I recently gave a presentation that spoke about the upcoming trends for 2010, I know, I know you are all probably kicking yourself for having missed it but please try not to dwell on such disappointments! In that talk one of the things I mentioned was that advertisers will not only continue to shy away from the traditional forms of advertising in favor of a greater online precense (just what the newspapers hate to hear), but that they would have to find creative ways to grab our attention in the process. The first major change of strategy has been announced and it's a pretty significant player in the advertising game.
Pepsi has decided against doing any TV advertising during the biggest football game of the year, the Super Bowl (or as the Cleveland Browns call it: "That game we watch on TV every year with the rest of America"). You may be sitting there thinking "big deal". It costs millions of dollars for 30 seconds, that is a smart business move. While bringing up the financial aspect is a fair point, it was 3 million bucks for 30 seconds last year, that is not the reason Pepsi gives as the reason for not reaching into their corporate pockets. According to spokesperson Nicole Bradley the game just doesn't work for Pepsi's goals for the next year. "In 2010 each of our brands has a strategy and marketing platform that will be less about a singular event and more about a movement" she said.
This move by Pepsi signals the first in what I am pretty sure is going to be a mass movement from traditional broadcast media into new creative means of getting your message out. I recently read that there is a projected 43% increase in online advertising expected in 2010 over this current year. If this is successful starting in January I have a feeling that increase could end up being much larger. When you have a "big dog" like Pepsi deciding to stay on the porch for the Super Bowl, you have a major player shifting gears and you can expect more to follow. The real question for Pepsi is this: Will their new mode of advertisment lead to greater visibility? They have decided to launch a campaign entitled "Pepsi Refresh Project" which will allow communities to submit ideas for refreshing areas of their communities that could use a facelift to better meet the needs of its residents. The web site will launch January 13th and they will give away 20 million dollars, so I am guessing they will have more than a few people visiting the site. On top of it, they have gotten me to write more about them NOT advertising during the super bowl than if they actually HAD done it for the 24th straight year.
All of this leads us to think that at some point one of two things is going to happen. First, the traditional broadcast media companies are going to have to respond with a different approach themselves in order to remain a viable force in the marketplace. The DVR and satellite radio has made broadcast commercials a thing of the past in most cases. Pop up ads are blocked through our virus protection online so its harder to reach a customer through those tradtional online methods as well. It will be interesting to say the least, but I can assure you the TV people at least will figure out a way. I have ideas on how, but that will have to wait for another blog.
So as we head to the holiday's and we move on through the New Year the times will continue to change and so many of those messages are going to fall on deaf ears. Which leads to an interesting question: If your TV advertisement has a tree falling in the woods and nobody is watching, does it still make a sound? (I don't know that answer, but I know it still cost you money!!)
Happy Holidays!
Monday, December 21, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Doing As We Say, Not As We Do
I want to start by saying that the Small Business Development Center network is full of some of the smartest business people you will ever meet, so if we give you advice or invite you to come in and sit with us to talk, or you need help with your business that you should jump on every opportunity to pick up even the smallest tid bit of information in a seminar. Having said that, I also want to tell you that not only are we every bit as busy as all the small business owners we meet with but we are also just as guilty at not doing some of the most important things in today's business world, the same things we tell our clients they HAVE to do.
Let's use this blog as an example. We tell our clients that they absolutely MUST use their website to stay in touch with their customers and clients. They have to keep those websites fresh, up to date, and full of great new content. All of which is great in theory of course. When push comes to shove and it all starts to hit the fan or time gets tight during the day, the things that are easiest to push to the side are in fact those websites, Facebook pages, and of course...your blog.
This is my first time sitting down to write on behalf of the SBDC here in Kentucky, although I did blog some for the organization in Florida and I have to tell you, sitting down to write and pass on helpful online information is not exactly the first item on my agenda every day. It is probably not even in the top 10 if I am being honest. It slots in there someplace between "delete useless spam email" and "counting down the last 10 seconds on the microwave so I can fill my belly with this delicious frozen lunch".
So when you sit across the desk from us or in one of our seminars and you tell us that you know you have to do the online stuff and take advantage of social media but you just don't have the time- trust me, we know exactly how you feel. Does that mean we forgive you? No way! ha! I am here to tell you that while we are just as guilty as the small business owners we council, we will continue to hammer home the importance of using these digital media tools to your advantage even if we are slow to make those updates ourselves.
With so many people just a google search away from possibly locating you and your business you have to make sure you are doing everything you can to have that key word they type show up on those search results linked with your business. One of the best ways to do that is to make sure your website, your blog, and your Facebook page stay as current as possible. Search engines LOVE websites that are always new, fresh, and updated on a regular basis. I know it's feels more like a chore at times, and I know you would much rather be doing something hands on with a customer, on a job site, or doing the day to day running of your business, we all would. But blogs are big business, Facebook is the hottest business interaction tool out there, and even Twitter is one of those things as a business owner you may find more of an annoyance than a help, but I can assure you the world is watching.
As we approach the end of 2009 and we all begin to make the list of New Years resolutions that we will break by January 2nd (come on, you know it's true!) I am going to add: "Keep our blog, Facebook page, and website updated at least twice a week if not more". We will if you will! Talk to you soon.
Sean Moore
SBDC Training Coordinator
sean.moore@uky.edu
http://www.ksbdc.org/
http://www.sbdcatuk.web.officelive.com/
Let's use this blog as an example. We tell our clients that they absolutely MUST use their website to stay in touch with their customers and clients. They have to keep those websites fresh, up to date, and full of great new content. All of which is great in theory of course. When push comes to shove and it all starts to hit the fan or time gets tight during the day, the things that are easiest to push to the side are in fact those websites, Facebook pages, and of course...your blog.
This is my first time sitting down to write on behalf of the SBDC here in Kentucky, although I did blog some for the organization in Florida and I have to tell you, sitting down to write and pass on helpful online information is not exactly the first item on my agenda every day. It is probably not even in the top 10 if I am being honest. It slots in there someplace between "delete useless spam email" and "counting down the last 10 seconds on the microwave so I can fill my belly with this delicious frozen lunch".
So when you sit across the desk from us or in one of our seminars and you tell us that you know you have to do the online stuff and take advantage of social media but you just don't have the time- trust me, we know exactly how you feel. Does that mean we forgive you? No way! ha! I am here to tell you that while we are just as guilty as the small business owners we council, we will continue to hammer home the importance of using these digital media tools to your advantage even if we are slow to make those updates ourselves.
With so many people just a google search away from possibly locating you and your business you have to make sure you are doing everything you can to have that key word they type show up on those search results linked with your business. One of the best ways to do that is to make sure your website, your blog, and your Facebook page stay as current as possible. Search engines LOVE websites that are always new, fresh, and updated on a regular basis. I know it's feels more like a chore at times, and I know you would much rather be doing something hands on with a customer, on a job site, or doing the day to day running of your business, we all would. But blogs are big business, Facebook is the hottest business interaction tool out there, and even Twitter is one of those things as a business owner you may find more of an annoyance than a help, but I can assure you the world is watching.
As we approach the end of 2009 and we all begin to make the list of New Years resolutions that we will break by January 2nd (come on, you know it's true!) I am going to add: "Keep our blog, Facebook page, and website updated at least twice a week if not more". We will if you will! Talk to you soon.
Sean Moore
SBDC Training Coordinator
sean.moore@uky.edu
http://www.ksbdc.org/
http://www.sbdcatuk.web.officelive.com/
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