Posted on November 27, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on November 25, 2009 by Scott Testa
Stores are stocking less inventory this holiday season, so Traci Lunsford decided to start her shopping last month.
“I will receive the bill in November and have it paid off by December,” says the Thornton resident, who has been using coupons and daily deals from Upromise.com to help curtail her holiday spending.
Marketing experts say zealous coupon clippers and tenacious bargain hunters such as Lunsford will reap the greatest savings this holiday season.
But they also warn that shoppers are unlikely to find the usual last-minute price cuts in the days before Christmas.
Why? To compensate for soft sales throughout the past year, retailers are keeping inventories low to prevent stock from languishing on shelves. Black Friday and Cyber Monday — the weekdays immediately after Thanksgiving — promise shoppers the deepest discounts.
“The more expensive the item . . . the more open the store will be to negotiating,”says Scott Testa, a business-administration professor at Cabrini College in Philadelphia.
“Consumers have nothing to lose,” he adds. “If you have money to spend, you will get as good a deal as you will ever see.”
Wal-Mart and Best Buy both advertise price-matching. To take advantage of it, shoppers should arm themselves with mailers and inserts before hitting the stores.
“Bring your laptop into the store,” Testa says. “Show them the ad you found on Amazon with a $999 price compared to their $1,050 and ask them if there is something they can do for you.”
http://www.denverpost.com/lifestyles/ci_13835889
Filed under: retail | Tagged: Best Buy, Black Friday, BlackFriday, Business, Cabrini College, Christmas and holiday season, Cyber Monday, Federal Trade Commission, Home Depot, Retailing, Wal-Mart | 3 Comments »
Posted on November 21, 2009 by Scott Testa
‘Tis the season for social media. Seventeen percent of U.S. consumers plan to leverage social media sites to assist in their holiday shopping this year. The majority (60 percent) will do so to seek discounts and sales, according to Deloitte’s 24th annual Holiday Survey.
More than half of social media users reported that they will also use these sites to research potential gift ideas (53 percent) and view their friends and family members’ wish lists (52 percent). Forty-six percent will research product reviews and 30 percent plan to share their own wish list. The study, which was conducted online by an independent research company, surveyed more than 10,000 individuals.
Mobile phones are also getting the call. Nineteen percent of consumers plan to use their mobile devices and apps to aid in their purchasing decision. Of this group, 55 percent plan to use their handsets to locate stores, 45 percent will research prices and 40 percent will look up product information. About a third will also seek discounts (32 percent) and research product reviews (31 percent), while 25 percent plan to make purchases with their mobile phones.
This is only the beginning, said Scott Testa, professor of business at Cabrini College. “The ability to do a lot of things around the shopping experience with smartphones is only going to grow and I think those numbers are going to go through the roof,” he said.
The most avid social media and mobile adopters were those aged 18 to 29 years old. However, older generations are also getting on board, as 33 percent of those 30-44 and 12 percent those 45-60 are embracing digital tools during the holidays.
http://www.adweek.com/aw/content_display/news/digital/e3i4cdea7d2a4bcd398938c093a21905c72
Filed under: retail, social networking | Tagged: Business, Business and Economy, Cabrini College, Mobile phone, Professor, Smartphone, social media, United States | Leave a Comment »
Posted on November 20, 2009 by Scott Testa
Verizon’s aggressive ad campaign to belittle AT&T has found its way into court documents. The company apparently made a deliberate effort to use language that would translate well for a mainstream audience, rather than couching its response to AT&T’s complaint in traditional legalese. The gambit seems to have earned it a plummy PR payoff, so far. Does this suggest a new marketing role for attorneys?
More than likely, AT&T did not forsee this type of response, Scott Testa, business professor at Cabrini College, told the E-Commerce Times.
“Between Verizon’s lawyers and its PR people, I would say the company is working this issue pretty well,” he said.
In many companies, lawyers and marketing departments have opposing goals, Testa continued, with the lawyers thinking defense and marketers thinking offense.
“Some corporate cultures are headed by marketers, some by lawyers. In this situation, it seems as though they are working hand in hand,” he remarked.
http://www.technewsworld.com/story/68672.html?wlc=1258721738
Filed under: advertising | Tagged: Advertising campaign, AT&T, Business, Cabrini College, Company, Market, Professor, Scott Testa | Leave a Comment »
Posted on November 18, 2009 by Scott Testa
China is infamous for clamping down on dissent, not only physically — as it did in Tiananmen Square two decades ago — but also electronically.
“The Chinese have some of the strongest censorship in the world,” on the Internet as well as with print and television, said Scott Testa, a professor of business at Cabrini College in Philadelphia.
In the Information Age, stemming the flow of information isn’t easy.
President Barack Obama, visiting China this week, has called for Internet freedom in China as a human rights issue. Obama told Shanghai students Monday that information should be free.
According to the Washington Post, Obama was asked in a town-hall style meeting what he thought about the Chinese government blocking several Internet international sites, such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, and critical news sites. “I’ve always been a strong supporter of open Internet use,” Obama said.
In response, Chinese officials Tuesday defended their policies as protective to national interests.
China’s online content-control strategy is a massive monitoring operation to spot forbidden content inside the country’s borders as well such information coming from outside sources.
While it’s often called the “Great Firewall of China” — as if to suggest a massive electronic barrier that repels online speech — the reality is a bit more nuanced, experts say.
http://www.twincities.com/ci_13811823
Filed under: facebook, google, social networking, traditional media | Tagged: Barack Obama, Cabrini College, China, facebook, Golden Shield Project, Scott Testa, Tiananmen Square, Washington Post, Youtube | Leave a Comment »
Posted on November 17, 2008 by Scott Testa
Filed under: retail | Tagged: abc, American Broadcasting Company, apple, Arts, Dramas, Hulu, interview, John Rawlins, Programs, Radio, Retailing, social marketing, television, tv, United States, video | 3 Comments »
Posted on November 19, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on November 21, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on November 21, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on November 22, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on November 22, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on November 22, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on November 23, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on November 23, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on November 23, 2008 by Scott Testa
I try to write about non-tradition marketing techniques on a regular basis.
One of the grandaddys of non-traditional marketing is selling your product through QVC.
I know a little bit about this company based on what I have been told by former employees, what I have read in the local news media and what a friend of mine has told me his experience was selling a product on QVC.
The bottom line is QVC moves tons of product, is a great vehicle for marketing your product and has a relatively good reputation in the Philadelphia area where I reside.
So the next step would logically be what would be considered the “QVC Studio tour” to get a upfront and personal look at the QVC experience.
So myself and my two kids treked out to bucolic West Chester, PA.
The experience was . . for lack of a better term. . odd.
We get to the QVC Studio and in the parking lot is this cool bus that QVC use to use to tour the country for “on site” broadcasting. . very cool but you could only see the outside there was no tour of the inside. . but still cool.
We proceeded to go in. First, you walk in to this lobby area which is very nice to buy your tickets.
We buy our tickets which were in my view a little pricey but what the heck its QVC . King of the Direct Response TV!!!!!!!!!!!
We wait approximately 15 minutes to go on the tour . . no problem.
Then we are met with our tour guide who appears . . lets say somewhat agitated for whatever reason.
Read more »
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: Infomercial, QVC, tour | Leave a Comment »
Posted on November 25, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on November 25, 2008 by Scott Testa
Those of you that are familiar with the Commerce Bank chain which had branches in the Philadelphia, New York and Florida area know they were bought and were rebranded TD Bank.
TD is Canadian based and had a small footprint in the Philadelphia area previous to the Commerce aquisition.
They rebranded every branch within a really short time and my gut is this was a mistake.
First the Commerce brand was well liked in the areas it served by most people (with the exception of rival banks).
Secondly, history tells us that at least in the Philadelphia area they really like familiar bank brands.
Example, approximately 30 years ago Mellon Bank of Pittsburgh purchased Girard bank of Philadelphia and rebranded all the branches immediately. Girard had a good reputation in the Philadelphia area, was around forever and did not call their ATM’s . .ATM’s they cutely named them. . “George”. . . (Lets go to George to get some money! You mean “4 finger” George who will give you a payday loan at 50%. No silly . . George the machine that allows you to get money 7/24/365!).
Disaster. . confusion ensued. . deposits went down. . you know the rest of the story.
Mellon learned their lesson. When they bought another institution in Philadelphia. .PSFS. .they wisely cobranded them Mellon/PSFS.
TD kept the Commerce spokespeople Regis and Kelly. . good move. . kept the tag line. .America’s most convenient bank. . good move. . Changed sign colors from red, black and white to green, black and white. . . not a good move.
Time will tell.
Filed under: Branding, Uncategorized | Tagged: bank, banking, Branding, Commerce Bank, TD Bank | 1 Comment »
Posted on November 25, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on November 26, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on November 26, 2008 by Scott Testa
Tomorrow is the traditional Philadelphia Thanksgiving parade which was threatened to be cancelled because the previous years sponsor Boscovs, a regional department store chain is in bankrupcy. Ikea at the last minute stepped up and sponsored the parade. Really smart move on Ikea’s part from a business and PR perspective. Sorry Boscov’s you look like the Grinch.
First of all thank you Ikea for contributing in a holiday season that looks dismal from a retail perspective.
Ikea has some roots in the Philadelphia region. Their first North American store abutted the Plymouth Meeting Mall in Plymouth Township right outside the Philadelphia city limits.
Their new store in Conshockon right off of 476 is much bigger. If anyone knows the history of Ikea it was started in Sweden by Ingvar Kamprad who started his retail career riding around Sweden selling fish off his bike.
Needless to say old Ingvar is now one of the richest people in the world. Ikea is the largest retailer and manufacturer of furniture in the world. (Hey Ingvar can I have an end table, one of those lamps and a 1/2 pound of that those loxs.)
Ikea sells a lot of furniture but its reputation for sturdiness has been suspect for years. (Next time you move check out the contract the movers give you. There probably is a clause saying something to the effect that they are not responsible for Ikea furniture breaking during the move.)
On the other hand the prices are good, the selection is decent, the employees are nice and the swedish meatballs in the restaurant are to die for.
Update article from other news source about Ikea
http://www.upi.com/Business_News/2008/11/13/Ikea_rescues_Philadelphia_parade/UPI-40811226624495/
Filed under: Shout Out, retail | Tagged: Boscov, Ikea, retail, Thanksgiving | Leave a Comment »
Posted on November 27, 2008 by Scott Testa
Apparently the first time in Internet history the amount of on-line shopping actually decreased.
So What!
Back in the day when direct mail catalogs first started showing up in peoples mailboxes the pundits said that traditional retailing as we know it (Physical retail stores) was going the way of the Dodo.
Guess what we still have retail stores coexisting with catalog marketers and Internet retailing.
At the end of the day people still like the experience of shopping in physical stores. Always have, and for the foreseeable future, always will.
