I've been thinking about what to write about for over a week now; with a few false starts and plenty of reading other people's words, I had a revelation: my Life is Content.
One of the most important things about brand presence is regular and relevant content updating; blogging, interactive chat, rss, video content- linked or original, all of them effective tools to maintaining a vibrant and charismatic presence online. What exactly that content ends up looking like depends on a lot of things: the brand image, the type of messaging, the desired interaction, WHO is writing the content.
If the WHO in that equation is you... the small business owner, agency or media professional, relentless self-marketer... then I have some simple advice for crafting out your place in the digital universe: be yourself.
Waaaay too much corporate messaging is just an endless barrage of offers, product info, bland corporate blah blah blah and other repackaged PR and marketing messages. On the surface this seems like a great idea, old biz agencies and inflexible corporate entities thrive on this vanilla-flavored online tripe. Don't get me wrong, I like vanilla. Its a great INGREDIENT in a better, more gastronomically-pleasing dessert. The flavors, the personality, the textures and the real goodies are what make the ice cream a yummy sundae; and they're what make it YOUR dessert.
Your digital presence should be equally self-expressive, and just as yummy. The only effective way to do this is to put yourself into the content, Your Life as Content. What does this mean? Well a few examples that I employ are this blog, some silly video content in addition to my practical reel, and a fanpage feed. The Giant Detectives have a lot of me in them, I've covered that before in the lore of @BuzzTitan, but the basic message is relevant to any business: making your presence online personal makes it very easy to maintain a rich and meaningful flow of new content.
I think that Groupon does this well. Their silly, and often literati-targeted descriptions are full of the copywriter's personality. They recruit and underpay a talented staff of young writers who grew up surrounded by digital. Those writers write content that sells products, and they write content from their own, albeit sometimes warped, worldview. The Millenials are guiding content as a business boon, and its time to take their methods to your brand. Be silly, be serious, be fresh, but most importantly, be honest. Your Life is Content, share it with the world.
Thanks and Godspeed,
Buzz Titan
a/k/a Rory Mitchell Foster
The Chief
The Giant Detective Agency
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Thursday, February 3, 2011
@BuzzTitan: SoMe theory Part Deux
So I missed the Friday publishing deadline, but with good reason. The Detectives have completed two new client videos, and have secured another deal!
I wonder if this is what its like to come up in the big leagues as a rookie... every hit, swing, strike out and run scored means the world, for better or worse. Every play at this stage in the game had better be served up at 110%, with a side of pure hustle. If you’re gonna make a career out of playing a game, you sure as heck better play it well. That’s kind of how I feel about the Agency... it is a lot like a game. There are players, there are wins and some losses, there are the Good Guys, there are opponents, and there is a hero: Buzz Titan.
As I explained in the last post, Buzz is an amalgamation of the various elements of the Detective brand: my personal and business philosophies, some less-than-subtle iconography, mischievously melodramatic themes, and a little bit of humor. What I didn’t get to is Why the Brand Icon is so important: He has a Unique Identity.
The Unique Identity (UniqID) element of a Brand Icon seems pretty straightforward, but in reality is way too often overlooked. Considering The Giant Detective Agency is basically a meta-case study on digital business, for if the tools and techniques I am employing to grow the business work for the Detectives, then they certainly should for our clients. With that in mind, the UniqID element is very important. To put it in context: the core brand essence and mission of the business should be an intrinsic factor in defining the SoMe presence... i.e. Buzz Titan needs to say a lot more than words.
The tagline “Original Creative, Creatively Original” works for defining the product idealogy, at least for the Guerilla-mercial videos. Having as talented a team as I have to work with makes it a lot easier to boldly claim excellence in a somewhat unproven venture. Having Buzz to speak for the business and the work makes it even easier.
As anyone that is skilled at meeting people will tell you, confidence and genuine engagement with people are the secrets to success. Our goal at the Giant Detectives is much the same, to help clients make memorable and honest contact with their audience. The comedy should be fresh, the dramatic should be concise (think about those terribly long and depressing ASPCA commercials- a cause I support makes me cringe at thinking about them), and the informational segments entertaining.
Content IS King, and Video Content rules all. With online video you can instruct, goad, brag, praise... share a laugh, an idea, a want or a need. You can build your fan base, build your customer base, build your business... and You will definitely make impressions. So if you’re serious about solving your video needs, get Buzz working on your case today!
I wonder if this is what its like to come up in the big leagues as a rookie... every hit, swing, strike out and run scored means the world, for better or worse. Every play at this stage in the game had better be served up at 110%, with a side of pure hustle. If you’re gonna make a career out of playing a game, you sure as heck better play it well. That’s kind of how I feel about the Agency... it is a lot like a game. There are players, there are wins and some losses, there are the Good Guys, there are opponents, and there is a hero: Buzz Titan.
As I explained in the last post, Buzz is an amalgamation of the various elements of the Detective brand: my personal and business philosophies, some less-than-subtle iconography, mischievously melodramatic themes, and a little bit of humor. What I didn’t get to is Why the Brand Icon is so important: He has a Unique Identity.
The Unique Identity (UniqID) element of a Brand Icon seems pretty straightforward, but in reality is way too often overlooked. Considering The Giant Detective Agency is basically a meta-case study on digital business, for if the tools and techniques I am employing to grow the business work for the Detectives, then they certainly should for our clients. With that in mind, the UniqID element is very important. To put it in context: the core brand essence and mission of the business should be an intrinsic factor in defining the SoMe presence... i.e. Buzz Titan needs to say a lot more than words.
The tagline “Original Creative, Creatively Original” works for defining the product idealogy, at least for the Guerilla-mercial videos. Having as talented a team as I have to work with makes it a lot easier to boldly claim excellence in a somewhat unproven venture. Having Buzz to speak for the business and the work makes it even easier.
As anyone that is skilled at meeting people will tell you, confidence and genuine engagement with people are the secrets to success. Our goal at the Giant Detectives is much the same, to help clients make memorable and honest contact with their audience. The comedy should be fresh, the dramatic should be concise (think about those terribly long and depressing ASPCA commercials- a cause I support makes me cringe at thinking about them), and the informational segments
Content IS King, and Video Content rules all. With online video you can instruct, goad, brag, praise... share a laugh, an idea, a want or a need. You can build your fan base, build your customer base, build your business... and You will definitely make impressions. So if you’re serious about solving your video needs, get Buzz working on your case today!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)