The Top 10 Uses for Twitter

I was late to jump on the Twitter bandwagon. To be honest, I didn't understand why anyone would want to post text message style updates to a blog format for other people to read. A former boss of mine convinced me to try it out before I wrote it off and thanks to him I was immediately hooked.

For a period of around 6 months, I was tweeting several times a day. At first is was all the regular boring stuff like "I'm hungry" or "Watching day time television, I heart Maury" ok so the last statement was a lie but I was another one of those useless twiple (twitter people) that babbled on about nothing until I started following people who actually had something to say. I felt bad that I didn't have anything to say so I stopped talking about what I was eating for lunch and started talking about design and movies and sharing opinions/information on topics that other people might find relevant. That opened up my world and I wanted to explore more uses for this blub-blog phenomenon.

So without further ado and in no particular order, here's the list:

1. Breaking News
Because of Twitter's constant stream of information, it's practically a news wire. Reliable and questionable sources alike post "news" from around the globe on a 24hr basis, in some instances a big story may break on Twitter before the anchors behind the desk at CNN even get a flash. Realizing this Twitter actually has a thread set up just for getting the latest news. If you like to be in the International-Know then you may have hit the jackpot.
 
2. Link Sharing
This was one of my favorite parts of Twitter. Since I followed a lot of designers, they were always sharing links to their latest work, good inspiration places or just free stuff. It can take a lot of time to root out good, free, design resources online, but with someone practically spoon feeding it to me, I had more time to focus on work and my blog. Even if you aren't in the market for information, link sharing can benefit your business by driving traffic to your site.


3. Corporate Communication
One of the companies I follow on my twitter account is Popeye's chicken. I know it sounds silly but they're one of the few national chains who are using Twitter effectively as a means of corporate communication. They engage customers in "conversation" and announce special deals online that are too time sensitive for an email or similar campaign.


4. Trend Alerts
In case you aren't all that familiar with Twitter, there's something called a Trending Topic that indicates what most people are talking about right that moment. People who's jobs depend on "keeping their finger on the pulse" of something or other can and usually do make good use of this feature. Anything from which person most people are considering casting their vote for on American Idol to World Series favorites can be found within the millions of tiny posts happening every second on Twitter.


5. Networking
Connecting to people and having them connect to you is what networking is all about. Twitter makes it easy for you to link up with potential customers, clients or business partners and see what's going on in their world. Making yourself more involved can pay off...big time. 

6. Creating Specialty Communities
 If you like gardening, you can follow a bunch of accomplished gardeners, a local greenhouse, a plant nursery, and an organic seed company if you wish to create your own little news feed of things relevant to you. Twitter allows you to personalize lots of mini news feeds for all your different interests.

7. Job Pulse
Finding a new line of work or hiring a new employee with Twitter has become so popular that instead of just searching for the tag #jobs an entirely separate search engine has been created to help jobseekers find gainful employment.


8. Personal Branding
One of the things that creatives do well is personal branding. Writers, photographers and designers are all using twitter to stay in touch, share their work and promote their personal brand. Everything from the way they write their tweets to the profile background speaks volumes. If you are your business, hype you, and let Twitter do all the heavy lifting.

9. Live from New York It's....
Twitter has the ability to provide great play by play action, whether its a football game or a conference. Because of its brief and immediate nature--and the fact you can tweet from your phone--live "simulcast" accounts of events can be given with ease.

10. Sell
After my journey of self discovery with Twitter, I finally found its best use for me--selling. I design a line of Anime inspired Tshirts and since most of my followers were interested in the same things, I started posting links to my Zazzle Store for people to check out my new creations. It actually boosted my sales a bit and it didn't cost me a penny.

After all the nice things I've said about Twitter, I should add that I logged in just a few days ago for the first time in almost two months. Which brings me to my next point, if you decided to use Twitter for a business reason, don't follow my example, you have to make a continuous schedule and stick to it. To have an abandoned and dilapidated twitter account connected with your business speaks volumes, negative, negative volumes.

Additional Reading (Articles are from 2007-2009 at the hieght of Twitter popularity)

The Top 5 Ways Smart People Use Twitter

17 Ways You Can Use Twitter: A Guide for Beginners, Marketers and Business Owners

Top 10 Uses of Twitter

 

Lessons from the "Great Detective"

http://www.bigtimeattic.com/blog/

I've been a Batman fan since...well since the 90's. Other kids were aspiring to be like Superman when they grew up--practically invincible with a Kirk Douglas chin--I on the other hand was drawn to the mysterious allure of the Dark Knight. There was something about his melancholy and generally disinterested attitude toward others, his "gray area" moral standards, and his uncanny ability to be reborn an infinite number of times within the DC Universe only to have another area of his complex psyche become the focus of  new comic, movie or animated series.

There are a lot of things that can be learned from everyone's favorite Vigilante Playboy--like money can't buy happiness or women in leather body suits can't always be trusted--but did you ever stop to think that Bruce Wayne could teach you a thing or two about...marketing??

Be a Detective
Batman has been referred to by a lot of names, and with Christian Bale dawning the Cape and Cowel most recently in the Dark Knight film, people tend to forget that even though The Batman is a heroic figure for justice, in his essence, he is a detective pure and simple. With no superpowers, psychic ability or even a Steven Hawking rated IQ, he manages to solve crimes and apprehend criminals by use of his sheer intellect. How? Partly by paying attention.

It sounds simple enough but paying attention when it comes to marketing is hard work and takes a lot of time. There are 3 main areas that should always have your attention:

1. Your customer's demands
2. Your competitor's service
3. Your own efforts

You'll find that if you pay closer attention to customer demands you will identify ways to improve your product or service. If you keep tabs on your competition, you can keep up more easily with trends in the market or even simple sales promotion. If you scrutinize your own efforts you'll know what you're doing now, what you've done in the past, what works, what doesn't and what you might like to try. Now that you've armed yourself with information you can conduct business more effectively.

Some people call it Market Research, but it's really just detective work. Just pay attention, gather information, then put the pieces together to create a personalized marketing plan. It's a simple notion that will pay off in the long run with the right amount of hard work.

Have a Database
In the Batcave there is a giant computer. Batman's database. Since he isn't super-human, there's no way he could be expected to remember all his case notes or analyze compounds just by looking at them--that's what his tech is for.

Ok, so you've started paying attention to your business surroundings. You have your notes and your ideas about how this puzzle should fit together. Now what? Make a database. I use the term loosely to refer to any collection of information...not just spreadsheets and forms. Its important to organize what you've amassed into something useable. Have a lot of business cards you've collected from clients or prospects? Scan them and create a computerized version of a rolodex or go low tech if you don't want to spend the money on new software and just type them up and save an electronic file. Know about competitor promotions? Make up a calendar detailing the dates then put your information in right beside it. Whatever it maybe you've collected, turn it into something you can use.


Even Loners have a Support Staff
It's no secret that while Bruce Wayne may have been the outgoing type, Batman was decidedly less...amiable. But despite his gruff nature he still managed to have helpful friends. Justice League aside, Batman had his faithful butler Alfred, crime fighting companion Robin and eventually another sassy compatriot Batgirl, to help out (even though he acted like he could handle it all on his own, regularly).

Sometimes marketing can be too big a job for just one person, or it may be the case that what you're doing is outside of your realm of expertise. That's ok, just ask for help. If you decide that you want to send thank you letters to customers who purchased from your new holiday catalog but you aren't a very good writer--ask for help. If you aren't sure what kind of commercial you should have to promote your car dealerships 4th of July sale--ask for help. If your latest product has customers beating down the door to buy and you can't possibly fill all the orders yourself--ask for help. Help can come in the form of a friend, colleague, family member or paid professional. Use the resources available to your advantage, there's no shame in asking for help--especially when it will lead to greater business success.

Other than having the best array of villains of all time, Batman can--and does--teach us a lot about ourselves and the world. Smart decisions are made with good information, working smarter means a better use of your tools and British butlers are the best at keeping secrets. Maxims to live by for one and all.

