New Media, Marketing and Entrepreneurship

Well, I am back from a very good trip to Bangalore. Met some old entrepreneur friends, some interesting people. Connected with some very established people and re-fueled my engine for my entrepreneurial journey ahead!

Though while on the way I connected with some online marketers on the flight back and here I am writing a piece which I have wanted to since sometime now!

Let me start by saying: Branding and Obscenity are Pretty Much the Same

Why do I say this? Well, the guy sitting right next to me looked at a book I was reading, which was about Branding and how radical concepts have changed consumer perception overtime. I was reading a few case studies and making notes, for a couple of Offline Branding Campaigns I am working on. Now suddenly this guy shoots, about how he is an Online Marketer and does handles campaigns online and how his firm has been doing lots of work.

Without an introduction, I heard him as a client, and asked queries, and he started telling me about how Google helps, SEO, PPC and SMM works. Especially SMM, which we also know by Social Media Marketing. Since I was in the Case Study mode, I posed a question:

Give me 4 solid case studies with the ROI that you have generated for the client or where you have actually gone back to the client telling him that he needed offline/ other marketing techniques as well, and how did you execute it!

And this gentleman starts discussing the best works he has done. A viral campaign, which had x number of hits…Helped a company generate these many leads online (which he had no ideas, of how much was the conversion).

Anyway, being a good listener, I patiently heard him, and then asked another question:

What is the difference between Branding and Marketing and why did some of his campaigns did not survive and what he then suggested to those clients?

I am NOT generalizing this, but I have been interacting with Online Marketers, majority of them in their late 20′s and early 30′s who have had no experience of raising a brand. Who have not seen the entire cycle, boasting about serving the Indian SME in scaling up.

I have been into the Social Media scene, since sometime now, and have struggled with the statistics, which I could really go back with, to a client and suggest him, this is where you should increase/ decrease your marketing spend and this is what you should look at diversifying.

I have NEVER heard from an Online Marketer that they have ever gone back to the client telling them, that look you product needs this, as this is what you customer is looking for on the internet

Majority of Online Marketing companies optimize campaigns according to what the clients are searching a product/ service with. Well, I challenge this thought. How do you that it was the right consumer who was searching this term which you just took from suggestions which Google Adwords provide you.

Branding – YES, Social Media helps You do Just That

Okay, so now I have my Branding lessons on. I get to know how Branding is established, online:

• a page/ profile on facebook
• an account on twitter
• targeted Ads on blogs/ sites
• ghost writing on discussion forums etc.
• videos on YouTube
• ppts on Slideshare
• photos on flickr

And if you still cannot achieve traffic numbers, well, go and post this content on various multiple platforms which are identical, so your content will be looked upon by more and more people an chances by simple probability to achieve are higher.

Okay, so I understand probability, but I am still not convinced with this number generation method, I remarked.

I am a Social Media guy and I have a problem with how things are going in India today

Okay, so for all those, who feel I have a personal bias, I have explored the online media to a good extent and hence I write my thoughts here. Majority of bloggers, social media experts/ evangelists/ marketers, strategists, have not had any Branding experience and talk Brand all the time. I have a particular issue with this, as many a times, what they dont realize is they can grow only if their client(S) grow.

Online is the new thing – you have to get on Social Media coz DELL made 3 million dollars from twitter

This is what I have heard from every religious online marketer, I have interacted with, who is pitching to any business from technology to holiday to whatever. Coz DELL did it, hence the opportunity exists and as in India, a small company thinks, even if I can achieve 30% of this, at a low cost, well I will make decent numbers.

And what happens month on month when you go ahead with Online Marketing for your business

• MONTH 1
  • Both the online marketing agency and the client are excited, many things happening around, online training, blogs building up, google ads, higher listing on search engines WOW
    • The marketer goes back and shares the numbers:
    • number of blogs, number of blog posts, google ads numbers, how they got the company(s) site(S) listed high on search engines on specific keywords
• Month2
  • Create content | POST it – HOST it – Virality!
    • Lets do it! Pictures, PPTs, Blog posts, Videos and what not
    • We will post it here – there – everywhere and wallah this will happen and this
  • Conversations are not happening – says the client!
    • Lets do ghost writing
    • Lets do ghost profiles
    • Lets do ghost comments
• Month3
  • Houston We’v got a PROBLEM
    • Firefighting mode

What did you till now, after a quarter?

