The Consumer Connection

 Connecting with customers is no easy task. Getting traffic is one thing, but getting customers to truly embrace your message is another. What are the best ways one can do this? I'll give you my own suggestions, and no, it's not by making top ten lists. 

  As most of us know customers today are different. Generation Y as we're called have of an emotional, informal need from a Business. Gone are the days of bad, cheap advertising that couldn't fool a five year old. We want or better yet demand more transparency. So open up with your customers show them your creative side. Inform them in unique, memorable ways.

  Emotion is a powerful factor in Advertising. Look at Disney for instance. That brand is timeless because of the way they get their message across. Regardless of your own opinion, there's a reason Disney World is more known then Universal Studios. Universal is pure entertainment, while good it's nothing you won't see on other movies. Disney is something only their own brand can deliver in the way that they do. Maybe it's not the perfect explanation but you get the point. Content is huge and Disney is King in this category.

 When it comes to informing customers I love the way Apple approached things. First off, they design their product with an easy setup. Second they know how to present it. They show what the good  features are with the product and they show how to use it. You see this in their product shows or in your own living room. It's a big reason why they can outsell any other hardware on the Market. 

 When I look at how not to do things I think of Microsoft. Here is a company that wouldn't know the word original if they saw it defined on the wall. Worse than that their ads are boring and product launches are bleh. I was watching Bloomberg this past week and while I thought the new Tablet looked good they just didn't make that "boom" impact that a new product needs. Personally I feel as if Microsoft has no ability to connect with consumers. That's what happens when your OS makes you billions year in and out despite not making a Hardware splash. Before you think in just saw Apple guy, I urge you to think again. I've always used Windows due to cost but I appreciate Apple's quality.

  So be it Nike, Disney, Apple or Lamborghini building a quality brand that customers develop a passion for is more effective then anything else you can do. Often times we want to create a Website or Blog, put Google Ads on there and away we go. I've preferred to focus on building a quality Blog with a consistent following before focusing on Traffic/Google Ads. Ofcourse it takes a lot of time and there's boom and busts along the way. But in the end it's what makes the difference. 

  Take your time and stand out rather then being the same noise that clogs our Twitter feeds all day. Needa ideas? Look up marketing articles from reputable companies. It's helped me and will hopefully so the same for you. Good luck everyone.

The Power of the Brand Mascot

Building a Brand

These guys look familiar? Probably. Now ask yourself how much you noticed these characters as they came into creation. As you can tell, Mascots are arguably the ultimate Marketing Tool. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, I think Brand Mascots are the perfect example. I can't tell you about the commercials, but I can remember the characters being in those commercials and I knew what Business those characters represented. Obviously  I didn't realize realize the core of their Business, but I knew that the Dough Boy had some really good Cinnamon Rolls and that funny Geico Lizard showed us that not all Insurance agencies are full of boring grey souls.

 When you think of the dominant brands, you can always relate a character or symbol to them. It makes your brand stick out in a world that has and always will be filled with too much noise and not enough quality content. This is a beautiful thing for the true Marketing Guru as it will only make your symbolism stand out more. Lets face it, we're not all great writers (I damn sure don't claim to be) but if we have something original and entertaining to show, our message will be heard.

The Brand

          These guys ring a Bell?

  The best thing about having a powerful Mascot is because so many Customers can have a memorable experience with your brand that way. Maybe your Mascot made them laugh, maybe it was a cool character in a good video game, etc. This is what drives Customer Loyalty, and those customers will make your brand explode. Your hear it all the time, no traffic is effective as Organic Traffic. You get Organic Traffic by giving the people what they want. So define your Brand and make it happen.

This  can be done with some good ol' Content Marketing. For showing off your Mascot, Visual and Digital Marketing is the way to go. 

New Site Coming Soon!

 Just a quick announcement, I'll be re-doing the website, tropicaletrade.com I'm hoping to be done within a week. I just wanted to let my readers know.

Yes I'll still  be updating the Blog, but a new site is on the way! :)

Building a Master piece

  I was going through some Steve Jobs quotes this morning, while doing so I found a particular quote that stuck out to me. It went like this...

“If you keep your eye on the profit, you’re going to skimp on the product. But if you focus on making really great products, then the profits will follow.”

 This gets overlooked so much in Business, ecspecially by small business owners just starting  which is why a good amount fail. Using a calculator as the only way to motivate your Business Interests is a sure fire way to fail. Only passion will make you put in the long days and sleepless nights.

 

  A lot of people would agree Steve Jobs and Bill Gates were rivals. What's interesting about this is that the two people perfectly represent what I'm talking about. Bill Gates is great at making money and all about the profit with his Business. Jobs on the other hand was always innovating. 

  It's pretty impressive for a guy that's mostly known for his Computers,  that he made more money from iPods then anything. This was a perfect example  of Jobs being ahead of the game and never looking back. Perhaps it was this insane work ethnic that caused a young death for Jobs? 

