Comnicate Blog – To The Point

Comnicate is always keeping their finger on the Newsroom pulse, and with all this information we have put together a few of our Best Practices for online Newsrooms. If these few are not enough, make sure you check out the full version of our 21 Point Checklist Best Social Media Newsroom.

To begin with the basis of any media or newsroom is simple; make your content accessible and easy to share with others. Beyond this, there are a number of practices that can be used to leverage the aptitude of your corporate newsroom.

Here are our top 3:

1. Easy News Access – Making sure your media newsrooms is easily found is one of the most important things you can do for your company and its online presence. A clear and concise link to your newsroom should be prominently displayed on the main page of your website, we suggest a name that is easily recognisable with its function like Media Centre or Newsroom. You may also want to consider your SEO; your page should be able to be found from all major search engines, if youe struggling with your SEO strategy, check out our handy tips.

2. Fast Access to PR Contacts - Contact details for the Public Relations representative of your company should be openly shared and easily found. Some websites tend to be somewhat secretive with these details. Often you are confronted with a maze of clicks before you finally stumble across an email address, only to find an ambiguous, general info address. You may even want to consider listing the contact details of your PR rep on multiple pages of your newsroom, as well as a central directory.

3. News release in Optimized format – Your most recent media releases and posts should be the first seen by visitors to your newsroom. Professional newsrooms present each release with a headline, date and one-line summary. It is important that your releases are clear and labelled. It is also imperative that these posts can be easily shared and forwarded. Incorporating social media tools will ensure that the sharing process is smooth and seamless.

For some ideas of format and design check out our Newsroom.

In past posts we have looked at how social media humanises your business and how trends influence online marketing strategies. This year we have watched the growth in individualised marketing trends on a very micro level. Companies are using online platforms like Twitter to answer every beck and call of their humble customer. For example, when an avid customer of an American steak delivery company tweeted, wishing for a steak upon his arrival at an airport, his wish was granted by a tuxedo-clad employee.

Comnicate has been fascinated by a number of these stories that have come out this year and believe that it is the answer to many online marketing dilemmas of today. The internet opens the door to a huge network of people and information. It is easy to be overwhelmed by such immensity, and many businesses realise their insignificance among the vastness of online corporations. Success lies in reversing this trend and using the internet to reach out to customers on the most individual level possible, and really listen to them.

Small and large businesses alike, can benefit from engaging with customers online, here are a few more tips to get your creative juices flowing:

- Add a photo and tagline to your Facebook or Twitter account.

- Solve at least one customer pain point a week, even if this means seeking them out.

- Ask your customers questions, keep them relevant to your business, and you might be surprised where their answers take you.

- Put aside dedicated time each day or each week to focus on your social media platforms.

- Speak to customers as equals, not as a business and follow up on things that you discuss.

Recently Comnicate released a blog article on some of the most commonly made SEO mistakes, and since SEO can be such an instrumental part of your marketing strategy, we have put together some more tips for a successful SEO strategy.

One of the most important aspects of SEO is ensuring that your keywords are working the right way for your company, and that you avoid keyword overloading. In the past many companies have made the mistake of stuffing their online articles with their keywords in order to build a better search engine ranking. However, this results in not only a poor quality of writing, but is useless to reader, and likely to get caught in Google spam filters. In the long run you will receive better results by releasing useful and regular articles.

It is equally as important to be extremely mindful of the origin of your links, and that they are grounded in relevant and reputable sources. In our previous SEO blog we pointed out that not all links are made equal. This is especially important if you use link wheels as part of your SEO strategy. Link wheels are created when smaller or mini-sites and pages are created and hidden just for the purpose of cramming them with back links. Be wary that if you have not been caught be spam filters yet, you can guarantee that you will in the future.

The popularity of the internet, and in turn search engines can mean success or failure to a number of businesses, regardless of their size so do not scrimp on your SEO. If you are looking into hiring and SEO expert, ask to see their results and check all references.

Along with the rise of social media networks, social media dashboards have emerged as not only useful, but are increasingly necessary for managing your online social strategy. Dashboards have become a great way for businesses to not only easily manage their social networking but build on their online customer relationships and reputation.

