big brand tactics Archives - Marketing Fundamentals

Vine versus Instagram Video – Which should you use and why? Guest post

Mike Pitt — Tue, 11 Mar 2014 07:42:42 +0000

More and more companies are taking advantage of the advertising opportunities offered by online video platforms. Vine and Instagram are two of the most popular and each has its pros and cons, which we will examine in the following short guide.

Vine vs Instagram

1. Longevity

Whilst this is admittedly a minor issue as far as Internet technology is concerned and is less important than user numbers, it does have some relevance to potential advertisers. Vine, launched on January 24th 2013 has the edge here. Although Instagram has been around since October 2010, it has only been possible to post videos on the platform since June 20th 2013. This means that Vine users are more familiar with the format and may therefore be more receptive to short creative marketing videos.

2. User numbers

Instagram is the clear winner in this category, with over 150 million active users although most of these users were acquired before video was introduced and owe more to its origins as a photo sharing platform. Vine has 40 million users.

3. Activity

Things begin to look a little worse for Vine in this category. Whilst you would naturally expect more active users to translate into more activity, it is not a linear function as far as tweets are concerned. Instagram has a 6 to 1 lead over Vine in terms of tweets, compared to a user number ratio of roughly 3.75. However, these figures do not tell the whole story as outlined in the next section.

4. Functionality

Vine videos are more visible in the Twitter community owing to the fact that they are previewed in the iPhone and Android Twitter apps. This means that all users need to do to view the content is to tap on the Vine video preview in Twitter. Whilst Instagram content can be tweeted, the lack of a visual preview means that it has less immediate impact.

5. Format

Vine videos are limited to 6 seconds whereas Instagram ones can be up to 15 seconds in length. There is no clear winner in this category but the different lengths mean that one platform may be more suitable than the other for different marketing techniques. If, for example, you wish to create a more conventional advertisement for distribution online, Instagram’s longer format will probably be the best choice. On the other hand, the 6-second format that Vine employs has encouraged advertisers to be more creative and there are many excellent examples of how it can be used to great effect.

6. Making a choice

Now you know a little more about what each platform has to offer, you should be in a better position to make an informed decision when planning new online video marketing campaigns. It is important to remember that whichever platform you choose, you need to have a team in place to answer the consumer enquiries that your promotional clip generates.

The following summary may be of some help if you need a quick reference when making a final decision.

Winners

• Longevity – Vine
• User numbers – Instagram
• Activity – Instagram
• Functionality – Vine
• Format – a draw

Whilst I have attempted to remain objective throughout this review, please bear in mind that personal preferences always influence one’s opinions and your experiences with these platforms are unlikely to be identical to mine. In closing, I firmly believe that both are useful weapons to keep in your marketing arsenal.

This guest post was written by Juliet Martin who is an Instagram user by preference. She also writes on behalf of Regus, a global provider of flexible office spaces and business solutions.

Do you want to incorporate Vine or Instagram into your Content Marketing strategy? Give us a call on +44 845 2264 247 or email us via mail@marketingfundamentals.com to start the conversation.

We hope you have found this information useful. You may also like this, Is it time to Vine? and Which Brands are Winning on Vine? – 5 Brands that ‘Do it For The Vine’

Best regards,

Marketing Fundamentals Team

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How do you Create Better Business Relationships? – 6 tips

Mike Pitt — Tue, 18 Feb 2014 08:20:11 +0000

It still amazes me how often many people mistakenly focus on the number of connections they have rather than the quality of those connections. At a superficial level the number of connections you have on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest etc is important but quantity is no indicator of quality – as anyone who has attended a speed dating event would no doubt testify. Not a day goes passed without someone requesting a connection with me on LinkedIn never to be heard of again – seemingly lost in ‘LinkedIn World’. Business is about relationships and relationships must be started and then cultivated. Our recommended approach is to take a qualitative approach and focus on establishing fewer more qualitative relationships. How? There are six tips below.

Business Relationships – 6 tips to create better business relationships

1. Face to Face meetings

Take time to meet new people face to face and extend your circle of contacts. Approach these intro meetings with an open mind and no agenda. Do not pitch during these meetings and listen more than you speak.

2. Deliver Value

Make a point to help help out your contacts whenever you can and to connect them with people that they should meet. Do so without point scoring or expecting anything in return.

