Social Media Marketing Secrets from NYC and Los Angeles | IPhone App Developer » Business Management

Social Media Expert / Agency Seoul Reveals how to Sell to Seoul Koreans

admin — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 09:04:10 +0000

If you thought that New Yorkers were a tough bunch to sell to, Seoul Korea is going to surprise you. Seoul “is the largest city proper in the developed world” according to wikipedia. The city itself has 10 million people in it. And the greater metropolitan area has over 25,000,000.

The competition in seoul is the harshest in the world.

Recently the minister of education banned late night studying for school age children as it was common for kids to get 3-5 hours of sleep per night.

So you can imagine how hard it would be to sell to this stressed out, frenetic, jaded, and harsh crowd. The Social Media Expert in Seoul, Bob Wan Kim Reveals Twitter Facebook and Naver Secrets in the Above Video. You may find them intriguing.

How To Build a Marketing Plan. How to Raise Conversion Rates.

admin — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 08:05:15 +0000

This is the sequel to our benchmark marketing strategy and tactics post: 21 Marketing PR and Branding Strategies.

Gavin, my best friend from college drove a big Yukon. I liked it. It was plush, had an immersive stereo system, and it was my favorite color: black.
I loved the thing. But there was a day when he hated it. Or he thought he hated it.

We had just left a Taco Tuesday Night in Del Mar, CA with the requisite Cadillac margarita pumping through our blood stream. We walked back toward his Yukon. A couple blocks down, we stop in front of a beautiful black Yukon. It sparkled. In Del Mar, you can still see the stars and on that day, on that car, you could as well.

He pushed the unlock button on the key. We both tugged on the door handle. Nothing. He tried again. We tried again. Nothing. He looked puzzled and irritated. He used another approach. He used the old fashion technique of inserting the key into the lock. The key wouldn’t turn. He repeated this process. The same process. And each time, he got more and more irritated.

We both stood outside of his car well after our expensive buzzes wore off. We just couldn’t get in.

Why Your Conversion Rates Suck: How to Raise Your Conversion Rates

In desperation, he called a locksmith.

Just as he hung up, three gorgeous girls walked up to us and asked us what we were doing. They sounded concerned. We explained. One of the girls, a brunette wearing a floral print summer dress pulled out a key. Pushed a button and the doors opened.

“Maybe that one behind us is yours?” She said.

Gavin and I looked one car back. There it was, a dirtier, less sparkley version of the same Yukon we just couldn’t get into.

Ivy League MBAs with Fortune backgrounds make this same mistake when launching their own ventures. They try everything that was successful in their corporate position and apply the same formula to their new endeavor to lose their shirt. Then they stand there scratching their heads — topless.

And they just can’t figure it out. Why did their marketing for their new company fail? They selected the best team. Unlike the mothership, they were agile. They had better technology. They worked harder. They even figured in the loss of scale-of-economy. And they still failed. Why?

For the same reason Gavin couldn’t get into “his car,” brilliant and experienced executives can’t break into their market.

From his perspective, for all intents and purposes, that Yukon that gave him an anyeurism, was his. From the perspective of the Yukon, that just wasn’t the case.

The most simple yet fatal mistake brilliant executives make is launching their marketing campaign under the assumption that the market already belongs to them

The most simple yet fatal mistake brilliant executives make is launching their marketing campaign under the assumption that the market already belongs to them.

This can be a complex issue to describe but the definition of ownership is simple. It’s like that movie with Liam Neeson in it where he and his wife get into a car accident, get separated, then when he finds her, she doesn’t recognize him. The same thing is happening here on a macro public sense.

The opposite situation creates a clear relative framework. After decades and generations of building trust and familiarity with the world, if Coke decides to just show that girl from the new Transformers movie drinking Coke slowly, very slowly, it will drive sales.

If you were a Coke executive and started a competing brand and tried the same marketing strategy (which isn’t even a strategy) and the same messaging, you’d sell nothing.

Coke has already proven itself to the masses. Coke has already proven it’s taste. Coke has already proven it’s user experience consistency. Coke has already proven it’s accessibility. The only thing left for Coke to do was just to remind you that Coke=pleasure.

All the ground-work was laid by pharmacist John Stith Pemberton in 1886 when he first formulated Coke.
For your marketing to work, you must market to a market you own.

To own a market, you must estabilish Brand. Establishing brand is simply doing two things. And these two things require precise, intense, and voluminous messaging. You must brand your brand into the minds of your market BEFORE marketing to them.

this is called cold calling or junk mailing

If you launch a marketing campaign before your market already feels like they know you… this is called cold calling or junk mailing.

If you market to people who don’t know you, no matter how well you know them, Liam Neeson’s on-screen wife is going to scream rape when he tries to take her to bed.

So here’s the one million dollar question, “how do you build a relationship with your target market” rapidly and without having to start in 1886?

“how do you build a relationship with your target market” rapidly and without having to start in 1886?

There are two subcomponents to making your public feel like they “know you.” And making them feel like they know you is critical if you want your marketing to produce any kind of conversion rate. I’ve got to reinforce this: Marketing to a cold audience is like trying to “get lucky” in a dive bar where nobody knows you. You must be percieved as someone your potential customer feel they know in order to produce a single digit conversion rate.

So, the two subcomponents to making your public feel like they “know you,” are:

1. Rapport

2. Credibility

Rapport is built by delivering a consistent, chronic, and quality interaction experience.

This means that not only must your messaging be strong, it must be regular over time. Not only must your messaging be regular, it must also reinforce the same emotional odor.

Credibility is earned by demonstrating expertise.

You’ve got to create a mental epiphany in the minds of your viewer. You’ve got to get them to see the same problem from a different light. You’ve got to show that your thinking and perspective is superior to anyone else they consider working with.

This is why you won’t buy from a scientist (with tons of credibility) if he has an abrasive personality (rapport). This is also why you won’t buy that no-name hair follicle stimulator from your neighbor. He may have built up a lot of rapport with you but from a dermatological standpoint, he probably has little credibility. You must have both.

