Name: Ian Fergusson
Position: Marketing Executive
Campaign of choice: McDonalds Billboard (2008)
McDonalds does not have a good reputation in the fast food world as being ‘healthy’! In fact it has been sued a number of times for its advertising targeted at kids and for promoting un-healthy living. During the ‘noughties’ we saw a massive boom in healthy living and keeping fit, in my opinion borderline obsessive with fitness videos and new diets advertised wherever we looked. McDonalds clearly felt that if they didn’t alter their reputation soon, profits could ‘dip’. They left it up to the wonderful Leo Burnett to get across to the public that McDonald’s salads really are fresh!

Leo Burnett created a Billboard that over time grew lettuce, to form the words ‘Fresh Salads’. Creatively I feel this is ingenius. In a sense we see here the first ever living billboard. This wasn’t the fastest campaign ever launched, the sign took 3 weeks to grow, but the message delivered is clear and strong, If McDonalds can get fresh lettuce on a sign, surely that leaf in my double cheese burger is just as fresh and healthy.  Creativity is the driving force behind a message; this innovative idea generated top class media coverage that lasted several months after the campaign had finished.  However, I’m not a big fan of McDonalds as a brand, so I felt the need to criticise at least one aspect of this campaign. I do not like the Green on a grey background. I feel this is a slip up on the art direction and I’m sure many creative’s were confused over that decision.  I hope you found this interesting and please post any opinions you have about this campaign. After all it is you McDonalds are trying to impress, has it worked?

Next week it’s Mike Robinsons’ turn to share his Marketing Highlight of the past decade.

From an Off Page Optimisation or Search Engine Marketing purpose and by its nature a blog is usually about a specific topic and is regularly updated. This in turn encourages the search engine spiders to visit your site more frequently, once this happens you are more likely to appear in the organic search results, which means free and targeted traffic. The more experienced bloggers will target new keywords and phrases in order to rank well and manipulate the search engines. Because of the flexibility of a blog, it is very quick to launch a new post and therefore start to rank for different keywords relating to your business.

A blog provides you with a tool to form direct contact with people who are interested in your services. Most blogs provide an option for its readers to be able to subscribe to them, meaning that every post you go live with will be sent to your subscriber base. These are people who have proactively giving you and your content the virtual equivalent of the ‘thumbs up’. You should value your subscribers very highly and ensure that you continue to provide them with content and information they are interested in. Conversely, these are the people you can test new products, seek feedback and leverage to help your provide a better service or product.

There are many ways to use a blog to build your brand or even to support an existing brand. In fact a blog is the perfect vehicle to use to interact with your potential customers, advanced bloggers may also use video or viral campaigns to tease their audience into coming back.

A blog allows you to differentiate yourselves from your competitors! There are two questions to ask here; do your competitors have a blog and do they use it? And secondly, can you use your blog to add credibility to your services and solutions? For example, if you’re an IT company would it be good to have an interview with one of your customers on your blog? The answer is yes, as it adds to the credibility of your service. Likewise, you could include your views on new product launches or industry trends, all the time differentiating yourselves with other players in your market.

There’s an old adage in sales and marketing, “people buy from people”.  This has not changed and is probably even more apparent in tough economic times. A blog provides you with an opportunity to create and build relationships with clients and prospects. There is a current trend for large companies to have a “CEO Blog”, this is where the head of the company writes a blog article once a week, which is designed to bring them closer to their target audience. It provides the reader with a feeling of involvement and interaction, especially if they are able to leave comments and respond directly to the company head.

Most of the leading blog sites will have a Social Media aspect to them. They are normally visible via small graphical logos, which can be used by your readers to submit your blog post to other social media networks. The more well known Social Media sites are called Facebook, MySpace, Stumbleupon, Sphinn and Digg. However, the list grows by the day and each will be focused on its own niche market or have its own rules. From a blogging perspective, the reason to be aware of the social networks is because if your content is good then it is likely to be picked up by them. If this happens, it can mean a huge increase in targeted traffic.

