Top Questions To Ask Yourself When Doing Advertising

Logo Design Trends For 2018

February 2, 2018/in Advertising Agency, Articles, Brand Development, Directors /by Mark Beebe

Your business logo encapsulates your business. In one simple graphic, your potential customers learn everything they need to know about you. Logo design done right embodies your brand, makes you instantly recognizable, and creates a timeless appeal.

One of the critical mistakes that businesses of all sizes make when designing their logo is following the wrong trends. Another is following trends too tightly, and not adding that spark that makes them stand out from the crowd. Do you remember when everyone decided to include pixilated images in their logo? But, can you name any of the individual companies that tried that?

One of the key trends for logo design in 2018, is designing with social media in mind. Logos on social media need to be short, punchy, and fit neatly into a square field. That does not mean that square logos are the way forward; it just means that the finished logo should fit, and be visually balanced, within a square.

Considering Context

Designing your logo is not just about the logo itself, but also how it is presented to your potential audience. One trend that is gaining momentum, and which is likely to continue to do so into 2018, is placing your logo in a real-world context. That includes ideas such as showing the logo on wall signage, business cards, and stationery. Taking this approach creates a visual link with the audience, so when they then see your signage with your logo, they automatically think back to what they have seen, and read about that logo and therefore that brand.

Mindful Monograms

Monograms and single letter logos are ideal for social media. They play on a classic idea that has been placed on everything from letterheads to cufflinks for centuries. However, it can be challenging to make monograms and letter logos unique. If you are going to use your business initials to create your monogram, then be watchful of unintended words, shapes, and puns that can be created.

Making this type of logo stand out, and say something meaningful about your brand, can also be difficult. Colors, shapes, letter styles, and letter combinations need to be well chosen to ensure that you do not create a logo that looks just like everyone else’s.

Going Back to Basics

Logos that include geometric shapes and clean lines are set to be on trend in 2018. These logo designs come back into favor regularly because they are, when done right, elegant and timeless. However, you need to avoid these types of logos becoming over simplistic and boring. You also need to ensure that your logo design stands out; after all, there are only so many shapes and shape combinations that can be used to create a geometric design.

Bringing Back Color

Working in a digital medium gives you unprecedented access to colors in tones and shades that have been near impossible to create or show in a logo before. This is one of the reasons why there has been a surge towards brightly colored logos. However, when using color, it is not enough to just use blocks of bright, intense colors. To stand out, your logo design needs to consider intensity, saturation, shades, fading, and mixing of colors. Moreover, the colors you use must still reflect your business and its brand.

Logo design trends are there to guide you in creating the perfect logo. However, the focus of your logo design must remain on designing a logo that represents your business positively and makes you both visible and memorable.

An Advertising Approach On 4 Social Media Platforms

December 28, 2017/in Advertising Agency, Articles, Directors /by Nicole Wagner

There is no right way to have an advertising approach. What is great about advertising is that you can advertise on multiple platforms. Online advertising is just one platform. Online advertisements have become very useful for companies. With advertisements, there are some tips so that advertisements are being used effectively. Tips include: make sure the ad aligns with the social media strategy, consistent coloring (matches website), rotate images, variation, and ad testing (determining what is and is not effective). Advertisements can be used on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram. Each platform uses ads slightly different.

Ads on Facebook

To create an ad on Facebook, you must first have admin permission. When creating an ad on Facebook, it will have you choose the campaign, followed by the budget, scheduling, targeting, biding, ad placement and variations. Facebook allows you to track the progress of the ad. With Facebook, you choose an objective for the ad and there are many to choose from.

Ads on Twitter

On Twitter you choose ads based on the objective of the campaign. There are twitter cards, which allow for rich media, a link, a button, and room for text on the ad. Twitter has four parts to the ad campaign. These are the timeframe, creative, targeting and budget. Twitter also allows you to do keyword targeting.

Ads on LinkedIn

A LinkedIn ad targets the audience based on professional attributes. You can create an ad or sponsor content. LinkedIn allows for up to 15 ad variations.

Ads on Instagram

Ads on Instagram can be created through Facebook. If you have a business manager account, the ads can be created through the Instagram app. You can include a call-to-action button.

