is engaging, stimulating, and memorable. If the consumer is left feeling good about the brand, chances are they will continue to choose your products over your competitors. Can you say "win-win"?

Starmedia is ready to help you bring your brand to life. Contact us today to show you how to incorporate this medium into your existing campaign.

Starmedia Productions

Starmedia is ready to expertly bring your creative vision to the screen. No matter what the project requires - creative development, video and commercial productions, multimedia projects or corporate event supporting materials - our team will find the right solution in conveying your message accurately, creatively and memorably.

Starmedia Productions is a completely integrated television and film production company that has the background, experience and capacity to research, plan and budget your production from corporate videos, instructional videos, television commercials to television pilots, short films and full length motion pictures.

We are a dynamic consortium of the finest local and international talent under one roof ready to initiate the design, creative concept and structure of your project from story board to post editing.

We develop, brainstorm and come up with the idea, present them to you than once you’re convinced proceed to deal with every detail to make your vision a success.

Creativity, originality, passion and expressing clearly your project in a way that moves the viewer is what we specialize in. Capturing the imagination and leaving a lasting impression is what sets Starmedia Productions apart from the others. Starmedia Productions has the talent and creative resources to meet any challenge head-on.

Let us bring your creative vision to the screen. As a full service production facility we have the talent and technology to deliver first class service on target with your budget whatever it may be. Starmedia Productions is ready to hit the ground running with your project to produce a credible, recognized and professionally accomplished work of art. On budget, on time, every time.

Trade Show Displays and Marketing Materials: the Perfect Opportunity to Showcase Your Products and Services

Preparing for trade shows

A trade show is meant to showcase and demonstrate new products and services within an industry. When you have members of the press, as well as members of your trade as well as the general public, at some trade shows, you really need to make a strong impact. Of course your company or product is very important, but it’s making people notice it which is really key.

When you’re already investing in space rental, travel and accommodations, it makes sense to invest appropriately in the design and construction of the trade show booth. Starmedia can help you get the best design for your money by finding the right path for your display, and help you decide what size of display best suits your needs. As a full-service advertising agency, we can also help with other promotional materials such as brochures or presentation folders, as well as guiding you which trade shows may be coming up in your industry that you want to promote your company in.


Don’t wait for the last minute

If you’re thinking of entering a trade show a season or two away, it’s a good idea to get in touch today. This will help you judge what sort of investment is required to get a high quality final product, and you’ll avoid any rush charges for printing or shipping of your trade show display. We can create a design that fits with your existing company brand, or if you have no company look, we can suggest one for you.

We can design or redesign your logo and stationery, as well as other promotional materials from informative print materials to items as seemingly minor as a coffee mug, but which people will remember you for. It’s important to have all of these designs work seamlessly together to create a strong brand. Let Starmedia push your image to the next level for your next trade show!

Quiet On The Set

With the wealth of marketing tools at our fingertips these days, the classics are often overlooked. It's true that radio is seeing tough times these days, and billboard ads are not the most cost-effective means of advertising for most people's purposes. Video, on the other hand, has a myriad of purposes, from corporate videos to television commercials to more unique purposes like presentations and as part of a website.

When beginning work on any sort of video production, it is a good idea to think of the "why" of your project before you start looking into the "how." An advertising agency is able to help you decide what the best approach is to your video. Should it be one minute or 5? Should it be serious or whimsical? Should it be informative or slick...or both?

The other point to balance in video work is to find creative people who can give their unique aesthetic when that is the look required, or to find people who are capable of recreating a particular look when the need arises to mimic a pre-existing style. You may want a very dramatic feel for a video and be looking for someone to look to the Moulin Rouge movie for inspiration. When you have a specific vision for a project, it is always recommended that you provide as much information and inspiration as possible. It's rare to have a finished product that looks exactly the way you pictured it, but the usual goal is to get it most of the way to the original expectations, then make it even a bit better than the original vision.

The key to getting any project done on time and on budget is finding a strong team that can handle everything. As soon as you begin dealing with one team for the shooting of a video and another unrelated team for the editing of a video, in addition to all of the other tasks involved, accountability is lost completely. Timelines can become delayed, and blame gets deferred from team to team.

Get an experienced company that can handle every facet of your video production. Get the results you're looking for. The success of video lies in its succinct and engaging nature.