And with retailers like WalMart considering the use of new technologies such as RFID they will continue to close the gap in efficiency with their on-line and catalog brethren.
My crystal ball says that within 10 years Walmart has rfid scanners in their stores which will eliminate the need to scan the items in the carts. You will go through a scanner that resembles an airport scanner and all the items will be scanned this will decrease the time at checkout and virtually eliminate items not being scanned in the cart.
Filed under: Internet, retail | Tagged: Internet, Internet retailing, retail, rfid, Walmart | 1 Comment »
Posted on November 27, 2008 by Scott Testa
I teach 120 undergraduate students who range in age from approximately 18-20.
I am always curious of the the products they use, what they prefer and what is on their minds.
I did an unscientific pole on what products they were using. When I asked about what MP3 player they used almost all of them have an ipod.
When asked what social networking site they preferred again almost unanimously Facebook.
Neither of these products existed eight years ago. These are the customers of the future.
Based on these numbers if I am the marketers of the competing MP3 and social networking sites I would be very nervous.
So much for the first mover advantage (I am also talking about that train wreck over at Yahoo).
Filed under: Internet, social networking | Tagged: apple, Internet, ipod, social networking, yahoo | Leave a Comment »
Posted on November 28, 2008 by Scott Testa
Dear Steve Jobs:
You are weird. You are odd. You wear the same outfit all the time. (Although I have been accused of doing the same thing. Hey its not a stain it is a brown tie-dye.)
Yes you are wacky but you and and the merry men and women at Apple are marketing geniuses.
Just when I was trying to forget about you by watching “The Office” on network tv (I am so old school), you pop up in my consciousness by having your products placed predominately on “The Office.”
I know all the stories of the Apple Public Relation gods who are masters at product placement.
Please I am tired of all that great marketing. Please just leave my consciousness. . I am tired of reading about you, hearing about you, talking about you, fighting over you. .
When there were rumors whirling around the Internet that you were sick Apple stock went down precipitously.
I understand why.
Love Scott
PS
Dear Apple lawyers I understand you take your job very seriously please understand that I mean this letter in only endearing terms this is in no way to be construed as slander just a bad case of hero worship.
Filed under: Branding, public relations | Tagged: apple, Steve Jobs | Leave a Comment »
Posted on November 28, 2008 by Scott Testa
I was reading the NY Times (the real paper one) and GM had a full page advertisement on what they were doing to turn around their business and why they should receive a part of the TARP bailout.
All I could think of is the stories that are being circulated in the news media that each one of these CEO’s flew to Washington on their private jets to present at the Senate Sub-commitee for the bailout money.
What are you guys thinking!
Didn’t you or someone on your staff think this out? In your defense it may have made all the sense in the world. Lets face it your companies are in dire need of help and the more time you spend on the problems of your companies versus standing with the rest of us schleps in airport security lines may have made financial sense. You may have flown in a team of executive who made that trip via private jet cost effective.
But for the love of God did you think of the repercussions this would have when it came to your image; and the perception that you are trying to portray to the American people and other stakeholders who are trying to support you in this bailout.
Lets look back in history at the last bailout of an auto company in the US. (At around the same time Britain and Margaret Thatcher bailed out British Leland which in retrospect was an unmitigated disaster). Chrysler was bailed out by you and me (the taxpayers) back in the early 80’s. Lee Iacocca and the rest of the Chrysler executives knew a lot about the value of symbolism and a positive perception.
To put it bluntly, they were PR geniuses. Lee took a salary of a dollar. Presented a succinct and logical plan for Chrysler to exit their financial malaise. Lee went on TV and other media pitching the plan, his cars and why he was the man to lead this charge! Man that guy knew how to spin it!
Guess what Chrysler, lived up to its obligations and paid back the US taxpayer all the money they were given before it was due. Lee did what very few executives do in this day and age. He under promised and over delivered.
Did Lee quietly have his CFO wire the money to the treasury. No way Jose!! He personally delivered a huge check to the treasury in Washington ala Publishers Clearing house with Ed McMahon.
Talk about symbolism!! Lee your the man!!
So here is the advice I would give the master spinmeisters at the big three.
Fly coach, come up with a realistic plan to get yourself out of this mess, cut your salaries and be very aware of the perceptions you are portraying in the media.
Peace out
They are starting to listen! http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123058397854440471.html
Filed under: public relations | Tagged: Bailout, Big Three, British Leland, Chrysler, chrysley, Ford, General Motors, GM, Lee Iacocca, Margaret Thatcher, perception, pr, public relations, Tarp | 1 Comment »
Posted on November 29, 2008 by Scott Testa
Filed under: Branding, Shout Out, retail | Tagged: advertising, android, Branding, cell phones, cobranding, google, HTC, privacy, retail, smartphones, tmobile | Leave a Comment »
Posted on November 30, 2008 by Scott Testa
Lets face it we are in a recession or at least it feels that way. I get approached by people all the time that they don’t have the money to promote their goods and services. I would say in times like this it may be the time to ramp up the marketing and cut back on other areas (I know this is easier said then done).
I like free and cheap marketing. I like hearing about. I like talking about. I really like to see it in action.
A month ago a person was handing out lollipops at my kids soccer game which had a coupon for a free slice of pizza wrapped around it for a new local pizza restaurant. I like pizza. I really like free pizza. This restaurant probably hit 500 people in one morning with this offer.
In the whole scheme of things how much did this promotion really cost them? Not much compared to traditional advertising. Guess what? I drank the koolaid. We are regular customer and we would have never know about this restaurant had it not been for this promotion.
The other day I received an envelope addressed to “my neighbor.” It was from a neighborhood kid looking for some babysitting work. What struck me about the package that was enclosed is that it had testimonials, professional looking stationary and a refrigerator magnet with both her home number and cell phone number. This is from a kid that is 13 years old. Guess where that magnet is? Right on my refrigerator. Guess who we are going to call next time we are in a fix for a babysitter.
Finally, I was reading the Saint Joe’s HawkEye newspaper. (Shout out to them I love reading the Hawk) I read an article about a student that started a cookie making business ala Mrs. Fields. I then notice that this same budding entrepreneur had notices on the bulletin boards placed in the hallways of the classroom building with an ad for her company with a tear-off section for her phone number. I was hit by two different forms of cheap marketing within 10 minutes.
What do these three examples have in common? They not only advertised but they left the prospect with something to remember them by. A lollipop, a refrigerator magnet a tear-off phone number tag.
My gut is all these examples have a very high ROI.
We are not talking rocket scientry. . just good common sense which at times is lacking from even the best organizations when it comes to marketing.
You are also reading a blog that cost me nothing. . nada. . so I want to give a shout out to WordPress.com for helping me market on the cheap! Other alternatives are the free social networking sites such as Linkedin, Facebook and MySpace.
Update:
Another idea is to approach your local schools hand out a flyer to local school children to bring home to their parents this is especially effective for neighbor hood organizations such as sports leagues and social organizations targeting this demographic.
Filed under: Shout Out, social networking | Tagged: Add new tag, cheap, facebook, free, Guerilla Marketing, linked in, myspace, Wordpress | 1 Comment »
Posted on December 1, 2008 by Scott Testa
Preparing for presentations isn’t easy. Even team meetings with your colleagues can be stressful and challenging. Few of us are true extroverts, and even fewer of us are comfortable with public speaking.
So how do you prepare for a big presentation?
There’s no straightforward answer. And there’s lots of great advice on public speaking out there. Some people recommend memorizing a script and practicing it intensely for as long as you possibly can. Other people suggest having key talking points and riffing on those. I’m not sure anyone would suggest going totally unprepared, because that would be tantamount to presentation-suicide … but from heavy-duty preparation to minimal preparation, you’ll get it all, and everything in-between.
Here’s my suggestion: Do what you need to in order to feel confident and comfortable giving the presentation.
If you’re not sure what to do in order to feel confident and comfortable, then I’d lean towards being more prepared than not.
Here are some tips for things you can do:
- Start with your key talking points. There’s no point writing a full script or presentation until you know what points you want to hammer home. Then, you can stick with a standard format: (a) tell them what you’re going to show them; (b) show them; and, (c) tell them what you just showed them.
- Write a script. I think this is a good idea. It lets you write everything out and start massaging the words the way you want. It also gives you a benchmark against which you can practice and refine things.
- Don’t get hung up on specific words. It’s unlikely that missing or changing any one word will totally ruin your presentation, so don’t worry about perfection. The only person that knows you “screwed up” is you…
- Find your speaking style. Over time with enough practice you can learn to speak and present in any style, but if you’re in crunch mode and don’t have enough time, just try and find your own speaking style. Find your groove. Some people are ultra-enthusiastic. Some are much calmer.
- Practice in front of people. I haven’t done this yet, but I’ll be doing it soon. If you haven’t given a lot of presentations this will feel awkward but it’s better to get over those feelings now rather than when you’re on stage. So practice in front of others. But be careful about taking their advice, especially if the presentation is fast approaching. The risk is that you try to incorporate changes you’re not really comfortable with, whether it’s in the actual script or in your presentation style, and you end up causing more damage than good. Given the opportunity you should seek expert help with your presentation, but be careful about how you take any advice, especially late in the game.
- Practice with distractions. It’s great to sit in a bubble with no distractions whatsoever and practice. You need the quiet time to memorize things and get a feel for what you’re doing. But I’m also practicing while distracted – be it by other sounds or visually (people walking by my office door, for example) because it makes me feel more confident that I can pull it off.
- Practice piece by piece. I’ve found it quite helpful to practice each section of my presentation in pieces. I’ll focus on one part, memorize the core elements, run through it till I’m comfortable and then move to the next piece. Then it’s just a matter of stringing the pieces together, which is easier.
- Practice hand gestures. If you’re giving a “naked” presentation (with nothing in front of you like a table, etc.) then you need to be aware of what you’re doing with your hands. And your feet. So think about your hand gestures and how they relate to what you’re saying. If you plan to move around, pace in sync with your words. I’ve been practicing this for a few days with great success. The hand gestures and where I’m walking are triggers cuing what I should be saying.
- Find your comfort zone. All the advice in the world won’t help if you can’t get comfortable with your preparation, practice techniques and ultimately, the presentation itself. Do whatever makes you feel comfortable. The more comfortable you feel, the more confident you feel, and the better things will go.
Filed under: sales | Tagged: presentation | 3 Comments »
Posted on December 2, 2008 by Scott Testa
We are in a recession. Money is tight. Your business is asked to give a donation for a non-profit. You contemplate what to do.
At the end of the day it may make more business sense to give a small contribution then to give none at all.
First if you are going to donate to a cause ask the person who is asking for the contribution what kind of recognition you are going to get for it. Are you going to be listed in a directory or newsletter or announced at the fundraising event. If not you should request as much recognition as possible.
