Escape the Mundane + Experience the Remarkable

The Secret Behind David Ogilvy’s Brilliant Headline Copywriting

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Marketing

“On the average, five times as many people read the headline as read the body copy. When you have written your headline, you have spent eighty cents out of your dollar.”
~ David Ogilvy

David Ogilvy is one of the greatest ad men ever. His contributions to the marketing industry are incalculable. And anyone in advertising couldn’t imagine a world without his iconic ads.

In his day, marketing budgets were spread amongst the traditional marketing outlets; magazines, newspapers and commercials, for example. But as we have transitioned into the digital age, what could we possibly learn from this classical ad man? Turns out, a lot.

Appealing to Your Audience


The above ad contains what is arguably considered the most famous headline of all time. But why is this? To answer that, we must think critically about the underlying message here and what Ogilvy is attempting to convey to readers.
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Who’s Behind the Brand? 15 Examples of Companies Rocking Social Media

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Marketing

The beauty of social media from a brand standpoint is the ease in which a community can be created. But all too often I see the company fail without knowing they failed. Let me explain in example form:

If you go to a convention, a meet & greet, a seminar, networking event or any other physical meeting with companies, do the booth representatives magically talk from a megaphone while hiding behind a huge logo? Hopefully no. But rather they have name badges on and are pressing palms with the folks. They’re answering questions and chatting with everyone they can, even the competition. To put in other words, they are being human.

So if this is how representatives act while on location, why are so many brands sitting faceless on a podium when it comes to Twitter, Facebook, Blogs and other social network websites? It makes no sense.

But lucky for us, there are also many brands who understand the power of social media. That it’s a two-way conversation and that listening is as powerful, if not more powerful, than speaking. Below are 15 examples of brands I adore. Nor just because they have an excellent company, but because they get the idea of being social. Here we go:

Twitter

First let’s look at a few companies that are rocking their Twitter following:

Dogfish Head Brewery

Dogfish Head Twitter

Besides having extremely tasty beer and an entertaining show on TV, Dogfish Head Brewery is the essence of a solid social media strategy. They interact with their fans and tweet nothing but valuable information.

SyFy

Craig does a wonderful job in promoting the SyFy brand on twitter. He frequently has Q&A sessions as well as many fun contests and giveaways.

Research in Motion (Blackberry)

If you have a Blackberry (& a Twitter account) and you are not following these guys, you’re missing out. They are on top of the ball when it comes to customer service and fan interaction. Have a question or concern about your Blackberry? Tweet it to them and you’ll quickly have your answer.

Foursquare

There’s not much to say other than the folks at Foursquare cannot shut up on Twitter. But I say this in a lovingly good way. They regularly chat with their followers.

Craftsman

I love Craftsman’s Twitter account almost as much as I love their tools. They do a great job in keeping strong brand recognition. A personal example: I once tweeted I wanted to bust out the power tools to make my desk. Twenty minutes later Rich from Craftsman kindly sent me a tweet to post a pic when I was done. No sales pitch or anything, just two guys chatting about power tools. (lesson: set a search query to alert you of keywords in your industry)
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12 Usability Resources to Improve Website Conversions

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Marketing

A usable, high-conversion website. It’s the goal of any Internet marketing campaign, but how do we do it?

While we all strive for a better converting website, we may find ourselves confused by all the different points-of-views of graphic designers basing answers on so-called design trends. Worse yet, our graphic designer may value a pretty website over a functional website.

So before you accept your next website design, take a look at these usability and conversion optimization articles and resources:

The Myth of the Page Fold

Summary: This article is a thorough write-up & images of what user’s look at on a website. Most importantly, they conclude that when the site is designed correctly, the content below the “fold” of your website still has a chance of being seen.

Google Labs: Browser Size

Summary: Input your website’s address and see what it looks like to the majority of users. But I would recommend those with centered website designs to shrink your browser to it’s smallest size without a horizontal scroll bar.

The $300 Million Button

Summary: By changing only one button, a company saw an increase of $300 million in sales in one year.
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Simple Three Step Process for Combating Social Media Overload

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Marketing

Man Stressed in front of Computer

Maintaining a Facebook page, a Twitter account, YouTube channel, a blog, etc. can be extremely overwhelming. Social media can quickly begin consuming more and more of your day. You may find that the majority of your work hours consist of reading, commenting and posting relatively useless info. With this information overload, it’s easy to get distracted.

Worse yet, I often notice people automating the entire process through services like Hootsuite and Ping.fm, in where they post the exact same thing on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and anywhere else they can. This strategy is not only ineffective, it’s lazy.

My solution for those just getting their feet wet, or drowning, in the social media pool is a simple, yet effective one:
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The New Dork’s Phone System

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Marketing

The guys and gals at Grasshopper have struck online viral marketing gold with the spoof of Jay-Z & Alicia Keys’ song Empire State of Mind. If you’re not one of the million plus views and you’re an entrepreneur, in marketing or a Jay-Z fan, you must watch it. Funny and awesome at the same time:

At first, the song seems to have no correlation to phone systems. Until you realize that Grasshopper is the self-proclaimed “phone system for entrepreneurs.” Now this seemingly random song carries all sorts of marketing win for the company.

To elaborate, if you or someone you know is an entrepreneur, undoubtedly the video will eventually be seen and shared. They’ll tweet it, email it and even write articles about it – just as I am here. And what does every entrepreneur that is constantly on the run and is technologically advanced need that Grasshopper just happens to provide… you get the picture. It’s genius.
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