The Vantage View

I’ve seen so many incredible advancements in the field of computer software in my modest professional life, that had I been told that you would be able to animate a complete ten seconds with effects and everything in forty-five minutes, I would have called you a lying fool. Here we are in 2009 and that fiction has become a reality. Being a graphic designer in this day and age you have to be fast and flexible to make sure you can meet your deadlines and so I’m always looking for a faster, better way to do things and still get the results that my clients and I both want. There’s nothing I’d love more than to spend a month getting each and every project “artistically perfect”, but that kind of time isn’t permitted or lucrative in this business. In this case I’m talking about animated titles, they’re deceptively simple but can actually run your work hours through the roof if you want something even remotely dynamic and original.

To animate a dynamic title with a flying camera with particles and backgrounds and the like, would take me several hours to get the camera movement right, the randomization of the background pattern to work and all sorts of other stuff just to make a simple ten-second intro graphic. Three Adobe After Effects versions later I’m able to do the exact same work in about forty-five minutes! After Effects has added several tools and functions that make my workflow so much quicker and my end product so much better looking. There are also presets that can be found online to make things go even faster, here’s an example of what I’m able to accomplish in roughly 40 minutes or so. To be fair I did spend an extra twenty minutes looking for the music track, so I actually did this in one hour. Yay me!

Rob Acosta
Graphic Designer/Lactose Intolerant

When a sandwich needs-a-eatin’, I’ll eat it, when a drink needs-a-drinkin’, I’ll drink it and when a design needs-a-designin’, I design it. I’m one of Vantage’s graphics designers and quintessential jack-of-all trades. I design print work, illustrate, animate, edit video and create custom motion graphics. Drop me a line at rob@vantageinternet.com.

It’s official, Twitter is now mainstream. Phone service providers, now offer smart phones with not only Facebook, but Twitter update capabilities and businesses across the nation are plugging their products in 140 characters or less via Twitter.

Only a handful of Twitterers have been able to improve a company’s social and financial status using this hip, microblogging space. Below you’ll find what I consider to be the top 3 brands that tweet; and tweet well.

Which is your favorite?

Dell – Exclusive Twitter Deals = $$$

Dell is the one company that has been able to really monetize their social media marketing. Just last June, Dell announced that they received $3 million in sales directly from their Twitter presence. According to a blog posted by Stephanie Nelson who manages the Dell Twitter account, $2 million of the sales came from Dell’s exclusive Twitter deals and coupons and $1 million from customers using the Dell Twitter page as a point of entry to the site where they purchased merchandise.

Currently Dell (@DellOutlet) has more than 700,000 Twitter followers and is one of the top 100 most followed profiles according to Twitter Counter.

Zappos – Customer Service At Its Best

Tony Hsieh, CEO of e commerce company Zappos.com, uses Twitter to foster the Zappos culture where exceptional customer service is the norm. Since Zappos.com launched in 1999, the company has amassed $1 billion in gross merchandise sales. Though there is no indication of Twitter’s contribution to the $1 billion, many expect Zappos’ active social media presences to play some part in why 75% of all Zappos orders are from repeat customers.

Currently Hsieh (@Zappos) has more than 800,000 Twitter followers and is one of the top 50 most followed profiles according to Twitter Counter.

JetBlue – Building the Brand One Tweet At A Time

JetBlue has embraced Twitter as a true interactive customer service tool. In addition to tweeting fare specials, JetBlue consistently uses Twitter to post delay alerts and to interact/reply to consumers in a targeted and timely fashion.

Currently @JetBlue has more than 730,000 Twitter followers and is one of the top 100 most followed profiles according to Twitter Counter.

If you are living under a rock and haven’t caught on to the Twitter craze, read our previous blog posting: Twitter Basics.

About the Author: Jennifer Villalobos
Online Marketing Coordinator/Ringmaster
I enjoy long walks on the beach, the full imitation cheddar flavor that are Cheez-Its, Gonzaga basketball, Budweiser commercials and managing web campaigns for both consumer and business to business clients.

