Aries Graphic Design

Social Media is Not a Trend... It is the Norm

2011-01-03T09:49:00.001-08:00

If you haven’t already noticed… this social media “trend” is no longer a trend and has become the norm. As an Internet Marketer and Social Media Manager it is my job to stay on top of what is happening on social media platforms, blogs and readers. Christmas, New Years, and New Years Day were no exception… I know blasphemous right? J I was on my social media platforms ready to share information and engage with those who were interested… but guess what I found… the social media marketers and managers were not the only ones online. I have a Facebook friend base of 1300+, most of which are just friends with no business need to market on social media platforms… and during the holidays they were talking; actually they were talking even more than normal. Maybe it was because they didn’t have to go to work, they were relaxing or enjoying the Holiday Season. I’m not sure but I do know, they were sharing what they were doing, the funny events of the day, sending holiday greetings, and sharing new years resolutions…

In 2010, being social on the Internet has become the norm. Yeah you still have a few Nay Sayers who refuse to get on social networking platforms who have professed that twitter and Facebook are for kid but more people are now giving social media platforms a second look. Being drawn to these platforms out of curiosity, they want to see what everyone else is talking about. I have spoken to many friends who say they no longer use their email to communicate because it is quicker to connect on social media platforms or to simply send a text.

I think it is a sign of the times when people come to visit and the question everyone seems to have in common when they get there is, “What is your WEP code?” So with all this said, is tweeting during a family gathering rude or acceptable? Is bringing your laptop, iPad, iPod, or Tablet to a family gathering a bad thing? I say NO. Everyone knows I travel with my laptop, connectivity is important to me. With my family, this is acceptable. It is nothing for you to see at least 3 or 4 laptops open at the table after Christmas Dinner. We get on Facebook, share our photo albums with each other and laugh. Even my oldest Uncle has a Facebook account that he uses regularly… and he is what… at least 70…. lol. (Don’t kill me Uncle David, I really don’t know how old you are but I know you are close) J My point is, Social Media Sharing is the norm and as we become an even more social society… don’t be offended when friends and family ask you for your WEP code or you see them using their digital devices. They are just sharing. J

Tami Highbaugh-Abdullah, IMMS

Creative Marketing Director

Aries - Graphic Design & Internet Marketing

317.345.4182

Don't Wanna Try Social Media? That's fine with us!

2010-12-26T15:34:00.000-08:00

For the non believers that still don't think Social Media can make a difference or are just scared to jump in and try it out... I say to you... "Don't Do It". We don't need you out here taking away search engine rankings from our companies by setting up your social media profiles. We don't want you spreading information about your company, networking, and making friends with our users. We don't need you connecting with our clients by blogging and sharing your uncanny wit, great personality and using prime keywords that we use to bring people to our sites. We don't want you on the net reading blogs, getting new ideas about how to share your information. Nope, we don't want you on Twitter, Facebook, Hashable, EmpireAvenue, Blogger, Wordpress, About.me, LinkedIn, Plaxo and all the other social media websites. Nope leave that to the people who really enjoy talking to our users and sharing useful information to increase their Brand Recognition.

You just continue to market your company the same way you always have while the rest of us - your competitors - market in all the places your customers spend most of their leisure time.

Yeah... Good Luck with that. :-)

Tami Highbaugh-Abdullah

Creative Marketing Director

Aries - Graphic Design & Internet Marketing

How Important is Monitoring your Brand on the Internet?

2010-11-18T14:40:00.001-08:00

It is one thing to have a website and set up your social networking pages, it is another to keep track of these pages in order to safeguard your Brand. Just yesterday, someone on Facebook decided it would be nice to use one of my company logos as their profile picture. Concerned that people would think this person was either the owner or a representative of my company I immediately contacted them and informed them of their copyright infringement. I then nicely requested that they remove the image from their profile and refrain from using any images related to my company or any of my company sites for their own personal use. I was hoping for an understanding response, something like I am sorry I was unaware of your copyright and I will remove the image immediately. Well… that was not the case… instead the response was very negative and unfortunately, they “unliked” my business page. Considering how bad this could have gone, I don’t mind losing (1) “like” to safeguard my company Brand and reputation.

Safeguarding your company Brand image is a little more difficult than keeping tabs on what is being said about your company. Social media monitoring is important when trying to manage your Brand. Knowing what is being said about your Brand as soon as it is said and responding (especially when the communication is negative) is imperative and potentially detrimental to your company reputation if you ignore it. Quick responses show customers that you care; joining in on their conversations will help build relationships between your customers and your business.

