Personal & Professional Branding in the Age of Social Media - Part 2

LinkedIn and Personal Branding – Part 11

Once we’ve got a head shot that doesn’t make us cringe, we need to form a tagline that sums up who we are and why we’re different. Think ad slogan and summarize to recruiters why they should buy. This tagline can also reflect our most salient keywords to increase search effectiveness on LinkedIn. Once this is done, it’s time to get to the meat of our LinkedIn and professional brand.

One of the true beauties of LinkedIn is it takes what is usually relegated to only two pages and allows you to expand on that, offering virtually unlimited space to tell your story. Rules of tight, pithy writing still apply, but here our goal changes somewhat – taking what was a highly refined document designed to summarize what’s so great about us as quickly and as succinctly as possible to a page that not only tells our story, but also packs in keywords and keyword density to optimize our LinkedIn brand for search.

What was highly edited or even left off our print resume can now be extrapolated on, added to, embellished and packed full of keywords that target our desired career move. Whereas our print piece may have had to forego consulting work, we can now add in these career points, detailing this experience with core keywords that increase our keyword density and search results.

Aside from building our text-based persona, we can also supplement our LinkedIn profile with applications that can showcase other aspects of our abilities and accomplishments. I used a combination of Microsoft PowerPoint, with Google Documents and an application on LinkedIn that allows me to embed this presentation on my LinkedIn profile. As a creative type, this allowed me to showcase some of my creative work, without having to go through the process of building and hosting a web site. It’s easy to update and gives recruiters a one-stop shop to get a solid understanding of my work and my abilities.

As a blogger, I’m also able to use LinkedIn applications to post my latest blog postings on LinkedIn – these synopses show the blog headline, first few words of text and a link to my blog, which is directly related to my industry – it all comes together easily using a combination of Blogger, Twitter and LinkedIn applications. Combined, these tools further keep my profile fresh and show prospective clients and employers how I think and possibly why I’m a great for their organization.

Building your personal and professional brand is very much like building a product or company brand. It takes thoughtful positioning, differentiation and consistency, so it’s imperative that once you’ve built your brand you stick with it over time as any marketing program worth doing needs time to take root and grow. So, build your brand, start your blog and stick with it. You may think that no one’s reading or watching, but that’s not the point – it’s about engaging with your industry, your POTENTIAL audience and above all else, yourself.

Can Media Silos Be Broken? I Say YES!

An commentary in yesterday’s AdAge speaks to a core issue plaguing marketers today. Ellen Oppenheim speaks about the silos prevalent in advertising and marketing communication and how rarely is there synergy across media that seamlessly blends the media and engages the consumers with a common creative thread and message, regardless of platform.

In my experience, the core issue begins with strategy. In this critical phase I think too many marketers are looking at media as separate entities and although across media there may be overarching goals and objectives, strategists are still addressing creative as separate communication points, depending on the medium.

It’s time for agencies to stop thinking about how they can out-smart their competition with creative that edgier, funnier or just more outlandish. That’s all great and imperative to the industry as a communication forum, but now is the time to address the one component of marketing communications that drives all others – the audience.

In today’s world of fragmented audiences and rich and engaging media on the go, digital billboards, social experiences, deep integration and memorable sponsorship opportunities, marketers need to think audience first. It seems like a no-brainer but I see not too many signs that this is truly top of mind.

So, what the heck am I talking about?

In the strategic phase it all starts with the target. Duh! Who are they? Where do they go? How do THEY communicate? What makes THEM shout out? What gives THEM goosebumps? Getting inside their skin and into their lives gives marketers a tapestry of their social lives and lets face it – regardless of how amazing TV creative is, or how cutting edge a mobile program may be - it’s what the audience does or how they feel after exposure to the message that really counts, otherwise why advertise?

Providing value and choice to become part of the conversation goes hand in hand. TV, needs to hook to mobile, mobile needs to hook to web, web needs to hook to social, social needs to hook to print or even DR – and by providing a perceived value to the target that we know hits their hot buttons – and multiple ways to join in that conversation, depending on that consumer’s preferred method of discourse, we set the stage for the promise of 1:1 consumer communication, shaping our brands around what our target consumers really want.