3. Surprise and Delight Your Clients & Customers

Execute all contracted projects and tasks well but make one of your objectives to surprise and delight them by delivering beyond their expectations. If you are unsure how to do this your staff and customer feedback will give you some very strong indicators.

4. Be Authentic

One of the benefits of being a business owner or entrepreneur is that you can create your own company and remain true to your values and vision. Do not lose sight of this when you are starting business relationships even if there are monetary reasons to do so. If your gut tells you that a potential relationship will be problematic – go with your gut.

5. Establish Trust

For any relationship to work there needs to be trust on both sides. Major deals and agreements need to be written down and formalised but a good relationship should be the basis. Be worthy of trust, open and and trust in others.

6. Frequency and Feedback

Regularly communicate with your contacts – this applies equally to your staff as well as contacts external to your business. Encourage the giving of and be receptive to feedback and reviews.

Implement these points and you will establish better business relationships – relationships that will help you build better business. The last word goes to Dale Carnegie

“You can close more business in two months by becoming genuinely interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.” – Dale Carnegie

We hope you have found this information useful.

Need help creating better business relationships? Give us a call on +44 845 2264 247 or email us via mail@marketingfundamentals.com to start the conversation.

Best regards,

Mike Pitt
Founder & CEO – Marketing Fundamentals Ltd

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Entrepreneurs – How do you build a community? – 6 tips

Mike Pitt — Wed, 05 Feb 2014 18:28:43 +0000

Hello everyone. One common denominator among many successful companies that we have noticed is the existence of a community attached to the product or services that the company or organisation provides. In the week that Facebook gave its community of 1.23 billion users the gift of a personalised film the notion of community is very strong. It goes beyond the desire to create repeat purchases or brand loyalty. Intrinsically a sense of community is what we desire as humans – well, most of us. Companies that succeed in this respect exist in many different sectors: the Apple community has been integral to that brand’s success, the same could be said of those who feel just as fervently about Harley-Davidson motorcycles. Creating a community around your products or services if executed well can turn a small brand into a phenomenally successful one. However, it is not simply a case of working through a checklist and boom! You have a community. Below are 6 tips to help you on your way.

How do you build a community? – 6 tips

1. Content & Rules

You will need to create Content for your community on a regular basis and let your desired community members know the reasons for the community. Explain how the community can interact with you the hosts and with each other. Decide how it will be moderated and what are the best uses of the community.

2. Location

Be very clear where this community is based – is it a dedicated portal with login? Is it a publicly hosted forum. Is it hosted on a third party platform: LinkedIn or Facebook being obvious examples. Note – It is preferable to have a dedicated portal that you control. Are there any offline aspects to the community? A regular meeting place for events, for example.

3. Customer Service

Deliver excellent customer service to your community but also to all of your customers and those who make enquiries. For more details on how to do this read this post – SME Owners – 10 ways to excel at customer service

4. Ability to Surprise

A good community has the ability to surprise and delight its members. This community should not be a platform used only for promotional offers. Your objective must be to deliver value to your members and to interact with them.

5. Interaction & Engagement

A key feature of any community is the amount of interaction and engagement – not just with the host but also with each other within the community. Build in flexibility to accommodate user generated features and you will reap the rewards. I was recently contacted by Quora asking me for my suggestions in this respect and it is clear this is one of the ways they are developing their platform.

6. Above and Beyond

Start with the mindset that you will go above and beyond the norm in an approach that both Napoleon Hill and Zig Ziglar famously referred to as ‘going the extra mile’ and you will give your community every chance of future success.

We hope you have found this information useful. We would be happy to discuss how creating a community around your products or services could work for you. Give us a call on +44 845 2264 247 or email us via mail@marketingfundamentals.com to start the conversation.

Best regards,

Marketing Fundamentals Team

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How do you use local sponsorship to enhance your reputation & drive leads?

Mike Pitt — Tue, 28 Jan 2014 12:04:31 +0000

As a business, you are a member of the community in which you operate. This is one of the fundamental reasons why reputation management occupies the time and resources of so many companies; especially large companies that may be seen as impersonal, or as more concerned with its profits than its people. These impressions, accurate or not, can drive away potential customers. Naturally, the converse is true. Positioning your business as an engaged, caring benefactor of the community can generate clientèle from within your home town and beyond.