F-Word Marketing: The 10 Minute Summary

This post was inspired by one of my favorite authors on the subject of marketing, Jay Conrad Levinson. In one of his books he talks about the F-word. "F" meaning Free. He goes onto elaborate on all the free things a guerilla marketer can do to boost their business, several pages worth excellent advice, and well worth the read. However if you don't have the time, or the book, you can take a look at my little summary that should only take you 10 minutes to read, that is if you don't stop to take notes...

People
Let's stop to think for a moment. Seeing as how this post is coming out around the holiday season, I'm sure there have been a lot of school fund-raising catalogs floating around your office. Ever stop to think why? Because its easier to ask someone you know to buy stuff from you than someone you don't.

A parent helping their kid out with sales is going to start with their "inner circle"--friends, family and co-workers at they are on generally friendly terms with. Levinson reminds us that it doesn't cost a penny to market to these people, often a simple conversation is enough to turn them into a customer. And if they are a happy customer, guess what? The will tell other people. People who might give you a try because they are on generally good terms with the person who recommended you. The power of people is often underestimated or completely over looked but always remember, no people, no customers. No customers, no business.

Information
The Internet has spoiled and entire generation of people, myself included, into thinking that if you look hard enough, you can get pretty much anything for free. While that is true to a point, and the quality of said "anything" can be highly suspect at times--the real issue is people like information, free information. If you give out free information, people might like you too, or at least like your business.

But you can't just give out lists of the most common pet names of the last year or stories about your Aunt's bunions and expect people to want to hang around. Free information has to follow some guidelines:

1. It has to be useful
2. It has to be current (especially with facts and figures, anything over 5yrs old is considered out of date)
3. It has to be relevant to your customer's problem/situation
4. It has to be easy to get to, read and pass on

Basically, if you're going to give out free info--say on your website or in the form or a monthly newsletter--make it so good people will think they should be paying for it!

Keystrokes
Keystrokes are free! Well, they are after you buy the computer. So maximize your investment by:

• Starting a blog-its another great way to share information for free, like I'm doing right now
• Creating a newsletter-perfect solution for online retailers because it allows you to announce sales and specials without spending money for a direct mail campaign
• Being social--and by that I mean social media. Advertising on Twitter and Facebook may cost a few bucks here and there but user accounts are free so use them to stay in touch with customers, announce specials, or create a community around your product/service

I'm sure if challenged to, you could come up with more marketing tricks that are 100% free than I have listed here. Good. Think hard and write them down then do them. A good marketer doesn't always need money to spend, just a little time and elbow grease. Reading this post should have taken up only 10 minutes of your time (maybe less!) so there is plenty left over for you to get to work. Good Luck and may the F-word be with you.

3 Things I Learned from Fishing that I Should have been Taught in Marketing.

I really like to fish, sort of. I guess I wouldn't consider myself an avid fisherman but there is something very relaxing and zen-like about standing on the shore under the sun just waiting. Waiting for the moment when you get a bite. The exhilaration of that singular moment and the thrill of the catch is enough to keep hundreds of thousands of people coming back...its also enough to support an entire network devoted completely to fishing.

While I was standing on the shore with my Partner in Crime I started to think of all the little things we do when we fish. It then occurred to me that it would make a great blog, if I could only find the time to write it...


Be Persistent, Be Patient
This has got to be like the Number 1 rule of fishing, one that I usually forget. I'm always in a rush to get out on the water and start reeling 'em in and after about 15 minutes of waiting with no bite, I'm usually convinced that there are no fish and I want to pack up and go home. My partner, however, always plans to wait a few hours and spend all day at a fishing hole if necessary. He's there for the long haul and knows that it takes time to find the fish then convince them to bite. Patience and Persistence wins every time, he always catches the most fish.


This principle is one of the keys to marketing. Marketing is not instant. It takes time. People, like fish, have to be massaged into wanting your "bait." They need to see it enough times, be comfortable with it and decide, "this is an offer I can't pass up!" then you hook 'em. It could take an hour before you get that first bite or it could take a month, but if you prepare your plan with the long haul in mind, you'll catch a lot more fish than your opponent.


Change your Bait
I'm sure you've seen a fisherman's tackle box before (or at least wandered down the fishing supply aisle in a Wal-Mart at least once, even if by accident) and noticed all the odds and ends. There is a reason for the multitudes of different bait out there. Quite simply, different fish like different things. I'm sure each company that manufactures these little plastic miracles puts a lot of work into figuring out the psychology and physiology of the fish they were aiming to entice with their lures--but I just buy what I think will work. I buy things that I think are pretty, lures that I don't have and ones that I see other people using on TV. I try them all and keep what works and put the others aside. You never know what a fish will jump at so you have to be prepared with options.

Having a "marketing mix" is an important way to start your first efforts. Since you don't know what will work for you, its best to try as many things as you can afford (and reasonably execute). As time goes on you'll find out, through response tracking, where the bulk of your customers are coming from. Once that becomes clear, you can stop sinking money into marketing that produces no returns and double up on your winning "lures."


"You Don't Catch Bass with a Bream Hook"
When I started fishing again as an adult, I just thought a hook was a hook and you just tie it to some line and throw it in the water with some bait on the end and that was that. Wrong. I was quickly informed that you "don't catch bass with a bream hook" meaning you have to know your target and use the appropriate tools to catch them. I could put that tiny bream hook in the water with a hundred hungry big mouth bass and would have missed every one of them. Why? Cause you need a heavy duty hook for a heavy fish.

Knowing your target is where most marketers have their biggest problems. If you don't have an accurate cross section of your customers then you're liable to waste time and money trying to entice people who weren't in the market for what you were selling in the first place. Once you know who you're marketing to, the next step is to make sure your "hook" is the right one. Dangling a foreign sports car in front of a customer base over the age of 70 may seem like  good idea, after all they probably have more disposable income than a college student or young professional, but in all reality the likely hood that they would actually bite is pretty slim. Don't believe me? Just take a look the next time you're out for a drive, you won't see too many Maseratis outside the lodge for bingo night.

The Zen of fishing is pretty educational and if you're a small business owner responsible for your own marketing, I suggest you take a day off, head down to the lake and just stand on the shore for a few hours. You'll learn a lot about yourself, your dedication and whether or not you have what it takes to really "catch fish."

Signs 101: An Introduction to a Tricky Medium

Since I own a sign shop now, I wanted to take the opportunity to educate the readers of my tiny blog about this tricky medium. I see a lot, a lot of bad signs daily so I wanted to discuss the good, the bad, the ugly and more in this three part series. Lets get started shall we?

What is a Sign?
 "A sign is an entity which signifies another entity."--Wikipedia. A sign can be as small as a flyer or as large as a billboard. Regardless of its size, signs should always have (1) an intended target (2) a decided goal  (3) a clear message.

Primary Goals of a Sign
Signs can inform. An informative sign can announce holiday hours, new management, a new location, a grand opening, basically anything you would like to tell another person. Signs can label. Using a sign as a label is a pretty common occurrence since they label a store front, an entrance, an exit, ect. Signs can solicit a response. We've all been traveling on the highway at one time or another and have seen the big "EXIT NOW" signs. These are they types of signs you'll be most likely to use, compelling your customers to call or visit or buy.

Diagram of a Good Sign

A good sign is composed of 3 good qualities. (1) Clear Title (2) Legible Instruction (3) Contact Information. Using the sign to the left as an example, lets go through the qualities one by one. A clear title refers to the headline of a sign. The headline should always be the main point you want to communicate to the reader. You can never fully count on the fact that a person will read everything you have to say so get to the point and get there as fast as you can. Looking at the sign to the left, you can figure out the gist of the sign without having to read the whole thing: "reserved parking" for customers only. Read on a bit and you get to the legible instruction. The sign tells you clearly when you may and may not park in this space. If you are not a customer and it is after business hours, you better get lost. Lastly, contact information is important. Never forget your contact information, especially if your sign is soliciting a response. Phone numbers are the most common and should be second biggest piece of info on the sign after the title.