If you have to limit your conributions limit it to those organizations who are going to give you the most recognition. If you are a non-profit looking to raise money you should find unique ways to give recognition to those organizations and individuals who give.
Whatever you do if you donate your services honor the comitment. I won an item a charity auction a few years back. The company was refusing to honor the service they donated. I went back to the nonprofit who had to intervene on my behalf. The funny thing was I needed a larger type of service from this type of company. Needless to say this is very shortsided, unethical and stupid.
For example, I know an individual who runs a fund raising event every year for a local non-profit. They are one of the largest and stable employers in the town in which they provide social services at no cost or low cost to members of the community. The vast majority of local businesses contribute something. They reauest donations once a year, even if it is as low as $10 or $25 of cash, gift certificates, donated items or services.
A local restaurant refused to give any contribution year after year. Internally the non-profit kept a list of the organizations who contributed every year. They published it in their newsletter and their intranet. Word got out within the non-profit that this restaurant refused to give something year after year and some employees took it upon themselves to not go there anymore.
Guess what. . they no longer are in business.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: contributions, marketing, non-profit, nonprofit, Scrooge | Leave a Comment »
Posted on December 3, 2008 by Scott Testa
The problem with getting a domain name today is that most of the names you desire are taken. I have found a number of tools that make the process of finding available domain names much easier.
1. Bust A Name
Enter a couple of keywords, use the included thesaurus by clicking on the blue arrrow in box #2, and watch the software combine the words into dozens or even hundreds of possible variations. You choose how many words to combine, what domain name extension you want, as well as prefixes and suffixes to add to your list of keywords. You can even plurize your nouns (pant -> pants), and drop vowels (flicker -> flickr).
Best of all, once a list is generated, you can sort it by readability, length or the number of syllables.
A lot of options but I had some trouble figuring out interface and how it worked.
2. NameBoy
My favorite for the ease of use and simplicity. Simply enter a primary keyword, a second keyword (optional) and specify whether you’re willing to accept domain names with a hyphen and off you go! NameBoy works on a cached database of domain names so it’s fast, but it also means once in a while a domain name you like will already be registered, so act quick!
3. 123Finder
Enter keywords to find available domain names, or browse a lengthy list of available domain names by their length. Looking 4-letter domain name? There’s 4 .com’s available, and 4383 .net’s. You can narrow down the list by only showing domain names containing or related to certain keywords, as well as whether or not they have numbers or hyphens.
Update here is another good site
http://www.domainexposer.com/
This is my second favorite of these sites. Super flexible but gives you both available domains and ones that are not so you spend a lot of time going through the list if it is long.
Another good site
Makewords
And another
Domainsbot
Filed under: Internet, Uncategorized | Tagged: domain name, finder, registration | Leave a Comment »
Posted on December 5, 2008 by Scott Testa
Are you preparing to launch a new product, or service? Have you recently, started using press releases? A well-written press release that is newsworthy can generate media exposure, new business, search visibility, web site traffic, and much more.
Writing a successful press release requires you to present your organization and your story with the perspective of news. Step away from the advertiser’s mindset and step into a journalist’s mindset. Cover the interests of your target audience and focus on why they care about your story. Journalists may publish a press release in entirety, but only when it reads like news.
Let’s go over the basics and then review a sample press release format. Following the standard press release format will increase the chances of having your newsworthy event being picked up by the media.
Basic Guidelines
When writing your press release use the inverted pyramid format, placing less important information further down in the release.
Structure your press release in block format by not indenting your paragraphs.
Review your press release and make sure it does not sound like an essay; it should be informative but appealing.
Keep your press release within 500 words; this should be enough to cover your news event and prompt people to take action.
Proofread your press release more than once. Step away after you are done writing and come back with a fresh set of eyes.
Writing a press release requires you to write a persuasive story that will compel journalists and consumers to take action. Our sample press release format is just a guide for the structure of a press release, but keep in mind that any story can be told from many angles. Try visiting the news sections of industry leaders Web sites or go to the newswires and see how others are telling their stories.
Press Release Format
Headline
Create an active and descriptive headline that will capture the reader’s attention. The headline should appeal to journalists as newsworthy.
Summary
Write a summary of your press release that helps clarify the headline, and describes what the press release is about..
Body (Answer the Where, When, Who, and What)
Lead Paragraph
City, State – Month Day, Year – Organization Name – Answer the “what” in the rest of this paragraph.
Include Quotes
After the first paragraph of the body it is a good idea to include at least one quote from an executive that discusses why this is an important news event. Add credibility to your press release; identify the people you quote using their title, and company name in addition to their name.
Answer the Why and the How
The second paragraph of the body should connect the first paragraph to more detailed information about the “why” and the “how” of the news event.
Additional paragraphs should contain supporting information, industry statistics, and quotes.
Call to Action
The last paragraph is where you can make a call to action. This is your opportunity to prompt your target audience to do something.
### (Use three number signs to denote where the press release ends)
Corporate Summary
Include a short summary about your organization.
Contact Information
Include the contact information of a person the media can follow up with. (Name, Company Name, Phone Number, E-mail Address, Company URL)
Filed under: public relations | Tagged: pr, press release, public relations | Leave a Comment »
Posted on December 7, 2008 by Scott Testa
Having a business weblog that provides good information for your customers while being timely and fun can add a new dimension to your Web site.
Blogs are a powerful tool for marketing and promotion. Because the entries are short, and often full of links, they are more keyword heavy than standard articles often are. Plus, being short, they are easy for your customers to read (and you to write), so they are more likely to come back daily to see what you might have to say on that day.
If your company is very formal, a blog is a place to show your customers that it is made up of people just like them. You can do this without becoming too personal or diary-like.
Using a Blog for Business
There are lots of ways you could use a blog in a business:
Frequently Asked Questions
If you get a lot of mail to your webmaster account, you can post the common questions up on a blog. This will provide your customers a place to go to see questions and answers, and as new questions come in, you can post them to help more people.
Promotions
If you do promotions every week or few days, you can use a blog to highlight them.
Contests
Daily contests and games are a great promo in a blog. They are fun, and bring your customers back.
What’s New Pages
If you add lots of new articles, information, or products regularly, sometimes it can be difficult for your customers to find out what’s new. A quick blog entry can show them what’s updated on your site.
What’s Coming
You can use a blog to peak interest in future products or projects. It’s also a great way to keep notes about what you’re planning for your customers, the entries are archived so nothing is lost either for you or your customers. Plus, if your blog tool has a comments feature, you can use that to judge interest before it goes live.
Photo Blog
Rather than writing, you could put up a daily photo for your customers. A photo and a short description can be very compelling.
News
The most common use for business blogs is news, usually about the specific topic relevant to the company.
Filed under: Internet | Tagged: blog | 1 Comment »
Posted on December 9, 2008 by Scott Testa
Social Business Networks inexpensively interconnect professionals online, in particular, independent entrepreneurs and smaller companies. Social Business Networks also give you the opportunity to showcase your experience and achievements within your network. If you are an entrepreneur or small business owner, you need to be literate in the current world of social networking profiles, tools, and online connections to stay competitive and promote your business.
Participating in social networking is an often-overlooked small business marketing tool. In the real world, our networks are hidden. Social networking sites solve this problem by letting you see who your friends and connections know, who your friends, friends know and so on. You then are free to contact anyone that interests you by inviting them to join your own social network.
If you are looking to expand your contact base, LinkedIn and Facebook are two of the more popular services that facilitate business-oriented connections. Facebook showed a 270 percent increase in visitors in 2007 over the year before according to comScore, a leader in measuring the digital world.
Here are 5 quick tips to successful social business networking:
1. Take the time to learn how to properly use the business social networking site that you join. Most social networking sites offer online tutorials. Many sites allow you to post your own user generated content in the form of blogs, pictures, slide shows and videos. Many users do not use the social networking sites to their fullest potential by taking advantage of these features.
2. Don’t let your ego take over and join in the race to build up a massive list of contacts to show off your “social power.” If you have more than 500 “friends,” take the time out to sort through these “friends” to be aware of the people you may be attracting to your network.
3. Build and manage your online reputation. According to a report on MSN, several companies are now using the “friends” on an applicant’s social-networking page as references. Not only are they looking at your page on sites such as Facebook and LinkedIn, they may also take the next step in contacting your friends. The old days of a page with three references and three phone numbers on it that you controlled are over. With social business networking, you open up your rolodex for the whole world to see.
4. Be professional. Type your posts, e-mails, comments or chats in a professional manner and do not use internet slang such as “lol”, “omg”, etc. Type your email, comments or chat messages as if you were standing in front of the person speaking face-to-face. Let’s face it; this could be your first impression with a potential client or HR recruiter.
5. Establish a Routine. When logging on to your preferred Business Social Networking sites, set aside a designated length of time to spend here. Have some specific goals in mind when visiting the site.
Don’t take a pass on the whole social networking trend. Millions of professionals are learning how social networks work, how social networking works, and how shared applications can be viral and ever-present. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to create a successful social business network of your own.
Filed under: Internet | Tagged: facebook, linked in, social marketing, social networking | 3 Comments »
Posted on December 10, 2008 by Scott Testa
Write quality content
It might sound obvious to most of us that your blog’s content has to be excellent. In many cases, however, bloggers write mediocre posts and spend most of their time trying to drive traffic to their blogs. Granted, they get a fair amount of visits, but those people will never come back. Converting one-time visitors into subscribers is by far the most important thing you need to do to keep a steady flow of traffic visiting your blog.
There is another excellent reason to write quality articles. The better your content is the more people will link to your blog. And as we all know, quality incoming links are the key to high search engine rankings.
Let your readers subscribe
There are two major ways people can subscribe to your blog: email and RSS. Give them both options. RSS is a great technology but a huge percentage of your readers are not very familiar with it.
Submit your feeds
Every time you write a new post, submit its RSS/Atom feed to the major feed directories: FeedAge, FeedRaider, FeedAgg, FeedFury, GoldenFeed, and BlogDigger. Also submit your blog’s main RSS if you haven’t done so yet.
Ping your posts
When you ping your posts, the search engines are more likely to index them faster. These are the ping services such as pingomatic.com and feedburner.com
Social bookmark your own posts
Create an account with the top social bookmarking services and bookmark each new post that you write. These are some of the ones I use: Digg, Delicious, Propeller, Technorati, Reddit, Google Bookmarks, Yahoo Bookmarks, MSN Bookmarks, Blinklist, Linkagogo, Wists, Kaboodle, Furl, Faves, and StumbleUpon.
Add social bookmarking capabilities to your blog
Give people the opportunity to bookmark your posts. There are several plugins that work for most blogging platforms. My favorites are ShareThis and Sociable.
Forums and blogs
Interact with your community, provide useful tips, and answer their questions. Become an authority in the field and invite them to visit your blog. Don’t spam them, though. Make sure that you are helping them, not just posting your blog’s link everywhere.
