The temptation is definitely there…

Social Media is FREE right? Anyone with a computer can set-up an account and start writing stuff. “I could hire my teenage daughter or an intern to put stuff on Facebook for me! Heck, they’re on Facebook constantly – they know how to use these tools!”

It sounds enticing, but when you really dig into what Social Media  is all about, a do-it-yourself approach just doesn’t make sense:

• Time - this is the one thing I hear most of all. “Well, I just don’t have time to stay on top of all this.” It’s true. Social Media is a time-suck. Creating a page and then leaving it to rot won’t do you much good. Moreover, if you are on Social Media, your fans and potential fans expect some activity. If they write you, and ask a questions or worse, post something negative, like a complaint, if it just sits there with no response…that’s when being in Social Media can actually be worse than not having a presence at all.

• Let’s move beyond Time – Let’s think about this whole interactivity thing. Sounds great right? The opportunity to have a dialogue, for the brand to really engage with customers. The interactivity part should be a primary reason to hire a professional. Clients come to CEA Marketing Group all the time to create an ad for example in a magazine. It’s a one-time placement; there’ s no potential for a conversation. You have total control over messaging and visuals- it’s static. It’s not “alive”. Ads cost maybe $500+, on the economic rate schedule – take 1-2 weeks to create, on a shortened turnaround. Let’s be honest – why would you agree to hiring a professional for an ad placement, but not to handle something as organic, 2-way, and impactful as Social Media?

• Permanence – when you create accounts, there is a ton of stuff that you can never change, for example your Twitter name or handle. Don’t just set-up an account or page on a whim. It requires thoughtful planning.

• Change – Facebook is changing every week. No joke. The last thing you want to do is allocate money into a campaign that can get you kicked off Facebook. It happens. And Facebook doesn’t have customer service; so if your page is removed; it’s gone. You have to be able to keep up with the updates. Not to mention, be on a regular regiment of Social Media education – seminars, conferences, webinars! There’s always something to learn.  Much easier said than done.

• According to Mari Smith – she is amazing, and I absolutely agree with her – there are 4 strategies you have to consider: 1) Design 2) Content 3) Engagement 4) Promotional. It’s like any other campaign you ever hire an agency to creatively and strategically implement, except 10x more moving parts.

• Brand – more than any other type of marketing tool ever, you have the ability to build your brand in Social Media. You also can hurt your brand tremendously. Do you really want your lil sister or an 18 year old intern being the communicator for your brand? Probably not.

• Policies – companies need to establish internal policies and Social Media protocol. Agencies, like CEA Marketing Group, help clients develop those standards. It’s a critical part of the puzzle – for how to handle employees to how to handle negative feedback. We don’t pretend to be lawyers, but to have guidelines established is a must-do for small and large companies.

• Viral – everyone wants to go viral right? Well, it’s a double-edged sword. A viral campaign can be great if its positive and controlled, but can do a lot of damage if ignored or not handled properly. As a general rule – what goes on the internet, stays on the internet.

So yes, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, MySpace, FourSquare etc. – all “FREE” tools. But, FREE doesn’t mean that DIY is the way to go.

Social Media is a marketing staple and will only become more influential and prevalent in the future. Remember – it’s a two-way tool. The dialogue is it’s greatest selling point. But, in order to have a dialogue you have to be prepared, professional, and available – you have to have a plan. My advice…don’t underestimate the power of Social Media. Before you get started, look into hiring a company and be reasonable – you invest in an ad; you should invest in 2-way campaigns – building a network – Social Media.

CEA Marketing Group recently attended the Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association 2010 Restaurant Marketing Summit at the Renaissance Vinoy in St. Petersburg. (Love Love Love this Hotel!)

The focus was of course on restaurant marketing – independents, franchises and joint venture restaurants. One of the main themes that resonated with me was the importance of building a database TODAY!

Databases have been around forever. Obviously, they make a lot of sense – collect a list of people that want to hear from you…then keep in touch with them. The three databases that were discussed primarily:

1. E-mail – I know a lot has been done with E-mail, and most people kind of have that “So over it” attitude. SPAMMERS have unfortunately made E-mail marketing sort of a negative thing; however, a well-managed, opt-in database and campaign – not a random purchased list – still can be an amazingly effective and low-cost form of communication.