Hallmarks of a Bad Sign

• Conflicting or distracting colors
• Illegible fonts
• No clear headline or title
• Too much information
• Too little information
• No contact information
• Confusing symbols or images
• Letters too small
• Poor arrangement
• Useless information or symbols (one of my biggest pet-peeves is when people start a sign with WOW! as an attention getter instead of getting to the point)

The next two installments will be about signs for advertisers and designers. Same bat time, same bat channel!

How to Use Craigslist Right, in My Opinion

My first foray into guerilla marketing started a few months ago when I picked up an awesome little book by Jay Conrad Levinson. I read a lot about his thoughts and practices but never actually put his good advice to use until I started my sign shop. Mr. Levinson is a big cheerleader for classified ads and acknowledges the growing popularity of online classified ads as a money saving alternative. By far, Craigslist is the most popular online classified site, but navigating the spam laden beast to get any true value from it takes some doing. This post is to share some of what I've experienced in hopes of saving you some time and effort.

Intro to Craigslist
"Craigslist is a centralized network of online communities, featuring free online classified advertisements – with sections devoted to jobs, housing, personals, for sale, services, community, gigs, résumés, and discussion forums."--Wikipedia
Its very similar to the Sunday classifieds that run in your local paper, only there is no cost for most listings and the viewer ship of craigslist pages is in the hundreds of thousands--even millions in some cases. Check out the Factsheet for more about Craigslist.org.

Writing Your Ad
Classified ads are meant to be brief by nature so get to the point. If you are a dog groomer, make "dog groomer" your post title not something like "Time to Love Fido Back". When looking through listings, people scan for pre-determined keywords in their brain. Make your title 7 words or less and frank.

The first line of your ad is where you engage. If some one is reading your ad, that means they clicked the link. If they clicked the link, you can be fairly sure that they are interested in what you're selling. Now you can talk to them:

• Briefly explain your business or service
• Pick three or fewer points to highlight (i.e. no minimum order, same day delivery, etc.)
• Provide contact information and business hours
• Make a call to action (i.e. call now for a free quote)

Choosing Your Category
Craigslist has 11 main categories. The ones you will be most likely to post in are "service offered" and "for sale." You have to choose your sub-categories wisely as Craigslist reminds its users to "Please post to a single geographic area and category only -- cross-posting to multiple cities or categories is not allowed." The categories are pretty self explanatory, but you can always use Craigslist Help if you have questions. However, the easiest way to determine if your ad belongs is to read some of the others in the category you're thinking about posting in. It will also help you to determine what makes a good ad and what makes a bad one.

Measuring Results
I post in 7 different categories on Craigslist. Since I've only been at this a month, I'm still in the process of collecting accurate measurements on which categories bring me the most real traffic (as opposed to SPAM). One of the most accurate ways to find out where you're ad is doing the most good is variation. I only post ads about banners in the "skilled trade services" category. Ads about coroplast yard signs are listed in "general", ect. When I check my messages I look at what the person is asking for. So far, my banner ad in "skilled trade services" is working the best. You can adapt this approach to fit your situation even if you don't have varying products to sell. If you offer a different incentive in each ad (i.e. free consultation, 5% first order, ect.) you can track the successfulness of your ad just as easily.

Beware... SPAM!
SPAM is still a big part of the internet and, unfortunately, a big part of Craigslist. While the site does take precautions to help cut down on fake posts and web bot solicitations of posters it does still happen. I get around 5-7 SPAM emails per post. The most common are people emailing me links to other sites where I can "post my item for sale" or scammers trying to get me to agree to bad money order transactions. I never click any link sent in a Craigslist email, it could be a Pandora's box. I also spot scammers with a few easy flags:

1. Misspellings
2. Poor grammar like the writer is not a native English speaker
3. False greetings like "hello ma'am/sir"
4. Short messages saying they are "interested in my item" but give no other detail or information

The good news is you won't get a lot of these messages. They normally only message you once and when you don't respond, they go looking for another patsy. I only post 3 ads a day once a week. That's 15-21 fake messages and most of them are caught by my junk mail folder before I even get them. For around every 5 fakes, I get 1real inquiry. That inquiry is worth it.

Making Your Winners Work
Now that you've written a great ad and measured the results from your posting schedule, you need to ramp it up. Right now I post once a week. Once I weed out less successful categories I can post more often in the categories that work for me. Be aware though, that a once a day post is the most you can do for a single ad, so have two or three versions written up. It will keep your message fresh and help cut down on redundancy on Craigslist.

Client Databases: Your Support Network

Its been a while since my last post. Starting a small business venture while juggling clients is hard work, so my blog has been on the back burner. I couldn't for the life of me think of an appropriate topic. It came to me today while doing some client follow ups--Client Database=Good.

Back in the good old days of paper and ink, a client database was nothing more than the big Rolodex on a businessman's desk. It held every name, phone number, address, and note about each contact that its owner would need to conduct business effectively.

Fast forward to 2010 and the age of the "2.0" everything. Most small business owners don't own a Rolodex, or even believe in their power. Quickbooks holds client info. That's just as good right? Microsoft Outlook keeps track of my contacts, what more do I need? Both very valid statements, now let me take the time to prove you wrong.

What's So Wrong with Quickbooks?
Short answer: nothing. Quickbooks is a great way to keep track of orders, invoicing, income and expenditures. It is accounting software for the everyman, and everywoman, in business for themselves. But its just that, accounting software. While it may keep track of basic contact information and orders, it is not set up to relate non-accounting information in a useful way. When you construct a client database, specifically for the purpose of housing client information, you have control over the way your information is displayed. Control is good. Example: You run a sign shop. You want to promote plastic yard signs as your monthly special with a direct mailing campaign and personal phone call to all clients who have purchased signs in the last year. Using Quickbooks, you can look up the orders of each business by their name only. With a client database, you can sort by date and type of purchase, then just print a list of names and contact info. The information is available to you electronically in both scenarios, but which uses less time?


Misplaced Expectations & Outlook
Outlook is awesome, but it can't do everything. Yes it makes managing contact information easy and because its a Microsoft product, things like mail merge are a breeze. But its functionality stops there. Outlook manages mail. Conversations. Not products. Not orders. Not your client relationships. A client database can hold more detailed information than an Outlook contact page--information that may come in handy. Example: You own an upscale full service beauty salon. You offer specials for holidays and clients' birthdays. One of the employees suggests a mother daughter manicure pedicure deal for the month of May, because of graduations. With a client database, you could gather and store information tailored to your marketing needs because it is constructed by you for your own use. In this situation, you could search your client list for Women >with daughters 17-18 and prepare a nice mailer explaining your offer. Alternatively, with Outlook as your contact manager, the best you could do is mail merge all the addresses on to address labels and direct mail everyone on your list.

The 5 Truths about Client Databases
The title of this post talks about a "support network." Your clients are your support network. They support your business. You should support them and a database will help you do that. Its all about After Care, a practice that isn't just for hospitals anymore.

1. Not every database is a useful database. Databases that are poorly maintained, missing information, out of date and/or have too much or too little information, are all just a big waste of time.
2. Planning and maintenance are a must. Before you start on your database adventure, sit down with a blank piece of paper and think. You need to decide (1) what the database will be used for and (2) who will use it. Plan out your fields of data and how you will collect them (i.e. will the clerk ask the customer, or will the customer be given a form, ect.). Create your database and set a schedule for updates, in addition to making changes as they occur. The scheduled review will allow you to identify problems or trends within your database, that you might not notice when popping in to make an address change.
3. Databases can enhance relationships. Small businesses have the advantage of "face-to-face loyalty"--you see your customers regularly, you know their buying habits and may even be on a first name basis with them. You've built a relationship. Because of that relationship, any communication you have with them will not be seen as spam or unwanted solicitation (as long as you don't get crazy with it). So look them up once in a while and call them, or write them--handwritten letters are best--and say something like "Hey Sue, it's Margret over at the Tea Cup cafe. I wanted to send you some early birthday wishes and let you know about the great menu the restaurant will be having the weekend of your special day..."
4. Databases can help you provide better service. A properly constructed database will give you the tools you need to understand your clients, their wants and needs. It can also help you identify habits so you can anticipate requests.
5. One database may not be enough.  Databases with too much information are useless because you can never find what you need. If you run a very detail oriented business or have thousands of clients, you may need several databases that cross-reference each other for enhanced functionality.