Use viral marketing
I think that all blogs should have an option to “Tell your friends” about it. Sure, your visitors can copy your link, open their email clients, and send your blog’s link to their friends. But if you don’t make it easy for them, chances are that they won’t.
Filed under: Internet | Tagged: blog, blogging, Internet, press release, social marketing, social networking | 1 Comment »
Posted on December 12, 2008 by Scott Testa
Who hasn’t seen some goofy video on YouTube hawking an insane topic? There’s plenty on YouTube that you probably wouldn’t want to watch, but there’s also a hidden marketing opportunity there. So says Michael Miller, author of YouTube 4 You, a recently released book that shares YouTube secrets. Here are three simple ideas you can put into action today.
1. Use Your YouTube Videos to Promote Other Products and Services
You can upload videos that function either as blatant advertisements or infomercials, or as “teasers” for additional services. If you have a product to sell, make it a how-to video to attract viewers, and prominently display your web page address or phone number in the video. If you’re a consultant and want to promote your services, try demonstrating what you have to offer potential clients by uploading a motivational lecture or a slideshow about specific business practices. Use the video to establish your expert status and then display your email address or web page URL to solicit business for your services. If you’re an author, read an excerpt of your book in the video. If you’re a musician with a CD to sell, create a music video. If you’re an artist, create a photo slideshow of your work.
2. Sell Product Placement in Your Videos.
Just as movie studios and television networks sell product placement in their movies and TV shows, you can sell them in your YouTube videos, especially if you have a track record of high viewership. If you need extra resources to sell product placements, you can use the services of Entertainment Media Works www.entmediaworks.com, a company that specializes in product placements. You can use plinking, the process of adding a link to a product or service to an object or image in a video, such as a jacket you’re wearing.
3. Sell Advertising Around Embedded YouTube Videos on Your Own Website.
All you need for this is a YouTube video or two, your own website, and a free subscription to Google AdSense. The key to this approach is to generate revenues from your own website, from traffic driven by embedded YouTube videos. The more interesting the videos, the more traffic you’ll attract; the more traffic you attract, the more click-throughs you’ll get on the ads you place on your site. Google AdSense will place content-targeted ads on your site, sell those ads to appropriate advertisers, monitor visitor click-throughs, track how much money is owed to you, and then pay you what your earn.
Filed under: Guerilla Marketing, Internet | Tagged: Youtube | Leave a Comment »
Posted on December 14, 2008 by Scott Testa
Print media is dying. They are blaming the current economy and the decline of advertising and classified sales as the culprit of their troubles. Here are some other factors that explain the downfall of the newspaper business.
Most newspapers are either very liberal or very conservative. Readers are growing weary of this. They want unbiased news reporting, not slant. By the way, network television news; better learn quickly from print media on this one before its too late for you too!
With the exception of the bi-fold newspapers, the “technology” and packaging has not changed in decades. Please name me one other “product” that has not evolved in what seems like forever.
Print media blames the Internet and cable news channels for their loss of business. To some point, there is truth in that, as the immediacy of the ‘net and cable is hard to challenge, unless, you actually provide your readers in-depth facts and knowledge that they cannot readily find elsewhere. Keep in mind that the Internet and cable news channels are also usually slanted, and only give superficial attention to the stories that they report on.
Today’s reporting is like politics, all about the “gotcha.” That’s not what readers want, but how many newspapers do you know that actively interact with their readers in a way that provides them with the needed feedback to better service their readers?
At some point, if printed media does want to survive, it must stop acting like the victim of a tragedy and instead start reacting like a boxer who has been hit with a body blow: get up, re-group, and fight back!
Update 12/24/08
Americans prefer news from Web to newspapers: survey
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: dead, newspapers, print, print media, traditional media, trqditional media | 3 Comments »
Posted on December 14, 2008 by Scott Testa
Post by Alexander Kinch
Let’s face it, Apple is “The King of the Jungle” when it comes to marketing. From their release of the first line of IMac computers, to the release of the new IPhone 3G. Apple always finds a way to have a strong Return on Marketing Investment (ROMI). As if all this success was not enough, they have found a new demographic to target, the “Green Market”.
Over the last few decades there has been a growing concern with our environment and the effects computers, televisions, and other electronic devices have on our environment. Apple has found a way to capture this demographic of people with their new line of notebook computers. The new line of MacBook notebooks’ casing is made from one piece of completely recyclable aluminum; they do not contain harmful toxins such as mercury and arsenic, which is found in most notebooks; they can run on the power used by one quarter of a single light bulb; and use less packaging material than most other notebooks.
Sounds catchy, doesn’t it?
Apple has become the “trend setter” of the electronics market and has really stepped its game up, yet again, with this new line of notebooks.
I am sure you have seen advertisements for this new line of notebooks and know a thing or two about them already. After reading this small blurb on Apple’s new line of computers I bet you want to check them out online and find out more so here is the link for their new line of notebooks.
http://www.apple.com/mac/green-notebooks/
Filed under: Branding | Tagged: apple, green marketing, marketing, Return on Marketing Investment, ROMI | Leave a Comment »
Posted on December 17, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on December 18, 2008 by Scott Testa
Blogger:
Manny Gonzalez
PARIS Technologies International, Inc.
mgonzalez@olap.com
In 1987 noted management consultant and author Tom Peters authored his third book entitled “Thriving on Chaos.” The book focused on what Peters saw as the successful management practices that businesses must employ in order to not just survive but to thrive in the face of mounting marketplace turmoil occurring at the time. Speed ahead to 2009 and while marketplace turmoil persists (thanks in good measure to the on-going economic recession) could Peters have envisioned the Web 2.0 explosion that is causing catastrophic chaos for marketers worldwide, to boot? I can’t answer that question. But, I do know that the chaos marketers are facing today is not going away any time soon so we, as savvy marketers, just may as well embrace the chaos and try our best to not just survive but as Peter’s postulated – thrive. I will attempt now to describe, in very broad terms, what I see as the key elements of a successful B2B marketing strategy.
First off, begin to think of your marketing planning in two ways:
- What do I need to do to gain leads?
- What do I need to do to create the right message?
By thinking of your marketing plans in these ways, you will be able to focus on the steps that you will need to take in order to identify the best way to reach your target market and ensure that you’ve crafted the right message for that audience.
Read more »
Filed under: Internet, social networking | Tagged: 2009, marketing, social marketing, social media, target market, web 2.0 | 1 Comment »
Posted on December 19, 2008 by Scott Testa
The reason we all write blogs and content for our websites is because we have something that we feel is important to say, and we want to get that message out to the public. There are a lot of badly written, boring posts and articles floating around on the web and most of us can’t be bothered to read them to get the information we need out of it. But, the good news is that I do believe if something is truly well written or entertaining that people will read it. Therefore, in order to get our message across, we have to make our writing more appealing to our readership. Fortunately, these few simple copywriting tips can be used to help you tighten your writing.
1. Plan Ahead
Listen, if you don’t know where you’re going with your writing, than your readers don’t stand a chance. Before you sit down and put fingers to keyboard, think about what you want to say and what the logical flow of your thoughts should be. Your writing should be orderly and have direction. If you’re looking for a great starting place, try this simple adage: Tell people what you’re going to tell them, tell them, and then tell them what you’ve told them. It’ll help lend focus to your thoughts.
Read more »
Filed under: Internet | Tagged: blog, blogging, content, Internet, tips | Leave a Comment »
Posted on December 19, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on December 19, 2008 by Scott Testa
LinkedIn’s popularity and relevance as a social networking site has increased dramatically since its inception. The site provides a great way to network with other professionals, and is a great resource to form and enhance business relationships. However, few people realize that there is an SEO benefit to LinkedIn as well. In the SEO world, keyword text links are king. Below are instructions for how to adjust your LinkedIn profile to include three text links with keyword rich anchor text (good for SEO) pointing back to your website. Once you login, it will only take a minute of your time.
To get started you first need to assemble a list of three URL’s and three keywords you would like to optimize for. For our example we will use our client Gould Cooksey Fennell, a law firm in Vero Beach Florida. Here is our list:
Keyphrase URL
Vero Beach Lawyer http://www.gouldcooksey.com
Vero Beach Attorney http://www.gouldcooskey.com
Vero Beach Corporate Law http://www.gouldcooksey.com/site/corporate_law/
Read more »
Filed under: Internet, social networking | Tagged: Linkedin, search engine optimization, seo, social marketing, social media, social networking | 11 Comments »
Posted on December 21, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on December 21, 2008 by Scott Testa
Post by Jessica Weyhmuller
How many people a day do you see using a cellular phone? If people are not making calls, they are most likely texting, and if they are not doing those forms of communicating they could be checking the news, their email, playing a game, or listening to music. There are close to a billion mobile phones used worldwide, many of which have Internet capabilities. What better way to take advantage of this, than to market and promote right to these mobile phones or devices (PDAs) … welcome to the world of m-commerce. This form of e-commerce activity is predominant in Europe and Asia. For example, over half of Japan’s Web users access the Internet by means of a mobile device; for them it is actually cheaper! In the U.S., it has yet to catch on as quickly, but slowly cell phone companies are beginning to target the high-school/college level demographics.
Read more »
Filed under: Internet | Tagged: cell phones, Internet, mcommerce, mobile commerce, smart phones, sms, ucommerce | Leave a Comment »
Posted on December 22, 2008 by Scott Testa
Headshots are very useful in humanizing a business and building trust. Who do you trust more, a corporation or a person? They often form the first impression a person gets of your company’s key people. Because you only get one shot at a first impression, you’d better make it as good as you can.
They don’t have to be formal – it depends on the audience that you’re trying to appeal to.
For business use, a headshot should give the impression of an intelligent, warm individual that looks trustworthy and approachable. They should look important while remaining likable. They should express vitality. Good eye contact with the viewer is extremely important – you want viewers to be able to connect with them and picture themselves doing business with them.
Read more »
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: ASSIGNMENTS, Branding, BUILDING TRUST, CORPORATE PHOTOGRAPHY, DIGITALLY ENHANCED PHOTOGRAPHY, EXECUTIVE PORTRAITS, head shot, headshot, HEADSHOTS, image, marketing, phot, PHOTOGRAPHY OF PEOPLE, PHOTOSHOP, POST-PRODUCTION | 2 Comments »
Posted on December 23, 2008 by Scott Testa
Companies need to utilize all disciplines of marketing to get the greatest ROI. Direct mail (snail mail) vs. email and viral marketing is always the question. Both can work in concert to build your list of prospects for your permission marketing program.
Most companies get their first email campaigns out to just a small fraction of its prospect base in hopes that they pass it along to a friend or colleague and hope that they sign up for a subscription.
To jump start or build your subscriptions you can utilize Personalized URL’s, (PURL).
