» Lucid At Random

Two years, one flood, some jelly and 100 blog posts.

Kim Phillips — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 01:31:01 +0000

When I started this blog two years ago, social media was still perceived as a narcissistic time-suck rather than a useful tool for engaging with customers and prospects. Putting up a website was a one-time event instead of an ongoing process. Blogging was just beginning to be seen as a viable publishing platform for business. Since I didn’t really know where this blog would go, I named it “Lucid at Random,” to cover my butt. And I just started writing. The first post, “Jelly! We need more jelly!” was about how Facebook and Twitter connected people during an epic flood; I drank the Kool-Aid on social media then and there. Since then, it has become a combination of marketing tips, critiques, and the occasional rant on bad writing and bone-headed business practices… sort of a magazine in small, sometimes cranky installments.

Most people would rather have minor dental work done or clean the garage than write for business. I happen to love writing and (please, dear God) have gleaned some useful knowledge in over thirty years in the marketing profession. The tools have changed; when I started, newspapers were being assembled on art boards and corporations could control the spin. Now, anybody with a keyboard has a platform, and consumers get to talk back. It’s an exciting time.

But there are no magic bullets in marketing. (Here’s where you either bail or go get a fresh cup of coffee and read on.) It takes planning, investment, and consistent effort; it takes energy. Truth be told, I spend so much time helping other people with their marketing that I often neglect my own; some prospects and even some customers don’t really know what all I do, and that’s my fault. So, here are some “back issues” of Lucid at Random that show that in a deeper way than portfolio shots can; if you find anything of value, please subscribe via email or RSS (look to your left). And please do comment.

Advertising: What’s In It for Me? | The #1 Biggest Mistake in Advertising |
Simple is Hard
Blogging: 5 Reasons to Blog for Business | 10 More Reasons |
Branding: A Perfect Brand Falls from Grace | How Well Do You Guard Your Brand? |
7 Sure-Fire Ways to Kill Your Brand | Brand Bullies
Business Practices: Why Bartering is a Bad Idea | When to Fire a Client | It’s All Marketing
Business Writing: Without Further Adieu | How to Write Killer Headlines |
How Twitter Can Improve Your Writing | 3 Fastest Ways to Cheapen Your Writing
Content Management: Content is King | Freshness Counts | 7 Reasons You Shouldn’t Leave Content Management to the Intern
Social Media: I Hate You! (and Why You Shouldn’t Mind) | Did You Jump Too Soon? |
A Steady Drip, Not a Firehose | The Truth About Facebook
Free Tools: Collection of 11 | and 14 More

Now at AllTop. It’s gratifying that “Lucid at Random” has been added to AllTop’s round-up of blogs. Also check out the 12Most guest posts.

Contact Me | Facebook | Twitter @LucidKim | LinkedIn | Google+

Five reasons content management shouldn’t be left to the intern.

Kim Phillips — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:55:39 +0000

Most companies hand off their social media, blog, e-news and other web content to the most “tech savvy” person in the office – usually the youngest, maybe even an intern. That person becomes the de facto brand manager. But being fearless on the internet isn’t the only skill required for the job of content manager, or even the most important one: branding experience is.

People who grew up in an all-digital age are so comfortable with the technology that they sometimes have trouble separating themselves from the persona of the company they work for. Living online removes certain barriers (like needing a library card to find information), but the lack of boundaries and no experience with maintaining a strategically crafted brand “voice” can spell disaster. It may not result in a monumental customer service fail, but it might. The more likely scenario is that managing online content without guidelines simply erodes the investment made so far in the brand.

What Your Online Content Manager (Brand Manager, Really) Should Consider

The Voice of the Brand – Who is speaking? Is it one clearly identifiable person? Why, or why not? And to whom are they speaking… donors? moms? video-gamers?
Tone & Style – Is your brand fun and funky, cute, or corporate and buttoned-up?
Spelling & Grammar – Mistakes erode credibility. Every time.
Subject Matter – A nonprofit group that serves the homeless really doesn’t need to talk about the best Super Bowl ads. Decide which four or five topics make sense to your readers and stick with those.
Legal Issues – Are your reposts done with proper attribution and link-backs? Do the images you use come from paid-for or uncopyrighted sources? Are there proper disclosures and disclaimers for every post?

Good internet skills are, by now, the bare minimum for employment and don’t qualify someone to manage a brand. If you need help putting together guidelines for content management for your staff, there is help.

