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The world of marketing can be large and confusing at times. That’s why unLOCKEd is here to help. From digital media to interior branding to offering tips and advice, we do it all! Today, we’ll be going over some common myths and misconceptions about marketing and setting the record straight to help make it a little less confusing. Let’s get into it! Myth: Marketing is expensive and only for big businesses. Truth: Marketing can be effective and affordable for every business – big or small! Many strategies, such as social media, email marketing, SEO, website design, and more, can be utilized on a scale that is tailored to your business needs. Marketing is essential to grow your business and engage your audience, no matter how small or niche! Myth: You need a large following to see results from social media marketing. Truth: It’s all about quality, not quantity! If your small business is engaging a small following, you can see just as successful results. Large numbers that do not translate to strong, loyal customers will not have effective or sustainable outcomes. Myth: Word-of-mouth marketing is enough. Truth: Although positive word-of-mouth can be valuable, it is not enough by itself. An effective marketing strategy utilizes multiple tactics, such as social media, email marketing, and more, to reach a wider audience. In other words, don’t put all your eggs in one basket! Myth: SEO is no longer important for small businesses. Truth: SEO is still an essential part of a small business’s marketing strategy. Ensuring your website is optimized to show up in the search results can help attract more customers. Especially locally, setting up your Google Business Profile can do wonders to get your business in front of people. Myth: Marketing and advertising are the same thing. Truth: Marketing is a much broader set of activities than advertising. Advertising is a company paying for space for promotion in order to reach an audience. This can be part of your marketing activities. However, marketing also includes your owned media, such as your website and branding. It aims to foster connections between a brand and its audience, understand how and why campaigns are successful, and create a meaningful brand identity in the eyes of consumers. Myth: We need to market to everyone because everyone is our customer. Truth: There are a very small number of products and services that appeal to everyone. Whether it is simply because they do not need it or because they connect more with another product or brand, your business cannot attract everyone. It is more effective to identify your target markets, tailor your products and marketing tactics to appeal to them, and focus on creating long-lasting, engaging connections. Myth: Results from marketing campaigns need to happen immediately to be successful. Truth: While the focus of online marketing is increasingly based on the dream of “going viral,” this often does not lead to long-term effects. Quick results can bring you your fifteen minutes of fame, but a company that can create long-term connections and sustainable success will do much better in the long run. Myth: Social media strategies aren’t important. The interns can handle it all! Truth: Running a business social media account is not as simple as scheduling a post and watching the notifications stream in – that’s why we need social media managers! Creating content tailored to your target audience, crafting captions that have intention behind them, analyzing your metrics and results, and implementing your knowledge to continue growing your company and improving your social media strategy is no walk in the park, even for an experienced marketer! It is essential to devote the time and consideration necessary to create an effective social media presence – or hire someone who can! Myth: Having a popular social media account means I won’t need a website. Truth: It is important to diversify your marketing strategy, even if one part of it is doing well! While social media can be a great way to connect with and grow your audience, websites offer many tools that these platforms do not. Different types of information are communicated most effectively in many different ways. Websites provide a stable digital location for information that may be useful to your customers, whereas social media may not. Social media is also better for shorter content; websites are a great place to expand on this and offer more information. Websites provide powerful SEO tools that help your business show up in search results, as well. Myth: Everything is digital, so online marketing is all I need to be successful. Truth: Once again, information must be communicated in the most effective medium to reach your audience. Digital and traditional media can both be used to create creative marketing messages, and can often be used together to create a more successful strategy. Be sure to check out our blog on why printing is still an effective medium for communication. We hope this clears up a thing or two, but we are always here to help! Contact us today for marketing expertise and services! Author: Sarah Murphy

Google, as the #1 search engine, may have seemed irreplaceable up until now, but there appears to be a growing shift in where the younger generations are choosing to type their search queries. While Google isn’t going anywhere anytime soon, this is still a matter that affects businesses that rely on Google and SEO to get their names out there and end users who may not realize how trustworthy this new source of information is. In this blog, we’ll take a look at the implications of this switch, both positive and negative, for businesses and consumers. The Business Side – Social Media SEO By now, you’ve heard us say it a million times – SEO is essential for businesses. It assists with general user navigation on your website and helps to make sure your business shows up in Google search results. But what happens when the search results aren’t on Google anymore? With social media becoming the new search engine, businesses' use of social media is more important than ever. Social media SEO is the art of optimizing your profiles to reach customers who are searching for terms relevant to your products and/or services. In the past, optimizing your social media might have meant