Creative Agency Secrets

I received a quesiton from a Business development Director of a well-known identity and branding agency who works with social enterprise and government organisations.

We don’t use outside consultants, but the ‘Enterprise 2.0’ is an area of interest. Most agencies seem to be setting up blogs as a way of presenting the agency culture and having open dialogue. What are your thoughts?
Ben

And so I wrote him this reply.  What do you think?

Without writing “screeds” my view is that a blog is a good way to start if you want to present the ‘personality’ of the agency to the outside world.  However, deciding to do it and doing it well and consistently are two different things.  You need to be the type of organisation who has the desire to show off in public a bit in order to keep the momentum of a blog going – and you also have to be able to write interesting stuff.  Many firms struggle to do both of these.

There are other simple social media tools that can be quicker than blogging and easier to maintain – but the same two rules I mention above apply.

Having said that, it is very hard to stand out in a crowded marketplace especially when the market for your services is changing.  But the opportunities for working with ‘social conscience’ organisations are rising.  Which should be good for you.

I note the Google page rank on your site is pretty low 3/10 for your home page.  Adding a blog which is not built in flash, may help improve your SEO as well as enable you to promote appropriate search terms to capitalise on your strong brand heritage.  Think of it as amplification for your corporate “voice” online.

So that’s my free advice for you.  Sad you don’t work with outside consultants – but call me if you want to talk further.
 

Many thanks to Mireira Fontbernat from Qik who has uploaded video of the three speakers this morning (and a little bit of me doing introductions).

Bloggers reactions: FreshNetworks' Helen Trim 

Charlie Robertson of Red Spider 

Quentin Boyes of Honeycomb Software  

Sadly the one of Andrew Howells of Zype didn't come out…. darn phone reception. 

THe good just got really great.

sending unsolicited and inappropriate marketing messages has always been close to what we now call spam.  

In the blogosphere, this direct approach without first establishing an online relationship and credentials / rights is considered more invasive and inappropriate than in the offline or email-only world.

Bloggers are very good at negative publicity.  And at campaigning / lobbying.

This wiki suggests that people blog these PR companies' URLs.  I.e. get no email at all from them (and probably report them to spamcop and get the domain blocked at server level). And heres a list of individual email addresses blocked by the author of "The Long Tail" and editor of Wired Magazine.

How damaging will that be to your business?  Imagine, no emails getting through certain servers and to some key journalist/blogger individuals - and all because a colleague made a mistake… 

ACTION - check your PR company is not on that list and your individual PR representative isn't either.  Your brand is doomed online.  Move your business elsewhere. 

Companies that I know who are on the list include [note I am not linking this text] Edelman, Bigmouth, Bite, FourtyThree, Global Results, Lewis, Ogilvy, Porter Novelli, 

Wise up. 

I am hosting my third breakfast event.  "Should Brands be Broadcasters?" on Wednesday 18th June, 2008 at One Alfred Place 

I run these breakfasts in order to showcase new ideas and innovative marketing thinking.  Past speakers include Adriana Lukas on Social Media and Mark McGuinnes s on the Enneagram. 

Three speakers will give their unique points of view on this issue:

Charlie Robertson, Red Spider speaking on extending brand strategy to the online world

Sign up here to come along!

PS if anyone is willing to blog the gig for me, please get in touch! 

Media Futures Conference 2008
20/06/2008

The Media Futures Conference is a one day exploration of the dynamics and trends shaping the future of media. As well as an opportunity for lively debate, the conference will feature presentations showcasing innovative projects. Presenters and chairs include Dr Brian Winston, University of Lincoln; Charlie Beckett, POLIS; Andrew Keen, author of The Cult of the Amateur; Robert Cailliau; Dr Norman Lewis, Wireless Grids Corporation; Sean Phelan, Multimap; Peter Day, BBC; Bill Thompson; and Rory Cellan-Jones, BBC. This is a BBC event, programmed and produced by Nico Macdonald.

There is no cost to attend.

Venue: Alexandra Palace, London

I am going…. please circulate!

