Marketing posts

When I write about the black and white, crossword puzzle-like QR code, I feel like I’m talking about the stone age of human development.

The few years of existence for the QR code in marketing efforts, seem like they were first experienced by our grandparents when you look at how the code itself has evolved to walk upright. Whatever you read in this article, chances are, as with buying a new mobile phone or computer, it will all be obsolete almost immediately… or possibly not with this latest step.

First, there were those who decided they could beautify the ugly codes with color. Then, savvy coders learned that codes had a 30% error correction and images could be inserted into the codes for a more enticing design for businesses. Some went as far as building codes out of objects such as bottle corks for wineries and bottle caps for breweries.

It didn’t take long for enterprising websites to pop up that allowed people to design their own QR codes, mixing in images and logos without...

Anyone who’s up on technology has heard of mobile web design and content marketing—two terms used with increasing frequency in the online world.

Can mobile design and a great content marketing strategy be combined without sacrificing either content or design elements? Or does the content of a website suffer because of the restrictions imposed by design for small screens? 

The truth is that great content does not have to be sacrificed for mobile design and can even...

Do you call yourself a freelance web designer? If so, you are only partially correct. The truth is that you also need to be a salesperson.

If you can’t sell your own services, you likely won’t be a freelance web designer for long. A Google search of “freelance web designers” returns 82.2 million results, while the singular term “freelance web designer” returns 99.6 million results. Though some of these hits are articles or blog posts about web design, the majority are websites of designers themselves. Because almost anyone can get into the...

Email marketing is probably the oldest and the most successful form of marketing for the web. Broadly, email marketing involves sending specialized custom emails to generate leads, promote an offer, serve targeted advertisements or initiate deals. Email marketing increases your brand’s radius, allowing you, the marketer to build robust brand value around your product.

But most marketers make a basic mistake – not creating email templates that are optimized for a typical user’s inbox. Sending emails that aren’t formatted, designed or properly structured actually reduces your credibility and when users see a scattered email in their inbox, they simply dont pay attention.

Now,...

Picture this: you’re a freelance designer just starting out. You don’t have much of a reputation yet, but you know what direction you want to go in and who to design for. Your budget is low to non-existent, and you want to start reeling in some clients—big clients even.

What do you do? Where do you start?

Promotion...

The wonders of the QR code have been proved over and over for marketing and customer engagement. You see them all over, read about them in countless articles and have probably used them for a client’s project, but what about the fun side? Have you used them for your own amusement or to spread joy among friends and family?

Creatives have traditionally been the leaders in evolving ideas throughout history and now we are no longer declared witches and heretics we don’t have to worry about being burned at the stake.

The lowly parchment carried by hand begot stamped mail delivery, which begot the telegraph, begetting the...

The first question to ask, is do you really need to send Christmas cards to your clients and business contacts, and if so why? The answer is ‘yes’, and for very good reasons. Leaving aside ‘the spreading good cheer’ aspect, sending holiday greetings is an easy way of showing that you remember, and appreciate, the people you do and have done business with. It generates goodwill for your business by showing that their business matters to you and in turn reminds them of your contribution, or potential contribution, not just in the past but in the future.

But who do you send cards to? Is it everyone with a connection to your business?

Going viral is the holy grail of advertising these days. Mom and Pop run businesses can become global names overnight with the right hashtag, video or promo.

When Metro Trains — the metropolitan rail network for Melbourne, Australia — wanted to raise awareness of the inherent dangers...

In the U.S. election day is finally here. People across the country are heading out to vote, with many U.S. citizens resident abroad having already cast their ballots.

Polls emerging in the U.S. suggest the race is tight in key states, but are increasingly confident that President Obama will win by a narrow margin. Speculation abroad gives Obama a strong victory, with odds of around 12/10; the odds of a Romney victory slipping to just 13/2.

Democracy is a ‘use it or lose it’ entitlement,...

With at least 13 updates to its algorithms since April’s Penguin update targeted sites that violate Google’s webmaster guidelines, it’s clear the search engine giant means business when it comes to promoting quality sites while demoting those relying on black hat SEO techniques.

And while those changes have had many webmasters fuming, it’s really a case of Google finally putting its algorithms where its mouth is and enforcing guidelines it has long asked everyone to follow.

Here then is the new old face of SEO, the essentials Google itself says will help it best find, index, and rank your site along with...

Recently, I ran into a client that wanted to redesign their company’s website. It was made using Flash, and of course wasn’t viewable on many smartphones. The site also lacked a central focus and could use a total overhaul; a redesign here was a no-brainer.

Unfortunately, it’s not so cut and dry in all circumstances. To help me with the direction of the design, the client pointed me towards their business card and logo. I cannot begin to tell you how awful it was. The images were pixelated, the logo was cheesy and it just all around sucked. So, of course being the designer I am, I offered to create something that looked better.

It all made sense to me, but after approaching the client, I couldn’t come up with a great reason as to why the company needed a better look. Yes, I could make it look better, but why fix it if it ain’t broke?

We have all thumbed through blogs, articles and expert accounts telling us when it’s time, and how...