Proliferation

Apr 06
0

Which Social Platforms Should You Be Using?

By | content marketing, digital marketing, SEO, Social Media | No Comments

As a business, you want to make sure that you’re doing everything in your power to stay relevant in order to keep growing in your industry, and the best way to do this is by taking advantage of social media platforms. While you might be familiar with Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest, do you know which ones are going to help your company? You probably know that you don’t necessarily have to have an account for all of them, but you do have to make sure that you choose wisely on what platforms you’re going to decide to use.

These platforms all have their benefits, but there are some specific ones that you’re going to want to focus on if you want to help your business thrive. Here are the social platforms that professional marketing companies suggest you try utilizing based on your needs.

Twitter: Twitter is going to benefit your company if you want to provide your consumers with breaking news, announcements and other important and time-sensitive information. Easy, digestible text thrives on twitter and marketing companies recommend this platform for businesses who are based around immediacy.

LinkedIn: B2B businesses should have a LinkedIn account because it will help with lead generation. This platform can help you establish your company as a trusted leader in your field by posting a lot of editorial content. Marketing companies have also pinned down that the demographic on LinkedIn ranges widely from the 30-49 age range.

Pinterest: If your brand uses lots of images within your content, Pinterest is going to be the number one platform that you should be using. Marketing companies have found that 90 percent of users plan purchases while on Pinterest, so this graphics-heavy site is good for driving sales.

Facebook: This is the largest platform to date. With over two-billion users, Facebook is another great platform for lead generation, and it can also be beneficial to your brand in terms of building relationships and showing consumers the human side of your business. It is worth noting, however, that since Facebook is the largest platform, there is also going to be a great deal of competition on this platform.

Instagram: Once again, Instagram is a photo-focused platform, and you’ll want to create an Instagram account for your brand if you’re planning on showcasing your work.

These different platforms are great for different reasons, but you should narrow down your options to avoid wasting any valuable time trying to create a presence where it isn’t needed. If you’re looking to get some help establishing an online presence, give us a call here at Fusion 360.

Apr 05
0

4 Reasons Your Marketing Department Still Needs an Agency

By | content marketing, digital marketing, SEO, Social Media | No Comments

As a marketing agency, we understand that a lot of companies have their own marketing department, but does that mean that they will never need the help of an agency like ours? Absolutely not. Here are four reasons your in-house marketing team will need the assistance of an outside marketing company.

During Turnover

The first and absolute, no arguments about it, time that an in-house marketing department will need to outsource some of their work is during turnover. No matter how successful or unsuccessful your business is, every company experiences times where they have parts of their staff leave. Once one or two individuals on your marketing team take their careers elsewhere, the workload does not wait for your team to rebuild. In these moments, a marketing team can temporarily turn to a marketing company to help fill in the gap.

During a Surge of Work

There are moments when your team might confront special projects, annual reporting, or a major rebranding phase. At these times, an internal team can find their hands full with additional research and work that adds on top of their daily 9-5 work. To help your team avoid late hours and high amounts of stress, outsourcing your work will ensure that all the routine work is finished in a timely manner and the special projects get the focus and work that they need. Instead of an entire team feeling overwhelmed, it’s much easier to simply rely on the help of a marketing company.

Additional Knowledge and Specialties

An in-house marketing team is likely to have the talent they need in order to run their social media platforms, create strategies to increase their list potential clients/consumers, and even continue to develop their website or app, but what about other marketing specialties? You can find an assortment of marketing companies that provide you with additional abilities that your team doesn’t have but needs. Specialties such as SEO work, radio advertisement, or video productions are just a few examples of additional marketing skills that an outside marketing company can give you. Like we said, you may have talented individuals that can create plans and strategies, but there are other areas that you will want to rely on the experience and knowledge of others.

An Outsider’s Vision

Along with the additional knowledge and specialties that an outside agency might give you, they can also give you a new perspective. While your company and its employees may know their own selling point, content and functions unlike anyone else, this can sometimes blind you. After years and years of coming up with new ideas for the same product, the results might become redundant and need a fresh look. An outside marketing company could give you a new idea that your company really needs, but without taking the chance to outsource your work, you will miss out on the opportunity.

Whether you have a large marketing team or not, you can always find a need for a marketing agency. If you need any additional knowledge, specialty or perspective, don’t hesitate to contact us, Fusion 360.

