A New Year, A New Perspective

There is something magical about this time of year. The weather turns cooler (unless you live in Houston), all the stores are decorated with twinkling lights, and days are full of anticipation- either for a break from work, or to spend time with family for the holidays. There is also something about this time of year that causes you to reflect on the time that has past. You may feel nostalgic, joyful, pleased, successful, depressed (though we hope not so much!). Not matter how you feel in your reflections of the past year, perhaps the most exciting thing about the end of the year is the chance to start a new year. A chance to make changes and a chance at new success.

If you haven’t already assessed where your company stands, you most likely will before the calendar reads January 1, 2008. This is also a great time to assess your marketing. Are you positioned where you think you should be? How are your sales? Are you conveying a clear message about who you are and what you provide? Are you reaching your target audience? Even if you feel you have been successful at all of these things, is there something more you could be doing?

The Marion Group is excited about a new service that we are providing that will help answer many of these questions as well as give you an overall evaluation of where you stand in your market. The Marion marketing team has been hard at work developing a system to help companies with brand equity & brand management. In fact, we have already put the service into use as we are helping our clients prepare marketing plans and strategies for the 2008 year.

The essence behind our Brand Equity & Brand Management services is to help our clients develop a clear image of themselves as well as a unified message to portray to your target market. By assessing your market in light of the industry you are in and the product or services you provide, we can help you to create and deliver a brand experience that will impact your customers at many different points of contact.

If you would like more information about our Brand Equity & Brand Management services or would like to know if this service will be beneficial for your company, please contact Chris Pascoe at The Marion Group. Also, check our website soon for more information on this service.

Happy Holidays from The Marion Group, and we hope you are looking forward to a fresh start and a Happy New Year.

Avoid Crisis! Spend your Marketing Dollars to Create a Sound Search Engine Marketing (SEM) Strategy

A company once spent a great deal of money promoting a new product. They pumped it on radio, TV, even on their own website. However, they didn’t have a sound search engine marketing (SEM) strategy. In fact, they didn’t have a SEM strategy at all. The results of this promotion? When consumers went to Google or Yahoo and did a search for the product, the product’s webpage didn’t even come up on the first page of results, but some “imposter” sites sure did.

Not convinced that you need SEM? A recent article on http://www.adage.com/ by Matt Creamer states that a very popular company had a similar situation, but the top “imposter” sites produced by search engines actually took the consumer to porn websites.

Ok, so now you’re probably thinking that maybe SEM is something to look into, but what is it? Search engine marketing is the process of incorporating search engine optimization into a company’s marketing strategy. Search engine optimization, commonly referred to as SEO basically means creating ways that search engines such as Google and Yahoo will pick up your website in an organic search (not a paid search) and that you’re link will be at the top of the search results.

There are three ways to optimize so that the search engines will pick up your links:

1. Choose keywords that consumers use when searching for your site or services and strategically place them on the pages of your website. There is actually an art to this as you don’t want to sound repetitive in your text.
2. Make sure that your site is navigable and has page titles that clearly state the information to be presented on the page. Sites that are confusing to navigate have a harder time being picked up by search engines. It is also a good idea to include a site map.
3. Use outside sources with content containing links to your site. Blogs, press releases, and social- media networks like Tweeter, and Squidoo, and directory listings on Yahoo Directory, Business.com, AllBusiness.com, and thomasnet.com. Adding links to your site on these popular sites will, in turn, help your site to become more popular.

SEM is very important, and it is much easier to plan from the beginning than it is to attempt to salvage your site once you’ve gone into crisis mode like the companies stated previously. You can’t just hope that your site will be optimized if you’ve made no effort to do so. When you have decided to promote a certain product or service of your company, before you do much else, talk with your marketing team or agency about how to optimize your site for that particular product or service, so when your consumers go to search engines to find your site, they actually find you and not an “imposter” you.

What's the Big Deal About Facebook?

By now, you’ve at least heard about The Facebook. Mark Zuckerberg, creater and CEO of Facebook, has been a very present name in the news lately as he is opening up Facebook to advertisers. Facebook is part of the growing social media genre, and works much like MySpace. A person can create a profile, add friends, join networks, write (speak) freely about whatever they want, add widgets, send out mass invitations, have newsfeeds, and post pictures, just to name a few.

Facebook has amassed 50 million members who constantly carry on conversations about activities, parties, milestones, etc. The trick is to get them talking about your brand. Go to any Blog, Facebook, or MySpace Page and you’re almost guaranteed to see a person’s like or dis-like for a particular product, restaurant, or vacation destination. You should not underestimate the power of a trusted recommendation from a friend or some one in your network.