using it to connect with customers and foster engagement. Now, it means utilizing it to acquire new customers. To do so, posts should be the best quality they have ever been to entice users to click on them in the search results. However, even getting your post into the search results is reliant on the caption. Similar to blog posts or website content, captions should now contain keywords and even hashtags that users might be searching for. Additionally, to turn those page visits into conversions, be sure to include your website in your social media bio! The Consumer Side – Amplifying Misinformation According to HubSpot, 31% of consumers now use social media to find answers to their questions. Millennials and Gen Z tend to prefer this option because it has not yet been optimized for businesses. While the Google search results page is filled with sponsored sites and keywords to get you to click, social media is more likely to provide unbiased answers from transparent, authentic people. This feels like a more reliable and accurate answer for many. However, this new way of searching does not come without its issues. Social media is one of the primary platforms where misinformation often spreads. While Google may have sponsored sites, their search results are more likely to be evaluated for factual information and reliable links. Of course, there are still scammers and fraudulent activity on Google, but it’s a little bit easier to weed through. It can be much harder to tell the difference between an authentic answer and deceptive misinformation on social media, especially with the rabbit holes that social media algorithms tend to create. While social media search engines can act as valuable tools, users should be cautious about how quickly they believe the answers they get. When social media has this big of an impact on your business’s performance, you want it in the best hands possible. Here at unLOCKEd, our marketing experts are on top of the newest trends and have the experience to put them into action (and so much more!) Contact us today! Author: Sarah Murphy

A like, a share, a comment, a view – how long did they view it for? Was it more than two seconds? Was it in the tab they were looking at? How long until they clicked Skip? The era of the internet has made marketing metrics infinitely more complex and unreliable. As marketers, we know that metrics are the currency of advertising and are essential to measuring campaign success. So, to keep your head in the game, we’re sharing this marketing metrics guide, including the different types, their history, and how to utilize them for your business. Definition Like any useful guide, we’ll start out simply with a definition. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a metric is a standard of measurement. A marketing metric, then, is a standard of measurement in marketing – that is, the standardized way marketers measure their success. Types of Marketing Metrics There are two broad categories of marketing metrics: impression and engagement. Within these categories, the number of possible metrics has exploded depending on the type of content, where it is displayed, and what the goal of the ad is. With impression metrics, you can see that people have seen your ad, but you aren’t able to gauge their reaction to it—these metrics measure exposure. Impressions measure how many people your ad has been in front of, but not much else. They can be helpful in certain situations, such as for use as a baseline for views. Some examples of impression metrics are cost-per-mille (CPM) and cost-per-view (CPV). Engagement is the only metric that directly measures the way the user behaves towards the content. Engagement metrics allow you to see audience and consumer behaviour, and help marketers understand what is working and what is not. These metrics also allow you to see consumer journeys, acquisitions, or any number of activities. There are many examples of engagement metrics, but a few common ones are cost-per-action (CPA), click-through-rate (CTR), and cost-per-click (CPC). The History of Marketing Metrics When traditional forms of media were the dominant advertising space, impression metrics were the only possibility. Third-party services conducted surveys and audits of listeners, watchers, readers, and subscribers to track what they were viewing and how often. While this was only basic information, it was reliable. This form of measurement was standardized across platforms and companies – the data was unbiased. With the rise of the digital era, this all changed. Engagement became the dominant measurement in a world oversaturated by advertisements. In addition, the growing concern for privacy has resulted in a movement away from third-party tracking. Companies with first-party data now hold the power. However, they also hold biases. Companies want to make it look like ads have the best results, and thus, they may use a slightly different measurement system than other companies. This has resulted in a confusing, unstandardized world for the average marketer. How to Utilize Marketing Metrics So, with an overwhelming number of metrics and a concerning amount of confusion, how can your business utilize marketing metrics? We have two tips to help you navigate these issues. First, track and make use of any first-party data. Any data your business collects itself can be measured and understood without any uncertainty. While companies may have too much data or insufficient bandwidth to do this in every case, use it to your advantage where possible. Second, focus your metrics on your goals and find the metrics that create conversions. While you may not always know what constitutes a view, you can track whether they increase or decrease. If you figure out which metrics and strategies create the best results and help you reach your company objectives, you don’t need to worry about all the rest. If metrics are completely out of your wheelhouse, an additional tip, of course, is to contact our unLOCKEd marketing team to help you reach your marketing goals! Our experts are well-versed in the world of marketing metrics and so much more! Let us take care of your marketing so you can focus on running your business. Author: Sarah Murphy