Apr 04
0

Different Roles at a Marketing Agency

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

Before you get into the advertising or marketing business, you need to know the basic mechanics of how a marketing agency works. Marketing companies come in all shapes and sizes, but most follow a similar structure that has been proven to work, no matter how many people they hire. Smaller companies will often have one person wear multiple hats, or one person that does everything an entire department would. Larger agencies will have each department broken down for efficiency. Either way, the fundamentals for the ad agency model works. Here at Fusion 360, a digital marketing company, we know how important the different roles are to build an effective agency. Here are some of the key roles:

Account Director/ Manager

Management of a marketing company is extremely important. Without a solid manager, the whole ship will go down before it even gets going. An account director or manager is responsible for managing the agency’s relationship with its clients and accounts. The account director is the one who delivers the creative work and content to the client and makes sure it fits their wants and needs. They deal directly with the client to address any problems that may arise and develop a solid long term relationship with clients.

Web Developer/ Web Designer

Web developers are programmers who create applications and programs for their clients’ websites. These individuals are well versed in many different program languages, such as HTML, CSS and creative software. It is important to find a web developer who is skilled enough that they can create custom codes and build a website from scratch. A marketing company that really wants to do well will definitely need a web developer to run their websites and make sure everything online functions properly.

A web designer is similar to a web developer, though, their skills may not be as in-depth as a developer. A web designer typically has both technical and creative skills. They focus more on making websites aesthetically pleasing and functional for easy use.

Social Media Manager

The social media manager is responsible for managing all social media marketing. A social media manager has to be acutely aware of social, cultural and digital marketing trends as they constantly evolve. A social media manager has to be an expert in communication in order to attract and engage their target audience. They also have to be pretty creative in order to create quality content in the form of texts, images and video. Marketing companies need a social media manager to stay up with trends and market their brand socially.

Graphic Designer

Graphic designers are in charge of creating all the visual content to market the brand. They come up with ways to get messages across in print and digital media through color, imagery, text and formatting. Graphic designers are in charge of the overall digital marketing projects.

No matter the position, each is essential to make a marketing company really work. There are more roles that can be filled at a marketing agency but these are just some of the major ones for any size agency. Here at Fusion 360, we understand how important each role is to build a great marketing company. If you are wondering how to get involved in the advertising or marketing, reach out today and we will help you!

Apr 02
0

Utilizing Memes to Increase Engagement

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

The new word, “Meme,” is one that you’re going to hear more and more in this day and age, and whether you know about them or not, they engage their viewers. Facebook, Instagram and Twitter are littered with memes; you probably scroll past hundreds of them every day. While they might just seem like silly pictures with clever captions, did you know that marketing companies use them to create a better connection between their clients and consumers?

Since memes are so popular today, marketing companies have figured out that they can utilize them to their advantage. If people are going out of their way to look at memes, and if they’re so prominent on social media platforms, why not take those memes and fit them to your brand? Here are some ways you can utilize memes to increase your engagement.

They Act as a Mild Form of Advertising

Advertising isn’t always received in a positive manner, and this generation is finding new ways to block and ignore online ads. However, memes are tailor-made for social media content. This makes your post — or “ad” — feel genuine and therefore easier to engage with, share, and attract more attention with very little effort. This is where companies can capitalize on creativity, or else, they can find themselves suffering in terms of engagement. Marketing companies, for example, take advantage of their appeal — humor and entertainment — and use it as a method of grabbing and retaining the consumers’ attention.

Memes Can Make “Boring” Subjects Entertaining

If you’re looking to connect with a younger audience, memes are going to be your best friend. However, there is one thing that you need to remember before you start creating memes — they HAVE TO be funny. Memes rely heavily on humor, and if you don’t have that in the mix, you’re going to see very little engagement; always aim for the quick laugh.

Something to Look Out For

When you create a meme in the hopes of producing a reaction, they need to be current/relevant to what’s trending, sharable, easy to digest, simple to read, and straight to the point. We can’t emphasize enough that memes have a very short lifespan. They usually come in waves, and you cannot show up late to the party.

Memes are great because they provide a comical value to your brand, which appeals to a large audience. If you’re wanting to add that extra oomph to your social media game, make sure to check out some memes that you could potentially use — just make sure you’re keeping up with what’s in and what’s not.

Apr 01
0

What Frame Rate Should You Film In?