With a PURL you can:
Develop cross media marketing campaigns
Build you email prospect base by utilizing a direct mail list
Quantify responses with real time reporting
Gather critical demographic information with a survey
Gather cell phone numbers for a texting campaign
Set up automatic responses via email or texting
Read more »
Filed under: Internet, Uncategorized | Tagged: email, email marketing, Internet, purl, ROI, spam | 2 Comments »
Posted on December 23, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on December 25, 2008 by Scott Testa
I am looking for a company, preferably online or web-based, who wants to have a marketing plan done free of charge by my marketing students. In the past the companies that have had my students do this have been very satisfied with the results.
The conditions are as follows:
You would have to come to Philadelphia, PA, USA to present at the end of January/2009.
Be available via phone and email throughout semester to answer student’s questions
Be physically on campus in May 2009 to evaluate presentations
I would prefer online or web-based companies for this term, but would consider any type of company if it was compelling.
Read more »
Filed under: Branding | Tagged: free advice, free marketing plan, marketing plan | Leave a Comment »
Posted on December 26, 2008 by Scott Testa
The concept of article marketing has been around for ages even before the internet has been discovered. It has been used by publishers to get free content from contributors in exchange of free advertisement. This saves both publishers and entrepreneur’s ample amount of time and money.
Today, entrepreneurs, especially those who don’t have the money to shell out for their advertising cost, are relying heavily on article submission sites like ezinearticles.com. They post their articles to these sites in exchange of free advertisement or publicity for their website or products.
Read more »
Filed under: Internet, public relations | Tagged: article, article marketing, Internet, marketing, public relations | 1 Comment »
Posted on December 27, 2008 by Scott Testa
Posted on December 29, 2008 by Scott Testa
- Many Newspapers continue to struggle those that have high debt levels will consolidate, retrench through bankruptcy, or good old liquidation. .continue trend of starting to limit home delivery or not produce “physical paper” and go with pure web strategy like the Christian Science Monitor.
- Yahoo gets bought – Maybe News Corp, maybe Disney, probably Microsoft. This train wreck has got to end. (What was Jerry Yang and the board thinking when they rebuffed multiple offers from Microsoft?) Read more »
Filed under: Internet, retail, social networking | Tagged: 2009, 2009 predictions, android, apple, Big Three, Branding, Chrysler, facebook, Ford, GM, google, Linkedin, predictions, social marketing, social networking, twitter | 2 Comments »
Posted on December 30, 2008 by Scott Testa
For Immediate Release
Dr. Scott Testa
http://www.scotttesta.com/
USA 215-779-3276
stesta@scotttesta.com
Marketing Expert launches New Blog
Philadelphia, PA – December 31, 2008 – Dr. Scott Testa, a prominent marketing expert and professor has launched a new Blog, Dr. Scott’s Cool Marketing and Business Blog at http://www.scotttesta.com/, serving those who are interested in increasing their marketing presence and brand.
Read more »
Filed under: Branding, blog, public relations | Tagged: blog, blogging, Branding, Internet, marketing, press release, publicity, social networking | Comments Off
Posted on January 3, 2009 by Scott Testa
Social Bookmarking is a very effective method of promoting a website or blog via the use of user generated content. If a submitted content is successful, this can send thousands of visitors to your site in a short period, potentially leading to numerous incoming links. This method of promoting content via social media sites is commonly termed as linkbait. Read more »
Filed under: social networking | Tagged: Del.icio.us, Digg, Internet, linkbait, reddit, social bookmarking, social networking, Technorati | Leave a Comment »
Posted on January 3, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 3, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 4, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 16, 2009 by Scott Testa
Amazon is one of the single most popular sites online and knowing a few details about Amazon will help you send a surge of new and untapped visitors to your site or blog.
As you know, Amazon is a buyer’s market place and is a very powerful search engine for products of all sorts, especially books. Now, you’re probably saying to yourself, “yeah, I already know that about Amazon, but how do I get my share of Amazon’s traffic?” Well, I’m going to answer that question in just a few moments, but first, here’s just some of the benefits you’ll receive once you’ve ‘Set-Up’ what I’m about to show you.
Read more »
Filed under: Internet, blog | Tagged: amazon, Amazon.com, blog, Cut copy and paste, domain name, marketing, Web Design and Development, Web search engine, Website | 1 Comment »
Posted on January 5, 2009 by Scott Testa
Search engines have the ability to drive a lot of traffic to your Blog or Website. Normally, if you’re going to get high levels of traffic it’s very important that the search engines can access all the information on them.
Read more »
Filed under: Internet | Tagged: blog, google, Internet, msn, search engine, search engine optimization, seo, yahoo | 4 Comments »
Posted on January 6, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 6, 2009 by Scott Testa
Cut costs or increase your income? By Rich Quindry
Many businesses foolishly focus on reducing expenses. Now, it’s true that you need to be wise, but how much can you cut and still stay in business? Probably the most you can add to the bottom line this way and still keep your doors open is 10 or 20%.
If you want to substantially increase your profit, you’ve got to increase your income, and you do that with marketing. Marketing is not an expense, it’s an investment. Paper towels are an expense.
Properly done, marketing returns much more in profits than it costs. If you were at a slot machine that continually paid back $200 for every $100 dollars that you spent would you consider putting in another $100 an expense or an investment? As long as your slot machine called marketing is paying off, you should be putting more money into it, not less. If it’s not paying off then you need to fix your marketing or fix what you’re selling.
By investing in marketing the potential increase in your profits is limitless.
Rich Quindry
Photography for Advertising
USA - 215-368-9260 voice / fax
“Digitally enhanced images that enhance your image.”
www.Quindry.com
Check out his blog at http://blog.quindry.com
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: deep thought, marketing, sales, saving money | Leave a Comment »
Posted on January 8, 2009 by Scott Testa
Networking has been a tactic for building and marketing businesses long before the Internet. Web technology and the mass appeal of making connections online makes social networking an attractive channel for businesses that want to extend their reach, credibility and influence.
Read more »
Filed under: Branding, Internet, blog, social networking | Tagged: blog, blogging, Digg, facebook, Internet, Linkedin, myspace, social marketing, social media, social networking, Technorati, twitter | Leave a Comment »
Posted on January 8, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 8, 2009 by Scott Testa
I got a call today from a friend of mine that sells a product that improves and helps people with hemorrhoids (yes, hemorrhoids and yes it is a serious problem that a lot of people have).
She said to me how can I get the name of my product and company publicized the cheapest, fastest and easiest way with the most impact in a short period of time.
Read more »
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: blog, free, marketing, press release, publicity, social bookmarking | 1 Comment »
Posted on January 10, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 10, 2009 by Scott Testa
Are you tired of sending out emails that do not have your website or blog address in it.
For example, my old personal email address was stesta97@gmail.com my new one is stesta@scotttesta.com.
This way every time I send an email it promotes my blog.
You have to own a domain but they are cheap. I use GoDaddy and set it up within ten minutes.
Previously Yahoo mail allowed you to do this but charged for it.
Google now does it for free.
Just go to Google Apps and sign up.
Filed under: Branding, Internet, Uncategorized | Tagged: Branding, email, gmail, google, google apps | Leave a Comment »
Posted on January 10, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 12, 2009 by Scott Testa
A Rant About Some Social Media Advocates by Lewis Green, Founder & Managing Principal – L&G Business Solutions
I am frustrated by some social media (SM) advocates (evangelists), who have little to no experience within corporations or business generally, telling businesses what social media is, how it should be used and, most of all, trying to convince smart, experienced marketers, communication’s specialists and C-level executives that social media is an elixir for what ails them.
Read more »
Filed under: Branding, social networking | Tagged: accountability, advise, Amber Naslund, business experience, consulting, costs, responsibility, revenues | 1 Comment »
Posted on January 14, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 15, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 15, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 15, 2009 by Scott Testa
Filed under: Internet, Shout Out, blog | Tagged: blog, blogging, Business, consulting, Internet Marketing, marketing, Marketing and Advertising, On the Web, Shout, Weblogs | Leave a Comment »
Posted on January 18, 2009 by Scott Testa
Post by Scott Cunningham
TheReferralAdvisor.com Your LinkedIn profile should be thought of as a marketing tool. Think about what your objectives are on LinkedIn and update your profile accordingly.
For example, do you want to use LinkedIn to…
- find a job
- generate leads & referrals
- find an investor
- find referral partners
- find subscribers for your email newsletter
Because many people haven’t determined how to accomplish their objectives with LinkedIn, they tend to provide only the basic information.
The purpose of this is to take you beyond the basics and show you how to get the most from your LinkedIn profile. Therefore, I have assumed that you have already provided the basic information on your profile.
Read more »
Filed under: social networking | Tagged: Business networking, facebook, Linkedin, marketing, myspace, On the Web, Social network, Web Design and Development, Web search engine, Website | 26 Comments »
Posted on January 19, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 19, 2009 by Scott Testa
Zemanta is a content suggestion engine. It provides tools for bloggers to make their work of gathering and filtering information easier. Zemanta enable a blogger to have his or her blog post ’spiced up’ with just a few clicks. This plug-in helps to find relevant content from all over the web delivered instantly as you blog. This plug-in works smarter with instant smart links, pictures, tags, related articles, and more. It supports Mozilla Firefox 2 and 3, and Internet Explorer 6 and 7. Images are suggested from Wikimedia Commons, Flickr and various stock photo providers. They are suggested based on contextual comparison of the text and the image’s title, description and articles they were used in originally.
Read more »
Filed under: Internet, blog | Tagged: blogger, Flickr, Internet Explorer, LiveJournal, Mozilla Firefox, TypePad, Wikimedia Commons, Zemanta | 4 Comments »
Posted on January 23, 2009 by Scott Testa
Filed under: Internet | Tagged: Advertising mail, Business, Direct mail, E-mail, E-mail filtering, E-mail marketing, Electronic mailing list, email, email marketing, Internet Marketing, marketing, Opt in e-mail, spam | 2 Comments »
Posted on January 20, 2009 by Scott Testa
Filed under: Guerilla Marketing | Tagged: Barack Obama, Business, consulting, Inauguration, Inauguration Day, Internet Marketing, Kelly Moore, Market, marketing, Marketing and Advertising, Marketing Services, public relations, publicity, US, Wall Street, web 2.0, Weblogs | 1 Comment »
Posted on January 23, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 23, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 23, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 24, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 25, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 27, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 27, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on January 29, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 1, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 1, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 1, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 2, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 2, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 4, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 8, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 7, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 13, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 16, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 15, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 12, 2009 by Scott Testa
Those of you who have read my posts, taken my classes, heard me speak or read my interviews know how I historically “beat up” traditional media. Most newspapers as we know it are moving to the web, merging, becoming non-profits or simply closing. The day of having your local newspaper delivered to you in the morning is slowly coming to a close. Don’t shoot the messenger I have two papers physically delivered to my home and read another during the day.
