Everything that is talked about at a party is talked about using social media.
-How good the movie was that just came out.
-Who went out on a date with Kate.
-What happened in the hockey game that just ended.

Why does this information matter?
The reason why most social media marketing fails is because marketers fail to realize why people use Twitter, and Facebook.

Twitter is a party for people who are too busy to stay for long and just want to keep updated.
Imagine someone shows up to the party and doesn’t stop talking. This person doesn’t listen to what other are saying. Instead he keeps talking about how cool he is and why people should be friends with him. Guess what? He is quickly kicked out of the party. Now imagine someone shows up pretending to be someone they are not. Check out the post on Brittney Spears and Twitter. We all know what happens then.

Facebook is a party for people who have too much time on their hands and want to know everything about everyone.

The problem is that if your not interesting then nobody cares to get to know you. Meaning if your content is not updated daily with video, pictures and conversations with others nobody cares if you are at the party or not. Another big problem related to Facebook is that the older generation are starting to show up to the party. Imagine peoples relatives and even worse, parents showing up. It will be interesting to see if the younger core group of Facebook users will start to find a party somewhere else.

Don’t be the party crasher. Listen to what people are talking about and engage in the conversation. Keep your content fresh and genuine. If your brand is aimed at the younger generation use Facebook. If not, find something else. Remember that social media is a two-way conversation. It is not about talking, it is about listening and engaging.

Seth Godin is one of the most insightful marketers in the world. You can read Seth’s Blog here.
I read his blog every day, and after reading his posts my brain goes crazy with new marketing ideas.

One of his posts called “Do ads work?” is incredibly insightful and really sums up why online marketing is so powerful.

He asks, “If a bank was selling one dollar bills for 90 cents, how many dollar bills would you buy?”

Hopefully your answer is, “as many dollar bills as I can possibly have.”

So why do you have an advertising budget? If your ads bring in more money then they cost, why not buy as many ads as you can? And if they are not profitable why are you running them?

There is a simple answer to this questions. “I can’t tell which ads are profitable and which ads are not.” For traditional advertising this is absolutely true.

Online marketing is different. You can find out how much money your search marketing is making you. You can see who opened your email blast and visited your store because of it. You can see how many visitors to your website/blog looked at your contact information in order to visit your store.

With Search Marketing, E-Mail Marketing and Web Analytics your able pay 90 cents for a dollar.

There is a famous saying in marketing, “50% of my marketing budget is wasted money. The problem is, I don’t know which 50% it is.”

With MarketR you no longer have to worry about wasting money.

We are very excited to launch a new MarketR initiative called PassTheBuddha. Look out for more information coming soon.

Other news:
MarketR featured on PR Couture.com for the incredible Toni&Guy PR 2.0 campaign.

Why is search marketing so effective?

• The intent of the customer is already there. Consumers are already searching for your company’s service. Now you just have to make sure they find you and not your competition.
• Results are instant. See your campaign deliver results as soon as you push go.
• Pay only when your ad is clicked. Why pay if no one sees your ad?
• Track how effective your search marketing is.

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Learn more about why search marketing is so powerful at the MarketR blog.

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MarketR provides the following search marketing services:

-Google AdWords:

• Develop manageable goals
• Select important keywords for your campaign
• Write effective ad variations
• Geo-targeting
• Competitor analysis
• Implement analytics software
• Training workshops

-SEO: (Search Engine Optimization)

• Implement strategies allowing your site to be ranked highly on Google
• Refine your website so it is easy for search engines to view
• Workshops on best practices for SEO
• Integrate dynamic content into your existing website

Contact MarketR today and start using the most powerful tool your company has.

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Below is a popular post relating to Search Marketing from the MarketR Blog.

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“My company is the best, why do I need to pay for marketing?”

This is why.

A study done by the Washington Post asked, “can one of the greatest musicians in North America get noticed in Washington D.C?”

The experimenters recruited Joshua Bell, the most famous living violinists in the world. They put him in regular street clothes and a baseball cap, and placed him in a D.C. metro station during rush hour. They also gave him one of the best violins in the world, valued at over a million dollars. Joshua Bell was asked to play some of the finest classical pieces ever written.

This is what happened.

Over 43 minutes of world class music and only a few people stopped to listen. The most surprising result, was when people were asked what they thought of the music after they passed through the hall, most people didn’t even notice the violinist.

Without proper communication, even the most talented violinist in the world can’t get noticed. How is your company going to do it?

I guarantee the response to Joshua Bell would have been far greater if there was a sign next to him explaining who Joshua Bell was and that he had just played for the president the night before. The response would have been greater if he was dressed like a world famous violinist.