This is why you won’t buy from a scientist (with tons of credibility) if he has an abrasive personality (rapport)

If you can build both credibility and rapport in the minds of your target market, the moment these two conditions as met, your market will feel like they know you. After and only after this moment should you ask for the sale. Any earlier and you’ve destroyed your brand good-will building.

The mechanics of building credibility and rapport online are far beyond the scope of this blog post. It involves everything from rich media like Youtube messaging, Twitter and Facebook post style, frequency, tone, content, and much more. To talk more about the granular tactics of building a relationship with your target market… fill in http://sparkah.com/marketing.php or call 310 598 1606 in LA and NYC and everywhere in between.

How to Raise Your Conversion Rates (since they aren’t abysmal any more)

Finally, now that we’ve established why so many brilliant executives fail at converting their contacts into customers, let’s tackle how to raise your conversion rates.

To raise your conversion rates, identify your points of resistance. Every point of contact is a point of resistance. THIS is a list of most of these points of web resistance in Youtube, Facebook, and Twitter. Identify, then make every point of resistance variable.

In otherwords, if your point of first contact with your potential customer is Google, then since your potential customer will read your page title and description tag right out of the Google search results page, change it up. Measure the change in CTR.

Once you’ve established the highest CTR, then change up your landing page design. Measure the change in bounce-out rates.

Same goes for tweets, Facebook messages, Youtube video titles, Youtube video lengths, and every single thing that your potential customer will come into contact with. Make them all variable. Tune, tune, tune.

You’ll have the most efficient and high volume sales production marketing machine if you do. As you can see, you’ll need help. For that help (if I’ve established both credibility and rapport with you), call 310 598 1606 or contact us online via http://sparkah.com/marketing.php … We want to help you build a strong relationship with your market. And we are good at making you take off. We carry rocket fuel.

Top 100 Publicists To Lavishly Deck with Gifts in 2011

admin — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 23:12:14 +0000

Bill Gates once said, “If I had one last dollar, I’d spend it on a publicist.”

It’s true. The most successful people on earth know how to feed a hundred birds with one seed (ed: noticed that one of these publicists below is an animal rights advocate). You have the exact same number of hours in the day as Bill, Carlos, Warren, and BrAngelina do. But they got where they got because every action they took rippled vastly farther than the actions that most people take.

If you’ve ever worked directly for a CEO in a major multinational corporation, you understand this. They take one person to lunch and suddenly, their new product is all over the NYTimes, LATimes, WSJ, and TMZ. They send half a dozen pre-release products out to two people as gifts and the entire blog world is suddenly found reblogging, retweeting and reposting closeup shots and Youtube videos of that product.

The top CEOs in the world get millions of dollars of free advertising because they do spend their last dollar on a publicist.

Whatever your company does, whatever you produce, get to know the 100 individuals below. Even if they specialize in a niche that’s totally removed from yours, get to know them. If you want a whisper to echo into a crowd’s roar, hire them, refer them to your CEO buddies, and lavishly deck them with your best products. You’d be surprised about who’s hands those gifts eventually end up in. They happy-hour with editors of major news organizations and TV programming directors. - Bob Wan Kim, CEO, http://sparkah.com

