Archive for Emerging Media

How Do You Hire? Grad Career Prep & Placement

The second post in the How Do You Hire series features a bit of a different perspective. This time,  we are granted access to the perspective of resume writing and career placement from the Regional Director of Career Management for Vandalia Enterprises, Mrs. Julie Warden.

In contrast to the traditional headhunter/recruiter, Julie works on the back lines with college students ready to graduate – helping to prepare their resumes both on paper and in practice. This unique perspective a offers similar, yet differing outlook on the importance of effective resume writing, networking and professional development.

1.      Let’s get to know you a bit better. What is your name, your position and your company affiliation? What is your favorite part of your current position?

My name is Julie Warden and I am the Regional Director of Career Management for Vandalia Enterprises. I oversee graduate career preparation and placement at each of our five campuses and I am entirely in charge of building our Alumni Association. My favorite part of my position is having the ability to work with students to prepare them for their futures…as cliché as it sounds, the tools we teach our students assist them in finding positions in their field of study helps that start their careers…not just another dead-end job.

2.      What is the number one mistake you see on job applicant’s resume? What is your number one tip for a successful resume?

The most common mistake I see on resumes is not taking the time to proofread. Make sure there are no grammatical or spelling mistakes! Check capitalization and tenses of your bullets. I think the best tip for a successful resume is using a clean, easy-to-read font and format with clearly outlined information. Employers want to see what you can do easily and quickly…not have to search for it.

3.      What are the top 5 methods you use to find qualified job applicants?
N/A

4.      How much do you rely on the Internet for job applicant recruits?
N/A

5.      What social media site, would you say, is the most effective communication tool for reaching qualified job applicants?

When hiring for positions at our college, my personal networking Facebook site has been the most successful for reaching qualified job applicants. I have a network that reaches individuals in my areas of work…so when I post jobs, they know that I am looking for the best potential candidate for the position.

6.      What is the most unbelievable thing you have ever seen on a potential applicant’s social media page that caused them to be passed over for the job?

SMOKING MARIJUANA ON THE DEFAULT PICTURE

7.      It has been said by marketing professionals that the social media platform, Linkedin is a far superior source of recruiting talent than even some job search sites like Monster.com. What are your thoughts on this statement? What are your candid thoughts on Linkedin as a resource for job seekers?
I think LinkedIn is an outstanding tool. I love the recommendations section because this gives an employer the opportunity to see what others have said about you before you even walk in the door. I hope that LinkedIn becomes a larger tool in our state…I don’t think it has quite reached its full potential here yet.

8.      What are companies looking for in regard to experience? In regard to education?
I think this is dependant entirely on the job. Our students are trained and education to receive a Specialized Associate Degree – this means they take general education courses for a well-rounded degree, but they are highly trained in their specific field of study. Companies seek the students who have a good reference, good attendance record and who have taken the time to gain in-field experience through an internship.

9.      What are your candid thoughts on the phrase, “it’s not what you know, it’s who you know.”?

It’s true. This is why professional networking is such an important part of job seeking in today’s economy.

10.  If you could give one piece of advice for current and potential job seekers, what would it be?

Professionalism and Networking are two key words that you need to live by. Always portray a professional image because you never know who you’ll meet and constantly be on the lookout for potential new individuals in which to network. Whether you are at the grocery store, at a networking event or heading to a job fair…utilize any time you are out to meet potential individuals who can serve as a networking resource.

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Infolinks? Make More Money with Alternatives to Infolinks’s PPC

Infolinks? Make More Money with Alternatives to Infolinks’s PPC

By Guest Blogger : Murray Newlands, the CEO and Founder of Influence People

Companies like Infolinks can help you run in-text ads where you get paid each time somebody clicks on your ad. Infolinks in-text monetization can help generate extra income for a site about making money or saving money online.
However, Infolinks still uses traditional pay-per-click. How does that stack up against more modern systems like performance-based RPC?

Infolinks Traditional PPC ads

Infolinks PPC ads work exactly as they sound: Each time somebody clicks on one of your ads, you get paid a set amount. Depending on through whom you’re doing the PPC this amount can vary. For example, affiliate networks let their merchants set how much they will pay you per click, but Google lets potential advertisers bid and then each one pays Google an amount that slides with the competitiveness of the bidding. Infolinks allows advertisers to bid on keywords as well.

Performance-based RPC

Performance based RPC (revenue per click) combines traditional pay per click with at least one of either a pay-per-lead or a pay-per-sale program. What happens is that publishers get paid per click regardless of whether the click converts to a sale or a lead, but the amount they are paid for each click is dependent on their clicks’ conversion rates. Some networks like INTENTclick also pay for each lead or sale generated.