The Internet has created some amazing opportunities for companies to market their products and services to a wider audience, however you could also argue that it has meant an increase in competition in almost all markets. This is why it is important as we’ve mentioned to differentiate yourself from your competitors; one way to do this is to establish yourself as the de facto expert in your area. If you are an expert, tell the world. Use your blog to communicate and showcase your expertise, in a competitive market, as this will do wonders for your sales.

Depending on your niche and your content, there is every chance that you may be contacted by either local or national press. This is a great position to be in and will help you with brand building, and of course, provide you with some free advertising. Usually this type of contact is born from the understanding that you are an expert in your field or the topic you are discussing is of interest to their publications.

Online reputation management is becoming big news and we advise our clients to be aware of it and proactively manage it. One of the ways to do this is by managing the content and using your blog to control what is being said. It is a little more complicated than just that; however it is better to be in control of the blog then letting someone else manage it for you.

On top of all the great business benefits associated with a blog, creating and maintaining a blog is very simple. Once it is set up and designed, your only challenge is creating the content and keeping it updated regularly. There are sites out there that post every day, whilst others do it once a week. We recommend that you find a happy medium that will result in a good flow of content to keep your readers happy, without it becoming a chore.

For the uninitiated, Twitter is a micro-blogging platform. So called because it allows you to send mini updates (about whatever you want) to your followers. You basically set yourself up as a user and woke up and I need coffee” (which begs the question about what is more important; Twitter or coffee) to general chit chat.

Is there a business benefit to Twitter?

As a digital agency, we’re often asked about the benefits of social media, and it is fair to say that it is not always clear at first glance. However, with Twitter we’ve identified quite a few uses for it.

• It’s a great way to interact with likeminded people, which is always handy. For example, we were recently let down at the last minute by one of our speakers at a seminar we were running. We posted on Twitter for a replacement and had six companies respond, all of whom would have done a great job.
• It’s a good way to get a heads up on new techniques and ideas. A lot of people use Twitter to share useful web sites. Sometimes these web sites turn out to be great resources, so it is a perfect way to stay informed without spending huge amounts of time researching.
• If you’ve not bought into the business benefits of blogging; then we’re not reaching you properly. From our perspective, we cannot think of many reasons why a business would not have a blog, there’s many reasons for this covered here. Micro-blogging is an extension of this and all of the benefits are the same.
• It’s simple to interact with Twitter via your mobile phone. In fact as one recent amateur photographer recently found out, it’s possible to become world famous in a matter of minutes. With this type of pulling power, the potential of Twitter is unlimited.
• If you are in a business where from time to time you have spare capacity such as hotels, restaurants, cinemas etc; then it is possible to use Twitter to communicate special offers and promotions to your followers. Twitter users are very active and conversion rates are extremely high for companies using this type of marketing.
• If you’re a larger organisation with a brand, you may find that you need to keep an eye on how your brand is represented online. If people are Tweeting about you, then you may as well Tweet about yourself and control the conversations. Otherwise, you should follow Tweetscan to see what is linked to your name/brand. As you can see, even Tesco is getting in on the act.
• We’ve already mentioned that Twitter is great for networking with likeminded people; if you take this to the next level, it is also a great way to reach out to them. Perhaps you’re looking for specialist technical skills? Need a quote for some printing? Or would like to post a link to a new position at your company? It’s all possible with Twitter.

I’m sure as more people begin to use Twitter; the business opportunities will grow. If you would like to Tweet with Generate UK, you’re more than welcome to follow us on Twitter also. We’re looking forward to your tweets.

Was this post helpful? Do you already use Twitter for your business, would you like to share your comments below? If you or your company would like to discuss social media, using Twitter or digital marketing in general, please call us on 01635 550431.

If you’ve been to any of our seminars or met anyone from Generate UK, you’ll know how passionate we are about blogs. Particularly their importance when it comes to increasing your online footprint.

