Aria - Dallas Advertising & Branding Agency

Deconstructing a Content Marketing Plan

Karri — Fri, 10 May 2013 15:10:27 +0000

Content marketing is probably the most prolific buzz word floating around the advertising and marketing industry right now, but it isn’t a novel idea. The goal of content marketing is to generate content – articles, videos, infographics, social media campaigns, whatever – that sells your brand message to consumers without really “selling” them. You’re simply inserting your marketing message into their daily lives in a more subversive way than a direct advertisement would like an online banner ad or TV commercial.

Content marketing = engagement marketing built by telling a story and serving that story to consumers through the best platform

And, whether you realize it or not, savvy marketers have probably used this tactic on you already. Take a look at a few examples of content marketing done right.

Tourism Australia

Are you one of Tourism Australia’s 4,000,000+ Facebook fans? If not, head over to their Facebook page and check out some of the content they’re generating – and encouraging their fans to create, https://www.facebook.com/SeeAustralia. Look through their Facebook Timeline and you’ll see a number of user-uploaded photos from the last several decades, going back more than 100 years. It’s really interesting content to dig through.

Renaissance Navigator

A virtual concierge, the Renaissance Navigator tool from Renaissance Hotels delivers content about entertainment options sorted by your location.

Whole Foods

Many international and nationwide chain retailers struggle with having a singular marketing message or messages targeted regionally or locally. Should a nationwide hotel chain like Hyatt have one Facebook page, or should each Hyatt maintain their own Facebook page and their own messages? Whole Foods successfully managed the latter, with regionally targeted social media accounts and accounts with messaging focused on singular topics, http://www.wholefoodsmarket.com/twitter. This provides them the opportunity to focus content delivery to specific audiences.

It doesn’t take much to get started on your own content marketing efforts – it takes real investment to craft the correct stories, find the correct outlet to publish those stories, and continue to refine your work as you discover what your consumers respond to and what is truly effective.

Let’s breakdown the essentials of a content marketing plan to get you going:

Identify your content marketing goals

In general, content marketing strives to create more engagement between a brand and consumers. In a survey of 30,000 members of the B2B Technology Marketing Community on LinkedIn, respondents said their top 3 goals of a content marketing campaign were to 1) generate leads, 2) establish thought leadership, and 3) raise brand awareness.

Establish success metrics and KPIs

But, blanket statements like those are hard to measure. Identify specific success metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) that are specific to your product or service. How do you measure raising brand awareness? Is it through web traffic increases, web referral increases, growth in social media fans/followers, earned media, or a combination of all of the above?

Define your audience

Get very focused on who you want to target. Instead of trying to reach “summer vacationers” go after “summer vacationers, with young children, within a 200 mile radius.” People are more likely to engage with content that speaks directly to them, not vaguely to a mass audience.

Determine content forms

What is the best way to deliver content to your specific audience? There are pros and cons to any content form, but keep in mind that different audiences tend to digest information differently.

Articles and blog posts
Photos
Videos
Maps
Infographics

Determine content distribution channels

While different groups prefer information in certain forms, they also find it in different places. Where is your audience most likely to find your content?

Branded website
Third-party websites
Social media
Email
Print

Set regular review periods

Try, review, analyze, refine. Content marketing campaigns will provide a wealth of knowledge about how consumers choose to interact with your brand. Keep a regular and frequent schedule to review and refine your ongoing efforts to respond in real-time to what’s working, or not working, and maximize your campaign’s success.

Social Media Success Series: It’s all about Connection

Lydia — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 18:03:28 +0000

Over the next few months we’ll be highlighting some social media improvements that anyone with social media outlets can start today. Now. Like, right now.

But first, some background: this year Aria had the amazing opportunity to work with the Travel and Adventure Show, a consumer-focused expo — billed as the travel-lover mecca — which puts travel and destination experts in the same room with travel and adventure enthusiasts.

Our campaign, which you can read all about here, had a heavy focus on social media and interacting with the exhibitors and sponsors in the digital realm. In these initial stages, we also found some key things that many exhibitors and any destination or travel operator could do to easily improve their presence in the social media world — and maximize their Travel and Adventure Show exposure.

So, how can you, too, get results like a 49% increase in Facebook fans, a 47% increase in Twitter followers, and more than 2,000 consumer-authored social media posts and interactions in just over 3 months?

Lesson Number One : “Let’s link together, yeah yeah yeah. Why don’t you and I combine?”

This lesson is quick to read, and maybe quicker to implement. So, grab yourself a hot cup of coffee, roll up your sleeves, put on your favorite Kenny G., and let’s get this show on the road.

