Corporate Blog for a Marketing Company

If A Picture Is Worth 1000 Words, A Logo Is Worth Even More

Posted November 22, 2013

Your company’s logo is much more than a pretty picture that you slap on your signs and brochures; it is your business identity and the first point of contact many have with your business. A logo has power – power to represent your brand, to showcase your uniqueness, and most importantly, to lodge itself in the thoughts of your potential customers. Designing the perfect logo is a process, but it’s worth your time to put some serious energy into creating a stellar logo for your brand. We’re outlining a few of the biggest reasons below.

First impressions are everything! Make your logo count.

Your logo is likely the first thing a customer sees on your business card or store sign. People make judgments within the first few seconds of seeing your logo as they pass it by. It must make a positive first impression, and it should give an idea of what your business does.

A logo should have staying power: a good one sticks with the customer.

Ideally, customers will recognize you by your logo. Logos should be memorable and iconic. Repeated exposure (on letterheads, truck sides, freebie handouts, etc.) creates a sense of familiarity with you and your brand. This sense of familiarity is compelling; making it more likely the client will remember you and buy from you in the future.

Your logo represents your business and its philosophy.

Its style should reflect what you’re all about, and its design should resonate with your clientele. For example, an upscale restaurant would opt for an elegant, stylish logo. On the other hand, a family restaurant would want something more homey and comfortable. An ultra-modern, elegant logo may clash with the family-style restaurant and alienate its clientele. An overly simplistic, traditional logo would look silly on an upscale restaurant, and might not fully express the finesse with which each dish is plated and each customer served.

Logos establish brand identity and credibility.

A company with consistent branding across its collateral shows professionalism. When your logo neatly and accurately appears on your business card, website, print ads, etc., it gives the impression that you’ve got your act together. The last thing you want is customers comparing an old brochure to your new website, and wondering whether they’re checking out two different companies!

You probably get the picture by now: a well-done logo ultimately represents you and your business, and it should speak to your clientele. Its appearance and execution helps establish not only a strong brand identity, but also a sense of trustworthiness and consistency. Make a strong first impression, and a lasting overall impression, with a great logo.

Contact 3-Keys Communications today for a free 30-minute consultation to review your branding and discuss whether a logo redesign or a realignment of your message is necessary. We can help you update your branding message so that will appeal to your target audience. Contact us here, or call us at 925.558.0771.

Corporate Blog for a Marketing Company

Developing An Advertising Campaign To Pull Ideal Clients

Posted January 7, 2013

How do you pull in your ideal client?

Targeting your ideal client is key to developing concise, effective marketing. Don’t cast your nets too wide; the likelihood of reeling in your ideal customer decreases the larger the audience you target. One-size-fits-all marketing messages are a thing of the past. With the specificity technology can afford marketers, you can figure out who your target audience is, develop a message that speaks directly to them, and design a marketing process that conveys exactly WHAT that person needs to see and hear and HOW it should be presented in order to turn your leads into clients.

1. Identify Your Target Market

   Define them geographically—what area of the country or the world do they live in? Are they in urban, suburban or even rural environments? Etc.
   Define them demographically—what kinds of jobs do your clients have? How old are they? What is their earning potential and what are typical spending habits?
   Define them psychographically—what are their interests, lifestyles, attitudes, values, etc.

2. Write the Message That Speaks to Your Ideal Client

   What do your ideal clients need? How can you meet their needs, and what is the best way to convince them you’re the one for the job?

3. Design the Marketing Material Using Strong Content and Design Elements

   What sort of ‘language’ does your client speak? What terms, goals, and data do they understand? Utilizing effective terminology helps get your point across quickly and effectively. It shows customers you are an expert in your field, and using it correctly establishes a level of trust between client and company. Targeting keywords is also important for optimizing your website content in order to be found by search engines.

4. Choose the Right Media to Deliver Your Message

   Depending on your targeted client’s geography, demographics and psychographics, you will make the call between advertising via print, web, direct mail, social media, etc. An assortment of campaign components is likely the most effective way to gain potential customers’ interest.

3-Keys can help you identify, develop and create your message as well as choose the best media to convey your message. We then develop that final advertising product or products. We might build a website landing page, print a direct mail flyer, create automated email campaigns, and more.

Corporate Blog Post for a Tech Company

Like Me, Like Me Not, Like Me, Like Me Not, LIKE ME!

We see you, plucking daisy petals and ruminating about whether your latest ad campaign will stir up some attention. “Will they like me, will they like me not?” Junior, put the flower down. AdGent Digital’s D:30 now has a social media button feature that will help you increase audience engagement and track it too.