StarMedia Case Study: CHRD

At the StarMedia Advertising Agency, the client is always the number one priority. We've worked with clients regionally, nationally and internationally. Through the relationships we foster with our clients, we act as brand and advertising stewards, consistently and creatively producing solutions so that our clients can reap the results.

Here is the Case Study of the Cree Human Resource Development, one of our clients we have been working with in the last year;

The unemployment rate for the Cree population is around 25%, out of a labor force of 7,500. This number is particularly high, well above the federal and provincial averages. This unemployment rate doubles in the 15-24 age demographic.

The CHRD was designed to give the Cree, especially this large segment of jobless youth greater access to the proper resources to find employment. The CHRD wanted to enliven their materials. At Starmedia, our job was to create a strong visual product, well organized for ease of use. With the rich visual tradition in which the Cree culture is steeped, we thought it best to incorporate traditional motifs into a modern look of the CHRD, which would appeal to the Cree labor force.

Designing the CHRD materials became an interesting proposal for Starmedia design. It was our first experience working with the native Cree language, Iiyiyuu ayiimuun. In fact the materials were trilingual as French and English featured as well. The blend of these three languages required smooth lines and carefully modulated colors.

The colors for the material were selected through extensive research of the Cree traditions, and application of this new knowledge to the psychology of color: The greens express the northern boreal forest evoking growth, discovery, and respect. The burnt umbers and oranges of the autumn hearken the fall when folk tales and legends were told in the community. Red was used as a symbol for strength and courage. All of these colors correspond to the deep white background, suggesting the frozen tundra and winterscapes of the northern Quebec climate.

To see more please visit the CHRD Case Study or see other Case Studies on Our Clients page.

Butting Out - The Merits of Not Getting in the Way

Facebook is fast becoming as central to social networking as actual conversation once was. If you are feverishly checking your account every five minutes, then you know of what I speak. As our lives become more and more segmented, it’s good to know that at least you have pictures of that guy who ate paste in the back of class in grade 3, and are privy to his exact thoughts on his new Mitsubishi Gallant

How exactly does Facebook intend to make money off this type of information? Because apparently they intend to make a lot of money.

The recent Microsoft purchase of a 1.6% share of Facebook for $241 million, values the company at a whopping $15 billion!

Facebook has unveiled a new advertising system called Socialads. Facebook founder-cum-Harvard dropout, Mark Zuckerberg, says it will revolutionize advertising by “getting into the conversations” between people. Essentially, what Facebook has is an ever expanding list of potential consumers, and their specific interests, which is invaluable for advertisers.

Although the future of advertising seems to be veering towards social networking sites, media buyers are wary stating results showing that consumer behavior on a communication device is anathema to advertising. Look at the click through rates for the social networking sites. Facebook has a 0.04% click thru rate, that’s 400 hits for every million viewers. Myspace fares a little better at 0.10%, but the figures still seem pretty measly.

Their intention is to enact a word of mouth effect between people. (Often heralded as the Holy Grail of advertising). The problem is that any sort of intrusion into people’s conversation is just that, an intrusion into a conversation. Regard how well you’d receive advertising when you’re in a bar with your friends and a stranger comes up to you trying to sell you a new type of beer. “Hey friends don’t want to bother you but do you know that the beer you’re drinking is not as good as this one.”

A better and far less intrusive option for advertising your company is in the search engines. Search engines are used for everything from local sites to multinational conglomerates. By ranking prominently in the organic search engine results (requiring Search Engine Optimization aka SEO) and Pay Per Click advertising campaign services (Google Adwords etc.), the consumer is actively transported to your company. If one were to use the keywords “advertising advice Montreal”, why they’d be transported to the Starmedia blog in a timely fashion and end up reading this exact post.

Search engine advertising gives you visibility without the intrusion.

Madison Avenue, Portland?

Gone are the glory days of Madison Avenue. Ad men, as they called themselves, thought up catchy slogans between puffs of cigar smoke while enjoying a three martini lunch of porterhouse steak the size of a catcher’s mitt. Madison Avenue was a catchall phrase connoting North American advertising at large. Now when referring to advertising as a whole you could just as easily mention Portland or Boulder as locations where much of the best ad work is done. Those headier days of advertising were ushered out as the privately owned agencies went public and absorbed a lot of other agencies, turning into huge global conglomerates… And this was just the shift of modern mid century advertising to post modern late century advertising.

