Be The Brand
Creating a proper branding statement is essential for effective marketing in every type of business. Branding is what sets you apart from the competition. Successful branding needs to be based on something more than your company’s features and benefits; it must make your company stand out from your competition. Your company’s brand is the essence of your company’s marketing and public relations planning.

Resist the temptation to follow your competition's branding. It is imperative your company’s branding make a clear statement that sets you apart.

Make your brand SPEAK to your target market based on what they want. Create expectations and follow through on all brand efforts so your customers are never disappointed or confused when they come into contact with your company product, service or communications.

There are incredible successes that we all look to as setting the bar for branding. Consider the following: Nike, Apple, or Wheaties. Did you get a mental image of each brand? Are there expectations of quality established for each brand? Most likely either one or all of the brands mentioned generated a mental image in your mind of either a logo, color or actual product identity.

Think of the “Wheaties” brand…their branding has built them into “The Breakfast of Champions!” Wheaties are associated with health and success. Athletic success is reinforced with premiere and admired athletes featured on every box. The orange box has been a part of the cereal’s “Be a Winner” branding. Over the years of consistent branding efforts, consumers connect with the brand and know what to expect from the product.

Every marketing strategy and tactic must reinforce your company branding – question everything you do to make sure it fits. Visual branding and image branding efforts must work together to compete for your target market’s attention. Repetition and consistency are imperative for every unique branding strategy.

Look forward to hearing more branding ideas! What is your favorite brand?
Make it a great day!

Welcome to the MCS Blog!

This blog has been created to inform and exchange ideas, concepts and programs taking place in the world of marketing and public relations. The MCS team consists of a talented group of designers, public relations experts and marketing specialists. For over the past eighteen years we have worked with a numerous companies with branding, logo development, packaging, public relations, marketing and many other programs.

In an effort to get over my personal“uncertainty” of social networking, I offered to provide writing for the MCS blog for awhile. This serves as an opportunity for me to connect and experience this world of social networking first hand (I hope everyone visiting this blog has a positive experience.)

Creative thinking is an integral part of our daily lives at MCS; it is an important part of what we do and who we are. I dare say it is important in everyone’s lives. Creativity is what pushes us with new ideas and concepts. The following are a few creative building activities. I hope they help you in your efforts to “think outside the box!”
Creative
1.) Change your routine! Perhaps listen to a radio station or watch different New show in the morning. Take a different route to work or find a new “mode of transportation” to work.

2.) For one hour take on someone else’s perspective. Perhaps look at things as a teenager, or another demographic group than yours. New perspectives can ignite new thoughts.

3.) Brainstorm with a number of people in the office. Brainstorm new answers to old problems. No criticism allowed at brainstorming sessions!

4.) Ask yourself …is there a different way of doing a certain task? Ask others…is there a more efficient way of accomplishing a daily task?

Theses are just a few ideas to get the ideas rolling on how to get a bit more creative. Do you have some quick Creative building tricks to share? We’d love to hear from you!!!
Meanwhile, be well and be creative!

Definitions for the New “Social” Networker

Social Media 101

Social Media…it’s the hottest marketing trend that’s gaining traction and attention worldwide. In fact, according to a recent Coremetrics survey, titled, “Face of the New Marketer,” 78% of marketers indicate that social media initiatives give them a leg up over the competition. Yet, some may ask, what exactly is “social media?” And, how should I apply it in my marketing?

The answer to the first question is fairly straightforward, while the answer to the second (how to apply social media in your marketing) will be an evolving answer …and perhaps key topic in future Marketing Minute articles.

First, what is social media? According to the current online dictionaries, social media is defined as anything that uses the Internet to facilitate conversations.

Wikipedia defines social media as “an all encompassing term, defining the activities that come together in a medium using more than one sense of sight, sound, or motion to create displays, picture-sharing opportunities, and connection points through content. Collaborative opportunities to create, post, or react to pictures and videos is critical to social media.”

There are various avenues to share information in social media. Some of the many forms of social media include Internet forums, message boards, blogs, podcasts email, instant messaging, vlogs (video sharing), photo sharing, music sharing and VoIP, or Voice over Internet Protocol.

Within Internet marketing itself, social media is considered the marketing tool that is driven by the users in a collective setting. Audience or reader participation is often a key attribute in social media.

Social media can be broken down into two key processes: Social Media Optimization (SMO), which pertains to tactics webmasters utilize to improve their Web site, blogs or other social media exposure. There a variety of ways to create optimization, such as adding links to a Web site, key word entries and so on.

The other social media process is Social Media Marketing. This aspect of social media includes creating content that gets attention and creates buzz. The more newsworthy or applicable the content is to the user, the better. Standing out and pass along value are important in social media marketing; success in this arena is recognized as when a social media posting takes on a life of its own and becomes “viral” (or shared via the social network by viewers).

As with any marketing strategies, it is important to integrate tactics in order to capture continuity and create greater impact. If social media is not part of your marketing plan, now may be the time for you to integrate it into your plans for 2008! It’s a great time to be social!!