Local Sponsorship Opportunities

1. The Arts

There are few demographics that don’t agree that the arts are an integral component of a thriving community. And patrons of the arts tend to have the sort of free capital that buys them purchasing power. These patrons also tend to be interested in philanthropy and are more likely to spend their money at companies that champion humanitarian causes. Investing in the arts represents an opportunity to demonstrate your company’s investment in the betterment of the community.

• Make a significant donation to the arts organization of your choice. This will get your name on the donor list, and oftentimes includes complimentary ad placement in programs, brochures, or newsletters.

• Event sponsorship—hosting an annual concert series, for example—can put your business in the good graces of the community.

• Commission a work of art to be displayed in a prominent public space.

2. Benefit Races

There is no shortage of races that raise money for great causes by asking participants to secure sponsors who provide financial backing. As a rule, these events are well-publicized, well-received, and well-attended. Participating in one way or another associates your company with issues that matter.

• Sponsor a group of participants or build a team to run the race (assuming you’ve got personnel who are willing to sweat for the greater good).

• Sponsor the race itself. Charities will partner with your company to organize and promote the race.

• Set up booths on the day of the event where you can offer promotional items like t-shirts, water bottles, balloons, and custom pens to participants and spectators.

3. Environmental Restoration

Many people automatically equate corporations with ecological damage, even if the evidence to support that association is lacking. One way to dispel this type of misconception is to host an environmental restoration project. Like benefit races, they provide a way to forge relationships with community members while working together towards a common goal.

• Organize stream clean-ups or tree plantings.

• Sponsor a local conservation organization’s research or special projects.

We are a leading marketing agency in London.Want to incorporate local sponsorship into your marketing strategy? Give us a call on +44 845 2264 247 or email us via mail@marketingfundamentals.com to start the conversation.

We hope you have found this information useful. This guest post was written by Alice Jenkins. Alice Jenkins is a graphic designer and hopeless perfectionist. She writes for PensXpress

Best regards,

Marketing Fundamentals Team

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How do you use local sponsorship to enhance your reputation & drive leads?

Mike Pitt — Tue, 28 Jan 2014 12:04:31 +0000

Local Sponsorship Opportunities

1. The Arts

• Event sponsorship—hosting an annual concert series, for example—can put your business in the good graces of the community.

• Commission a work of art to be displayed in a prominent public space.

2. Benefit Races

• Sponsor a group of participants or build a team to run the race (assuming you’ve got personnel who are willing to sweat for the greater good).

• Sponsor the race itself. Charities will partner with your company to organize and promote the race.

• Set up booths on the day of the event where you can offer promotional items like t-shirts, water bottles, balloons, and custom pens to participants and spectators.

3. Environmental Restoration

• Organize stream clean-ups or tree plantings.

• Sponsor a local conservation organization’s research or special projects.

We hope you have found this information useful. This guest post was written by Alice Jenkins. Alice Jenkins is a graphic designer and hopeless perfectionist. She writes for PensXpress

Best regards,

Marketing Fundamentals Team

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Business strategy – Is Productization Right for you? 5 Considerations

Mike Pitt — Wed, 22 Jan 2014 13:02:09 +0000

This post may contain affiliate links please read our disclosure for more info.

Hello everyone. I am going to start this post with an ugly looking word – productization. It is ugly but beautiful at the same time. Let me explain with a story. There was a business owner called Brad who owned an accountancy firm delivering professional services to small businesses. Over the course of a few years, he built up his client base and increased his number of staff to handle the increased number of clients. Brad’s business was growing – but only slowly. As the business got bigger Brad was getting pulled into activities that he did not perceive to be his strengths: activities like Human Resources, Health and Safety, Logistics. It seemed that the every small increase in profitability came at great cost to him in terms of time and focus.

During a weekend seminar, Brad heard about productization; productization is the process of creating products out of the services that your company or organisation provides. He also learned that it is easier to sell products online than it is to sell services. Bingo! Brad then created a new product development strategy that created products that included the following: proprietary accounting software, Ebooks, books, online courses, online workshops, webinars, downloadable PDFs, apps, podcasts and audio files. This enabled Brad’s company to reach many more customers than he and his staff could physically meet with during normal working hours. Over the course of the next 3 years, Brad’s company grew by a factor of five aided by productisation and appropriate use of technology.