By | content marketing, digital marketing, video production | No Comments

It’s become standard for video production companies to shoot their videos at 24 frames per second, but are there other frame rates that you can utilize to make sure that you create the best quality video possible? It’s been known in the video production world that this number is used because it’s the best way to give your video a more cinematic look.

Surprisingly, shooting in this frame rate is actually an old cinema method that’s been used for decades. So, that answers the question, why? There’s no reason that video production companies should even bother shooting in other frame rates, right? While this frame rate might work for a majority of video productions, there are a few occasions where recording a video in other frame rates is a more viable option. Here are some situations where you’ll want to shoot using a frame rate other than 24 frames per second.

Shooting Animations

Classic animators had to draw all their animations by hand, which is why they opted to shoot their animations at 12 frames per second. If you’re wanting to shoot classic style animations, you’re going to want to shoot at said 12 frames per second.

Sitcom and Commercial Style

Thirty frames per second is going to be your best friend if you’re wanting to shoot something that mimics a home movie or sitcom. While video productions shot at 60 frames per second, the previous standard shot at 30 fps. Many video production companies would agree that shooting at 30 or 60 fps allows the shot to feel a little more smooth and capture personal interaction better. For that reason, some commercials are also shot at 60 fps to capture the emotion.

Live Action and Sports

Sports and other live action broadcasts require slow-motion, which needs to be shot at a much higher fps. To see the sideline catch of a football game or if a players toe was on the 3-point line at a basketball game, cameras will need to be able to shoot up to at least 120 or 240 frames per second. More recently, these sporting events are shooting at an astounding 300 frames per second to capture super slow-motion shots.

Video production companies use different frame rates for different video productions, and it’s important for you to know which frame rate will work best for you. If this guide hasn’t answered all your questions, or if you’re just looking for a reliable video production company to help you with your next project, give us a call.

Sources:

Choosing Proper FPS for Shooting on Different Occasions

Learn how to choose the best frame rate for your videos in just 10 minutes

 

Mar 27
0

The Importance of an SSL

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

Unless you’re a web developer, you might not know what an SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is or why it’s so important for a website. Marketing companies and their web devs know that SSL’s are a standard but crucial security technology that helps brands establish an encrypted link between a web server and a browser. This link makes sure that all of the data that is passed between the server and the browser stays private.

An SSL not only benefits marketing companies and their clients, but it helps your visitor’s data remain safe and secure. If your website doesn’t have a trusted SSL running on your servers, you’re putting your consumers at risk. Now that you know the basics of what an SSL is and why it’s important, here are some more in-depth reasons as to how your website will benefit from an SSL.

Website Authentication

When visitors visit your site and see that you have a valid SSL certificate, it proves to them that their connection with your website is secured, which will make them feel safe. There’s nothing sketchier than visiting a website that doesn’t have a secure connection; it makes you feel as if your data is at risk of a breach, oftentimes turning off potential consumers from your site.

Website Integrity

An SSL also ensures that none of the transmitted data is being altered. The SSL on a website uses algorithms that allow parties to verify that any and all information received by the site is complete and intact. From websites to emails, they help protect your personal data online and make browsing the web that much safer.

Confidentiality

Some people might be paranoid about visiting new websites because of the possibilities of a security breach. Most people have everything on their computers, from important documents to their financial information, so they’re right to want to avoid taking any risks, especially if a potential consumer sees that a website connection is not secure.

An SSL will ensure that not a single byte of data that is exchanged between you and the server can be intercepted. This is all thanks to the strong algorithms used for encryption. Strong algorithms that marketing companies can help set up when working on your website.

SSL is essential for websites today, and it is widely used throughout the internet. If you’re still a bit confused about anything that has to do with an SSL, give us a call at Fusion 360. Our talented web development team is ready to help secure your website and ensure your customers’ online security, and when it comes to trustworthy marketing companies, we’re one of the best.

Mar 26
0

5 Ways Brands Can Get More Personal with Their Customers

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

The success of modern marketing today relies heavily on how a brand interacts with its customers. If a brand doesn’t take the time to get personal with their current consumer base, they’ll fail to see any growth as a business and might even lose some loyal customers to competitors — these days, it’s all about how you can make your customers feel important. Marketing companies exist to help brands achieve this personal attachment with their customers, and they know what it takes to help these brands successfully engage with their audience.