The easiest way to lose a fan or potential consumer is by confusing them. It’s vital to simplify, and make it easy for everyone.

For starters, include links on your website to your different social media outlets, such as Facebook “like” button, the Twitter bird, Instagram camera or the iconic Pinterest P. Often, searching for pages or accounts on some social media outlets can be confusing and each one has their own way of doing so. Let’s remove that barrier because you want your visitors to interact, and before they can, they have to find you. Including links on your site to your social media channels makes it easy, takes out room for error and increases the likelihood that they will “follow” you and continue to be engaged by your amazing content — which we’ll be talking about soon.

Next, go to your social media accounts and update your profile to include a link to your website’s homepage. This way, if a visitor comes across your social media page first, they can easily access your website without having to guess your domain, or get lost — and potentially distracted — on Google.

Since you already have all your accounts open, take note of the different page names or usernames you are using. If on one page you call yourself Peacefulville CVB, and another Visit Peacefulville!, people may get confused. “Is this the same organization?” That’s dangerous, and can lead to lost interest. And we understand you can’t always control that.

To lessen the chance of that happening, it’s important that you ensure the images you use for a profile picture or background are consistent across all social media outlets and your site. That consistency will create brand cohesion even in the absence of url consistency, and people won’t think that they’ve accidentally stumbled upon an incorrect account. The cohesiveness of your social media will increase the impact of your destination’s branding and make your logo or imagery more recognizable.

The bottom line

Users are easily distracted while online… you’ve probably jumped over to Facebook or derailed on a search result, or clicked on an ad a few times today. It takes just a second to open a new window and be hooked onto another website. In order to prevent distraction, make it easy for users to move from your site to social media and back again.

Interactive Art Director Job Opening

Jordan — Tue, 26 Mar 2013 20:17:17 +0000

Wanted: An experienced Interactive Art Director willing to go luchador on our client’s design problems.

Disclaimer: this is not actually an Aria luchador. We got this shnazzy photo on Veer.

We’re looking for someone to join the ranks at Aria designing digital consumer-interaction interfaces… and if that kind of language resonates with you, you’ll fit right in.

So, polish up your book, your mask and practice your best grimace before you head over to our job board for all the relevant details.

Aria creates AriaAlliance, joins forces with Mijo! Brands

Ryan — Wed, 13 Mar 2013 19:54:24 +0000

The AriaAlliance is a new type of agency network, connecting agencies with a broad set of integrated capabilities expanding global reach with local access.

Aria announced today that the Dallas-based digital marketing agency has formalized a joint venture with Mijo! Brands, the leader in Latin American destination and experience marketing, that will fully integrate the two agencies’ capabilities to serve worldwide audiences.

“The AriaAlliance is a new type of marketing and advertising agency network. We believe that “small is smart and that agile, lean companies with focused speciality services and narrow market expertise are going to be the agencies of the future,” said Ryan Thompson, Founder & CEO of Aria. “Under the AriaAlliance, we bring together the world’s leading small marketing and advertising agencies, integrated through process and product, providing a seamless interface to clients, with what we believe is the world’s best talent.”

In today’s media-laden, advertising-driven world, brand control is increasingly in the hands of the consumer, and agencies must be incredible at focusing their efforts, and agile enough to respond quickly to change. No agency can be the absolute best at everything, and accordingly we believe agencies with a narrow focus of competencies will have a competitive edge. By gathering smaller, but targeted teams, from around the world, we can deploy quickly and produce effectively.

“The AriaAlliance is much more than a simple partnership. We’re an alliance of like-minded, entrepreneurial agencies who put every ounce of our passion into producing amazing ideas. And more than that, collectively we’ve created a pact to always put results first. What’s really killer is that we’ve gathered two agencies with specific disciplines and are now approaching problems with a global perspective without losing our local access,” said Jordan Wollman, Partner and Chief Creative Officer of Aria.

The AriaAlliance benefits clients in several key ways:

Teams are formed across agencies to bring the best talent with the right set of capabilities to deliver big results
While hundreds of resources may be available for client work, they all belong to small, lean, entrepreneurial agencies which remain agile and able to move very quickly
Clients work with an owner/partner (of one or more of the member agencies) who leads a seamlessly integrated team
With worldwide distribution of resources, cost efficiencies are found by producing work in the right place for the right job at the right cost

Daniel Gómez, Founder and Director of Brand Strategy for Mijo! Brands said, “Mijo! is proud to be a founding member of the AriaAlliance. Globalization has resulted in an increasingly fractured marketplace, while the social-web has changed the power dynamic in the brand-consumer relationship. Consumers are better informed, more demanding and less forgiving than ever before. I believe we have a solution to some of those problems with our new alliance.”