Marketing is your company’s clothes and signage. Marketing is how you communicate to your potential and existing clients. If you know you are the best at something, make sure everyone knows it. Don’t wait for people to find out themselves.

Try this: If you know you are the best in your industry geographically, type in Google “The best (your industry) in (your geographic region).”

For example, “The best tennis club in Vancouver”

Does your company come up on the first page?

If not, then your company has no signage, is wearing street clothes and a baseball hat.

Be the best. Call MarketR

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Learn more about why web analytics is so powerful at the MarketR blog.

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MarketR provides the following web analytics services:

-Google Analytics:

• Installation
• Monitoring and Reporting
• Workshops and Tutorials
• Trend Analysis

Contact MarketR today and start using the most powerful tool your company has.

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Below is a popular post relating to Web Analytics from the MarketR Blog.

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The Smart Money

Someone once asked me, “how did you get so smart?” Of course I was flattered but I responded, “I am not smart, I just listen to smart people and repeat what they are saying.”

Seth Godin is one of the most insightful marketers in the world. You can read Seth’s Blog here.
I read his blog every day, and after reading his posts my brain goes crazy with new marketing ideas.

One of his posts called “Do ads work?” is incredibly insightful and really sums up why online marketing is so powerful.

He asks, “If a bank was selling one dollar bills for 90 cents, how many dollar bills would you buy?”

Hopefully your answer is, “as many dollar bills as I can possibly have.”

So why do you have an advertising budget? If your ads bring in more money then they cost, why not buy as many ads as you can? And if they are not profitable why are you running them?

There is a simple answer to this questions. “I can’t tell which ads are profitable and which ads are not.” For traditional advertising this is absolutely true.

Online marketing is different. You can find out how much money your search marketing is making you. You can see who opened your email blast and visited your store because of it. You can see how many visitors to your website/blog looked at your contact information in order to visit your store.

With Search Marketing, E-Mail Marketing and Web Analytics your able pay 90 cents for a dollar.

There is a famous saying in marketing, “50% of my marketing budget is wasted money. The problem is, I don’t know which 50% it is.”

With MarketR you no longer have to worry about wasting money.

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Learn more about why social media is so powerful at the MarketR blog.

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MarketR provides the following social media services:

-Blogging

• Blog design and set-up
• Blog maintenance and updates
• Blog optimization for search engines
• Tracking
• Blogging workshops

Social Media Integration

• Integrate social media strategies into your marketing plan
• Workshops allowing your entire team to become social media savvy
• Facebook, and Twitter set-up
• Integration of social media into your existing website

Social Media Management

• The MarketR team updates and maintains your social media communications
• We work closely with you to diffuse any nonconstructive user generate content, and turn what could have been a negative into a positive for your company.

Contact MarketR today and start using the most powerful tool your company has.

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Below is a popular post relating to social media from the MarketR Blog.

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I was doing some consultancy work for a client in regards to social media and a I was explaining what social media is all about. This is some of what we talked about.

Social media is like a big party. People are catching up with old friends, or friends they just saw that day. People are sharing stories, getting to know new people with similar interests, and being introduced to people by their friends.

Everything that is talked about at a party is talked about using social media.
-How good the movie was that just came out.
-Who went out on a date with Kate.
-What happened in the hockey game that just ended.

Why does this information matter?
The reason why most social media marketing fails is because marketers fail to realize why people use Twitter, and Facebook.

Twitter is a party for people who are too busy to stay for long and just want to keep updated.
Imagine someone shows up to the party that doesn’t stop talking. This person doesn’t listen to what other are saying and he doesn’t keep the conversation short. Instead he keeps talking about how cool he is and why people should be friends with him. Guess what? He is quickly kicked out of the party. Now imagine someone shows up pretending to be someone they are not. Check out the post on Brittney Spears.

Facebook is a party for people who have too much time on their hands and want to know everything about everyone.

The problem is that if your not interesting then nobody cares to get to know you. Meaning if your content is not updated daily with video, pictures and conversations with others nobody cares if you are at the party or not. Another big problem related to Facebook is that the older generation are starting to show up to the party. Imagine peoples relatives and even worse, parents showing up. It will be interesting to see if the younger core group of Facebook will start to find a party somewhere else.

Don’t be the party crasher. Listen to what people are talking about and engage in the conversation. Keep your content fresh and genuine. If your brand is aimed at the younger generation use Facebook, if it is not find something else. Remember that social media is a two-way conversation. It is not about talking, it is about listening and engaging.

