Okay, spring is on the way and everything in the marketplace is starting to warm up too. You get up early and arrive at the coffee shop early to savour the first cappuccino while you start to write reams of your best content over two additional Americanos. Now you’re flying high and your heart’s racing one-twenty through a caffeine high. Last night, you overheard the guy next to you at the hockey game talking about something called social media and a movie about Facebook, so you’re looking at the movie trailer through the coffee shop Wi-Fi. Jackpot, something called Twitter came up in the search as did a bunch of other sites you had no idea even existed before. So now you’ve feverishly compiled a list of these strange web lands in a new email and hit send with glee. You figure the 20-year-old intern is smart enough to figure it all out. In your head, widgets are flying out of the factory faster than you can make them and everything’s green delirium. You’ve already sent her the morning stream of consciousness that should be called BUZZ-ARDS because they’re circling over you right now.
BEING BLUNT:
There’s a disturbing trend in the communications world. Kids like the nephew of the CEO in a first year marketing program, who put in a word for the cute 20-year-old intern, are being allowed to burn future business alliances because of obvious mistakes too many companies across North America are committing. For starters, hire professionals and pay them. Don’t be like a typical company that posts an ad on a community job board who wants qualified professional services for far less than fair market values.
WORD BUZZARD BEATERS:
Write in bites. Bullet and separate. Make very word tell. Hire a writer, or a technical communicator. They’ll take your stream of consciousness and strip it down so users on your site will find information quickly and efficiently. They’ll also map your site information structure and assess how user friendly the navigation is.
IMAGE BUZZARD BEATERS:
Hire a designer who took more than a weekend online course. If you need photos, hire a photographer. They’ll shoot it properly, likely in a RAW format. Do this and you’ll have an archive for print and web projects. Respect what a good web designer charges and use them to make your site look like something unique and different. In today’s world, your website is going to be the first impression you make on any new potential business, or customer. If you blow this, the buzzards are going to eat you.
COMMITT, PLAN, AND STAFF:
A competent media designer these days has to solve a myriad of problems on the fly and work with numerous software packages. It requires years of experience and schooling to be competent. Before you send the link list off to the intern, delve into the subject on your own time and learn as much as you can. Consider making a plan and budget the planned hiring of a multimedia/social media specialist. It is a full time commitment to create online awareness. In the fleeting world of tweets and streamed media, you have scant seconds to grab your future client’s attention and turn them toward your brand. Think micro bites of information that the social media specialist designs, leading to new customers and market shares.
About the Author
Tracy David Sim is the owner of All Directions Media. He has a 20-year background in film and television production prior to starting the company. He is a writer, screenwriter, photographer, and editor.