This helps publishers in many ways: First, it makes click fraud much more easy to detect than in a traditional pay per click campaign. Fraudulent leads are harder to generate so fraudsters are most likely going to be just going after clicks. Their poor conversion rate will indicate that they are committing fraud, and this evidence would be harder to track (you’d have to do it manually with tracking strings) in a normal pay per click campaign

Advertisers like RPC too: In exchange for gearing their content toward people who won’t just click, they get a little “bonus” on top of what they’d make if they were doing an exclusive PPC campaign. Plus, INTENTclick, one of the most popular RPC networks for making and saving money online, has a minimum payment of $.07 compared to a penny or two from Infolinks. On top of that, you can get paid directly for each sale or lead if your advertiser signs up for INTENTclick’s affiliate program.

 

Disclosure: This is a guest post by Murray Newlands, the CEO and Founder of Influence People. Influence People does blog relations for INTENTclick.

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Carried Away with Commercials : Christmas Edition

This is an extension of the post, Love at First Sight:

Because I’m ALWAYS finding new television commercials that I absolutely LOVE – I want to share them all with you – and I want you to share YOUR favorite commercials with me!

eBay :

Target :

Share YOUR favorite Christmas commercials of 2011 or of all time!!

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Social Media Showdown: Facebook Versus Twitter

Nearly a month ago, I posted on a recent (yet late) discovery— I had begun to realize the true power of the hashtag (#) on Twitter .

The power of the hashtag (#) was brought to light for me as I began to pay closer attention to television marketing efforts surrounding the iconic symbol.

The same has happened for me with Facebook – however, I like to think I am much more grounded in the practices of Facebook, as my foundation is stronger and longer on this medium than with Twitter.

Whereas TLC uses Twitter, the U.S. cable TV channel owned by NBCUniversal, BravoTV  uses Facebook links to encourage viewer participation through social media.

Nevertheless, the recent observations of differences in uses and users between the two social media platforms has caused me to take a deeper look into reasons why users might use one over the other.

Creating large followings on Facebook and Twitter have the potential to launch a brand to online popularity. And while both social networks are enormous in size and in opportunity, they are very different and must be approached in different ways.

From initial research and basic use, the differences are outlined relatively plainly—

  1. Twitter is Instantaneous and Related. Communication and flow of conversation seems to be more streamlined, and designed to foster a more fluid conversation. “Hashtag chats” create an in-site instant messenger that is utilized to discuss a particular brand or topic area that can be used by marketers to measure brand conversation.
  2. Facebook Brands. A larger percentage 45% (Facebook) versus 20% (Twitter) indicates that they follow a particular brand or brands on the site.
  3. Twitter Purchases. A larger percentage 67% (Twitter) versus 51% (Facebook) of users indicate that they will purchase the brands they follow on the site.
  4. Facebook Friendly. A total of 41% of Facebook users say that they log-in to their account daily, whereas only 27% of Twitter users say the same.
  5. Twitter is Active. Contrary to #4, 52% of Twitter users update their statuses every day. Facebook only has 12% of users to indicate the same.
  6. Facebook Builds Relationships. Facebook provides more room include your friends in your life—both personally and professionally—without even posting a status. Photo albums, lengthy bios and sections for special interests allow Facebook users to provide a more in-depth look into one’s “personal” space.
  7. Twitter Means Business. Brands flourish on Twitter. With the ability to fine-tune incoming messages, Twitter is a more brand-friendly space. The 140 character maximum limits posts to maintain less overwhelming and cluttered platform.

As a marketer, a brand leader, an independent brand—what do you see as the advantages/disadvantages of Facebook and Twitter?

In all, typically, the best mix is to utilize both platforms for maximum exposure and communication with audiences. What strategies do YOU use to maintain effective coverage on both sites?

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Occupy: Men’s Wearhouse

As protesters fill the streets in cities across the nation to join the bandwagon on the Occupy Wall Street movement, thousands of people are now occupying the streets of Oakland, CA. Oakland is no stranger to striking. In fact, there hasn’t been a successful general strike in the US since 1946, also in Oakland.

