The Social Media Landscape – 7 Tips to Find Your Way Forward

Like plate tectonics, the social media landscape is always shifting. Sometimes with earthquaking force but more commonly as a rolling, restless energy that pushes up new platforms, flattens earlier expectations and creates whole new ways to connect. The digital world is evermore complex, creative, informative, engaging and even fun. Businesses have got to be a part of this new age of discovery. And the start of a new year is the perfect time to configure – or reconfigure – your social media map to see what opportunities are out there and how to plant your brand flag in all the right places.

Here are 7 tips for becoming a more creative Columbus:

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Home Sweet Home On the Internet – Selling Real Estate with Social Media Marketing and Emotional Branding

Realtors are some of the best real world self-promoters among small business professionals but individual agents often miss the mark in making a useful digital connection. Even being tech-savvy doesn’t ensure success. There is an opportunity to create value and distinction through emotional branding, social media and content marketing but you have to consider what stories to share and how your audience cares. You have to engage, inform and inspire in order to stand out and connect in a meaningful way. Read more →

How To Make Your Artist Statement More Authentic – 5 Key Insights

Authentic and authenticity are are as good as gold in marketing messages these days – the words are meant to add a lustre of real truth to whatever is being sold, the feeling that a genuine connection is being made. It’s the experience and memory of that feeling, that authentic connection, which creates a stronger bond between the product and the person. Dove Soap does this with their “Get Real” campaign and while it’s easy to be cynical about a large corporation truly caring about ordinary women, it’s been a huge success for the brand driving up sales and making their video ads massively shared.

So what does authenticity have to do with an Artist Statement? I’ve worked with lots of artists of all different styles but their common denominator is an almost blinding pain when it comes to saying something meaningful – and relatable – about their work. The language becomes a chore and you get the sense that they’re just grinding it out in a dead voice or hiding their private truth behind a wall of big words. It’s often a missed opportunity to connect with and inspire whoever is reading and thoughtfully wanting to know more about an artist’s creativity. Read more →

Free Hugs Here – Emotional Branding and How to Draw In Your Audience

There has never been a better time for brands – whether corporate or personal – to have a meaningful conversation with an audience but too many companies have yet to engage – or yet to inspire – with this increasingly essential marketing strategy. Like our cuddly cat and dog pair, emotional branding has the potential to create unexpected connections and lasting bonds.  Read more →

The Question Of Your Personal Brand – Who Are You And Why Should Others Care

Personal branding is a potent brew of a term crafted in 1997 by business management guru Tom Peters mixing together brand strategy, reputation management, digital engagement, career advancement and aspirational goals spiked with as much celebrity stature as you can acquire. Stir in excitement, pour generously.

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Don’t Get Arnold Schwarzenegger To Write Your Press Release – Things To Avoid And Include For SEO-Friendly Press Releases

The days of cyborg-speak Press Releases – short bursts of incomprehensible language without narrative or emotion –  are as long gone as the box office glory days (and muscle mass) of the former action star. It’s time to terminate the dull press release and tell a more engaging story built for a digital audience. Even the term ‘press release’ is a faded star – media release is the new hot shot action hero, packaged with a keen eye for what works – and doesn’t work – for all the socially-connected platforms that make up the new media universe.

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