Bob Wan Kim is the author of

How to Get to Page 1 of Google in 3 Hours

Advanced Facebook Guerrilla Marketing Strategies

How to Get Power Bloggers to Link to You FAST

The Top 100 Publicists You Should Deck With Lavish Gifts in 2011

	Zara – MMA Publicist contactName Zara – MMA Publicist location: 21a D’Arblay Street, London Web halo-p… Bio Publicist for @UCMMA @michelle_tyler7 @houstonassassin … twitter.com/halopr
	Kay Harris Publicist contactName Kay Harris Publicist location: Here, There, Everywhere Web public… Bio Publicist/PR for ”LIL CHUCKEE of Young Money,Grindin Magazine … twitter.com/KANDYKAYNC
	Joe Pickering contactName Joe Pickering location: London Web thepenguin… Bio Publicist at Penguin Books UK. I work on the Viking, Hamish Hamilton and Fig Tree imprints … twitter.com/joethepublicist
	CarrollLynn Willgren contactName CarrollLynn Willgren location: Miami, Florida Web highintens… Bio /PublicistCompany Publicity, Artists Management,DJ’s, Athletes,High … twitter.com/carroll_lynnHIP
	Amanda Miles contactName Amanda Miles location: ÜT: 36.772357,-76.254604 Web theawe… Bio Publicist for DJ Epps Shadyville DJs G-Unit BoardRoom & MaadManagement … twitter.com/AWESOMENEZZ
	Farrah contactName Farrah location: New York Web farrahfind… Bio Publicist, performer, writer, consultant, connector, poetry lover. How can I help you today? … twitter.com/ffidler
	Katelyn Petersen contactName Katelyn Petersen location: North Jersey Bio publicist & social media enthusiast in dirty jerz. I am straight edge. I love loud music, tattoos, … twitter.com/katelynpetersen
	Rebecca Gray contactName Rebecca Gray location: London, UK Web serpen… Bio Publicist and editor at Serpent’s Tail. 742 Following · 1454 Followers · 122 Listed … twitter.com/serpentstailpr
	The Real bell hooks contactName The Real bell hooks location: Publicist-Q. C. NYC Bio Publicist of Author, Intellectual, Teacher and Critical Thinker-bell hooks … twitter.com/bellhooks
	Megan Grant contactName Megan Grant location: Washington, DC Web cnn.com Bio Publicist in CNN’s DC bureau. Needs at least a weekly sushi fix. … twitter.com/megangrantcnn
	The Power Publicist contactName The Power Publicist location: iPhone: 42.649775,-73.765292 Web thepow… Bio The Power Publicist, PR public relations, publicity, … twitter.com/shannoncherry
	Sonia Brum contactVoting closes November 3! 8:16 AM Oct 25th via web Retweeted by SoniaBrum · more. Name Sonia Brum location: Toronto Bio Publicist, Global Television … twitter.com/SoniaBrum
	deb samson contactName deb samson location: Annapolis, MD Web publicityd… Bio Publicist for Matthew Lesko learning social media and making it work. … twitter.com/deb_samson
	Tram contactName Tram location: Los Angeles Bio Publicist, Negotiator, Liaison by day. Experimental Baker/Dessert Maker by night. Former East Coaster. … twitter.com/LAPRgirl
	Dineo Mahloele contactPublicist.God’s child, Mom to Kea & I can’t live without music….LETS GO!! … Name Dineo Mahloele location: Jo’burg Bio Publicist.God’s child, Mom to Kea … twitter.com/DineoMahloele
	Abby Steinbock contactName Abby Steinbock location: Boston, MA Bio Publicist in the restaurant and hospitality division of marlo marketing/communications … twitter.com/abbysteinbock
	Emily Furniss contactName Emily Furniss location: London Web headli… Bio Publicist at Headline Book Publishing working with lots of lovely authors. … twitter.com/Publicityemily
	Melissa Romley contactPublicist, sister, daughter, friend, girlfriend. … Name Melissa Romley location: Los Angeles Bio Publicist, sister, daughter, friend, girlfriend … twitter.com/MMROMLEY
	Finbar Corrall contactName Finbar Corrall location: Sydney Web ryancorral… Bio Publicist \| Advertising Assistant \| Event Manager \| The Epicure of Fabulosity … twitter.com/LittleFinbar
	jenstack contactName jenstack location: Minneapolis, MN Bio Publicist, pop culture and fashion junkie, runner, reader, dream traveler and happily ruled by my sweet kids. … twitter.com/jenstack
	Chuck Figueroa contactName Chuck Figueroa location: Beverly Hills, CA Bio Publicist: Tito Ortiz, Jenna Jameson/Fresno State Alumni. Current UCLA student/ Sigma Nu ZK819 … twitter.com/Chuck_LA
	Julie Kaye contactName Julie Kaye location: Washington D.C. Bio Publicist and every day life enthusiast recently transplanted to D.C. from Boston. … twitter.com/jkchavanne
	molly gannon contact8:37 PM Jun 16th, 2009 via web in reply to BENSOLOMONPHOTO · more. Name molly gannon location: Washington, DC Bio Publicist at TWP … twitter.com/mollygannon
	LisaAdamsWalter contactName LisaAdamsWalter location: ÜT: 38.538919,-122.503055 Web adamsw… Bio Publicist specializing in wine, food and the arts – Hands-On PR Pro. … twitter.com/lisaadamswalter
	Mark Borkowski contactBio Publicist stuntster blogger markborkowski.com and media commentator Please @ me with an intro when you follow, thanks … twitter.com/markborkowski
	Sorin Ghilea contactName Sorin Ghilea location: Romania Web soring… Bio publicist-comentator. 145 Following · 122 Followers · 9 Listed · 488Tweets · Favorites … twitter.com/soringhilea
	Evy Todd contactName Evy Todd location: New Mexico Web knme.org Bio Publicist & Station Relations at KNME-TV, a N.M. PBS station. Thrills: Painting, Music … twitter.com/KNMEetodd
	Mandi Foor contactName Mandi Foor location: Albuquerque, NM Web pagefo… Bio Publicist, Advocate, Wife, Writer, Pageant Coach, KKG Alum, Coffee Addict, … twitter.com/mandee4
	Beth Harper contactName Beth Harper location: New York, NY Bio Publicist for the Harper and HarperAudio imprints at HarperCollins Publishers in NYC … twitter.com/BHarper15
	Amanda Puck contactName Amanda Puck location: The Gold Coast Web expage… Bio Publicist, Foodarazzo, Concierge, Music Junkie, Glitterchick … twitter.com/amandapuck
	Blake Grimsley contactPublicist for University of Arizona Athletic Department. … Name Blake Grimsley location: Tucson, Ariz. Bio Publicist for University of Arizona Athletic … twitter.com/blakegrimsley