If you follow webmaster guidelines, it’s unlikely that you will be able to get your site to top rank for more than a dozen of your key phrases. Of course, there are exceptions to the rule, but generally a site is pretty static and narrow in its focus. This is where blogs can really help in terms of widening the net.

This is fundamental to our approach to digital marketing and it really works for our customers. The blog post below provides some additional information about what it takes to build and maintain a successful blog.

The Birth of a Professional Blog

The 3 main ingredients needed to build a successful professional blog are the ability to supply quality content, the need to develop and maintain a base of loyal readers, and offering quality products.

Working together these 3 components can create a steady and significant online income for the right individual.

What does it take to for an aspiring internet marketer to create and maintain a money making blog such as this?

Let’s take a look at the 3 key components needed to be a successful professional blogger:

Quality Content

The origin of any popular blog is the quality of content posted to it. Whether your posts are shocking, interesting, or informative, you need to gain the attention and then the approval of new visitors with content that appeals to them. By doing so you’ve increase the chances of them returning. Another important aspect of your content appeal is its ability to motivate visitors to recommend your site to others. This ‘viral’ effect will help boost traffic to your blog and hopefully the recommendations will continue to spiral upward from that point forward.

Maintaining Reader Loyalty

First and foremost the content of the blog must remain consistent with the original theme or purpose for which the site was created. To deviate from the original purpose of the blog would create confusion and disillusionment amongst the readers. This would eventually lead to a decrease in the subscription base.

The content now needs to supply ongoing value to readers. The heart and soul of any blog is the ability to provide useful, thought provoking, entertaining, insightful, or informative content to its readers. Failure to provide this will reduce the reader’s loyalty or discourage them from further recommending your blog to others.

Quality Products

Now that you’re maintaining reader loyalty and attracting a growing subscriber base we can make a couple assumptions here.

1) Your readers have an interest in the theme upon which your blog is based

2) You command a certain respect from your readers pertaining to your knowledge of the blog’s subject matter.

It is at this point that you can passively start to make recommendations to your readers on particular products that would fit their needs or interest.

The way you introduce your passive promoting is up to you. It can be in the form of a post that reviews a particular product, a post where the subject may naturally lead into a product referral, or even banner ads.

Take caution here not to crowd your blog with advertisements or hammer your readers with sales pitches. Remember they originally subscribed just for your content and not to be sold anything.

In order to build a successful professional blog you’ll need to maintain your consistency with the reader base. Continue to supply them with the content they desire while offering to them helpful products using a soft sell approach. You’ve worked too hard to gain their loyalty just to drive them away with your ‘overselling’ them!

T.J Philpott is an author and Internet entrepreneur based out of North Carolina.

For more information on succeeding in blog marketing and to receive a free guide that demonstrates how to find both profitable markets and products visit: http://blogbrawn.com

What do you think? Was this blog post useful? Please comment below or add to the debate. Please do not hesitate to contact Generate UK for more information and ideas about how to we can help you set up your own business blog.

