“I want our site to be number one on Google”

The number of times a client has uttered those words to us (or a close variation on the theme) is somewhat staggering.

Sure, we all want it. And for certain parameters, we can get it for you. But while Search Engine Optimization is a very important component of both web development and your overall marketing platform, it cannot stand alone.

Two years ago, I put out a short article advising on the projected importance of sustainable and environmentally friendly packaging in the coming years. That was December 2006, and now nearing the close of 2008, with oil prices soaring and just about every third ad on TV touting their own green spin, I can smugly say, “called it”.

In my personal life, I would be classified as what’s been somewhat unflatteringly coined SCUMY. That is, Socially Conscious Upward Mobile Youth. Though nearing 30, I’m not so sure about that Y at the end any more. I’m not an extremist, but I do what I feel I can. I’m a vegetarian, buy local produce, reduce and reuse where possible, compost or recycle the rest, work paperless and get around by bicycle, when it’s feasible. I also love hot showers and drive a pickup truck so… well, nobody’s perfect.

A catalog is a highly specialized marketing collateral piece that, when designed and produced correctly, will drive customers to complete their purchase with your company over other alternatives. By presenting a tempting display of appealing products in a clear, carefully considered fashion, your catalog can become one of the most powerful calls to action in your sales arsenal – particularly when paired with a niche marketing strategy.

A niche market is a focused, targetable portion of a market… or a narrowly defined group of potential customers. In general, if your business focuses on a niche market, you should be addressing a need for a product or service that is not being addressed by mainstream providers.

Unless you are in the community being targeted, it can be hard to tell upfront whether the design of your creative is going to be effective. But when you’re part of the targeted community, you get the message loud and clear. The trick comes in when you want to target a niche market to which you yourself do not belong. Bridging this gap between business and niche markets thus often requires a thoughtful cultural conversion campaign

Although the days of the “penny” postcard are long over, these convenient cards still have a lot of marketing life left in them, especially with the advent of online postcard printing services that make design (and sometimes the actual mailing) a snap. Postcards afford instant visibility and are effective in boosting sales and building name recognition. Granted a great deal of today’s marketing buzz is on Internet-based advertising, but not everyone stays connected 24 hours a day. Postcards let you easily engage in mass mail-outs without breaking the bank and should not be overlooked in your marketing plan.

What is Postcard Marketing?

Postcards are a simple, inexpensive, and flexible direct mail marketing tool. They can be used to close sales, generate leads, cultivate return business, or introduce new products. In fact, the use of marketing postcards is really limited by nothing but your imagination. Some creative ideas include:

Packaging. It’s something most people don’t necessarily think about, perhaps partly due to the fact that it is so overwhelmingly pervasive. Even just picking up groceries for the week, in a single forum we are subjected to the end results of thousands of individual design and branding endeavours; some good, some bad, and the rest forgettable.

In addition to taking advantage of outstanding growth opportunities, there are several factors driving the increasing interest in taking brands global…

Design in business is much more than just catchy ads. You can use design to generate new ideas and turn them into innovative and competitive products and services, improve your business processes and strengthen and deepen your marketing approach.

If used systematically across your business, design can bring a range of measurable commercial benefits:

• Improved sales and conversion rates
• Improved market position
• Greater customer loyalty
• A stronger and more credible identity for your business
• The ability to open up new markets

Building a strong brand takes commitment, time and hard work, but the result is one of the most valuable assets a company can own. That said, not all assets are static, and your brand image is no exception.

In building your brand, you are creating a new definition with the aim of making it a household name. When people think of tissue, they instantly think of Kleenex. That’s the sort of association you want. Instant identification in the mind of the customer is not enough though… you also need that identification to represent competence, quality, authenticity and credibility. At the same time, your brand needs to remain dynamic, relevant, and at the top of mind while retaining its established heritage and identity.

In the end, the message your brand puts forward must ring true to your business, in its current state, its history, and in what you hope for the future. When your brand image doesn’t represent the message you want to convey, it’s time to consider making a change.

British Bakeries first launched Hovis Invisible Crust, the first ever crust-less bread, in August 2005, and has re-launched the product this January with a $4.5 million rebranding campaign. The company says, ‘It has performed brilliantly with great consumer feedback’. A perfect example of how rebranding can revitalize a product, British Bakeries is investing at a critical point to bring this revolutionary new product in line with the rest of the Hovis range, creating a sense of continuity and trust in the new product, and bringing fresh attention to the rest of the brand’s existing products.