	Mona Loring contactPublicist/President MLC PR. … Guide fb.me/Mg7OqXyN 4:18 PM Dec 6th via Facebook Retweeted by monaloring and 4 others. more. Name Mona Loring location: Los Angeles Web monalo… Bio Publicist/President MLC PR … twitter.com/monaloring
	Sheila Kay contactPublicist @ rhcanada – read books & chat on the phone for a living. … Name Sheila Kay location: Toronto Bio Publicist @ rhcanada – read books & chat on … twitter.com/sk_random
	Fashion Publicist contactName Fashion Publicist location: Los Angeles Bio JM-PUBLICITY, PUBLICIST – FASHION, BEAUTY, LIFESTYLE and NEW RESTAURANTS – follow me for the latest … twitter.com/jenmitzkus
	Liz Hohenadel contactName Liz Hohenadel location: NYC Bio Publicist for Putnam & Riverhead Books, attempting to get down with modern technology. … twitter.com/lizhohenadel
	Kate Hall contactName Kate Hall location: Dallas, TX Web powerpubli… Bio Publicist @PowerPR. Louisiana native. Loves reading, cooking, traveling and constantly … twitter.com/knhall
	Amanda Rinaldo contact… “chinese n american food” bit.ly/aYkpl2 4:37 PM Oct 16th via Twitter for BlackBerry® · more. Name Amanda Rinaldo location: Toronto Bio Publicist … twitter.com/arin27
	Renee Kenner contactName Renee Kenner location: Jersey Girl Web abeautylof… Bio Publicist,Recessionista, Philadelphia Beauty Examiner, A Beauty Loft Founder/Editor … twitter.com/rkenner
	Lori Faigin contact… The Live Feed \| THR: bit.ly/9ZaPEC via @addthis 6:59 PM Jun 10th via web. more. Name Lori Faigin location: Secaucus, New Jersey Bio Publicist … twitter.com/lorz416
	ashleywhite pr contactPublicist:.:Event Planner:. … Name ashleywhite pr location: Los Angeles, CA, USA Bio ..:Publicist:.:Event Planner:. … twitter.com/ashleywhitepr
	lushandluxe contactName lushandluxe location: Austin, TX Web lushan… Bio Publicist for the beauty & lifestyle industries who also specializes in celebrity … twitter.com/lushandluxe
	Caroline Nuttall contactName Caroline Nuttall location: Charleston, SC Web readch… Bio Publicist, Publisher, wine & cheese enthusiast, tried and true Hokie … twitter.com/cnuttall
	Katie S. contactName Katie S. location: New York City Bio Publicist, Animal Lover, Foodie, Small Town Girl, Big City Attitude, Hostess with the Mostess … twitter.com/KatieLS77
	Leyane Jerejian contactName Leyane Jerejian location: North New Jersey/ NYC Web fsbass… Bio Publicist. Social Media Enthusiast. I work with books, authors, … twitter.com/FormerNative
	Jaime Jennings contact… climate debate – ow.ly/32NHs 1:07 PM Nov 1st via HootSuite · more. Name Jaime Jennings location: Washington, DC Bio Publicist at Island Press … twitter.com/jaimejennings76
	Sharon Bially contactName Sharon Bially location: Boston Web veroni… Bio Publicist, blogger and author of Veronica’s Nap, a novel serialized on a blog also … https://twitter.com/sharonbially
	Stephanie Ridge contactpublicist, cyclist, event planner. … Name Stephanie Ridge location: Austin, Texas Bio publicist, cyclist, event planner … twitter.com/stephanieridge
	Jennifer Resick contactName Jennifer Resick location: Washington, DC Bio Publicist for Restaurants & Chefs, Travel Junkie and Proud Member of Steeler Nation … twitter.com/JenResick
	Liz Burg contactKey Change. Ever. On repeat alllll day. 9:11 AM Oct 26th via web. more. Name Liz Burg location: Boston, MA, USA Bio Publicist at Berklee College of Music … twitter.com/LizzyHBurg
	Linda Shafran contactPublicist for: Jerry Springer, Dr. Ian k. Smith, Hardcore Pawn on truTV. … Name Linda Shafran location: Chicago, IL Bio Publicist for: Jerry Springer, … twitter.com/lshafran
	Joshua King contactName Joshua King location: ÜT: 33.793507,-84.402371 Bio Publicist • Visionary • Writer • Singer • Creative Director • Fly Guy• … twitter.com/FlyPublicity
	James Kopniske contactPublicist. Fitness fiend. Writer. Music fiend. Clevelander. … Name James Kopniske location: Cleveland, Ohio Bio Publicist. Fitness fiend. Writer. … twitter.com/kopniske
	rebkah howard contactName rebkah howard location: Ethi born, DC raised, MIA now Web imagep… Bio publicist, attorney, event creator, wifey, mommy. don’t let the … twitter.com/pink_funk
	Laura Mustard contactPublicist for video games, consumer tech, novels. … Name Laura Mustard location: United States Bio Publicist for video games, consumer tech, novels … twitter.com/lauramustard
	Erika Martineau contactName Erika Martineau location: New York City Web brooks… Bio Publicist specializing in personalities, lover of poodles … twitter.com/erikamartineau
	Sue Reddy Silverman contactName Sue Reddy Silverman location: Florida Web reddywriti… Bio Publicist Romantic Suspense Novelist, featuring Navy SEALs Florida Gator … twitter.com/reddywriting
	Jamie Adams contactName Jamie Adams location: Indianapolis, Indiana Web ciscop… Bio Senior Publicist for Cisco Press, an imprint of Pearson Education. … twitter.com/jamieadams76
	Alex Klenert contactName Alex Klenert location: Los Angeles Bio publicist, idea guy, wannabe writer, husband, big Jets and Knicks fan, completist … twitter.com/alexklenert
	bmyisha contactyeaisaidit lol 5:47 AM Dec 10th via ÜberTwitter · more. Name bmyisha location: ÜT: 40.832989,-73.859272 Bio Publicist … twitter.com/bmyisha
	Nancy Tarr contactName Nancy Tarr location: Washington, D.C. Bio Publicist, Social Media consultant, Music Editor, Music Supervisor, film/tv placement … twitter.com/tarrmusic
	Jenny Heller contactPublicist, Baker and Part-Time Investigator. … Name Jenny Heller location: Los Angeles Bio Publicist, Baker and Part-Time Investigator … twitter.com/jennyhg
	Wanda Mays Noel contactName Wanda Mays Noel location: Atlanta, GA Web lajohnmedi… Bio Publicist, product branding, marketing, event planning, company startups … twitter.com/WandaMaysNoel
	Jessica Kiefer contactName Jessica Kiefer location: Indianapolis, IN Web bohlse… Bio Publicist/media specialist @BohlsenPR. Proud @ButlerU grad. … twitter.com/JessicaKiefer
