This is a little commentary I sent out via my Monday morning email to the readers of my music industry resource New Music Tipsheet.  And as as such, it includes a lot of practical applications that are specific to the music industry.  Take from it what you will and change the subjects to fit your own business, whether it be cereal manufacturing, garden supplies, pipe fittings, etc. so this message better applies to you — get an understanding of WHY people would want to join your peer group, and then leverage the popular platforms of the day to Read More…

After enjoying a few drinks Saturday night with friends, you may want to sleep in, grab a Bloody Mary over a long brunch for 12, or take an early jog along the river to sweat out last night’s insanity.  But if you’re up bright & early for some sermons from your peers, here are your options for marketing & community panels for SXSWi on Sunday March 14: Read More…

In continuing with suggested marketing panels for SXSWi 2010, here’s a list of what’s cooking Saturday.  Gonna do my best to hit as many of these as possible,  but if one panel has a good flow, or if some peeps decide some barbecue and a beer in the sun are in order, then that’s cool too!  For as much business gets done in Austin during SXSW, it really is all about the hang, and getting to know your fellow peeps.  Not all these panels are solely related to marketing (some have a more social or community aspect as well), but based on the subjects & the speakers, here’s what’s catching my eye for Saturday:

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How do you raise money for cleft palates in the middle of a recession?  Well, you tap into the local design community and raise the roof with a home tour featuring rooms decorated by your town’s top designers!

That’s exactly what ATLANTA HOLIDAY HOUSE did this past Christmas.  By gathering fans to their Facebook Group page, they were able to Read More…

Okay, so Pepsi announced in late December that they would be forgoing Super Bowl advertising this year, opting instead to spend the ad bucks on community-based projects, to be submitted and decided upon via its Pepsi Refresh Project, a Kickstarter-style program run in conjunction with Good Magazine and promoted heavily across social media platforms.  Awesome!

But then Coca-Cola retorts by saying Read More…

Well, Intel’s online content is pretty dry, but whaddaya expect?  When you’re running complex hardware, you want a product you can rely on, not the guys who made the funniest Super Bowl ad, right?  But this new processor is a big deal for Intel, their biggest launch in 5 years.

Their Facebook page has Read More…

For anyone looking to stand out from the crowd using video-based projects,  I HIGHLY recommend using VIMEO.  Sure, post your videos to YouTube in order to reach YouTube’s massive audience, but Vimeo offers a lot of features that can help you stand out in the crowd, and make a stronger impact early on by serving a tighter community.  Vimeo was created by and for filmmakers and content creators, and it shows – in the quality of its layout, its content, and its audience.

Compare the layout for these two videos on Read More…