Posts Tagged ‘advertising’

Do I Need An Advertising Agency?

Aug

08

2011

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One of the most important aspects of marketing any business is advertising. Advertising is designed to raise awareness and convey your company’s product or message to the world. Most of the world’s most successful brands were built from the result of a strong advertising strategy. Successful advertising is the backbone to a thriving business, and achieving that is as simple as choosing the proper Agency. Whether you are a large or small business, the right agency can guide you by using the right tools and methods that suit your individual needs. It is important not to be above or intimidated by using an advertising agency, remembering that all size businesses can benefit and profit from properly advertising.

There Are Advertising Possibilities for Businesses and Budgets of All Sizes

If you’ve ever felt like advertising for your business was ‘out of your league’, or you feel that the costs will be to high, than you aren’t looking at the big picture. Agencies work with companies of every size, and the right agency knows that what matters is discovering the business, its values and its message and then conveying that to customers. The right agency knows that there’s no ‘one size fits all’ approach and won’t push you into projects that don’t make sense for your company. As a business owner, you should approach an advertising agency with an open mind, a strong message and realistic expectations. Even better about advertising as a small or medium business is that provided you approach it with the right attitude, you are sure to notice an impact and reach customers you may have never been able to

Work Together with the Agency

Don’t be afraid to share ideas and thoughts with the agency, and to discuss your thoughts and ideas for the progress of your Brand. After all, at the end of the day it’s your business. If you input, as well as draw from the process, you will reap more value from your consultancy and generate more revenue for your business when the process is over. While some clients expect the agency to sit and throw ideas around, it is those that offer some input into the creative process that tend to receive the greatest value from their advertising agency, which is directly transported into their profit figures at the end of the year and reflected in long term business value.

The Benefits of Hiring An Advertising Agency

As a larger business, it is important not to become wrapped up in your company so much that you can’t look outside for assistance. The properly chosen advertising agency can not only be a fresh set of eyes and an unbiased opinion, but can have marketing connections and techniques that your in house does not. Hiring an agency will allow you to focus on what your business is really about, while still accepting and encouraging your ideas and thoughts. If your business is a success now, think how much further a decorated agency can take you.

Why You Need To Rely On An Advertising Agency’s Expertise

Regardless of the business size, the main point is to advertise, period. Strong brands come from strong advertising, which spreads awareness of your product or message to a vast audience. Once you understand this, the possibilities can be endless. Remember that you are experts in your field, and marketing agencies are experts in theirs. Why not put the future or your business in an expert’s hands, one that can significantly increase your business and create a comprehensive strategy to keep it on the upward trend.

Customized Facebook Apps

Jun

15

2011

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Social Media, specifically Facebook, has clearly surpassed the phase of just being a trend and has become a business standard. Having a Facebook page validates your Brand and allows you to communicate with huge audiences on a daily basis. But simply creating a Facebook account will only get you so far. You want to grab your audience’s attention, and get them to share what they’ve found with the millions of others on Facebook by getting them to “like” you. Accumulating “likes” is one of the main goals of having a business Facebook page, so we use a customized application to entice every visitor to click that button.

Not sure why “likes” are so important? They represent Brand support, and are visable to countless amount of people.  Each “like” means you are reaching and exposing the company to a new person and their list of Facebook friends.  All of these people will then be directed to your site, which will produce more “likes” and create a contact list that will continue to build upon itself.  In other words, it has the ability to go viral, which means reaching a limitless amount of people for free .

 

Using the AJ Ross Facebook, we can explain just how custom apps work.  The initial page that a newcomer will see is the key in maintaining interest.  Now that you’ve established the goal is to gain “likes”, we have to give a reason to click the button.  Using a masking feature to blur the contents of the page underneath allows the page visitor to see what they could be experiencing.  All they have to do to have access to the page below is click the “like” button:  a small and easy gesture for them, but a success in the eyes of the business.

 

 

Once you attain the “like” then you have to make it worth their while.  A professionally and properly put together page will keep visual interest, and having business relevant links will prove that your Facebook page offers much more than just a wall to view.  Still using the AJ Ross Facebook app as an example, you can see that we offer a variety of Marketing and Advertising related links to not only show what the company is about, but also to offer experience and knowledge so the page visitor knows there is something in it for them.

 

 

Once the Facebook user clicks on one of the different options, another technique used in the app is the light box feature.  This allows the user to view what they chose, but without directing them away from the business page.  They get a brief overview of what the topic is, and have the option to download more or to visit our site.  Other than the company Website, you don’t want the visitor to be guided outside of the app and Facebook page, so using this feature is a way of having all roads lead back to your business.

 

 

This is just one example of the many types of custom Facebook Apps we can create. The possibilities are endless with what can be created, and the more unique, the more attention it will get. Having a Facebook App allows your business to reach an unlimited audience and keep them interested enough to return to the page. Remember, anyone can have a Facebook account, so staying ahead of the curve with a custom app will give your business a sense of validity and be sure to improve its growth.  Start taking advantage of all the great advertising benefits of social media, and contact us to find out what kind of custom app makes sense for your business.

 

Competitive Marketing

Jun

03

2011

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Something crucial to remember when creating a marketing plan is anticipating your competitor’s strategy.  You could be doing everything right: providing the best goods with the best services and prices, and yet your competitor could be outshining your business.  It’s because they are doing one other major thing right, which is properly advertising.  Being the best at what you do is key in gaining a reliable reputation, but it means nothing if no one knows about it.  Having knowledge of what advertising techniques similar businesses are using will help you be a step ahead of them, and possibly allow you to use their marketing to benefit your own.  Below is a playful example of how you take your competition’s marketing and advertising and spin it to positively effect your business:

 

A retailer was dismayed when a competitor selling the same type of product opened next-door to him, displaying a large sign proclaiming “Best Deals”.