Are you a professional services firm that would like to grow as Brad’s firm did? Below are 5 reasons why you should consider productization.

Productization – 5 Things to Consider

1. Scale – Productization well executed will create the opportunity to scale your business rather than grow.

2. Revenue – Productization can transform your website from purely an informational website into one that actually generates sales and revenue.

3. International Expansion – Once you have a suite of products available online you are able to do business internationally from the comfort of your own laptop. Platforms such as Amazon, the App Store and iTunes (for podcasts) deliver a level of kudos for your business too.

4. Business Card – Having a critically acclaimed product is a much better business card than any conventional business card. At networking events, you will be remembered.

5. Do the work once – Once you have created the product it is done. The book, the online course, the video series can be sold multiple times without you having to do any additional work. You may want to consider updates in the future but for the present the work is done.

We hope you have found this information useful. Productization can form part of a comprehensive Content Marketing strategy.

If you have enjoyed this post you will also like the following:

Should Your Book Also be an AudioBook?

Podcasting vs YouTube: Which is Better for Your Business?

Professional Services: How Do You Fill Your Sales Funnel?

B2B Content Marketing Agency London

Marketing Fundamentals Ltd is a B2B Content Marketing Agency in London that creates Content and manages Social Media for Professional Services firms. We hope you find this information useful.

If you would like our help creating and executing a Content Marketing Plan for your business or organisation give us a call on +44 (0) 845 2264 247. You can also email us via mail@marketingfundamentals.com

On our YouTube channel you will find marketing advice, business advice & inspiration. Subscribe if you work in Marketing for Professional Services or are a business owner or solo-preneur trying to grow your business. New uploads on Wednesdays.

Best regards,

Mike Pitt

Founder, Marketing Fundamentals Ltd

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How to TurboCharge Your Business with a Blog
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How can Marketing Fundamentals Ltd help you? – 13 ways

Mike Pitt — Mon, 13 Jan 2014 19:22:08 +0000

Hello everyone. We hope that you are making progress with your businesses and that any new initiatives are starting to bear fruit. We can tell that our readership is growing and that this blog is read in 171 countries. Thank you for your support. For those of you relatively new to Marketing Fundamentals Ltd we wanted to summarise the range of services we provide.

How can Marketing Fundamentals Ltd Help you?

1. Content Marketing consultancy – We create blog & Social Media Content and implement it for you leaving you to focus on your core business. There are a number of different packages available and we can create a bespoke package too.

2. Video Content – We create video Content to promote your business and for use on YouTube / Vimeo etc.

3. Social Media Consultancy – We devise a Social Media Strategy and implement it for you. Watch a testimonial here

4. Blog Post Writing – We create a number of posts for you and supply to you for you to upload to your site. Thirty posts is a popular number because when you have created thirty blog post traffic to your site increases by up to 30% Source: Social Media Examiner.

5. Blog Mentoring – Regular face to face sessions instructing business owners and entrepreneurs how to blog to promote their business and organisations. Booked as 12 weekly sessions and can be delivered via Skype if distance prevents face to face meetings. Note – There is homework in between each session.

6. Email Copywriting – You’ve built a mailing list but don’t really know what to say to maintain momentum? We can do this for you.

7. Company Workshops – Content Marketing & Social Media 1 day Workshops delivered at your company’s premises. Watch a testimonial here.

8. Online Blogging Course – Learn on Demand by registering for our our Udemy course How to TurboCharge Your Business with a Blog’

9. Book – Buy our ‘How to TurboCharge Your Business with a Blog’ paperback book from Amazon. There is also a Kindle version available.

10. App – Buy our SME Marketing App on App Store and Android platforms

11. Blog – Read our Marketing Fundamentals Ltd blog.

12. YouTube – Watch Marketing Fundamentals Ltd videos on our You Tube Channel.

13. Twitter Twitter: TurboCharge Your Twitter Presence Course

We hope you have found this information useful and we look forward to hearing from you. Give us a call on +44 845 2264 247 or email us via mail@marketingfundamentals.com to start the conversation.

