Dabrian Marketing Group

It’s Called SOCIAL Media, People

July 2, 2014 by Dabrian Marketing Group Leave a Comment

Since the days of yore (back when MySpace reigned supreme), social media has been used as one thing above all else: a really great time waster. The reason social media exploded into being an integral part of our daily routines was because it entertained us. It allowed us to fill the gaps between our facetime by simulating it, and it was fun. Facebook came along as the MySpace reincarnate, and then Twitter gave us all the means to hear straight from the mouth of pop culture (I’m lookin’ at you, Bieber). Now, this isn’t to say that the “fun” social megdia platforms haven’t become more informational (see Facebook’s 2014 baby “What’s Trending”), so not every post or tweet needs to be witty or make your audience “LOL.”

But it still holds true that you’re more likely to scroll down to the video that “John and 3 other friends” shared of that cat pawing the keyboard (yes, almost 36 million of us watched this) than to read the mostly informative articles listed over there on the right hand side. So now my question is, why are so many brands struggling to grasp the very concept upon which social media was founded?

What Brands Are Doing

How is it possible to take a world-renowned brand of liquor coupled with a new flavor that resonates with a younger audience, and make it boring? Well, the folks behind Jack Daniel’s Tennessee Honey’s @JackHoney have found the answer. Instead of socializing with the fun-seeking young people who love their product, they have chosen to push a steady stream of advertisements driven by a less-than-stellar hashtag:

Listen, Jack. I respect you. I may even love you. But this incessant self-promotion misses the point. I beg you to take a look at Hootsuite’s all-powerful Rule of Thirds. Only ⅓ of your content should shamelessly promote your business. Throughout May 2014, that number was over 88% for @JackHoney. Not to mention, not a single tweet was sent as a direct interaction with your audience. You were tweeted at nearly 350 times in the month of May, yet you responded to none of those who took the time to try to connect with you.

If you’ve managed to pull yourself away from the feline-driven noise in the digital space, you’re probably aware that food and beverage conglomerate, Nestlé, has come under fire for their production tactics. This has led to some serious blowback from consumers through their social profiles.

When you receive interaction from your followers, you have two options. You can either respond, or you can ignore it. A Crisis Management Strategy (to handle situations like this) should always be on hand to aid in the formation of a response, but in Nestlé’s case, they have taken the opposite route. They have chosen to not respond at all, leaving consumers with nothing but a public forum to berate them, rightfully so or not. The criticism that has plagued their Facebook since February is showing no sign of cease-fire.

My point is, Nestlé, if you choose to continue to ignore these consumer complaints (as delicate as the situation may be), then you may wish to consider jumping ship and removing your social media profiles altogether. Social media is intended to initiate/facilitate a conversation, and if your profile resembles the likes of pissedconsumer.com with your refusal to join the conversation, then it’s time to call it quits. It’s called SOCIAL media, Nestle.

What Brands Should Be Doing

Taking Risks

Talking smack on an NFL team, particularly during the Super Bowl, certainly qualifies as a risk. But when handled with a brand-consistent message (and a little bit of playful humor), that risk becomes a reward pretty quickly:

Developing a Personality

Regardless of the nature of your brand’s personality (humorous, sincere, informative, etc.) it’s something that needs to be established. Perhaps the most prominent way of accomplishing this is to speak in first person. There may not be a more widespread consumer complaint in the 21st century than talking to a computer. Charmin is a prime example of how humanizing your brand (tastefully) with a consistent brand voice is a key to social success:

And (Shocker) Being SOCIAL

Similar to the class clown in high school, outlandish seems to resonate with us on social media. Just ask the folks at Skittles. They are widely praised for their use of social because of their unique witticism and their sarcastic interaction with consumers. Something as simple as retweeting them could warrant a response:

Perhaps the best lesson to learn from Skittles is that they don’t overcomplicate things. They promote their brand in multiple ways, but they also talk to people (what a concept!). Tell me that @Idk_ImMegan didn’t just become a Skittles fan for life. Bravo, Skittles.

Social media presents brands and consumers with the remarkable opportunity to interact with one another on a level we hadn’t experienced before. Once marketing teams understand that this interaction is a two-way street, their brand’s unique personality can shine through. And once that happens, their customers will definitely take notice. After all, it’s called SOCIAL media for a reason.

Have any other examples of great brand personality on social media? Let us know, or send a tweet our way

A Look into the Existence of an #AgencyLife Project Manager

June 25, 2014 by Dabrian Marketing Group 1 Comment

I love the #AgencyLife hashtag on Twitter. For those who are unfamiliar, it’s mostly comprised of snarky witticisms and love (okay, and the occasional picture showing a coffee obsession bordering on unhealthy). What could be better, right? Thanks to my time here at DMG, I’ve been fully initiated into all that #AgencyLife has to offer. With that said, I thought I’d shed some light on what it’s like to a project manager in the digital marketing space.