Social Customers are a given in today’s world. They learn, buy, and research on the Internet and usually don’t respond to inbox spam. You will find them on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social media platforms; so when they aren’t happy with your business where do you think they will complain? They will complain on the very platforms we all use everyday to socialize. These new social customers expect your company to listen and engage with them in a social environment. Many companies are now handling customer service claims on Social Media platforms. Check out AT&T U-verse on Facebook.

There are several social media monitoring tools for the “do it yourselfer’s”.

Seesmic
Google reader
Rock Melt
Godaddy’s Social Visability®

The key is to use the tools above to monitor social media channels for all mentions of your Brand, your advertising campaigns, and reactions to your posts. When these mentions take place join in on these conversations. If your company has erred in some way, do not sweep it under the rug and ignore it. The Internet never forgets and your error will always be there for anyone to search at any given time for years to come. Don’t believe me, look at United Airways blunder when they mishandled and destroyed a band members guitar. United Airways chose not to respond when the band requested a reimbursement for their destroyed equipment. The band wrote a song and created a video about United Airways destroying their guitars. The video is still getting hits (currently over 9 million)

and of course United Airways decided, since their Brand was being drug through the mud, that they should now step up and settle the claim but the damage had been done. If you have mishandled a situation, it is best to admit your wrong doing, as well as your plan of action to rectify the situation. We are a very forgiving culture, so it is important to create a history of caring with your Brand. Own up to your mistakes and show customers you want to make the situation right.

If you are a new business owner and are unsure of how to track your Brand, you should contact an Internet Brand Specialist or Internet Marketer. Ensure that the professional you chose has an in-depth understanding of Branding on the net. Ask for their client list and links to social media sites they are currently monitoring. See if they are responding to issues within a 24-hour period and pay attention the language they use in their responses. It is often hard to check the growth of a Brand but you will know how successful that Brand is based on the customer responses on their social media pages or blogs.

Social media monitoring takes time, you need to be willing to dedicate your attention to your mentions as well create posts that generate discussion on a regular basis. If this is not something you feel you have time to do…. hire a professional. A successful Brand is a key component in ensuring a successful company.

~Aries~

Tami Highbaugh-Abdullah

Creative Marketing Director

317.345.4182 Office

866.593.7249 Fax

tami@ariesgraphicdesign.com

www.ariesgraphicdesign.com

Aries on Facebook

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Aries Blog

Why should I buy anything from YOU?

2010-10-24T21:35:00.000-07:00

Why should I buy anything from you? I mean really… who are you? If you are a small to medium sized business owner or even if you are starting a new business, how do you get potential customers to buy from you? Do you buy advertising with the local Value-Pak mailer? Do you send out post cards offering Free products or Free services? Do you send out your brochure in the mail? If you are only using the methods listed above, you are placing your company at a disadvantage. I ask the questions again: Why should I buy anything from you? Who are you? Think about this for a minute. What do you normally do with those postcard advertisements you get in the mail? I know what I do, I throw them away unless they come from a company that has something I need at that particular time and even then I might still throw them away. When you receive email blasts … what are the chances that email will influence you to buy that product. What are the chances that it ends up in your spam and you never see it at all? In addition, what about cold calling, don’t you just hate it when someone interrupts your day with a sales call? Why do you think the “do not call” lists were created?

So, what do you need to do to get users to buy your products and services? You need to build TRUST. Now, you may ask how do I do that? You offer users something of value free… I do not mean your services or your products because it is important not to devalue what you offer. If you don’t value your services or products no one else will either. What I do mean is let people know what you offer and why it is important to them. As a graphic designer and Internet marketer, I love to write about how small businesses can benefit from Internet marketing and branding strategies. I give my users helpful tips and even provide them with links to show users how to do some elements of Internet Marketing on their own. You may ask, “Isn’t that the same as offering your services free?” No, because I am not doing the Internet marketing for them, they are doing it for themselves. I do this because there are two types of people who are interested in marketing their businesses; those who are willing to pay for it and those who want to research it and do it themselves. I do not mind sharing what I know because those who want to hire me can research me and see I know what I am talking about and those who don’t, have been provided with valuable information to do it on their. Either way my company gets recognition. Now how can you use my example to work for you, what can you offer of value without devaluing your products or services?