  We'll never know, but when you're an innovator (business, scientist) you're always thinking, always experimenting. It's this required trait that drives most away from Business and drives others to success. Innovators and scientist are like a homerun hitter. They may not have the highest batting average but when they hit one out of the park, big things happen.

Controlling your inner control freak

   I stand guilty as charged. I can be controlling, I demand perfection to a point where I've driven myself Mad on more then enough occasions. I've always been told, even since a young age, I was too intense at times when getting my message across. Others called this passion, but the the realists saw it as passion delivered with an intense, offsetting tone.

"10% of Conflict is due to difference in opinion.. 90% is due to tone of voice"

 I came across this quote today (how fitting) and it really confirmed what I needed to know. I noticed when I started out at times my customers almost seemed intimidated when dealing with me. I thought this was because they were skeptical of my services, but no. These were people that had already hired me . The problem was when we talked I had so many ideas/suggestions sometimes I'd accidentally dominate the conversation without realizing it.

 I've noticed when I would calm down and allow the customer fully express their wants and needs we worked together much more effectively. Real surprising right? I blame it on my adhd ;) it's the downside of having an analytic brain.

 This is typical among the business or creative types. Sometimes their message comes off the wrong way.  This happens because we know what works for us and sometimes we think it works for everyone else. While working with others it's important to realize this is not always the case, in most cases it rarely is. That's why whenever you work with anyone it's important to trust them. Trust is critical to any relationship, business is no exception.

  Marketing requires a lot of interaction with clients, associates, etc. If you can't work with others you'll never take that next step. If you're serious about your business you'll find a way to make this happen, I did and it wasn't easy at first. 

  I'll leave you with this, always, always do your research. Before beginning work with anyone, you need to be sure the situation will work out. Just jumping into the fire will end up getting you burned. 

"Before anything else, preparation is the key to success"

- Alexander Graham Bell

Social Media Marketing Tips

 

  The world of Online  Marketing is a vast one so standing out is how you're going to accomplish your goals. But what do you do to truly get the results? Every Marketer has their bread and butter that brings them most of their traffic. 

  In my own experience I've found communication and blogging the best way to get results. What I mean with communication is finding te most effective way to reach your clients. I've talked about message forums before. But social media simply cannot be ignored as many of you know.

  A lot of people refuse to put much of any budget toward their marketing. If you can price yours in the middle with effective planning, social media should be a big thing for you. I've had a lot of success with retail products on Facebook and I really mean it. If you do it the right way it's more profitable then a website.

  Lately I keep hearing all about Instagram as the tool for Marketing. Personally I've found Pinterest to be way more effective. As I said though, to each their own. I recommend adding text to the photo on either platform to get your message out more.

  Going back to Facebook, I'm sure you've probably heard of contest and all that. But they really are effective. Having people share to get one free item works out very well for you.

  Social media truly has become te Juggernaut of Marketing and these are just a few tips, there's many more to learn so don't hesitate to your research .

Let's keep things simple

  I've been reading quite a few different marketing articles today, and all I have to say is "wow".

The Internet marketing craze is in full swing and I'm starting to think were getting a little too technical. You hear all about the different methods of marketing which is good. However once people start to rely on Technology for results they go from being a Marketer to being a Spam Bot.

  This morning I read one article that was so simple a beginner would completely understand it. Yet I find the things in that article more helpful then all the articles going into anal detail about data and collecting this, or automating that. How many times did you yourself see an article bringing up something like this? And I notice that when I read these articles it's always the same, non helpful technical talk.

  Look folks, I'll tell you right now I've done marketing for a few years, I started by having an online shop then after some success I decided to open others. I've found that so many things you don't hear about like message forums, Facebook stores, auction sites, etc. A lot of this is way more simple and ten times more effective then just repeating yourself in different ways. 

 

  Business is not a complicated thing. You know your business is doing well when 2 things occur, 1.) sales and 2.) customers being referred to you.  It's that simple. It's not about getting thousands of spammed hits a day, yet I see people arguing that traffic = growth. Unless your content is better then millions of others, you need to give the customer more reasons to come back to you rather then good content. 

  I urge people all the time, take a few dollars less and always offer a customer a deal when starting. While doing this take care of this customer like you would a family member. That's how you're going to get your "growth" and sales to rise.

  I remember long ago paying a company close to $1000 over 3 months. After 3 months of no sales, they'd argue that atleast I was getting "hits". Yes, hits that cost me $300 a month and not a penny made off of it. It's funny because this same thing is done by other marketers time and time again and it's something  very much against.

  The funny thing is, after firing the company I remember opening a Facebook page on my own and giving this big scary marketing thing a go. In my first month from simple paid advertising I had hundreds of dollars in sales. Not big time at all, but growth had finally begun and for much less then what you usually need to spend. You would be amazed at what $100 can do when correctly used on social media. 

 So remember folks, don't let things get too out there when it comes to doing business. Keep it simple, and treat your customers right. As long as they want what you have, they'll be back.