Let’s start with match types.
This week, Google changed the way exact and phrase match-type keywords are served. Until now, “exact” meant…well, simply that: exact. So to achieve accurate results, searchers had to type in keywords exactly as they appeared in your keyword list. But with the new match-type options, close variations (e.g., misspellings and plurals) will still serve ads against your selected keywords. As Google claims, searchers aren’t perfect spellers, so Google is always striving to provide the desired search results even when the search terms are not totally precise.

If you are more of a hands-off advertiser, this change will benefit your campaign by allowing Google more freedom to reach a wider (yet relevant) audience. However, if you are someone that desires greater control—and that heavily monitors and optimizes daily—you still have the ability to select “do not include close variants” in the Keyword Matching Options within your Campaign Settings tab.

Moving on to ad delivery.
Google Adwords also made a modification to the ad delivery options: a “rotate ads evenly” stipulation. Previously, a user could set up an ad to rotate evenly, split among however many versions of text ads were live. The new adaption means that if no changes are made to the ad creative after 30 days, the ad rotation then optimizes for clicks. This forces advertisers to continually analyze and refresh ad creative to conduct ongoing A/B testing (which we always recommend).

Now for quality score.
A few months ago, Google began quietly rolling out the biggest change to its PPC algorithm. Google changed its Adwords quality score formula, placing greater weight on landing page relevancy while reducing the weight of click-thru rate. At this point, all accounts are up to date on the change, but advertisers are likely looking for ways to see if they’ve been affected and figuring out how to respond.

This adjustment compels campaign managers to dig even deeper into Google Analytics and on a more frequent basis, analyzing bounce rates and user interaction of their various landing pages. But that practice should already fall into the routine mix of optimizations as advertisers look to maximize cost-per-conversion. Click-thru rate is still the strongest indicator of campaign effectiveness. Advertisers just need to be aware of their AdWords performance within their Google Analytics account in order to balance all aspects of their paid search campaigns.

Google has always stressed to advertisers the importance of creating relevant landing pages, and this change in their algorithm communicates that even louder. It is extremely vital that your ad messages match your landing page and have a very clear call-to-action. This is an ongoing “best practice” in the industry of online advertising—and now, it’s a measure in quality score.

What does it all mean?
These changes further affect the need to establish a sound paid search strategy from the start, as Google has given itself a little more freedom to “run” your paid search campaigns. And while this will be great for some advertisers, others need to be aware of how the new changes will impact their actions. As always, it is essential to stay on top of everything related to your paid search campaigns and maintain a strategic approach to selecting which options are best for your Adwords account.

Take Your Pick
Just a few years ago, only a handful of core web fonts were available. Now the web font world has exploded, and there are hundreds to choose from—and many are free. Start your search at Google Fonts, where you can browse hundreds of font families and preview your choices in sample layouts. MyFonts allows you to purchase web font versions of your favorite fonts that you use for print, further enhancing the continuity between mediums.

Be Easy to Read, Everywhere
Remember that fonts have to work well across a diversity of platforms, from computer monitors and tablets to portable devices with tiny screens to projection devices connected to computers. A good font is readable without requiring the user to zoom in or out on the text. (Additional design factors like user-friendly headers and white space also help with readability; we’ll share tips for those elements in a future blog.)

Make Sure You’re Searched
Styling live text with professional, optimized web fonts is an alternative to using Flash or static images. Not only does this make updating your content a lot simpler, but you’ll also be more visible on search engines. Your text will be picked up by search engines and indexed to determine the relevance of your pages in search engine rankings.

Use Fonts to Tell Your Brand Story
With so many fonts available, there are exciting ways to convey the personality of your brand. At Dana, our designers might select a graceful script font for an elegant, historic hotel’s site. An edgy, minimalist font might be their choice to convey the persona of a high-tech, urban hotel. Web fonts are a powerful tool to tell your story online. Here are a few examples:

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I’ve had the good fortune of being able to travel the world and learn about many people, cultures and schools of thought. What I love most about traveling is that it can literally change the fabric of our lives. It can motivate us to let go of hard-fast beliefs, change our perspective, make us more gracious, introduce us to lifelong friends and surprise us in ways we never imagined!