2. Mobile – I loved what I learned about mobile. Did you know that a text message is typically read within 4 minutes of receiving it – and some statistics put the read rate at almost 98%. So – 98% of text messages get read! That’s crazy!!!!!

3. Social Media – This isn’t typically referred to as a “database” per say; however, a social media network really serves the same purpose. People that have “opted-in” by liking you, following you, connecting with you. Most will agree that Social Media doesn’t equate to much without an active network of connections.

The main point to all this is that there is going to be a ton of opportunities in the future. Smart phones. Applications. Facebook taking over the world. E-mail will still be a great way to cross-promote and will be more accessible/mobile. IF YOU DON’T HAVE A DATABASE OR NETWORK ESTABLISHED, YOU’RE GOING TO BE WAYYYY BEHIND.

Things to consider:

1. Have a backed-up system in place for managing your database before you start trying to build one – be organized about it – make sure you know how to access your database, how to export it, and if you choose to use a service or a management provider, make sure you know if you own your database.
2. Go for quality over quantity – the more clear you make your opt-in message, I think, the better – that way there are no surprises – let them know the frequency and content they will be receiving and stick to the plan.
3. Don’t start off with a bang and then fizzle out – stay consistent, and really think through your messaging – marketers spend months primping and perfecting one ad placement, then turn and burn their E-mail, Text or Social Media content – really take the time to think through it, put it on a schedule, and don’t let your list go stale.
4. Include offers that are timely, relevant and deadline-oriented and use them to build your database.
5. Track! – All of these forms of advertising are track-able, so make sure to really dig in. E-mail and text especially don’t require mega-dollars and complicated systems to discern numbers and review important trends – I do it on a weekly basis typically.
6. Everything works together. Your E-mail can advertise your Facebook. Your Facebook can promote your Blog and Twitter. Your SMS can drive sales etc. Cross-platform promotion is huge!!!!
7. Lastly, if you don’t have time to set-up and manage database campaigns properly, hire a professional Cheap yet ineffective doesn’t really do you any good. It’s just a waste of money.

So, although databases are not a new thing, they are more important than ever!

By: Jennifer Maxfield (Contact me at CEA’s Facebook or jennifer@ceamarketing.com)

First off – what is  FBML? The Facebook Developer Wiki pretty much outlines the cut and dry of what Facebook Markup Language is all about.

There’s probably a huge amount of possibilities I am not even aware of, but the major opportunity FBML has created for me as a marketer are customized, graphically-driven pages. No more boring text notes! CEA Marketing Group has been re-designing our clients’ fan pages, and we are loving the flexibility. We can better brand our clients, make call to actions more impactful, and have a lot more fun, embedding video and links within the page in a more visual and creative way.

I have to give credit to the page that really inspired us EZineArticles – they have a great theme, and they kept everything super clean. What I also really like is the ability to customize what page a visitor lands on depending on if they already “Liked” your page or not. If the visitor hasn’t yet become a fan (Sorry, it’s just easier to use FAN when writing) of your page, that person can arrive on a Welcome page specifically created to get them to join! ‘CLICK ON LIKE TO JOIN’ says the gigantic red arrow!!! If they are already a “Liker,” then that person will land on the fan page wall.

Here are some examples of recent work we’ve done using FBML:

ESPN Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl

This is what we used to have to do to describe a contest, using a text note.

This is what we can do now with FBML pages. MUCH BETTER!

Other pages to check out!!!

Ron Rose Production

Holiday Builders

CEA Marketing Group

GTE Federal Credit Union

Want to learn more? E-mail me jennifer@ceamarketing.com or call CEA Marketing Group at 727-523-8044. Design starts at $250.00 per page! Please verify pricing with me – May 7, 2010.

So, I have been outlining some of my top considerations when creating a social media campaign.

How to Create a Social Media Contest Part 1

How to Create a Social Media Contest Part 2

Here is another important one!

MARKETING:

CEA Marketing Group’s most successful social media campaigns include the use of “traditional” media to promote the contest.

Just the other day, I heard an ad on WFLZ for the “Dewmocracy” campaign. (PS – I hate how Flash-dependent this site is – ARGH) Type in Mountain Dew in Google and the “Dewmocracy” web site is the first place position under paid sponsorships, so they are investing in an Adwords campaign.

