Proliferation

Mar 07
0

Why Can’t Spotify Win the Advertising Battle?

By | advertising, Audio, commercials | No Comments

It’s not news — or at least new news — that Spotify ads have a relatively solid anti-fan base online. With 20 million paying subscribers in 2015 alone, there are bound to be some rankled or slightly irritated users — but why? Why do Spotify ads in particular seem to have a dedicated hate-following online, versus similar (albeit slightly different) music platforms such as Pandora or Songza?

After briefly browsing through some of the user reviews online, it appears that there are at least a couple of things Spotify is getting wrong in its advertising department. And with more than enough advertising agencies willing to weigh in and fix the problem, there’s no reason why the music platform shouldn’t be stepping up its advertising game.

The Ads Clash with the Listening Experience

Although it’s nice that Spotify offers a free, ad-supported version of its music services, this doesn’t mean there aren’t strings attached to the listening experience. Most advertising agencies attempt to curate their ads to fit the general tastes of the product or services’ target audience; however, it appears (from a user’s perspective) that Spotify attempts none of this. The result? Misplaced, erratic ads that ruin the listener’s vibe. In addition to feeling irritated, most users express vehemence at having their workout routine mix interrupted by an ad for Trojan brand condoms.

There Are Too Many Consecutive Ads

If the ad content wasn’t annoying enough, another factor of the Spotify ad problem involves the amount of ads that are played between songs. While other music platforms such as Pandora may play one or two ads between songs, Spotify will play multiple ads that successively aggravate the listener. Most advertising agencies do not endorse this kind of approach.

Encouraging Listeners to Upgrade to Premium

If Spotify’s intention with its ads is to encourage listeners to upgrade to the ad-free Premium version, it would probably behoove them to start by building a more favorable fan base. The duality of Spotify is that while its services are awesome — and almost a necessity — their ads are isolating listeners and causing what might become an irreversible schism among music enthusiasts everywhere.

Mar 07
0

The Evolution of Internet Website Design

By | Design, web development, website design | No Comments

Since the since website went live in 1991, the website has been an enduring staple of Internet activity. From static, text-based webpages rendered in black and white to the dynamic, highly-responsive websites we have today, both the design and applications of websites have changed immensely.

Let’s take a look back at how website design used to be, not all that long ago.

The Early Internet

What do the first websites and the dinosaurs have in common? By today’s standards, they were both rather primitive.

Life as a website in the early days of the Internet was a simple existence; 16 colors were supported by most computer monitors, but the early websites only needed three: black, white and blue for hyperlinks. For early websites, text was all you needed — images didn’t come into the picture until 1993. Textures came online later, in 1994. And don’t even think about using CSS — HTML was the only programming language in existence.

The Dark Ages

The Internet’s limited color palette got an upgrade in 1994-1995, from the original 16 to a whopping 256 colors. Web designers ran with the new color opportunity, unleashing an onslaught of obnoxiously bright, garish webpages and flashing neon advertisements (like the ‘70s, but for the Internet).

1995 and 1996 introduces PHP and CSS programming languages, which bring with them the opportunities for vastly improved website design. Unfortunately, Web designers in the late ‘90s were too busy filling their homepages with sparkly, animated aliens and those things that looked like Bratz dolls to take notice of anything besides HTML. Geocities reigned supreme. It was a dark time.

The New Millennium

The year 2000 brought with it fun things like gradients and colors that didn’t hurt people’s eyes quite as much. Also, fear of the Y2K bug. As websites become more complex, design changes to become more user-friendly, with a focus on menus and other navigation tools. Internet Explorer continues to gain ground on previous monopoly-holder Netscape, forcing web designers everywhere to optimize their websites for the ill-fated Internet browser.

The Awkward Teenage Years

Around 2003-2004, the Internet proliferates in an explosion of more subtle color options and Flash-animated activity. Splash pages are very in vogue around this time. As dial-up Internet begins to fade and cable and Wi-Fi are incorporated into more homes and businesses, the Internet becomes accessible to a wider range of people.