I believe that traveling is the ultimate way to enrich life, and a little trip down memory lane brings to mind a few of the places that have shown me this:

• With its fresh food, warm and happy people, charming avenues, beautiful scenery and history at every corner…Italy is romance!
• With its smiling children, incense-filled air, rickety tuc tucs, vibrant saris and beetle nut-stained teeth…India is complete stimulation!
• With its laid-back and generous people, love of life, breath-taking views, tropical beaches and world-renowned surfing…Costa Rica is pura vida! ☺
• With its sophistication, market fair hustle, European flare, ominous calls to prayer and gorgeous landscapes lining the Bosphorus straight…Turkey is total intrigue!

These countries and those around the world (as well as the popular cities within) are some of the oldest, strongest, most authentic and most developed experiences in the world. Each one’s natural resources, languages, architecture, history, successes, failures and people meld together year upon year to create a solidified culture and mood—and, thus, the branded experience for each traveler who arrives there.

When we take in all that a foreign land has to offer, the experience is often so stimulating that we walk away with that “one thing” we’ll never forget. Therein lies the rudimentary principle upon which all our efforts are based: It’s that one thing we want people to say when they walk out our door. That one thing we’re trying to accomplish in terms of the experience we provide. And, ultimately, that one thing we want to be remembered by!

So, if we, as experience providers, can pinpoint that one thing and confidently deliver on it with no exceptions, then perhaps we’ll stimulate the senses as grandly as the greatest countries of the world—and give others an experience that’s not only talked about, but that also changes the fabric of who they are.

First, the good news.
While some companies have closed storefronts, more continue to dedicate hefty portions of their advertising budgets. F-commerce is changing the game of online selling, and it’s by no means over. With over 845-million monthly active users worldwide in one captive audience, and endless ways to interact with customers, Facebook is the ideal location to set up shop and sell, sell, sell. If you’re in e-commerce, you should still be strategizing ways to grow your business within this potentially profitable platform. However, building a storefront is merely Step One.

Max out the medium.
Why should your customers shop via Facebook, rather than go straight to your website, in the first place? Give them all the incentives you can. Your success depends upon how well you implement broad tactics to attract customers to your storefront, keep them coming and encourage them to shop and share with friends.

It’s a SOCIAL network.
Facebook provides an opportunity to take typically solitary online shopping and make it a fun group shindig. If there are no new leads or traffic, your efforts will likely fizzle. Tap into this convivial, communal environment. Mingle with fans. Motivate them to bring their friends along. Be personable, and personalize the experience. Immerse them in your world. Keep it interesting.

Woo word of mouth.
Virtual street teams are a force to be reckoned with, and the better your methods of engagement, the more outspoken your audience will become. When buying a product or service, few factors equal the influence of a friend’s recommendation.

Lay all your wares on the table.
Be all in. Don’t show only some of your products, then tell them to click through to your website to see the full monty. Build a storefront that reveals everything you have to offer. Remember to incorporate essential social elements, like spots for comments and ways to share and keep the conversation flowing across other social networks.

Roll out the red carpet.
If the velvet rope never drops, then they probably won’t stay. Lavish them with treatment reserved only for your most loyal fans. Exclusivity is key, so regularly bestow them with VIP deals, private sneak peeks and glimpses behind the scenes. And don’t forget discounts or other enticements for sharing.

Think F-commerce could work—or work harder—for you? Contact bprewitt@danacommunications.com to learn how Dana Communications can help.

Since my family has limited time and moderate funds, I typically opt for a driving trip when the kids have a few days off of school. Although there are many faraway spots on my bucket list of places to visit, it can be pretty exciting to explore new destinations in my very own backyard.

A fun way to check out places we’ve never been is to use an online map radius tool that clearly shows different destinations in a given distance. For instance, check out this one: http://www.freemaptools.com/radius-around-point.htm.

Here’s how it works: Assume you only want to invest a half-day’s drive from your destination. Enter 250 miles as the radius and then your zip code. Enlarge the map graphic to see every location within that distance. You’ll probably be surprised to learn how many fun and exciting places fall within that area. Even with gas averaging $4 a gallon, driving 250 miles in a car that gets 20 mpg will cost you well under $100. Add in tolls and food, and it’s still very affordable and considerably less than plane fare and a rental car.

