Better Brand Agency

Core Message Specialists

Posts Tagged ‘Marketing Communication’

Living through a revolution

Tuesday, July 28th, 2009

I read a piece recently by Clay Shirky, who in a blog post entitled ‘Newspapers and Thinking the Unthinkable,’ reflected on the nature of revolutions. Periods of time when old ‘stuff’ was no longer relevant to us and new ‘stuff’ couldn’t come along fast enough to replace it. That feels like now doesn’t it?

The edges of our media space are expanding faster than our ability to make sense of them, of new technologies, of how people use them and of the shake out, that will mean some old media will fall by the wayside.

But this is an unravelling story seen from two very different perspectives. The user, swept along by the rush of the crowd to try new media, to make that media fit their lifestyle and the marketer, trying to position a brand where its’ target customer is. (more…)

Posted by: Declan Metcalfe, Marketing Director, Better Brand Agency

Filed in: Better Brand Agency, Better Team News, Marketing Communication, North East, North Yorkshire, Tees Valley, Web and Digital

Tagged: Communication, Digital, Industry - Web and Digital, Marketing, Marketing Communication, North East, North Yorkshire, online marketing, social media, Social Networking, Web, Web 2.0, Web Design, Web Development, Web Development social media

100% pure filtered brand messages!

Friday, July 3rd, 2009

One of the greatest challenges we face as marketers is to build and maintain strong brands.

Thankfully our tool chests are brimming with tools to help us carve out rich seams of knowledge and understanding relating to our audience that feeds our strategic thinking. That’s not all, add to this the torrent of real time feedback being generated across social media spaces about our products and some would say we’ve never had it so good. How could we fail to build strong brands? (more…)

Posted by: Declan Metcalfe, Marketing Director, Better Brand Agency

Filed in: Branding & Brand Design, Marketing Communication, North East, North Yorkshire, Social Media & Social Marketing, Tees Valley

Tagged: Brand, Communication, conversations, Marketing Communication, Marketing Messages, Platoon, Seth Godin, social media

Is this the end of focus groups?

Wednesday, April 29th, 2009

I was talking yesterday with an account manager who during a discussion about market research said that social media metrics would never replace the value gained from facial expressions, body language and the tone of voice of people attending a live focus group.

I’ve planned a few focus group sessions in the past when I was part of the team that re-branded Frisp Crisps and I have to say I remember them as being interesting and generating some useful feedback, particularly that the crisps were considered as being quite ‘foody’ and filling, more than a snack. That fed into the decision that new ‘foody’ such as Buttered Jacket Potato & Mature Cheddar would fit with our customers’ perception of the crisp brand.

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Posted by: Declan Metcalfe, Marketing Director, Better Brand Agency

Filed in: Better Brand Agency, Branding & Brand Design, Marketing Communication, Social Media & Social Marketing, Web and Digital

Tagged: Brand, Communication, Focus Groups, market research, Marketing, Marketing Communication, online marketing, social media, Social Networking

Sign posting people down ‘The Funnel’

Wednesday, March 18th, 2009

Social Media Funnel

I’ve seen lots of social media maps, some good some not so good.

The problem is they sit there in lofty isolation, a sea of mostly unfamiliar names and quirky identities. They are a secret cypher known only to social media cool kids it seems. These maps are not connected to the real world (The one in which hard pressed marketing professionals are fighting hard for their budgets and their jobs) in any recognisable way. We’re missing an opportunity here and, if we’re honest, being a little bit condescending to boot. Another thing, social media buzz words are such a crock! Real people don’t talk like that!

(more…)

Posted by: Declan Metcalfe, Marketing Director, Better Brand Agency

Filed in: Better Brand Agency, Better News and PR, Marketing Communication, Social Media & Social Marketing, Web and Digital

Tagged: Communication, Digital, Industry - Web and Digital, Marketing Communication, online marketing, Web, Web 2.0, Web Design, Web Development, Web Development social media, YouTube

Growing your brand’s digital footprint

Friday, March 13th, 2009

Growing your Digital Footprint

We find ourselves drawing this diagram all the time for clients when we’re talking about social media so we thought we’d reproduce it here and get some feedback.

Conversations tend to go something like, “Why social media?”.

After introducing them to the idea that engaging with audiences, listening and harvesting feedback, gaining insights into audience thinking and breaking down corporate barriers is the most rewarding business change event they’ll ever implement it’s much much simpler to draw it.

(more…)

Posted by: Declan Metcalfe, Marketing Director, Better Brand Agency

Filed in: Better Brand Agency, Better News and PR, Social Media & Social Marketing, Web and Digital

Tagged: Industry - Web and Digital, Marketing Communication, North East, North Yorkshire, online marketing, Social Networking, viral marketing, Web 2.0, Web Development, Web Development social media

Social Media: How to make the most of social media

Tuesday, February 24th, 2009

TECH NOTES by Declan Metcalfe. Featured in the The Newcastle Journal and nebusiness.co.uk (view article online)

WHAT’S all the buzz around social media?

The explosion that is social media came about due to the convergence of three forces: people, technology and economics. People wanted to talk, and technology caught up to the extent that it became possible to connect to friends in real time using a multitude of devices. These are made affordable because the infrastructure is now in place making it easily accessible to the vast majority.

The easiest way to think of social media, I believe, is as a conversation that millions of people are having, one that’s growing louder as more and more voices join in. And guess what the topics are: they are talking about you, your brand, your product and your services.
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Posted by: Declan Metcalfe, Marketing Director, Better Brand Agency

Filed in: North East, North Yorkshire, Social Media & Social Marketing, Tees Valley, Web and Digital

Tagged: Communication, Digital, Industry - Web and Digital, Marketing Communication, North East, North Yorkshire, social media, Social Networking, Tees Valley, Web, Web 2.0, Web Development social media

Mobile marketing spend to rise 150% in five years

Friday, October 10th, 2008

by Sarah Crawley-Boevey, Brand Republic.

Mobile marketing is set to take off as major brands look to invest in the platform over the next five years, according to an independent survey commissioned by O2.

The survey shows brands will have increased their spend on mobile marketing by 150% come 2013 and do not anticipate any impact on budgets as a result of the economic downturn.

The survey, which was carried out by Vanson Bourne in May this year and included marketing and IT directors at 100 leading brands, also found that the personalised nature of mobile marketing campaigns means they generate a higher response rate than traditional advertising.

(more…)

Posted by: Mark Easby, Managing Director - Better Brand Agency

Filed in: Branding & Brand Design, Marketing Communication, Social Media & Social Marketing, Web and Digital

Tagged: Communication, Digital, Industry - Web and Digital, Marketing, Marketing Communication, social media, Social Networking, viral marketing, Web Development social media