A new study by IBM Global Business Solutions states that the advertising world will see a more dramatic shift in the next five years than it has seen in the last 50. And these figures are conservative. The study claims that over the past two years online advertising has exceeded forecaster’s projections by 25-40%. The traditional forms of advertising; print and broadcast are losing their ability to reach the consumer because the consumer is tuning out, throwing out the magazines and powering up their laptops.

Recent research by MultiMedia Intelligence has identified the following:

Media companies face a strategic choice of control versus reach. Syndicated and viral distribution of content via the Internet, social networks and user generated sites provides the broadest reach and empowers consumers. Yet, this model strips the control of media distribution from content owners and disrupts existing business models.

There are new potential advertising and branding models leveraging platforms with hardwired branding all the way down to the semiconductor level. Few have even considered some of the potential models where electronic devices feature chips that are integrated with and owned by the “Brand,” with a product subsidy cascading the to the end consumer.

Comprising just under 4% of new media advertising revenue in 2007, the three new media video categories of Internet TV, IPTV and mobile TV will combine to make-up almost 20% of media advertising dollars in 2011. Clearly, even in new media, video will be king.

According to Rick Sizemore, Chief Strategy Officer for Multimedia Intelligence, “The traditional media industry is under assault from rapidly changing technology and user behavior, the digital video recorder has empowered consumers and is toppling traditional TV advertising models. The $185 billion dollar TV advertising industry is now in the cross-hairs of the technology industry. Technology not only puts consumers in control of what and how they consume content, but also integrates community, participation and interactivity into the media experience. New technology-driven advertising models are emerging on the Internet, on mobile devices, in video games, and on public displays. These are significant opportunities, but will be massively disruptive to the traditional advertising industry.”

The most used web browsers like Yahoo and Google stand to benefit the most in this shift. Ultimately the shift is veering towards consumer control of the advertising content. IBM states that "virtually any advertiser can reach any individual consumer across any advertising platform -- as long as the advertising is relevant and appealing."

An Evolving Media

In case you haven’t heard, the Internet has gone local. Local online search is now second only to email for the most common online activity. Unfortunately Mom and Pop seem woefully unprepared for this shift in marketing. Still hewing closely to the 20^th century marketing model, local businesses are investing primarily in print and broadcast marketing, allocating less than 5% in Internet marketing.

By 2017, forecasters predict that local businesses will be investing close to 25% in their Internet marketing campaigns. But, you don’t have to wait that long. All the resources and tools are out there to help you get started on your Internet campaigns. You don’t have to be a computer whiz, as long as you hire a forward thinking company that specializes in Internet marketing to enact your campaign for you.

One of the most important aspects of Internet marketing is the actual website design itself. Your website is the portal connecting potential customers to your product and company. On a local level this gives the customer all the information they need, to avail of your services.

Search engine optimization or SEO is the process of getting traffic to your website. Sadly, many people still think that simply putting a website on the web is enough. There is not much point in investing in the Internet as an advertising avenue if no one will ever see it. The whole process requires research, strategic campaign planning and a professional website design. You can save yourself a lot of time and money by hiring a professional.

So the writing is on the wall, with more people searching the Internet for their local business needs, an adjustment to the more traditional marketing model is needed. This does not mean that all business owners must learn how to create their own websites. A reputable advertising company, well versed in Internet marketing is the best bet so these forays into new advertising territories are executed properly and professionally. A good website and tactical SEO, while not just visually pleasing can give potential customers all the information that they need in order to find you and frequent your service.

A Collection of Details

Everyone knows the expression, "God is in the details." The idea, as heretical as it may be to make this topical jump, applies just as well to advertising and, especially, to website design.

It's amazing how often I've gone to websites and been thwarted by some aspect of the design, actually hindered from doing what I need to do on the site. In most cases, this clumsiness of design directly results in an inability to, say, make a purchase or find a product or store. Don't people realize this? If I go to a website and can't find out how to telephone the company, or if a page takes 5 minutes to load, then the bottom line is that I will probably leave the website (and the product) and never look back.

Usability carries over into things like aesthetics and good writing too. A website that looks thrown together, text overrun with bad grammar and spelling mistakes, broken links and outdated information -- these things show that you don't actually care about your customers' experience. Or worse, that you think that they won't notice when you cut corners. We've said it before, but things like careless writing simply scream "unreliable" and "shoddy." Do you think people won't notice? Think again.