Last year, we used this mapping tool to locate a central location to spend a weekend with family members who live out of state. It was a great solution because no one had to do all of the driving or handle all the hosting—plus, we got to experience something new. We drew one radius from their town and one from ours to see where the two would intersect. There were tons of possible cities to choose from.

Ultimately, we landed in Wheeling, West Virginia. Typically, I never would have planned a trip to Wheeling, but after checking out their CVB website, annual event schedule and some independent travel sites, we discovered a few interesting things that we planned to see during our visit and also did a little impromptu exploring when we arrived. Surprisingly, we found several excellent restaurants, funky boutiques and antique shops that were knee-deep in fascinating finds.

If you’ve never mapped a getaway, give it a try! You’re sure to expand your list of potential vacation spots and have fun doing it at the same time.

1. Know everything that’s said—every day.
Many simple, user-friendly solutions are available to set up daily alerts and feeds that catch every mention of your company, domain and employees. This lets you respond to issues that you may not have even known about previously. If you’re not already doing this, we recommend you start with these services:

Google Alerts: Set up a free subscription to track Web results, blogs, news and more. (Hint: You can also use it to keep up to date with the latest on your competition or in your industry.)

Twitter Search: This simple way to search Twitter offers an advanced search option to enter specific keywords, names and places—even whether a tweet is positive or negative.

Technorati: This search engine is useful for finding any mentions of your blog. It searches by looking at tags authors have placed on their websites.

2. Be proactive and act quickly.
Like other rules of good management, “Don’t wait until you have a crisis” applies to your online reputation. When you discover an incorrect or negative comment, quickly send a courteous message to correct it. In the case of review sites, such as Trip Advisor, immediately post a response to any negative review, in which you acknowledge the person’s issues, apologize if necessary and outline how you have remedied or plan to correct the issue. Occasionally, a very brief response to a positive review is appropriate too. If a couple posts comments about having the wedding of their dreams at your resort, thank them and wish them a happy life together.

3. Don’t be shy about soliciting positive comments.
When your customers tell you how much they appreciate your service or products, thank them and ask them if they’d consider posting their comments online. If they’re unsure about where or how to do this, take a minute to explain the process. You can also encourage your employees to motivate appreciative customers to post their reviews.

4. Get support when you need it.
If you’re already multi-tasking, it’s easy to push reputation management down your long to-do list. That’s a mistake. If you can’t make time for it, seek professional online reputation management services. Our agency, for example, manages the reputations of several prestigious resorts, monitoring their online reputation and presence in leading social media sites and posting responsive and constructive comments prepared by professional hospitality writers.

5. Know the real rewards of reputation management.
Beyond keeping your online reputation in positive territory, managing your reputation is simply a best practice that will pay you back in spades. You’ll see your business through your customer’s eyes. You can increase your credibility with prompt and responsive replies to your customers. The feedback will show you areas in which you can improve your services. And you can share comments with your team and find new ways to exceed your customers’ expectations.

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And I know I wasn’t the only one. My Google Reader was bursting with posts from others eagerly awaiting the premiere. Their keen questions and wild predictions had me thinking…what year will it be? Are Don & Megan truly happy? Did Sterling Cooper Draper Price (SCDP) survive? Will Joan’s husband find out?

But the thing that has intrigued me most is the magnitude of followers on this Mad Men bandwagon. It has truly blossomed beyond just a TV show and into a bona fide lifestyle. Working for a branding and marketing agency, I find it fascinating that few television series have prompted as many advertisements and promotions as this one has. What’s more, the show has had a tremendous affect on culture, fashion and beauty. Ideas on how to throw a Mad Men-style party—complete with invites, wardrobe and drink recommendations—are popping up all over the place. And it’s traveled farther than the blogosphere, infiltrating other brands as well.

For instance, Banana Republic’s Mad Men Capsule Collection returns again this year, in collaboration with Mad Men costume designer Janie Bryant. It offers fans a fresh twist on ’60s design, taking its inspiration from country club scenes featured in the series, such as nipped-in waists, shrunken cardigans and pencil capris for women, plus tailored blazers and fitted polos for men.

