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When you’re spending more than a million dollars for a critical piece of oil and gas equipment, you’re going to spend a good amount of time researching and gathering as much intelligence on your options as possible.  This illustrates exactly why content marketing has become so important for companies selling products and services to other companies.

In fact, a recent study by HiveFire found that 82% of B2B marketers used content marketing, and the longer their sales cycle, the more likely companies were to use this strategy.

What is content marketing?  It’s the practice of providing your customers and prospects with information they can really use in their daily professional lives – knowledge that will help them make better, more informed business decisions. Content marketing can manifest itself in the form of e-newsletters, videos, blog posts, white papers, articles, and even custom events.  And, like any good marketing plan, it takes some thought and planning to get it right.

You can read the B2B article here.

- Julie,
Creative Director

Are you a top leader and great innovator offering unique solutions? Apparently, so is everybody else.

In a RSW/US article, they cite a recent study by public relations expert Adam Sherk, analyzing the most frequent terms found in company communications. The top ten below:

1. leader
2. leading
3. best
4. top
5. unique
6. great
7. solution
8. largest
9. innovative
10. innovator

Not that there’s anything wrong with these words, per se, we just see them so much. Or should I say we don’t see them? They’ve been used and overused to the point of losing all meaning. To this list, I would add:

11. excellence
12. quality
13. value

Promise me you’ll print this out and file it under “What Not to Do.” It will make you, and me, and hopefully all those innovative leaders out there more effective communicators.

- Julie,
Creative Director

I’m as guilty as the next ad person of being drawn to beautiful imagery, unusual font applications, and compelling design. But as a writer, I also know how much words can make – or break – a message that’s intended to persuade.

We know that words can evoke emotion. For instance, the iconic Volkswagen ad from the 60’s had the headline “Think Small” along with a simple photo of the VW bug, and a lot of white space. Design was important here. But if the headline was something like “The VW Bug is Different,” I doubt we’d be talking about this ad at all, good design or not.

“Think Small” conveys attitude. A real point of view. And it compells the reader to take action. Even if that action is just reading the rest of the copy.

If you haven’t seen the video above, it’s worth your time. For me, it evokes one word: powerful.

- Julie,
Creative Director

There are a lot of tactics out there for optimizing your website for search engines. And while there are some best practices which should not be ignored, many of these tactics are really just SEO tricks. And the trouble with these tricks is the search engines eventually catch on.

Most everyone I hear talking about SEO is focused on identifying and implementing the latest tricks as soon as possible so they’ll benefit before the search engines catch on and adjust their algorithms and processes. The tricks have evolved over the years from invisible keywords to complex linking schemes, but the search engines always react to stop these practices from affecting their product. Remember how powerful metatag keywords used to be?

Google recently introduced Instant Previews making it more difficult for SEOs to manipulate search results. These previews give users a chance to see what the page looks like before clicking (or voting) for that link. I hate it when my search directs me to a page filled with links disguised as content—Google Instant Previews helps me avoid this.

Another example of Google weeding out the tricks is what happened with JCPenney. After a successful run at improving their PageRank, Google discovered their scheme and intervened, manually dropping their position from #1 to #68 in search results. Make no mistake, Google doesn’t take kindly to being fooled.

All this brings me to my point. The search engines are completely focused on helping people find the best content. And to do this they have to minimize the effect of sneaky SEO tactics. So, instead of always trying to outsmart the search engines, let’s join them in helping people find useful content—by creating the useful content.

There’s a billion dollar algorithm out there waiting to reward us for doing just that.

- Casey,
Sr. Account Executive

A few weeks ago, thanks to one awesome Groupon purchase, I boarded a Virgin America flight from Dallas to San Francisco for the low, low price of $135 (round trip!). Doesn’t get much cheaper than that – but it did get better.

Upon boarding, I noticed a shiny Google Chromebook kiosk across from our gate. I curiously watched random passengers approach the kiosk manned by a group of spunky twenty-somethings in matching shirts. A short explanation and a few clicks later, each visitor walked away with a sleek Chromebook tucked in a thin sleeve.

During the experience, I watched each passenger’s expression turn from curiosity and surprise to smug and proud. They’d obtained a neat, new gadget – for free – to access the internet in-flight – for free.

I’d never flown Virgin America before, so as soon as I caught a glimpse of the glowing purple cabin and each seat’s personal entertainment hub, it all made sense. A hip, innovative airline partners with the mother of all internet companies to help launch their new Chromebooks. Someone, somewhere did their marketing research.

On the return flight, my boyfriend and I decided to join in on the fun and take the Google Chromebook for a spin. While I found it to be a bit slow and limited in its abilities (I won’t lie, I’m a Mac), I still appreciated the opportunity to try out the new device – for free – and take advantage of Virgin America’s in-flight wifi – for free. Did I mention it was free?

The partnership of two like-minded companies offering different services to the same demographic directly resulted in me walking away with a better appreciation for both companies. Makes me wonder what other companies could benefit from a similar partnership. Could yours?

- Kristin,
Jr. Art Director

P.S. Word on the street (aka Virgin America’s website) is that the Chromebook renting service is available now through September 30th on flights from San Fran, DFW, Boston and Chicago. Try one out!

On August 4^th, Triad Business Marketing will turn 17 years old. In some ways, it seems like a “blink of the eye” back to when I was using the box from my office chair as a desk, waiting for my real desk to be delivered. At the same time, I feel as if I have lived a whole lifetime in these past 17 years.

Let me start off by stating without any hesitation that I would do it again…no doubt about that. Now, there is a good chance I would sidestep some of the mistakes I have made, but on balance running this agency has been a great experience.

Part of what has made owning Triad so good is the many things I have learned through my association with the company. Since I am a man of lists, if nothing else, below are the Top 5 lessons I have learned over these years.

1. It’s very easy to be positive, confident, proactive, and productive when things are going well. Front-runner status is easy to maintain. But one learns more about who they are (and more importantly, what they can become) during the tough times. Tough times will either make you or break you…and the choice is yours!

2. There are people that you can count on, and those that you can’t…that’s a fact that shouldn’t surprise anyone. What was a surprise to me was how difficult it is determine the pretenders from the real players.

3. A company is not much different from a football team…except that companies generally don’t wear shoulder pads and engage in tackling drills. What is similar is the old fashioned concept of teamwork – sacrificing one’s individual glory for that of the team, for picking up the slack when another is struggling. At Triad, we win together or lose together…and the good news is that we have won many more than we have lost.

4. There is nothing more satisfying than a job well done. All of the hard work, the struggles, and even the internal clashes (that sometimes happen) all seem to be worth it, when the final outcome is great. I believe that more than anything – an ad, a website, a feature article, a marketing plan, etc. well done – has not only kept me in this business, but has kept me excited about being in this business.

5. While I have enjoyed the many “wins” we have had here at Triad, I have learned that these wins in no way mean that we’ve made it. There is always another challenge on the horizon. And by the same token, the tough times don’t mean that everything is wrong, and we should just give up. I have learned that even in the toughest times, if you keep pushing ahead, things will get better…and fast.

I’ve learned a great deal since starting Triad, some the easy way, most the hard way. But, all-in-all, it has been a great experience.

And I very much believe that the best is still ahead of us.

To close, I want to thank everyone who has contributed to Triad’s success and longevity – employees, clients, and suppliers. Triad, today, is a composite of the contributions of a broad range of people, and each and every one of these people are deserving of my sincere thanks.

Tom Prikryl,
President & Ceo