Not long after he was horrified to find yet another competitor move in next-door, on the other side if his store. Its large sign was even more disturbing- “Lowest Prices”.

After his initial panic, and concern that he would be driven out of business, he looked for a way to turn the situation to his marketing advantage. Finally, an idea came to him. Next day, he proudly unveiled a new and huge sign over his front door. It read, “Main Entrance”!

 

Although this is a great example of competitive marketing, there are other steps that should be taken before you throw up a sign.  First, objectively analyzing your own business and all it entails: the goods, service, prices and/or whatever else you are offering to consumers, and compare yourself to the competitors.  Before you start advertising ‘the best’ of something, make sure you can back it up, and be prepared to explain why what you’re offering is the better choice.

 

It is also necessary to understand who your target audience is, and make sure you are gearing your advertising to how they would want to receive it.  Different ethnicities, cultures, genders and ages all respond to things in different ways, so it is important to speak to your key demographic(s).  Other tools would be to note what your competitors did during peak and low sale periods, and use their triumphs and failures as guides.  Another extremely important tactic is pushing through when the market is bad in order to maintain your business’ credibility.  Staying afloat during hard economic times builds Brand assurance, and you’ll gain more exposure while your competitors sink.  In addition, taking advantage of new and changing advertising methods will benefit your business.  You don’t have to fear social media, phone applications, and advanced websites because they are extremely useful marketing tools.  They not only expose your business, but they gain validity with consumers regardless of the product or generation.  If your product is a cutting edge gadget, then an advanced Facebook page will speak to your technology savvy customer.  If you are an established company with more of a traditional product or service, then a user friendly Website can be creatively designed to help portray your business as distinguished while maintaining its values.

 

Every business will have a competitor at some point.  Whether you are the number 1 in your field and you are looking to maintain your current status, or you are lost in the mix and want recognition in the industry, competitive marketing and advertising can make the difference between the two levels of success.  Like the retailer did in the joke, know your competition, look for a way to turn the situation around and don’t be afraid to ‘put up the sign’.

 

AJ Ross Launches the Facebook page for TCLMM Law Firm

May

26

2011

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“Let our experience be your guide” is the take away message from the newly launched Facebook page for Tarshis, Catania, Liberth, Mahon & Milligram, PLLC Attorneys & Counselors at Law (TCLMM).  The professional and sleek page designed by AJ Ross directs users to a customized Facebook application and entices people to click the ‘Like” button.  Like all Facebook applications designed by AJ Ross, it is unique to the Brand and was designed to fit TCLMM’s individual business needs.

 

Applications on Facebook are extremely useful and help give your Brand a validity factor over your competitors.  The TCLMM Facebook page was created as an application that acts as a Print ad.  It was purposely designed with their new Website in mind, maintaining uniformity and Brand recognition.  The application will not only advertise the company, but will also be a landing page for first time visitors to the site.  Having Facebook users go to the application page instead of directly into the wall allows users to learn about TCLMM from the company’s point of view.  This means total Brand image control and the ability to instantly engage the user, not forcing them to read through wall posts and make an assumption off of what they see.

 

TCLMM understood how strong of an advertising and marketing tool Social Media can be, and now took their Brand to the next level.  AJ Ross took TCLMM’s desire for expansion and transformed it into a strong way to appeal to their audience and build their Brand online.

 

Check out their new Facebook page, and Website:

http://www.facebook.com/TCLMM

http://www.tclmm.com

 

Web Standards Matter

May

25

2011

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The Web Development community often stresses the importance of following the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) code standards for creating Web Sites. While being completely error free is sometimes unobtainable (because of browser differences), the current wisdom is to future-proof Web Sites by complying with standards.

If you have errors, you may think, “but my site looks fine! Why should I worry about validation?”

Here’s why:

Web standards reflect quality . If your site fails to load, doesn’t work properly, or doesn’t look like it’s “supposed” to look, visitors will simply move on. Your competitors are just a click away.

Search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo use Web crawlers or “spiders” to traverse the Internet and index web pages. It’s important to be in this index so that people can find your site when they type in keywords. When a search engine doesn’t see your fantastic content because of an error, your potential customers may never see it either.

Having a validated Website ensures consistency between web browsers. When your Website is on the Internet, there is no way to control what visitors are using to view your page. They could be on a PC, a Mac, a laptop or mobile device—each with its own web browser. Using web standards is one of the best ways to build a site that will look consistent between platforms.

Pages that validate will also load faster. Dial-up connections and wireless handheld devices (smart phones, iPads, etc.) are limited in speed and it is important to have a fast loading page. The web is all about instant gratification; users will leave your page if it’s slow.

Web Sites that conform to web standards are easier to maintain. If any changes need to be made (and count on it, they will), Web Sites with clean code will be less costly.

Standard compliant Web Sites are future proof.  By adhering to standards, you will save time and money when you need to troubleshoot, debug, or modify your Website. The current recommendation has been the same since 2001. Work is being done on a new standard, and is expected to become the recommendation in 2012. If the new recommendation remains in place just as long, will your Website last through the next decade?

Your Website is a crucial part of your Brand and an important marketing tool. Make sure it’s working at its maximum potential. Whether you’re just joining the online world or you’re updating your old site, using W3C recommendations is an important technical consideration.