It's been a very busy Q2 and Q3 at Twin Creek Media.

As a Kelowna marketing agency with a special focus on internet marketing and web design, we never seem to be able to breathe long enough to update our portfolio with new launches and interesting case studies.  In this project update, we'll give a taste of what the team at Twin Creek Media has been doing over the last 6 months.  (We can't tell you all the goodies though... our clients don't want us to spill the beans about their new competitive advantages and we have trade secrets to keep!)  You'll just have to hire us to reap the rewards of an integrated marketing campaign.

We have been creating new brand identities, database-driven websites, corporate brochures, direct mail pieces, running radio campaigns, shooting videos, building blogs, and driving web traffic through email marketing, search engine optimization and pay per click tactics like Google Adwords and Facebook Ads.  Just one item in that list is powerful, but done together, business goals are targeted with a type of marketing synergy that is amazing to watch.

A Sample of Completed Projects

Okanagan Regional Library

Completely redesigned website, photography, animation, print materials, and Facebook and Twitter efforts lead to many people to rediscover the library's relevance in the 21st century | Name the Marmot Contest big hit with 3000+ kids (and their parents!)

Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors

Promotional videos and unique email marketing campaigns draw people to national conference at the Delta Grand Okanagan

Case Furniture Gallery

Online contests builds brand awareness & drives retail store walk ins | Local media get VIP treatment at private event

Quantech Software

Online industry survey reveals what customers really want | Targeted email marketing campaign generates many new leads

SJF Sports

Internet marketing strategy leads to blog and intense social media campaign using Facebook and Twitter | Web traffic increased by 109.4% in 2 months

Our Okanagan

New Okanagan business networking website attracts 800+ new business/association sign ups | Employment, investment, and collaboration opportunities excite valley residents Watch the recent by Global/CHBC here.

The Greenery Garden Centre

Massive online photo contest creates a fun customer experience | web traffic soars with 600+ submissions & 3000+ votes

A Sample of Current Projects

Best Western Inn Kelowna

Search Engine Marketing Analysis reveals what Google thinks |Internet marketing campaign begins to take a leading brand higher than ever

Quantech Software

SEO and Website Usability Score Cards uncover the missing ingredients that will turn "tire kickers" into buyers | Web development focuses on amazing user friendly site which supports Sales & Marketing Dept's goals

Impact Radio Accessories

Continued magazine ad design, catalogue, and eCommerce website improvements assist in great sales performance for 2010 | Work done over the last 4 years spur on international expansion

Clement Turf Farms

Strategic research and industry surveys get to the heart of exactly how where the new revenue opportunities lie | Integrated marketing campaign underway involving both digital and traditional marketing tactics

Okanagan College - Green Business Awards

Easy to use Wordpress blog-style website will help students organize and promote the local Green Business Awards competition

by James Shaw, Creative Director

Are your customers ENGAGED with your message (or bored out of their minds)?

When it comes to engaging your target audience, not all marketing channels are created equal....

You are competing with 1000's of messages everyday. Your "target audience" is being bullseyed with so many random, off-topic, and boring attempts to capture their attention that they've probably tuned out most marketing messages altogether.  Wow, that's a depressing thought for marketing managers and advertisers, right?!  Industry insiders have even gone so far to say proclaim things like, "Death of the Advertising Agency" and other disturbing headlines.

I'm sick of advertising too. [I'm the Creative Director for Twin Creek Media, but since I own the company I'm not worried about being fired for a statement like that! Whew! ]

Aren't we all sick of advertising?  Let's define advertising as: any boring marketing message that we aren't interested in, isn't relevant, and isn't engaging.  No one likes "advertising" in that sense.  So what's the opportunity?  As marketers, business owners, sales reps, and business developers our goal is to communicate our messages so well that they do not come across as ads.  The challenge is to make them the opposite of the definition above:  un-boring, interesting, relevant, and engaging.

The topic of this article is Engagement, so we'll leave the other communication goals alone for now.  Marketing and advertising used to be limited to mostly "push" type messages.  Traditional mediums of print, radio, and TV can be effective if done creatively (and targeted as much as possible) but in general the communication is one way.  Marketers push the message out to sea and hope someone eventually picks up their message-in-a-bottle.  Tradigital mediums are not whole lot better in my opinion, but at least your target audience can find your message whenever they want - it's accessible and searchable on Google for example.  The other advantage of pushing content out online is that it can be interactive.  People can dig, explore, learn and sort of control their experience with your brand, product, or service.

Stop "pushing" and have real conversations on Social Engagement channels. The major advantage of this type of communication is that it's two way.  People talk, and people talk back.  If your marketing message is genuinely interesting and relevant to your audience it won't be treated as an ad.  Instead of being boring and ignored your message becomes a thread in normal conversation.  It's a story worthy of repeating.  This is true marketing success!