What is great about having ads on social media is that the ads will be shown to the right people. With having ads online, you can make the smallest changes and get the ads to the right people. The social media platforms allow you to choose your audience and age range. Each social media platform has their own way of creating ads, but each platform is a great choice. The right advertising approach for your company might by online advertising. It is up to you to determine which social media platform is best.

Advertising Agency Trends

December 26, 2017/in Advertising Agency, Articles, Content Marketing, Directors, SEO /by Nicole Wagner

The world of the traditional advertising agency is gone. Today, clients want agencies that truly embrace all forms of advertising, both traditional and digital. Smart agencies know this and stay on top of the trends in marketing and sales that will have the most impact for their clients. Let’s look at a few trends that are hot and here to stay.

Native Marketing

If there is one trend in advertising that is going strong and will remain strong for years to come, it’s native marketing. Blending advertisements smoothly with surrounding content has been around for decades. Doing it in new and innovative ways in the digital marketplace is what is driving the current growth.

Business Insider predicts that native advertising will hit $21 billion next year (2018). In 2013, spending for native advertising was $4.7 billion. That translates to a 445% growth in just 5 years.

The beauty of native advertising is that it’s very unobtrusive. It organically blends into the user experience.

Marketing Automation

Let’s face it. The world of marketing is a bit cutthroat with so many companies vying for consumer attention. Trying to bring a brand to the forefront and keep it there requires a solid set of tools that collect data, provide analytic tools and does a lot of the work for you. That set of tools is marketing automation.

A marketing automation platform gathers pertinent information on what visitors are most interested in, which pages they visit most, and what changes as they go further down the sales funnel. This information offers critical insights to what the target audience needs at each stage of the journey. All of that information can help an advertising agency develop highly focused ad campaigns

5 Benefits of Marketing Automation

Content Marketing

Content marketing is becoming more sophisticated and more personalized. It starts with web pages providing basic information. Adding elements like video and infographics enriches the experience.

Gathering information with marketing automation allows for personalization. Certain areas of the web page can provide content drawn from the visitor’s profile. Marketing apps take that to a whole new level with interactive content experiences, completely based what is known about the visitor.

This increasing sophistication of content marketing is going to demand more sophisticated options from advertising agencies.

Personalized Marketing

Consumers expect personalization and they value it. It goes back to the days when a shopkeeper knew the names of all his customers. “Hi, Mrs. Jones, how is your oldest son doing in school?” “Hello, Mr. Gonzalez. That car part you wanted just came into stock.” The personal connection builds trust that cannot be replicated.

That personal touch is becoming the norm when it comes to marketing. People respond better to email offers that include their name and refers to what interests them. When they log 0nto a site like Amazon or E-Bay, they like the fact that they get recommendations based on their browsing and purchase history.

Closed Loop Marketing Analytics

Smart marketing means know who visits your website via SEO or marketing efforts. Analytics tracks which web pages a visitor visits. It tracks how often the visitor comes back and what most interests him/her. Analytics may track when a visitor becomes a lead. It can even track some parts of the lead’s journey to becoming a buyer. But, does it track what converted that lead into a buyer?

That is what closed loop marketing analytics track. This type of analysis helps marketers understand which effort ends up in sale and which effort did not. It highlights the most effective marketing efforts and which ones need attention.

From an advertising agency perspective, it can show you which ad campaigns had the most impact and which ones did not.

Continuous Website Improvements Based on Data

Most companies do a major website redesign every few years. The problem with just a major redesign is that once it’s done, it’s done. Nothing major will change until the next redesign 2-3 years in the future.

A new approach, rapidly gaining popularity, is a web design based on continuous improvement. Instead of rolling out a completely outfitted website that takes months to build, it starts with a streamlined, well-designed core based on tightly focused goals and objectives for content, design and development.

When that new website goes live, it starts gathering user data, linking it to marketing/sales effort. The data shows what is working and what is not. That data is what drives the next wave of improvements, often done on a monthly basis. This cycle of analyzing data, making improvements and gathering data can go on forever, continuously improving the website and its effects on marketing/sales.

Staying on top of major marketing trends is critical for any advertising agency. These trends impact client advertising directly. Which trend do you think will have the most impact in the coming year?

Advertising Trends To Watch in 2018

November 3, 2017/in Advertising Agency, Articles, Directors /by Nicole Wagner

We are well into the last quarter of 2017 and you should already have an idea of how well you have met your goals for this year. While you are wrapping things up these last few months of the year, it is a good time to start thinking about what is happening next year. Let’s take a look at some of the advertising trends for 2018.