	ToyBox PR contactName ToyBox PR location: ÜT: 34.071911,-118.305313 Bio Publicist for New Boyz. The ToyBox home of Prince Citizen. Ya Heard! … twitter.com/mstoyjones
	DaPublicist_BossLady contactName DaPublicist_BossLady location: ✔VERIFIED#ROCHARDERDJS Web onther… Bio Celeb Publicist @celebstatus_PR/Magazine Publisher,Paid Writer,CEO … twitter.com/atticalundy
	Lauren Scott contactPublicist, luxury lifestyle brands, NYC. … Name Lauren Scott location: New York Bio Publicist, luxury lifestyle brands, NYC … twitter.com/laurenscott
	Kelly Rynard contactName Kelly Rynard location: Carmel, Indiana Web linked… Bio Publicist & Social Media Specialist/ My loves: cooking, reading good books, … https://twitter.com/kellyrynard
	Lisa Simek contactThis person has protected their tweets. Name Lisa Simek location: NYC / NJ Web facebo… Bio Publicist. 313 Following · 230 Followers · 2 Listed … twitter.com/Lisa_Simek
	Jonell Whitt contactPUBLICIST- ATLANTA/LOS ANGELES. … Name Jonell Whitt location: ÜT: 34.055147,-84.326634 Web jonell… Bio PUBLICIST- ATLANTA/LOS ANGELES … twitter.com/jonellmediapr
	marciamartinez contactName marciamartinez location: Miami Bio Publicist looking for media leads, ways to help the Miami community, or off somewhere dancing … twitter.com/marciamartinez
	Christy Wong contactName Christy Wong location: Chicago, IL Web christymwo… Bio Publicist @ Tyndale House Publishers, Christ-follower, youth counselor, equestrian, … twitter.com/christywong
	Jessica Marie contactName Jessica Marie location: Toronto, Canada Bio Publicist, PR, Media Relations, Freelance Writer, University Student, Hip Hop Lover … twitter.com/J_MarieB
	Colleen Devine Ellis contactName Colleen Devine Ellis location: Austin, TX Web utexas… Bio Publicist for University of Texas Press … twitter.com/utexaspublicist
	Todd O’Dowd contactName Todd O’Dowd location: Minneapolis, MN Web toddodowd…. Bio publicist / writer / performer / event planner / graphic designer / bar tender … twitter.com/toddodowd
	Nora Wolf contact1:14 PM Nov 10th via web. more. Name Nora Wolf location: Brooklyn! Web mishmoshne… Bio Publicist, designer, bike rider oh my! … twitter.com/nwoah
	Chandler Poling contactName Chandler Poling location: Hollywood, CA Web cw3pr.com Bio Publicist. New Media Enthusiast. Entrepreneur to the Extreme. … twitter.com/taurenlegend
	Lois Whitman-Hess contactName Lois Whitman-Hess location: New York, NY and Miami Beach, Web loiswhitma… Bio Publicist, dealmaker, producer … twitter.com/loiswhitman
	Kristi Blicharski contactName Kristi Blicharski location: Los Angeles Web blissm… Bio Publicist for Bliss Media Public Relations Entertainment, lifestyle, fashion, … twitter.com/Kristimb
	christina garvin contactName christina garvin location: Nashville, TN Web themco… Bio publicist for various artists and authors, lover of life, people and God. … twitter.com/csgarvin
	allyson conklin contactName allyson conklin location: colorado! Web astyle… Bio publicist by day. fashion/beauty blogger by night. lipgloss, shoe, and animal lover … twitter.com/allysonconklin
	christina poletto contactName christina poletto location: NYC Bio Publicist for Better Homes and Gardens Mag and Traditional Home Mag. NYC denizen who loves to travel, … twitter.com/christinapNYC
	Fred Richani contactName Fred Richani location: NJ Web thesportsc… Bio Publicist. Columnist. Songwriter. Actor. Founder of TheSportsCourier.com. … twitter.com/fredrichani
	Karen Varga-Sinka contactName Karen Varga-Sinka location: San Francisco, CA Bio Publicist and social media connoisseur. Has a clean heart and a dirty mouth. Intolerance for lactose … twitter.com/make_itadouble
	Natasha Neely contact11:01 AM Dec 2nd via web in reply to scifi451 · more. Name Natasha Neely location: Los Angeles, CA Bio Publicist, Writer, Former White House Staffer … twitter.com/NatashaNeely
	Tom Brumpton contactName Tom Brumpton location: Lincolnshire Web tombru… Bio Publicist, Writer, Journalist, Actor, Podcaster & Musician ^_^ … twitter.com/tom_brumpton_pr
	Olee Fowler contactName Olee Fowler location: Miami, FL Web getink… Bio Publicist. Culinary Enthusiast. Gator Fanatic. Aspiring Redneck. … twitter.com/oleefowler
	Austin Griswold contactName Austin Griswold location: Hollywood, CA Web facebo… Bio Publicist for Epitaph Records, cherry coke enthusiast and cupcake junkie … twitter.com/underadeadsky
	Nicole Villeneuve contactName Nicole Villeneuve location: New York, NY Web nicolevill… Bio Publicist at Cambridge University Press Freelance Aristarch … twitter.com/nicoledotvil
	Brad Seidel contactI really enjoyed the way it ended 11:53 AM Nov 18th via TweetDeck in reply to MichKruz · more. Name Brad Seidel location: Las Vegas Bio Publicist … twitter.com/bradseidel
	The Phoenix PR contactName The Phoenix PR location: Everywhere Web thepho… Bio Publicist, PR Writer for The Examiner, Founder of The Phoenix PR, Speaker … twitter.com/thephoenixpr
	Uzma Shamsi contactName Uzma Shamsi location: Chicago & NYC Bio Publicist & advocate. Dedicated to raising awareness & advocating against the abuse, neglect, and cruelty of … twitter.com/uzmashamsi
	Summer Smith contactName Summer Smith location: New York, NY Bio Publicist at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in New York, and southern-fried foodie. … twitter.com/tsummersmith
	Pablo Andreu contactName Pablo Andreu location: Bogota, NJ Web dailypygmy… Bio Publicist, writer, salsero, UFC fan and gym rat. … twitter.com/PabloDAndreu
	Erin Marshall Thorpe contactName Erin Marshall Thorpe location: JFK via PDX Bio Publicist, beauty junkie, foodie and pop culture enthusiast whose greatest fear is having nothing to … twitter.com/MarshEC
	allison beale contactName allison beale location: New York, NY Web george… Bio Publicist. Writer. Indie company enthusiast. Loving life. … twitter.com/abeale10
	Vanessa Perumal contactName Vanessa Perumal location: Johannesburg – South Africa Web jtcomm… Bio Publicist, innovator, strategist, thought leader, visionary, … twitter.com/vanessaperumal