I'm writing this on the verge of starting my own customer database. I'm sure going through that process will afford me some valuable information to share with all of you. I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Does "Like" Equate to Increased Sales?

Facebook is gaining popularity as an advertising/marketing medium. Lots of businesses big and small are creating corporate fan pages and groups. I, of course, have a Facebook account for personal use but not one for my freelancing business. Why? Because, while Facebook is totally awesome it doesn't work for everyone. I'll be working on a short post called "You might not need Facebook if..." but right now we're talking about the infamous "Like " button.

For those of you who may not be familiar with the way this whole thing works, aside from personal pages, people can create group pages and fan pages. It used to be that if you wanted to join a fan page you would click the "Become a Fan" button. Not anymore. If you want to join a fan page, you now click the "Like" button. When you "like" a page, you are added to the column of other people who "like" this particular thing--similar to being a fan, but with one major difference. This little switch enables Facebook to offer targeted advertising to corporations because they keep meticulous notes on everything each Facebooker "likes." Facebook then packages all the people that "like" something as a potential sales pool, but how many people buy just because they "like" something?

There are lots of other blogs with lots of theories about how to calculate ROI on Facebook. I'll list some links at the end, but this article is about a misconception that I keep running into: Like=Increased Sales.


4 of my friends "like" Wal-Mart
Most people shop at Wal-Mart because of convenience, or the perceived value, so it was no surprise to me that 4 of my Facebook friends had joined the store's page. At my last count 1,173,430 "like" Wal-Mart.  

We all know that more than a million people shop at Wal-Mart. I'm sure lots of them are not on Facebook for whatever reason but if Facebook has over 400 million active users shouldn't they have a share larger than .003? The explanation is simple, an Absence of Users--a company's popularity can never be fully represented by it's fan page. People may shop there but not join the page because of apathy, ignorance, or "whatever." I shop at Wal-Mart, there's one right up the street from my house, but am I on their fan page? Nope. Why? I'm one of the "whatever" people, I just didn't care.

I'm a Fan of World Market
I decided to "like" World Market because its a specialty store. They commonly post specials and sales as well as new products to their Facebook page. They aren't close to my house and I don't shop there unless I need something so their Facebook posts alert me to items/events I might not have otherwise known about. Do I always buy? No. But that's no different from the same risk you take with mailers and email newsletters--however, some people don't see it that way. False ROI--beware of micro marketers that give you a hard number for increase in sales based on your "likes." Without detailed tracking, you won't be able to tell the difference between fans that are making regular purchases not influenced by your Facebook effort and ones that truly represent an increase that couldn't have been possible without it.


Likers that Like to "Like"
Its hard to get a good estimate of actual "likes" because of something I call the Inflatable Pool--people will "like" something their friends "like" even if they have no real feeling about it one way or the other. These people inflate your fan lists making you think that you have more potential customers than you really do. They don't represent any sort of sale, let alone a sales increase. Keep in mind how easy it is to click "like." Its not the same as signing up for a membership or joining a loyalty club--there's paper work and occasionally a fee, so if they do it, they want it, and are interested enough in it to go the extra mile.

The bottom line? It's great if people "like" you but its important to know who your real customers are.

Additional Reading

• Measuring ROI with Facebook & Twitter
• Measuring your Facebook ROI [PowerPoint]

Why Can't SoBe Get it Right?

Originally I had another blog post planned for today, then I read an article on Advertising Age about Chick Fil A and Popeye's and what they did right. That started the wheels turning and I was suddenly reminded of a company that has gotten it very, very wrong--in my opinion--a lot in recent memory SoBe, the Life Water people.

I remember SoBe from my time in high school. The drink company hit the shelves in the late 90's so it was still fairly new when I started drinking it. With its big glass bottles and natural ingredients it felt really 90's and always made me think of Sheryl Crow for some reason...maybe it was that whole free spirited "soak up the sun" attitude SoBe associated itself with. The iconic lizard was plastered all over jeeps and surf boards and to be "healthy hip" meant a steady supply of the stuff in your fridge at all times.

Then something happened. SoBe fell out of favor. Whether that has anything to do with the emergence of Glaceau and it's Vitamin Water brand around the same time remains a matter of opinion, but something caused the lizard and it's Life Water to loose its way.

The Super Bowl Ad
Since this is commentary, I can say what ever I want and I want to say "What were they thinking!?" I've posted the ad below. What do dancing "Thriller Lizards" and Naomi Campbell have to do with a health beverage?



Let's break this down as a lesson in a bad commercial. 1) Note the perils of using a celebrity spokes person. Any person in the ad game, who knows their stuff, will tell you that attaching your company's image to that of a star or starlet is one of the worst mistakes you can make. Its the equivalent to putting all your eggs in one basket. If their ship sinks, consider yourself caught in the undertow. 2) Pop culture does not stand alone. It would be safe to say that since music videos were invented, "Thriller" has been in the top 5 of the best videos of all time. Its a total cultural phenomenon that has managed to retain its popularity and relevance (at least to some extent) for decades. Grafting yourself into the famous dance sequence will NOT make YOU famous and will do less for your brand.  Things like Thriller became popular in the first place because they were unique, original and sometimes ground breaking but always the first of their kind done right. Never expect revolutionary results from re-hashed ideas. 3) Mascots are an identity, identities are unique. Both SoBe and Geico have lizard mascots. You don't need me to tell you which one is the more successful. The Geico Geko is a friendly employee in an insurance company--that's his identity. The SoBe lizards are well, props. They can be used and misused in any way that an advertising agency feels fit. A muddled mascot identity can lead to a muddled corporate identity.


The Super Bowl Ad Pt 2
Just another example of how a muddled identity can spawn some weird commercials. But while you watch this look closely for something that is missing.


Did you catch it? It was proper product placement. I think the product appeared around 7 times. A couple of "Mmmm, I'm drinking this beverage" shots but nothing about Life Water's benefits, flavors, why you should pick this over Vitamin Water or anything useful really. What should you take from this? TV commercials are expensive. Don't waste your time or your viewer's time. Get to the point and showcase your product's features and benifits. Animated lizards, ballerinas and monsters with aliens will not improve your bottom line. Don't believe me? Check out the comment thread on YouTube for this commercial.

Ashley Greene + 0 =???
Ok so obviously SoBe did not learn their lesson with Naomi Campbell and rounded up another starlet. This time the "angelic" Ashley Greene from Twilight. They painted her with body scale paint and put her naked on a beach to sell Life Water. The connection? She is "Wearing Zero" and the Life Water has zero calories. Clever right? It would be except for some obvious problems:

• Zero calorie beverages are generally targeted toward women. 
• Women don't normally buy a beverage from another woman who is trying to sell to them naked on a beach.
• Men think Ashley Greene is hot. They will look at the SI spread and watch the commercials but will probably won't buy Life Water
• Twilight, despite what everyone says, has a limited appeal and a hardcore fan base of young buyers. They are too young to watch the Mature rated commercials on YouTube.
• SoBe has still not created a brand or identity for its product. They handed a bottle to a beauty with no clear plan.

The photography is glamorous and so high fashion--to bad they are selling a health drink and not swimsuits. Its just a clip. See more at SoBe.com

Beware of Misdirection

Last week we talked briefly about The Shocking Truth About Customers and how they will respond to visual cues more readily--almost instinctively--as opposed to informational cues or text. In that post I encouraged you to use pictures to communicate your message. Well today I want to talk about the correct way to use pictures and the in correct way to use pictures.