Blogging is your opportunity to create content online that lets everyone know what you do and how good you are at it. It allows you to provide information to your users that demonstrate what makes you different from your competitors and why your potential customers should buy from you instead of your competitor. Blogging is a good way to build traffic back to your website through the use of links / anchored text; it also allows your company to benefit from the brand exposure. However, remember the focus here is providing your users with something of value. Blogging allows you the ability to provide your potential clients with valuable information about your product or service and how it could possibly benefit them. Blogging is not selling, blogging is about providing beneficial information. Blogs reach a much wider audience than typical forms of marketing such as cold calling, sending out mailers, email blasts or even face-to-face marketing. Through blogging, your users can talk back, ask questions, and even make suggestions. Another benefit to blogging for business is the ability to be transparent, showing some of your personality lets people get to know you and your business. Users begin to feel comfortable because of the knowledgeable content you provide, spiced with your personality, users begin to feel a connection to your company and this creates trust.

Now… Why should I buy anything from you?

~Aries~

Tami Highbaugh-Abdullah

Creative Marketing Director

317.345.4182 Office

866.593.7249 Fax

tami@ariesgraphicdesign.com

www.ariesgraphicdesign.com

Aries on Facebook

Aries on Twitter

Aries Blog

Own your business name

2010-10-01T12:43:00.000-07:00

A client asked me yesterday, "What is the quickest way to get my company name ranked high on the search engines?" The first task I give any of my clients is to "OWN THEIR BUSINESS NAME". How do you do that you may ask... The easiest way to do this is to claim your business identity on social networking sites. Fellow internet marketer, friend and Full Sail University Internet Marketing Masters Alum Anise Smith turned me on to KnowEm.com. KnowEm is a FREE platform that allows you the ability to see if your company name has been claimed and if not, provides with the tools to claim it yourself. You can manage your name ownership progress by registering and using this platform. Once registered and you all the social networking platforms available, this task may seem overwhelming. This is ok, just tackle a few accounts a day and you will be well on your way.

Now I am assuming that you have already secured your company domain name and have web presence in the form of a website. I am also assuming you have at least set up business pages with Facebook and Twitter. (If you have not done these things and you are serious about marketing your business on the net, it is imperative you do this right now).

Secondly create a blog and then copy that blog to at least 2 other blog sites. I currently use Blogger, WordPress, and Tumblr. It is important to Blog at a minimum of once a week and post links to your blog on your Facebook Business page and Twitter.

This should be enough to get you started... I will have more tips for you next week. Good luck marketing your business.

~Aries~

Tami Highbaugh-Abdullah

Creative Marketing Director

317.345.4182 Office

317. 280.8480 Fax

tami@ariesgraphicdesign.com

www.ariesgraphicdesign.com

Aries on Facebook

Aries on Twitter

Why does your company need a Facebook page or need to use Social Media at all?

2010-09-17T12:00:00.000-07:00

Today I was reminding a client to set up her Facebook page. She currently has a website and just opened her new online store. I posted a link on my Facebook page letting everyone know she opened her store but honestly that isn’t enough, she needs her own page. This client has been very resistant to setting up a Facebook account. I have had many clients come to me and say I do not want to be on Facebook. I ask them “why?” and they give reason such as, “I do not want people seeing what I am doing”, “I don’t want to post images”, “I am not interested in reconnecting with old friends” or….. “isn’t Facebook just a big dating website?” There are over 500 million Facebook users and over 190 million Twitter users and these people and companies are communicating on these platforms every day using it for a variety of different reasons. Many people check their Facebook pages 5 times more than they do their personal email and have set Facebook as their “Home Page” on their internet browsers. Why wouldn’t you want your company to have this kind of FREE exposure? Yet I find myself explaining over and over again the importance of using Social Media Platforms to market their company’s.

Today I saw an article, ”Does my Office Really Need a Facebook Page?”, I love how this Dentist asks if you would prefer to use a dentist that your friends recommend and like versus someone from the yellow pages and hope the dentist does a good job. This is what social media sites do for your company. It is a platform that allows your clients to be brand advocates for your services and products; it puts a human face on your business. Think about it, when you go to the store to buy a new Flat screen TV, you research it, you may even look for a better price on online. Now tell me what influences your decision to buy? Is it the product specs, the price or the customer reviews, recommendations and star ratings? It is probably a combination of all three but in the end my final decision is based on good customer reviews.

We are in a new age now… the Internet is being used for everything… don’t miss out on a FREE opportunity to expose your brand to new customers. If you aren’t using social media to market your business… believe me when I say… Your competitors are.

