Earlier this year we produced a magazine that included QR codes in it for download-able apps. All a reader had to do was scan it with a QR code reader (an app available for smart phones) and the app would download instantly. Imagine if the QR code was for a coupon for your store? Pretty cool, huh?
Junta42′s Joe Pulizzi has more insight on mobile marketing trends and statistics, including:
56 percent of companies plan to increase budgets for mobile marketing in 2010.
Marketers plan to increase their online marketing budgets by an average of 17 percent this year, drawing money away from traditional channels, like print.
Wondering how your company can reach out through this growing marketing channel? We can help!
One of the biggest keys of successful Internet marketing is posting fresh, original content as often as possible. But do you ever struggle with doing this day after day? If you’re feeling uninspired, give these 5 R’s of content creation from BharatBhasha.com a try:
1. Research. Before writing, use Google to research phrases that people use to search for your topic. This will give you ideas about hot topics as well as keywords to use in your content. Visit popular forums to get an sense of what people want to know about your topic.
2. Rearrange. Develop an outline to help you organize your thoughts and set the tone of your piece. Start with bullet points and then flesh them out into full-blown paragraphs.
3. Reveal. Humanize your content by sharing anecdotes or adding personal touches. Share stories or offer examples that help your readers connect your content to their situation. Don’t be afraid to get visual, especially with technical topics.
4. Read. It’s always good to have someone else proof and critique your content, but if you’re the sole editor, print out a copy and read it out loud. This will force you to double-check every word instead of letting your mind “autosuggest” words that aren’t there. If a word looks funny, look it up, especially if it’s a term spell-check wouldn’t catch!
5. Revise. Be as creative as you want when you sit down to start writing and save your critical side for later—when it’s time to polish your first draft.
Once you’ve followed these steps, you’re on your way to becoming a professional copywriter!
On April 3, the iPad era will begin. And yes, Rex will be at the Apple store early that morning to pick up the one he has reserved. That should be no surprise. On his blog, Rex has become noted for his accurate predictions about what the iPad would be, starting back in July 2006. He even Photoshopped a concept of the device in November 2007. And a year ago, he miscalculated the date it would be announced, but came pretty close to describing the device, down to the pricing.
As Rex and I are the resident Mac-heads in the office, I thought I’d use this “count-down week” to interview him about why he believes the iPad is such a big deal — especially when it comes to the business we’re in: Custom media and content marketing.
If my coworkers are wondering why I’m walking kind of like a duck today (waddle, waddle), it’s because I did a half marathon yesterday in Knoxville. The forecast called for rain at the start line, but I consider myself and the 2,000 or so participants lucky that the rain didn’t start until I hit mile 12. It made for a very wet, cold and overall miserable final mile (and walk back to the car), but the race was fun and gave a beautiful view of a city I decided I need to visit more often.
The finish line was on the 50-yard line of Neyland Stadium at the University of Tennessee, which would be exciting for most Tennessee residents, but not for this Vanderbilt fan/alum. I proudly wore my Vanderbilt shirt and hat as I trotted into the end zone. (I think there’s a joke somewhere in there about Vanderbilt football being really bad, but I love my school too much to make it.)
In all seriousness, I really enjoyed being a part of this wellness event that also included a Kids Fun Run. It was a reminder of why the work I do during the day with HealthTeacher is so important — and rewarding.
At Hammock we not only love words and beautiful layouts–but we love data too. Why are we so fond of numbers and graphs and spreadsheets? Because this kind of data collection and analysis ensures that the media we are creating are doing what they are intended to do. We’re always clear on how our words and video and tweets and other media are working (or not working) because measurement is such an integral part of what we do.
Jon Buscall, in this content marketing article, “Data is Content Marketing’s Friend,” says you can’t rely on your gut instinct when it comes to evaluating if your media is meeting your objectives. I couldn’t agree more. We don’t rely on crystal balls or some kind of unscientific “feeling” when it comes to our clients’ content marketing efforts—we rely on hard data to track if their strategy is working and if changes are necessary. At Hammock data is indeed our friend and it helps us create content that works for our clients.
