DOES THE PRINT MEDIA NOSE-DIVE PRESENT AN OPPORTUNITY FOR ADVERTISERS?

Recent reports show that print media circulation is down… WAY down. Revenues have been in decline for six straight months. The Audit Bureau of Circulations says that all but one of the top 25 juggernaut newspapers are down. The lone gainer is the Wall Street Journal, which experienced a tine growth rate of 0.61%.

An ordinary person’s first thought would be that declining circulation certainly means less bang for your buck with traditional newsprint media advertising. But could there possibly be a way that this situation could bring a positive result for advertisers? Possibly so!

Today’s podcast will discuss this scenario, and also the answer to leveraging your print media advertising campaigns with social media. Questions or comments? Post them to the blog below, or call me at (636) 377-0006 and leave a 30-second message. Sound off!

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 Print Media Decline - Advertising Waste, or Opportunity? [7:33m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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UPS VIDEO – SEIZING SOCIAL MEDIA OPPORTUNITIES

This video by Adam Ostrow via the Mashable blog comes from the “Seizing Opportunities” video series produced by the UPS company. Adam gives a straight-forward explanation of why you should monitor the social media activity in your industry and create your own social media marketing plan.

We all realize by now that business marketing is making a serious shift to social media sites. The three most important social media platforms today are Facebook, Twitter, and blogging in general. If you are just getting started in “web 2.0″ marketing, this would make a great foundation, and you don’t have to create anything elaborate. Getting involved and interacting with people should be your main goal.

Adam explains that it is vital to keep track of what is going on in your industry. A good way to do this is to follow industry leaders on social media websites. For example, I pay close attention to Fox Television’s Clayton Morris on Twitter to stay on the edge of social media strategy consulting. A useful site that you can use for searching out industry leaders is Twellow.

Next, you will want to decide on what management software platforms that you will use in order to stay up on the information that industry leaders are putting out on the web. For example, desktop applications for Twitter such as Tweetdeck or Twihrl will allow you to organize the way that you keep up with this information. There are also numerous cell phone applications that allow you to track Tweets. You can even sign up for social media alerts which will email you any time your business name (or one that you are tracking) has been posted to a social media forum.

Overall, I consider it a “best practice” to stay connected with industry leaders and your clientele via social media websites in order to maximize your exposure and marketing potential. Enjoy the video!

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IMPROVING THE PERFORMANCE METRICS OF “STONEHENGE MEDIA” ADVERTISING WITH WEB 2.0 LEVERAGE

How do you currently measure the success of your “Stonehenge” media advertisements? What type of feedback or response do you use to gauge the effectiveness or success of a newspaper ad, radio spot, tv commercial or billboard? In today’s podcast, we’ll talk about traditional performance metrics for Stonehenge media and how you can leverage your response rate with the addition of social media marketing.

Additionally, we’ll discuss “click tracking” as a method of evaluating effectiveness, and whether or not this is a dependable indicator. Listen to the podcast and post your questions and responses below!

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 Measuring the Effectiveness of Traditional Media Advertising [11:18m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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Good Twitter Tricks & Shortcuts or Marketing FAIL?

There are lots of ways to market your business or service on Twitter.  Lately, I’ve seen several consultants, guides, and blogs promoting some seriously tacky Twitter marketing shortcuts. Implementing these shortcuts in your Twitter marketing campaign can actually do you more harm than good. Before you dive in head-first into your marketing efforts, listen to some of these big turn-offs that you want to avoid in order to protect your social media reputation.

Questions about this podcast? Post a message below, or call our new Google Voice message line and leave a 30-second question! The phone number is (636) 377-0006. We look forward to hearing from you!

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 Twitter Tricks & Shortcuts or Marketing Fail? [10:05m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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BUILDING A MASSIVE TWITTER FOLLOWING – IS THIS THE BEST WAY TO MARKET YOUR BUSINESS?

In today’s podcast, the topic of discussion centers around Twitter marketing. Is it really advantageous to spend time building a huge Twitter following for business exposure? We’ll discuss the pros and cons of Twitter “list building”, and whether or not you are really getting the most bang out of your buck. Also up for discussion: paid list building services and what you really get for your money.

We are now seeing everything from website sales pages to even eBay auctions promising to add a certain number of followers to a Twitter account for a certain fee. Some are even charging an exorbitant amount of money for their service, but what do you end up with? What is the quality of the list that you have paid your hard-earned money for? And who’s to say that the list sellers aren’t pulling a scam on their customers?