Best regards,

Marketing Fundamentals Team

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Mike Pitt – ‘Unleashing the Power of Content’ Podcast for Outlier Magazine

Mike Pitt — Thu, 02 Jan 2014 22:02:37 +0000

‘Unleashing the Power of Content’ Podcast for Outlier Magazine

I was interviewed by the lovely Melinda Yeaman for the Outlier Podcast series. Click here to listen to the interview.

Click here to listen.

B2B Content Marketing Agency London

Marketing Fundamentals Ltd is a B2B Content Marketing Agency in London that creates Content and manages Social Media for Professional Services firms.

I hope you find this information useful.

Best wishes,

Mike Pitt

Founder & CEO

Marketing Fundamentals Ltd

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How do you negotiate like a self-made millionaire? 5 examples – Guest post

Mike Pitt — Wed, 18 Dec 2013 19:41:41 +0000

In the business world, everything is negotiable and self-made millionaires are well-aware of that fact. It’s more like a secret everyone knows but nobody wants to talk about. The following 5 negotiation tactics are borrowed from some of the world’s prime business entrepreneurs and CEOs. With their help – you can build an empire too.

Negotiation Tactics – Top 5 from Self-made Millionaires

1. Knock out the competition
Steve Jobs was a genius, and his negotiation strategy is probably the most unbelievable of them all. His tactic was to come up with offers that no other competitor could render. That’s exactly what happened when he wanted Lala (the future iTunes). Nokia offered $11 million for the startup, so Jobs took a piece of paper, gave it to the CEO, and the deal was closed. The amount was $80 million.

2. Play mind games
When Donald Trump chooses to take someone’s business, he arms himself with a couple of really good tricks prior to entering a negotiation. He knows all about playing mind games, so he spends hours chatting in the friendliest way possible. His counterparts will assume he’s just being a nice guy, but his goal is to find a weak spot and have the upper hand.

3. Leaving investors and lawyers at the door
Facebook CEO and multi-millionaire Mark Zuckerberg likes to acquire a start-up without consulting with his advisors. In 2012, Facebook agreed to a deal with Instagram worth $1 billion. He didn’t want to consult with his lawyers, and he closed the deal while eating ice cream with Kevin Systrom, CEO of Instagram. The deal was signed in a day and nobody knew anything about it.

4. If there’s no cooperation, end the whole thing
The moment Dick Costolo became Twitter’s CEO he had to deal with a dysfunctional board of directors, among numerous other things. Rather than accept unprofessional people on his team, he leveraged his power and fired everyone. He managed to demonstrate that Twitter was his company, and that the people who can’t play by his rules should go home.

5. Don’t forget that you have something they don’t
Jeremy Stoppelman, CEO and founder of Yelp, managed to stay very calm when Yahoo and Google mentioned they want to buy his review business. He told Fast Company that the negotiation didn’t live up to his expectations, and that both Yahoo and Google only wanted to know the worth of his company. So he turned them down.

Negotiations are challenging even for the richest people on the planet. However, they’re done differently as money is not the only incentive a seller wants from a buyer. Their negotiation tactics are all about maintaining their names on the floating line.

Need help with your negotiation strategy? Give us a call on +44 845 2264 247 or email us via mail@marketingfundamentals.com to start the conversation. We are a leading Marketing Agency in London.

We hope you have found this information inspirational.This guest post was written by Jason Philips of The Gap Partnership .

Best regards,

Marketing Fundamentals Team

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Business owners – Are you ready for the long haul?

Mike Pitt — Thu, 05 Dec 2013 12:12:21 +0000

Hello everyone!

Thank you for reading and interacting with our blog over the last year – special thanks to everyone who has been reading since 2010. In addition to this written blog we do also have an active YouTube channel with 67 videos uploaded that you will find helpful. Click on the links below to view 5 of the most recent uploads and subscribe to the channel to ensure that you are notified when a new video has been uploaded.

If this is the last blog post you read from us before Christmas have a wonderful Christmas and a very happy New Year! For the rest of you – we will expect you back here next week!

Business owners – Are you ready for the long haul?

Business owners – Are you living in ‘Startup World’?

Business owners – Is it time to Vine?

Don’t ‘Fake it til you make it.’

‘How to TurboCharge Your Business with a Blog’ Book Testimonial – Sophie

We hope you find this content useful and inspirational.

Best wishes.

Mike Pitt

Founder & CEO – Marketing Fundamentals Ltd

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