7 Advertising Trends that Will Be Hot in 2018

Integrated Advertising

Stand back and take a look at your current advertising. Are you leveraging multiple media sources to provide your target audience with a memorable experience? If not, now is the time to rethink your advertising approach.

Integrated advertising takes all media forms and creates a singular approach. Think TV and radio spots, print media, search engine and social media ads, and any other type of advertising. Every piece of advertising is in sync with every other including In-Bound advertising.

Niche Marketing

Niches are created by finding the needs, wants and requirements of a well-defined segment of people, who others are not addressing, then fulfilling the demand with goods and services.

The demand for niche marketing is growing because the number of businesses entering the digital marketplace is accelerating while the number of consumers remains fairly steady. This trend is going to become increasingly important going forward. What’s your niche and how best can you accommodate your consumer or business?

Mobile Marketing Geofencing

Advertisers can use GPS and RFID technology to set a physical boundary. If a mobile device enters or exists this boundary, the advertiser can send out a notification, email or text message. This hyper-local marketing allows businesses of all sorts to send out advertisements to consumers walking down the sidewalk near their store or office. Imagine walking the streets of Vegas when you get an alert on your phone that says, “look up and save 30% off your meal at Diablo’s Cantina”. That is what I was served in 2015.

5 Mobile Marketing Techniques To Build Your Ecommerce Brand

The first part of 2017 saw a rapid increase in social media advertising spend. Social media channels like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter are providing new opportunities for user interaction, which is making advertising more attractive for companies of all sorts. Business is recognizing that social media offers ways to reach consumers that more conventional digital marketing cannot. Today, you can buy Facebook around zipcodes. What are you waiting for?

Ephemeral Content

Let’s turn the convention thoughts on digital marketing content on its head. Ephemeral content is doing just that. This type of content comes and goes very quickly, usually within 24 hours. It is perceived as more authentic, creates the FOMO (fear of missing out), and it grabs the consumer’s attention for a short time. Consumers believe that this content should be checked more often because it will be gone by the next day.

Chatbots

One of the advertising trends businesses are adopting quickly is the chatbot. A chatbot is program which engages a consumer in a text conversation, using natural language and business rules to provide requested information. It’s the reason TIVO can have one on one conversations about their products and help guide you through the purchasing cycle.

In-Store Retail Advertising

A consumer is walking through a retail store and gets an alert on his or her phone. It is a promotional offer or discount from the store. This type of in-store retail advertising is another form of hyper-local advertising. Walgreens has embraced this technology for the last two years. It drives store visits and can up-sale items for impulse buys. This form of advertising is a force that captures eyeballs and delivers content that could increase your sales if used properly.

2018 looks to be an exciting year in the world of marketing and advertising. Each year, technology pushes its way more and more into the world of marketing. If you haven’t embraced where marketing is heading, your company may not be around in the next three years. Think about how Amazon is delivering FOOD within ½ hour to your door, or Walmart not only delivering but putting away in your kitchen…did you think this would happen? Do you see the value of Tesla and having a driver-less car? Were taxis ready for UBER or LYFT? Was Blockbuster ready for NETFLIX or REDBOX? How about the postal service that didn’t work on Sundays, to be delivering Amazon products on a day where all the vehicles are available. The Echo could just change your life moving forward and why isn’t your product already being said by Alexia? Technology is a force.

The trends in 2018 are powerful. Isn’t it time to start using them?

Beacon Marketing: Bringing Personalized Marketing To Retail Outlets

June 2, 2017/in Advertising Agency, Articles, Digital Media, Directors, Marketing Strategy, Media /by Debbie Szwast

One of your customers is browsing your store and gets an alert on her phone. She glances at the screen and her face lights up. She looks up at the nearest employee with a huge smile on her face. The customer just received a customized alert on her phone offering a 20% discount, if she makes a purchase in your store today.

Was that a big coincidence? Nope. It was beacon marketing.

What is Beacon Marketing?

More and more consumers rely on their mobile devices to search for products and to do price comparisons. They often download their favorite brands’ apps to get special offers and other incentives. This kind of marketing takes personalized marketing to another level.

The beacons are small, battery-powered devices, that can be installed throughout any physical location. The beacons emit a special Bluetooth signal known as a BLE. Within a certain range, mobile devices can pick up the BLE signal and receive push notifications. Those notifications allow you to interact with your customers in new and different ways.