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To learn more about the power of e-mail marketing, check out the MarketR blog

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MarketR provides the following e-mail marketing services:

-E-Mail integration:

E-Mail marketing is nothing unless you have a strong e-mail list. The MarketR team works with our clients to develop strategies for building strong e-mail lists. We understand that every client is different depending on the industry. Some examples include:

• Website sign up integration
• In store e-mail sign up promotions
• 3rd party website sign up integration

-E-Mail Implementation:

• Professional E-Mail Vendor Set-up
• E-Mail newsletter design
• Monitoring for improvement

Contact MarketR today and start using the most powerful tool your company has.

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Below is a popular post relating to E-Mail Marketing from the MarketR Blog.

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The Big Red Button

Imagine in your office you have a big red button. Whenever you push this button, customers suddenly start walking through your door. If you know from last year that your business is going to be quiet in February, you’re no longer worried because you have your big red button.

You might be wondering what the catch is. There is only one catch and that is the big red button costs money. How much? Roughly $15 a push.

Excited yet? You should be.

E-Mail is your Big Red Button. E-Mail lists are essential in this economic climate. The cheapest and most effective form of communicating with existing customers is e-mail.

If you don’t have an e-mail list start building one. Offer incentives for customers to give you their e-mail. Such as a coupon for 20% off next time they visit. Make sure you send the coupon to them through e-mail, and not hand it to them in the store. This ensures your customer checks your e-mail is not in the junk box, and it is a way to get him/her back into your store.

If you do have an e-mail list start using it. Create a bi-monthly email newsletter with info on the latest new stock, events and exclusive promotions. Not every e-mail has to be about a promotion. Customers love to be engaged with their favorite brands, include pictures from company retreats, the latest news about what staff members did over the winter break, etc. Don’t, and this is a big don’t, spam your customer. We all know what happens when we get too many e-mails from a company. We make sure the e-mails stop arriving.

Now here is the fun part. E-Mail vendors, such as ConstantContact and Vertical Response, allow you to see who opened your e-mail, and who no longer wishes to receive your e-mails. Do not take this personally, some people just don’t like receiving e-mail. MarketR tests e-mail formats such as images and headlines and decides which e-mail format will receive the best open rate.

We just launched an e-mail promotion for one of our clients and they were blown away at the response it had. The company’s quietest time is January-February. Thanks to the power of e-mail this year is going to be different. Try it out! What do you have to lose? $15

If you are still not convinced, I leave you with this survey result. Opt-in messaging is what your company’s e-mail newsletter is categorized as.
Need help? Call MarketR

PR 2.0 allows you to reach a huge audience both online and offline.

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Learn more about why PR 2.0 is so powerful at the MarketR blog.

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MarketR provides the following web analytics services:

Event design, coordination and promotion:

• We work with you to design a unique event that is going to draw your target market.
• The MarketR team handles the coordination of materials for the event. This includes, food, tables, sounds systems, etc.
• The MarketR team handles promotion of the event. This includes designing unique marketing material specific to the event. The MarketR team will work closely with your team to design eye-catching material that will engage potential clients. This includes, mail-outs, online material, posters, flyers, media kits, etc.

Professional press-release design and distribution:

• We work with you to develop a unique headline for your company’s event. We write a professional press release and distribute it in unique eye catching packaging to local media channels both online and offline.

Contact MarketR today and start using the most powerful tool your company has.

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Below is a popular post relating to PR 2.0 from the MarketR Blog.

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PR 2.0

As noted in a previous post, MarketR worked with Toni&Guy Vancouver to deliver an incredibly successful Fashion event on Thursday February 5th 2009. This post will explain why the event was so successful and how you can achieve the same success at your next event.

Step 1: Develop A Strong Theme
The reason for the show was that Toni&Guy had been in Vancouver for 10 years. Toni&Guy wanted to celebrate with a fashion show. This did not mean the theme of the show had to be about the 10 years in Vancouver. Instead, the MarketR team and Toni&Guy felt it would be more exciting to highlight fashion from revolutionary times in history. The show would highlight periods involving industrial, sexual and art revolutions. To end the show Toni&Guy Vancouver would show off their creative skills by delivering a collection inspired by the revolution happening right now. The show was named W.A.R. – WorldArtRevolution.

The theme was controversial, it got peoples attention and more importantly it was inspiring.

Step 2: Continuity
MarketR made sure that everything about the show revolved around the theme.