The Occupy movements primarily target big [financial] businesses, major corporations and namely in this case, the Port of Oakland. The nearly five-hour protest at the Port of Oakland, the nation’s fifth-busiest shipping port, was intended to highlight a daylong “general strike” in the city, which prompted solidarity rallies in New York, Los Angeles and other cities across the nation. Weise, 2011

The Oakland Tribune is saying it could be the East Bay’s biggest demonstration since the Vietnam War, though, with protesters vowing to bring thousands downtown to march on corporations that refuse to close for the day (and on big banks, as a matter of course.)
At least one publicly traded firm has decided to give in. The Contra Costa Times‘ Matt O’Brien last night tweeted this image of cheap suit purveyor Men’s Wearhouse preparing for today’s strike. It seems the store has folded like … well, like a cheap suit.  Fresard, 2011


Amidst the outcome of the Oakland protest, my attention was quickly drawn to the actions of Men’s Wearhouse. While businesses like this are not necessarily the target of these protestor groups, I can’t help to feel like this company wasn’t “giving in” at all, in fact, it could be a stroke of marketing genius.

Several months ago, I posted on cleanup efforts by TBWA following the protests in Egypt. What happened then is similar in effort. The difference in this situation is that instead of being viewed as doing a community service, Men’s Wearhouse positioned the company as an ally/support system in the forefront of a crisis. As with the case of TBWA in Egypt, when corporations venture into a social cause, it is reasonable to assume that (whether by direct design or not) some form of residual effect will follow—most likely in the form of positive publicity.

Positive publicity serves several important purposes both for the business and the cause~

Positive association—When businesses partners with a social cause, members of the community will begin to associate the two together—and will associate the business as a supporter of the cause (and in this case, a supporter of the middle class). If members of the community have a loyalty with the business, it is likely that they will form a positive association to those organizations in which it supports, or supports the cause.

Favorable standing— Assuming the business does not have a strong community presence, or is not necessarily viewed favorably, this type of involvement is often an effective way to build a reputation. If both entities have a favorable public image, the partnership will only further strengthen the bond they have with the community and with one another.

Business referrals—By becoming a part of nonprofit through its committees and board positions, businesses can establish and grow meaningful network contacts both from inside the nonprofit organization, and from other local businesses. Oftentimes, the people in these committees are area business people with a vested interest in their community and with a genuine interest to meet individuals with like-minds and like-goals.

I will be anxious to follow up on if/how Men’s Wearhouse will be affected by their Occupy support. Stay tuned.

What other business/cause relationships can you think of that fit this model?

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Social Networking #PersonalBranding

Since embarking on my social media journey, I have been exposed to the degree that which social media truly connects us to the world on a daily basis.

Recently at Maple Creative, we have had an increase in the number of clients that require and/or would benefit from Search Engine Optimization (SEO) as an integral layer in their organization’s marketing mix. After a lengthy meeting with SEO guru, Justin SeibertDirect Online Marketing – I began to realize all of the opportunities Maple Creative was missing by not effectively positioning the company in the digital universe. After all, we are an integrated marketing communications firm that is hired by our clients to perform the very marketing tactics and strategies that we, ourselves, are not implementing (which will lead me into a blog post eventually).

However, I could not help but begin to analyze my own personal branding efforts as a result of the SEO conversation. I wonder how many opportunities I have missed in reaching target audiences with personal branding messages. Oftentimes, we place so much emphasis on the company brand that we fail to effectively communicate about the personal brand.

As I began to research the topic of effective personal branding and the potential effects on one’s personal brand, I was taken back to the former Maple Creative blog – Marketing Genius – and a post entitled:

Don’t Let Social Networking Damage Your Personal Brand

By: Skip Lineberg

The following were actually posted by employees on social media sites from their workstations, during business hours:

“Staff meeting is over. Thanks for sucking the life out of me–again.” [Brandon]
Ummm, hello, Brandon. Are you really that unhappy? Are you aware that your message can be read as: Brandon is a reactive, whiny drama-king who lacks the gumption to leave a job that sucks?

“Just hanging out here on Facebook – waiting for them to give me something to work on.” [Allison]
Really, Allison? Did you leave your brain at home this morning? I’d suggest you will find it hidden underneath that sack of ambition, which you also forgot to bring to work today.

And this now-infamous example from NextWeb.com of a young woman who was fired by her Facebook-friend-boss:

OMG I HATE MY JOB!!! My boss is a total pervvy wanker always making me do $hit stuff just to pi$$ me off!! WANKER!!

Obviously, she forgot that she had Friend’d her boss. Do take a moment and click over to read the boss’ response, which is classic!