What is my typical #AgencyLife day like?

I recently saw a submission on Medium.com that was broken down by minutes of the day–brilliant! Now that’s how I keep track of my hours:

7:55am – Check email
8:03am – Comm for Project X
8:18am – Task meeting with Team Member Y
8:38am – Check email
9:02am – Have a meeting that turns into another meeting that only ends when someone has to pee

And so on, for at least 8 hours. The thing is, there isn’t really anything typical about it. As the project manager, I’m the main line of communication for our clients. If a client calls, I stop what I’m doing and take the call. “Clients come first” is my motto, and I stick by it.

I like to say that my days are “atypically typical.” Normally, there is nothing normal about them.

What are some [things] I can’t live without?

Definition: [things] – (n.) physical objects, apps, odd objects that live on my desk.

We all have them–[things] we really, really like having at our desks. I basically can’t survive without the following (some of which are pictured above):

A blender bottle
A regular coffee cup to accompany my Tervis Tumbler (seriously, they keep coffee hot for so long!)
A Moleskine notebook
A physical calendar to back up my Google calendar
A plethora of snacks
My trusty, dusty Galaxy S4
And some motivational words from two of my favorite companies: Quest and GNC

How do I keep an #AgencyLife/#RealLife balance?

The short answer is, I don’t.

Now, for the slightly longer answer. I tend to believe what is pointed out in this LinkedIn article about Work-Life Balance–namely that it doesn’t exist. You’re responsible for the choices you make, and you’ve got to deal with the consequences. Sometimes I’m working at 10pm to figure out an issue, and other times I take off an entire Tuesday and don’t even check my email (queue gasping).

This kind of voluntary devotion to #AgencyLife requires fully-integrated communication. I communicate with my team whenever possible. Most often, it’s as simple as “Hey guys, I have a doctor’s appointment later this week. I’ll set an email autoresponder, but text me if it’s critical.” I trust them to determine what’s critical vs. non-critical, and it works beautifully (one of the perks of having a great team to rely on!).

My #AgencyLife is a lot of things, including typically atypical days, several cups of coffee, and a tightrope of convincing myself not to check my email every 14 minutes on a Saturday. My favorite parts, though, are getting to work with an amazing group of people and creating some awesome work. Bossing my friends around is pretty fun, too.

Is #AgencyLife the life for you? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

How to Fail at Video Marketing

June 11, 2014 by Dabrian Marketing Group Leave a Comment

So, You Want to Start Making Videos

As a marketing medium, video is great. Really great. Think about it—in less than 90 seconds, it’s possible to captivate your audience, bring them to the brink of tears, or even turn them into your next customers. As a marketer, browsing your favorite brands on YouTube can quickly make you feel like your own marketing mix is missing something.

Whether you’re working toward brand differentiation:

Highlighting your latest product or service:

Or better yet, showing your commitment to helping others:

How can your team possibly manage to produce video content like this? Today, that dream becomes a reality. We’re not going to show you what you should be doing, but precisely the pitfalls to avoid. Let’s get started.

1. You Don’t Have a Plan

It’s really easy to rush into video thinking that all the pieces will simply fall into their proper places. Production timelines? Animation requirements? Let’s table those, we’ve got editing software suites and fancy cameras to buy!

Trust us when we say, video is like any other marketing tactic. It requires proper planning, tactful execution, and measurement components to be truly successful. Because video can incorporate so much of your company (your brand identity, your value proposition, your website or other linked assets, etc.), there’s no reason a strategy shouldn’t be priority numero uno.

To begin, start with some goals and objectives that you hope to achieve using video, whether you’re looking for greater brand awareness from a younger demographic or increased social media engagement and sharing. Then, take those goals and decide the best ways to measure them accurately and consistently. Will you define “brand awareness” by the number of viewers that watch your video all the way through, or the users that respond to your call to action asking them to subscribe for more info?

These, my friend, are the elements and processes to include in your video marketing measurement plan and strategy.

2. You’re Stuck Thinking Inside the Box

Conceptually, video is a perfect way to highlight key areas of your brand, but also venture into uncharted waters. What many businesses find, though, is that they limit themselves in the creative process. Take note of this very important idea—it’s better to create one video that tries something new than create three that bore your viewers for the sake of playing it safe. In the digital space, it always pays to test, experiment, learn, and improve upon your tactics.