Additionally, Estee Lauder developed a limited edition makeup collection, which includes two pieces—a cherry-orange coral lipstick and an Evening Rose creme rouge—both sure to look just as good on any gal as they do on Betty or Joan. There has been an influx of mid-century modern-inspired furniture that Don himself would be happy to put in his new home. And bartenders have been reinventing updated takes on classic drinks, with mixology becoming a huge trend (of course there is even a Mad Men app for that).

The Mad Men brand can even be seen splashed across the pages of Newsweek magazine. The publication not only featured the show’s cast on the cover, but it also transformed the entire book to look like a 1965 edition—including logo, typography and ads. Editor Tina Brown described the process by saying, “Soon creative directors from agencies all over were diving into their vaults to dust off visuals from old accounts like Spam, Tide, Dunkin Donuts and Hush Puppies. Ad agencies like Brand Cottage, not around in those days, went retro just for kicks.”

It seems to me that the timing of a retro design return is no coincidence. I believe that it has everything to do with people’s fascination with the counterparts of SCDP and their fabulousness.

So far this season, as we reach the mid-’60s, we are seeing brighter colors, more dramatic makeup and shorter hemlines. It’s hard to say who might be launching the next round of Mad Men-inspired collections, but I’d love to see an accessories company step up to the plate—sexy scarves, playful hats and fabulous sunglasses—I’d be first in line!

Ultimately, we could all learn something about great branding from such a successful television series. The Mad Men brand has gone far beyond its own time slot and permeated so many aspects of everyday life, drawing in masses of audiences of numerous ages, genders and interests. In the words of Don Draper, “You want some respect? Go out there and get it for yourself.”

1. Banana Republic’s Mad Men Capsule Collection womens | mens   2. Estee Lauder Mad Men makeup collection  3. 1965 edition Newsweek magazine retro ads  4. Mad Men Cocktail Culture iPhone app

Take a moment to consider how this type of marketing could benefit your band, and let us provide you with some useful strategies for making the most of it.

To inform, you must first be informed.
If you want to be considered a thought leader, you’ll need to arm yourself with the most current news and information. Stay on top of trends and innovations in the industry—and then turn that knowledge into a deliverable for your target audience.

Remember these key words: relevant & useful.
The difference between ordinary copy and content marketing copy is whether or not it’s relevant and useful. Remember, you’re attracting and building a relationship with consumers who want something from you. If you’re not giving them what they need, there’s no reason for them to stay involved. So make sure your content is valuable to the people consuming it.

Make it quick.
Whether it’s through an email, blog, white paper or some other medium, you have a limited amount of time to retain the attention of your audience. If you have something to say, say it fast. Be direct and concise, so your consumer can digest it and move on.

Tap into the power of social.
Proliferate the readership of your content tenfold by promoting through social media channels like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google+. Pique interest by posting with an intriguing headline or relevant question. Make your content shareable, and create back-links to your website for a stronger brand impact.

Optimize, optimize, optimize.
By using the right mix of keywords and phrases, you can make your content accessible to interested parties. Make it as easy as possible for someone looking for the information you’re offering to find it when they’re searching online. The most valuable content is that which is delivered to a captive and willing audience—so be highly visible when they come looking.

Need some extra guidance to bring your content marketing efforts to a new level? Contact bprewitt@danacommunications.com for more information.

There’s a new social medium hitting the Net hard these days—in fact, it’s already garnering more referral web traffic than Google+, LinkedIn, YouTube and Reddit combined. As a travel marketer that knows the importance of viral advertising, I say any channel showing that kind of potential should definitely be on our radar—and yours.

So allow me to introduce you to the newest social service making a big impact: it’s called Pinterest. And it’s a name worth getting to know. Pinterest seems slow to catch on in the travel marketing industry, but make no mistake, the site’s visual/social one-two punch make it a must-have for your marketing plans.

That said, I’ve compiled five important things you need to know about Pinterest right off the bat. Consider these pearls of Pinterest wisdom to be essential to your brand efforts.