Dick Stroud of consultancy 20Plus30

5 things all digital agencies should know about aging
1 - when working for a client consider whether their product is age- neutral or not.  Sites tend to get optimised for a younger age group.
2 - Age is not a good proxy for behaviour.  The default is we are all age-neutral until proven otherwise.
3 - Physiological aging really does matter.  Useability is only the beginning.  Consider navigation, complexity, handling this si more deifficult with age.  The heat maps for older people are very different.
4 - Lifestyle is important - education and background are very importa determinants of web usage
5 - Social Networking issues - if the only unifying feature of the website is age this is a problem.  Interest-driven is more mportant.  

Steve Morgan MD of SQuiz
They have written a publishing plaform which hosts the 50Connect site.
- if a majority of traffic comes from search, nobody searches on "over 50 travel / finance / insurance".  Brand loyalty and a core user base is the only way to build traffic
- Dividing the market by age groups is pointless.  Event-driven is much better e.g. kids leaving home, illness
- Useability research show s related offers and products mucst be very clear and direct.  The audience i easy to lead. - networking creates teh sense of ownership / community strength.  If you change anhythying there is a backlash- Cap[tcha is too small - gridded background, colours and no contrast lost 70-80% by having it- Text based advertising works better than image-based. Don't use banners and skyscrapers.  Nostalgic images don't work.
- calls to action must be strong, bold and well-placed.  Consistent standards in article structure metter e.g. all same colour / place.  Raises CTR.

David Noble MD Wanobe
- the size of the market is a trap
- most older people never think of themselves of being the age they are
- show me by dreams not my mirror image.  Dreams are not age, health and wealth.  Treat them according to their potential for dreaming

Sarah Robinson, Research and planning director Millennium
There are 30-40 years of life left after 50.  Experiences of technology and itnernet vary.  Some are users equivalenbt to a 30 year old
Comfort with technology is important.  They are used to long copy and written letters.  Brought up in a non-visula age.
People think of themselves as being 10 years younger than they are
Search is not a problem but buying is.  Many want to check you are really there and to be sure your call centre is not in INdia.  Phone number = reassurance.

"The problem is with the under30s"  Desire instant gratifiction; judge based on popularity not reputation, longer attenation span when you are older'; value longer relationships; lsess peripheral vision affect page layouts

Alex Champan - Campbell Hooper - most B2B decision makers are over 50.  consider corproate sties with heavy language and simple naviation - gives indication that the mind state is corporate not consumer.

Sites
50notOut - this appears to be a cricket site…?

50connect

Wanobe

mychumsclub

How to use your marketing budget effectively? users over 50 make 50% more errors on the site and take 50% longer to navigate.
Consider the USA car sites for Lexus and VW.  One is boringly efficient and the ohter designed for accolades but hard to take a decision based on the content.

This is not a niche market it is 1/3 of the population. 

The marvelous British Olympic Association has launched its Beijing website….. and boy oh boy, it has ALL the features that were cool in 2006 and NONE of the community uptake.

A list of handy functionality and features:

    * Home page with latest news - very up to date but every 'news' item is published by the BOA's press office
    * Podcasts - 10 uploaded.  THe most recent being 30th April (Taekwondo).  Also present - beach volleyball, diving, BMX, modern pentathlon, hockey, sailing, cycling.  Three uploaded from 29 - 30 April and then the previous ones all date from 2007
    * Videos - Leon Taylor form the synchronised diving team is pretty active having uploaded 6 videos since 29th April and Barry Middleton (hockey) has done one.
    * Athlete Diaries - grand list of 3 athletes: Euan Burton, Amy Terriere, and Denise Johns.  Who manage 4 entries between them.
    * Messages of support (5 displayed - but probably huge numbers in archive!)

Then there's the background info: racing schedule, qualification, currently selected athletes, stuff about the Games, about the sports (accurate, short and scraped from another website I've previously seen), a Gallery of photos by Getty Images from past Olympiads - there are five rowing photos displayed.