Now that’s a mouthful capable of chomping away at any silo.

Link to the original post here:

http://adage.com/mediaworks/article?article_id=146284


What do YOU think?

Artober Art Sweepstakes Giveaway - 4 Easy Ways To Win!

Artoberest Original Art Giveaway!

4 easy ways to win!

Yes, it’s time for a shameless self-promotion – but there’s something in it for YOU! There are 4 easy ways your can win the original painting shown here - if any of the links don't work for you, just copy and paste the URL into your browser:

1. Everyone who follows my media blog @ http://guywborgford.blogspot.com/ is automatically entered to win this original painting by yours truly – me! All you have to do is click the ‘Follow’ button and get entered to win.

2. Double your chances of winning by following my art and design blog here:
http://modmandesign.blogspot.com/

3. And get yet another chance by ‘liking’ my art page on Facebook here:
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=676690869&v=app_7723691927#!/group.php?gid=199778103672

4. Are you a Tweeter? Get your fourth chance to win by following me on twitter here:
http://twitter.com/gborgford

You never have to read a word I write, just add me, follow me and like me. Does that sound desperate? It’s not – it’s marketing, peeps!

On Halloween night, I’m taking all the entries and drawing the prize for this 24”x36” acrylic on canvas piece entitled “Grass and The Hoppers” approximate value $750.00.

Your chances of winning are dependent on the number of ways you sign up and the total number of entries. Got a partner? Get them to enter to and double up your chances…kids…get them to sign up too and get the whole family in on it! It’s easy and your chances of winning are awesome! Sure it’s not a payday like the lottery, but winning is always FUN and I’m getting old, so once I croak, this painting could be worth MILLION$. OK, maybe not millions, but maybe a few bucks.

So, don’t hesitate. Follow my blogs, LIKE my art Facebook page and follow my tweets and you could WIN!

Thanks and have a great week!

Guy

Social Media and Direct Response - Mashing Up Old and New

Mashable recently posted an article about driving response through social media marketing initiatives. It took me back to my old-skool direct response print days and at the same time, brought in my years of experience developing and creating interactive direct response programs for clients.

With the advent of social media, the old-skool rules of DR still come into play. I think what happens is marketers continue to think that it's about getting the LIKE, or the SHARE. In the case of the mashable post, their goal was getting donations and that's where the focus needed to be from the get-go. All the Likes and Shares don't mean squat unless what's being shared is the call to action to donate and a direct link to a page where people can drop their credit card.

The mashing up of social media initiatives and a DR calls to action necessitates discipline. One needs to define ONE action at a time. If donating is the key action, then messaging in social media needs to center around that...not LIKES, not posting or anything else. For those who donate online it needs to be made easy for them to then post to their social graphs that they donated...and the resulting link back needs to go directly to the donation page and call to action. The more steps we expect consumers to take, the more likely they are to fall off our path.

Read the original article here:

http://www.linkedin.com/news?viewArticle=&articleID=210062532&gid=3359796&type=member&item=30886010&articleURL=http%3A%2F%2Fmashable.com%2F2010%2F09%2F28%2Fsocial-media-conversion-science%2F&urlhash=nSRi&goback=.gde_3359796_member_30886010

OOH Media - Time to Start the Conversation

Recently took a trip to San Francisco. There’s nothing like the vibe and rush of a true city to shake things up and get you in touch with the crush of humanity that goes along with such a thriving urban center.

As a self-confessed media junkie, I love to see how advertisers jockey themselves in these hyper-saturated media environments. I remember visiting San Francisco years ago and marveling at Apple’s ‘takeover’ of the Muni station, with every billboard at the Market street station touting what was then the new iPod. What made this salient was the physical location of the Apple store – strategically positioned just outside the Muni station escalator. It was a very relevant push…the message, like a welcome mat to the gleaming Apple store and its array of colorful acoustic candy.