This isn't just useless griping. When my experience on a website is pleasant and smooth, I might not consciously think, "Wow, everything here is spelled correctly" or,"The pages sure load quickly!" On the other hand, I'll be left with an overall satisfaction with my experience, and I'll associate that satisfaction with the website and, by extension, with the company itself. Good craftsmanship (be it in design, programming, writing, or anything else) doesn't draw attention to itself, and therein lies its success. Rather than fume over the fact that I'm sitting in front of a screen waiting for a page to load, or stumbling over misplaced commas, I'm able to fully immerse myself in the actual content of the site, open and receptive to what it has to say.

A Method to Your Madness

There's a key ingredient to every top-notch advertising agency: it's all about process. As boring as it sounds, it's not enough to just be talented and creative; you've got to have a method to your madness.

Sure, creativity is key, and no one's going to be interested in an agency with a meticulous work-flow but uninspired ideas. But consistency is very important if you want satisfied clients and, especially, repeat clients.

When you meet with people for the first time and set out to discuss their needs, you have to give them a solid idea of just how it is you'll go about meeting those needs. Well, you don't just have to give them an idea; you have to be able to carry it out. Then client wants to know that you're not just going to sit around at your desk until a idea occurs to you. They want to see that you have a process, a system by which you can guarantee consistent, first-class results.

It's like in science class, when you learned about the "scientific method" and how to keep track of all the steps in a given experiment. It's crucial to have a clear, repeatable technique that you know will lead you to the same results each time. In this case: successful advertising.

Of course it's a lot trickier to come up with a consistent method for great advertising than it is to remember how to mix chemicals in a certain order or use a bunsen burner. But that's what makes one agency better than the next: the experience and honed skills to know what works for their clients.

Form for the Sake of Function

Like many of my colleagues in graphic design, I spent a number of my formative years studying art at various educational institutions. For those of you who’ve never had the pleasure of studying art in school (at a “higher level,” in particular), I can tell you that a lot of time is spent immersed in critiques.

In an art critique, the artist is extensively questioned by his or her peers, professors, visiting artists, and so on. A great deal of time is spent examining the work at hand, discussing its details, and arguing over whether or not it “works.” Which is a difficult thing to quantify, incredibly subjective as it is. I suppose that there may be certain rules when it comes to art, but one of them is that all rules are meant to be broken, leaving us without much of a concrete framework to fall back on when discussing art and its effectiveness. Ultimately what it often comes down to is how well an artist can defend his or her methods and rationale, and how well he or she can convince other people that the art is doing what it’s supposed to do.

Which is all simply to say that art is a messy, complicated, subjective thing, and it’s very hard to determine its success except on a personal, individual basis. This may be why it can be a relief to work in graphic design and advertising.

Design is still a fluid, subjective field, and that same rule (that most rules are meant to be broken) often still holds true. But on the other hand, design and advertising are a little more clear-cut than your average painting or avant-garde video installation. Design can be challenging, sure it can, and of course it can be beautiful and provocative and thoughtful (in fact, these are definite plusses). But in the end, its ultimate goal is to say something, to effectively communicate information.

This is a good thing to keep in mind when designing, or working with designers on a project. We all have our preferences and our tastes, but the most important thing to remember is that the design of a website, ad, logo, newsletter, or really anything, is only useful if people respond to it, if it grabs them and says exactly what you want it to say, points their attention where you want it. Unlike art as such, design (in general) doesn’t exist for its own sake; it exists to attract, communicate, and convince. Which is also why design can be “good” even if it isn’t to your exact taste, and why it’s important to remember to strike a balance between what you respond to personally, and what will most effectively convey your message to a receptive audience. Artists can spend hours explaining their work, but your design has to say everything it needs to right up front, without the trouble of a lengthy critique.

My Boss Bought Cheap Chairs and Now My Back Hurts

I used to have a good chair. It had 3 levers on it that would stabilize my lumbar and spine. It was smoky grey and I called him Chester. It is true that Chester had some holes in him and a cigarette burn or two but he was comfortable and the wheels worked great.

Then I left for the week-end, to live my real life, and when I returned to work on Monday Chester was gone. In his place was some piece of black crap with no personality. But then I said to myself, “Hey, Chester had a great run but everybody gets old and maybe it was his time. I’ll try the new chair.” My new chair is crap. Oh yes, it looks expensive, with its mesh covering, but it was a bargain stool of pain.