Below is an article about how Sports Illustrated broke the Alex Rodriguez steroids debacle that quite frankly states about the best reasons I can think of for keeping traditional media sources alive and thriving.
I also would like to point out that traditional media does not always get it right. For example, the Monica Lewinsky/Bill Clinton scandal was not broken by traditional media but by a blogger. So ultimately there are two sides to this argument. Have fun. . thanks for reading . .If you have something to say post it. . If you have a lot to say let me know and I will give you your own post. . take care . . .Scott
How Sports Illustrated Nailed A-Rod, And Why It May Not Happen Again
Filed under: traditional media | Tagged: Alex Rodriguez, Baseball, New York Yankees, Newspaper, Sports Illustrated, Steroid, Texas Rangers | 2 Comments »
Posted on February 21, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 17, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 19, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 14, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 17, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 18, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 19, 2009 by Scott Testa
Here is a great article written by Teresa Burns of Saint Joseph’s University
Facebook Advertising
Over the past few years Facebook has gone from a college social network for sharing pictures and friend requesting to a networking space for business promotion, advertising, and multimedia interaction. With over 175 million active users, “facebookers” spend about 3 billion plus hours a day logged onto the site. Not only are college students and teenagers fully engaged in the Facebook phenomenon, but adults and professionals also make up a large portion of Facebook users. Even though the site began five years ago as a social platform for college students, surprisingly the largest growing demographic is those 30 years and older. Recently businesses have caught on to the growing popularity creating over 100,000 business pages and using Facebook as a networking plug for their company or self-promotion. Facebook offers many ways to spread the word about a growing business and pulling people into the brand.
Read more »
Filed under: facebook, social networking | Tagged: advertising, Business, facebook, Facebook Events, marketing, On the Web, Online Communities, Social network | 2 Comments »
Posted on February 19, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 22, 2009 by Scott Testa
The Most Innovative Companies in Advertising & Marketing
- Crispin Porter + Bogusky: New clients including Best Buy, Hulu, Microsoft, and Old Navy have flocked to the ad shop that made Burger King cool.
- TBWA\Worldwide: TBWA’s Media Arts Lab’s “Get a Mac” tag team continues to define the brand battle of the 21st century.
- Barbarian Group: The scrappy digital production shop behind the Subservient Chicken is now an interactive lab for companies such as Adobe and CNN.
- AKQA: Advertising at this boundary-crossing agency spans fuel-efficiency apps for Fiat, alternate-reality games for McDonald’s, and sneaker-design tools for Nike.
- Naked: The media-agnostic British shop has grown 80% in New York with clients such as Johnson & Johnson and Nokia.
- AdMob: The two-year-old mobile ad network had a banner year and landed $17 million of funding from Sequoia Capital.
- Saatchi & Saatchi S: Former Sierra Club prez-turned-Wal-Mart consultant Adam Werbach gained access to huge companies after Saatchi & Saatchi bought his firm.
- Goodby, Silverstein & Partners: The San Francisco-based agency stretched far beyond display ads, including a Wario Wii ad that demolished its own YouTube page.
- 42 Entertainment: The stealth multi-platform marketers built buzz for The Dark Knight with an alternate-reality campaign.
- Obscura Digital: This band of projectionists turns the world into a billboard for brands including GM, Google, and Oracle.
Filed under: Guerilla Marketing, advertising, social networking, traditional media | Tagged: advertising, Biz Stone, Business, Crispin Porter + Bogusky, google, marketing, Marketing and Advertising, Microsoft, paid, Saatchi & Saatchi, Sequoia Capital, Subservient Chicken, twitter, Youtube | 4 Comments »
Posted on March 2, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on February 25, 2009 by Scott Testa
In 2004, Mark Zuckerburg launched the beginnings of Facebook for his peers at Harvard University to stay connected with each other. Little did he know that it would soon become a multi-million dollar business and one of the most popular social networking sites in the world. Facebook allows millions of its users, such as me, to interact and stay connected through photos, wall posts, profiles, messages, and even status updates. Today, even older generations, such as my relatives, are beginning to find that online social networking is the new fad of social networking. Everyone’s doing it. Audiences across the globe cannot seem to stop talking about it.
Facebook not only attracts users for communicating with friends and family, but also it has been quite common for companies to increase their efficiency and productivity in advertising. Facebook for businesses is a powerful marketing tool in today’s world. These companies are able to attract different target audiences from teenagers to grandparents. This helps these businesses to increase the variety of their demographics.
Recently, in the past year or two, I have realized that Facebook has started using virtual marketing techniques to attract more users. This social network sells spaces for banner ads along the sides of the website to businesses. These businesses have begun to use these ads to draw customers’ attention to their products. The ads are placed on certain pages determined by the data collected through your interests, location, groups, etc. Even if we don’t direct our focus at the ad, subconsciously our brain sees this picture when scrolling through a person’s profile. Personally, I think it’s a great way to increase product awareness and attract new customers.
Businesses have also begun to network by creating application and groups for their companies’ products. By creating profiles with videos, product updates, and descriptions of the company, businesses will expand their social media marketing. Social networking on Facebook helps create interaction between employees and their customers. Through the focus on virtual marketing, business will be able to build their brand name.
Checking Facebook multiple times a day has become an addiction for users across the globe. With the continued success of marketing through online ads and Facebook profiles, I believe this online social networking site will help businesses prosper and attract new customers. So if you have business, I recommend Facebook as a way to target an audience in today’s technological world.
Filed under: facebook | Tagged: advertising, Business, facebook, Harvard University, Mark Zuckerberg, Online advertising, Social network, Social network service | 3 Comments »
Posted on February 26, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 1, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 9, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 3, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 4, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 7, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 5, 2009 by Scott Testa
Hi Dr. Testa – I know you’ve followed the “Hang in There Jack’ campaign, so wanted to share with you the latest news from Jack in the Box – as the company unveils the pay-off from its Super Bowl TV ad, which centers around several brand-reinvention initiatives. While many companies invested in Super Bowl ads, Jack in the Box continues to enjoy pay-off on the Super Bowl launch of its ‘Hang In There Jack’ campaign through social networking and online tactics that have gained an extensive fan following.
The Hang In There Jack campaign, which launched with Jack in the Box’s iconic founder – Jack – getting hit by a bus on Super Bowl Sunday, is coming to an end this week as Jack wakes from his coma and announces several brand re-invention programs, including a new logo and website.
While the campaign included traditional advertising, it was anchored online at HangInThereJack.com and on Jack’s Facebook and Twitter pages. The campaign videos were viewed more than 4.3 million times, Jack received more than 77,000 get-well text and video wishes, and more than 67,000 fans and followers via website, Twitter and Facebook sign-ups.
While Jack in the Box is a regional quick-serve restaurant chain, its campaign has gained national reach for the brand, and its online presence now rivals some industry challengers.
I’ve included the full release below for your review.
Read more »
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: advertising, Business, facebook, Fast food restaurant, Jack in the Box, Super Bowl, television, Television advertisement | 2 Comments »
Posted on March 11, 2009 by Scott Testa
Hi Dr. Testa,
I came across your site today and found your ideas for marketers to be very helpful. I am working with Pitney Bowes
and wanted to let you know about the marketing resources available on the Pitney Bowes Connections Center.
The Pitney Bowes Connection Center was established to help professionals build stronger connections with their customers through the use of various professional insights and opportunities. The site features white papers, Webinars, podcasts, and other resources to assist marketing executives in their professional development. All resources on the site are free and can be shared with colleagues and customers.
Please take a moment to review the Connections Center at http://www.pbconnect.com
. I hope that after reviewing the variety of resources and events found on the site you will share this information with your readers, helping them to strengthen their careers through the sharing of information.
Please feel free to reach out to me with any questions. I hope to hear from you soon.
Best,
Filed under: Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
Posted on March 18, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 15, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 13, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 16, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 19, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 13, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 20, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 22, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 9, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on March 23, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 7, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 6, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 7, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 9, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 13, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 14, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 15, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 24, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on April 25, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on April 16, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 17, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 21, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on April 22, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on April 21, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on April 20, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on April 26, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on April 20, 2009 by sjusustainabilityclub
Filed under: Guerilla Marketing, Internet, advertising, blog, facebook, traditional media | Tagged: green, marketing, powerdownfortheplanet, powerdownfortheplanet.org, sju, sju sustainability club, sustainability, video competition | Leave a Comment »
Posted on April 21, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 23, 2009 by sjusustainabilityclub
Filed under: Guerilla Marketing, Internet, advertising, traditional media | Tagged: Arts, Company, Entertainment, Recordings, Shopping, video, Videos and DVDs, Youtube | 3 Comments »
Posted on April 24, 2009 by sbtrackstar13
Posted on April 29, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on April 29, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on May 1, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on April 29, 2009 by sbtrackstar13
Posted on April 29, 2009 by Scott Testa
It is official – I am an Evil Genius! -Sorry it is at the end of this article – http://ping.fm/CBIPK
Filed under: retail | Tagged: Austin Powers, Evil Genius | Leave a Comment »
Posted on May 3, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on April 30, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on May 2, 2009 by sbtrackstar13
Filed under: Branding, advertising, public relations, retail, sales | Tagged: Beverage, Business, Coffee, Coffeehouse, Dunkin Donuts, McDonald, Recession, Starbucks | 2 Comments »
Posted on May 2, 2009 by Scott Testa
A Low-Tech Solution to a Hi-Tech Kids Growth We shower our kids with the latest and greatest in high tech devices – electronic games, mini-computers, video devices and more – all with a mind that we are preparing them for a society that is increasingly focused on information and content management. But not all kids will grow up to be the information managers and developers of tomorrow. Many others have interest in working with their hands creating, molding, and building the world around them. This reality hits home as we embark on a new era of reconstruction, largely attributed to the stimulus spending for public works and infrastructure projects. Innovation is manifested in many ways. One recent discovery in the toy arena for children age 5 and over is the Handtrux® Backhoe, manufactured in the USA by Ten Ton Toys, a division of EVERGREENRIVER Media Holdings (www.handtruxtoys.com). This is a cool toy that enables kids to insert an arm into the toy and use low-tech hand power to manipulate the backhoe’s bucket. It has a patented action lever to simulate digging like the giants on construction sites. It’s perfect for summertime play at the beach, or in the backyard for hours of constructive playtime. With increasing demand from toy retailers and retail chains, the company plans to release the Handtrux® Bulldozer and Handtrux® Dump Truck, both equipped with the Handraulic Power GRIP™, by late summer. Investors are being sought. Oh, did I mention the Backhoe has adult applications for gardening and for industry? Picked by Playthings.com as a Toy of the Week, the Handtrux® Backhoe is an example of how low-tech solutions can spark innovation. For more information email: info@handtruxtoys.com.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: Business, Consultants, Content management, Dump truck, Shopping, Site Management, Toys and Games, United States | 1 Comment »
Posted on May 2, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on May 7, 2009 by lingp
Whether you’re writing a brochure, copy for a newspaper ad, a script for a radio announcement or a page or blog for your web site, there are some tried and true techniques that can help you make sure that your copy gets the results you’re looking for.