Here are five of the most effective ways to get more personal with your customers, and how improving your customer satisfaction will help you achieve significant growth as a business.

Offer Your Customers Real Value

Marketing companies know that if you want to genuinely engage with your customers, you have to lead with content, not products. If you want to get personal with your customers, you have to gain their trust first, and that starts by providing them with something of value.

Be Responsive

Another way to gain your customers’ trust and get more personal with them is by engaging in constant dialogue with them when it comes to any issues they may encounter while using your product or service. You should also make sure to keep the conversation going from the initial interaction, because these are the interactions that are going to grow your audience.

Respect Consumers’ Privacy

Consumers will most likely be freaked out and even put off from your brand if they see that you’ve obtained any outside information without consent. The best way marketing companies can get more personal with customers is by being completely transparent and up-front about data privacy and personalization practices.

Showcase your Strengths

Customers will want to get more personal with a brand that can show them what sets them apart from the competition. What is it that makes your brand so valuable? Why should the customer choose you over the competitor? Being able to answer these questions and leveraging your talent will bring in new consumers, as well as solidify the loyalty of your current customers. Marketing companies like Fusion 360 are ready to help show your customers, as well as your competitors, why you’re the leader in your industry.

Practice Great Storytelling

It’s going to take more than irrelevant pop-ups and interruptive ads to build a personal connection with your customers. Top brands like Apple and Microsoft use compelling storytelling and engaging presentations to build that trust with their customers, and your brand should do the same. Your business should be honest about the value that they can offer a consumer as well as what your company stands for. Even if it means not pleasing everybody, your brand should focus on attracting the right customers.

Getting personal with your customers and building strong relationships with them is the best way to ensure your brand’s success, and marketing companies are the best way to achieve that. If you’re looking for help with your customer engagement, don’t hesitate to contact us at Fusion 360. We’re ready to elevate your digital marketing game.

Mar 20
0

Why You Should be Utilizing Influencers

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

If you log into any social media platform right now, you’ll probably see your fair share of posts by famous YouTubers, Instagrammers and Tik Tokkers. These social media superstars have managed to make a living on these social media platforms, and all by creating content that mass audiences can relate to. If you’re looking to boost your social media engagement, these influencers don’t seem like a bad option as far as marketing goes. However, many of the traditional marketing companies are yet to turn to these influencers as an advertising option.

The best thing about social media influencers is that you don’t have to get someone like Kanye West to represent your brand. Everyday people have risen up to superstar status and now amass millions of viewers, followers and subscribers. You can find these personalities everywhere. So, with that being said, your chances of landing one of these stars are pretty good if you try hard enough. Here are a few reasons you should be utilizing influencers.

You’ll Receive Better Quality Content

When you pay an influencer, you’ll also be paying for quality content, depending on the talent. For example, if you’re wanting to create an ad that is driven by humor, you should look through comedian profiles on platforms such as Instagram and Tik Tok, as they will help transform your content into comedic masterpieces. Of course, you’ll want to narrow down what your budget is going to be, as influencers range in price depending on their online presence.

If high-quality video content is what you’re after, you’re not going to regret investing in influencer something that only the best marketing companies know all too well.

Influencers Have Authority Over Audiences

These bigger influencers have a mass following for a reason — they are connecting with their audiences and building relationships with them to keep them coming back and consuming the content that they put out. When you team up with an influencer, you’re bound to reach a consumer base you would have never thought imaginable; in just one project, your business might reach as much as thousands, if not millions of potential consumers.

A survey conducted by a company called Linqia asked retailers, companies and agencies who had invested in these social media influencers if they thought it helped their business. A resounding 94 percent of them answered that they believed their sales benefitted from influencer collaborations.

Marketing companies can boost their client’s engagement by investing in these social media influencers, and it’s a marketing strategy that more brands should look into, especially with the growing influence on these social media platforms. If you’re looking to hire an industry giant to help you get in touch with some social media influencers, give us a call here at Fusion 360 so we can get started on crafting the perfect strategy to get your name out there.

Mar 19
0

The Research That Goes into Marketing

By | advertising, digital marketing, marketing | No Comments

Marketing companies are constantly researching to find new trends, come up with better strategies, and create more consumers in order to keep up with the ever-evolving advertising industry. There is a ton of research that goes into effective marketing (more than most people may have thought was necessary), and it is all crucial in providing your client’s — as well as your agency — with the tools necessary to succeed and stand out from the competition.