Comnicate has done some research and here are some of the best social media dashboards available:

MediaFunnel this social media suite is has a number of features especially designed to make your business Twitter and Facebook accounts easier to manage. Its Multiple User Roles application gives you the ability to assign varied levels of access to multiple users, allowing greater editorial control and consideration. This product offers Bit.ly integration and the ability to schedule, save and assign Tweets, as well as track and store mentions with the Brand Monitor function.

MediaFunnel has a free application available which gives access to two users and manages two social media platforms, and offers a paid upgrade to the extended version.

MarketMeSuite this dashboard is great for marketing teams who are serious about their online social media strategy. This application allows businesses to brand their tweets, for example instead of tweets being shown as posted via Twitter you use your company name or website. It is also downloadable and cloud compatible, giving multiple user access.

MarketMeSuite is a sophisticated, useful and affordable tool that can manage unlimited Facebook and Twitter accounts for a only $5.99 a month or $34.99 a year.

Seesmic this product offers individuals and businesses the ability to access the dashboard as an online tool, via their Smart phone, or alternatively downloaded as a desktop application. It also offers automatic support for multiple Twitter, Facebook, Foursquare and Google Buzz accounts.

Seesmic offers all of its dashboards as a free tool, however the Seesmic Desktop tool does give you the opportunity to select features from the Seesmic Marketplace to enhance your suite.

There are a number of other social media dashboards worth checking out, including HootSuite, CoTweet and Threadsy.

Whether you love them or hate them, Apple is a brand that is can be considered one of the most phenomenal marketing machines of today. Their customers are some of the most loyal out there, and their devotion is often not too far from fanaticism.

Here at Comnicate we took a look at some factors that make Mac users begin as customers and end up as cult-members.

The cool factor:

We all know the Mac guy, unlike the uninspiring, baby boomer, corporate fellow, Mac is trendy, good looking and charming, qualities that many people despite their generate aspire to.

The no-such-thing-as-bad-PR factor:

Many believe that there is a lot to be said about bad press, or leaked information, and it is not all bad. When we consider that Apple is often at the centre of controversy, yet seem immune to the repercussions; could these instead be perfectly planned PR stunts instead? The iPhone prototype which was accidently left in a bar is a great example…

The exclusive factor:

While some criticised Apple for removing its products from big retailers, it was an innovative and successful marketing initiative on their part. The Apple store creates a space, for loyal customers to revel in their Mac enthusiasm and for Apple to flood their sights and senses with all things Mac. Brilliant!

For most businesses Sales and Marketing go hand-in-hand. Needless to say if you are making sales mistakes than your marketing and over all brand strategy also suffers. Here at Comnicate we often talk about just how to get your marketing strategy and online presence right, but here are a few common sales mistakes that your organisation should always avoid.

1. Disregard customer value above everything else it is imperative to listen to your customer needs and address them. Your product or service will only be successful if it helps your customers with a specific pain point.
2. Find a happy sales medium if you rely on a laisez-faire approach to your sales pitch it is likely that your company will miss out on a lot of potential business. It is always important to gauge a potential prospect and apply a respective sales approach.
3. Price is not everything your pricing should not be your sole sales tool, instead a buyer must feel convinced by the value the product creates. By applying discount to your product you run the risk of de-valuation and lose the respect of your prospect.
4. Relying on your sales showmanship this comes back to listening to your customer, regardless of your sales-gifted gab. Putting on a sales show, or talking incessantly about pointless product features will make your customer lose focus and interest very quickly. Reign in your sales pitch and think about providing a service to your client.

Earlier this month Coca-Cola has launch one of its biggest marketing campaigns yet; Share a Coke with a Mate. It is a $5 million initiative, using Facebook to promote their personalised Cokes with the top 150 names in Australia, like Kate, Jess and Dave. Coke Australia has set up stalls in 18 Westfield shopping centres around the country, where you can purchase your own named bottle, if you do not have one of the most popular pre-printed names. This is the first time in 125 years that Coca-Cola has changed its packaging, and they are hoping to see over 268 million drinks in the next three months.