The Internet starts to figure out what it wants to be, bringing us early social media pioneers MySpace and “The Facebook,” blogging website WordPress and YouTube in 2005. Design-wise, people are intrigued by the concept of video and are continuing to make everything a little bit easier on the eyes. Cell shading is a big thing.

Internet Young Adulthood

Having more or less figured out what it wants to be, the now grown-up Internet spreads its wings and works on subtle improvements. Social media proliferates, YouTube becomes a legitimate website and Google makes the lives of people around the world a little less frustrating.

Drop shadows and more realistic imagery become popular as screen resolutions get better and better. Color schemes are a thing. People are really into scrolling. Responsive design becomes more important.

Present Day

With a wealth of programming languages and design tools, today’s websites are more responsive and customizable than ever. Web designers have a multiplicity of options, a huge array of possibilities — and yet the prevailing trend is minimalism.

Aesthetically pleasing fonts are widely available, high-quality images are in abundance and animated GIFs and videos can be embedded every place imaginable. Most importantly, Internet Explorer is finally dead. Now if only people would pay their Web designers more, I’d say we’re living in an Internet renaissance.

Mar 04
1

Product Placement in Hip Hop & Rap

By | marketing, Music | No Comments

While Beyoncé’s shout out to Red Lobster in “Formation” was hard to miss, product placement in rap & hip hop music is often more subtle — but no less pervasive. From Run-DMC’s influential track “My Adidas” and Golden Age hip-hop’s fascination with Cristal champagne to Jay Z’s incessant name-dropping of fashion designer Tom Ford, marketing agencies got nothing on hip-hop’s biggest artists when it comes to clever and persistent product references.

From luxury cars and Air Jordan sneakers to chain restaurants and brands of fancy alcohol, check out these blatant brand product endorsements from both big-name rappers and lesser-known acts alike.

 

fusion_rappers

Mar 04
0

Can’t-Miss Steps of an SEO Audit

By | SEO | No Comments

SEO audits are notorious for being time and labor-intensive. There are numerous ways to improve your website’s SEO — from high-authority backlinks to properly-optimized images and website URLs. While an SEO audit can go in different directions depending on a business’ needs, there are some things an SEO audit simply can’t do without.

Mobile First

It’s 2016, and mobile is king — if your website isn’t mobile-friendly by now, you’re going to have a bad time. From Utah to the East Coast, Americans can’t get enough of mobile Internet; 75 percent of Americans now bring their phones with them to the bathroom. Start by taking Google’s mobile-friendly test, utilize a mobile sitemap and Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) and put a focus on responsiveness.

Data, Data, Data

This is SEO we’re talking about, so data is huge; performing an SEO audit means going through Google Analytics, AdWords data and Webmaster Tools, to name a few. All this data gives you insight into cost metrics, conversion rates, useful keywords, traffic metrics and more. Need to know how much traffic comes in from Utah, the West Coast or from other websites? You got it. Without the support of hard data, your SEO audit will go nowhere.

Tackle 404 Pages and Duplicate Content

You know what good websites don’t have? Error pages and duplicate content. Eliminate or redirect error pages as needed and get rid of duplicate content as soon as possible; duplicate information doesn’t look good to Google, much less to your users.

A Fast Website is a Good Website

Slow loading times can kill Web traffic: not only will users hate you, but search rankings will be negatively affected as well. Run PageSpeed Insights tests, enable browser caching and enable compression to reduce space. And as for any reputable website, finding a good Web host is absolutely essential.

SEO audits are a complicated business, and with all the little details it can be easy to miss the forest for the trees. Whether you’re a small business in Utah or a larger corporation, focus on these essential steps to make your next SEO audit a rousing success.

Mar 03
0

Mobile Internet Use Around the World

By | digital marketing, marketing, Mobile marketing, web development | No Comments

In an increasingly global marketplace, marketing companies and digital advertising agencies around the world are devising methods to reach diverse audiences from the flat landscapes of Utah to the mountains of the Himalayas. With landlines and reliable access to electricity available sparsely in many locations, more and more people are turning to mobile as their primary method of Internet access — as are those in more developed nations.