Research is the key ingredient found in quality content, successful marketing strategies, and effective campaigns. Without it, you’re bound to create something that won’t resonate with consumers. Here is just how much research marketing companies have to do in order to stay at the top of their game.

Primary Research

This is one of the two main types of research that these marketing companies conduct. Primary research is firsthand information that reflects your customers and your market. Primary research can be conducted through organized events such as focus groups, online surveys and phone interviews. As a result, the newfound research provides fresh details on the challenges and interests that your buyers have.

Within primary research are two categories, exploratory and specific. These subcategories are extremely useful when your brand is segmenting your market and establishing your buyer personas. The two seperate types are defined below.

Exploratory Research:  This type of primary research tends to focus more on potential problems that would be worth tackling as a tea, rather than focusing on measurable customer trends. This is usually the first step that marketing companies take before any specific research is conducted. It can involve open-ended interviews or small surveys.

Specific Research: This type of research follows exploratory research and is used by marketing companies to look into issues or opportunities that the company has already identified as important. Specific research helps businesses take smaller and more precise segments of their audience.

Secondary Research

Secondary research comes from data and public records that you have access to and use to draw conclusions. Trend reports, market statistics, industry content, and sales data are good examples of secondary research.

When it comes to analyzing your competitors, secondary research is the best form of research. There are three subcategories to secondary research that marketing companies utilize:

Public Sources: These are the first and most accessible form of material that marketing companies will look at when conducting secondary market research. Public sources of secondary information including facts and statistics from sites such as the U.S. Census Bureau¾ basically, any reputable site that can offer helpful and factual information.

Commercial Sources: These sources come in the form of market reports that consists of industry insight that is compiled by research agencies. This information is portable and distributable, but typically costs money to download and obtain.

Internal Sources: This form of research is something that you might already have in-house. Internal sources include the average revenue per sale, customer retention rates, and other historical data.

Marketing companies use these types of research to help clients succeed in competitive industries, and as you can see, it’s so much more than just googling your topic and reading an article about it. If you’re in need of a marketing agency to help your brand do extensive research to create an efficient marketing campaign, make sure to check us out here at Fusion 360 Studios.

Mar 14
0

Exploring Non-Traditional Social Media Platforms

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

Marketing companies are constantly trying to figure out new methods of utilizing popular social media platforms to boost clients’ numbers. Whether that be in sales or engagement, these marketing companies know what works and what doesn’t when it comes to platforms like Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, but there are still some platforms out there that aren’t being given the attention that they deserve.

When the popular social media platforms aren’t doing enough for your brand or you feel that the market on them is oversaturated, your company should turn to some non-traditional sites and apps that could help boost your online presence. Here are just a few different platforms you can explore.

Quora

Quora is one of the most popular Q&A services around and while it may not seem like something that marketing companies should be using to market themselves, there are a few ways you can utilize the site to amass a larger online presence.

Brands can use Quora to create content ideas, interact with audiences on questions that are specific to the brand’s industry, and most importantly to establish authority.

Monthly, 775,000 people use Quora to ask questions about things that are important to them. If your company has the answers to these questions, you can answer them and gain the trust of potential consumers.

Reddit

This platform is regarded as the front page of the internet, and for good reason. With thousands of subreddits, you can find everything on this site. It’s also worth noting that the platform attracts 164 million unique visitors every month.

Using Reddit is simple, all you have to do is create a genuine profile and follow and interact with subreddits that are within your brand’s industry. For example, if you’re a car detailing company, you might want to subscribe to various auto threads.

Google+

Google+ has grown dramatically and now boasts an impressive 250 million users. Though many see this platform as a direct competitor to Facebook, it’s so much more than that. Marketing companies can use Google+ to upload photos, vote on content they like, watch videos, share blogs and links and even watch full-length films.

Mix

Formerly known as StumbleUpon, Mix is a social media bookmarking platform that allows users to “like” websites and add them to their individual profiles. Marketing companies can benefit from this platform in the sense that their client’s websites, as well as their own, can gain a good amount of attention if others add the sites to their profiles. There are over 30 million users on Mix, and like other social media platforms, it continues to grow.

These are good examples of non-traditional social media platforms that can benefit your company if your business gives them a chance. If you’re looking to explore new options when it comes to marketing your brand, contact us at Fusion 360.