As I work with clients to either coach them through the copywriting process or write copy for them, I offer some very practical advice that – I hope – helps them achieve their objectives.
Think about writing copy as making a sales pitch to a customer. Your goal is to persuade that customer to do something – most likely to purchase your product or service. Here’s are 10 tips from Strategic Communications on how to write effective copy:
#1: Put yourself in the consumer’s shoes.
People don’t take action unless there is a reason to do so. “What’s in it for me” may seem like a selfish motivation but it is, nonetheless, human nature. In order to effectively persuade a consumer, you need to put yourself in their place and consider why what you have to offer meets their needs. This should not be a quick exercise or one that is taken lightly. Spend some time to really think about the appeals that you could make that would truly resonate with your target audience.
#2: Make it as long as you need to.
Ignore anything you hear about recommended length of copy. There are no hard and fast rules. Your copy simply needs to be as long as necessary to convey your key selling points. That doesn’t mean, though, that you should ramble on and on. No. You should identify 3-5 key points that directly relate to customer needs and then clearly and concisely provide enough detail about your product or service to convince the customer to take action.
#3: Keep it simple.
Whether your target audience is teenagers or physicians, you need to convey a simple message. Your audience is busy and your message is competing with literally hundreds of other messages and distractions. Know the points you want to make and make them simply and clearly. Edit your copy mercilessly so that it contains only those “need to know” elements that will guide the consumer in making a purchase decision.
#4: Convert features to benefits.
Too often copy focuses on the features of a product rather than its benefits. What’s the difference? Features are the attributes of a product or service – a statement of fact. For example: “XYZ orange juice has calcium.” Benefits, on the other hand, answer the all-important question of “What’s in it for me?” In this case: “XYZ orange juice has calcium to help you build strong bones.” Make sure that your copy goes beyond a description of features to clearly focus on the benefits for consumers. What’s in it for them?
#5: Don’t be an “also ran.”
Make sure that you distinguish yourself from your competition when you’re writing copy. Spend some time reviewing the advertising of your competitors. Note their key copy points. Note the benefits they focus on. Then be different. You’re trying to convince consumers to pick your product or service over the other options available to them. That means differentiating yourself.
#6: Be consistent.
All of your marketing communication needs to be consistent to be effective. It’s the cumulative impact of your communication that will eventually make an impact with consumers. That’s why it’s so important that you use consistent themes and messages in all of your advertising. That consistency will help to reinforce your product benefits; continued emphasis on the same points will ultimately lead to sales.
#7: Don’t forget the details.
Remember, your copy is your sales pitch. But unlike a real sales pitch you don’t have the luxury of responding to any questions that the potential customer might have as he or she reads or listens to your pitch. That’s why your copy needs to include all of the key points and information necessary to help the consumer make a decision. Spend some time thinking of the potential customers that consumers might have about your product or service – then make sure you’ve provided answers to these questions in your copy.
#8: Consider the “look.”
When you’re writing copy for the web or for print – newspaper or magazine ads or brochures – your copy will be working in concert with graphic elements. These elements can help to drive home your point or they can serve as distractions, or worse, detractors from the copy. Make sure you’re considering the “look” of your copy and how it relates to graphic elements, noting how the reader’s eye is likely to “track” through the copy.
#9: Read it out loud!
Remember your copy is your “sales pitch.” Whether you’re writing a radio script which will be verbalized, or copy for a web page, you need to consider how it “sounds.” The best way to do this is to read your copy out loud. You’ll be surprised at the little “glitches” you’ll notice when you do this. It’s a simple technique to tighten and improve your sales copy.
#10: Know when it’s time to hire an expert.
Copywriting is an art. Good copywriters can drive sales of your product or service upward. Poor copy – copy that doesn’t motivate consumers to buy – is simply a waste of your money. If your communications aren’t getting the results you’d like, it may be time to find outside help. It can be worth every penny!
(Linda Pophal is CEO/owner of Strategic Communications, LLC, a firm that helps companies use strategy to address communication challenges.
Filed under: advertising | Tagged: advertising, Advertising and Marketing, Business, copywriting, Internet Marketing, marketing, Marketing and Advertising, Newspaper advertising, press release, Target audience, Website, writing, writing copy | 1 Comment »
Posted on May 8, 2009 by lingp
Today, more than ever, companies and individuals are hoping to get media exposure – after all, they figure (and not unreasonably), that media exposure is “free” and media coverage tends to be more favorably perceived than the advertising messages we share about ourselves. As I work with clients, I come across a number of misperceptions or mis-steps that some inadvertently take that may hinder their PR-generating activities.
At Strategic Communications, LLC, we work with clients to help them gain exposure by coaching them through the process of creating, pitching and responding to reporter inquiries. Tick off a reporter once and the chances of connecting again in the future are slim. Here are some things to avoid:
- Don’t look for “free advertising.” Reporters aren’t out there to help you sell your products or services. What makes your story newsworthy? There’s usually a good angle in there somewhere, but you may need to take some time – and exercise some creativity – to find it.
- If responding to a reporter’s query (through ProfNet or HARO, for instance), don’t offer an “off-pitch” response to a specific request. If the reporter is looking for someone with small business lending experience, for example, don’t respond with a: “While I don’t have small business lending experience, I have…”
- Don’t be overly pushy. If the reporter isn’t interested in your story, the reporter isn’t interested in your story.
- Don’t pull a “bait and switch.” If you’ve agreed to provide information on a particular subject, don’t switch to an off-subject sales pitch for your product/service – or yourself – once you get the reporter on the phone.
- Don’t ask to see the story before it’s printed/aired. That will mark you immediately as a novice.
- Don’t harangue the reporter for copies – or links – to the published piece. If you get a copy, that’s a bonus. But recognize that reporters and editors talk to a lot of people and rarely have the time to follow up with all of them. With search technology these days, you should be able to find the coverage yourself.
DO remember that building strong relationships with reporters is the best way to see your name in print. Offer on-subject, useful information that is high on content and low on “sales-speak.” That’s the best way to ensure that you get your messages out there – and that reporters remember you for future stories.
(Linda Pophal is CEO/owner of Strategic Communications, LLC, a firm that helps clients use strategy to address their communication challenges.)
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Filed under: public relations | Tagged: advertising, Business, interview, Journalism, Mass media, Media, media relations, pr, press release, ProfNet, public relations, publicity, Publishing, Small business | 1 Comment »
Posted on May 4, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on May 11, 2009 by sbtrackstar13
Filed under: Guerilla Marketing, Internet, advertising, retail, sales | Tagged: Conditions and Diseases, Health, Infectious Diseases, Influenza, Pandemic, Swine influenza, Travel insurance, Viral | Leave a Comment »
Posted on May 16, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on May 11, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on May 17, 2009 by shannonwoods
Filed under: Internet, sales, social networking, twitter | Tagged: apple, Articles, IPhone, Macintosh, social networking, Steve Jobs, twitter, Web | 1 Comment »
Posted on May 10, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on May 11, 2009 by Scott Testa
Filed under: retail | Tagged: Business, Canada, Circle K, Food and Related Products, food budget, Grocery store, marketing, Plastic bag, Programming, retail, Retail Trade, Retailers, reusable shopping bags, Stretch Your Food Dollar, Supermarket, United States | 4 Comments »
Posted on May 30, 2009 by shannonwoods
http://www.businessweek.com/globalbiz/content/may2009/gb20090511_514564.htm?chan=rss_topStories_ssi_5
The EU could fine the U.S. chipmaker more than $1.36 billion for allegedly anticompetitive moves against AMD that limited choice in PCs
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: Advanced Micro Devices, EU, Intel, Intel Corporation, Microsoft, On the Web, Personal computer, US | Leave a Comment »
Posted on June 1, 2009 by shannonwoods
South Carolina joins other states in calling for tighter Craigslist ad scrutiny, which could threaten Craigslist’s low-cost, laissez faire business model
http://www.businessweek.com/technology/content/may2009/tc2009058_271685.htm?campaign_id=headlines_daily
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: Attorney general, Business and Economy, Craigslist, Henry McMaster, Religion, Society and Culture, South Carolina, United States | Leave a Comment »
Posted on May 11, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on May 14, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on June 2, 2009 by shannonwoods
http://www.allfacebook.com/2009/05/facebook-video-chat/
Facebook is designing a live video chat product to compete with the features of Google’s Gmail product.
Filed under: facebook, google | Tagged: facebook, gmail, google, On the Web, Online Communities, Search Engines, Searching, Social network | Leave a Comment »
Posted on May 31, 2009 by lingp
In an online forum, recently, a poster made the observation that “old media is dead.” Hmmm. I can understand the sentiment. After all, it seems like every day we hear about some media outlet that is either downsizing or shutting down completely and we all “know” that *nobody* reads newspapers anymore… But, I’m skeptical. In fact, I have a feeling that “old media” may eventually be reincarnated. Read more »
Filed under: traditional media | Tagged: Business, Journalism, Mass media, Media, Newspaper, Paul Gillin, Publishing, web 2.0, Writer | 1 Comment »
Posted on June 4, 2009 by lingp
While watching the local news last night my husband made a comment about the weatherman: “You know – who really needs him anymore? You can just look at the radar yourself any time you want to online.”
True. You can. Wonder if people going to school to be “weather people” have thought about that. Wonder if the schools that teach them have thought about that. And, most pertinent for this blog, wonder if all of us have given Read more »
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: Business, Digital camera, Disruptive technology, marketing, Marketing and Advertising, Obsolescence, Planned obsolescence, Strategic | 1 Comment »
Posted on October 12, 2009 by Scott Testa
Filed under: public relations | Tagged: Business, Business plan, Business Services, California, Communications, consulting, Entrepreneur, Human Rights Campaign, Internet Marketing, marketing, Marketing and Advertising, Marketing Services, Philadelphia, Philly, Public Speaking, Small business, Speakers Bureaus, twitter, United States, video | 3 Comments »
Posted on June 5, 2009 by shannonwoods
Posted on June 6, 2009 by shannonwoods
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/New-lowcost-airline-targets-apf-15348934.html?.v=5
Low-cost carrier JetAmerica aims to serve smaller markets it believes bigger airlines neglect
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: Air, Airline, Asia, Aviation, India, JetAmerica, Transportation, Travel | Leave a Comment »
Posted on June 3, 2009 by Scott Testa
Looming competition from Android will go far to keep prices in line, predicted Scott Testa, marketing professor at St. Joseph’s University.