“Massive marketing budgets are no longer key to brand success. Creativity, innovation and flexibility have become the defining attributes of leading brands irrespective of sector. The AriaAlliance offers our global roster of clients the opportunity to rethink their brand communications by placing the consumer squarely at the helm of every brand strategy or campaign,” added Ramon López, Director of Innovation at Mijo! Brands.

The AriaAlliance spans the Americas, and soon other nations, to represent the needs of Clients looking to reach audiences across borders. Alliance agency members are enterprising, entrepreneurial, and aggressive. Each of our clients work directly with one or more of our agency’s partners, which reflects our conviction that great work cannot happen without both party’s investment, passion and personal commitment. This philosophy is demonstrated by a portfolio of work that spans two decades.

Aria is a Dallas-based, results-focused digital marketing agency.
Multiple award-winning design firm Aria is a branding and marketing agency with more than a decade in business. Their agile team of strategists, communication architects, creatives, technologists and marketers specialize in producing sound, results-oriented, right-tool-for-the-job, unforgettable brand experiences. http://aria.co

Mijo! Brands is a digital marketing agency based in México.
With 2 offices in México, Mijo! Brands boasts a portfolio of market-leading consumer and destination brands across North and South America, Europe and Australia. Mijo’s core team of nearly 30 professionals is made of experts in brand and marketing strategy, creative and advertising, social-web strategy, marketers and developers that deliver solid ROI for clients across 9 countries in 4 languages. http://mijobrands.com

How mobile is changing the way we travel

Karri — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 22:10:52 +0000

In recent years, mobile optimized marketing efforts have become exponentially more important as more and more consumers turn to their iPhones, Androids and iPads. Few industries are as heavily affected as travel and tourism. Consumers are using mobile for every part of the travel lifecycle – researching, planning, booking, experiencing and sharing.

Just look at a few of these statistics from the World Travel Market 2012 study:

72% post vacation photos on a social network while still on vacation
46% check in to a location (ex. Facebook, Foursquare) while on vacation
70% update their Facebook status while on vacation

Top five uses of smartphone while traveling:

Take photos
Use map features
Search restaurants
Search activities and attractions
Check in prior to flight

On my last trip, I did all of those things – several times over. I used Google Maps on my phone as a GPS, I searched Yelp multiple times a day to for reviews on restaurants and activities, and I took photos constantly and posted them to Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. Last year I went to Germany for a week and avoided using my phone because of AT&T’s ridiculous international roaming charges, and I missed having all of the tools and connectivity that my little iPhone provides. Using a mobile device like my phone to enhance my experience with a new destination is a travel luxury that I truly enjoy.

So, how does that affect the future of travel?

Earlier this week I stumbled on a great infographic by Skift that illustrates the direction of change within the travel industry.

Passenger Experience 2015 Infographic by skiftnews

There are too many interesting statistics to list them all out here, but two that caught my attention were:
“61% of passengers want more personalization before engaging more with mobile commerce,” yet
“55% of passengers say NO to sharing personal data.”

So, how’s that going to work, people? You can’t have one without the other.

20 Questions : Charlotte Tobin Edition

Lydia — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 17:11:26 +0000

We’ve added a new face to the Aria happy hours, her name is Charlotte Tobin. She’s our new Interactive Art Director. To get down to the core of Who is Charlotte Tobin? we’ve asked her a few very serious, and very thought provoking questions.

1. Nsync or Backstreet boys? Both.

2. Justin Beiber or Justin Timberlake? JT, fo shizzle.

3. Sloth or Monkey? Monkey.

4. What city or state were you born in? New Orleans

5. Where did you to to college? UNT

6. What’s the one piece of advice you wish you could tell your 13 year old self? Boys will always be dumb.

7. What book are you currently reading? “The Boy” by Sana Santaro

8. What is your favorite city of Real Housewives? Atlanta, all the way.

9. Favorite city you’ve ever visited? New York City

10. Number one on your bucket list? See the Pyramids and/or skydive… but not necessarily in the same place [although, I wouldn't object to it]

11. Do you recycle? Yeppers

12. Did you have a blanket or a stuffed animal growing up? Yes

12B. Do you still have it? Oh yes

12C. If so, is it getting kind of gross by now? Very much so

13. Can you text with one hand? On a good day

14. Favorite 2013 Super Bowl Ad? I only saw Beyonce…

15. Favorite photographer, writer or artist? Writer: Sylvia Plath. Artist: Degas.

16. What do you yell when someone cuts you off in traffic? It’s not suitable for me to type

17. What’s the last song you sang in the car alone to? Interestingly it was Sugar We’re Going Down by Fall Out Boy because it was on the Edge this AM.

