By Josh Chambers & Ryan Moede

It’s easy to spot the two schools of thought in marketing and advertising today.  You’re either a "new school" marketer (you think Twitter is going to save the world), or you’re an "old school" marketer (you still double-click on hyperlinks and think TV spots are the future). The two groups don’t seem to communicate—and, worse yet, they actually seem to dislike one another.

In a recent discussion with Lisa Throckmorton from Speakerbox, we were talking about that very thing—the polarization of old school and new school marketing. Long story short, we decided it might be a good idea to get a few DC marketing professionals together with a variety of backgrounds to toss around ideas on how to navigate the current marketing waters—marketers who value traditional marketing, as well as who "get" newer online marketing. The "middle school" as Lisa called it.

Yesterday morning was our first gathering—and, we have to say, it was a blast. It was encouraging to hear other marketers resonate with the discomfort surrounding this polarization and hear their insight on why that is, and how we can move past it.

Continue reading "Our First “Middle School” Marketing Gathering"

With engagement the new name in the metric game for marketers, brands are rabidly trying all that they can to build sites that foster any level of engagement with their customers.

Some are well-suited to creating their own community, while others would be wise to invest in leveraging pre-existing social networks like MySpace or Facebook. (Mashable has a post up listing several recent initiatives, including social networks from Reebok and Disney.) Recently, even musicians like 50 Cent and Kylie Minogue have begun focusing their efforts beyond MySpace to create their social networking platforms.

Coca-Cola is one brand that has been throwing a fistful of darts on the social media wall - hoping for something to stick. After failing to see the value in last year’s viral sensation “Diet Coke and Mentos,” and somewhat lackluster experiments in Second Life among others, they’re gaining some traction in their latest blog. What Coca-Cola is learning, as are other brands that are joining the conversation with their customers, is that it requires a longterm commitment to nurturing those relationships. Relationships, that quite frankly, need to built on their customer’s terms.

Continue reading "Getting Social With Big Brands"

It doesn’t matter if you are Apple selling the “best media player on the market” or Mother Theresa selling a better way to live.  If you take more than five seconds to convey your message, the likelihood that your potential customers will stay engaged is .002 percent.  You can disagree all you want, but they probably won’t give you a second chance to convert them.  Understanding message and concept is key.

Continue reading "What Are You Doing With Your Five Seconds?"

I’m currently enjoying a book entitled Now is Gone by Geoff Livingston. In this book, Livingston articulately brings to life much of what has been in my head as of late--and something I’ve been talking about with my colleagues as well.

Particularly: I’ve been thinking that social media marketing is the future of marketing--or as I called it in the title: relational marketing. I know I could get in some hot water for such a dogmatic claim; but hear me out.

By “Social media” I mean more than simply the tools of social media such as blogs, Facebook, Twitter etc. Rather, I am referring to something similar to Livingston’s definition:

“Social media...is the democratization and socialization of information as well as the tools to facilitate online conversations. To put it another way, it is the shift from one-way to two-way conversations.”

Marketing has long been seen as information distribution to your target audiences. We gather info, we (gently) shove it down the customer’s throat, and then we ask them to say thank you and hope they want seconds. I understand that’s a bit hyperbolic; but it does have some truth in it. For better or worse (I happen to think for better), that way of marketing is quickly dying. Livingston speaks to this by distinguishing “audiences” from “communities.” It may sound like he’s splitting hairs; but it actually constitutes an entire paradigm shift.

Picture the last movie you saw in the theater (hopefully it wasn’t Vantage Point). As part of the audience, what did you do? You watched and listened; you didn’t interact--and hopefully you didn’t talk. Your opinion had no bearing on the movie’s content as the movie was already edited and produced. Accordingly, you’re only job was to take it all in and perhaps afterwards give it two thumbs up or down.

What do communities do? They engage in dialogue. People in community shape one another. Their opinions and ideas influence those of the others around them.

To return to the movie analogy; as an audience member you have no say over the finished product. However, as part of the community who made the movie, you had complete say. You influenced, shaped and created the movie (and hopefully, it wasn’t Vantage Point).

Marketers no longer have the option of treating people like audiences because people no longer have to sit around and respectfully listen to their message. People have choices. With the democratization and socialization of information, why would I accept a final product that doesn’t work for me when I can go elsewhere and help build one? Why would I continue to watch TV commercials when I have TiVo? Why would I stay on your web site if I don’t like it? Why would I buy your product when I know there are 10 other better options for less money? Why would I listen to a canned message when I can speak directly with the creator?

As Livingston points out, marketers no longer have the option of not engaging in community dialogue. Dialogue is happening whether we like it or not. We can either close our eyes hope they’re saying good things about our products & company; or we can help shape the conversation through our participation--and in turn be shaped ourselves.

We here at Viget Labs know that your web site might not be the sexy, sleek machine you know it could be. Here are some recommendations that will bring the type of gratifying results you can tell your friends about:

1. Get Analytics: Knowing what’s happening on your web site is crucial. My heart breaks a little when clients don’t track their site’s performance – especially because it’s free (see Google Analytics). If you need help, check Google’s list of Google Authorized Analytics Consultants, (we’re one) and just ask.


2. Get focused: Why do you have a web site? Do visitors know what you’re offering? Can your customers find what they’re looking for? Answer these questions, and then fix areas that aren’t achieving your goals and those of your customers, too.


3. Start Optimizing for Search: If none of your content is text-based, you are making a mistake. Have a link-building strategy and target keyword list to optimize your online presence for growth. Take the time to read about search engine optimization at SEOMOZ.org or one of the other 60,000 articles about it. Test your content’s performance. Substantiate your online budget with factual data.

This can be the year you radically improve your web site. These three tips will get you started in the right direction. Stay tuned for more.