Pepsi came out with a fun and feel-good television ad to kick-off their newest online campaign – actually forgoing their mega huge Super Bowl spend to launch the Pepsi Refresh Project.  (Finalists will be announced June 1) Just wanted to mention this cuz I think it’s crazy – Do a search for the word ‘refresh’ on Google and the very first organic search result is the Pepsi Refresh Project. There are nearly 1400 entries!

So, although it’s a social media contest, that doesn’t mean that you can just promote the contest via social media platforms and expect a huge success. While most of us don’t have large television-capable budgets, a lot of us are doing advertising right now that you can possibly piggy-back on.

• Review your schedules and artwork and see if you can add in a snipe of copy for example.
• Reach out to your in-house E-mail or mobile databases and send them an E-mail or text about the contest.
• Look into free listing sites where you can place your contest or campaign.
• Facebook ads are inexpensive and highly targeted.
• In-store call-to-actions such as posters and flyers are great.
• Don’t forget to communicate your promotion with your staff. Word-of-mouth promotion is huge!

It’s easy to think about the contest itself and not necessarily how you are going to drive participants. (Kind of like when you invest in the mondo-awesomenessess of web sites and then forget about “how am I going to get people to my web site.” – but that’s another story!) Don’t fall into that trap. Remember in your planning stages to include a budget for marketing, and if possible, enough money to integrate some traditional mediums into the mix. If you’re going to spend the time and energy into launching a social media campaign, make sure you do a good job of promoting it!!!

When creating a social media contest, you always have a big picture idea. Normally, in people’s minds, coming up with that totally rad concept for a contest is the hardest part – the most pivotal part. For me, in my experience, a great idea is nothing without great execution. I immediately think logistics. That’s why I’d like to start off Part 2 (Read Part 1) with 5 things you HAVE to think about . . . that you may not think about . . . before you get to far ahead of yourself.

1. Personnel – Contact Person

Honestly, no matter how tight a ship you run or how flawless you think your execution is, ultimately, someone is going to have questions/comments about your contest. (Questions are actually a great gauge of “real” interest. If people are invested enough to ask a question – it’s a pretty good contest.) It’s absolutely necessary in my mind to have a Real Life “Contact Us” point person available to field any questions, comments and complaints. The last thing you want is to have irritated contestants and participants who walk away feeling like the whole thing was a waste of time, not very well organized or ignored etc. A knowledgeable, friendly and dedicated point person can smooth out almost any kink.

2. Personnel 2 -Tell your staff

When running any contest/promotion/campaign, not just a social media contest, make sure your staff knows about it. They need to understand the basics about what your doing – and this goes for businesses small and large. Write an executive summary – E-mail it; hold a meeting – whatever works for you. If an interested party calls in and has a question, “Uhhh – I don’t know what you’re talking about” immediately zaps all credibility. That person is sooo0000 not going to participate and may even be a little miffed. In addition, your staff is a great source of word-of-mouth advertising!!! They tell their family and friends etc. etc.

3. Know Your Platform

Facebook has a long list of rules that in my opinion are somewhat subject to interpretation. You’re supposed to get contests approved . . . but honestly, I haven’t had much luck with my “customer service rep.” Twitter is well-known for crashing or being “overloaded.” YouTube videos – you need to know the guidelines of what video content is acceptable. Do your research on the platform you plan on using and make sure that your contest adheres to the standards outlined and that it is compatible with your platform – meaning, if Twitter crashes for 4 hours, it won’t devastate your contest.

4. Fine Print

Who’s participating? 18 year olds+? Minors. Who is ineligible? What “disclaimers” or fine print does your company mandate? Every online contest should have a “Rules and Regulations”, “Contest Policy”, etc. page that outlines the type of commitment they are making, what information you are collecting, how is a winner determined, contingencies regarding a winner . . . . and the list goes on and on. Typically, this is not cooker-cutter copy, but well thought out and organized Fine Print. Make sure you have someone who can write this copy and someone that can OK this copy. Very importante.