(So, You Wanna Quit Your Job?) How to Monetize Your Website

admin — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 23:58:31 +0000

I just spoke (ok, it was just a text message) with a brilliant and talented young women. She’s a professional belly dancer. Speaks four languages, kind, and gorgeous. She’s thinking of starting a website.

Ironically, she asked me the same questions CEOs ask me. And until now, for some reason unknown to me, I haven’t been inspired to write out the answer to their questions.

Largely, the question is about how to monetize the web. But it’s more than that. The real question is, “how do I turn my website into a business?”

Our female protagonist, like every lawyer, mechanic, caterer, and accountant out there begins with the idea that a website can make their business more money. All this time, in the minds of most people, a website is still nothing more than a cheap-green medium of communication. It’s just a glorified brochure.

But they can do so much more. To explore how much businessification potential your website has, essentially, you have to change your question. Instead of asking how your website can make money, you have to ask, “What can we do if we get thousands of people in the same room.”

In the end, it’s not about what a website can do, it’s about what people can do when they all meet together. The smallest detail is how to make the website serve the group that assembles on it.

Before we get into trying to answer that question, lets first itemize the top 8 needs — things people pay for.

8. Money

7. Ego

6. Relationships

5. Information

4. Time

3. Hard Goods

2. Entertainment

1. (Love) / Sex

#8 People pay for money. Sounds silly but no. People pay to day-trade. People pay for groupons. If you can promise a discount or a profit for a fee, people will pay your fee.

#7: People pay for cache. People pay a little bit more for quality. Then, they pay a lot more for a logo. If you can deliver exclusivity through a website, people will pay for it. An example of this is LinkedIn’s premium package. Or better yet, the mensa geniuses organization. If you can tell people that you’re in some elite group online, if you can add it to your resume and get another 10k/year out of your HR department, it’s worth paying for.

#6 People pay to be introduced to someone else. Let’s face it. You didn’t go to a private school because they taught algebra in a way that was lots of better. You went to a private school because of the relationships you’d take with you for the rest of your life. If you can introduce people to each other, they will pay. A good example of this is Twitter and even Facebook. Sure, you’re not paying with cash but you are paying with something much more valuable — your time. It’s their job to figure out how to monetize your time and your clicks.

#5 People pay for niche information that’s just not available in Google. If you can produce an instructional mp3, video, pdf book, or even psychic transference of good Karma (yes, Mr. Cyber Guru, I’m looking at you), people will pay. Oddly, even IF the information is available in Google, if you make it more convenient to pay than to search, people will go 50/50. I know this because I have two different websites that sell exactly the same thing. One is easy to find. The other is harder. People pay $75 for the easy to find version (http://koreanovernight.com) and $7.50 for the hard to find version. Both sell equally well.

#4 People pay for time. It’s more valuable than money. Money, you can always make back. Time lost, not so much. Not even a little bit. If you can save people time, people will pay you. A perfect example of this is Expedia or Google Maps. People aren’t paying for information. People are paying for time saved. A better example is Kayak.com. It compares all the major travel sites in one. Again, the real value is not information. The money money is in the time insulation.

#3 People pay for stuff. Piratebay can’t torrent it. A RW DVD can’t copy it. People will illegally copy $1 songs and $10,000 software programs. But they will not steal a pack of bubble gum. Cookies and Cream Twix is altogether a different issue. People pay for stuff. So sell physical stuff. You’ll get back imaginary green currency that’s not worth much.

#2 People pay for entertainment. Ever since the 70′s when tv sets were in every bedroom and the 80′s when Atari was in every TV set, people can’t just sit in a void. There’s a need, no, an addiction to sensory stimulation today. Build a discussion forum. Build a cartoon series. Build an online fictional novel. Build something that will carry a person from one necessary event to another. Suck up all that fatty time and You’ll get paid. The best example of this is Facebook.

#1 People pay for Sex. Supposedly, it’s the most base biological and psychological imperative. And again, people pay in a currency more valuable than money — time. Why else would you stand in a short skirt behind a red velvet line for 2 hours in the cold? Why else would men build empires? Probably the best example of pimping out sex is, again, Facebook.

Now, we have to ask, “How do these 8 needs relate to my ability to quit me job?”

Let’s just take #6 as an example. And we’ll dive into this topic in depth in the next post. If you have a regional, local profession, like a belly dancer or any professional services person, to get more clients, you’d simply start blogging. If you blog about a topic, people quickly recognize you as an authority on the topic. When people Google that topic, your blog (with your phone number), shows up.

But let’s be honest here. How many people who throw a wedding or an anniversary or a corporate event Google “belly dancer?”

So, you’ve got to go more broad. You’ve got to blog about a bigger category. Maybe the category includes caterers, comedians, djs, etc. So, your new blog could be about the most entertaining and exclusive private parties around the world. If it is, then, when someone googles “DJ,” your blog comes up with your pitch for belly dancing and the emcee might just bolt you on without even having considered it before.

The same holds true for accountants, mechanics, chiropractors, or anyone in a local professional services field. Blog about a bigger category but sell your niche. As an accountant, instead of just competing against other accountants, also compete against stock brokers, financial planners, and attorneys for that consulting gig. You’ll end up with a dollar that was originally intended for a pocket of a totally different color.

But here’s the beauty of the web. Since we are talking about #6: “Selling Relationships,” Since you do have a global vein of traffic, and since you can only service one geographic area, why not lease out the relationships that are outside of your domain? Realtor.com does. They pull people into their website with popular blog posts like “10 Unknown Traps of Buying an Older Home” and then sell the relationships to a local realtor.

What would happen if you had thousands of people read your blog daily and you can find a local / regional service provider for any one of them? How much would that relationship be worth to a registered user of your website?

For part 2, “How to Monetize Your Website,” Follow http://twitter.com/journik and Facebook friend me at http://www.facebook.com/bob.wan.kim

To start unraveling how to get that 1,000 people a day to read your blog, see http://sparkah.com/marketing.php

Posted via email from Social Media Marketing Strategies for the Closet Revolutionary

The 9 Hidden Disciplines of Creatives Who Score Big Clients Who Actually Pay

admin — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 16:36:12 +0000

When I was studying in NYC, I heard of Bennett Peji. He was all the way out in San Diego. He had a design firm in La Jolla where seagulls shit on your car, parking is impossible to find, and guys in their 30′s still play flippy-cup. But on the other hand, women come to lunch wearing sandy bikinis and the telecom boom was just taking off.

Everyone was there. Qualcomm, Verizon, Nokia, Motorola, and even Jabra. I know this because I moved out to San Diego right about then.

I met Bennett at an AIGA conference. I networked the hell out of that event. What I found was that 98% of the designers there were starving. The other two, including Bennett and just a few others were doing well. Their clients were the well funded big telecom and biotech clients in San Diego. I asked the 2% how they got their clients. Nobody said a word. Bastards.

Since then, I’ve been asking my most successful friends how they got their big clients. These are the 9 hidden disciplines of creatives who score big clients (who actually pay).