Some beacon setups currently require consumers to have the brand/store app installed to receive these notifications. However, Twitter has paired with beacon start-up, Swirl. They are developing ways of bypassing the app requirement and using Twitter instead. Instead of requiring a consumer to install an app, all that person needs to do is follow the brand on Twitter.

Does It Really Work?

Yes.

More than 50% of the top 100 brands already use beacons within their physical stores, with great success. Macy’s implemented these signaling devices throughout their chain after conducting a hugely successful trial run over a Christmas season.

The beauty of these devices is that they can be used in businesses of various sizes and in different industries. For example, casinos can engage their guests from the moment they walk through the door. If a VIP walks through the door, the casino can send a welcome and have a staff member waiting in the VIP room with the customer’s favorite drink in hand. Someone in the slots area can receive a special offer to come visit the roulette tables. Other guests can receive discount offers for dining and entertainment.

Now, the success a business has with beacon marketing depends on what value you offer to the customer. This form of marketing enhances the way your business can interact and engage with your customers. Offering tips, perks, and discounts are all effective ways to provide value to consumers.

What Does This Mean for Your Business?

Brick-and-mortar stores continue to fight the pressure of online competitors. Competing on price is difficult with the overhead costs of running a physical location. To remain competitive, stores have to find new ways to differentiate themselves from the online competition.

Using beacons to interact with customers opens up new opportunities to engage consumers and entice them to make in-store purchases. That makes beacon marketing a promising channel for the long-term success of brick-and-mortar stores.

Four Things You Can Learn About Real Estate Marketing From Bon Jovi

February 14, 2017/in Advertising Agency, Articles, Directors, News & Insights /by Debbie Szwast

Being an exec in an advertising agency can sometimes be a curse. When you go home at night you can’t just “shut it off”… you see marketing and branding everywhere. But on the positive side, that means inspiration can come from just about anywhere at any time. I’m an avid music lover and concertgoer and as all my colleagues know, my favorite band is Bon Jovi. So out of professional curiosity and personal interest, I follow the band’s marketing efforts and they’re doing a lot of things right. Here are four things I learned from Bon Jovi that you can apply to your real estate marketing.

Know Your Target Audience

Early on, way back in the ‘80s, Bon Jovi realized it appealed more to women than the typical male dominated rock crowd. Jon’s good looks and power ballads made the ladies swoon. Fast forward to today and of the thousands of fans at a Bon Jovi concert, most are women. A smart marketer, Jon capitalized on his popularity with the female audience almost from the start. He knows his best…assets…and how to use them.

How is this relevant to real estate marketing? You need to know who your target audience is and how to connect with them. Like for Bon Jovi, the target audience for most homebuilders is women age 35 to 54. They tend to be the ones out looking for a new home initially. So ask yourself—are you advertising where they are? For instance, a significant percentage of “soccer moms” are on Facebook, bragging about their kids and sharing family photos. Buying paid advertising on this social medium gives you the opportunity to pinpoint exactly who you want to reach. And make sure your message resonates with your audience, as well. Talk about what is important and enticing to them, not what is important to you.

Embrace Technology

In the ‘80s at the start of Bon Jovi’s mega popularity, music videos were the new thing. The band embraced this visual medium, giving viewers at home a glimpse of their stage presence and highlighting Jon’s charisma. Being a staple on MTV contributed to the group’s early success. Now, you can follow Bon Jovi on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and see their videos on Tidal, YouTube and Vevo. You can even download the Bon Jovi app to stay up-to-date on all things Jovi related.

As a marketer, you have a variety of new technologies and media vehicles available to you that your ‘80s self couldn’t even imagine. Use them. Bring your homes to life with virtual reality. Showcase your models with 360-degree video. Capture the magnitude of your neighborhoods with drone footage. Post and share photos on Instagram. Pin decorating ideas on Pinterest boards. Be creative. Today’s real estate marketing tools go way beyond still shots of model homes and allow you to emotionally connect with home shoppers in ways you never could before.

Stay Relevant

Bon Jovi’s fans have aged along with the group. While the band still plays the classic hits in concert, they churn out new “albums” and songs that reflect the times and attitudes of today’s listeners. They rely what they know works but continue to change to stay current with what’s trending. Lyrics that related to teenagers in the ‘80s won’t resonate with middle-aged housewives now.