For example, if I were to post on my Facebook Profile about an exceptionally fantastic vacation I had at a particular resort, the people in my network who regularly read my Blog and who trust me as an individual, are more likely to at least look into visiting the same vacation destination than if they were just handed a brochure or were just browsing the internet. The Facebook’s “new” advertising model works to exploit this phenomenon of mouth-to-mouth, consumer-to-consumer advertising.

There are three parts to Facebook’s ad plan. The first part of the plan is users initiate product recommendations. Once a user interacts with a brand, it will be broadcast to their networks through their news feeds and mini feeds. Like bands do on MySpace, brands are encouraged to build a page, or profile as Facebook calls it, so users can become “friends” with the brand and write on the brand’s wall.

Part 2 of the Facebook ad plan is for advertisers to buy highly targeted advertising. Users volunteer information on their profiles, like their age, where they work, where they live, what books they read, and movies they watch, all things that are helpful to marketers to narrow down a target audience and target ads toward them. The paid-for ads run in news feeds and can be bought on a cost-per-click or cost-per-thousand basis. Ads can include a short amount of test as well as an optional graphic.

The 3rd part of the ad plan is on the Facebook side and entails combining user interaction and paid-for advertising to create socialads. For example, the news feed, “Brian is a fan of Gatorade” could be accompanied by a Gatorade ad. Like regular paid ads, these socialads are frequency capped so users see a maximum of two per day.

See more about Facebook’s marketing plan in Abbey Klassen’s article in Advertising Age entitled, “Real revolution isn’t Facebook’s ad plan,” from the November 12, 2007 edition.

Favicons- Our Customers are Asking for them- Why?

A favicon is a branding item that appears in your site visitors’ browser window next to your URL. You may be familiar with the Google ‘G’ that appears when you are on a Google page, or the ‘Y’ of Yahoo!

Most importantly, when a visitor to your site bookmarks it (example: by using the Add to Favorites of Internet Explorer), your icon appears next to your bookmarked link.

As stated, a favicon is a branding item. By having your favicon on each of your website's pages, you are making your name more credible and more memorable.
Creating a favicon is really very simple. You can go to a favicon generator site such as http://www.favicon.cc/ to get started. After creating your favicon, just upload it to the root directory of your website and add the following code to your header:
link REL=”SHORTCUT ICON” HREF=”http://www.yourwebsite.com/favicon.ico”/
(Don’t forget to surround the syntax with brackets that look like <>)

Of course, you can always have a favicon created by using an image or graphic. Since favicons are so small, it is usually best to choose an image that is simple and clean, like Google’s ‘G’, GMail’s envelope, or Marion’s ‘M’. A favicon (a .ico file) can also be converted into a .jpg file and placed through out your website’s pages. Though a favicon does not seem to have any SEO benefits, a larger version of your favicon found on your website helps you to increase your site visitors’ exposure to your brand especially when bookmarked.

Information from this article can also be found in the SEO Blog by Nick Stamoulis.

What in the World is a Widget?

When you hear the word “widget” what do you think of? I think it sounds like the name of a mythical creature that could have appeared in the Lord of the Rings series. Do you know what a widget is?

Here is a general definition:
A widget is anything that can be embedded within a page of HTML, i.e. a web page. A widget adds some content to that page that is not static. Generally widgets are third party originated, though they can be home made. Widgets are also known as modules, snippets, and plug-ins. Widgets are written in JavaScript, flash or any other scripting languages that will be run when the page is called.

Here is an example of a widget.



Basically, a widget is a box that you can put on your website, blog, iGoogle page, MySpace, Facebook page, etc., that allows you to add content from another website and interact with it. In the example above, I downloaded a widget from The Office website on NBC.com and added it to my Blog, so I can watch clips from The Office whenever I want.

How Widgets Affect Marketing
If you are a Facebook, MySpace, or iGoogle user, you are probably already familiar with how marketers are using widgets. Companies such as Slide (a popular picture widget) create applications for websites and are allowed to generate revenue from them however they want. There are two basic ways that widgets are used for advertising. One such way is through selling ad space or sponsorships that will show on the widget. Another option for using widgets to advertise is to follow the example of companies, such as Google and NBC, who use widgets as media to advertise themselves. With our society becoming more and more tech-friendly, using widgets could be a very good way to generate exposure, especially if you advertise on popular social-networking sites.

It would be a good idea to look at both ways to use widgets when considering how your advertising dollars should be spent. Think of widgets like you would think of a website. What type of people would use your widget? How much time do they spend? Asking these types of questions can help you to determine if a widget already exists that reaches your target market, so you can consider buying ad space or sponsorship there. If there is not already an appropriate widget for the target market you are trying to reach, you may need to create your own. Though widgets are not a MUST in internet marketing right now, as they become more and more popular, they have the potential of being major players in the internet marketing game.