The Correct Way
A picture is worth a 1000 words. Everyone knows that pretty well. But selecting the right photo for the job can be tricky. Here are some tips on finding the right image for the job when preparing an ad:

1. Decide if you are going the literal route or the creative route. For example, lets say you sold ketchup. If you went the literal route, you would use a picture of your bottle and a tomato as the focal point of your ad with copy that might read "Smith's ketchup. Real tomato flavor because it's made from real tomatoes". But if you're selling that same ketchup and wanted to go the creative route you may have a picture of a plate of french fries with copy that might read "Your fries are lonely." and an image of your logo at the bottom of the page. French fries and ketchup are related so its plausible that the audience will follow your line of thinking and appreciate the novelty of the ad.
2. Determine the message of your ad. Your picture must enhance or contribute to your ad's message. If it is just a needless decoration, select a picture that will pull its own weight. Back to the ketchup. If you wanted to focus on the fact that Smith's ketchup is made from organic tomatoes, showing a smiling dirty farmer doesn't make as much sense as a picture of a beautiful tomato on the vine with a big "organic" sticker on it. Remember, customers may not read your copy, but that visual cue also gets your message across just the same.
3. Consider change before compromise. If you have a big idea--a really, really big idea-- and are having trouble finding images to get that idea across, you can only do 1 of 2 things. 1) Pay photographers to stage and take the shots you need. 2)Change your idea. Its difficult enough to communicate to your audience as is, don't make things too had for yourself by reaching for an ad image that is impossible. Lets say Smith's ketchup has a new campaign "Fields so green they can be seen from space!". Obviously a picture from space would be expensive (and useless since you couldn't really see the tomato patch) so they should change their ad message. Sticking with the same "big picture feel" they could re-word their copy to say "Tomato Country" hand have several panoramic shots take of their green landscape. Putting the audience in the heart of the green fields will communicate their message of great organic ketchup better than a silly space photo.

The Incorrect Way: Visual Misdirection
We've all seen those Haute Fashion ads where no one really knows what's going on but we all just collectively nod and turn the page. Using Salvador Dali as a creative director might not be a good idea if you intend to market to the average Joe and Josephine. Here are some things to avoid:

1. Reaching too far. If you decide to take the creative route for your ad message, make sure it still makes sense to the audience. Remember, they don't like to read so if your image will take a lot of copy to explain, you may want to re-think it. See this great example to the right. What does murder have to do with a postage meter machine? I don't know if I want to find out...
2. Excessive shock factor. Half naked sexy women should be reserved for nightclub ads and adult themed items. A Photoshop composite photo of a nude woman sitting atop a pile of french fries drenched in ketchup doesn't make Smith's ketchup hot or edgy--just weird.
3. Audience alienation. Pictures are a great way to combat the language barrier--if done correctly. When done incorrectly, a consumer who doesn't speak the native language will look at the ad and get confused (or in some cases offended) and by pass your product all together. The name of the game is wide appeal to your chosen audience. If you sell a general product in the US you have to assume that a decent number of Spanish or Creole speaking people will be viewing your ad. A confusing picture with a caption they can't understand will destroy any kind of sale. Take a look at the tobacco ad to below. This is an example of shock factor and well...a lot of things. But since the copy isn't in English I just don't know what to say about how they meant for this to be interpreted.

For more reading on ads gone wrong check out: 25+ Ads That Are Just Not Right For Public Eyes

The Shocking Truth About Customers

Not too long ago I wrote a post about Giving Your Customers Credit. I went on and on about how flexible they are and how willing they are to patronize your business given the right conditions. And all of that is true. But there is a fact, a single piece of knowledge about customers that you may not know. That is the subject of today's post.

To put it succinctly: Customers Do Not Read.

That might be confusing so let me explain with an anecdote. To make extra money, I work as a concessions cashier on the weekend. Its a pretty simple set up. I hand food through a window. On the counter, I arrange the napkin dispenser, drinking straw box and small trash container for the straw paper or other trash items. The trash container is clearly labeled in large letters but can you guess how many people actually put trash in the countertop receptacle? Only about 12%. What do the other 88% do? 75% walk a few steps to the big garbage cans next to the seating area. The other 13% litter. Granted there could be a lot of reasons why these numbers exist--like maybe 13% customers are just slobs--but for the sake of my post they make a great illustrative point.

Lets say you have a great ad. One like this:

But nobody gets it. You scratch your head and wonder why customers aren't beating down your door. Its because CUSTOMERS DON'T READ. Taking a closer look at this one pager, you'll notice that there is way too much copy. Today's consumer has an "instant" attitude when it comes to getting information. There are so many outlets vying for your customers attention that you will effectively take yourself out of the running if you make too much of a demand on their time. Going back to the trash can example, its not like I wrote a novel on the side of the container explaining what people should do when faced with a trash-related crisis. It simply said "Trash" but even that was too much copy for 88% of my customers. What's the lesson in all this? Use your words sparingly. You never know what will get across to your customers or if anything will resonate with them at all so don't waste your words and don't waste their time.

Now you're thinking, "If I can't talk to them, how will I communicate at all?" Easy. Pictures. People respond to visual cues. That's why, 75% of my customers go to the big garbage can. That can doesn't have the word "trash" on the side, but because of what it is, when people see it they automatically link things together in their head. It might go something like this "Hmm, I have trash. Oh look, a trash can. I'm going to throw this trash in the trash can." Lets take another look at an ad.

As creepy as this little girl is, this image makes a good point. You see the bread. You see the jam. You see the (scarily) hungry look on the girl's face. You get the message--Tasty. You want this because it tastes good. That's why Coke magazine ads and movie theater spots show that sweaty bottle. They don't need 2 paragraphs explaining how awesome they are, they appeal to your impulsive side because they know your brain acts on visual cues a lot faster than informational ones.

There are a lot of things to take into consideration when planning your ads but the power of visual cues should not be over looked. Because this topic is so important I'll be posting a supplement about misdirection which should be a fun lesson. Hope you'll join me. Same bat time, same bat channel.

A Note About Staff: The Cashier Salesman

It was time to change my oil again. Not too long ago, I would have pulled into a Super Lube and waited for a little more than half an hour to get my car serviced--but not anymore. I change my own oil now and had to go in for supplies. While standing at the register waiting for my friend to bring over a better oil filter than the brand I usually purchase, the cashier struck up a conversation with me.

Apparently, not to many young ladies my age are willing to crawl under their car and get dirty just to safe a little extra cash. I thanked him for the compliment, thinking that would be the end of it. Nope. He seamlessly turned the conversation to sales. "You know" he said "If you're changing your oil today why not check the other fluids in your car. We have a special on windshield wiper fluid. Only 4 dollars." I had only intended to purchase what I needed for the oil change and this guy was trying to up sell me on something I didn't even want. I was going to have to turn him down, but before I could even open my mouth to politely refuse he followed up with "Its really high quality, if you haven't replaced your windshield wipers in a while, they probably squeak when they rub across the glass. With this stuff you won't get that noise anymore." Shock! How did he know that I hadn't replaced my wipers in a while? It doesn't matter. I added the Rain-X to my tab. Why? Because he made the purchase relevant to me. Though I was only changing my oil that day, he convinced me that 1) I could kill two birds with one stone and freshen up my windshield fluid while I was at it and 2) That it would solve a problem I was having.

The cashier salesman is a rare breed. Most of us encounter the type of cashier who gives us a company required greeting and proceeds to scan all our bar codes without making eye contact. When there is a personable body behind the register its disarming. A real person with thoughts and opinions on the products they are selling can do a few different things:

• Make the rest of the staff seem more knowlageable by extension
• Open up the customer suggestions
• Create a better customer experience
• Promote a better corporate image
• Increase sales

Going back to my example. When dealing with an auto parts store, customers expect a certain level of understanding to begin with, but personal use and knowledge of the products makes conversations sound more like testimonials and not sales speeches. When customers open up to suggestions, you are guaranteed a sale. They may not buy the product that day, but you can be sure that if they ever need that item, they will remember what you suggested and come back to you to get it. Everyone loves a good experience when they shop, it encourages word of mouth referrals and sales by extension.