-Posters, tickets, flyers,

-The Venue: The Penthouse Night Club was chosen as the venue for the show. This venue was chosen because of the historical significance to Vancouver and it fitted perfectly with the theme of the show. The MarketR team decided to add a touch of Toni&Guy to the venue: Toni&Guy videos were projected onto the building, a red carpet and planters were set up at the main entrance, all inappropriate pictures were removed or covered with Toni&Guy images and a runway was set up.
-The Media and Press Packs

To fit the theme of the show all media and press packs were hand delivered in document envelopes marked “Top Secret.” Envelopes were personally addressed and labeled with a return address and a Toni&Guy stamp. Inside the envelopes was a press-release, a personal letter inviting them to the show + a guest, a letter indicating that a donation in their name had been made to Beauty Night for the enclosed tickets and a mini poster to put up in his/her office.

Step 3: Use The Most Powerful Tool Your Company Has, The Internet.
Because Toni&Guy Vancouver has been a client for some time now, MarketR was able to leverage the blog, email newsletter, twitter account, Facebook marketing, and online contacts to take the fashion show one level above the rest.

-The Blog
MarketR set up a blog for Toni&Guy almost a year ago. Toni&Guy Vancouver Hair Salon Blog. The blog has been incredibly successful and is growing at an incredible rate.

MarketR constantly updated viewers with small bits of information as the event was being planned. When the team secured the venue or found a new act for the show, readers were the first to know. MarketR also developed a mini-site widget for the blog in order to create buzz. We gave away VIP tickets on the blog and had live picture updates on the day of the event.

-E-Mail Newsletter
MarketR has developed initiatives in order to build a strong client email list for Toni&Guy.

Updates regarding the show were sent on a weekly basis through email to a large client list. Chances to win VIP tickets, buzz about what would be in the gift bags and behind the scenes pictures created a feeling of engagement for clients before the event even started.

-Twitter
MarketR recently launched a twitter page for Toni&Guy and it has blown away expectations. We get reports daily about new people following the twitter page.

The twitter account kept followers updated about new blog posts. It was kept personal with updates such as “WHAT, one of the models is sick and is bailing out of the show!” When new door prizes were secured the twitter followers were first to know. Conversations with the Beauty Night were open for Twitter followers to see.

-Facebook
A Facebook page was created by Toni&Guy staff. This allowed viewers to see the Facebook page as a behind the scenes look of the show. Candid pictures and personal messages were posted here. MarketR stepped up the Facebook advertising during the run up to the show. This resulted in an increase of 40% in viewers to the blog site.

-Online Contacts
Probably the most important strategy in this whole campaign. MarketR built relationships with local blog writers and sent them invitations to the event. This started a chain reaction of blog posts about the show. Combined with all of the strategies above, the buzz began to grow quickly.

Vancouver.com
Style.by.fire.com
Miss 604
vancouver magazine
hummingbird604
Mall Vibes
canadianblogs.com
cosmetology association
Canada.com/North Shore News
and the list goes on…

The Result: Not only did the event raise $3,000 for the charity Beauty Night, but it created an incredible amount of buzz for Toni&Guy Vancouver.

By leveraging the power of the internet we were able to create a buzz before the event even started. Individuals were able to see the behind the scenes of the show and feel engaged in the event planning process. The internet was the reason why the event was so successful.

Look out for pictures, video and reviews to pop-up about the show next week, as MarketR circulates press packs about the shows success around the internet.

Call MarketR to plan your next event and see the result immediately.

We are very excited to launch a new MarketR initiative called PassTheBuddha. Look out for more information coming soon.

Other news:
MarketR featured on PR Couture.com for the incredible Toni&Guy PR 2.0 campaign.

charity: water for Twestival

Twesitival was a huge success, and Vancouver had its very own event called yvrtwestival. Vancouver raised $4,000 by holding an event at the Opus hotel, with a raffle and silent auction. No money was spent on traditional marketing. Instead they focused on Twitter, blogs, social media and PR, which of course was all free.

Generation G

An interesting report from friends over at trendwatching.com talks about a growing trend towards giving. This is a big reason why Twestival was so successful and more importantly a great marketing tool for small-medium sized businesses.

The current economic situation has caused huge changes in consumer preferences. Reports show that consumers blame the huge losses in the stock market, jobs and pension funds on big business. Companies such as General Motors, and Citi Bank have lost huge amounts of consumer trust.

Some (U.S.) stats from Reputation Garage:
-As few as 13% of American consumers place their trust in big business.
-Only 39% of employees said they trust senior leadership
-Three quarters of consumers feel that companies don’t tell the truth in advertising
-Three quarters of employees in big companies observed violations of the law or company standards in a 12 month period.

Consumers want to support local, small-medium sized businesses that are dedicated to giving back.

Tips:
-Support a local charity that is related to the industry you are in.
-Let customers and potential customers know how much give back.
-Giving doesn’t have to be about money. Volunteer your time and services.
-Don’t give the impression that you are a big business. Keep it local.