Within a week I started to have lower back pain and when I complained, management told me that it was because I stopped going to the company gym and was getting a gut. Can you believe that? Now I was the problem, not the cheap chair that only has ONE lever. One lever! The thing just goes up and down. I’d rather just sit on a yoga ball!

It should be at this point that I link this article to something pertaining to advertising or design, so here goes nothing. Sometimes advertising campaigns should be left as they are. I know… it’s a shocking thing for an advertising firm to say. I think a lot of companies have a good thing going and completely changing it just isn’t the best idea. In our world filled with instant gratification and the desire to constantly claw our way to the top, we often completely forget what we’re climbing for.

Chances are that I’ll get used to my new chair and perhaps it really was for the best, but it is possible that my old chair was better. When you make a decision to update your corporate branding or your advertising, check to see what it is about your old campaign that was working. Perhaps there are some elements in that campaign that can be salvaged and incorporated into your new one. Keep in mind, advertising doesn’t always have to be shocking to be successful and not everyone likes drastic changes. I hope your chairs keep you comfortable and your advertising expresses what your business stands for.

Jimmy

Everyone is bored at work… except for elves

Unless you are Santa Claus and your employees are toy building elves, it seems unlikely that there aren’t moments when your employees are bored at work. The sad reality is that the majority of employees aren’t being motivated well enough. With the saturation of online businesses and small companies springing up, business owners need to be aware of the positive benefits of having a well motivated and hard working staff. While this fact may seem obvious to the business owner or president, websites like “i-am-bored.com” and “bored.com” only serve to prove that something is missing in the work environment.

Statistics Canada states that many work absences are directly correlated with instances of boredom at work. When workers are completing repetitive tasks or do not feel challenged enough in their work environment, they become more prone to taking personal days. This lowers your business’ return on investment (ROI) and deceases your opportunity to get the most done in a day.

Although, as the boss, you can not always completely remove boredom from the office, there are a few steps you can take in order to encourage motivation and get your staff excited about working.

What is the Answer?

- Pay Attention and Give Recognition. This seems absurd to mention, but the more attention and “atta-boys” you give out to your staff, the harder they’ll want to work for you. People work harder when they feel as though they’ll receive attention for their hard-work.

- Spend Time One-on-One. Calling an employee up into your office, or dropping them a personal email creates a connection between you and your employee. If you show them you’re interested in them as a person and an employee they are more likely to remain loyal and work harder.

- Set Goals and Give Rewards. Even if you don’t have the resources to give your staff raises, there are always other rewards. Organize a staff lunch or set up an incentive program. If you set realistic goals and reward those who complete them, you’ll spark healthy competition and motivate your staff to get the job done.

- Training. Constantly updating your staffs’ training will ensure that your employees are qualified and keeping busy. If you ensure that your employees are gaining new skills, they can update you on what your company needs to move forward.

- Encouraging Leadership. When you give your employees a leadership role, you keep them busy as well as give them a sense of participation in the success of the business. Encouraging leadership roles also helps delegate workloads and ensures work is being completed according to schedule.

Let’s face it, you’ll never be as awesome as Santa Claus and you’ll probably never have 100% motivated and enthusiastic elf-like employees every day, but it doesn’t mean you can’t try. Give extra coffee to those employees looking burned out and hold meetings to discuss progress. Remember, the more boring the office setting is, the more hits websites like bored.com will be receiving. It’s up to you to create a stimulating work environment for your employees.

And hey, if you still can’t get the boredom out of your employees, maybe a kidnapping trip to the North Pole would be a good idea…

The Advertising Experiment

This is Mike.

Mike is a talented graphic designer here at Starmedia.

Every now and then Mike gets frustrated.

So, I was thinking to myself that graphic designers are sort of behind the scenes and people often don't even think or appreciate the amount of work that designers have to put in to make customers look good. They deserve to get some attention. Ergo, I thought I would involve one of them in my new hair-brained experiment. One of my coworkers, Jimmy Jet, drew this picture of Mike, our designer, during one of our daily meetings and I thought, can you make an ad out of anything? Let's find out.

Therefore... the Advertising Experiment 2007.

How to participate: You take this drawing of Mike and do whatever you'd like to it to turn it into an advertisement. You can advertise anything you'd like, but it has to look good and serve to potentially sell your product or service. Submit a tagline to go below this drawing or create Mike a slogan if you'd like. Be creative! It can say anything you'd like, but it has to "advertise" something. Have some fun.