Imagine the message popping up in your inbox: “Your video has 10,000 Likes on Facebook”. For those who’ve created the ultimate hilarious, attention-grabbing, poignant video or ad, and then seen the Interweb’s interest in it fizzle and fade, it’s time to think about how social media plays a part in generating popularity and sales. With AdGent Digital’s D:30 capabilities, we bet you can attain those 10,000 Likes and then some!

The D:30 video platform inserts a 15-30 second television ad between Web site page loads.  D:30 has some amazing and useful features, including its ability to target audiences so that your video is relevant to the search term or pages visited. Branding spots utilizing the D:30 are measureable in terms of reach and engagement. And social media links can be added to your video.

Some may hesitate to stick social media buttons all over their ads. Implementing the ubiquitous “Like” button of Facebook may seem, like, so overdone. However, traffic numbers don’t lie. The increased traffic thanks to social networking Web sites can be game changing for a company.

SearchEngineLand.com published an article featuring data from Facebook on the results of implementing the “Like” button. Yes, Facebook is self-reporting, but other sources can back up findings like these: “The average media site integrated with Facebook has seen a 300% increase in referral traffic.” According to Facebook, “Levi’s saw a 40 times increase in referral traffic from Facebook after implementing the Like button in April 2010,” and Giantnerd.com, Amercan Eagle, ShoeDazzle all report similarly incredible success rates. Ticketmaster and Eventbrite report that links to events shared on Facebook are directly tied to a rise in specific dollar amounts in ticket sales.

This June, stop picking your neighbor’s daisies and playing existential games with yourself. Turn your attentions elsewhere and consider launching your ads utilizing our D:30  video platform. And don’t forget to add those social media buttons! They pay off. Like, for real.

Visit AdGentDigital(dot)com to learn more about integrating social media buttons into your advertisements.

E-Newsletter for a Silicon Valley Tech Company

Someone Just Touched Me…. And I Liked It!

It’s summertime, and kiddies have taken their play outdoors. Chances are good that you'll hear the ever-popular warning, “Don’t touch me!” amongst arguing tots. As adults, we know about this cardinal rule. Well, listen up: AdGent Digital officially declares “Don’t touch me!” has been turned on its head. With our AdTouch techonology, it’s time to get a little more touchy-feely. We’re talking about tablets!

AdGent Digital’s tablet-based advertising platform, AdTouch, serves touchable, non-intrusive, rich media ads to your consumers. We’ve already partnered with the Telegraph (UK), the Wall Street Journal and dozens of other leading publishers to produce engaging, exciting ads on our platform for the tablet.

We’ve also got an interactive feature called AdTouch +Slide. This gives visitors the ability to slide the ad from side to side on their screen without interrupting the content on the page that they’re browsing.

So why focus on creating tablet-specific ads?

Studies show that tablets’ share of website activity is growing at an astonishing rate of 300% per year—spurting in growth at a much faster rate than the smartphone did. With its introduction in 2010, the iPad reached the same percentage of web traffic in 1 year that it took the iPhone to reach in 3 years. By the end of 2013, “tablet visits will account for more than 10 percent of Web site visits”, predicts a study by Adobe Digital Index (ADI).

Why this giant growth? The fact is the tablet is more engaging for Web browsing than the smartphone. As well, tablets are lighter, sleeker and more portable than laptops. Who’s using tablets? They are most popular with media consumers and financial service consumers. According to a study released by Facebook, ownership has increased fastest among "young adults ages 18 to 29, Hispanics, those with the highest incomes, and people who had attended some college. "

It’s about time to rethink your company’s advertising strategies, and AdGent Digital is here to help. No longer can you simply build ads for computer screens; you’ve got to create stellar ads for a tablet. With the quickly growing adoption of HTML5, it is easier than ever to create tablet-specific advertisements.

So go ahead, start touching! Visit AdGentDigital(dot)com to learn more about our AdTouch tablet-based advertising platform for your advertisements.

How To Manage Grass Allergies - Heavenly Greens Blog

Grass allergy is one of the most common pollen allergies, affecting young and old, humans and canines alike. It makes some of the most beautiful months of the year very uncomfortable. Spring and early summer are quickly approaching, and those who suffer pollen allergies need to be prepared. Otherwise known as hay fever, allergic rhinitis results in sneezing, congestion, itchy eyes and nose and watery eyes. Those with a more severe reaction may even get hives upon contact with grass or suffer asthma attacks.

How should grass allergies be managed? There are some simple environmental changes you can make to help alleviate your hay fever.