A Cashier Salesmen does four things well:

1. Identify
2. Associate
3. Suggest
4. Explain

Back to my example. The cashier in the store identified me as a novice level do-it-yourselfer. Once he made the association between my car care interest and aptitude, he was able to suggest other things I could do for my car that were just as simple if not easier than an oil change. He also went so far as to explain his suggestion and why it would matter to me.

Cashier Salesmen are great but hard to come by. If you're a retail business owner, these are the people you can't afford to pass over. Even though I only added $4 bucks to my tab, the interaction with my cashier will be much more valuable to the company in the long run. I continue to buy from them because of all the useful suggestions and advice I receive on how to keep my car healthy--which is very important to me.

Why Web Design Takes Soooooooo Long

Its been a while since my last post for a number of reasons. One being I couldn't think of something pertinent to blog about. While slaving away on a client website I realized something: WEB DESIGN TAKES FOREVER. And that is the subject of today's post.

I'm a graphic designer. Graphic. Not Web. For many companies and individuals looking to hire a freelancer or in-house person, the two jobs become interchangeable. Let me start by saying they are not. Graphic designers tend to be more classically trained in print mediums. Along with our required Adobe courses, we may take illustration classes or painting--and always a font class. Why? Because we start school with the knowledge that most of what we do will end up in a brochure, on a billboard, or some other type of paper. At best we get only one, extremely brief, introduction to web. Web designers have a very different set of problems to face when they sit down to create. They have to worry about accessibility, cross-browser compatibility, usability and any number of other things. Some graphic designers also have training in web design and vice versa, but its rare to find a person who is equally strong in both areas. Armed with all this knowledge, you'd think that I would have re-examined my approach to this project. You'd be wrong. 

Once my client made it clear that I would be the one handling the site re-design, I was excited. Thinking about "how cool" I could make it look over took my entire thought process. I spent hours online daily looking at web design examples from all over the design community. Issue 1: I planned form before function. When designing for print, clients usually know what they want--say a brochure--and may know roughly what they want it to say. Neither the client or the designer has to think about "how will the recipient use this?" because print brochures only have one level of interactivity. You either read it or you don't. Web sites are a different matter. Lesson 1: You have to plan out how your site will work--the navigation, the content, page hierarchy, ect.--before you work on hardcore aesthetics.

After realizing my mistake, I tossed out all the work I'd done so far and started sketching. And sketching. And sketching. Until I came up with a simple, easy to navigate site. Time to start coding. I knew that I didn't want to build too much of the site in Photoshop and that I didn't want heavy Flash either because those take a long time to update and freshness of content is paramount. So what options were there for me? CSS. This markup language would allow me to create an attractive, dynamic easily up-datable site with just one simple page of text. Great! But I didn't know the first thing about typing it up so I Googled it, and got lots and lots of templates and example code. Issue 2: Websites should be treated as individuals. Issue 3: Frankenstein's Monster was a bad idea for a reason. There are a lot of places out there that sell canned websites. Don't get me wrong, I don't have anything against them--and on occasion have encouraged clients to purchase one as  quick means to an end--but they should never be one-size-fits-all. I tried starting with a template so I could adapt it to my needs. I adapted and tweaked and changed until it was nothing like the template I started with. Lesson 2: If you find yourself looking at templates thinking "I'll leave that off" or "I can change that and that one too" then you're better off starting from scratch. Lesson 3: Never copy a bunch of template parts and paste them together. You won't get a cohesive site.

After throwing everything out and starting yet again, I finally felt like I was well on my way to a great site.That was around a week ago. The site it still in its beginning stages and I've been working on it a few hours every day. Each day I make progress and end up deleting most of it and keeping only one change after hours of work. This may sound like it should be the 4th issue, but its really not. Its Lesson 4: Never be afraid to sacrifice your progress for good work. Granted, time may not always allow you to practically start over every day or to move at a snail's pace, but pushing through sub-par work just because you dread the thought of starting over is unacceptable.

So why does web design take so long? Its because good web designers:

• Take the time to plan for functionality
• Craft individual website solutions 
• Start from scratch building a unique site
• Test and test and test everything to make sure the user experience is the best possible
• Start over when they have to

As a bonus, here are some great compilations of exceptional web design. You can bet that none of these were built in a day:

• 40 Beautiful Dark Web Designs
• 30 Out of the Box Portfolio Designs
• 56 Light & Clean Minimalist Web Site Designs

Cost Versus Value

I've been working with a client for a couple months on a print project. Assembling a book for sale is a big deal--especially when you choose to self publish. There are a lot of options out there that will offer new authors on a budget a helping hand, but my guy decided to go to a local print shop. Fair enough, choosing someone local gives you more control over the project. A print agent you can talk to and get real time advice from is an excellent choice for the first time self publisher who has no experience with book assembly. However, the subject of this post is not about the pros and cons of online versus local self publishing (although it might be an interesting topic to entertain at a later date) its about the dynamics of Cost and Value.

Low Cost=Low Value?
We've all heard the old adage "You get what you pay for." I agree. For instance, the offerings at Dollar Tree stores across the nation have expanded drastically in the recent years. Shelves that used to be filled with ceramic knic-knacks and cheap fake flowers now hold some really useful things, like umbrellas when the rain catches you off guard. When you buy an umbrella for a dollar, you don't expect it to be high quality, you don't expect it to last, you just expect it to be a "momentary item"--good for a few uses and completely disposable. After all, you got your money's worth.

Let's go back to my client. He chose a local print shop because of their price--their cheap price. The product he received from that shop looked, well, cheap and he was dissatisfied. In hoping to save money on the production process, my client has actually cost himself more in the long run--he now has to pay to have the book printed over again, and he's stuck with money invested a pile of product he's too displeased with to sell.  When making decisions about your product, or image, or business, remember that it should never be considered a "momentary item." Invest the time and money in yourself and your venture knowing that the value you receive in return makes it worthwhile.

High Cost=High Value?
Times are tight for everyone, and people in my line of work are feeling the crunch just as much as anyone else. Businesses usually cut marketing,and design by extension, to save money in their budgets. There are a million reasons why you shouldn't, and only one reason I can think of that you should--Cost>Value.

There's a particular clothing store that specializes in young female 20-somethings. I really liked their clothes. Yep, past tense. The price tags prohibited me from buying most things, but it was just my luck to catch a sale. I'd purchased a short sleeved casual jacket to dress up my sleeveless tops when meeting clients. I was able to get three wears out of it before the buttons, the nice buttons, came off in the wash--all of them. Granted, they are just buttons. I could go to any fabric store and pick up some plain replacements, but its the principle of the matter. I paid extra for that jacket perceiving it to be of higher quality than a Wal-Mart knock off. I was under the impression that I was making an investment and that the jacket would last until I had gotten my money's worth--the value equaled the cost. It didn't. I learned that just because something is expensive, that doesn't make it better; a very different lesson from the above paragraph but one to be taken to heart.

When examining your efforts, production, marketing, ect, be sure to evaluate what you're actually getting. Track where your business is coming from to make sure you aren't wasting marketing dollars. Shop around for manufactures to compare production costs. Re-evaluate your relationships with other businesses to make sure any partnerships really are mutually benificial. The list is endless. Just make sure that your cost doesn't out weight your value because in the end, you'll end up passing that cost along to customers and they may not be so willing to pay.

Lessons in the Life of a Business Card

I've been struggling for a long time to create a personal brand. You'd think I'd sit down and take the time to figure out how I would want to represent myself and the image I want to portray. And I have. The only thing is, I've been at this for a few years now, and I'm not the same person I was when I started. I look back at some of those designs now and am so glad I trashed them.

