The marketing industry is knee-deep in continuous cycles of innovation.

A recent cycle was the introduction of websites. Companies were slapping up something, anything to create a presence (animated GIFs anyone?), and then they caught their breath, and a second wave came through to clean things up and optimize sites.

Social Media was then introduced and the cycle began anew. Facebook and Twitter accounts spewed forth in order to claim their spot. We are now at the secondary stage, where companies realize the value in creative strategy and design, and accounts are monitored, designed, and integrated properly. How much could have been saved in cost, brain-matter, and time if companies did it right the first time around? Companies that incorporate design and strategy in their initial start ups end up being the trendsetters and leaders in their markets. How many customers were missed due to half-assing it?

Prophesied as the killer of paid advertising, SM has lost a bit of its blood thirst for advertising. The revelation is that SM is only another branch of advertising. No longer can it be expected to be the be-all-end-all to a marketing plan.
So now the wheels are getting bigger too. Marketing options today are numerous, targeted, and trackable. Everything from TV, radio, websites, online advertising, print ads, print collateral, direct mailings, out-of-home signage, guerrilla marketing, social media sites, customer relationship management, etc., and there will be more. The cycle will come around again and the wheel will expand again.

There are a range of marketing opportunities that companies can benefit from using. Be smart with your corporate image. Be aware that while these are daunting projects, they are attainable. Need a professional to help you implement them? I happen to know just the guy who can help.

 

I was watching George Strombolopolous a few nights ago and Seth Godin was a guest. Seth had some great opinions and projections, and he said it best with “either you are in a race to the bottom, or a race to the top.”

Business these days is unwielding, cut-throat, and yet ripe for the picking. It seems that people’s instinct is to cut their own profits in order to be the lowest price point to acquire new business. The problem with this slippery slope is that there is always someone out there that can do it for less. Then where does that leave you?

The middle-road is seeing the largest attack. Mediocrity is no longer good enough. This is the market that is having massive layoffs and closures due to having both ends of their carrot being nibbled on by the bottom/top race.

So what is left? Head for the top. Positioning yourself as a high-value, high-quality business will have people seeking your services, and be willing to pay for it. Be diligent in the quality of your work and do not second-guess your positioning.

Being ahead of the curve is an asset, but it is not necessary to be cutting-edge to be successful. All it takes is finding a untapped niche and creating it as your own. Research your industry, your location, your competitors’ offerings. Pay attention to what is being offered, and especially note what is not. Mining the findings will unearth some hidden gems.

 

Recently, The Huffington Post  – an online news site  recently purchased by AOL – has joined the latest trend of crowdsourcing creative work with their “Huffington Post Politics Icon Competition.”

It seems that the final straw has been drawn on large corporations seeking free work. When a company like AOL spends $315 Million to buy your company, one would expect they could afford to hire a designer for creative work….

The backlash from designers is getting widespread via Twitter and Facebook. And there are already 5 pages of negative comments on the Huffington Post page already.

Oh look, another page of comments added since I started this post. Tick, Tick, Tick.

Nothing gets my blood boiling more than crowdsourcing creative. Trying to justify an expectation of free work from multiple contributors is outrageous. Imagine crowdsourcing for other professions. Would you request having 100 dentists / doctors / plumbers / etc. to do work for you and then only pay one? Bah! How many HP / AOL managers are receiving high fives and firm handshakes for a job well done in lieu of their salaries?

The sad reality is that people will contribute to this competition, and someone will win. But at what cost to the designers.

Here is the contest link, along with the long list of comments.

What is your take on crowdsourcing? I would love to hear people try to justify it.

 

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