In a CNNMoney.com article dated January 1, 2010 there’s a great product discussed called the Batter Blaster.  (It’s basically pancake batter in a spray cannister).  But the best part of the article was the explanation of how the owner marketed and grew the business through word-of-mouth marketing.  He also built the marketing buzz through social media and publicity stunts.  That’s what we need more of here in Denver, CO!  More aggressive marketing and publicity… and that’s what we implement with our clients.  It can be difficult to sell our ideas at first because they seem so “off the wall”… but they tend to work!  Stories like this one seem to prove our point!  It’s time to take some chances, small business owners, and get creative and innovative with your marketing plan.  This can be one great addition to your overall marketing mix, and could reap the needed marketing buzz for your small business.

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In the BrainstormTech blog on CNNMoney.com on March 2, 2010, there’s a good analysis of how app developers have gone from “superstars to serfs.”  It tells of Twitter’s announcement that they have developed some apps itself internally and that users might not want to use a desktop client any longer to manage their Twitter feed.  The article also mentioned how the IPhone “expunged as many as 6,000 apps.”  Based on Twitter’s announcement, there was much angst among the app developer crowd… which gives rise to the question: Why aren’t these app developers investing more into their branding and marketing?  Sure, it’s great to have a built in distribution system like the highly trafficked Twitter – but what about building your own brand?  We think this will lead app developers to understand that they, too, have a need to brand themselves as small business owners.  Some may point to trends in technology and perhaps even the brutal tactics of Twitter and the like, but we believe it’s a call to anyone who is riding high on the social media wave to take another look at their business model.  Have they developed a marketing plan for themselves?  They are small business owners themselves — so why not treat their product as something that must be marketed and advertised (and maybe even something that needs publicity)?

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Here are 7 tips on how small businesses can compete in search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM), especially in Denver, CO.  This article comes from the March 2, 2010 online-edition of the Wall Street Journal.  It offers some strategic (albeit basic) advice on how to rank higher on Google, Yahoo etc.  It can be useful search engine consultation for new users or anyone looking to ensure they’ve got the basics down.  It’s particularly focused on pay-per-click (PPC), and how to get better results from your search engine marketing.  In general, web marketing involves a significant investment – if done correctly.  There are strategies we recommend to ensure small business owners get the most from their dollar.  Let us know if we can help you!

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In the February 22, 2010 online edition of the Wall Street Journal, there’s a curious article about website development and branding.  The writer considers 2 small business owners’ experience in creating a website and developing a new brand for a new business launch.  One business owner hired a creative ad agency to launch a $250,000 website while the other built a website herself for next to nothing.  In the article, we think the writer glosses over the importance of sound brand-building and search engine optimization.  Every small business owner wants to learn about shortcuts and work-around’s (especially when it involves budget), but developing a strong website and brand is no subject to be taken lightly.  Although the second example seems to prove the writer’s point — it merely serves to show that different website projects have different scopes and levels of detail.  To all small business owners (especially here in Denver, Colorado): Please be cautious about how you choose to create your brand (or re-brand your company) and develop your website.  It could make all the difference!

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In today’s Wall Street Journal (February 23, 2010), there’s an insightful article on how small businesses can take advantage of social media to grow their companies.  In particular, it highlighted such online marketing services like Groupon and FourSquare Labs and how they were combining social media efforts with marketing.  Such services are more immediately usable in a marketing sense for small companies (even in Denver!) looking to brand and market their business.  Facebook and Twitter are great (especially for established brands), but these online-marketing/social media companies present simple ways for small companies to begin marketing on the internet.  Interactive marketing and advertising can go a long way for start-ups, as well.

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In this week’s edition of Barron’s, writer Alan Abelson penned a great article (partly) on the effect of Twitter on the public opinion of today’s U.S. government and Congress, in particular.  We were amazed and excited to see a powerhouse financial publication like Barron’s make note of the power of social media, in this case: Twitter.  Abelson writes: “all you need is a keyboard and one finger to register your opinion on anything and everything under the sun and whatever’s above it as well.”  He points to politics as one of the areas feeling it the most these days.  He’s right.  As marketers and advertising people, how do you think Twitter and social media in general will affect US politics (and policy, for that matter)?  And, how will Twitter continue to affect small businesses looking to grow through the use of social media?  How much time should a small company invest in Twitter, Facebook etc.?

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Everyone seems to have their opinion on the Tiger Woods press-conference.  Although this is more of a public relations topic, we thought we’d weigh in on the marketing and communications element of it.  As Tiger is clearly a brand himself, and has (or, had) several advertising and sponsorship-relationships, we as an ad agency wanted to share an article on this subject.  In Advertising Age, there’s a helpful summary of the Tiger press conference and some of the details behind effective communicating and marketing as a pro athlete whose brand has been to some degree tarnished.

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According to the Wall Street Journal’s website (February 19, 2010), “Sen. Charles Grassley (R., Iowa) is investigating ties between the pharmaceutical industry and WebMD Health Corp. (WBMD) after learning WedMD is running an advertisement on television that encourages people to take a depression-screening test sponsored by Eli Lilly & Co.”  What do you think?  Should WebMD be allowed to run an advertisement on tv that encourages people to take a test sponsored by a pharmaceutical company?  Where should the line be drawn in the relationships between organizations that appear independent and large pharmaceutical advertisers, such as Eli Lilly & Co.?  Is this form of marketing and advertising misleading to viewers?  And, how would small pharmaceutical businesses try to combat with marketing and advertising of their own?

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Advertising Age reports that between July 2008 and July 2009, there were more text messages than cell-phone calls in the U.S.  As texting becomes more pervasive in all age groups, the question has become: How will marketers use the new platform to promote and advertise their products?  Some experts recommend caution marketing within such a personal context.  The Mobile Marketing Association recommends that in-text marketing be interactive – rather than a one-way advertisement.  Mobile marketing and advertising is an oft-overlooked medium by which small businesses can grow.  Click here to read the full article.

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Advertising Age reports that several key package-goods marketers are actually boosting their marketing spend these days.  Much of it continues to trend to digital marketing and social media.  Some of this is in response to private-label competition.  One marketing question we’ve asked is: Has online marketing and online media single-handedly saved overall global advertising spend?  Click here to read this Ad Age article, and see how this might affect your marketing plans – whether you’re a large marketer or a small business in Denver, Colorado.

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