“Android is getting a lot of buzz in the netbook market — Microsoft sees it as a threat,” he told TechNewsWorld.
Also, Microsoft got a lot of backlash when it first unveiled its watered down version of Windows 7, noted Testa, and it may be leery of antagonizing any user base.
Filed under: google | Tagged: Acer, android, google, Microsoft, Netbook, Saint Joseph's University, Testa, Windows 7 | 1 Comment »
Posted on June 5, 2009 by lingp
Much of my work over the years has been with “service brands” – brands that are not tied to a particular product, but to the delivery of some type of service – educational services, health care services, energy services, engineering services, consulting services, etc.
Developing and maintaining a strong brand for a service is, in my opinion, significantly more challenging than developing and maintaining a strong brand for a product. Why? Because a service is less tangible, more ephemeral – and often involves multiple “touchpoints” that really determine the “brand experience.”
What makes a strong brand? Recognizability. Performance. Consistency.
When we’re talking about a product – a carbonated beverage, for example – recognizability can come through a logo and design, performance comes through the taste of the beverage, consistency is an element of the manufacturing process.
But, when we’re talking about a service, the process of brand management becomes much more complex:
While recognizability is impacted by logos and design elements, there are other factors to consider. If you practice out of an office or a clinic, your physical location and how it looks, how it’s furnished, etc., will impact your recognizability and your brand. Consultants who travel to client locations, for example, are themselves a key component of the brand – including how they dress and the type of vehicle they drive (and how well maintained it is).
How is a health care organization’s performance defined? By the physician? The registration clerk? The distance from the parking lot to the front door? The cleanliness of the facility? The magazines in the waiting room? The delivery of care (and how do we, as non-clinical consumers, measure that?)? Yes – all of these things, and more! For health care and other service organizations (which would include restaurants, retail stores, etc.), performance is a multi-faceted process with multiple touchpoints and multiple opportunities to either strengthen or weaken the brand.
And, finally, consistency. The greatest challenge of all. While product consistency can certainly be challenging, there are more tangibles to deal with in the product arena. The challenge for service marketers in managing a brand involves managing human inputs and human actions. Significantly more challenging than ensuring that the right physical ingredients are combined in the right proportions in the right environmental conditions to produce a consistent result.
It often comes as a surprise to those in service businesses that managing the marketing process – and, specifically, the branding process, involves a significant amount of focus on managing people. Developing standards and processes, communicating those standards and processes, ensuring consistency in such things, for example, as how the phone is answered, “uniforms,” service standards, hand-offs between departments, how employees talk about each other, etc.
Too often as we focus on other important elements of the brand – like the logo, the name, the “company colors,” the design templates, etc., etc., in the service arena we have a tendency to forget about what is most important about the brand (recognizability, performance and consistency) – the people.
(Linda Pophal is CEO/owner of Strategic Communications, LLC, a firm that helps clients use strategy to address their communication challenges.)
Filed under: Branding | Tagged: Brand, Brand management, Branding, Business, Health care, Internet Marketing, Logo, marketing, Marketing and Advertising, Retailing | 2 Comments »
Posted on June 8, 2009 by Scott Testa
Rise of the Recessionistas
Fashion meets frugality as self-confidence, pragmatism drive labels to broad market.
http://features.csmonitor.com/economyrebuild/2009/06/05/rise-of-the-recessionistas/
The luxury sector, which makes up roughly 5 percent of the overall apparel market, is in for “rough sailing” through the end of this year, says retail expert Scott Testa.
The numbers tell the story, says Mr. Testa, professor of marketing at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. He points to the March 2008 to March 2009 sales figures, which show a 30 percent decline for Neiman Marcus and a 23 percent decline for Saks Fifth Avenue. During the same period, Target declined 6.3 percent and Kohl’s slumped only 4.3 percent. “Given these numbers, it’s clear that shoppers are more willing to spend in a low-cost environment,” he says. “Many top designers are rethinking new ways to put their brand in front of those shoppers.”
Filed under: retail | Tagged: Business, Kohl, marketing, Neiman Marcus, Philadelphia, retail, Saks Fifth Avenue, Testa | 2 Comments »
Posted on June 12, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on June 17, 2009 by lingp
I just read a piece in The Economist about a movement to pay advertising agencies for value, not hours, and how this trend is catching on. Currently, the American Association of Advertising Agencies estimates that about 10 percent of compensation agreements are value-based, according to this article. (Not sure that figure supports the suggestion that this is a trend that is “taking off”…)
Anyway, my initial reaction in reading this was: “Well, why not? Why should agencies just be paid for being “creative,” and racking up what can be enormous fees? – (I know, I’ve worked with them.) They should have some “skin in the game,” right? And, in fact, while some agencies are obviously concerned about this movement, others apparently (or so they say) welcome the shift.
But, after that initial reaction, I had another thought and had to scold myself (debating with yourself can be lonely, but also instructive if you’re willing to keep an open mind!) for taking a narrow view of marketing that I typically coach my clients away from.
“It’s not just about the advertising, dummy!,” I told myself.
“What if the product is crummy – or nobody wants it – or nobody can afford it right now?”
“What if the product is unavailable in my community – or hard to find – or in scarce supply?”
“What if the product can’t stand up against the competition?”
What if..so many “what ifs,” many of them not related *at all* to the advertising campaign.
On the positive side, such an arrangement could elevate the role of the agency and its representatives to a more strategic one, providing the opportunity to coach and counsel the client on not just “creative” aspects of marketing, but on the other “3 P’s” (product, price and place) as well.
That presupposes, of course, that the client is willing to listen. But, agencies are “free agents” and, if they don’t feel the product/service they’re being asked to sell is worth risking their time/budget on, they can seek other clients.
On the down side… Hmmm. Not sure there’s such a significant downside. But, I’m sure I’ll disagree with myself later.
(Linda Pophal is CEO/owner of Strategic Communications, LLC, a firm that helps clients use strategy to address their communication challenges.)
Filed under: advertising | Tagged: advertising, Advertising agency, Agencies, American Association of Advertising Agencies, Business, Directories, marketing, Marketing and Advertising | 1 Comment »
Posted on June 21, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on June 22, 2009 by Scott Testa
Posted on June 26, 2009 by saiacobucci
Every individual is a business that needs marketing. Let’s think about the natural progression of a business person and compare it to the evolution of a expanding company. First, after high school the person needs find a college or university to attend. So, the person would research schools, find the best choice that fits his needs or wants (location, price, areas of study, etc.). Similarly, an expanding company with money to spend on branching out and expanding the company will research different options. They may choose to build up their business by branching out to new locations, acquiring another, similar business or offering new services or products. Either, way a company and an individual research chooses before progressing forward.
After researching a college, a business person (to be) picks classes that will help in his area of interest. From there, he markets himself to potential companies that are hiring interns. By interning he can learn hands-on how a company in his interest level operates. The interviewing process is all marketing, its selling your skills or qualifications. In the same way, an expanding company will choose the best way to expand and set up their operations. They make strategic plans to hire the right people at the right salaries, to establish the chain of command and locations for business that will help generate the most profit. During this time, business partners or other individuals in the decision making roles will argue and sell or market their points to get what they want or what they think the best decision for the company would be.
When a college student graduates, he again has to market himself to a company to work for. He needs to market himself while he has a job to keep it or move up the chain. He must prove that he is valuable to the company. And a business must use marketing and sales to attract customers and gain profit.
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: Advertising and Marketing, Business, Company, consulting, Decision making, marketing, Research, sales | 1 Comment »
Posted on June 29, 2009 by lzaccaria
In finishing my first marketing class and reading through my notes I realized there are many products and ideas that I never realized were part of a marketing strategy. Many of the terms I learned throughout the course I can relate to marketing and advertisements I have received. For example, on Facebook I used to have the year I was born written on my info section. Just from writing 1989 I would receive advertisements all along the sides of my browser saying are you 19 and looking for a spring break destination? I also received many advertisements for textbooks because on my Facebook it says that I am a student. While taking marketing I learned the connections between my age or occupation to specific ads is created by acquired databases and marketing research.
My introduction to marketing made me more aware of how marketing is hidden all around. I went to the movies to see the Proposal and within fifteen minutes the main character, Sandra Bullock, was handed a Starbucks coffee. When she sat down at her desk she blatantly turned the entire cup so that the Starbucks symbol was facing the camera.
At another part in the movie the other main character, Ryan Reynolds, picked up a box of Pringles chips and says they are his favorite snack. I laughed because that one line added nothing to the movie but probably make a lot of money for the company that makes Pringles. Now that I have been introduced to marketing strategies they cannot be ignored.
Filed under: advertising, facebook | Tagged: advertising, Business, facebook, marketing, Marketing strategy, Ryan Reynolds, Sandra Bullock, Starbucks | 1 Comment »
Posted on June 28, 2009 by Scott Testa
Quoted – Windows 7 and the Enterprise – ECommerce News
Windows 7 Likely to Get Chilly Reception at Enterprise Door
Microsoft has a higher mountain to climb to soften up enterprises on Windows 7 adoption that it did a few years ago. After the Vista train wreck, many are content to keep on getting by with Windows XP — at least, until their IT departments become convinced that the new OS will live up to its promise.
Unless they are high-tech firms themselves, companies tend to have conservative IT strategies, Philadelphia-based marketing 
consultant Scott Testa told the E-Commerce Times. “Usually, they like to wait a little while to make sure the kinks have been worked out — and then start adopting it.”
At the very least, he said, most companies will want to wait for the first service pack.
Microsoft suffered a black eye with the Vista rollout, he noted, which exacerbated those conservative tendencies.
Furthermore, “XP still fills the needs for most organizations,” said Testa.
http://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/Windows-7-Likely-to-Get-Chilly-Reception-at-Enterprise-Door-67446.html
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Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: Microsoft, Microsoft Windows, Operating system, Service pack, Vista, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP | 9 Comments »
Posted on July 3, 2009 by Scott Testa
Quoted – Linuxinsider – Dell building Android Powered Internet Device
http://www.linuxinsider.com/rsstory/67473.html?wlc=1246629342
In pursuing this path, Dell may be looking for another way to differentiate itself in the netbook market — though a pocket-sized Internet device is not a netbook, noted Scott Testa, a marketing 
consultant and professor of marketing at St. Joseph’s University.
Still, using Android and the ARM architecture could give product makers such as Dell a lower-cost product. At a time when PC devices and smartphones are converging, a return to the PDA mentality could offer Dell some possibilities, he said.
“There is no license fee and no Microsoft (Nasdaq: MSFT) 
tax to pay for the operating system. I can see an opening for them,” Testa told LinuxInsider.
Filed under: Wireless | Tagged: android, ARM architecture, Dell, google, Handhelds, Microsoft, Netbook, Smartphone | 1 Comment »
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