The Rules: You can submit as many original "ads" as you'd like. You can even change the image to suit your needs, but the original picture has to be somewhere in your advertisement. Email me your advertisements to kate@starmedia.ca

The Duration: May 31 - June 14, 2007

What you "win": While this isn't a contest per se, I would love to see what people come up with, so I will post the top 10 "Mike ads" up along with your blog's URL. You get some extra traffic and we all get to see some interesting advertisements.

Have a great Thursday. I'll be adding another advertising advice post soon.

-Kate

I Owe, I Owe, It’s off to Work I Go

(Image thanks to www.crazy-jokes.com)

There's a great blog series going on called THE WORKPLACE SURVIVAL DIALOG. This is my contribution to that interesting subject. Check it out and feel free to add your own! :)

Well I was planning on writing a daring and often dramatic article about the workplace and how work ethics have drastically dropped over the last few days, but I got a bit bogged down with strange and unnecessary statistics which, while amusing, did not really back up my entire strongly worded thesis. So I’m going to play it “cool” and just discuss the issue lightly and see what happens. Hopefully if I ask a question it will intrigue you all enough to add your own thoughts and experiences because I imagine most of you can relate. So here goes: How often do you take a personal day from work? I know I said I wouldn’t bog this article down with statistics, but these few were just too good to resist. Thank you to Statistics Canada.

Warning: For all you fellow workaholics out there, these statistics may shock and appall you.

Estimates from the Labour Force Survey show that both the incidence and the number of days lost for personal reasons (illness or disability, and personal or family responsibilities) have shown a rising trend since 1997. Several factors have contributed: notably, an aging workforce; the growing share of women in the workforce, especially mothers with young children; high worker stress; and more generous sick- and family-related leave benefits.

Full-time employees in the public sector (more likely unionized or female) lost more work time in 2006 for personal reasons (about 13 days on average) than their private-sector counterparts (8.8 days).

So what does this say about our society? I think it’s interesting that although Statistics Canada lists “high worker stress” as a factor for missing work, they also note that our society has a “more generous sick- and family-related leave benefits.” So we attempt to pacify our stress-induced work environment with additional benefits to make it seem less terrible. When I was in Greece last spring, it was hard not to notice the unbelievably laid-back work environment. People there are more likely to show up late, close early and take a long, long lunch break then us in North America. Granted their country is not nearly as “successful” as the U.S., but hey, they’ve been around longer than pretty much anyone else, so really, maybe they’ve got something right after all.

Here in North America we work long days, we don’t have siesta like other countries and we carry our cell phones around like trophies. We try to fit way too much into a day and we convince ourselves that if we don’t have the most amount of money then we’re doing something wrong. Every now and then we flip right out and need a few “personal days” to regain ourselves and start it all over again. Oh and just as an additional little joy, we also have higher instances of allergies and stress-related illnesses than other countries. What is the point?

I personally believe that MORE people would take LESS personal days if work wasn’t so much of a chore… if we had long siestas and just met everyone at 3PM at the local pub for a drink… if the focus was truly on family and people instead of on products and finances. I think we could encourage productivity while supporting a sense of community.

I’m proud to say that I love my job, but it’s not my entire world. I think that half the reason why I love it is because I feel at home here. I stay after work for drinks, I come in early for breakfast and I consider my co-workers friends. What’s great about it is that I learn more because of the sense of community than I would in a huge company where I would just fade into the background. I’m a copywriter, but I’ve picked up HTML and some design tricks and even SEO. I think you learn best from watching other people and from asking questions and building relationships. It’s something we all need to learn from the Greeks.

What do you think about the differences between the two cultures? Do you think we have personal days because we’re burned out and have too much to do in a day, or is the rise from something else? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Drop me a note.

-Kate

I Love NY

*Logo curtosy of www.wikipedia.org*

New York City -- A place renowned for being incredibly expensive, dirty, loud, over-populated and… magical? As terrible as New York can sometimes be viewed, it will always be one of those magical places where possibilities are endless. It is this positive aspect of New York that is evoked through their tourism logo, which has been around since 1977 and continues to stand as an emblem of the great branding potential in positive thinking and simplicity.

