We have been working on a multitude of projects with several new clients, including Jewish Family Service of Metropolitan Detroit, Interactive Financial Group and Friedman Real Estate.

This summer we welcomed a new team member, Sales and Project Manager Chris Martin. Chris brings with him years of experience and expertise, and we are very pleased that he has joined Synectics Media.

Business is booming and we have outgrown our previous space. We recently moved into a recently renovated loft-style office in downtown Royal Oak’s Warehouse District. We are thrilled to have joined this creative community.

We have plenty of exciting plans ahead, so stay tuned!

Sharon

YouTube, Vimeo and a host of other online video outlets provide large and small companies the opportunity to develop a powerful campaign.

We know that search engine optimization (SEO) is key to driving traffic to your Web site.  The second-largest search engine in the world is  YouTube.  That can only mean one thing: People love video.

Video supports you in telling your story. People look to YouTube for information and entertainment. When developing a video, it’s hard to know what to focus on or where to begin.  Comedy is often a good start.

If you need more guidance, YouTube offers TestTube and Insights for Audience. These excellent tools will tell you what people are watching in specific parts of the world, based on various topics.  The screen shot below is based on the search term finance.

Think about what products and services of yours might be easier to explain or demonstrate visually. Some things are meant to be read. Some things are meant to be seen. Web video offer this marketing opportunity  24 hours a day.

Rosh

The idea behind Twitter is to share information with people who are interested in the topics and links you post.

If all you do is send press releases or retweet readily available industry news, your media stream won’t be valuable to anyone.  Your followers may find value in a few carefully placed reports or industry analyses, but ask yourself how excited you are about corporate press releases.

We encourage you to find an enthusiastic, personable member of your team to be responsible for tweeting your ideas and information.  Don’t place your Twitter account on automatic.  Your current and future customers do not want to interact with robots.

Make sure you have a plan.  Maintain a 5-1 signal-to-noise ratio. In other words, there should be one self-promoting tweet for every retweet, comment or reply tweet, or non-promotional tweet.

Take advantage of the search (Web sites like Google, Yahoo and Bing) and keep track of what people are saying about your company.  Make sure you reward and thank people for promoting your tweets and your brand.

If you decide to use an outside service (such as Synectics Media) make sure it employs someone dedicated to your brand.  They need to understand your company philosophy and products. They also need to be committed to telling your story.  This level of dedication does not come cheap.  A bargain price tag buys you empty tweets and a failure to connect with your customers.

If you are going to use Twitter, use it wisely. Don’t let this powerful media stream go to waste.

Rosh

Different people consume media differently. Blogs are great resources for people who like to dig deep into a topic. Blogs also offer the opportunity to develop a relationship with authors on most any level.

Podcasts are excellent for audio learners.  People listen to them while working out, driving or during downtime throughout the day.

Video is mostly about entertainment although how to’s  and news are also popular.  Video channels often show us things we don’t normally see in our everyday life.

These same channels are available to your prospects and clients. Not every channel is right for your target market.  Fortunately you can test your ideas on different channels relatively inexpensively.

If your idea works the rewards can be as large as a successful paid traditional media buys at a fraction of the cost. You can now be the inspiration for your new clients and fans.

I’m not suggesting that a good company can’t be about making profits. There are plenty of companies offering great products that are doing very well, even as they squeeze every dime from their customers.

We all know the businesses that promise service in their tag line, but fail to fulfill that obligation every day.  It doesn’t take long for the truth to get out. When it does, people don’t believe in you any more.  Companies that do this focus their marketing on what they think people want to hear, not what the company can deliver.  This is a big mistake.

For example some companies focus on how practical their product is when people really want a shiny status symbol.  Sometimes businesses focus on price when people are attracted to and will pay for the convenience.

Understanding why you are in business will help guide your corporate story and steer your marketing in the right direction.

Market to your strengths. If your product or service is expensive, embrace that fact. If you want to squeeze every dime from your prospect’s pockets, focus on your product’s incredible accessories that are impossible to live without.  Do you build a product of such desirable quality or status that people save for months or go into debt for years just to have one? If so, market with that in mind.

Companies often fail because they don’t market to their strengths.  They make the mistake of choosing concepts that they think their target market wants to hear. Unfortunately, when they can’t back it up, the company goes down with the ideas.

