Jul

by Brandtailers

If you’ve visited our Brandtailers office you probably noticed that we have books everywhere. All on marketing and advertising. We’re fanatical about staying ahead of the curve, so we read a lot.

But, if you only have time to read a few books over the summer, how do you choose from Amazon’s 33,000 titles in marketing, advertising, and social media? Ugh.

We filtered through our library and found what we believe are today’s five best books to read. They offer you a well-rounded understanding of the latest consumer preferences, marketing strategies and technology need-to-knows. Hopefully you’ll have time to devour a few. (Oh, and for those of us who spend more time in their cars or at the gym than sitting with a book, there’s always Audible.com)

1. DON’T MAKE ME THINK – Steve Krug

Although it’s a couple years old, it’s still the best book on what makes a great website. It’s written in plain, and downright funny, language. We often give it to clients as gifts. It’s not for programmers. It’s for the rest of us.

2. TRIBES – Seth Godin
Seth hit another home run with Tribes. He took what is happening in the world of marketing and applied it to basic human behavior. By the time you finish this short book, you’ll feel like you’re viewing the world through a whole new lens.

3. THE NEW RULES OF MARKETING AND PR – David Meerman Scott
David just revised this book with new updates, so make sure you get the latest edition. It has the best examples of how things have changed for marketers, along with the new rules of engagement. It’s simple, useful and inspiring.

4. TRUST AGENTS – Chris Brogan and Julien Smith
For anyone who has spent a year or more in social media, this book may seem a bit simplistic. But the overall message of how trust drives today’s world of marketing is the most important and valuable take away. It makes you want to be a better person (and marketer).

5. WEB ANALYTICS 2.0 – Avinash Kaushik
OK, maybe sections of this book get into a little too much detail, but you can skip those parts. Avinash is so entertaining in the way he explains current web technology, you’ll be chuckling while learning. Don’t be afraid of the title (or his name).

What books would you add to this list?

Tags: Avinash Kaushik, books, Chris Brogan, Consumer Behavior, David Meerman Scott, marketing strategy, Marketing Technology, Seth Godin, Social Media, Steve Krug, summer reading
Categories: Consumer Behavior, Marketing Strategy Research, Marketing Technology | Leave a Comment »

Jul

5 Questions to Help You Re-Brand Your Business

by Brandtailers

You’ve just been asked to help bring your company’s brand into the 21st Century. Yipee? People with backgrounds in Marketing, Advertising and PR know it’s not always as fun as it sounds. Especially when the process involves asking the same old branding questions that result in the same old non-distinct answers.

But help is here. Take a look at these five questions and see if you can answer them for your company. (Even if you can’t you’ll look like a genius presenting them)

1. Purpose: What would we be if we were a movement instead of a business?

2. Principles: What will we always do and what will we never do? (“A principle isn’t a principle until it costs you money.” Bill Bernbach)

3. Positioning: What about us is authentic, exclusive, and mesmerizing?

4. Processes: What does the way we operate say about us?

5. Place: What does the way we look say about us (offline and online)?

Granted, it’s a little weird. But it works. We adapted it a few years back from a great guy, Tim Williams, and his book Take a Stand For Your Brand.

What do you think?

John Jantsch has been called the World’s Most Practical Small Business Expert for consistently delivering real-world, proven small business marketing ideas and strategies.

Tags: branding, re-branding, Take a Stand For Your Brand, Tim Williams
Categories: Brand Management | Brandtailing | Leave a Comment »

Jun

Will Hulu’s New Subsciption Program Kill Traditional TV?

by Brandtailers

The on-demand web video site Hulu announced a new subscription service Tuesday called Hulu Plus, which will allow users to unlock full seasons of premium shows on ABC, NBC and FOX across a variety of new platforms for a flat monthly fee of $9.99. This includes a growing library of 120 seasons of TV and 2,000 episodes, according to Hulu.

While the business world debates Hulu’s business model, we marketers are looking at it as one more significant move that will put television as we know it in the grave. Especially because Hulu is offering its new service in mobile formats on the iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, as well as select Samsung internet-enabled TVs and Blu-Ray players. It will also soon offer Hulu Plus service on PlayStation 3 and X-Box 360, as well as devices from Sony and Vuzio.

Advertising space will continue to be sold, which means Hulu is adopting Cable TV’s strategy of collecting fees from both advertisers and subscribers. But advertisers will soon be able to geo-target specific messages to specific audiences in specific areas making their ad dollars much more cost-effective. And millions of people have already said they’re willing to pay $9.99 a month in order to watch almost any show they want anywhere, anytime, on any media player.

But don’t throw your TV set away. After all, antique shops are always looking for classic oldies. Your 72″ screen may someday become a valuable relic.

Tags: hulu, hulu plus, ipad, iphone, television
Categories: Consumer Behavior, Marketing Technology, Retail Marketing | Leave a Comment »

Jun

Email vs. Regular Mail – Something for Marketers to Think About

by Brandtailers

Is snail mail dead for marketers? Does it make sense to spend an average of 65 cents per piece when email is virtually free? Maybe not, but before you replace mailbox marketing with inbox marketing, put your consumer hat on for a moment and consider this scenario…

You get to work in the morning and your email in-box awaits you with several dozen messages. Since time is your most precious commodity, you glance through the list quickly to find those you must read and respond to. The rest, especially the ones you didn’t ask for, or the ones you subscribed to so long ago that you forgot you ever signed up for them, are a nuisance. If you had the time you would unsubscribe, but that’s never as easy as it sounds.

When you get home from work you open your regular old mailbox. It, too, is filled with messages you didn’t ask for from marketers you don’t know. They may or may not get your attention, but the fact that they are in your mailbox does not feel like the invasion of your privacy that you felt when you found this stuff in your email in-box, right?

You expect to receive advertising messages in your regular mailbox. You’ve gotten them for years. You might not read the marketing piece, but when you see the brand’s name on the mailer you don’t think ill of it because it went into your mailbox. But you did with the ones in your email, didn’t you?

If we marketers continue to focus on building trust with the consumer, we have to think about this piece of the puzzle. Don’t intrude where you’re not welcomed. Don’t make a marketing decision just because it’s inexpensive. It could end up being much more costly to your brand than you ever imagined.

Tags: direct mail, email, Marketing, spam
Categories: Brand Management | Brandtailing, Consumer Behavior, Marketing | Leave a Comment »