When the state of NY hired advertising agency Wells Rich Greene in 1977 to develop a marketing campaign for NY State, I doubt that anyone realized the potential of positive thinking, except for perhaps Milton Glaser, who designed the “I Love NY” logo and did it for free. This friendly logo has now not only branded New York as a place that everyone loves or should love, but as also gone down in history as a significant part of our pop culture. Celebrities like Robin Williams proudly wear the “I Love NY” T-Shirts and it has been branded on virtually every promotional tool that anyone can think of. Every day tourists in New York and across the world purchase coffee cups, pens, T-shirts and more branded with the New York tourism logo. A simple, clear image with a good message is one of the best ways to brand your business.

So how can the example of the “I Love NY” logo work for us everyday people who are looking to succeed in our advertising campaigns? Well, for one, it stands as a shining example of how a positive, simple icon can work effectively. Many businesses (and I’ve seen this happen) believe that a great logo design needs to have a number of different aspects playing into it. They want colors and long company names and detailed icons… Why? The more unnecessary details that go into your logo design, the less chance you have of succeeding. Yes, people are visual, but we also all see millions of advertisements every day. What makes a logo like “I Love NY” stand out is that people like it. I know that sounds extremely generalized and maybe it is, but think about it. A heart is a symbol that we all know, it’s a positive symbol and it makes us as humans generally pretty happy. If you start with something that people know then you have a better chance of someone identifying with your logo. That’s just good advertising.

Have a logo design that people can believe in. I know it is easier said than done. What’s great about the “I Love NY” logo is that is doesn’t only appeal to people who have been to New York or live there, but it appeals to people worldwide. It doesn’t antagonize anyone because the imagery used in the icon is positive. The heart is an international symbol and there are very few people and places that would be offended by seeing it. A sports car or a skyscraper would not have worked so effectively because neither of these images is as easy to relate to as a heart.

Positive, simple logos appeal to a much wider audience than something more detailed and containing complicated and sometimes negative icons. Keep it happy, keep it simple and you’ll see results.

What else can I say except let’s hear it for Milton Glaser!

-Kate

“Rrrrrred! Red is the Color of SEX!”

Have you seen the movie Kinky Boots? If you haven’t, you absolutely should. My favorite scene in that movie is where the main character, a drag queen, shouts down to the small town boot-factory workers below: [looks horrified] “Burgundy. Please, God, tell me I have not inspired something burgundy. Red. Red. *Red*. *Red*, Charlie boy. *Red*! Is the color of sex! Burgundy is the color of hot water bottles! Red is the color of sex and fear and danger and signs that say, Do. Not. Enter. All my favorite things in life.” (Quote thanks to IMDB.com)

Advertising is about standing out. It’s about screaming out to the world: “Look at me! Choose me!” and having people sit up and notice. There’s a cleverness and creativity in an advertising campaign that you just have to appreciate. It gets us to choose one product over another. It gets us to talk about one company instead of another. There’s power in advertising. At least there used to be.

So where did the passion go? With the onslaught of millions of small businesses and home-based companies across North America, advertisers should be biting at the bit to get a piece of the action and there should be creative and interesting ads galore, but there aren’t. There are so few that it’s embarrassing. Advertisers everywhere are choosing burgundy instead of red and we’re passing it through to the public without even a second thought. Today’s advertising campaigns (in general… there are, of course, exceptions) lack heart, intelligence and just plain creative spirit. We approve work we don’t believe in and we agree with our customers even when we know they’re wrong. We do it all in the name of the ever-worshipped dollar. We do it because we’re too burned out to care.

Today, I was sitting in a slogan brainstorming session with a couple of fellow copywriters. We were running through revisions for a customer and I was feeling more frustrated then I have been in quite a while. While some customers have wonderful suggestions and opinions, every now and then you get one who just doesn’t get it. What are your options? Do you give the customer what they want at the risk of their corporate branding going down the tubes, or do you tell them the straight truth? Red or burgundy?

Maybe there is no answer. Maybe advertising is just something that flows up and down and we just have to accept that. Without the terrible, would we even notice the brilliant? If there wasn’t burgundy, maybe the red wouldn’t be as striking. Who’s to really say? A colleague told me that if we had nothing but creative advertisements constantly surrounding us, we wouldn’t be able to handle it. It’s an intriguing thought. With so many advertisements constantly bombarding us, especially on the internet, how would we deal with too many options, too many choices to make, everything seeming fantastic… ?

I hope to remain idealistic. I would hate to think I would reach a point where mediocrity would be something I aspire to. I want to be the one standing atop a crowded room screaming out that we need to have passion and desire and sex. Sometimes we just need to hear that.

-Kate

Have an opinion? I’d love to hear it. Leave me a comment.