Vanity is a human condition. At work, it shares space with a desire to appear professional and “together.” Whether you are in marketing, sales, operations or another department, the same thing applies to everything you do. Every time you make a post, mail a flyer or answer the phone, you are poking your company’s nose out into the world for all to see. And it had better be well-powdered.

Your brand, whether your own or your company’s, has tremendous value.  You don’t squander your professional reputation by wearing flip-flops to the office–unless that’s part of your corporate culture or you happen to work in a surf shack, in which case I’m officially jealous. Being cognizant of how you and your workplace look isn’t simple vanity; it’s a business strategy.

Take a long, hard look around your own workplace right now. Does the lighting, signage and wall décor reflect your brand? Is it comfortable, welcoming and professional? Do your business cards, letterhead and office forms reflect what your company is all about?

Maybe it’s time for an extreme image makeover. A little vanity can be a good thing.

The post You’re So Vain appeared first on Allegra Network.

Consumers on social networks are a vocal bunch. In fact, 82% surveyed by research company Lab42 say that a Facebook Page is a good place to interact with a company. The top reason why? To get a discount or a coupon.

But be careful. The same survey found that almost three out of four have no problem “unliking” your brand if you pitch too often.

The take-away? Be present on social media, and do it well. Have a professionally built profile that reflects your brand. Offer real value – information, education, discounts, insights and inspiration. Amuse and amaze. If you can make your audience laugh, learn or lean in, you’ll grow your audience and bolster your brand.

The post Facebook Pages Earning Trust appeared first on Allegra Network.

Make a big impact for your visitors, and make sure your signage is:

• Iconic to your brand or company. Your logo or other signature icon should be clearly visible, and colors should complement your other marketing collateral.
• Easy to read. Five to seven words is more than enough. Having too much on your sign lessens the impact.
• Helpful. Is the entrance clearly marked? Is it obvious where to park? Are your hours of operation clearly visible from the street?
• Beautiful. Yes, everyone’s idea of “beauty” is different, and what’s appropriate for a gym will be different than, say, a spa. Still, the signage should be well-kept, clean and have good design elements for the best impressions.

Next time you walk outside your shop, stop and take a long look at your own signage. Does it truly reflect how you feel about your business and the customers you serve?

With the advance of wide format printing technology, large signs and banners are now more affordable and easier to produce. Banners, posters, window clings and displays are available in any size or shape you can imagine.  It is worth the investment for a storefront that absolutely compels those new customers through the door.

The post What Does Your Signage Say About Your Business? appeared first on Allegra Network.

This idea is an evolution of the QR code trend, which allows mobile users to scan a two-dimensional bar code for more information. This idea of scanning photos, embedded with watermarks that can be read by the digital app, takes it one step further.

In this magazine, scanning the photo of the recipe connected me to a digital version of the recipe that I could save in my phone and even offered a way to create a shopping list. Coming back to it later, I was able to view a video and how-to instructions that walked me through the cooking process. Now the only excuse I have for a kitchen disaster is my own culinary skills or lack of; certainly the publisher is doing its part to make sure I have all the information I need.

It’s also a great example of how a printed magazine is embracing digital technology, bringing it into its formerly non-digital world. And it’s a partnership that resonates with the readers. The Association of Magazine Media reported that 75% of magazine readers say that digital content like this complements, not replaces, traditional printed magazine content.

That’s good news for print and digital marketers alike as we embrace this multi-channel world.

Have you seen this trend in  the magazines you read? What do you think?

The post Magazines Embracing Watermarking – The Evolution of QR appeared first on Allegra Network.

Clearly not. Now is the time to optimize your website for the mobile market. Whether you are optimizing for the first time, or redoing your mobile site to make it more user-friendly, you need to understand what mobile users are looking for.

So what makes a good mobile experience?  

1. Readability. Mobile users should be able to see the relevant information in a way that fits onto their screen, without manually resizing or scrolling.
2. Relevance. Mobile users by their very nature are looking at your site “on the go.” They want information like hours of business, menus, directions, etc. The “About Us” information should never be front and center on your mobile site.
3. Revved-speed. Mobile users expect to have everything at their fingertips, almost instantaneously. Speed up your site’s delivery by paring it down to the pertinent information for the mobile user (see above), and stripping out anything that might slow it down.

Keeping your mobile customers and prospects happy and engaged is critical. A well-optimized site is a must to make this happen. Let’s hear from you; what do you expect from a business’ mobile site? We’d love to know.

The post What Are Mobile Users Looking For? appeared first on Allegra Network.

According to Cradlepoint, Target was a pioneer in the pop-up merchandising concept, with their 1,500 square foot store in NYC’s Rockefeller Center. For five weeks in 2003, the retailer showcased their new line from designer Isaac Mizrahi. Gap, Adidas, Sony Ericsson and Nike are just some of the big-name retailers following suit and actively engaging with the public. (Source: Cradlepoint, Trends in Pop-Up Retail: Creative Merchandising Driven by Dependable Mobile Connectivity, 2012).

Hallmarks of this type of retailing include mobile interactivty, physical engagement with products and seamless point-of-sale purchase opportunities.

Two tech innovations make this type of consumer engagement available for smaller retailers: wide format printing and mobile broadband. Think of the possibilities for local businesses to create this kind of pop-up presence at community events, outdoor hotspots for the summer season and inside malls in an otherwise empty storefront.

The key to successful pop-up engagement?

According to Cradlepoint, “the latest iterations of pop-up reveal more elaborate displays, high-end signage, more sophisticated POS, advanced mobile commerce capabilities and meaningful interactive experiences that engage useful conversations with customers.”

In other words, draw them in with signs and displays, immerse them in the product and make it easy to purchase.  Sounds like a winning combination.