As easy as it is to create fake Twitter accounts, I would be cautious about the validity of purchasing guaranteed followers. Even with real accounts, there’s still no way to qualify the list members. I caution any sales professional or business owner to seriously think about delving into list purchasing before wasting their money. Many Twitter community members now frown on others who participate in artificial list building. In the end, you may not be able to “buy” your online reputation back if your fast-track idea turns sour.

Last but not least, I give my insight on what metric you really SHOULD be tracking instead of the size of your Twitter following or the number of clicks you generate from your link posting. Most marketers gauge success by the number of clicks they receive for an online advertisement or pitch. However, there is one metric that goes far beyond click counting. What is it, you ask? You’ll have to listen to the podcast to find out!

Click the podcast icon below to listen in and then share your thoughts, questions and comments on the blog!

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 The Truth About Twitter List Building For Business [9:41m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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NEW FTC GUIDELINES CRACK DOWN ON PAID BLOG PROMOTERS

New rules from the FTC could trigger $11,000 fines per incident of non-disclosure on bloggers who are being paid to promote various products and services.

If you are an internet marketer using a blog to promote an affiliate product, you may want to pay special attention to this new ruling. The basic premise of the ruling is to curb the activity of “fake blogs” that purport to be unbiased individuals who are actually being paid a commission for driving sales to a particular product. For example, everyone has seen the blog site and advertisements that claim some stay-at-home mom has discovered a natural way that you can whiten your teeth for under five bucks. It attempts to come across as a person breaking information about a new discovery, but leads to an advertisement for a teeth whitening product.

In a nutshell, the rule states that you can no longer include testimonials for your product you are promoting without being truthful about the “real” average person’s experience. Previously, you could get away with stating “results not typical” at the end of the advertisement. But that won’t work any more. If your typical customer doesn’t lose an ounce after taking your weight loss product for 6 months, then you would have to include a statement as such. You would either have to disclose the truth or just don’t include any testimonials at all.

Some people think the new FTC rule means bigger government delving into the private affairs of citizens. Others think it is a necessary action to cut down on deceptive advertising. What do YOU think? Click on the Podcast icon to listen to the audio, then share your thoughts below!

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 FTC Declares War On Bloggers [7:03m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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THE CARLTON ZONE NOW PLAYING AT PODCAST ALLEY!

My Podcast Alley feed! {pca-f6f20280f5817da071b7d354248d4b86}

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A WORKABLE TWITTER STRATEGY FOR SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS

I’ve seen this many a time… a local business owner signs up for Twitter to begin a new media marketing campaign with dreams of instant stardom, only to struggle with it for a month or two and then quit. What makes business owners give up on their Twitter efforts so easily? Lack of feedback. When the Twittering fails to bring people in the door who buy their stuff, they see it as a waste of time. However, armed with the right strategy and realistic expectations, Twitter marketing for local business owners can prove to be fruitful.

In today’s podcast, I give a step-by-step strategy for business marketing on Twitter that can lead to results, and even be multiplied exponentially by merging new media marketing efforts with traditional media advertising that not many people currently are pursuing. If done correctly, this marketing strategy will not only produce results, but it can actually be tracked and evaluated down to the detail.

Listen to the audio podcast and post your questions below, or chime in with your very own social media marketing tips that you have found to work for your small business or sales career!

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 Local Small Business Twitter Marketing Strategy [7:59m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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TODAY’S TOPIC – PAYPAL SHOPPING CART, REAL ESTATE MARKETING, & GOOGLE WAVE

Hi folks,

For the October 5th, 2009 podcast, I talk about Paypal Shopping Cart abandonment issues, the big marketing mistake that I often see real estate agents making in Twitter marketing, and an introduction to Google Wave. The podcast is only 9 minutes long and straight to the point. You can make comments about these issues right here on the blog, and feel free to ask questions. I’m also open for topics that you would like to see me cover in the future. Enjoy today’s information, and don’t forget to drop your comments and suggestions below!

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 New Media Marketing Podcast 10-5-09 [8:57m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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THE CARLTON ZONE SOCIAL MEDIA PODCAST IS NOW AVAILABLE!

I’m very excited about starting my first official podcast series! The main topic of my shows will center around social media marketing and strategy, but I will also be reporting on general communication strategy, industry market trends, and communications technology. Each show will be 5 to 10 minutes in length, and I will encourage listeners to participate via Twitter (send comments to @carltonf) and possibly Google phone. This will be a great resource for sales professionals, business owners, managers, and those who work in community organizations. Get ready to learn and have loads of fun along the way!

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 Social Media Podcast by Carlton Flowers [5:21m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

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