5. Consolation Prize

I throw this in because Prizes are always part of the budget. Now, no matter what you truly believe about the idea that “Everyone is a Winner” – this is a sentiment held by A LOT of people. Especially if your contest includes minors in some way, have a Consolation Prize or some sort of acknowledgment. We’ve run contests where we narrow the entry pool down to Top Finalists – like 20 people. Those 20 people, we acknowledge in a cool way or we give them something. That exchange is a great opportunity to further build rapport and leave everyone with a good taste in their mouth. Really, it’s the smart thing to do! Every contestant should be “Thanked” in some way – my opinion

More Considerations to Come!!!

www.ceamarketing.com

I went to Social Fresh in Tampa this year and listened to Maggie Fox (@maggiefox) from Social Media Group talk about her experiences moving Ford Motor Company into this new form of marketing. One of the things she said that really stuck with me, “businesses need to start thinking like media.”

1. You must first create a remarkable experience

2. Promote that experience, or “syndicate” that experience, across the channels that you “own”- so in essence, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, these are your stations to broadcast your content – the content is really like your programming, the more compelling, the better!

3. Then use those remarkable experiences within your paid advertising strategy

So, it all starts with creating a REMARKABLE experience; now that is A LOT easier said than done. What is REMARKABLE? And, how do you achieve it? No matter who you read and what you hear, most people will consistently say in order to be successful on social media, content is king! So, CEA Marketing Group has focused on online contests to create that REMARKABLE experience, and for us, REMARKABLE just means something that people can care about and relate to. But, how do you create an online contest that people will participate in and care about, especially because contest are so prevalent these days? And, how do you comply with all these new standards – ie Facebook? I will be outlining over the next couple of weeks key considerations regarding ‘How to Create a Social Media Contest’. Tune in!

Our latest campaign drove in 45 contestants, 200,000 votes and over 270,000 pageviews. Find out more soon!

I wasn’t really sure what to expect to be honest. I had met Stephanie during our initial interview; she was in what I would consider very business professional clothing, and I knew that the dress code for the roller derby girls was pretty drastically different. There was the home team, wearing black and red, and the visiting team wearing silver and pink! Hot pants, fish net stockings, low cut shirts galore – it was crazy!!! And, they all looked great! The best part really were the names – very creative. My favorite was Lunch Lady – she was an amazing skater. I also met the President, Jessica recently, and her name is Annetagonize. Some other crowd favorites were Roxy, Betty Kruger and Ninja Monkey. When the girls are in skates, their names ARE their skate names!

I arrived at 8pm at the Temple Terrace skate arena, and seriously, there was a line that was literally the length of the building. There was such a great energy there. Old, young, couples – there was truly a very diverse crowd and it felt very alive!

The girls were so awesome! They set up a special section for us – caution tape all over the place. There were not major crashes though in our area, but the WARNING signs were all around us I happened to sit next to a regular, so he helped fill me in on the rules. The place was packed and it was definitely a fun night.

Can’t wait to start putting the marketing plan into action. We are going to focus on:

• Driving ticket sales and attendance at the home bouts
• Creating ways for fans to stay engaged with Derby Darlins between bouts, heightening loyalty and ongoing enthusiasm for the league
• To educate the public on what roller derby is
• To convey the true love and passion the skaters have for their high-intensity, adrenaline-pumping sport, as well as the camaraderie and relationships of the players and fans

I’ll break down the rules in my next blog as I get to know them all

Derby Darlins – Winner of the CEA Marketing Makeover 2010

www.ceamarketing.com

http://www.tampabayderbydarlins.com/

What we loved about the Derby Darlins was the fact it had FUN written all over it. We also really like supporting local businesses and felt this would be a great opportunity to get to know a lot of incredible personalities along the way. We will be meeting with Derby Darlins within the next week or so to interview them. We want to better understand their culture and listen to their goals and ideas!

And, of course, we are very excited to attend our first bout? May be totally spelling that wrong But, the CEA team is stoked about seeing the derby in action!

Thanks again to all the entries. Please check out the EXCLUSIVE offer page, http://www.ceamarketing.com/makeover/offer, and set your appointment by Feb. 28! Free Money!!!!

It used to be back in the day that you put a web site up on the web and then left it. Well, as search engines started rewarding web sites whose content was regularly being updated, it became more important for web sites to be easier to edit. Also, most marketing these days drives people to a web site where visitors should be able to easily connect the offline advertising or message with what’s on the company site. That means, content will probably need to change often, to coordinate with whatever special, incentive, message etc. is out there. Now with social media booming, integrating the content with your social pages, content that is constantly changing, is another reason why “How do I keep my site up-to-date?” is a growing issue.