As mobile grows in global popularity, marketers need to increase their mobile presence accordingly — or risk missing out on potentially lucrative opportunities. Take a look at these mobile Internet statistics and demographics and get a leg up on the mobile marketing game.
Mobile-Around-the-World

Mar 02
0

Content Marketing: Fact Vs. Fiction

By | advertising, content marketing, digital marketing, marketing | No Comments

Content marketing is easy, right? All you have to do is write a couple of blog posts, choose a few stock photos and call it a day, right? Wrong. From Utah through the Midwest, there are a plethora of myths surrounding how content marketing works. Some of the key attributes of this niche marketing genre require client to consumer trust, strategic brand investment and a healthy relationship with social media outlets.

Whether you’re believe old wives’ tales about re-spinning content or buying into the idea that marketing and advertising are one and the same, here’s the real scoop on fact, fiction and theory when it comes to content marketing.

Content-Marketing-Fact-Fiction

Mar 01
0

Inside the Beautiful Mind of a Content Marketer

By | advertising, content marketing, digital marketing, marketing | No Comments


The occupation of content marketing is uniquely different from other marketing occupations. Throughout Utah to the Midwest, the creative job description of a professional content marketer requires the mind of an artist coupled with the writing style of a reporter. By perpetually trying to think outside of the box, the content marketer must not only possess a keen sense of wit, but he or she must simultaneously be mentally organized and innovative.

As artists who are as passionate about AP Style as they are about the Oxford Comma (or lack thereof), finding a great content writer requires a unique simulation of particularly-curated character qualities. Here’s the breakdown on what makes or breaks a good content marketer.

fusion_contentbrain

Feb 26
0

A Guide to Guest Blogging

By | advertising, content marketing, digital marketing, marketing, Uncategorized | No Comments

Although the term “guest blogging” might seem like an axiomatic statement, in reality, there’s quite a bit to it. Before you attempt to reach out to a blog with the hopes of guest blogging, it’s essential that you find out how guest blogging can benefit your content marketing campaign, whether you’re in Utah or the Midwest. Spend some time getting to know the blog and the blog’s content — this will give you the most accurate feel for audience and tone.

After you’ve successfully determined the tone of your target audience, you’re ready to craft a post. Here’s the rundown on everything you need to know about creating a stellar guest blog post.

fusion_guestblog

Feb 25
0

Landing Page Essentials

By | advertising, content marketing, digital marketing, marketing, web development | No Comments

The landing page of your website is so much more than just a place where end users go to learn more about your products and services — it’s also where they make a first impression of your company or business. There’s a specific science behind what makes a successful landing page and what might cause people to bounce from your site faster than a fifth-grade game of dodgeball. If you’re attempting to pursue any type of content marketing campaign — whether you’re in Utah or the Midwest — there are a few key components you should know about landing page content and layout.

From an attention-grabbing headline to straightforward design basics, here are a few tricks and tips to help you achieve a landing page that simultaneously attracts positive attention while decreasing your bounce rate.

fusion_landingpg

Feb 25
0

You Know You Work at an Ad Agency When…

By | advertising, content marketing, digital marketing, marketing | No Comments

The workplace is full of stereotypes; however, nothing quite defines typical marketing agencies like the quirky copywriter, music-geek art director or the frantic accountant. Walking into an ad agency is a bit like playing Russian roulette — depending on the day, you might either be met with a cranky, coffee-deprived crew or you might be applauded by a group of interns playing a competitive game of ping pong. One thing is for certain — you can never be sure of what happens behind the creative doors of a marketing agency. Depending on the type of day the team has had, you might be walking into Rivendell or you might be strolling into Mordor.

From the Justice League-certified programmer to the moleskin-clad copywriter, here are a few of the stereotypical people you might meet at your local ad agency.

Work-in-Ad-Agency