For real estate marketing, be open to new ideas and avenues to get your message out. Print media—newspapers, direct mail, inserts—still have a place but mobile and social are where you need to be to be seen. The online world brings creative challenges. You only have a few seconds to make an impact and viewers are bombarded with competing images all over the screen. Don’t try to give all the details in a small space. Entice the viewer to click to learn more. Then grab and keep their attention with an engaging, user-friendly website. Your home designs are different than they were 30 years ago. You’re advertising efforts should be, too.

Your Brand Has Value Beyond The Home

Bon Jovi branding now extends well beyond the music business. Several categories—from a male clothing line to pasta sauce, a football franchise to charity endeavors—have emerged that capitalize on the popularity of the group’s namesake and front man. They are not all directly tied to Bon Jovi the band’s brand, but they are indirectly associated with the Jovi name and therefore are recognizable with consumers in the target audience.

In real estate marketing, this often occurs with mortgage companies that are associated with national homebuilder and carry a similar moniker. It also can occur with sub categories of your company, such as remodeling or commercial arm. What’s most important to remember is that you want all branding associated with your core brand to portray the same level of quality and values.

As a Chicago-area advertising agency, Stevens & Tate consults with not only real estate companies but also businesses in a variety of industries to develop marketing strategies that can propel their growth. If you are considering an agency review, visit www.stevens-tate.com to view recent work or call (630) 627-5200 to see if Stevens & Tate is a fit for your new agency partner.

McDonald’s Revolution in Retail Marketing

May 5, 2016/in Advertising Agency, Articles, Marketing Strategy /by Mark Beebe

As I was traveling recently through St. Joseph, Mo last week, I stopped to get some gas and near the station was a McDonalds. I haven’t been in a McDonalds for about a year and decided to order my lunch. I wanted to stretch my legs, so I walked into, what I would consider to be the future.

I was greeted with a digital Kiosk board. Actually three of them. And all it said was “Create your taste”. I could create my own burger, with ten additional sauces, avocado, tortilla strips, three cheeses, grilled or raw onion and the list goes on-even lettuce wraps. You see, I walked into the very first 6,500 square feet McDonalds offering you to create your own burger. Also looking around I saw televisions, armchairs and couches.

As I moved my hand around, I created my own burger. Once paid on the kiosk, I was asked by someone standing by me to take a seat. Huh? McDonalds is going to deliver to my table? I was given an electronic device that linked my order to my table.

Marketing to Seniors Through Laughter

October 3, 2015/in Advertising Agency, Directors, Senior Living Marketing /by Mark Beebe

Whether you call them Older, Seniors, Elderly or Boomers, these widely accepted generational labels fall into an age-specific reference as “those over 50” or “people 65 and up.” As this market keeps adopting digital technology, finding what separates you from your competition is becoming more difficult. But with all the studies out there, there are five simple rules for marketing to seniors that everyone should abide by. Read more

Sun Tzu’s The Art of War May As Well Have Been About Advertising

July 13, 2015/in Advertising Agency, Articles, Directors /by Dan Gartlan

“Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.” Sun Tzu – The Art of War

Often in business, we feel like we’re on strategy, but as we move further away from when that strategy was defined, we’re really just going through the motions. Activities are being completed, but we lose site of why we are doing them and what they are supposed to accomplish. In addition, there can be changes in the marketplace, competitor’s messaging, consumer concerns and even the methods of communication. Read more

The Next Generation Of Homebuyers Is Here…Are You Reaching Them?

July 6, 2015/in Advertising Agency, Articles, Directors, Homebuilder Marketing /by Debbie Szwast

Move over Baby Boomers, Gen Y has passed you as the largest share of the homebuying population according to the National Association of REALTORS®. Topping out at age 35, this group known as Millennials grew up online, are tech-savvy and don’t remember a time when they weren’t on a smart phone.

Most of these twenty and thirty somethings, nearly 70 percent, are purchasing their first homes and doing so because they want to own their own places. They understand the value of homeownership and more than 80 percent believe it’s a solid financial investment. That doesn’t mean they are looking to make a quick profit, though. Most expect to stay in their home for 10 years. So if you miss out on an opportunity to sell a home today, it might be awhile before you get another chance—unless, of course, a life change occurs that could prompt them to move. Read more

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