First, keep the windows closed. If that was too obvious for you, here’s another: keep your lawn cut short. This helps reduce the reproduction of grass pollen in your yard. Obviously it is preferable to find someone else to cut the grass. As a grass allergy sufferer, you should personally avoid mowing the lawn as much as possible during months of high grass pollination. If this is unavoidable, try taking an antihistamine first and wearing a mask to help block the pollen from hitting your nose and mouth.

Other good ideas include avoiding drying laundry outdoors and brushing your pets after they come in from the outdoors to eliminate pollen. Consider using a HEPA filter to help get rid of grass pollen as well. Synthetic lawns are naturally hypoallergenic, so installing an artificial turf lawn in your yard will greatly reduce pollen allergies. We’ll discuss more on this later.

Then, there are lifestyle choices you need to make.

Decrease the strength of an allergic reaction by taking oral antihistamines. Taking non-drowsy antihistamines in anticipation of and during allergy season will help reduce your grass allergy. There are also prescription nasal steroid sprays and long-term administration of allergy shots that may be prescribed by your doctor. If you suffer severe grass allergies that might result in anaphylaxis, your doctor should prescribe a self-injectable Epinephrine.

For those more inclined to seek a natural alternative, studies suggest that a large amount of omega-3 fatty acids and carotenoids help reduce allergy symptoms. This means ingesting foods rich in fatty acids, like walnuts and fish oil, and in beta-carotene, like sweet potatoes and carrots. Other solutions may lie in stress management and even acupuncture. For more on natural remedies to grass allergies, see this helpful website.

Another lifestyle choice you can make is a simple one: choose artificial turf to reduce your allergies.

At Heavenly Greens, we are pleased to offer beautiful, natural looking artificial turf for your yard. Our hypoallergenic turf will relieve those suffering from grass allergies. Just think—that’s three or more months a year you win back to play and relax in your yard without fear of pollen. You won’t have to worry about keeping grass cut short, or about finding someone else to do that work so you don’t have an allergy attack. Artificial turf is a safe, clean alternative to having a natural lawn, and it saves you money and energy in the long run.

Heavenly Greens is Northern California’s leading provider of artificial grass and synthetic turf systems for both residential and commercial artificial turf landscaping. Founded in 2001, our focus is providing only the highest quality synthetic turf products available to the market. Fake grass applications include; homes, business, golf courses and putting greens, dog facilities and daycares, sports fields and more. Learn more about Heavenly Greens and artificial lawn.

Tags: artificial grass, spring allergies, artificial lawn

Where to Play Bocce Ball in San Francisco

A recent Heavenly Greens blog installment: artificial turf married with bocce! Enjoy :)

Heavenly Greens Blog

Current Articles |  RSS Feed

Where to Play Bocce Ball in San Francisco

Posted by Troy Scott on Tue, Apr 03, 2012 @ 02:10 PM

A low-key sport requiring little to no athletic skill, the game of bocce is enjoyable and fun for people of all ages. Bocce ball sites abound in San Francisco and the Bay Area, and sometimes they come with a generous helping of great food and drink! Explore bocce courts in your own town, or take a day trip and scout out some courts in destination towns like Sausalito or Healdsburg. Either way, you can center your group activity on a game that’s laid back, yet exciting. All you’ll need is a bocce ball set and a court.

Bocce is a great activity for group gatherings like family parties, corporate events, and weekend outings with friends. The San Francisco Bay Area boasts parks, restaurants, bars and more that have bocce courts installed for guests. We’ve compiled a couple ideas here to get you started. This list is in no way exhaustive—check out your town’s local courts today! 

Bocce Courts In Outdoor Parks: For a casual family get-together that’s kid-friendly and free, nothing beats outdoor bocce courts in local parks. 

-Aquatic Park – Rated the Best Bocce Ball Court in 2007 for the SF Weekly Best Of Award, Aquatic Park Bocce Ball Court boasts spectacular views of the Municipal Pier and San Francisco Bay. You’ll find comfortable benches here where you can relax while waiting your turn. Located on Hyde at Beach, San Francisco. 

-Joe DiMaggio Playground – Boasting two bocce courts open to the public, this North Beach Park is perfect for a family outing. The park’s Clubhouse can even be reserved for parties and special events! Located at 651 Lombard Street, San Francisco. 

Bocce Restaurants & Bars: You’ll find restaurants and bars offering delicious food and drink along with bocce courts sprinkled around the Bay Area and in San Francisco. 

