12May 2019 by Bob Cargill

Marketing is Supporting

Marketing
Marketing today is as much about supporting people as it is about changing their minds. In a blog post recently (which you can read here), Mark Schaefer “politely” disagrees with something from Seth Godin's latest book, This Is Marketing: You Can't Be Seen Until You Learn To See. I previewed some of Seth’s book online, but I haven’t read it in its entirety. According to Mark, though, Seth writes, “Marketers make change.” Yet Mark feels differently. He feels that marketers should be “coming alongside” customers, not changing them. I think they’re both right. I think that by supporting our customers, clients and constituents, we have a better chance of wining them over and earning their business. Frankly, I have always agreed with anything either of these iconic, grandmasters of marketing…
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01May 2019 by Bob Cargill
Age Doesn’t Matter on Social Media

Age Doesn’t Matter on Social Media

Branding, Marketing, Social Media
Age doesn’t matter on social media. In a recent issue of AARP The Magazine, there’s a series of profiles on “older Americans” who are crushing it on social media. People like Lili Hayes, Scott Wadsworth, Herbie Russ, Irvin Randle, Judith Boyd, Angie Schmitt and others. These people are looked up to like rock stars and celebrities on YouTube, Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. They’re influencers and authorities, thought leaders and entertainers, gurus and trendsetters. And yes, they’re all over 50 – like me. Age doesn’t matter on social media. Age shouldn’t matter anywhere. Nobody should be looked at differently because they are older than you. No one should be judged, stereotyped, underestimated or treated unfairly because of their age, young or old. There are no boundaries to talent and ability. There…
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03Mar 2019 by Bob Cargill

Don’t Be a One-Trick Pony on Social Media

Branding, Marketing, Social Media
Don’t be a one-trick pony on social media. Unless it’s the only place your audience can be found, don’t spend an inordinate amount of time on just one channel at the expense of others. LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, etc.…you want to be working the crowd in a multitude of places. You want to be diversifying your efforts. Once you've tested and learned where you get the biggest bang for your buck, you want to focus there, of course. But you don’t want to overlook the importance of having a presence elsewhere at the same time. You never know where you’re going to get the most traction down the road. You may think you’re getting good results where you are now, but you have no idea how many opportunities you…
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17Feb 2019 by Bob Cargill
When Social Media Catches Fire

When Social Media Catches Fire

Branding, Fyre Festival, Marketing, Social Media
No other media comes close to social media’s potential to build buzz almost instantaneously and amplify content to the point where it goes viral. I recently watched the Netflix documentary, “Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened,” and found it to be as exasperating as it was entertaining. So many people were hurt in so many ways, especially financially and emotionally. Not only did a group of popular celebrity influencers promote Fyre Festival on social media, but music fans who shelled out big bucks to attend this epic flop used social media, too, to get the word out about their miserable experience there. Yup, social media can giveth and social media can taketh away. For better or worse, social media can catch fire. Use it with care. Use it for…
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12Jan 2019 by Bob Cargill
Selfies on Social Media

Selfies on Social Media

Branding, Marketing, Selfies, Social Media
Look all around you. Selfies are being taken everywhere. People are taking selfies at ballgames and concerts, at the beach and the dinner table, while parachuting and ziplining, in voting booths and business meetings. Selfies are ridiculously popular in the era we’re in, a time when technology and culture have collided to make sharing pictures online both easy and customary. Businesses and brands would be smart to capitalize on this trend, if they are not already. Selfies are a great way to engage not just your employees and colleagues, but your customers and prospects. Look all around you. Everybody likes selfies.
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24Nov 2018 by Bob Cargill
Rock Your Audience

Rock Your Audience

Branding, Business, Marketing, Social Media
I recently saw a ridiculously awesome movie, Bohemian Rhapsody. You know the story. It's about the legendary rock band, Queen, and their late, great lead singer, Freddie Mercury. There's a scene in this movie in which the band is developing the idea for their song, "We Will Rock You." You know the song. They wanted to engage their audience. They wanted their fans to be part of that song. Watching that scene and listening to that song gave me a thought. As it was for Queen in playing that song, it is for all brand and businesses. You want to engage your audience. You want to involve them in whatever it is you do in some way, shape or form. You want to rock your audience.
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25Oct 2018 by Bob Cargill
Transparency Beats Privacy on Social Media

Transparency Beats Privacy on Social Media

Social Media
You can't have social media without being social. And...you can't really be social without being transparent. That’s why transparency beats privacy on social media...every time. Being private means to be holding something back, to be hiding something from public view…and ideally, social media is transparent, fully transparent. That's what I believe, anyway, and that was the premise...kinda sorta...of the 2017 movie, The Circle. The Circle was based on a novel written by Dave Eggers in 2013. The movie is about a tech company called The Circle which places small cameras everywhere to provide real-time video of practically everything. It's a little creepy, sure, and certainly scary for some. But it is my opinion that the premise of the movie, the pros and cons of being fully transparent, is something that…
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21Sep 2018 by Bob Cargill
Satellite Stages on Social Media

Satellite Stages on Social Media

Branding, Marketing, Social Media
I heard Bono on Sirius XM Satellite Radio recently say something about satellite stages. His band, U2, uses these types of stages, often set up in the middle of the audience, to get up-close and personal with their fans. That’s how it is for brands, businesses and anyone who uses social media for professional reasons, too. Your website is your main stage, your presence on social media your satellite stages. Use LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and the like to give your own audience the opportunity to see and hear more from you as a human being, not just a corporate logo. Put yourself out there. Connect with your followers. Engage with your fans. Use social media like a series of satellite stages on which you display a more believable and…
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