Subsribe to Our RSS Feed!

If you look to the right, you'll see an icon and a link that will let you subsribe to our RSS feed. Simply follow the prompts and you'll be able to add it to your blog, homepage, just about any where. If adding our feed to your Google Homepage or anyother page that calls for you to login to your account, you'll need to do so before adding our feed to your page or site. Every time we update our blog, your feed will be updated as well, and when you click on the feed to read our articles, you'll be brought back to our blog automatically.
Thanks for keeping up with The Marion Group!

Get Your Consumers to Give Your Product a Try – Tryvertise It!

Our society loves mobile technology. We love iPods, laptops, and cell phones, particularly Blackberries. We are addicted to texting, e-mailing, instant messaging, and talking on the phone. And though we “feel” connected through all of this technology, we have actually isolated ourselves from physical interaction with people. So now, more than ever, consumers are craving an authentic experience…not just another electronic ad that pops up on their computer screen or a commercial that they fast-forward through using their TiVo.

A recent survey* shows that 9 out of 10 consumers say they would purchase a product if they could first try it and were satisfied with it. Furthermore, 6 out of 10 consumers say that if a brand wanted to convince them to buy a product, then experiencing it first-hand would be the most effective way of getting them to make a purchase.

Our mobile society has presented a challenge for marketers. How do you get consumers to try your product in an authentic way? Product Sampling is not the answer because by standing in a retail store handing out a sample of your product, you are not creating an authentic experience- a place where your consumer really would try your product.

In order to create an authentic experience for their consumers to try their product, marketers for Tylenol put Tylenol PM Samples on 1 million beds at resorts and hotels throughout the US. Along with this sample was a note saying, “We know how long you’ve waited for this vacation, and we know how mush you want to catch up on your sleep. Enjoy.” Tylenol’s goal was to place their samples in the physical location where their product would be used…a bed.

This method of reaching your consumers by getting them to try your product in an authentic experience has been termed “advertrying” or “tryvertising,” and its catching on. Car companies are packaging a free rental of their more luxury models with a stay at certain hotels. Targeting men and women on business trips who would normally need a rental car during their stay, these car companies are creating an authentic experience for their target market to try their product.

With all the new ways to reach your target market, it may be time to evaluate your marketing dollars and see if there are ways to allocate your budget to better reach your target market. In a mobile, technology-dependent society, marketers need to find a way to connect with their consumers and get them to try their products in an authentic way.

*February 2007 consumer-package-goods marketer survey from the Product Sampling Council of the Promotion Marketing Association.

Information presented based on the article, “Give it a Try: Put Brands in Consumers’ Hands (Literally) by Brian F. Martin, in the October 22, 2007 edition of Advertising Age.

Kids!

Kids! We’ve got to know about kids today!

Kids!I don't know what's wrong with these kids today!
Kids!Who can understand anything they say?
Kids! They are just impossible to control!
Kids! With their awful clothes and their rock an' roll!
What's the matter with kids today!

You may be familiar with these witty lyrics from the song, Kids! featured in the hit musical, Bye Bye Birdie. Actually, you may be more than familiar with them, you may relate to them. It seems that there always exists a barrier to understanding “kids” (in this case, ages 18-24). But in the marketing industry, it is essential to break that barrier.

The Importance of Understanding Kids!
It’s more than just trying to be hip, or young and fresh. It’s even more than trying to find a common ground to stand on or bridging the generation gap. It’s the fact that the 18-24 year old age group is one of the most influential age groups in the market, and THAT is why it’s so important to understand Kids! Not only do most of them still possess great influence on their parent’s money (think college tuition, senior trips, weddings and graduations), but more and more kids in this age group have their own money to spend as well. And with our society’s obsession with “being younger” and looking to this more youthful generation, it shouldn’t shock you that the marketing industry is turning there also.

So What’s Important to Kids?
That may be the million dollar question. Social networking is very popular among the 18-24 set. Names like Facebook and MySpace should sound very familiar to you by now. These two popular websites have many different advertising outlets on them and get thousands of viewers daily. This age group also loves iPod from Apple, which is why Podcasts have become so popular—they are a great way to get a message across on the most used (and most popular) mp3 media device by this age set. The 18-24 age group also watches the ever popular tv shows, Grey’s Anatomy and The Office more than any other tv shows.