And so long as you’ve got clear measurements of success, you’ll be able to gauge which elements work, which were less effective, and where additional opportunities lie for the next go around. Here’s a quick example:

Let’s say you’ve spearheaded a production that gives your viewers an “inside look” at how your product is built, from the factory to the end user. Once complete, you notice that some measurements are off the charts, like viewer retention and social media shares, but others are lower than you’d like—such as referral traffic and user comments. Your next video can improve upon the last one by asking users to share their story or offering some incentive for leaving their comment.

The point is, there’s no reason you shouldn’t change up your process based on available data.

3. You Film Too Much (or Not Enough)

Now, to the content itself. Here you have to make a very important choice, and that’s precisely the type of footage or style(s) of video that consistently represents your brand and its message. Per-production project briefs are a great idea here, as they allow you to decide exactly what to shoot and what is unnecessary based upon the video’s overall goal. Some other important items to cover in a video project brief include:

The audience segment(s) you hope to target
The key takeaway(s) or value to a viewer
Other required assets (music, text, images, etc.)
Transitions and/or fades
Start/end screen text (i.e. your call to action)

With this information in hand, you can ensure your entire team can remain on the same page regarding the general vision for each production. As you start shooting, the brief will guide the process, meaning you don’t waste precious time on location or shooting sequences that might not make it into the finalized piece (even if it seemed like a good idea at the time).

On the flip side, there’s the problem of shooting a single piece of footage for an entire production and calling it quits. Unless the video falls into the category of a “recorded webinar” or “presentation,” aim to include at least 3-5 other assets throughout. As an example, if the focus of the video is an interview with a highly-acclaimed chef opening a new restaurant, additional BRoll can include clips of dishes being prepared or photos of the restaurant’s construction. BRoll refers to any secondary content that lends additional meaning to a primary sequence.

4. Your Reach Exceeds Your Grasp

I know, I know. We just talked about not succumbing to creative limitations, but this holds true as well. Jumping into video marketing without assessing what is and isn’t possible is the start of a slippery slope. One that leads to your team spending precious time and effort trying to meet your overzealous expectations. If you’ve got a crew of two in charge of all video production, from planning, to editing, to promotion, you may find that quarterly videos are more feasible than monthly.

One way to combat a lack of resources but keep the creative juices flowing is to explore “microcontent” video platforms, such as Vine or Instagram. Of course, keeping this process adaptable, focused, and brand-consistent is still vital. As an example, your local law firm probably shouldn’t be posting #TBT pics or selfies. Remember that even though these productions are often smaller and more spontaneous, it’s still an entire brand you’re representing. Save the LOL pics for when you’re off the clock.

Are you ready to take the plunge into video? Grab your water-wings and share your experience in the comments!

The Heartbleed Vulnerability Aftermath

May 21, 2014 by Dabrian Marketing Group Leave a Comment

Recently, a huge security scare plagued the internet. This security vulnerability was coined The Heartbleed Bug, named for its relationship to the heartbeat on a server. The internet was in shock, emails were flying to reset passwords, and experts warned of an ominous outcome.

But what happened?

Before we can understand what exactly happened, we need to understand what The Heartbleed Bug is all about.

What is The Heartbleed Bug?

OpenSSL is an open source library of sorts. It allows for encryption of a connection on the internet. SSL stands for Secure Socket Layer, and is most easily recognized by the green bar or symbol in the left hand side of your browser’s address bar. It also is identified by the use of https:// a secure form of http://.

What is this vulnerability?

In a vulnerable version, an attacker can use the internet to access memory of a server via an exploited heartbeat. This memory may hold sensitive information. Since a large.

Has it been resolved?

In short, yes. A patch was released. However, in order to no longer be vulnerable, it is imperative that the patch is installed.
At this point in time, most important internet vendors have completed the patch. In addition, hosting providers rolled out their patches for servers.

I do not have a server, is there still something I should do?

Absolutely! Even if you are not in charge of a server, there are several things you can do:

Change all of your passwords, everywhere
Check with vendors to ensure that the patch has been made on their servers
Monitor sensitive information for signs of theft
Monitor accounts for signs of theft
Watch for vulnerabilities in the future

With a little precaution and some password updates, your internet assets can continue to stay safe.

Have more questions about this bug? Let us know in the comments!