It all started with Japan. I wouldn't describe myself as an Asian Addict, but I've always held that country in high esteem and my early designs reflect that. As I describe my brief journey to the card I'm using now, please remember NOT to do any of these things and take it all in as a lesson of what to avoid.

Sanada Kyuu
Say that name. Its pronounced Sah-Nah-Dah Kee-you. Does that bring anything to mind? No? Exactly my point. That name doesn't mean anything. It doesn't tell you what I'm about, what I do, or who I am. Its not my first name, my last name or my middle name. Its not an animal, vegetable or mineral. Plain and simple it was a bad idea for a brand. Lesson 1: If you're going to brand yourself, pick a name that is relevant and makes sense.(side note: Sanada is the last name of a famous Japanese historical figure. Kyuu is the word for "ten"...it still doesn't make sense does it?)

Fresh
This was at the beginning of my foray into grunge. My business card was all black with white writing on it and a piece of sushi as the logo/icon. What? Exactly. I'm not a sushi chef. I don't own or work at a restaurant. I do eat sushi but that isn't something a potential client cares about. I couldn't tell you why I thought it was a good idea, I'm just glad I realized it in time. Lesson 2: Don't be misleading, intentionally or unintentionally.

Kitsune Creative
I was going through another phase, but this time I was into abstract looking images. At the same time I was doing some research for a series of fictional stories I was working on. The combination of those two things was, well, unfortunate. During my research, I found out that the etymology of the word "Kitsune", which means fox in Japanese, apparently came from an ancient Japanese folklore story. I immediately thought "fox, huh. Clever as a fox....great!" Obviously, I'd forgotten that I live in America and that the average person wouldn't speak Japanese at all let alone know anything about ancient folklore stories. Lesson 3: If you have to explain it, you may need to rethink it.

The Ox

This pretty much brings us up to present day. I've always been incredibly proud of the fact I was born in the Year of the Ox, I mean we have some pretty great attributes. I thought I should brand myself with something that was a part of me, so I began working on an icon/logo for myself. This big orange giant was my first attempt. Its a bit abstract, but I liked it. I used it for a while with a lukewarm reception. I thought "these people just don't get it" and chalked it up to their "lack of cool"--that was until a friend of mine saw it and said bluntly "what is that? It looks like a blob." Wow. Lesson 4: Your image conveys a message. If they don't get the image, they wont get the message.

So I moved on to the next ox in my life. I'd been creating a Kamon (Japanese style crest/icon) for a friend of mine to use on his business card and thought that an ox kamon would be perfect for me. Again I had the bright idea to combine elements of my two signs into one icon. That's how the "Ox under Moon" came about (I'm a Cancer, our governing planet is the moon). Not bad. But still not the modern bold statement I was looking for, plus it didn't test well. Lesson 5: Test. Test. Test. Try it out on a few people before making a big debut.

I hope my follies in business card design helped some of you out there. If you're interested in seeing the current card I'm using now, read my up coming post Design Log 1: 639. And if you have a minute, check out some of my business card designs on Zazzle. I'm always open to feed back. Remember: test, test, test! For additional reading, check out this blog post: The Basics of Business Card Design

Education of a Girl: A Lesson from the Stage and Stardom

Because of my quiet nature around others, most people don't know that I have a background in Theater. Throughout my high school years I participated in lots of plays and took classes. Once I started college, I began to re-evaluate whether or not a place on stage was for me. Ultimately, I decided against it. Even though I don't aspire to be a leading lady any longer, the lessons from that time have manifested themselves in interesting ways--which just happen to be the subject of today's post.

During my time as a Thespian, I had quite a few friends that were really talented. One in particular was a Triple Threat--he could sing, was a great tap dancer and had a certain charm about him when acting. He could do it all and do it well. It takes a special kind of business to be able to take on the attributes of a Triple Threat. More often than not, business owners that try to, expand in ways that don't connect with one another or try to do too many things at once.

A Triple Threat, in the classic sense, does the three things that are important for an actor to be able to get work--ideally on Broadway.They have their end goal and have the skills (singing, dancing and acting) necessary to make an attempt at that goal feasible. What a Triple Threat isn't is an actor, make up artist and set builder. These are not linear skills because two of the three listed are back stage jobs, a completely different line of work.

When a business ventures to add more products or services, trying to appeal to or gain more customers, they enter dangerous territory when they don't go linear. For example: a bakery could also be a coffee shop. Baked goods + coffee=good. A bakery could serve light lunches as well. Baked goods + lunch=cafe. Also good. However, a bakery should never join forces with a butchers. Even though they both sell food, baked goods + raw meat=bad. If you're thinking about expanding your offerings in order to cater to a wider range of customers, take the next logical step and keep it linear.

Believe it or not, competition was pretty stiff in high school. As with anything, there were a few overachievers who had decided early on that the stage was their calling. In hopes of standing out, some of the girls were not only good singers and actors, they specialized in more than one type of dance, or took an interest in gymnastics or learned to sing in other languages. Granted those are all admirable skills to have, but in all reality, they should have just worked on their acting. In trying to be a "Jack of all Trades" they made themselves "The Master of None" and effectively lost sight of what they were hoping to accomplish--being famous for their acting.

Some business owners fall into this same trap. They tack on so many new services that they can't do any one thing exceptionally well. The first example that comes to mind is Miami Subs. We used to have a Miami Subs here in Tallahassee. Until I actually visited the fast food chain, I had assumed that they were like Larry's Giant Subs or a Subway. I was totally wrong. Yes they had sandwiches but their menu goes on for days! They even went so far as to carry Kenny Roger's Chicken and Nathan's Hot Dogs at one point. With a menu that all over the place, it was hard for them to stand out for one delicious dish that would keep customers coming back--so they didn't come back.

The next example is a success story of sorts. Hardee's used to have a menu just as horrible as Miami Subs. When they realized that a more linear approach would help them attract new customers, they ditched the fried chicken and focused on being a better burger joint. With their ThickBugers leading the way, the franchise that was on the brink of food oblivion is now enjoying measurable success. The important point here is: it is better to be known for one great thing than a thousand mediocre attempts.

For my last example, I really wanted to drive my point home with a "phenomenon" we can all relate to: the Singer-Turned-Actor. Some singers and pop idols try their hand at acting, hoping that their celebrity will help rocket them to the top. Cases include: Jessica Simpson, Beyonce, Alicia Keys, Mos Def, Jennifer Hudson, and Mandy Moore. Good first step, after all it is linear skill. However, taking a linear step does not always equate to talent on the other end. Whether or not someone is "good" at acting is all a matter of opinion; the point I want to make here is we've all had the thought "why did he/she think they could act" regardless of whose new movie we were watching. Just because you do one thing very well, don't assume you can do everything very well, whether it happens to be a linear skill or not.

It all comes down to evaluating your strengths and weaknesses before expanding your business. Build on your strengths, expand with your strengths, strengthen your weaknesses but never assume collecting a lot of weaknesses will make you stronger.

Creative Briefs

It took me a few days to get back in a posting mood. I've been working and working on getting part 2 of the "Lifestyle" post ready but its still forming and not ready for its debut. With nothing but side projects going on I wasn't sure what to post about today, then I thought about my totally awesome friend Dan Volkens. Dan is a web designer by profession but we met through his blog because we both have a love of all things Volkswagen.

I was working away on a web re-design for one of my freelance clients and had hit a wall. I drew sketch after sketch, looked at a bunch of examples, tried a few things and still wasn't happy. After a few weeks of spinning my wheels and getting nowhere I thought "I should really get some help on this." Luckily, I remembered Dan. He was nice enough to take the time to help me out by pointing me to resources I could actually use.