18. Do you have any pets? What is their name/gender/breed? What’s the cutest and most annoying thing they do? Yes, her name is Stella. She’s a Chihuahua mix. Her freaking puppy dog eyes are to die for and she has a penchant for chewing clothing items such as, but not limited to: t-shirts, bras and yoga pants.

19. How do you take your coffee? Soy Milk ( a new thing ) and sugar. Sometimes with a splash of vanilla if I am feeling frivolous.

20. Do you like your year book picture from 7th grade? Why/why not? Yes, because it was before I started wearing too much make up.

And now, you’ve officially met Charlotte.

Predicting the Future

Lydia — Thu, 03 Jan 2013 19:56:29 +0000

Around this time every year, the media loves spitting out “Best of 2012″ and “2013 Predictions.” Now don’t get me wrong, I love it. I love taking this time every year to look back on the past year of my life, assess it, and establish where it should go in the next 365 days.

As a young 20-something, every year is a new adventure for myself and my peers. My Facebook news feed was flooded with people telling me how great their 2012 was and painstakingly (mostly painful for me. I couldn’t stop myself from reading each and every one) listing everything they did. From their first job, first apartment, graduation, first car they purchased, the first time they went to the grocery store, tried on a new pair of shoes, and that time they stubbed their toe. We, as a culture, happen to do the same. We look back on the trends, faults, flaws, and accomplishments we all had as a group in the past year. What elections, tragedies, miracles, Apple products or new technology changed our lives. Then, we like to make guesses on what’s going to happen next. These will be even more entertaining to look back on when we are ringing in 2014 to see who was right, who was wrong, and who we can’t believe we even listened to. Like the Mayan thing, I mean we only kinda believed it. Many experts specifically choose not to make predictions, since they will likely be wrong.

For your ease and comfort, we have collected a few of our favorite 2013 predictions. Some of them you already know are going to happen, some you will scoff at and others you know are going to happen and you’re crossing your fingers and holding your breathe that they don’t. There is something we hope you take away from the endless lists. And that is, there’s really no use predicting what happens in 2013 if you don’t do anything about it. The important thing is that you are ready TO change, no matter where that is. Be ready for flux and for the chaos. Anticipate the next move, read the consumer, read your audience and keep your mind open to new and different strategies. Adapt, be fluid and have fun. Cheers.

My prediction? There’s going to be a ton of change in 2013 in the realm of technology, digital space and social media. Those who can adapt and succeed will have the opportunity to flourish. Those who see the excitement in the change and embrace it will open doors. Those who don’t adjust will fail. There is not enough capital in our economy to keep those who stay in the old ways afloat. Now, if I’m wrong in 2014, please don’t tar and feather me.

Year in Review

Lydia — Fri, 14 Dec 2012 22:26:29 +0000

Aria had some fun this year. In addition to the work we did for our clients, we also laughed, sang, and had a few (er-several) beers.

We gained a little nugget.

John Fischelli, wife Amanda, and daughter Camille, welcomed Evie, their new baby girl, into their family. Another ray of sunshine added to the Aria office and someone to gush over at all Aria events.

We gained a Piglet and a Tigger

Catie joined the Aria team in April as the Interactive Art Director. Catie brought laughs, yoga poses and fun boots to the Aria office.

I came on interning in January, part time in May and then full time in September as the Marketing Coordinator/Associate Producer. With me, came Westley –a fun little rascal with lots of love and a distrust of men that I find highly entertaining.

We got promotions

John and Karri both moved into offices this year. John joined the ranks of Technology Director in order to better serve the needs of our developing websites, keep us constantly innovating and lead us forward. Karri was promoted to Marketing Director to ensure cohesiveness across campaigns and to promote Aria in innovative, interesting ways.

I went from intern, to Associate Producer to Marketing Coordinator/Associate Producer – proving that if you bug them enough, you can wear them down.

We had some fun

We established Aria Happy Hours. The Aria team went out every third-ish Thursday for some drink and some laughs at local pubs in Addison. Turns out we all really like each other, beer…and an excuse to start happy hour early.

OU beat Texas

After all the trash talk (OU’s talk was obviously in a classy, polished way), OU took home the win and the price was paid by all UT fans in the office. We also learned that I would make a dreadful face painter.

