I recently had many clients cut their marketing budget in 2008 due to the condition of the financial markets and the economy. I chose to search elsewhere then my usual methods to gain business. This led me into the current freelance market. There are organizations who develop the communication between established freelancers and businesses. Most require a membership fee annually.
So what does this have to do with marketing's future?
First off, it expands your geographic market. I recently lost a project to a design firm in India. they have been a member longer than me and have established a rank in the system. This group is currently ranked #2 in the graphic design category and have earned over $56k this year alone! Those earnings are only recorded if a project is awarded via the organization. They are also in India. They are able to bid lower for a higher quality of work due to the condition of their financial markets. This puts us American firms at a grave disadvantage.
This freelance market also drives the price of our goods and services down. Individuals are able to bid lower than traditional prices have allowed in the past. What the market would pay for a marketing plan even 5 years ago is monumental compared to what one is going for now.
Will this effectively end the modern marketing firm? Probably not. But it should be noted that it is an integral variable to what one day will threaten our occupation. Times, they are a changing. As marketers we already know how to beat this system. Adaptability and ingenuity are our cores and most of the good firms of today will be around in 25 years.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Text Message Marketing - A New Hope
A long time ago in a galaxy far far away...
...this was a good idea. There is a new movement involving text messaging as a means of reaching your consumer base. This method is still in the small scale of production, and hopefully will not be a widely accepted marketing practice.
I will run down the cons of this issue. You can decide the pros for yourself.
1. Consider fax based marketing. Basically the same principle but with paper. This current method is considered to have little respect with consumers and serious marketers. Response and conversion rates are usually less than 1% industry wide. Text messaging will yield lower responses.
2. It will be considered spam. Phone companies will eventually develop a system to block these texts and the total industry will be of no value.
3. It will be considered spam again! Think about those annoying posts you receive on your blogs, myspace pages, facebook pages, etc. Now imagine getting those ads where ever you go on your phone.
4. It will further degrade our occupation and sector. Marketing already gets a bad rep from the ridiculous and mostly unethical ideas the idiots have tried in the past. This will just legitimize claims that marketers are "scum" as a recent business consultant of mine told me about his views on our industry.
5. In an ever changing world of higher definition and interactive content the Internet has brought us, this will be a step backward. Instead of a clever, intelligent message imagine:
...this was a good idea. There is a new movement involving text messaging as a means of reaching your consumer base. This method is still in the small scale of production, and hopefully will not be a widely accepted marketing practice.
I will run down the cons of this issue. You can decide the pros for yourself.
1. Consider fax based marketing. Basically the same principle but with paper. This current method is considered to have little respect with consumers and serious marketers. Response and conversion rates are usually less than 1% industry wide. Text messaging will yield lower responses.
2. It will be considered spam. Phone companies will eventually develop a system to block these texts and the total industry will be of no value.
3. It will be considered spam again! Think about those annoying posts you receive on your blogs, myspace pages, facebook pages, etc. Now imagine getting those ads where ever you go on your phone.
4. It will further degrade our occupation and sector. Marketing already gets a bad rep from the ridiculous and mostly unethical ideas the idiots have tried in the past. This will just legitimize claims that marketers are "scum" as a recent business consultant of mine told me about his views on our industry.
5. In an ever changing world of higher definition and interactive content the Internet has brought us, this will be a step backward. Instead of a clever, intelligent message imagine:
;) call us 4 the best home repair in town! TTYL! LOL! OMG!
Simply ridiculous...
6. Graphics. Text messaging is for text. You would have to attach a graphic, which not all phones support. This will prompt long download times and large file sizes. It's hard enough getting audiences to watch a multi-million dollar commercial for 30 seconds. Why would they put up with low quality images for minutes?
I'm sure I missed numerous problems with this subject. Please respond with your own thoughts on this new idea.
-MarketingGuru
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Internet Marketing and the Future
I have been paying very close attention to the decline of traditional marketing and the new investment on the Internet. While Internet marketing is not for every type of business, it is definitely the fastest growing in the marketing spectrum.
Every recent study about the current job market in our failing economy focuses on jobs that that will be the big growth when we re-bound. On almost every opinionated study that I've read the title "Internet Marketer", or something similar, appears.
I've researched some of the companies that are currently the leaders in this toddler of a concept and have brought them to you today. Take notes. This is why this field is growing and will continue to be a stable in 90% of new age marketing campaigns to come.
Colorado Springs Marketing Firm, Scott & Perry Marketing Solutions
I picked this company due to their approach to working with their clients. Most of their services are typical of a traditional marketing firm, but at a closer glance you can see that they are focused more on design elements. This goes hand-in-hand with what we can do with Internet capabilities and networking solutions. Most of all, however, their volume is based mostly on Web Development. This is apparent due to their recent acquisition of several designers and IT professionals.
Irving Texas E-Marketing, Vizion Interactive
This company's edge is its "interactive" portion of its services, developing custom applications for each client. This is extremely attractive due to the headache and cost of hiring third party developers. Their clean and visible website also hold them in the top of this field.
Redlands California, RedFusion
This company gets on the list due to their many Flash sites developed so far. This has become a growing trend in the E-world and this company is an industry leader. These sites do make SEO and SEM more difficult, but balance that with their mass appeal.
Every recent study about the current job market in our failing economy focuses on jobs that that will be the big growth when we re-bound. On almost every opinionated study that I've read the title "Internet Marketer", or something similar, appears.
I've researched some of the companies that are currently the leaders in this toddler of a concept and have brought them to you today. Take notes. This is why this field is growing and will continue to be a stable in 90% of new age marketing campaigns to come.
Colorado Springs Marketing Firm, Scott & Perry Marketing Solutions
I picked this company due to their approach to working with their clients. Most of their services are typical of a traditional marketing firm, but at a closer glance you can see that they are focused more on design elements. This goes hand-in-hand with what we can do with Internet capabilities and networking solutions. Most of all, however, their volume is based mostly on Web Development. This is apparent due to their recent acquisition of several designers and IT professionals.
Irving Texas E-Marketing, Vizion Interactive
This company's edge is its "interactive" portion of its services, developing custom applications for each client. This is extremely attractive due to the headache and cost of hiring third party developers. Their clean and visible website also hold them in the top of this field.
Redlands California, RedFusion
This company gets on the list due to their many Flash sites developed so far. This has become a growing trend in the E-world and this company is an industry leader. These sites do make SEO and SEM more difficult, but balance that with their mass appeal.
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