1. search for new outlets
2. expand your services, offer a wide range of services
3. hit a wider audience

One of the most interesting things that we have to talk to people about as an interactive marketing agency is social media optimization. One area that is often forgotten is the digital work, and the the changes happening today are not only about being consumers but being workers.  I came across an article that headlined: “Is Email Marketing Next For Extinction?” by Per Logren on February 9.

It caught my eye because we do about 250 million+ message of email marketing sends a year for our customers. And even if we weren't a leading interactive agency, I would probably say: "I don't think so!".  Email marketing is not headed for extinction, it is headed for maturation and evolution, just as TV and social media marketing and SEO, etc. The Generation X and Generation Y employees and consumers have different expectations for work tools and shopping experiences, just as the boomers and the tweeners of today have different and evolving needs.
So I don't think email marketing is dead or that social media is fully evolved.

Definition 6 Account Coordinator, Cecilia Barella, on the social media revolution...
 

Social Media Marketing and PR (as it relates to marketing your product or service) is a hot topic these days - and you'll often find a multitude of definitions on this subject.   Marketing Sherpa sums up Social Media Marketing and PR best in their recent Benchmark Guide. They define Social media marketing and PR as the "the practice of facilitating a dialogue and sharing content between companies, influencers, prospects and customers using various online platforms and social networks, video and photo sharing, wikis, forums and related web 2.0 technologies."  The article also seperates out the difference between social media and social media marketing and PR.

Here are a few other key points from the article that I think you'll find interesting...
 

• Social Media and Email are the only two tactics between online and offline marketing tactics in which more companies are planning to increase spending rather than decrease spending in 2009.
• Lack of knowledge is the most significant barrier to social media adoption -- even though people are familiar with social media, they do not know how to use it effectively for Marketing or PR
• More than 90% of companies believe that social media is most effective in achieving brand building goals, followed closely by goals of attracting website visitors.
   

Account Coordinator Jeremy Bromwell speaks out about Social Media:

As we settle into 2009 it is extremely important to stay in tune with market conditions.  Social media is expected to see significant growth as an interactive channel largely as a result of our economic reality.  Earlier this week Erik Qualman at Search Engine Watch published an article with his predictions for social media in 2009.  Here are a few highlights from the article:

1. Social Media will continue growing, Business Networks will surge, Free Services will become defunct, Traditional broadcast television moves online, Social Media will change real world behavior, More Social Media searches for Products and Services, and Marketing Budgets will Continue Shrinking
2. If your business or service does not currently have a presence in the social media space, now is the time.
3. When considering your social media presence, consider the goals.  Many times the success metrics for social media are different than other channels.  The focus for most brands should be brand engagement and awareness.  The primary goals of social media, in my opinion, are viral distribution of your marketing message and to remain top of mind for your audience.  If you can achieve this you will ensure that your brand stays in the buyers evoked set and has a higher propensity to purchase YOUR product/service.
4. Mobile devices will be the primary way people access social networks and tools. 

In summary, companies that are not leveraging this relatively low cost channel will be left behind as more and more users adopt social media.  Developing a solid social media plan is a great place to start and is something that can be accomplished in a relatively short period of time for a low cost this quarter and can then be executed for the rest of 2009.  Additionally, a study conducted by the Kelsey Group and ConStat shows that the percentage of mobile phone users who said they accessed social network sites from their handsets jumped 182% from September 2007 to October 2008 (see graph below).  Check out our Social Networking Quickstart blog to learn how leading interactive agency, Definition 6, can help maximize all of your social media efforts.

While reviewing new industry trends for a client, Account Coordinator, Cecilia Barella, came across interesting data on how marketers can (and should be) maximizing online efforts through video.  The article was found on Media Post and discusses how the demand for online video presents the best opportunity for marketers to engage with their audience while at the same time capitalizing on the Web’s direct-response capability.  Three key points from this article…

1.     The Internet and television deliver two completely different types of user experiences, so it makes sense that marketers continue to search for a video implementation that engages viewers and drives action.

2.       Online video combines the emotional branding aspects of television and the direct-response attributes of the Web. 

3.       Affordable production costs allow for testing video content and targeting different audiences.  Marketers don’t need to be forced to target a large pool of viewers with generic brand messages.  Instead, they can highlight multiple brand attributes that resonate with smaller niche audiences.