Rosh

When people consider digital marketing they often focus on one or two options. Truth is, pursuing multiple avenues of action is more effective as an overall strategy. Every industry is different and that is why testing is so important.

Here are 10 types of digital marketing to consider for your business:

1. E-mail marketing
2. Banner advertising
3. Search engine optimization (SEO)
4. Search Engine Marketing (SEM)
5. Blogging
6. Podcasting
7. Webinars
8. Article marketing
9. Mobile marketing
10. Game marketing

Each of these options contain many specific techniques and methods. Start with one or two campaigns and develop them until they work consistently or prove themselves to be ineffective. Over time add more tasks or campaigns as you and your company grow.

The tweaking never ends, but adjustments can be made quickly and effectively using the right Web analytics. Effective marketing leads to more profit.

2.) Share your new posts on Twitter.

3.) Share your old posts on Twitter.

4.) Use http://su.pr or other link shorteners to keep track of clicks

5.) Use Digg to promote your best posts.

6.) Ask to be a guest blogger.

7.) Champion other bloggers.

8.) Create videos for YouTube.

9.) Create a Facebook business page.

10.) Write an e-book about your area of expertise.

11.) Submit your blog to directories.

12.)  Use link bait to encourage links to your site.

13.)  Create support blogs.

14.) Use signature links in your blog comments where acceptable.

15.) Start an industry related forum.

16.) List your blog in your smart phone e-mail signatures.

17.) Link to other blogs often.

18.) Thank everyone who comments positively about you or your blog.

19.) Use exciting headlines in your post.

20.) Use important key words in your post titles.

21.) Don’t forget to use internal links.

22.) Create a great newsletter.

23.) Advertise your blog using AdWords.

24.) Advertise on Facebook.

25.) Tag your photographs well for image search.

26.) Use a site map.

27.) Set up a social network through Ning.

28.) Interview a guest on a podcast.

29.) Ask to be a guest on related podcasts.

30.) Create a Squidoo lens.

31.) Create a business card for your blog.

32.) Create a Polldaddy survey

33.) Create a press release and send it to locations like public relations Websites.

34.) Use the promotion tools available through Feedburner.

35.) Offer to speak to local groups.

36.) Use categories and tags effectively.

37.) Answer questions on Yahoo answers.

38.) Share relevent links on LinkedIn.

39.) Attend industry conferences.

40.) Attend local Tweetups.

41.) Offer an RSS e-mail option.

42.)  Ask your readers for testimonials.

43.) Write an article for traditional media.

44.) Create T-shirts and hats with your blog name.

45.) Create a blog promotion contest.

46.) Submit how-to articles to sites like Ezine.

47.) Post often; the more you post, the more traffic to your site.

48.) Use Tweetmeme to make it easy for people to tweet your posts.

49.) Offer e-cards through Fomoto. Make sure to watermark your blog name on the photo.

50.) Make sure your Permalink names relate to your post.

Marketing, sales, human resources and any department connecting with the public will benefit from a structured, well-planned calendar. The way we promote and grow our businesses is changing. While social media offers new opportunities it should not replace what already works for your business.  If a company is going to add social media to the mix then a social media editorial calendar — just like a good overall marketing plan — increases the odds of success.

A calendar helps people avoid reinventing the editorial wheel.  Once a plan is in place, the project becomes more about producing great content to fulfill the plan than wasting time or discontinuing the effort attempting to figure out what to do next.

Hire or place someone you trust in charge of the calendar.  Use a good alert system to remind all participants of content deadlines or urgent actions. Plan all blog posts, podcasts and videos. Facebook, Twitter and other social media platforms should include the theme of the day, week or month.

However, nothing is set in stone.

Scheduled themes based on the realities of your business routine. In most cases, weekly or monthly is the recommended frequency.  The key is consistency. There is nothing wrong with updating and changing a calendar.  We live in a continually changing world. New opportunities land at our feet every day.   Use the calendar as a guide — especially for those days you don’t know where to start.

The more people there are involved, the more important it is to maintain a calendar.  Often when I sit in corporate board rooms, I help  the company develop a calendar  before they post their first blog entry or Tweet.  One of my most important assignments when working with a company is to make sure the calendar is implemented and all participants do what they committed to do to make their social media plan a success.

Do you find yourself off track? Not sure what to do next? Overwhelmed at the prospect of having to create new ideas for years to come? A social media or marketing calendar is extremely helpful.

Rosh