Codenomicon. (2014, May 21). The Heartbleed Bug. [Web Log Post]. Retrieved from http://heartbleed.com/

Why A Low Quality Score Shouldn’t Get You Down

May 14, 2014 by Dabrian Marketing Group 5 Comments

Both Google AdWords and Bing Ads give a Quality Score out of ten (10) at the keyword level. These scores are primarily based on relevancy among your keyword, ad copy, landing page, and your competitiveness, which is mainly shown by your Click through Rate (CTR). There are huge differences in how these seemingly similar Quality Scores affect your PPC advertising. For instance, a low Quality Score could be costing you additional money per click, or it could be saving you money by preventing unwanted clicks.

A Low Quality Score Can Be Good?

For Google AdWords, there is no question that a low Quality Score equates to needing a higher bid in order to stay competitive. On Bing Ads however, a low Quality Score could save you money. Bing Ads will reduce your impressions share for low Quality Score keywords. This reduction of impressions will most likely cause two outcomes:

1) Increased Click through Rate (CTR)

2) Reduced Clicks

While this may initially seem like one positive and one negative, remember that you are charged for each click. This means that fewer clicks equates to fewer charges, or lower cost. If the impressions being prevented are less likely to obtain clicks and/or conversions, then the low Quality Score is actually helping you. Let’s look at some examples to clarify.

Google AdWords Low Quality Score

This table shows the real value (or cost) of Quality Score on AdWords. The numbers are based on keeping the same Ad Rank (value of 10), which is calculated by multiplying Bid and Quality Score.

Bing Ads Low Quality Score

There is no clear-cut formula (at least not one shared publicly) that determines how much impression share or how many impressions a low Quality Score keyword can/will receive. The numbers in the table below are entirely made up, but plausible and realistic.

Note: 7 – 10 are lumped together because Bing Ads does not lower impression share for these “good” Quality Scores.

The table above assumes that your CTR remains consistent despite the change in Quality Score, meaning that the number of clicks drops in proportion to the decrease in Impression Share. We are also assuming that your CPC does not change either. While these assumptions are unlikely to play out perfectly as depicted, the table still reveals how a low Quality Score could actually cause a decrease in cost. The real question is whether the value received from the acquired clicks drops as impression share and clicks decrease. If value is declining then the lower cost is not necessarily a good thing, but if value remains high while cost decreases, then your Return on Ad Spend (ROAS) will increase, which means your boss won’t worry about the low Quality Score.

Conclusion

Overall, Quality Score — whether on AdWords or Bing Ads — shows how relevant and competitive your PPC keywords, ad copy, and landing pages are. On Google AdWords, there is a clear path from Quality Score to impact on your bottom line. On Bing Ads, the path is not as clear, but Quality Score is still important. Remember, a low Quality Score is not always a bad thing on Bing Ads. Always track the value of conversions from PPC so that you know when/if a keyword is profitable despite its Quality Score.

We would love to hear about your low Quality Score keywords that are still profitable. Share your story in the comments!

Social Media Survey: The Results Are In

May 7, 2014 by Dabrian Marketing Group Leave a Comment

Why So Optical?

The ever-changing realm of social media develops new processes, norms, and expectations on a seemingly daily basis. So much so, in fact, that the only way to keep tabs on how the industry is changing is to get the information straight from the source behind the changes: the platforms themselves and the marketers who use them.

That’s why our friends at Software Advice, a social CRM research company, have released the preliminary results of their Social Media Content Optimization Survey – a survey of organizations’ content optimization processes on social media – specifically, what tactics are most effective.

According to the results – and not surprisingly to us – using photos and visuals in social media posts is the number one way to optimize engagement – with nearly 85% of respondents labeling visual content as “very important” or “important”. Social media marketing is all about grabbing attention (and ideally maintaining it) so as social media continues to integrate more closely with our brands’ visibility, the content we share needs to reflect that visibility in more than black and white.

Why We Should Follow Suit

The effective implementation of visual content into your social media strategy can prove beneficial to more than just how many “likes” you’re receiving. More importantly, visual content gives your brand a personality capable of building meaningful relationships that go beyond the electronic equivalent of an awkward hug – the Tweet “favorite.”

How Platforms Are Responding

Recently, Twitter’s transition to making images in line with text so that users no longer have to click a separate link to view an image has streamlined the user experience. More notably, it’s brought visual content to the forefront of Twitter campaigns.

Facebook has traditionally been the industry precedent for visual content, and continued without exception with the integration of larger images on link posts. If you share a URL on Facebook, a preview of the article with an image now over twice as large as in early 2013 will appear – which has been increasing engagement across the board.

We all know that the casual social media user is resistant to change. One could’ve thought the Mayan Apocalypse was more than a rumor when Facebook made its 2013 layout and chat functionality change. So, when a platform decides that change is worth the blowback, marketers best revise their strategy accordingly. The computer age and the visual movement are now one in the same.