Drop me a line at jennifer@vantageinternet.com, or follow me on Twitter @vantagejennifer.

LinkedIn is a large, social networking Web site, much like Facebook or MySpace, wherein you connect with others, but what makes LinkedIn stand out, is that it is a terrific way to connect with other business people from around the world. It is a professional, business-oriented networking Web site with over 30 million active users worldwide.

LindedIn is free and easy to use allowing you to build a network of contacts which can be used to find employment, an employee for your business, or to connect with other business folk who are in your field and share your interests.

Getting Started
After creating your profile on LinkedIn, you can begin importing contacts and searching for other professional members on the site. Create a comprehensive LinkedIn profile including your current position, your past positions and your level of education and be sure to add a photo to your profile as everyone wants to put a face to a name! The profile that you create is the first impression people will get of you, so do not neglect to utilize this feature to its fullest.

Now What
LinkedIn can be an invaluable marketing tool in helping to sell yourself, your ideas, your Web site or your business. By adding contacts, you will increase the visibility of your profile which will enable others to find you and they may be looking for someone with your expertise to collaborate with or to hire. These people will be much more likely to approach you on LinkedIn if you are an acquaintance of one of their associates.

You are also allowed to publicize Web sites in your profile, and you are allowed the option of making your profile information available for the search engines to crawl which will increase your page rankings in the major search engines. This feature is a great way to help to optimize your blog, Web site or online store. Consider it free search engine optimization!

If you happen to be thinking of starting a business, you can utilize the search function to see how other businesses in that sector have fared. It’s a great way to gauge a ‘niche’ or prospective market. You can also see how many people have left a given position in a company and find out how many have held a particular position over whatever time period you may be interested in.

If you are searching for a job, you can review the profiles of the people who may be interviewing or hiring you, to get a bit of a ‘sneak peek’ or an edge over your competitors.

There are many benefits of joining LinkedIn ranging from the social aspect of exchanging ideas, all the way to finding a new career or expanding your presence in the business world.

How do you use LinkedIn? Post a comment and share!

About the Author: Jennifer Villalobos
Online Marketing Coordinator/Ringmaster
I enjoy long walks on the beach, the full imitation cheddar flavor that are Cheez-Its, Gonzaga basketball, Budweiser commercials and managing web campaigns for both consumer and business to business clients.  Drop me a line at jennifer@vantageinternet.com, or follow me on Twitter @vantagejennifer.

Twitter is a social networking and micro-blogging service that allows its users to send and read other users’ updates (otherwise known as tweets), which are text-based posts of up to 140 characters in length. They market themselves on the ability to stay connected with family, friends and co-workers through quick and frequent updates by signing up to follow other users on the Twitter database. Following basically means keeping track of their tweets or frequent updates that are posted on the individual profile page.  But more than just a social networking service, Twitter is now also being framed as a professional marketing tool, the possibilities for marketing products and businesses are there, but how to go about them you ask? Here are a few tips.

Before you even think about going onto Twitter to begin your marketing campaign, have a direct purpose.  Know what you want to accomplish by joining Twitter. You have to try and create an online persona for your brand or company, and if you don’t have a clear purpose of what you’re trying to do well then your going come off unauthentic to a lot of users. Don’t try and appeal to the masses, highlight your company’s specialty.

Follow the right people. When you get onto Twitter don’t try a guerrilla style of marketing and just throw everything out there to the first people you see. Always listen first, find the people who may be tweeting about you (remember what that means?), or your competitors or topics/words that may relate to your business. Follow these people and see what their needs are, eventually after a little bit of surveying, try and fulfill those needs. Following potential customers/clients does two specific things that will help build your company’s name. First it shows that you are willing to listen to what customers have to say and second it encourages them to start following you to get to know what you may be doing. Use search.twitter.com to investigate hot Twitter topics and to uncover those tweeting about your business, product, service and/or industry.