This trip, the media world is much different. Mobile has taken hold, and the web is now accessible on any number of devices consumers can fit into their pocket. Which is what puzzles me: Urban outdoor media seems to be stuck in it own silo. I saw it everywhere in Francisco, with gorgeous billboards, posters and visuals without a hook to connect to consumers and start the conversation.

Mobile has the ability to add interactivity to otherwise static, one-way media and start the conversation, engaging consumers to text, tweet, enter to win, click and ‘like’. For the most part, these consumers are all standing around faces fixed on their handsets anyway, so why not take advantage of that behavior and add a call-to-action to out-of-home media and really leverage that moment when you catch that consumer’s ever-fleeting attention?

Many industry pundits have gone one year after year that ‘this is the year of mobile’. Until media teams stop thinking about it as a medium unto itself and use it for interactivity across otherwise non-interactive channels, it will continue to putter along, no matter how many touch-screen smart phones get out there.

As a media professional I would never run any print, OOH, in-theater or TV spot without it. Every message, regardless of its primary function, would have a secondary function to start that ever-more-valuable consumer conversation.

Can really, really, REALLY bad advertising actually be good?

AdAge reported today that the nominations are piling in for the worst in TV advertising. Personally I think that with the heaps of turds being passed off as 'quality programming' it makes sense that the ads they seem to slot in every 90 seconds are every bit as horrible.

According to AdAge: "...This year, Consumerist is tapping the reservoir of demand for angry consumer retribution by creating the first Worst Ad in America awards, which, like the Tracy's, celebrates the foulest marketing fumbles based on user-submitted suggestions. Their list of nominees will be unveiled tomorrow, and trust us, it's cringeworthy; contenders for top prizes include Quiznos' nightmarish singing-kittens spot http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5KhP11BRj4 (which Hartley mentions is a shoe-in for a Tracy this year, as well) and the decidedly uninspired "Not Without My Coffee" guy from those McDonald's ads. (For a full list of nominees, check back tomorrow for a link to Consumerist's ballot. UPDATE: Here it is.)"

You have to wonder. I'm not a big TV watcher. In fact, I tune in to a total of maybe a couple hours a month. I've NEVER seen the Quiznos' singing cat commercial and I'm glad I didn't. It is really, really, REALLY bad advertising. Not to dis my adorable and uber-creative 9-year-old daughter, but it's something she would have produced if I had thrown a bucket of money at her and told her to make a spot.

But here's the thing. I saw this as once. I remember it's promoting their $4 sandwich menu. Plus, now I'm blogging about it. Not that anyone reads my blog, but it's ingrained in my consciousness. I know Quiznos has $4 sandwiches. And over 40,000 people have watched this horrible ad on YouTube. Something is working here.

I think it's like watching something like Jersey Shore. It's the car wreck syndrome. We hate to look but there's some twisted, deep-seeded part of us that makes us incapable of looking away. I guess for Quiznos, super-annoying singing kitten puppets are more palatable with a lunch promotion menu than car wreck victims' assorted body parts strewn along the I-5. And I remembered I can get a $4 toasty sandwich at Quiznos. Too bad I'm a Subway loyalist.

Twittermoms - Focus Groups Go Social

Adweek reports that CPG heavyweight, P&G is working with blog network, Twittermoms and Quickie Manufacturing to get Twittermom recommendations onto product packaging. In a move that's seen as a way to provide unbiased and 'real' product reviews on-pack, P&G engaged the blog network of 30,000 'influential' moms, each of whom have an average of 1000 followers to test and rate new products.

A subset of Twittermoms are then selected to take part in the product trial. Twittermoms then works with the advertiser on a selected set of criteria to deem if the product is worthy to earn the “Moms Like This” seal of approval, which is then applied on-pack.

Pretty interesting example of crown-sourcing, if you want to call it that. I tend to think Twittermoms should have taken the same focus group approach to the naming of their company. Equating moms with twits just doesn't work for me.

Read the Adweek article here:

http://www.adweek.com/aw/content_display/news/digital/e3i5726ebf2b05c55dfed9388083d4d4ced

AMC Entertainment - Welcome to Digital!