1. What It Is
   Pinterest is a virtual pinboard that enables users to organize and share images they find on the web. People use pinboards for anything, from planning a wedding and decorating a home to collecting their favorite recipes—or even mapping out their bucket list of vacation destinations. Pinterest users can also browse pinboards created by other people, as a way of discovering new things and getting inspiration from people who share their interests.
2. How It Works
   A “pin” (or image) can be added to a pinboard from a website using the Pin It button, or uploaded from a computer. Each pin added using the Pin It button links back to the site it came from. Users can add as many pins to a board as they want, and they can “follow” other Pinterest users to see all the pins on their boards in real time (much like following people on Twitter).
3. Why You need It
   Because Pinterest is based on the concept of visual bookmarking, it adds another layer of social outreach for marketers, especially those in the travel sector. Think of all the travelers out there pinning pictures of the places they’ve been or the ones they’d like to see. If you make Pinterest a part of your advertising strategy, those pins could potentially be of YOUR destination, YOUR hotel, YOUR restaurant, YOUR golf course—all linking back to YOUR website. Get the idea? It’s all about engaging your audience wherever they may be. And with a pinboard of visual content as your canvas, the sky’s the limit!
4. The Legal Leg
   One critical thing to keep in mind is that even though individuals using Pinterest may be able to pin images from various websites without repercussion, the rules for businesses aren’t quite the same. There are copyright infringements that could put you in hot water if you’re not proactive about making sure the images you pin and re-pin are appropriately owned and licensed. Be sure to take extra care with this issue, especially if you’re utilizing Pinterest for public promotions.
5. The Next Step
   Now that you have a basic knowledge of Pinterest and the ways it can boost business for your brand, it’s time to get started. Currently, Pinterest access is by invitation only—but obtaining it is as easy as requesting it on the site. Once you’ve been granted entry, spend some time exploring pinboards. Begin adding the Pin It button to all your own web pages and blog posts, so users can easily pin your content to their boards and link their followers back to your site. Start following travel-oriented Pinterest users and commenting on their travel posts. And think about ways you can use your Pinterest account for brand contests and promotions.

Have I adequately piqued your interest in Pinterest? If you’d like to learn more about how Dana can help you make the most of this service, contact bprewitt@danacommunications.com.

A story with no ending. A puzzle with no solution. A race with no winner. An offline campaign that doesn’t track the results. All highly unsatisfactory and kind of pointless in the end.

You spent a lot of time and a hefty portion of your marketing budget on that print ad, commercial, direct mail or other offline marketing project. So was it a success? Don’t make the mistake of skipping out on the grand finale. It’s a big one—and it’s one that can cost you dearly down the road. Here we’re going to lay out some whys, and give a few hints on the how, of tracking your offline marketing efforts:

You took the risk. Are there rewards in store?
Or was the project an expensive cautionary tale? By monitoring your marketing, you can learn what works, what doesn’t and how to earmark your funds next time. No sense in making the same mistake twice—invest in marketing that produces results and proliferates profit.

Hindsight is 20/20.
From the promotion you picked to the message you sent to the medium you chose to convey it all. Did your project achieve its mission? Get wise to what’s effective, and then fine-tune your future marketing efforts. Tracking allows you the opportunity to reassess your thinking and perfect future projects.

It’s not as tricky as you might think.
Tracking offline marketing is not the voodoo some imagine it to be. Attaching a method to measure your audience’s response to your campaign is, in fact, a rather simple process.

Follow their trail online.
That’s right—you can track offline campaigns straight to the web. Find out when a print ad or marketing piece leads a potential customer to your website by creating separate landing pages, with unique URLs, hosted within your domain. When customers type in this custom URL, they’ll land on the page with your advertised marketing message or offer first. They can still access your website from this point, but this gives you the chance to capture responses and reinforce your campaign content.

Phone-generated sales are for all generations.
Old fashioned? Perhaps. But obsolete they are not. Some still rely on honest-to-goodness live customer service from a friendly rep. Measure your call-in volume accurately by assigning a custom phone number to each marketing campaign, and even to each individual publication’s ad or targeted mailing. Itemized reports can confirm from which piece the call originated, as well as other details, such as time and geographical location.

Dana takes the guesswork out of tracking your offline marketing efforts—and your online marketing too. Contact bprewitt@danacommunications.com to learn more.