There are 2 basic ways you can address edits:

1. Hire an outside developer, agency, IT person to make the edits for you
2. Utilize a program, software or Content Management System (CMS) so you or your staff can self-edit

So, what is a CMS? It’s typically a log-in, non-public system, meaning anyone who visits the web site will not know of its existence. Only people provided with a username and password would be able to access it. Through this system, personnel would be able to edit information, typically text, such as pricing, specials or even photo galleries. A CMS is not usually used for pages like About Us or Contact Us, mainly because that information is pretty much going to stay the same for long periods of time.

When trying to decide which option is best for you, here are some things to think about:

• How much time do you or your staff have to spend on editing the site?
  • Most of my clients really want a self-editing CMS, but don’t realize that even with a user-friendly system, that it still requires them to sit down and make the edits themselves.
  • Depending on how much time you have during the day, it’s sometimes quicker to just E-mail a change and have someone take care of it for you.

• How quickly do changes need to be made?
  • If you want to be able to make changes instantly, a CMS may be the way to go.
  • When working with an agency or IT person for example, there will probably be a 24-48 lag time between your change request and that change being executed.

• How comfortable are you with learning a new system?
  • There are thousands of ways you can build a CMS, but bottom-line, you do have to be comfortable with learning a new system, making mistakes and experimenting.
  • Even the most intuitive of systems will take a little time to acclimate oneself to.

• Cost versus Need
  • Ask yourself – how often do you need to make changes on the site? If it’s not often, you may just want to use a developer or IT person.
  • If you feel your site needs to be updated frequently (1x per week for example), you may want to pay to develop a CMS.
  • A CMS will cost you more upfront, but depending on your developer or agency’s hourly rate for example, if edits are frequent enough, a CMS may be worth the additional upfront costs.

I would like to bring up that even if you have a Content Management System, you will still need a developer in many cases. A CMS is a tool to edit easily editable information that needs to be refreshed frequently. So, the key is 1) easy-to-edit content and 2) content that needs to be edited often.

CMS is not usually a creative editing tool. For example, if you have a photo on your home page, you may be able to take down or upload a new photo, but you will often times not be able to edit the photo itself, for example to re-size the photo, fix the coloring, etc. Also, anything that moves, for example your navigation, flash intros, videos etc. are usually not included in a CMS as the time to develop a useful CMS to edit such functions would exceed the benefits and would probably also be too complicated for the average person to be able implement, even with a well-developed system. For these types of changes, I suggest using a professional web programmer or developer.

Bottom line, there are a ton of “can’ts” and “cans” when it comes to developing a CMS. It will be important for you to outline what you want to be able to edit and then place the onus on the person developing the site or functions to tell you whether or not it’s logistically possible, and if they are honest, whether or not you really need a CMS based on your objectives. As mentioned, sometimes using a developer for 2 to 3 hours per month can save you a lot of headaches and may actually be cheaper. One last thought – if you want written instructions or a manual on how to use your CMS, make sure to let the developer know. It may lead to an increased cost, due to the extra time it would take to develop a manual, but it may be worth it if several people will be using the CMS for example, or if you learn better by reading.

Brought to you by CEA Marketing Group. www.ceamarketing.com

My name is Jennifer and I am an Account Manager at CEA Marketing Group and will be working with the CEA Marketing Makeover Contest winner! If you’ve ever wondered how an agency works or what working with CEA would be like – I will be documenting the entire experience from start to finish via this blog.

We were extremely excited about our response. We received over 50 entries from various businesses throughout Florida. CEA, like everyone else, was working with a minimal advertising budget , always key these days, and were elated with our results. Most of our entries came in off of our E-mail campaign, as well as Facebook.

Last week, we wrapped up the majority of our interviews. We selected the top 14 contestants and invited them all to an agency meet and greet. First, we filmed each of them as they pitched why their company deserves to be selected. Everyone did a great job! I was very impressed; most everyone did it without a script.

We then sat down and asked some questions. It was fascinating learning about all these different types of businesses from a Moving Company to an Auto Repair Shop to a National Plastics Chain to a High-end Doggie Merchandise web site, Derby Darlins and Football . . . there were so many great stories and so much opportunity for success.

I will be posting our top 5 contestants online no later than Monday.

Once we select our winner – let the fun begin!