The stories of so-called professionals getting fired, suspended, or disciplined as a result of what they posted, Tweeted, updated, chatted, or shared on social media sites are becoming more frequent and more outrageous. An article last Fall on Mashable, citing stats from a Proofpoint study, indicate that roughly 1 out of every 8 companies (12%) have fired an employee for reasons related to social networking. The rate of occurrence has doubled in a year’s time.

This is only going to worsen as GPS/location-based apps (like Foursquare and Brightkite) that run on our iPhones and Blackberries tell the world (and our employer) where we are.
Remember: In many cases, your phones are paid for by your company so it’s not hard to imagine the following exchange in the all-too-near future–

Boss: Dave, you weren’t really attending your aunt’s funeral yesterday, now were you?

Dave: What do you mean?

Boss: Well, unless they had the funeral at Wrigley Field, it looks like you enjoyed a Cubs double-header.

Dave (now perspiring): No way. I swear.

Boss (tossing a screen print at his soon-to-be fired employee): Dave, it’s all right here on the GPS report that we get from your Blackberry. And you might want to think about turning off Foursquare when you’re playing hooky – from your next job.

Do you know your company’s social media policy? Are employees allowed to spend time on sites like Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn or YouTube while at work? Or are such practices forbidden?

We can complain about “Big Brother” policies by employers. We can cry about how it’s wrong for management to “spy” on us. But here’s what it all boils down to: when you are on company time, you are on the company dime. The employer makes the rules and, when you accept a job, you accept their rules. So don’t allow your social media activities to undermine your success. Be smart and be informed – or your next Tweet may be in search of a job!

A related video of a presentation by Skip Lineberg and Emily Bennington, co-authors of Effective Immediately: How to Fit In, Stand Out, and Move Up at Your First Real Job. The video is titled 7 Things Your Boss Wants You To Know – it briefly discusses the importance of personal branding, along with a myriad of other important workplace lessons:

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# is the new $

In my first WordPress blog post, I was seeking to define and explore the concept of emerging media. The very definition and influence of emerging media lays the foundation for a successful outline of the advantages, opportunities and capabilities for companies and brands to explore a diverse marketplace more effectively than ever before.

A self-proclaimed late bloomer—with a long way to go—on Twitter, I never before realized the true power of the hashtag (#). As a fan of the cable television network TLC, I have begun to notice that virtually every television show during prime time references a hashtag intermittently throughout the program. I have now found myself tagging products, brands and television shows right along with everyone else in the Twitter-verse.

This once simple symbol now provides a valuable opportunity for these products and brands, as well as for advertisers by exploiting the inherit opportunities of this emerging media in two primary ways~

Advertising $ Potential

From and advertiser’s perspective, companies and brands have the potential to directly target individuals based upon hashtag trends. Facebook, on the contrary, allows advertisers to target users based on personal preferences, demographic characteristics and geographical specifications. Many times, Facebook ads prove themselves to be more of a “push” style to advertising—suggesting or pushing brands and products to users.

Twitter, in my view, has a much more meaningful opportunity to target users by identifying those individuals who are already talking to them or about them. In general, talking to people who are already engaged with a company, brand or product often has a much higher return on investment. The hashtag makes it possible for advertisers to identify those individuals much more easily and definitively.

A very unique and powerful thing about a discussion on Twitter about your brand is that you can monitor it continuously. Utilizing Twitter, companies and brands can analyze an almost instantaneous and ever-evolving audience.

The hashtag also allows for a more immediate option for measurement and evaluation. Measurement and evaluation are two of the most important functions of an effective marketing effort. In order to understand the success and/or failure of, the profitability of or future implications of a particular campaign or effort—processes must be in place to measure response and evaluate effectiveness.

Brand Awareness $ Audience Involvement

A study from Cornell University revealed the amount of times Twitter users need to see a hashtag in order to use it themselves. The study found that a viewer needs to see a hashtag an average of four or five times to be interested enough to participate—the number of people who reuse a hashtag doesn’t increase until it gets their attention after four or five posts—evening out after that, giving it a strong, but short life. (Burton, 2011)

Exposure has the potential to lead to an increase in viewer interest, brand awareness, sales, equity, etc. Twitter offers a unique exposure that allows for an interaction between the brand and the viewer—known to strengthen the bond between the two.

Word-of-mouth is the most powerful method of advertising communication available. Twitter’s hashtags allow for two-way interactive word-of-mouth communication. Popular people, like celebrities, demand quite the following on social media sites like Twitter and often utilize the power of word-of-mouth by promoting causes, self-interests, social issues, brands, etc—through word-of-mouth.