1. We don’t understand why we would need a blog, it is just an online diary so how can this help us? This is quite a popular excuse and one that is usually made at the top of the management tree. Once senior management understand that by blogging you are opening the door to an increase in targeted traffic to your website, they usually see the light.
2. I don’t want just anyone within my company making posts on our behalf This is usually said by a business owner or a managing director. It’s still very surprising how many business leaders do not trust or allow their staff to make blog posts. This is strange because it is no different to other forms of marketing. This is easily overcome with an internal blog post approval process or a blogging policy which are being widely adopted. If you’re already working with an agency, perhaps this is something else they can do for you?
3. Your marketing department or PR guys have said that blogging is a bad idea This is a very interesting situation and although it is happening less and less, there are a few PR guys and marketing people out there that are advising against setting up blogs. If this is happening, you need to challenge them and ask them why it would not work for your business. Test their understanding of Internet Marketing, ask them how a blog works. If they can not talk to you about RSS, pings and how important they are from a search engine marketing perspective, then they do not know what they are talking about. As a result, you can be sure that their advice is based upon them protecting your monthly payment to them and not based upon the interests of your business.
4. Controlling quality would be very difficult This should not be a deal breaker. Usually this excuse can be overcome with some training and an internal blog approval policy. All posts should be submitted to an approving editor before they go live, this way you ensure that quality remains high. You should also guide your staff about the topics that you would like covered, if you have a flower business, then you ask your staff to write about something that relates to flowers. If you’re really buying into the whole blog idea, then you will have articles written that relate to keyphrases you have identified as part of your keyword research. Once you’re at this level, you’ll really start to see your blog work for you.
5. We’re waiting for the technical department to sort this out Don’t leave the blog in the hands of the technical department, do some research or talk to people who know about the benefits of blogs and tell the IT guys to just take care of the installation. Your choice of blog software and the type of blog you go with will determine how successful your project is. This is all about understanding your marketing objectives, you’re better placed than your IT guys to do this.
6. We have not got anything to talk or blog about This probably should have been the number one excuse for setting up a blog. All companies have something to write about, it is just working out what it is. If you sell products or services, then you might consider writing guides for their use. If you have happy customers, then you might interview them about why they think you are so good. If there is something important happening within your industry, then the blog is a great place to have your say.
7. There is no one available to spend time writing blog posts So just how many blog posts are you thinking of writing? Even if you wrote one article once a week, you would only require an hour or so. If you prefer to post more, then perhaps you might want to move some of your marketing budget around. The great thing about a blog is that you can measure the success of it from a marketing perspective. At the very worst case, you can hire an English student to write some posts for you in exchange for their Saturday night money.
8. It is difficult to predict the return on investment, until we can be more sure we are not interested This is a tough excuse to overcome because it is used by very risk averse companies. We would look at the other forms of advertising the company may use and ask how they measure the ROI with those campaigns. If there is a performance management culture, we will compare their metrics with what can be achieved with blogs. There is always the intangible benefits of advertising, such as brand awareness, thought leadership and sometimes the expectation that you just have to be there. There is also the feedback you receive from your customers and prospects, this is great for research purposes and can help you identify new markets and opportunities.You will have access to analytics and visitor details on your blog. If you’re using the blog to compliment your SEO strategy, then you will very quickly be able to measure the impact. If your blog is a sales type of blog, your ROI will be measured based upon conversions.
9. Blogging is just some hype, we’re waiting for the next big thing It could be a long wait. Blogging has been around for many years now and continues to grow, it has definitely reached the stage where it is mainstream. Adding a blog to your site just to compliment your search engine optimisation strategies will ensure a return on your time and investment. That’s before you consider the potential to increase your branding, expertise and enquires from local press.
10. It’s just too difficult and we don’t know where to start This is really not a good excuse. Blogs can be set up so that you’re ready to go in an hour. If you’re still not sure, speak to an agency or have some training. You won’t need a lot, once you know you will wonder why you took so long to get onboard.

What to do next? Do you think we are being fair?We’d love to hear from you, post your comments and feedback below. If you would like to speak to Generate UK, please feel free to contact us on 0845 388 9185 or via our contact page.

Special Offer: If you have read this post and would like to learn more about launching your own blog, contact us immediately for details of how we can take your blog site from conception to go live. Quote the title of this blog for a 20% discount.

The use of blogs as a personal tool to communicate is not new, there are over 100 million blogs in the so called “blogosphere” covering more topics than most of us even know exist. However it is only recently that small, medium and large enterprise customers have began to launch their own blogs. This is because they are starting to realise the value of having a blog. Not all companies have bought into this yet, so we thought it would be useful to explore what we think are the business benefits for owning a blog.

We’d like to continue to add to this list below, if you think we have missed something; please add to the debate by using our comments section.