Our office got fluffier

With additions to the staff came additions to our stuffed animal collection, courtesy of Jeff Wollman’s wife, Suzi.

Florence, Two Face and Cheshier have all contributed to happier days with their encouraging blank stares and overall adorableness as they sit and monitor our desks.

We’re instagram-able

We joined Instagram and became addicted to filters. But it’s not our fault we’re a handsome agency that looks good in “Earlybird” setting.

We got on board

Ryan was elected and joined both the TTIA board and the Denton CVB board. We love all the connections we’ve made, and look forward to the future.

We traveled

We went all over this year.

Germany, San Francisco, Austin, New York, Houston, Chicago, North Carolina, Seattle, Killeen, El Paso, Denton, San Jose, and Mexico. What’s next in 2013? Only time, passports, vacation days remaining and that dolla dolla bill will tell.

We had some company

Snooze, our temporary employee, worked tirelessly for two days bringing a little happiness to our office. Need a hug? Hit up Snooze.

Our New Year Resolutions

We ~~made~~ politely asked the Aria team to make a single New Years resolution. Here’s what they came up with:

Get back into running
Drink more strawberry moonshine
Take dog for more (longer) walks.
Answer emails faster (especially those from Lydia)
Achieve 3 of the most difficult poses in yoga
Spend more time and money on experiences, less on things.
Check e-mail every half hour..ish.. better make that every hour.. how about 5x a day?
Accessorize more and not wear flip flops to work Mon-Thurs (Friday is officially the unofficial casual day)

And that’s a wrap. We look forward to all that 2013 has to offer, pending the survival of 12/21 of course.

Cheers!

Looking for a full-time Brand Strategist to join our growing team

ariamedia — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 17:17:00 +0000

We’re looking for a full-time Brand Strategist with a serious passion for marketing strategies and building relationships with clients.

Do you have experience in account management with the ability to strategize and the ability to write well? Do you have a good eye for creative and campaign content that motivates consumers? Do you work well under high-pressure deadlines, and also think proactively when (if!) there’s downtime?

If you answered yes to all of those questions, we’d love to talk to you. View the full job description (PDF) —
and then submit your info (resume, personality, likes, disposition).

Quick tips on how brands should be using Instagram

Karri — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 22:27:20 +0000

You know what I love about Instagram? It’s the simplest, fastest way to convey an experience through social media. We’re just uploading and sharing pictures, after all.

And, just two weeks ago, Instagram enjoyed it’s biggest day ever with more than 10 million photos uploaded on Thanksgiving Day. Instagram could arguably be the fastest growing social media channel for content. If a picture is worth 1,000 words, that’s a whole lot of content.

So what does that mean for marketers? In short, pay attention. To help get you started with Instagram, or if you’re already there, just give your brand a stronger presence, we’ve compiled a number of tips on best practices and ways to better utilize Instagram for your brand.

6 Quick Instagram Tips for Brands

Sample tip: Offer a glimpse into your humanity.
While Instagram can be a place to feature your products in action, consider using it exclusively as a place where your brand’s fans can get a glimpse behind the scenes. Feature photos of faces and places they never get to see. from postadvertising.com

10 Tips to Tell Your Brand’s Story

Sample tip: Crowdsource Creative.
Using Instagram as a way to collect fan-created content for above-the-line advertising programs is definitely doable. Always be sure to cover legal issues with your in-house counsel before embarking, though. Giving a fan the chance to open a magazine, turn on the TV, or see a digital ad and say “that’s my Instagram photo” is a great way to show some love. from searchenginewatch.com

5 Ways Instagram Can Boost your Marketing Plan

Sample tip: Create images that feature promotional codes.
Promoting exclusive discount and coupon codes for new products and services within a single Instagram photo is a fast, low-cost way to attract fans and boost sales. British clothing retailer Topshop (@topshop), which boasts more than 218,000 Instagram followers, uses Twitter and Facebook to drive consumers to Instagram images that reveal “secret” discount codes and sneak peeks at new store locations. from entrepreneur.com

Instagram Best Practices

Sample tip: Expand your audience.
Connecting your Instagram account to your other social networks is a great way to let your followers know you’ve joined Instagram and to grow your audience. It also makes it easy to share the content you post on Instagram to your other accounts in order to increase your reach and exposure.
Example: Puma Sailing shares their Instagram photos on Tumblr and Twitter. from instagram.com

If you’re not already following Aria’s Instagram account, @aria_agency, check out some of the photo goodness you’ve been missing.