-Make Westing – Think house cocktails, inventive cuisine, a daily Happy Hour and indoor bocce courts open 7 days a week. The cool vibe of this Uptown Oakland spot makes it perfect for enjoying a few drinks while you play a round. Located at 1741 Telegraph Ave., Oakland. 

- Bar Bocce – Located on the gorgeous Sausalito waterfront, Bar Bocce’s got it all: homestyle food, from pizza and fudgesicles to beers and cask wines, a covered bayfront patio and bocce courts. While reservations aren’t accepted, you can buy out the restaurant on weekdays, making it great for company events or rehearsal dinners. Located at 1250 Bridgeway, Sausalito. 

- Campo Di Bocce – With locations in Livermore and Los Gatos, this Italian restaurant-cum-bocce court site is great for family gatherings, birthdays, office parties and more. Enjoy delicious Italian fare with a few rounds of bocce on the side. Located at 175 East Vineyard Avenue, Livermore; and 565 University Avenue, Los Gatos. 

Bocce Wineries: There are nearly thirty wineries with bocce courts between Sonoma and Napa alone! The California coast has thousands of amazing wineries, and in our opinion, the best of the wineries have bocce courts. You can find an extensive list of bocce wineries here. 

As you scout around for great local bocce courts, keep in mind the type of surface you will be playing on. At Heavenly Greens, we know all about the pros and cons that come with traditional clay, crushed oyster shell or asphalt courts. For an optimal family-friendly experience, Heavenly Greens recommends artificial grass bocce courts. Not only are they soft, lush and more attractive than drab brown courts; they are faster draining and cleaner too. You, your friends and your kids won’t get dusty or dirty with artificial grass bocce courts, and you don’t need to worry about rough ground for little ones.  

If you find yourself getting a little addicted to bocce (Trust us, it’s easy!) Heavenly Greens offers commercial and residential installations of artificial grass bocce courts. Visit our San Jose showroom today to find out about the many options we have for your artificial turf installations at Heavenly Greens.

Heavenly Greens is Northern California’s leading provider of artificial grass and synthetic turf systems for both residential and commercial artificial turf landscaping. Founded in 2001, our focus is providing only the highest quality synthetic turf products available to the market. Fake grass applications include; homes, business, golf courses and putting greens, dog facilities and daycares, sports fields and more. Learn more about Heavenly Greens and artificial lawn.

Tags: FieldTurf, Heavenly Greens, Silicon Valley, family activity, bocce ball, bocce ball courts, Bay Area,San Francisco

Corporate Blog Post for a Murphy Bed Company

Find this blog at: http://wallbedsnmore.com/blog/2012/05/15/popular-couch-surfing-host/

How To Become the Most Popular Couch Surfing Host Ever

Posted on May 15, 2012 by Alyssa

0

Our team will deliver and install your new Murphy Wallbed in your room for immediate use.

If you haven’t heard about the trend of couch surfing, we’d have to question whether you’ve lived under a rock for a few years. Thanks to the proliferation of free websites like—you guessed it—CouchSurfing.com, people all over the world are networking and enhancing their own budget travelling through apartment swapping, hosting guests, being a guest of a local, etc.

It’s an incredibly smart idea. Host people from around the world, and chances are you’ll see them again someday when you need a place to crash in the midst of your travels. Save money, visit locales with natives as your personal tour guides, save money, make new friends, save money… There is, however, the uncomfortable question: what are sleeping accommodations going be at this place? Will I even be able to sleep? Or if you’re hosting—will people like my place and find it easy to rest here?

Let’s get real, when the term “couch surfing” is used, you know that half the time the “surfer” isn’t sleeping on any couch. With the accessibility of futons, spare guest beds, cots and more, it’s not just “couch surfing”; it’s “anywhere you can lay your head to catch a night’s sleep … surfing”. As the host, you dictate whether “anywhere” is a downgrade or an upgrade from the quintessential couch for your overnight guests.

We’ve got a clue for making you the most popular Surfing host ever: Wallbeds n’ More Murphy beds. Not only do these folding beds have high-quality, beautiful, sturdy wooden frames; Wallbeds also has a selection of incredibly comfortable, quality mattresses to choose from. The best part is, after your guest enjoys a comfortable night’s rest, you can simply fold the Murphy bed into the wall—mattress, bedding and all—in a matter of seconds. Wallbeds n’ More beds save you time, ensure guests will enjoy their comfortable accommodations, and will likely make you the most popular CouchSurfing host of all time. We even have options for side storage, folding desk functions, moveable units and more, so you can choose the bed that fits your lifestyle best.