9. They Take Names
There is no way a million banner ads, billions of brochures or trillions of #FFs can even compare with the rapport and trust built by one hand shake. When you meet another human, whoever they are, add them to your contact list. Add them to your contact list using their profession, city, and venue. You’ll forget their name. You’ll never forget what they do or where you met.

8. They Make Contact
Immediately drop them an email. Do the reverse of the above. They will forget your name. They will forget what you look like. But they will not forget where they met you or what you talked about. Put that data in the subject line of your “touch-base.”

7. They Touch-Base
Back when I started my research on the habits of the most successful designers and writers and basically anyone who has clients, it was a Rollodex. Yes, people were still using Rollodexi just one decade ago. They had some fancy filing system where they would know who to touch base with every day. Today, there’s Google Calendar. Use it.

http://img1.uploadscreenshot.com/images/orig/11/32010541841-orig.png

6. They Touch-Base Early
I was creative director in a couple of ad agencies. The most successful AEs and principals always got into the office and placed touch-base phone calls right around 6 am local time. It wasn’t until much later that I found out why. Their prospects weren’t used to email yet. Their prospects were in their 50′s. Their prospects enjoyed phone conversations. Most importantly, at 6 am, they sent out the implied message that “if you give us a project, we will be in the office working on it at 6 am.” Touch base with your prospects monthly. Touch base early.

5. Golf

4. Be the Best Dressed Human They Will See All Month
When you meet a big prospective client, may not know what political party they align with. You may not know what their favorite book is. And you certainly will not know when you’ll meet them. So there’s no possible way to know how to make a lasting impression on them except by dressing well – all the time.

3. Get in Their Social Circle
Go to the same charity events. Go to the same country club. Go to the same church, sinagogue, mosque, temple, and Kingdom Hall. If you had to chose to buy bread from an amazing French baker vs a mediocre guy who could get you Lakers floor seating, who’s bread would you butter? Face it. It doesn’t matter how talented you are. It doesn’t matter how good you are. Pretty girls get hired more than ugly ones. Mediocre designers with connections get hired more than pretty girls. And if you’re a moderately decent designer…

2. Publish Yourself In High Profile Websites
Back in the day, you’d submit your work to annual competitions like CA, Print Magazine, HOW, etc… Now, nobody reads print. So, post up your work in user generated content sites like http://stumbleupon.com and niche design sites like http://plurban.com … If you still have time, submit your work to design blogs. I get just as much work from my web “presence” as I do the local execs I meet.

1. Never Fuck Up
Earn the reputation that if you’re given a project, it’ll be done perfectly – every time. Clients are stressed out. Be their oasis. Be perfect. Think about it. If your girlfriend goes out and once in a blue moon she fucks some dude, you’re going to stress every time she goes out.

Posted via email from Social Media Marketing Strategies for the Closet Revolutionary

A Spiritual Person’s Path to Business Success – The Meditation

admin — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 06:51:55 +0000

A mate leaves their lover saying, “I’m not happy anymore.”

Then, in their emptiness, they soon realize that they were indeed happy. They had everything they needed. So the mate betrays fullness for the excitement of filling emptiness.

In business, you might do the same.

There is a saying, “If you are frustrated, lower your dreams (or raise your skills)” - Taoism

You pursue a new client, a new market, or a new sector at the risk of losing what you’ve already built. Children climb up stairs for the excitement of sliding back down again. This is often called the “perspective of scarcity” or “mutually exclusive thinking.”

To be fair, there is a joy in seeing growth. The trouble happens when you unconsciously let what you’ve already grown suffer for it.

There is a saying, “If you are frustrated, lower your dreams (or raise your skills)” – Taoism

If there’s a yin way to solve a problem, there is also a yang way. There is a core cause of loss and destruction in both business and love. It’s easy to blame what’s already in the bowl for crippling your ability to collect more. The hard part, the path of a successful person, is to keep what they have and simply enlarge their bowl.

Let’s talk about business and web media marketing from an ancient Daoist perspective, call 310 598 1606 or bob.wan.kim@gmail.com to discuss the opportunities you may be undercapitalizing upon.

Posted via email from Social Media Marketing Strategies for the Closet Revolutionary

Paypal vs Zen Cart vs OsCommerce Shopping Cart Software

admin — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 20:53:08 +0000

If you’ve got fantastic products that will fly off of your shelves but don’t know how to setup a ecommerce website, this is your lucky day.

There aren’t many head to head comparisons between the three major ways you can create an online store. Did I mention, there are three major ways to create an online store?

eCommerce Shopping Carts / Features	ZenCart and OsCommerce	Paypal
Total Flexibility of Design Layout		Yes
Requirement for Design Modification	HTML; PHP	HTML
Hosting	Owner	Paypal
Additional Hosting Cost	Yes
Security	Owner Responsible	Paypal
Additional Security Cert Cost	Yes
Ideal for SKU Numbers	100+	1-150
Support and Maintenance	Experienced PHP	User / Owner / HTML
Auto Product Tagging and Grouping	Yes	(CMS required or simple HTML work)
Product and Pricing Change Authorization	Admin	Paypal Account Owner
Main Usability Differences	Both ZenCart and OsCommerce allows product tagging, simple price changes, inventory depreciation, and more features t available in paypal. However, for less than 100 items, and if quickbooks is used, ne of these features are necessary. Also, these cart systems requires that all content and web design need to be inside of the system. Paypal does t swallow the website	Paypal is the simplest and most secure shopping cart management system. Recently, they even added universal button changes where one control panel detail can be changed and instances of that “buy w” or “add to cart” button will be automatically modified. With Paypal, the ongoing cost of a 3rd party security certificate is unnecessary as all transactions happen on Paypals HTTPS servers. The biggest difference is that both ZenCart and OsCommerce require all changes including price and design to be done within their software. Paypal does t. Paypal works with any simple html page.

If you have any questions or need help building out your online store and driving traffic to you, feel free to contact me at http://twitter.com/journik or 310 598 1606 – Bob Wan Qi Kim

Posted via email from Social Media Marketing Strategies for the Closet Revolutionary

How Google Determines and Ranks Your Relevancy

admin — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 18:47:40 +0000

Personally, I think this graph, as reassuring and emboldening as it is, is totally bunk, (couple more commas, thrown in, for good measure).