Well, Sir, look at your brand, look at how many people came to this landing page, look at all of this. Sales will start happening soon.

Lets See – the client now is thinking of how to convert the contract into a pay for performance?

Well, and this is where problems start. Retainership goes down and performance kicks in, knowing well, you dont even know what GAP EXISTS (if any) between the following parties:

• Senior management
• Existing (employees and clients)
• Prospective (employees and clients)

The majority of online marketers, go ahead with no such GAP analysis, and without knowing what exists in the market and what needs to be addressed, just go ahead because they have a medium to connect people with, because out of the 300 million plus people on facebook, there will always be some who will be looking for your product/ service.

Well, I have no inherent bias against anyone, but if I strongly feel, if you are not clear of something, well, dont fluke and sell, coz what you don’t realize is anyway, after 3 years, there are only the better ones, who will be having the repetitive business, because you will be out of market to which you have been marketing.

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Well, I think this post has been in the waiting since a long time now. Most of the readers of the blog and some of my friends have pursued me to write this piece!!

Okay, so without any vague stuff, i would probably share the basic points every blogger must keep and take care of to increase the traffic!!

Increase TRAFFIC to your Blog

1. Concentrate on the topic… write posts that need to be read right now.
2. Talk like an expert (so you have to have enough knowledge about the subject you are writing about).
3. If you can break news nothing better!!
4. Start a topic which has not been started before by many (be amongst the first few) and let people discuss about it in their blogs/posts etc
5. Share your expertise generously so people recognize it and depend on you
6. Encourage your readers to help you manipulate the technorati top blog list.
7. Don’t write about your wife, your boyfriend or your kids.
8. Write long, definitive posts.
9. Write neat things about fellow bloggers, daring them to respond (with links back to you) on their blog.
10. Share linklove and expect some back.
11. Include polls, meters and other eye candy.
12. Tag your posts. Use del.ico.us.
13. Coin a term or two
14. Do email interviews with the well-known
15. Answer your email.
16. Use photos with right tags and names to them
17. Encourage your readers to digg your posts. (and to use furl and reddit). Do it with every post.
18. Post your photos on flickr.
19. Share your blog posts links over Twitter
20. Encourage your readers to subscribe by RSS.
21. Include comments so your blog becomes a virtual water cooler that feeds itself.
22. Assume that every day is the beginning, because you always have new readers.
23. Highlight your best posts on your Squidoo lens.
24. Refer to useful but little-known resources.
25. Write about stuff that appeals to the majority of current blog readers–like gadgets and web 2.0.
26. Write about Google.
27. Have relevant ads that are even better than your content.
28. Don’t include comments, people will cross post their responses.
29. Write posts that each include dozens of trackbacks to dozens of blog posts so that people will notice you.
30. Run no ads.
31. Keep tweaking your template to make it include all the nice stuff that would make it easier for people to share and take you further!!
32. Write about blogging.
33. Digest the good ideas of other people, all day, every day.
34. Invent a whole new kind of art or interaction.
35. Post on weekdays, because there are more readers.
36. Write about a whole gamut of different topics so you don’t bore your readers.
37. Post on weekends, because there are fewer new posts.
38. Don’t interrupt your writing with a lot of links.
39. Dress your blog (fonts and design) as well as you would dress yourself for a meeting with a stranger.
40. Don’t promote yourself and your business or your books or your projects at the expense of the reader’s attention
41. Be patient
42. Give credit to those that inspired, it makes your writing more useful
43. Write about only one thing, in ever-deepening detail, so you become definitive
44. Write about stuff that attracts a community. You will instantly find a large number of visitors there
45. Don’t be boring.

Finally write stuff that people want to “Read and Share”

Tell me if you want more such stuff: Leave a comment or mail: paritosh@paritoshsharma.com

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