Tami Highbaugh-Abdullah

Creative Marketing Director

Aries - Graphic Design & Internet Marketing

Aries on Facebook

317.345.4182

30 Sec Aries Commercial 3

2010-09-16T13:25:00.000-07:00

Goodness & Mercy, Inc - Web Design Makeover

2010-03-10T18:28:00.000-08:00

Local Charity Goodness & Mercy, Inc, has been a client of Aries Graphic Design since 2004. Visionary Monique Jelks started the company with a neighbor. What started out as two woman with the same desire to help has turned into yearly school supplies drives, Prom assistance to young girls, Christmas gifts to the homeless and so much more. Goodness & Mercy, Inc provides H.O.P.E to homeless women and children. They even travel to Civil War torn Liberia to serve the homeless women and children there. Goodness & Mercy decided to go with a more professional and elegant web design style that is very simple. Please look at the latest web design by Aries Graphic Design at http://www.goodnessmercy.org

Tami Highbaugh-Abdullah
Aries Graphic Design, LLC
tami@ariesgraphicdesign.com
www.ariesgraphicdesign.com

Recession Proof Business Cards

2010-03-07T13:55:00.001-08:00

Recession Proof Business Cards

In light of the suffering economy, with 36,000 jobs lost in February 2010, Aries Graphic Design has found a niche that is paying off. Tami Highbaugh-Abdullah says that while other graphic designers have been losing business for the past few years her business card sales have increased. This is due to her eye catching custom business card design. Tami says she speaks to her clients regarding the importance of a business card with a unique visual message. She explains how having a unique business card will catch your potential clients eye, the business card becomes a conversation piece and that conversation usually leads to sales.

Tami invited us to view her business cards on her website www.ariesgraphicdesign.com. The gallery of designs is a colorful display of unique, eye–catching designs; from logos, to postcards, brochures, websites, to her custom business cards, her designs are very impressive. Tami says that many of her clients have come to her by word of mouth. Someone seeing a business card she has created and asking who created your company cards. “Business is good right now”; she tells us, “With company’s laying off and shutting their doors permanently, people are beginning to start their own businesses and provide their own sources of income. They know they need to find a niche to compete with larger more established companies: my new clients understand they need a business card that stands out.”

Aries Graphic Design is located on the northwest side of Indianapolis, Indiana. Tami says her business clientele is nationwide; she even has a client in the Bermuda. Tami started her business in 2002 creating business cards for her tax clients. Due to her designs being so energetic, colorful and eye-catching, her business took off immediately.

Tami says that Aries Graphic Design provides affordable graphic design and print prices for her business cards. Graphic design can be as low as $50.00 and 100 full color 16pt card stock glossy business cards are only $50.00 as well. Tami says that it is hard to beat the Aries Graphic Design pricing, their quick turn around and personal attention they give their clients.

At Aries Graphic Design, they try to make your transaction as smooth as possible. Proofs of business cards are sent via email for the client to review and suggest changes. “I want the client involved in the design process, this is their design and their business card; the customer is constantly consulted through the entire design process. I don’t stop designing until the client is happy.” Invoicing and payment can be done over the Internet or in person. Approved images are sent to the client via email in jpeg, tiff, pdf, and png formats. The order goes to print and the business cards are drop shipped directly to the client. Tami says she makes every effort possible to make the process from beginning to end is an enjoyable experience.

Tami Highbaugh-Abdullah - Graphic Designer/Owner

www.ariesgraphicdesign.com

tami@ariesgraphicdesign.com

317.345.4182

Why Your Company Needs a Website

2009-06-02T20:23:00.000-07:00

- The internet is the first place your potential clients will look to research your company and it's products.
- It can increase your clientele
- Your website is your 24 hour sales person
- Your website is a reflection of your company - it can build your companies reputation
- Cost Effective Marketing Tool - Save your money
- It is cheaper to update your website than to update and reprint your brochure
- Lets people know the services your company provides - No one knows what your company does until you tell them
- Recruit employees online as well as have them complete applications
- A networking tool
- Your Competition has a website and they would be Happy to take the sales you are missing

Many people feel that if they don't sale online they really don't need a website. This is a misconception if you have company you are obviously selling something. If it isn't possible to sell you products and services online your website can generate leads. With a professionally designed website and the appropriate internet marketing strategy you can see your sales increase in no time at all.

Visit http://www.ariesgraphicdesign.com/May-Newsletter.htm