Image via two sites I highly recommend following religiously if you are even remotely involved in web business or like cilantro: http://www.copyblogger.com/seo-copywriting-matter/ and http://www.seomoz.org/blog/perfecting-keyword-targeting-on-page-optimization

Here’s why:

1. The wedges, “Anchor text” and “Link popularity” are exactly the same thingGoogle bases PageRank based on external links (base! (one more thrown in for good measure)).

2. This is a SEO (search engine optimizers’) poll — NOT based on a Google engineer’s leaked data
Let this be very clear. This chart is built on the OPINIONS of SEO Expert Ninjas

3. Matt Cutts is reaching for a muscle relaxant due stomach cramping from laughing so hard at #2 (above)

4. Wedge “Traffic + CTR data” are exactly the same thing — WRONG.
Google measures repeat CTR from THEIR pages not YOUR server traffic. Google doesn’t care how much traffic you get. It bears ZERO weight on relevancy of your page to search query. Think logically. If your stomach Googled “hamburger,” would you rather get a McDonald’s or an In-N-Out? McD’s gets far more traffic in their drive thrus but the QUALITY of the result is what matters to Google.

5. Meta Tags!
I know, the graphic does not cite meta-tags and it shouldn’t. Because, to the credit of the graphic and those surveyed, meta tags went out with the Macarena. BUT you and I both know that these SEO Expert Ninja Samurais still use meta keyword tags. So not citing them as a 50% factor is totally disingenuous.

#6 BONUS: They left out the most import part…
Among Google’s BIGGEST ranking factors is whether or not the content is on a page that is within a property OWNED by GOOGLE. It’s true. Google would rather you visit a Youtube, Knol, or Blogspot web result. It’s further true that they’d rather you visited a Google result that has a Google adwords ad on it. I mean, come on, wouldn’t you?

If you want to team up with Bob Wan Kim on your corporate marketing and business proliferation, Contact him at http://sparkah.com

Posted via web from journik’s posterous – a grade A shouldery. (social media agencies / marketing wise)

How to Get 50 Retweets in Twitter and Maybe Even Start Trending

admin — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 18:33:17 +0000

I don’t know about you, but I loved it when Oprah joined Twitter. All manner of 30-40 something moms jumped onboard and ReTweeted just about everything that came their way. It was either because they really liked the messages or because they couldn’t come up with anything at the moment and couldn’t stand the negative space.

In either case, as of today, several months later, all the moms have gone home. Actually, I guess nothing has changed since they were at home to begin with.

It’s extremely difficult to get RT’d nowadays.

But, if you DO get an RT now, it’s like platinum. Think about it. Back when everyone was indescriminately RTing everybody else, an RT didn’t mean much. Now, if you get an RT, people actually pay attention. I’d go so far as to say that people read RTs more than direct follow tweets. It’s like your willingness to investigate further if some dude said, “Hi. I’m really good in bed,” vs. if his last girlfriend said, “Wow, I hate him but he’s really good in bed.”

So if a single RT is worth that much more, how much more must a dozen or two dozen be worth? Without boring you with math, suffice it to say that dozens of RTs are worth thousands of page views.

So here’s the Kama Sutra of building multiple RT partners:

1. Take the lead in RTing people.
This step is crucial and pivotal. Whether you have a lot of followers or 130, if you show goodwill, people feel compelled to return the favor – even if they have millions of followers. Back when I only had 1,000 followers, some guy with over 1 MILLION RT’d me because I made the first gesture of goodwill.

2. Remember who you RT.
Seriously, this is business. This is not some sort of universal karmic thing where you kiss Amy and Susan kisses you (years later of course. Otherwise it wouldn’t be a karma coming back around kinna thing. It would be a totally different kinna thing). IMPORTANT: It generally takes about 3 RTs before someone feels like they are truly ingratiated and will RT you.

3. Get more than 1,000 followers.
If you only have a dozen followers who never use Twitter anyways, even if you kiss butt and massage feet, you’ve got no clout. How did I get my 12,000 followers? ASK ME @journik

4. KEY: Refer back to #2 and DM them asking for an RT.
Oddly, inspiteofthefactthat we all get tons of DM spam, it’s actually more effective to ask someone from #2 to RT a specific tweet via DM than an @message. My theory is that it is refreshing to actually get a real DM. And also because if you @zenmommy @riasharon @kevinpmiller @globalpatriot @others all in the same tweet it kinna lets the recipients off the hook. =)

5. Remember who RT’d YOU.
This is the easy part. There’s a trick to it.

In one of my first sales training seminars, we were all asked, “If you are going to sell Bibles, who would you sell it to?”

The responses were varied. Some said, “rich people.”

Others said, “People who don’t have one.”

The instructor said, “Nope. People who don’t have Bibles are called atheists or Buddhists. They don’t buy Bibles. The people who will buy your Bible, counterintuitively, are the people who already have ten Bibles. People who have twenty Bibles are even more likely to buy your crappy translation.”

Remember who RT’d YOU because the people who do are more likely to actually respond when you do #4.

#6 BONUS: How to do #5…
I have a trick to this. Whenever I ask for an RT, I ask that the same bit.ly url be RT’d and the same url always goes to the MAIN url of my blog – never a sub url. The reason for that becomes obvious when you see what I see: Journik’s Twitter Traffic Statistics and ReTweeters.

If you want to partner with me in multiplying each other’s marketing power or want my help in building buzz around you, contact me. I run a small but ingenius los angeles and nyc based web marketing firm.

Posted via web from journik’s posterous – a grade A shouldery. (social media agencies / marketing wise)

Is Paypal Making You Bleed Precious New Customers?

admin — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 08:59:13 +0000

Do you realize that (if you use a paypal button) about 65% of first time web buyers actually think you have to have a paypal account to order from you? Think about it. You could be losing over half of your new customers who don’t have a paypal account. And paypal has no intention of making it clear that you take credit cards.

THIS is what I did to stop the bleeding: http://sparkah.com/?p=67

Posted via web from journik’s posterous – a grade A shouldery. (social media agencies / marketing wise)