Your customers are missing you on social media.

Kim Phillips — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 14:21:32 +0000

When it comes to social media, business owners often wonder, “Am I posting too much?” If your followers and “likes” are increasing, the answer is no. In fact, you may not be posting enough, especially if your customers use your social media channels for customer service. HuffPo reports that 78% of consumers believe that social media will either replace other customer service avenues or become the dominant one. And, 50% of everybody interacts with a brand via social media.

If your business has a social media presence, it has a customer service channel. It is an open door, and sometimes unhappy customers walk through it with a bullhorn. That’s an opportunity. Don’t take down negative comments; show how well you handle complaints. (Taking down negative comments destroys credibility.) If all the complaints are negative, you have an opportunity to fix something that’s seriously broken.

Now that you’ve given your customers — and prospects — a way to interact with your business, stay in touch. Post relevant, useful information that makes them happy.

We can help you keep the conversation going.

Join us on Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter @LucidKim | Google+

Branding, from the mouths of babes.

Kim Phillips — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 14:02:14 +0000

When 3-1/2 year old Lily Robinson noticed that the “Tiger Bread” at Sainsbury’s looked more like the pattern on a giraffe, her mom helped her write a letter to the UK grocery chain to ask why the name didn’t fit the product. Her mom also put up a Facebook page to campaign far a name change. The chain listened, changed the product’s name, and sent Lily a gift card for her suggestion. This isn’t just another story about the power of social media: it’s about how a company listens to the consumer. Sainsbury’s listened, changed a brand, and gained tremendous goodwill… and a marketing opportunity. Isn’t this how marketing should always work?

Splash! Concrete Network does email marketing right.

Kim Phillips — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 14:55:36 +0000

Concrete may not sound like a very interesting subject; the word fetches up images of cold, hard, boring grey – but not the way Concrete Network talks about it. Their newsletters make what seems to be an industrial material into a warm, colorful, fascinating thing. The content is fabulous, full of gorgeous pictures of creative uses of concrete. The newsletters are personalized, and they come at just the right frequency. There are links to all kinds of useful information, and this month’s issue has a seasonal theme. The writing is snappy, and it’s easy to share and to subscribe. The whole newsletter feels like a mini-website. This is the way to do email marketing.

For help with your email marketing, click here. | Join us on Facebook

New collection of 11 free online marketing tools.

Kim Phillips — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 16:58:14 +0000

Here are some of the latest in tools for accounting, social sharing, online portfolios, collaboration, creativity and content management. Subscribe to this blog and we’ll send along more as we find them for you.

Rafflecopter—Facebook requires the use of a third-party app for contests, and this one is super-simple to use; takes about five minutes to install, including the iFrame app. Even non-technical folks will find it a breeze. Here’s a contest you can enter yourself if you’re logged into Facebook, created with Rafflecopter.

Outright—We use Wave, but this one looks quite similar.

What Do You Love—Type in any subject and watch what happens: instant inspiration for social media managers, bloggers, and newsletter writers.

Cuttings.me—Writers of every stripe will love this online portfolio that is easy to share.

Buffer—Turn the firehose of social media posts into a steady stream; your fans will appreciate it, and here’s why…

Photosynth—Make and share panoramic photos; perfect for realtors, architects, travel agents and home remodelers.

Gaconfig—If you find Google Analytics a baffling maze, you’re not alone. These folks help, a lot.

Pearltrees—Yet another social sharing tool, but this one looks very simple and clean.

Pinterest—Blows them all out of the water for collecting, collaborating, and sharing. Use it as an online portfolio, a way of curating blog information, all kinds of things. All it takes is an invitation.

Animoto—Create videos and share in a snap with the free version; more features cost a little.

Hoody—This one is in beta but creative types will want to watch it for a way to generate work.

What are your favorite free online tools? Are any of these helpful to you? Comment, and share.

Great websites that don’t have to be.

Kim Phillips — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 16:01:30 +0000

If you’ve ever tried to do any of these things in person – renew your driver’s license, find income tax forms, or get information about doing a bulk mailing – you may have hit a wall of red tape and indifference. Doing these things online, and much more, can now be fast and pleasant. What is the motivation for government and quasi-government entities to build websites with such visual and functional elegance? You might say it’s to save money by reducing the need for actual humans to do the work, but they could do that with clunky websites and still hire less people. If you’ve ever been to the post office in the rest of the world, you may not have had a fast, pleasant experience. (I’m guessing Germany has an efficient postal system but have never tried it.) Here are three websites that are fabulous, whether or not they have to be.

www.irs.gov | www.tennessee.gov | www.usps.com

True, the post office now has competition, but can anyone really eliminate snail mail from their lives?