Wait! Social Media is not the answer to all your marketing goals. Nothing irks me more than flavour-of-the-day marketing.  It's important to figure out exactly what you're trying to do, and who you're trying to reach.  Social networks are not the obvious answer every time.  Set measurable goals so you'll know if moving in the right direction.  Often it's best to integrate all the marketing channels together.  They each have strengths and weaknesses, and instead of jumping on the band wagon with the latest (untested) web tool, craft balanced campaigns to meet your communication goals.  Use a blend of traditional and digital tactics.  Use one channel to spark awareness and curiosity.  Another to inform.  Another to capture.  Another to have conversations.  Another to sell.  Another to retain.  Another to... well, you get the idea.

Have an opinion on engaging customers?  We'd love to hear them!  Comment below.

In a word, yes.

Newspapers have a unique place in the marketing world.  For many, reading the local newspaper is nothing short of a sacred ritual along with their morning coffee and fuzzy slippers.  I would say though that the relevancy of newspapers for the generations below Boomers is increasingly questionable.  My gut feelings tend to go against the data released by NADbank (Newspaper Audience Databank) recently.  Their data is frankly startling, but I'll be the first to admit that hard facts trump my "feelings".

NADbank 2009 Canadian Newspaper Survey

NADbank's website states that the NADbank 2009 Study provides newspaper readership data for 83 daily newspapers in 53 markets and 60 community newspapers in 33 markets across Canada.

The study's authors go on to speak confidently about the relevancy of newspapers, leading with the headline:

"NEWSPAPERS REMAIN AN IMPORTANT RESOURCE FOR CANADIANS

Once again, daily newspapers have demonstrated their value to Canadians. Despite constant rumours of their imminent demise, newspapers continue to be a relevant source for news and information across Canada. Over three-quarters (77% - 14.7 million) of adults living in markets where a daily newspaper is available read either a printed or online edition each week."

Okay, okay.  But a healthy dose of skepticism should be allowed, right?

After all, I can't help but notice that the entire study appears to be a bit self-serving.  NADbank's committees are stacked with newspaper employees and media agency people.  Anyway, I digress...

Mitch Joel, a guy I admire in the digital marketing arena, wrote an interesting article about the topic.  He muses that the future of news may be online.  Joel writes on his TwistImage blog,

"When looking at how these free, digital-only publishing houses work compared to the traditional news media, the differences are staggering.

From how the journalists are found, managed and paid to the marketing and advertising models, to the actual management infrastructure, one would not be hard-pressed to say that they look nothing like the industry that they inherited and digitized. Maybe the newspaper industry has to look well beyond the current model of simply copying-and-pasting their print content and publishing it online to re-imagining what publishing means in a world where 20 people and a WordPress publishing platform can do the job using text, images, audio and video that it used to take 200 people to do in a fraction of the time and cost."

I found Mitch Joel's blog post to be very interesting, not to mention the responses it garnered.  I'll end this article with my highly subjective take on the subject, which I orginally wrote as a comment on his site.

Since 2004, Twin Creek Media has been a strategic and creative marketing agency located in Kelowna, British Columbia. The firm has carved a place in the marketing world by becoming known for integrated marketing: combining the best of internet and digital with the traditional mediums of print, radio, and TV.

We've structured our company a little differently than other marketing agencies.  We have 4 people on our executive team, and 12 part-time specialists on our creative team.   Clients get consistent leadership and project management, while scoring the specialized resources that make up our "dream teams".

Normally, clients get "A" there, "B" the other place, "C" somewhere else, and run around between various companies fitting things all together.  The result: lack of clarity, lack of continuity, lack of harmony in the marketing message.  Instead, at Twin Creek Media clients get a well-rounded range of marketing services... from assessing the need, creating the materials, and choosing the right tool(s) for the job.  We fit in very nicely with SMBs (small/mid sized businesses) - companies with 10 to 50 employees.

Twin Creek Media aims to be the gold standard in integrated marketing.  Roughly half our staff are Gen X and Y - we understand the digital world.  We live the internet.  We breathe Google, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, blogs, digital video, SEM, SEO, mobile apps... we know how to integrate the best of what today's technology has to offer with what is tried and true in the advertising universe - the big 3: print, radio, TV. 

"We love integrated marketing. Assessing your market and understanding your target audience is critical.  Creating the concept, designing the visuals, and crafting the words are undeniably important.  But the correct delivery of the message is crucial for successfully engaging your audience.  Marketing channels are all different and each have there own strengths and weaknesses.  We want to use the right marketing mix for each client." - Cara Reed, Account Director

We will not limit our services to one industry or one marketing tool.  Imagine marketing channels were colours of the rainbow... (oh boy, here comes the metaphor!) We will not limit our offerings to one colour.  If you want an just an expert in the colours of black & white, there are a million of them these days... just Google it.  We want to use any and all colours appropriate to tell your marketing story!