Funny how i rambled on in a recent blog post about the lack of mobile hooks in the in-theater marketing space. See my original post here:

http://guywborgford.blogspot.com/2010/09/movie-theater-advertising-whats-missing.html


Reading Brandweek today, they announced that AMC Entertainment had selected Omnicom Group's Signal to Noise and sister shop Rapp to handle digital chores and direct marketing duties, respectively.

This may not seem particularly newsworthy, but I couldn't help but jump all over the irony of the quote from Jordan Warren, president and chief executive officer of Signal to Noise, "AMC recognizes that digital technology can fundamentally change the guest experience and their relationship with" the theater chain.

Welcome to the wacky world of the information super highway and Mo-bile phones.

Unreal. AMC...hello...is anyone home?

What's Your Customer's DNA?

This may seem rudimentary, but too often marketers look at demographic targets without looking at the big picture. Along with this narrow focus comes an ask: Buy something from us, sign up, take action, do something - and this is done without an exchange value.

In today's economic climate, consumers are ever more fickle as to where they spend their hard-earned dollars. On top of this, they're bombarded with a flurry of marketing messages across the spectrum - in myriad ways across multiple daily experiences.

So, how do marketers break through the clutter? How do they grab that fleeting attention of an over-saturated media world that's evermore competitive with every passing hour?

It starts with knowing the customer's DNA. Going beyond demographics, psychographics, and even values and lifestyles, it's finding out both the pain points and sweet spots that brings your product or service into relevancy.

Connecting with audiences and customers is BEING one...it's an empathetic approach to knowing the very fabric of what makes the target tick and how your offer fits into their lives and makes it both relevant and utterly irresistible.

This messaging can't happen in a media vacuum either. It needs to transcend any one medium and be consistent throughout the customer experience and the world they live in. The media mix is a misnomer really - media shouldn't be mixed but carefully constructed, with common 'ingredients' and both an ask and a value proposition that is part of the very DNA of the customer you're trying to reach. A good example of a common error in the often misunderstood world of Facebook is the ever-present ask to LIKE us on Facebook. Rarely do I ever see a reason 'why'. What's in it for me? And how does this click fit with my life and the world I experience?

It's time for marketers to think beyond sales goals and market share. We need to dig deep about how our brand can become part of the consumer's DNA and concurrently devise a strategy to stay relevant, irresistible and valuable over time, across all consumer touch points and experiences.

Brand Week's Marketer of the Year...A Commentary

Photograph by Tim Llewellyn

Give it to P&G. If Brandweek’s Marketer of the Year, James Moorhead is any indication, they pick their brand managers to BE the brand. Holding aloft a shining can of Old Spice Body Wash Mr. Moorhead is the embodiment of the brand. And that personification of the product and brand is exactly what Mr. Moorhead did, featuring former NFL player, Isaiah Mustafa in self-deprecating spots that poke fun at our beloved world of advertising and do it in a way that is pure brain candy.

Let’s face it, the spots are genius. Doesn’t matter how many times you see them, you have to keep watching. It’s like we’re tuned in to that face-paced, action-packed world of mega-plots on Hydroxycut and we can’t avert our eyes. And the brand’s there too – loud and clear.

What really matters is that sales of the product line picked up 30%. That’s serious results.

Creative and strategic genius aside, there’s still something missing on the media side – the campaign misses the mark on new media. Where’s the Old Spice dude as the personification of the brand on Facebook? Why can’t we follow him and all his Old Spice inspired conquests? What about Twitter? Foursqure? Why would I want to follow ‘Old Spice’ the brand when I could follow The Old Spice stud? Call me a stalker, it won’t be the first time I’ve heard that.

Is it just me or do the big ad and brand rags pretty much not cover true media synergy – the promise of convergence media, where a rock solid campaign like Old Spice’s follows me across the media spectrum and does so with surprise, humor and delight.

For more on this check it out on Brandweek here:

http://www.brandweekmoy.com/2010/09/grand-marketer-of-the-year-2010-james-moorhead-old-spice.html