Taking that as a cue, many brands have begun utilizing these viral spokespeople for reaching out to the Twitter community. By incorporating hashtags into our everyday lives, brands are making mental references and creating top-of-mind awareness for viewers.

What are some other ways that hashtags affect your everyday life? Share your best hashtag story, trick or tip!

Reference:

Burton, J. (2011, February 10). #Hashtag Proof of Twitter’s Ad Potential. Retrieved on October 14, 2011 from the website: http://www.scribbal.com/2011/02/hashtag-proof-of-twitters-ad-potential/

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Effective, Attractive & Dynamic Websites – IMC 616

Choose a company that has, in your opinion, an effective, attractive and dynamic Web site. Provide a very brief description of the company, then discuss how the Internet could be used by that company to provide top-notch customer service. Additionally, how do you think the Internet affects the company in terms of brand image and brand loyalty? Provide a link to the company’s Web site in your post.

Nike is the world’s largest, publicly traded, leader of men and women’s sporting goods and apparel. With its World Headquarters located in Beaverton, Oregon, it is home to more than 7,000 employees— employing more than 33,000 people globally. For the fiscal year ending May 31, 2009, Nike reported record revenues of $19.2 billion, a three percent increase over last year’s earnings (Nike, 2009). Visit the site: www.nike.com.

When faced with the challenge of choosing a company that has an effective, attractive and dynamic Web site, my mind immediately locked on Nike. It seems only natural that a company as dynamic as Nike would utilize a medium as dynamic as the Internet— The Internet has the fastest growth and acceptance rates of all other technological media.

Nike is globally known for its efforts in the many facets of marketing communications—having been previously honored for exceptional integrated marketing campaigns.

Interactivity is what makes marketing on the Internet different from other forms of direct marketing media. And interactivity is what Nike does so well. The multi-faceted site offers product/service information, purchasing abilities, merchandise research, company research, interactive videos, games—and much more.

“Good customer service is the lifeblood of any business…Good customer service is all about bringing customers back. And about sending them away happy – happy enough to pass positive feedback about your business along to others, who may then try the product or service you offer for themselves and in their turn become repeat customers (Ward, n.d.)”—It is about building and maintaining these valuable customer relationships.

Another thing that Nike does so well is utilizing the Internet to provide top-notch customer service.

Through the company Web site, customers and potential customers have an arsenal of assistance available to them—from specific product inquiries, account issues, expert help, FAQ’s, store locator, ordering/shipping questions—all can be resolved as a result of this interactive medium. In fact, “…at present, the Internet…is the only medium that is considered to be truly interactive according to the DMA (Baier and Spiller, 2005).”

Websites offer numerous benefits to their parent company.

More and more consumers relate experiences with company websites to the company itself, and more importantly to its brand image: “Increasingly, the corporate bottom line and customer Internet experiences go hand-in-hand (Jackson, 2006).” Efficiently executed websites build positive brand image.

Beyond that, with effective branding, developing trust, offering valuable services and streamlining interaction, websites like Nike work to build brand loyalty. Effective websites understand the consumer and work to meet their needs—positioning websites as a company resource: a readily available tool that provides quick, convenient and valuable services that enhance user experiences and build customer relationships.

References:

Baier, Martin and Spiller, Lisa (2005). Contemporary Direct Marketing. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education, Inc.

Jackson, Christina (2006). Driving Brand Loyalty on the Web. Retrieved on October 13, 2009 from website: http://www.dmi.org/dmi/html/interests/website/06171JAC62.pdf

Nike Corporate (2009). Company Overview. Retrieved on October 13, 2009 from website: http://www.nikebiz.com/company_overview/facts.html

Ward, Susan (n.d.) 8 Rules for Good Customer Service. Retrieved on October 14, 2009 from website: http://sbinfocanada.about.com/od/customerservice/a/custservrules.htm

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American Red Cross Survey

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Carried Away, the brand.

For my final course of the IMC master’s degree program, we are required to develop a full-scale integrated marketing campaign/proposal for the American Red Cross.

Specifically, this campaign is to be designed to target, appeal to and motivate 18-24 year olds to donate blood and to donate frequently – ultimately to build a loyally long-term relationship with this target group.

The first order of “business” for our campaign was to develop a marketing agency by which we will be operating for this assignment. In essence, each student in the class is representative of separate marketing agencies – simulating a real-world marketing scenario.

I invite you now to meet my marketing agency: Carried Away

Carried Away design by Clayton Ray. 

I invite you, as you have in the past, to discover Carried Away and I look forward to your input and involvement in the future!

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