RT @Inc: Are leading and managing two different things? @jillkrasny http://t.co/sg3ZgSTvFz

Are leading and managing two different things? @jillkrasny http://t.co/sg3ZgSTvFz

— Inc. (@Inc) December 19, 2014

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Flipbook: Hot swag ideas from the 2014 LA Auto Show: http://t.co/jabxZ0MoEr

Flipbook: Hot swag ideas from the 2014 LA Auto Show: http://t.co/jabxZ0MoEr

— Whiteboard Promos (@WhiteboardPromo) December 18, 2014

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@WhiteboardPromo Need a blast from the past? Check out these awesome 80's gadgets: http://t.co/OwwmkwvJQh

@WhiteboardPromo Need a blast from the past? Check out these awesome 80's gadgets: http://t.co/OwwmkwvJQh

— Whiteboard Promos (@WhiteboardPromo) December 18, 2014

from Twitter http://ift.tt/1C3JzY3

Bags as a Brand booster!

Let's face it, we all love a good bag!  Be it a grocery tote, backpack, laptop case, or good ole fashioned duffle, we have a bag for every event in our day.

So, do you have a favorite bag, I am 100% sure that you do.  And, according to a recent survey, 31% of you have one with a logo on it.  Be it your favorite team, grocery store, or a recent outing at a trade show, the chances are high you got a bag with a Brand on it! 

You marketers out there, note that a promotional bag generates 5983 impressions, much more than any other promo item out there - so get your Brand on a bag y'all!  And for you California folks - paper or plastic ain't gonna cut it in the supermarkets, so look at Non-woven totes as your new favorite brand vehicle.

Can Facebook be your Customer Service answer?

The numbers say yes!  In a Q2 2014 survey, 67% of brands that had questions posted to their Facebook wall, responded to them.  That's a pretty strong figure for customer interaction, which shows the true power of social media and how successful Brands leverage it for full customer interaction.

There is always a "but" in this equation, and in this case during that same period, 87% of the Brands examined did not have their Facebook walls open for comments.  In other words, these Brands failed to recognize the word SOCIAL in its overall strategy.  We're now in an interactive world folks, transparency in your Brand is necessary in order to create trust - open up man!

So what industries excel at Customer Service interaction on social media platforms...the Airlines!  Yes, those lovely companies that now charge you for that man-purse or laptop case, are the best at social response.

So what does this mean to you?  Open up the lines, answer those questions and create a relationship with your customers!

For more on this article Read Here

Hello? I can't hear you! Four ways to get closer to your Customer's Voice

Listening... in business it's vital to understanding your customer's needs and pains.  As a salesperson, it is the key ingredient to a successful close of a sale.  In negotiation, the "he who speaks first loses" mantra deeply involves understanding your adversary's voice.

So, with all the chatter going on in this social media world, how do you get your customer to be honest with you?  As marketers, we thrive on data and feedback, but making sure the data is accurate and honest is a problem.  The noise of Facebook, Twitter, blogs, Pinterest, etc act as massive filters to your Customer's true voice.

What works these days?  Simplicity folks:  listen, be transparent in your open-ended questioning, ask permission, and by all means don't use today's latest and greatest buzzword.  The social media outlets are your tools, and can be utilized to get your customer's true voice.

Read More here

Surprise! Your Brand is a Media Company now!

What?  Not a funny April Fools joke Chris, we most certainly are NOT a media company.  We make fantastic widgets for crying out loud...

Not so fast my friend.  Look at your brand platform these days - website, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Google+, YouTube - all sponges requiring brand content and engagement with your core audience.  You are making videos folks, face the facts... YOU are a media company.

In the past, brands such as Tide, Coca-Cola, etc created aspirations for their core audience - i.e. the Brand trended the expectation to the masses - Good mothers use Tide, etc.  The Brand centralized the message back to its product/service. 

 

Nowadays, the customer is making that aspiration due to the immediacy of today's technological innovations.  Our focus as marketers is consumer driven based upon instant feedback received from - you guessed it - our Media Channels!  We are able to interact with our core audience in such a proactive way these days, that what is driving revenues - and Brand loyalty - is the content we create!

Read this article on how Red Bull has lead the way with this view of Brands as Media companies.