What is your favorite great-but-doesn’t-have-to-be website?

Branding in poor taste.

Kim Phillips — Sun, 15 Jan 2012 17:51:10 +0000

Having spent my entire career creating, promoting and defending brands, I drank the branding Kool-Aid* long ago. In fact, when I worked in advertising for what became the second-largest bank in America, I was referred to as Logo Cop. A brand is an investment, and maintaining its integrity should be a zealous pursuit.

There are lots of ways to damage a brand, even for those ostensibly in charge of protecting it. Here’s one: be a bully. Chick-fil-A, in its infinite and litigious wisdom, is muscling a tiny t-shirt shop for making shirts that say “Eat more kale,” maintaining that it infringes on the fast-food chain’s ubiquitous advertising campaign. Visit the t-shirt manufacturer’s website and you’ll see that the owner, Bo, is all about eating natural, close-to-the-ground food, clearly relating in no way to Chick-fil-A’s offerings. But Chick-fil-A can use their massive war chest to grind poor Bo into the dirt.

Brand bullies aren’t limited to the corporate world. Susan G. Komen Foundation jumped on grassroots efforts to raise money for breast cancer research that included “for the Cure” in their name. Evidently, “Lemonade Stand for the Cure” will get you in hot water with the purveyors of pink-ribbon merchandise. Next time you buy a sanctioned pink product, realize that some of it will go to Komen, and some of that will go for legal expenses.

Bullies beat up on littler guys because they can. That leaves a very poor taste in the mouths of the public that supports the brand. Steven Colbert says it best.

*For Kraft’s lawyers: I consider Kool-Aid to be a tasty, healthful and refreshing beverage that also makes an extremely effective hair dye. This is an opinion piece.

The Colbert Report

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Tip/Wag – Susan G. Komen Foundation & Spider-Man Musical

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March to Keep Fear Alive

5 great reasons to look at marketing outside your industry.

Kim Phillips — Sun, 08 Jan 2012 17:01:44 +0000

For the most part, music industry marketers tend to look at what other music industry marketers are doing. Financial service marketers follow what other financial service marketers do. Same for nonprofit marketers, legal marketers, tourism marketers and so on. Whatever business you’re in, there are some excellent reasons to look at what marketers in other industries are doing.

1. Get outside your comfort zone. We tend to be happiest where we are and to resist change; that limits our thinking.
2. Look different. The primary objective of all marketing should be to stand out from the competition; if bicycle shop #1 markets itself the same way bicycle shop #2 does, it won’t be clear why bicycle shop #1 is a better choice.
3. Learn new techniques. If you are in a conservative industry, check out how the popular, more “out-there” businesses market themselves; see if there are methods you can apply to your own business.
4. Impress the boss. Show the head honcho that you’re a creative thinker. If you’re the boss, you may just impress yourself.
5. Take some risks. All great marketers do this. Try out some things; it’s okay to fail now and then. Experience is what you get when you don’t get what you want.

If you find yourself reading the same blogs, networking with the same people in your profession, attending the same rubber-chicken lunch-and-learn groups, step out. Find an industry that’s 180 degrees different from yours and go to their next meeting. It may just be what you need to re-energize your marketing.

What are your ideas for getting outside your industry?

Amazing Paper Artists

Kim Phillips — Sun, 01 Jan 2012 22:01:22 +0000

In the flat, 2-D digital world, the tactile sense goes wanting; it’s impossible to experience art and illustration by touch. Paper has a warmth and depth that pixels lack. Color comes from the interplay of light and shadow with the material itself. These amazing paper artists are designers, craftsmen and women, engineers, builders, molders and painters in the natural world. With their hands, they coax images from organic stuff to tell us stories and to delight us in a way that a screen alone cannot.

To learn more about each artist, click on the image. If you enjoy this post, please subscribe.

Helen Musselwhite

Jeff Nishinaka

Ian Wright

Yulia Broadskaya

Peter Calleson

Julien Vallee

Jen Stark

Hunter Stabler

Archie Granot

Rob Ryan

Jo Lynn Alcorn

Mia Pearlman