While it is difficult to predict the success of the campaign in its first weeks, here at Comnicate we have noticed a growing trend in the extremely personalised customer experiences many big brands are promoting. Following the success of their personalised ketchup labels, this month in the UK, Heinz has launched personalised Get Well Soon soup can labels leading up to the inevitable flu season. The personalised labels can be ordered online, and sent out to you.

Connecting with your customers on a personal level, is one of the best ways to achieve client satisfaction and build a loyal relationship. We all love a personalised experience, and these brands have mastered the ultimate brand personalisation. Is this something you can apply to your brand?

One of our recent blog posts expressed the importance of maintaining a professional etiquette online and especially on LinkedIn. When building your online network, especially on a professional platform like LinkedIn, it is important to maintain a certain decorum.

LinkedIn Mail, when used correctly is a great tool to keep in touch with prospects and contacts online. By nurturing your online contacts you will be on your way to building your connection base and your business.

LinkedIn Mail only allows you to send an email to up to 50 contacts which will avoid your message being caught in spam filters. It is also important to keep in mind that your email content should be king in order to maximise the value you are offering to your contacts.

For example, consider sending your contacts;

- a link to a great business book you have read and recommend

- or a link to a useful website or blog you have recently started following

- details of an event which may be of interest

- an article or industry news link which may be relevant.

However, it is important that you do not over do the amount of emails you sent, or they may just end up in the spam box after all.

If your business Twitter account is still in its infant stages, and you are looking to get the most out of it, here are 5 easy tips you can start doing today:

1. Keep a close eye on the competition

Monitoring what your peers and competitors are tweeting about, and who is in their network is a great way to build your own. By using a program such as TweetDeck, you can also stream news coverage and tweets about your industry. Twitter is one of the best ways to keep your finger on the pulse, so use this to your advantage.

2. Become a list maker

Using Twitter to create lists of journalists, thought leaders, and companies in your industry, is a great way to promote your business. If you want your account to be listed for increased exposure, follow the creators of the lists your competitors and others in the industry are on.

3. Analyse your links

One of the best ways to track and analyse your links is through using a URL shortener like bit.ly or goo.gl to which types of content attract the most interaction. This way you can adjust your future tweets accordingly. It is also important to set up a stream from key industry terms so that you are on top of the latest topics.

4. Follow your peers followers

Just as Comnicate follows some of its favourite newsrooms, one of the best ways to increase your network with valuable followers is to follow those who already follow your competition or similar activities. People often move in circles so keep an eye on those that may be the most obvious.

5. Prepare your responses

It is always a good idea to have rehearsed responses ready for frequently asked questions. Despite the casual nature of Twitter, it is important that your brand remains consistent and professional, so preparing questions responses in advance can be highly beneficial.

For many marketers, much of their time is spent thinking about the best ways to sell their product or brand.

The name of a product is crucial, yet despite the being the most commonly used word in the English language,it seems that it no longer has a place in product naming, and is being dropped by more and more marketers.

The most popular and successful new products on the market today like, Wii, iPad, Amazon Kindle etc all purposely omit any additional articles like a or the. According the common thought, this is a conscious effort by marketers to make the product feel more personal. So why not launch a new Your iPhone5?

As many may know, Facebook was first launched as TheFacebook.com, and has since skyrocketed since dropping its article. However, it is true that PR and marketing professionals are great at choosing their words carefully, as their main aim is to get their message to stick.

Here are a few tips to help get your message across:

Keep it simple: Reducing a complex idea down to a simple sentence will do wonders for your audience memory registers. If the purpose of your product is multifaceted or complicated think about the best one or two ways it will help your customers.

Credibility is key: This is especially important if your company is new or unknown. Building credibility is like putting in the cornerstones of your company, ensure that all messages, including but not limited to those in social media, press releases or blog posts, are genuine, forthcoming and open.

Create the unexpected: Putting a message out there that is out of there norm or unexpected, will instantly create more interest in it. Think about intriguing headlines or subject lines which will be more likely to get potential customers to open that email, read that blog or click through to your webpage.

Concrete concepts: This one is simple, and reiterates the first point; make sure your message is clear. Simple language, examples and clear calls to action will mean the difference between customers and no customers.

Build a distribution network: With Comnicate a key objective of the newsroom is to connect to a number of social media tools and technologies to maximize distribution.