Offer something that will be of value to people with every tweet. Instead of just answering the question that is Twitter’s slogan. “What are you doing?”  Think about trying to answering the question “What has your attention?” or “What are you currently interested in?”  Tweet about other people’s topics or products that may share a common link to your business. This will just encourage others to start following your page and eventually take notice of your business.   Share advice, blog posts, pictures videos that may or may not relate to your business to attract potential customers. While it is best to come up with your own breaking news and valuable content, no one has the time or energy to be constantly mining the Internet for topics. Try using AllTop, a site that collects the headlines of the latest stories from the best sites and blogs that covers a variety of topics, to find stories that will help you generate some valuable tweets.

When engaging conversation with potential clients/customers don’t let it end at Twitter. Take it beyond that. If you have pictures relating to your business or product share those with them through Flickr. Any videos that could help promote your business? Don’t be shy, share those with them through YouTube. Keep customers up to date with events that may be important to your company and may appeal to them with online event sharing communities.

Interested in starting a social media campaign? Contact Vantage to learn how utilizing these social networks can boost your business.

About the Author: Jennifer Villalobos
Online Marketing Coordinator/Ringmaster
I enjoy long walks on the beach, the full imitation cheddar flavor that are Cheez-Its, Gonzaga basketball, Budweiser commercials and managing web campaigns for both consumer and business to business clients.  Drop me a line at jennifer@vantageinternet.com, or follow me on Twitter @vantagejennifer.

I just finished listening in on a Hubspot.com webinar on viral marketing and what I heard got me thinking - how are consumers receiving marketing messages in this world of advancing technology and hurried conversations? Who has the time to watch commercials these days anyway, especially with the almighty Tivo monitoring the advertising clutter? Or, heck, forget TV, just go online and watch your favorite shows on Hulu.com. Yes, the way we access information and communicate has undoubtedly shifted. We are quickly becoming a “tech-nation” full of micro-bloggers and lightening-speed texters.

Many marketers are stumped on how to break through this consumer conversation barrier using online and social media marketing techniques. David Meerman Scott, webinar presenter and author of “World Wide Rave” voiced some valid reasons for initiating an online campaign, with hopes of encouraging, as he calls it, “word of mouse.” You may be surprised to find that social media marketing campaigns are not only less expensive than your traditional ad buys, but often times more effective. This new way of capturing the consumers’ attention is free, yet takes a good amount of thought, time and the willingness to “lose control.” Below are a few rules David Scott addressed in the Hubspot webinar that are worth mulling over:

1. No one cares about your products or services, except you.
   That’s right, before your PR guru tries to pitch the world with a press release or advisory written in their best business-speak, consider your end user. Will they understand that your “cutting-edge invention that is fit for the next generation of consumers” is code for your latest product? Make sure you’re speaking the consumers’ language.  People are only interested if you have a true solution to their problem. If you do, make this apparent in your marketing copy.
2. Lose control
   I have worked with several clients who refuse to take this step. Sure, it’s difficult to let consumers say and do what they want with your content, but when you’re willing to let go and offer valuable information and/or content for free you not only increase your chances of communicating your thoughts, but also open the door for sharing. Lose control, fuel the viral fire.
3. Plant roots
   Participate! Go where you consumers go and interact. By partaking in the social media phenomenon you can create triggers to encourage the sharing of your message.

So, in conclusion, don’t waste your time thinking about how potential customers fit into your marketing plan, concentrate on what you’re doing to fit into their every day lives and decisions. Why should they bother listening?

About the Author: Jennifer Villalobos
Online Marketing Coordinator/Ringmaster
I enjoy long walks on the beach, the full imitation cheddar flavor that are Cheez-Its, Gonzaga basketball, Budweiser commercials and managing web campaigns for both consumer and business to business clients.  Drop me a line at jennifer@vantageinternet.com, or follow me on Twitter @vantagejennifer.