Our global, collaborative marketplace is driving innovation faster than ever before. Small companies are leveraging the power of social and automated marketing, appearing larger and making it harder to differentiate between small and big businesses. This increased lack of differentiation means it’s getting harder to get noticed.

Disruption in the marketing world is not a new idea – in fact, it’s one of its founding principles. But there are two sides to disruption – dark and delightful. How many times …

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Posted on April 09, 2013 by Bryan Kramer

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It’s been three weeks since my return from my first SXSW Interactive conference in Austin, and I am finally getting around to writing my recap. Things to note about sentence #1: 1) My first time at SXSW. Yes, I am no longer a virgin of said elusive event, and just like the actual first time you do it, mistakes were made. 2) Been back for 21 days. And just now writing about it, obviously while the memories are fresh. And …

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Posted on April 03, 2013 by Courtney Smith

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We are getting closer than ever before to achieving the highest level of “social intelligence” – meaning understanding the real time information we have access to that powers smarter decisions faster, and with more accuracy. Social media has both set the platform for us to become more intelligent and nimble and address the rising expectations of today’s customer. And, new tools continue to multiply exponentially to help us wrangle this platform/medium/channel. The question is… how do we get smarter about …

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Posted on February 21, 2013 by Bryan Kramer

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A company’s digital body language is an assessment of the collective behavior across the Internet, including marketing initiatives and user interactions in the earned, owned and paid sectors online. As opportunities to interact socially are growing leaps and bounds, paying attention to your personal digital body language – as a representative of both your personal brand and your company brand – is becoming critical. Is it consistent? Is it thoughtful? Is it in line with your company’s brand tone… or …

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Posted on December 17, 2012 by Bryan Kramer

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Here’s my conundrum: I’m writing a blog post about rising above social media clutter . . . and the only way you’ll read this is if it rises above your social media clutter. It’s the 80s version of sending a direct mail piece that explains how to “get noticed” in your customer’s mailbox.

I better be freakin’ interesting here. No pressure.

First, let’s acknowledge this—what we consider to be clutter is not necessarily “clutter.” I mean, people inherently filter information. …

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Posted on November 19, 2012 by Bryan Kramer

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By now, as a marketer, you should know just how important social media is to you and your job. Few companies have ignored what this powerful tool can do for yourself and your company. It allows not only engagement but also the ability to listen to your current and potential customers as well as others in your field. It’s the biggest focus group in the world! However, to be taken seriously and get the most out of it, setting up …

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Posted on November 12, 2012 by Bryan Kramer

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With all the talk of social media marketing, I often wonder if people forget about the greatest tool in your marketing arsenal. I’m referring to your corporate website. It’s still your main marketing hub, the place where people go to learn all about your brand and discover more about your products and services. As prevalent as social media is, it’ll still be some time before your Facebook page becomes your corporate site.

Of course, I write a lot about social …

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Posted on November 06, 2012 by Bryan Kramer

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The biggest shift in brand marketing is not about time, money or budgets—it’s about ownership. Now more than ever, your audience plays a role in defining your brand. You control your brand’s message, yes, but don’t believe for one second that consumers aren’t doing a little “messaging” of their own. They’re helping to shape your brand, and they’ll have that conversation with or without you. In case you haven’t been formally introduced, welcome to the Land of Social Media.

I …

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Posted on October 30, 2012 by Bryan Kramer

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One of my greatest mentors (@mwaxmantoo) always said that 90% complete is 100% worthless. Unless you carry something through to the end, you’ll never see true results.

This is true, and perhaps now more than ever in this new social economy. So you or your brand connected with someone. Now what? Someone visited your website and offered up an email address. Or maybe they signed up to get a white paper. Maybe they even put down some cash and subscribed …

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Posted on September 19, 2012 by Bryan Kramer

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Have you ever listened to someone speak and thought, this guy or girl gets me? Or seen an ad that resonated with you on a gut level?

It’s not magic, ladies and gentleman. It’s most likely about context, which is basically “the circumstances that form the setting for an event, statement or idea, and in terms by which it can be fully understood.” In other words, it’s not just about the message, it’s also about everything happening around the …

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Posted on September 07, 2012 by Bryan Kramer

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