Although there are a lot of things I could talk about because I learned so much, I'll focus on one thing at a time. Today is the most important thing I took away from Dan's advice:

Do a Creative Brief. Silly me, I'd forgotten all about this. When I proposed a re-design to my client as a part of their marketing effort, I never thought I would be doing it. I was excited initially to be able to have so much control over the project and started searching the web for other websites that looked cool. I foolishly assumed I could take all the best parts from other websites, mash them together and come out on top with the best site on the web. FAIL. The more I tried to imitate other sites the more I hated the end result. I started to think that I was missing something...but what?? Duh. I was missing what the site was supposed to be all about. I hadn't sat down and fleshed out what I wanted to accomplish beyond just having a trendy looking site. Take my advice and don't skip this step for any creative project, web or otherwise. Here are 4 simple questions to get you on the right track:

1. What am I trying to accomplish? (i.e. to inform, to entertain, to persuade)
2. What is my message? What do I want people to know?
3. Who am I talking too?
4. How will I communicate my message?

I concluded that 1.) I'm trying to inform people with the website. 2.) I want people to know about the nightly specials at this night club. I want them to know that the club is also for rent for special events. I want them to know where the night club is. 3.) I'm talking to Tallahassee college students who like to go to dance clubs 4.) I will communicate my message online with a website that lists the specials, has a calendar of upcoming events, has a form for requesting space rental, has "share this" options, and has Google map links for directions.

Now that I know what my goal for the site is I can now focus on the design elements that will make the site function the way I want it to but that's a post for another day :) For now, if you want to learn more about Creative Briefs, read this article on Graphic Define. Its great!

Give Your Customers Credit: Examining a Thin Line

I know that I've been talking about customer service a lot lately. So sue me. I'm a customer and I love it when I get good service. Today I'm going to talk about the tight rope business owners walk when courting their customers.

I'm just going to come right out and say it, convenience is important to customers--but you already knew that. Thinking about it logically, if you make it hard for your customers to patronize your business because of weird hours, a crazy location or any number of things, then they will take their business elsewhere. However, in an effort to make things easy for the customer, business owners end up mollycoddling them.

Give your customer some credit. (1)They can handle it if you aren't open every day. Case in point, boutique cafes are usually closed on Mondays. No big deal. If the service is good and the food is amazing, customers will make the extra effort to make time to eat there. Managing "open door" days can help you manage overhead and give your shop a more "exclusive" feel, just make sure you keep to a regular schedule. (2) They like you for you. Meaning, you don't have to reinvent yourself constantly to keep them interested. A little "tuck and tighten" to keep things fresh is always welcome but if you enjoy loyal clientele and make steady money then a radical change is dangerous. You risk alienating your regulars and potentially picking a direction that turns everyone off--including new customers. (3) They want to be on your side. Don't mess this up. I speak this from personal experience. When I patronize a place I want them to succeed--at least initially. If I receive good service and good product (or food if its a restaurant) I want to come back. I want to recommend it to friends. I want to host parties there. I want to be on their team. Some business owners approach every customer as a challenge to be overcome when they should be approached as a friend to be won.

With everyone holding on to their purse strings a little tighter these days, customer service is getting more attention even in big companies, but small companies still have the advantage. They can walk this thin line between customer respect and just being patronizing. Pop out that umbrella, take a deep breath and give it a try.

What do Rappers & Women Have in Common? Part 1

This topic was actually the subject of a conversation between myself and my significant other. We were chatting this morning about the Coach brand and how its image has been bifurcated. I'm going to attempt to address this tastefully and say, both the "haves" and "have nots" carry Coach bags and wallets as somewhat of a status symbol. This is not a unique instance. Being African-American, I can't help but notice the unusual correlation between Rappers (and hip-hop artists) and women--hence the interesting title. 

So what do Rappers and women have in common? They both invest in lifestyle brands and buy lifestyle products.

Lifestyle brands can be defined as any company that associates its tangible offerings with intangible benefits. For example, Jeep sells a freewheeling, rugged outdoors adventure that can only be obtained by purchasing one of their vehicles.

Lifestyle Products are the actual tangible item that makes the owner prettier, classier, stronger, or any other superlative you might think of. A good example is Costa Del Mar sunglasses, the sunglasses for real fishermen. I don't personally own a pair but it could be reasoned that if you're willing to spend so much on sunglasses for fishing, then you must take your fishing seriously. The casual fisherman would never spend $200 on glasses that annihilate glare, so one who would spend the money must think of it as either a status symbol, an investment or both.

So what do lifestyle brands and products have to do with women and rappers? Both women and rappers are more likely to buy products and be loyal to brands that offer added value by "meaning something"  either to themselves or in the eyes of others.
Some quick examples:

• Oil of Olay offers a chance at the fountain of youth, not just face cream
• Grey Goose is a premium Vodka from France but it is also a "guide to the extraordinary"
• Shoe designer Jimmy Choo doesn't sell women stilettos he's peddling the voracious confidence of a woman in charge of her sexuality
• An ultimate marriage of style and executive perks, the Maybach isn't just a car with a Trump-sized price tag
• With their tagline "Simply Perfect" Patron attempts to be more than tequila; it wants to be the halmark of impeccable taste.

Lets dwell on Patron for a moment and its competitor 1800 tequila. 1800 is currently running a series of ads that blatantly attack Patron for being all "lifestyle" and no substance. It the recent "kickback" commercial, the spokesman says that when he drinks 1800, he likes to "kick back and be himself"--meaning he wants to leave behind all the pretentious trappings of Patron's tequila and focus only on his personal preferences, rappers and popular culture be damned.

What should you take away from this? Positioning your product as a lifestyle can backfire. Your product could be labeled as a product socialite--fancy, attractive, well-known, expensive but hardly necessary.

While were on the case study bandwagon, lets look at lifestyle brand with an opposite connotation of Patron-- Budweiser.  As the Great American Lager, Budweiser sells a lifestyle too. One of good old American roots, mom, apple pie, and hard workin' salt of the earth people. Its uncomplicated. Its everywhere. Its America in a glass. What should you take away from this? Not to be afraid of going for the lifestyle sell. If you find your market and position your product correctly, you'll foster a real loyalty among customers that will lead to success. (it also shouldn't be over looked that price also plays into it. Bud is an inexpensive beer and there by a lifestyle brand people can afford to stick by)

I'm going to cut it short here and continue the rest of my notes in a subsequent post, aptly labeled "What do Rappers & Women Have in Common? Part 2." In that post I'll be detailing the intricacies of the types of people who buy lifestyle products and pointers on how to each them. Until then, Same Bat Time; Same Bat Channel!

A Day in the Life: Be Accessible

I had another post planned for today, but as I worked along bouncing back and forth between planning a birthday party and working on marketing materials for a client I came up with today's little tidbit.

Planning parties is really fun for me. I don't think I would ever want to do it professionally but if I was a wealthy socialite I would probably throw parties more often than I would shop. Since I'm not yet to the point of hyper-expendable income I try to organize gatherings in bars or restaurants, that way, all I have to do is send out an invite and maybe pay for a round of drinks and viola! instant party. One of my favorite places to throw a budget-soiree is a local lounge. Why? My friends are bartenders, the atmosphere is upscale but inviting and most importantly the space is accessible. By "accessible space" I mean the owners are approachable, friendly and hungry for business which makes the space feel open to guests, their needs and suggestions.

We've all been there. The bar you never quite feel like a regular at. The pub you take a couple friends to but never to celebrate anything. The restaurant you may eat at because its convenient but you think to yourself as you leave "why do they have a banquet room? I've never seen anyone in there." These are all examples of inaccessible space.

An inaccessible space can be defined as a place that makes customers feel like customers--not guests. Business owners miss out on a lot of potential revenue by creating environments that are not multipurpose [i.e. providing a service/product and building relationships]. Its easy to see how a bar or restaurant might make themselves multipurpose and accessible by renting party space, but what about the hardware store owner? Or the kitchen supply guy? They should take the initiative and build an accessible space by offering classes, hosting "members only" shopping or sales events, even allowing regulars an exclusive trial of new high priced items.

People like to feel welcome, like they matter and like business owners appreciate the money they get from their customers. Chains don't have that luxury but small business owners do and they should take 100% advantage of it to watch their business grow.