top5
Tell a Story Online - YOUR STORY
by DTM@DenominatorGraphics.com
No matter the nature of your business, there are basic ingredients for a successful Marketing Campaign. Below I have outlined them for you. Some of these ingredients cost money, as they should because you should pay a professional to get professional results. Some other ingredients are free, but do take precious time to implement. Time is money, so even if the ingredient is free, your time is still costing money.
1. Branding
Establish from the beginning short and long term goals. your look. your name. your logo and then organize a Marketing Campaign.
Consistency is the key. Establish a look to carry throughout the campaign and a message to broadcast. The message could be: Buy this product, Listen to this song, Come to this event. The point is to have a brand to promote while telling the consumer how to do business with your company. Keep the message simple and help the consumer consume...from you!
A good Branding Campaign will also ensure that the web address and email address on flyers, posters & business cards is consistent with the message.
Using aol, gmail, yahoo, hotmail or any other email address that does not have your company domain (www.yourcompany.com) as a contact email address, after all the pretty pictures and attractive design in the marketing campaign will kill the credibility of your product or service. This is the point of branding. People should know your company and it should be easy to find you.
If you LOVE your gmail account and services from gmail, a professional web design/development team (such as denominatorgraphics.com) can show you how to still use your gmail and show a professional presence to your clients. (ask us how)
2. Website Presentation
presentation, presentation, presentation.
A website's purpose is to represent your company, artist or service to the world. If the website is done by an amateur, then the website will represent that. In order for a website to be effective and give value to the marketing campaign, then the the website must be attractive, eye-catching and easy to understand.
Speed. There is a 5-second attention span rule to consider. Any website that takes more than five seconds to load, is going to lose potential business. All of us are looking for something online and we want to find it fast. That is why Google, Yahoo and Bing are competing to give us the most links at the fastest speed. If the website is made in flash or if there is an intro page or video/audio that is slow loading, then you are in fact keeping the CONSUMER away from the GOODS YOU ARE TRYING TO SELL. Why would you do that?
Very few businesses have products or services that target markets the require or respond to Flash websites. Most Flash sites take time to load, Flash intros take too long to load and most people "Skip" the intro anyway. Entry pages are a waste of time to most consumers. Get your clients to what they came to your site for, as fast as possible.
And since you have a website, USE IT! Every piece of marketing material must have your company domain name (www.yourcompany.com) and if you are going to include a contact email address, then ensure that the email address ends with the WEBSITE ADDRESS!!! (you@yourcompany.com)
3. E-mail Campaigns
E-mail campaigns are easy to manage and use in broadcasting your brand. USE AN EMAIL CLIENT. There are several email services that make managing an email campaign a breeze. That is the professional way of using email. They are easy to use and can provide you with valuable information on who actually opens your emails, how many people click thru to the website and various other details that help in deciding where to spend your marketing money. Plus each email sent out contains identifying information on your company and gives the receiver of the email the option to opt-out of the marketing campaign.
Sending out email blasts from your gmail or yahoo account is unprofessional and its called SPAM. Harvesting email addresses from emails sent to you and then emailing those people whom you don't know is called SPAM. Spamming is illegal and is a punishable crime. Don't do it. The world does not need any extra SPAM.
4. Freebies Online
These services are free to use, but time consuming. By creating an account and posting information on your project, company or services, you are seeding the internet with your brand. All those posts and tweets add up to visibility with major search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing. They will start cataloging your website higher in their Search Rankings. AND THAT IS THE TRUE DEFINITION OF SEO. Search Engine Optimization has become this great myth where only big money can get you higher web rankings on the search engines. Proper web design by a professional (number one above) and use of these free online services will get your brand the exposure it deserves.
5. Stay Current
Update your business Twitter and Facebook pages no less than once a week. Ideally once a day. There are plenty of posting opportunities on an average day. You would be surprised by what the public, THE CONSUMER, finds interesting. Look at TV and the "reality" shows now. Something mundane and boring everyday life things can be made to look good if given the right twist. The fact that you are stuck in traffic and you are running late to record the latest track you wrote last night is news that some fan may find interesting. The mundane is only mundane to the person going thru it.
The key is to post current information to keep the public, fans, CONSUMERS interested and keep your business relevant. Its a waste of time to find a website that has old or incomplete information. One of my pet peeves is to find a twitter account of someone who handed me their card and the last time they posted a tweet was LAST YEAR! Don't claim to be on Twitter if you are not tweeting!
Resouces
Domains and Hosting
http://domains.luccom.com
http://domains.luccom.com
Web Design
http://www.denominatorgraphics.com
http://www.denominatorgraphics.com
Email Campaigns
http://www.mailchimp.com
http://www.mailchimp.com
Free Social Media Sites
http://www.facebook.com
http://www.twitter.com
http://www.linkedin.com
http://www.soundcloud.com
http://www.mixcrate.com
http://www.blogger.com
http://www.wordpress.com
http://www.youtube.com
http://www.posterous.com
http://www.tumblr.com
http://www.instagram.com
http://www.ustream.com
http://www.ping.fm
http://www.soundcamp.com
http://www.tweetdeck.com
http://www.facebook.com
http://www.twitter.com
http://www.linkedin.com
http://www.soundcloud.com
http://www.mixcrate.com
http://www.blogger.com
http://www.wordpress.com
http://www.youtube.com
http://www.posterous.com
http://www.tumblr.com
http://www.instagram.com
http://www.ustream.com
http://www.ping.fm
http://www.soundcamp.com
http://www.tweetdeck.com
DenominatorGraphics.com services are available to visual artists, recording artists, record companies, merchandise and apparel companies and community organizations.
DTM is dedicated to the best in graphic design for web and print. Along with his wife Aisha, DTM has years of experience in the best practices for graphic and web design, web development and online marketing. Developing custom websites utilizing the latest software and scripting technologies, including Joomla, Wordpress, Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Dreamweaver. Some of their clients include The Music Specialist Allen Johnston, Opera Singer and Instructor John Davies, and most recently, Tony Baraka of the 2011 SUMC.
Denominator Graphics list of Clients
Community Organizations
Music Industry
Events
http://www.famousfanz.com
http://www.famousfanz.com
Goods & Services
http://www.yogadecatur.com
http://www.artondeck.com
http://www.visualartwerks.com
http://www.crushedpearlsapparel.com
http://www.yogadecatur.com
http://www.artondeck.com
http://www.visualartwerks.com
http://www.crushedpearlsapparel.com