These may just seem like trends or fads, and true, as the generations change, so will their likes and dislikes. However, it is important to know to what this age group pays most of their attention and who gets most of their money if you want to effectively market to them. Keep in mind which TV shows they watch when purchasing media for advertisements. Be creative in your approach to advertising on the internet. Engage this young age group in your websites by adding podcasts, streaming video, interactive Blogs. You may even get brave and tackle the social networking giants, Facebook and MySpace.

However you decide to do it, do not ignore the influence that the 18-24 set possesses. And remember, whatever is “wrong with these kids today,” it’s a necessity to reach this age group.

Mobile Web for a Mobile Generation

Building Web Sites for a Mobile World
Stand on any elevator, eat at any restaurant, go to any shopping mall, and you’ll see people talking on their phones…or more specifically their smart phone, pocket PCs, PDAs, or BlackBerries. What do all of these things have in common? They are all web enabled devices that can access the same web as traditional computers. There exists, however, some limitations to the use of the web on such devices. Often, you will hear the term “mobile web” which refers to the shortcomings of the web on mobile devices.

Device Dependent vs. Device Independence
Because so many people are accessing the web through mobile devices, it is important that your website is device-independent, simply meaning that is can be used on any device-- traditional computer, BlackBerry, or game console. Instead of making one, device-independent website, there are some companies that are creating a separate website intended specifically for mobile devices. This works, but you can expect to pay more money for it. Creating one website that is compatible with any device, will keep overhead costs low and as an added bonus, you can benefit from the value of the existing site.

Building for Device Independence
To build a mobile device/ traditional device- friendly website, you can develop your site using XHTML. XHTML has rigid accessibility standards and provides the best opportunity for your site to render correctly. It is crucial to remember that with mobile devices, there is limited bandwidth and slow download speed, so it is important that your site is easy to navigate. Therefore, have a site map and make sure that all pages are no more than three clicks away from the homepage.

Keep in mind also that people who are visiting your site from a mobile device are not likely surfing the web. The have purposefully come to your site, so make it usable by being as intuitive as possible in the design/development. It’s not a bad idea to promote your mobile-friendly site through ads and press releases. One easy way to do so would be to add a tagline to the end of your ads that says something like, “Visit us on the web at http://www.yourbusinesswebsite.com/ from your computer or mobile device.”

We are a mobile society, and we want to be able to access the web any where we go. Help your company benefit by ensuring that your website is device-independent.

Information in this post found in the August 2007 edition of WebsiteMagazine.com, from the article, “Site Mobility: The Mobile Web and Beyond,” by Cindy Krum.

If you would like help with your website so that it too is device- independent, please to hesitate to contact us. We are happy to help!

What Does Universal Search Mean for Me?

Are You Gearing up for Google’s Universal Search?
With Google’s launch of Universal Search, it is no longer an option, but a requirement to include optimized images, videos, news, local maps or blogs into your Search Engine Marketing (SEM) strategy.

Haven’t heard of Universal Search?
Universal Search combines all of Google’s various databases (Google Blog Search, Google Maps, Google Video, Google Image Search, Google Books and Google News) into one index to serve a single set of search results. Basically, take all of Google’s databases, and put them into one and you have Universal Search. Google won’t be the only search engine heading towards a universal search technology. Other search engines will also combine their various databases into one “blended” search engine.

Here’s an example of Universal (or blended) Search in action. If you search ‘Ford Cars’ in Google Search, your first non-sponsored ad (no paid for) is a news article relating to Ford Cars, rather than the Ford Vehicles website.
http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=GFRD,GFRD:2007-39,GFRD:en&q=ford+cars

How to get ready for Universal Search
In anticipation of Universal Search and as a business owner or someone who receives business via the Internet, you have to find the best tactics for optimizing your web-pages to keep rankings high. And how do you do that? By integrating blogs, videos, and local maps into your website in a way that is relevant to the site, is consistent with the content, and contains good internal keyword links. Through combining these various things into your Search Engine Marketing strategy, you will be able to keep and even boost the rankings of your website.

Also, adding a blog is a great way to not only enhance your rankings in search results, it is also a great way to keep your customers and viewers informed of changes within your company and within your industry.


If you have any questions about how we can help you prepare for Universal Search, please feel free to contact us. We want to help all of our clients find the most effective way to market themselves on the internet, and we’d be happy to help you.

Welcome to the Marion Group Blog

Welcome to the Marion Group Blog!

The Marion Group is a Marketing and Advertising Group in Houston, Texas, and we are excited about our new way of keeping you updated about all the excitings things taking place in our company.

With the introduction of Google's Universal Search, we are preparing our clients' websites by adding videos and blogs.

Look for more updates as we give you a glimpse of the changes we are making for our clients!