To read the article in its entirety, log on to MediaPost.com

Definition 6 is a leading interactive agency helping clients take their interactive media campaigns to the next level. Contact us today for more information.

Account Coordinator, Jeremy Bromwell, recently came across new research from Epsilon Strategic Services  which reveals that character length is not the only important item to consider when you are designing your email subject line for any permission based email marketing campaign.

Marketers spend significant time developing the email creative however most do not devote enough time to subject line strategy and development.  Many would argue that the subject line is the most important factor in overall response rate -- and that the subject line extends beyone the open to click-thru rate.  With the subject line being the initial piece of information subscribers see in their inbox (verses the well developed creative) marketers should re-think the relationship between the subject line length (SLL) and email performance.

Key points from Jeremy's article:

1. the combination of SLL and content is what drives higher open & click rates
2. 57% of U.S. email recipience will open an email based on their relationship with the sender andn the first 38-47 characters.
3. standards to keep in mind include front-loading your subject lines with the most important information, keep the subject line short to convey your message, use longer subject lines when there is a compelling reason to...and always test!

There are many important things to consider when developing the subject line strategy beyond length.  Split or multi-variate subject line testing should always be placed into the project schedule to maximize the ROI of the campaign.  Keep in mind personalization, especially beyond just name, is another best practice to consider when appropriate in the subject line and body of the email and increases subscriber engagement.

Definition 6 is a leading interactive agency in Atlanta serving many of our clients with the best and most effective email marketing strategies.

Definition 6 Technical Project Manager, Mike Reese, delivered an article presentation on developing effective affiliate polices.  Affiliate policies can be an extremely lucrative supplement to your standard marketing practices while at the same time they can also be harmful.  Without an explicit set of policies and rules to govern affiliate programs, you may find your company being misrepresented thus driving down revenue and reputation.

We recently encountered an issue involving an affiliate that simply wasn’t playing nice. The result of this was diminished reputation and poor conversion performance. This affiliate was including my client’s website in “adware” distributed to its users, thus creating a spike in visits and reducing conversions. These users were being displayed the client’s website either unknowingly or without requesting it. This is a simple case of increased traffic not always being a good thing. Revenue generation is the key for any company, so if increased traffic is not contributing to that number is it really worth it?  And where exactly are the users coming from?  By setting guidelines, and enforcing them, you can ensure your reputation is being upheld and your own marketing message is not being diluted.

Mike closed with three final points:
1. Know your affiliates – conduct thorough research to better understand your affiliates marketing practices as well as how they intend to utilize your band and marketing messages.
2. Maintain a consistent message – your new email campaign utilizing the latest promotional offers will only serve as a point of confusion if your licensed affiliate is using last year’s campaign information
3. Enforcement – policies and regulations can only go so far.  You have to be prepared to make immediate concise action against affiliates that have broken the rules.  The quickest way to destroy your marketing message is to allow affiliate companies to continue their illegal or ill-advised practices.

You can read the article in its entirety at: http://www.websitemagazine.com/content/blogs/posts/articles/Developing_Effective_Affiliate_Policies.aspx

Definition 6 is a leading interactive agency delivering comprehensive solutions focused on solving real business problems through analysis, strategic vision, innovation, and technical competency.  Contact us today to find out how we can help you with all of your email marketing efforts.

Nearly across the board companies are lowering their spending or holding off on marketing and IT projects given the state of the economy.  You still have a need to market, drive sales, lower costs, and generate revenue using things like interactive marketing solutions, perhaps even more so now.

Read through our daily blog posts to learn how Definition 6, a leading interactive agency, can help identify smaller, lower cost solutions that can be delivered quickly and efficiently.  Below are example offerings (bucketed into revenue creation, growing market share and reducing IT costs) that we bring to our clients in an overall turbulent economy. Most solutions can be up and running in under 2 weeks:

Sales - Revenue Creation
• Mobile Sites
• Site Search
• Desktop and Web widgets
• Rapid SEO
• Email Marketing
• Web Analytics

Marketing - Growing Market Share
• Social Networking
• Mobile Sites
• Blogging
• SMS Campaigns

IT - Reducing Costs
• Offshore IT Solutions
• SaaS Infrastructure Workshop
• Hosted SharePoint
• Web Content Management
• Managed Services