What do you think? Is pop-up retailing a fad, or will it continue to evolve over time as technology and consumer demand for engagement increases?

The post Popping Up – The Temporary Retail Phenomenon appeared first on Allegra Network.

There is no better tactic than that basic, tried-and-true PR workhorse – the press release. As with many marketing tactics, the Internet has changed even the basic press release. Today it’s more common to hear the term “news release,” because this public relations tactic is not just for members of the press anymore. A wider online audience of consumers, analysts, bloggers and journalists can gain exposure to your news via RSS feeds or by keyword search when your release is posted on the Web.

Both the traditional press release and the online news release have a place in a comprehensive PR plan. Following are five ways you can tell and sell your news to traditional media outlets:

1. Look inward. Take a closer look at your employees and customers for a human interest angle. Consider unusual business practices and the unexpected. (Ex. Sporting goods retailer sponsors an internship program for the developmentally disabled.)

2. Be the “next-day” story. What has people talking? Can you add a fresh angle, localize a national story or apply what’s in the news to a vertical market? Convince an editor of a local impact, and you increase your odds of coverage. (Ex. Organic foods retailer offers healthful alternatives to typical Super Bowl fare.)

3. Make it visual. Charts, graphs, illustrations and photos all contribute to building an interesting story – and get you valuable space on the page. (Ex. An ice cream store distributes a news release and bar graph that depicts the most popular flavors in conjunction with National Ice Cream Month.)

4. Spot the trends. Position yourself as the expert who’s available to comment on emerging trends, and make your product or service the solution. (Ex. Are textbooks on their way out? A high-tech firm offers its CEO as a quotable source for a story about e-readers in educational environments.)

5. Have fast facts and stats. Conduct a poll or compile facts from existing company data to shift the focus of a current event or trend story to your industry or local community. (Ex. A real estate office localizes national home ownership rates with recommendations for first-time home buyers.)

With a little strategic thinking, your business news can make headlines.

The post 5 Ways to Tell Your News appeared first on Allegra Network.

These three “must-dos” will help the optimization process run smoothly and ensure a great result.

1. Determine your most popular content. Look at your Google Analytics (or whatever site analytics you have installed) to determine which pages are most visited overall and which pages are most visited by users on mobile devices. Most analytics programs will clearly show you what devices your visitors are using, as shown below in this screenshot  from Google Analytics:
   
2. Pick your best pages. Choose the 5-7 pages that absolutely must be on your mobile-optimized website. Think like your mobile customer: If you own a restaurant, menus and a reservation form might be the most important. For a nonprofit, a calendar of events and a registration form might be the critical pieces. Mobile optimized sites contain less content and more usable, interactive information like directions, hours and locations.
3. Share this information with your mobile web developer. Don’t assume that he or she already understands your customers and their behavior. Share what you know, and be willing to listen to your developer’s ideas, too. Putting your heads together on this can lead to an engaging and successful mobile site.

Are you optimized for mobile? Talk to your local marketing, print and mail experts for help getting your business in the hands of users on the go.

The post Mobile Optimization – 3 Must-Dos! appeared first on Allegra Network.

When you decide to outsource some or all of your marketing strategy, planning or execution, keep these five points in mind. This will help you avoid some of the more common problems we hear about in the world of outsourced marketing support.

5 Steps to Successful Outsourcing

1. Clarify expectations. Unlike in-house staff, outsourced professionals should never been used for those “other duties as assigned” so familiar to many of us. Define the project carefully including all deliverables. Be clear about who will deliver what, and who will review/approve at each step of the way. Put it in writing, and have both sides sign off.
2. Set a realistic schedule. Work backwards from the end. Having a clear project finish date will allow you to set controlled calendars for strategy, design, copy, pre-press and production. “When you can get to it” is never a good strategy. Make sure to get buy-in from everyone on the project, so they know what’s expected of them, and by when.
3. Provide the right resources. You can’t expect your outside contractors to “create” out of thin air. Provide relevant data, industry information and other key information to get them started. If you are creating a direct mail piece to your customer base, have your data in good shape and provide it in the format in which it’s needed.
4. Be respectful. Everyone has several plates spinning at the same time and many projects to keep moving along; being respectful of everyone’s time is critical. Answer questions promptly, and provide reviews and approvals as quickly as you can. This keeps the project moving along and allows for a smoother solution overall.
5. Keep your promises. If you keep up on your end of the commitment, you’ll enable your outsourced partner to do the same. Keep to your original agreements as closely as possible. This way, you’ll avoid misunderstandings and missed deadlines.

Outsourcing your marketing is a smart business strategy for extending your marketing budget. Do you part to be a great outsourcing partner!

The post Outsourcing: A 5-Step Survival Guide appeared first on Allegra Network.

The changes in all industries brought by digital technology have altered the landscape of business marketing as well. Digital innovations have indelibly etched themselves into how businesses communicate in much the same way that steel has replaced wood on massive vessels.

Like the shipping titans of old, the strong and nimble adapt. And thrive. Progress is good.

For small and medium-sized businesses in any niche, marketing and communications have evolved to incorporate the incredible power of digital technology. Now businesses with modest marketing budgets can take advantage of new printing methods that allow for variable data printing (VDP); digital integration that boosts ROI on direct marketing; and new opportunities to engage with a broader audience on social channels.

This means that marketing campaigns that were once out of reach to the small-to-medium size budget are now more accessible and affordable than ever.

Yes, change is challenging. This past decade has been one of intense change in so many industries. With the changes we grow, we thrive, we become better than we were before. And that is a very good thing indeed.

The post The Old Ways Are Passing – A Print and Marketing Evolution appeared first on Allegra Network.