And so what is the opportunity that has been lost / missed?
Well, there could be

    * A link to a twitter feed (if No10 manages it, surely the BOA can???)
    * Upload your own photos from flickr while at the Games
    * links to athletes' own sites
    * Share travel plans with others
    * Desktop viewer for instant updates customised to your sporting interests
    * News feeds from other sources for your sports
    * Plan your viewing schedule tool linking to the TV guides for the UK terrestrial and satellite broadcasters
    * Live video streaming athlete interviews
    * Forum for real discussions

And what are they doing to promote the site?  I got an email about the 'launch' because I'm on a journalist list.  Has anyone else seen it advertised, linked to from ANYWHERE?  e.g. ARA website or FISA or your local newspaper….

How on earth do they expect the general public to build the excitement behind the team (and of course get taxpayers ready to buy lottery tickets to fund the next Olympics) if they can't promote the HELL out of this event.  We want to become a world showcase in four years time.

Who is advising these monkeys and can they please get an informed digital strategist/planner onto the team, fast.

Oh, did I forget to mention the handy "countdown" tool on the header bar which says how long we have to wait until the Games open?  Neat, but old technology!

I have been reading about the Australia Tourism pitch that's going on right now.  It's a knotty one because there is one dominant, hugely successful campaign that lurks in the background (Paul Hogan's shrimp-on-the-barbie) which is now 25 years old but well-remembered.

The Economist quotes Geoff Buckley, MD of Tourism Australia "The Hogan ad was brilliant but it was never taken globally.   Nowadays we need a unique and motivating message that resonates in 23 different markets." Tough.

The contrast with the 100% Pure New Zealand ads that are mostly photographic (one was so beautiful I cut it out) is stark.  Which country would you rather visit.

But that's not the point of this post.  Later in the article Christopher Brown of TTF Australia an industry lobby group, wants to form a brand council bringing together representatives from not just travel but wine, food, film, and fashion industries too.  "We need some heavy-lifting from other sectors to add depth and richness to the Australian story.  No country can afford to sell itself with a 30-=second tourism ad." 

Too true.  And for biz dev folk, the challenge is this:  

Which other skills / companies / individuals can you bring onto your "brand council" in order to give a fuller view of your offering?

As an example, I host events for my clients and prospective clients with other professionals who have a message that creative biz dev folk might be interested in.  See here and here   The key is for both parties to invite their own contacts and (there will be overlap) you end up with a wider audience who can both network with each other and also get exposed to both organisations' skills.

PS am planning another event of this kind for mid-June.  Watch this space…. 

[declaration: this is a client - and they have a great product that many of you may find useful for biz dev on your own potential clients].

We are running a seminar to show how to use customer data in order to stop 'campaigns' and start long-running 'conversations'. 
This drives improved ROI for brands (retention, lower costs, higher response rates – makes you look good for your clients).
And for agencies, can be a new income stream (selling data services, analysis, results-based fees).  Three UK agencies already work with us – with some success – and we can give references.
 
The event is in London, UK on Tuesday 29 April.  It is free to attend.
The Secrets of Closed Loop Marketing Event Details and registration page

Last time I checked there were 4 places remaining.

And, if you happen to mention my name when you register, I'll get loads of kudos!

thanks 

It is for both brand managers and Marketing Agencies to show how to use customer data in order to stop 'campaigns' and start long-running 'conversations'.  

This drives improved ROI for brands (retention, lower costs, higher response rates).And for agencies, can be a new income stream (selling data services, analysis, results-based fees).

Event is in London, UK on Tuesday 29 April. The Secrets of Closed Loop Marketing Event Details:  

It is free to attend.

The product is called Data Centre. It is a desktop application for the marketing department / marketing agency.  It uses data feeds from multiple sources (sales, prospects, e-commerce etc) drawn overnight. 

It is innovative in that it enables:

• Single Customer View
• Customer Data Profiles
• Highly targeted marketing campaigns in a closed loop environment

The major smart thing about it  is that your data CAN be siloed, CAN be in multiple formats and places and Data Centre CAN STILL be used.

Data Centre allows you to

• run multi-channel campaigns
• by-pass the IT department….(!)
• closed-loop tracking and analysis for SMS, email & telesales
• web and email marketing integration

Can you blog / circulate it?  Anyone who wants copies of the case studies (Kettle Crisps, Hoverspeed) write a comment and I’ll send them over on email.

Afterthought… if you have a client who you want to challenge and educate about integrated campaigns, bring them along!