Business Benefits of Blogging

Search Marketing purposes

By nature a blog is usually about a specific topic and is regularly updated. This in turn encourages the search engine spiders to visit your site more frequently, once this happens you are more likely to appear the organic search results, which means free and targeted traffic. The more experienced bloggers will target certain keywords and phrases in order to rank well and manipulate the search engines. Because of the flexibility of a blog, it is very quickly to launch a new post and therefore start to rank for different keywords relating to your business.

Direct Contact with people who are interested in you

Most blogs provide an option for its readers to be able to subscribe to them, meaning that every post you go live with will be sent to your subscriber base. These are people who have proactively giving you and your content the virtual equivalent of the thumbs up. You should value your subscribers very highly and ensure that you continue to provide them with content and information they are interested in. Conversely, these are the people you can test new products, seek feedback and leverage to help your provide a better service or product.

Brand Building

There are many ways to use a blog to build your brand or even to support an existing brand. In fact a blog is the perfect vehicle to use to interact with your potential customers, advanced bloggers may also use video or viral campaigns to tease their audience into coming back.

Dare to be different and differentiate yourselves from your competitors

There’s two questions to ask here; do your competitors have a blog and do they use it? And secondly, can we use our blog to add credibility to our services and solutions? For example, if you’re an IT company would it be good to have an interview with one of your customers on your blog?The answer is yes, as it adds to the credibility of your service. Likewise, you could include your views on new product launches or industry trends, all the time differentiating yourselves with other players in your market.

Build Relationships

There’s an old adage in sales and marketing, “people buy from people”. This has not changed and is probably even more apparent in tough economic times. A blog provides you with an opportunity to create relationships with your clients and prospects. There is a current trend for large companies to have a “CEO Blog”, this is where the head of the company writes a blog article once a week, which is designed to bring them closer to their target audience. It provides the reader with a feeling of involvement and interaction, especially if they are able to leave comments and respond directly to the company head.

Social Media Marketing

Most of the leading blog sites will have a social media aspect to them. They are normally visible via small graphical logos, which can be used by your readers to submit your blog post to other social media networks. The more well known social media sites are called Facebook, MySpace, Stumbleupon, Sphinn and Digg, however the list grows by the day and each will be focused on niche or have its own rules. From a blogging perspective, the reason to be aware of the social networks is because if your content is good then it is likely to be picked up by them. If this happens, it can mean a huge increase in targeted traffic.

PR & Media will find you

Depending on your niche and your content, there is every chance that you may be contacted by either local or national press. This is a great position to be in and will help you with brand building and of course provide you with some free advertising. Usually this type of contact is born from the understanding that you are an expert in your field or the topic you are discussing is of interest to their publications.

Thought Leadership and becoming an authority

The Internet has created some amazing opportunities for companies to market their products and services to a wider audience, however you could also argue that it has meant an increase in competition in almost all markets. This is why it is important to differentiate yourself from your competitors, one way to do this is to establish yourself as the de facto expert in your area. If you are an expert, tell the world. Use your blog to communicate and showcase your expertise, in a competitive market this will do wonders for your sales.

Online Reputation Management

Online reputation management is becoming big news, we have posted about this before and we advise our clients to be aware of it and proactively manage it. One of the ways to do this is by managing the content and using your blog to control what is being said. It is a little more complicated than just that, however it is better to be in control of the blog then letting someone else do it for you.

It’s really Simple

Creating and maintaining a blog is very simple. Once it is set up and designed, then your only challenge is creating the content and keeping it updated regularly. There are sites out there that post every day, whilst others do it once a week. We recommend that you find a happy medium that results in a good flow of content to keep your readers happy, without it becoming a chore.

Link Baiting

People have different views and ideas about link baiting. Often it is described as a black hat technique, whilst there are examples of blackhat link baiting, in general it is fine. The idea is that a blog post is so controversial or significant that it solicits a response from other members of the blogosphere. In turn they include a link back to your site, and you receive a boost in traffic and a short term buzz on your blog. If you’re lucky, you will keep hold of a number of your readers as well.

We want to keep growing this list, if you have any other business benefits for having a company blog please post in the comments.