As everyone has likely noticed from talking to someone younger or older than yourself, people from different generations have different values. These values often come from the general circumstances that they were raised in and can be translated into many areas of life. Whether it is valuing certain traits in a significant other or values that a brand displays, these significantly impact how we view the world. As marketers and advertisers, we need to be aware of these generational values to effectively target specific demographics. So, in this blog, we discuss the values that different generations generally apply to form their opinion on marketing campaigns. Gen Alpha (2010-2025) While Generation Z has been a significant focus for marketers until now, Gen Alpha is coming in quickly and tends to show higher brand maturity than previous generations, accelerated by access to the internet. Gen Alpha consumers value authenticity, transparency and brands that stand for a cause. Brands that display care for mental health, the environment, or other similar causes are likely to have more of a pull on this generation. Influencer marketing and gamification are also valuable strategies to engage Gen Alpha. Generation Z (1996-2009) Generation Z tends to show similar values to Gen Alpha. Well-educated and well-versed in the digital world, Generation Z looks for authentic brands that they can relate to. Appealing to this generation relies heavily on speaking their language. Staying on top of Generation Z’s trends, vocabulary, and humour is essential for success. Your brand should have values you put forward and a personality that consumers can connect with. Millennials (1981-1995) As marketing has changed to target Generation Z, some of the Millennials’ values have altered. However, they have known a time without the internet but are still young enough to be quite internet savvy. As the internet originated with user-to-user content rather than business-to-user, Millennials tend to prioritize trust through seeing real product users and are largely inspired by people they know in person or online. Appealing to this generation requires proven quality and aesthetically curated content. Generation X (1965-1980) There are three keys to marketing to Generation X: nostalgia, traditional advertising, and loyalty. This generation is much less adept at the digital world and still fondly remembers a time without it. Appealing to this growing nostalgia can be a very effective technique for this group. In addition, don’t neglect traditional advertising. Generation X is the unique sweet spot where they will respond to both traditional methods, such as direct mail, and digital techniques, such as social media and email. Finally, this generation is big on loyalty – and that includes loyalty programs. Generation X will stick with a brand in the long run, especially if they offer great deals! Baby Boomers (1946-1964) Baby Boomers lean even harder into tradition and loyalty than Generation X. This generation tends to pick their favourite thing and stick to it. This concept also applies to sales techniques. Baby Boomers want to talk to real people and often avoid social media. This makes them some of the only people that actually prefer telephone marketing! Television and newspaper advertisements are also popular with this group. However, if a Baby Boomer walks into your store, showing them quality service is the best way to retain them as a customer. While some marketing values may overlap between generations or differ between individuals, this is a general guide that may help your marketing strategy appeal to your intended audience. Here at unLOCKEd, we understand the marketing values across different demographics and can help you reach your marketing goals. Author: Sarah Murphy

In a previous blog, we reviewed the marketing trends and predictions for 2023, but somehow, it’s already time for 2024. Time goes by fast, but the world of marketing is faster! So, to help your company stay ahead of the game, we’re going over some of those 2023 trends that will continue to be important in the new year, and discussing some additional ones for 2024. Let’s get into it! 2023 Recap Managing The Digital Customer Experience In a society of speed, digital experiences, and constant connectivity, consumers have high expectations for companies’ digital presence. Companies that can’t deliver will quickly fall behind. These expectations will continue in 2024. Working On Authority and Authenticity In Your field Customers continue to value quality and transparency, building a trusting relationship with the companies they are loyal to. If your company wants that customer loyalty, they have to earn it. Low prices may be a strategy for short-term gain, but value is the name of the game in the long run. Customers Will Practice Smarter Purchase Choices Due to these customer values, they make smarter purchase choices. These decisions begin long before they enter the store – that is, if they don’t just purchase online in the first place. This means companies’ marketing needs to portray the values and benefits consumers desire before they go to make the purchase. Balancing Physical and Digital Connections Both physical and digital connections have their own values that they bring to the consumer relationship. While people enjoy the convenience and stock of digital purchases, there are many cases where they like to interact with the product or with someone who can answer their questions. Continue to balance these connections in 2024. Influencer Marketing and Social Commerce Will Become Common Practice Consumers’ want for transparency and authenticity can often be fulfilled through influencer marketing. These ‘real people’ are easier for consumers to trust and build relationships with than a brand logo. Influencers will continue to be an important part of marketing strategies in 2024, especially with the emergence of virtual influencers or AI characters on social media. New in 2024 AI and Automation While AI and automation are far from new concepts in 2024, they will be increasingly utilized and normalized. This will result in highly personalized, real-time content enabled by AI algorithms, chatbots, and data analytics. Keeping up with this technology and implementing it in thoughtful ways will be essential for companies this year. SEO and Search Results AI and other technological advances are also shaking things up for SEO. In 2024, there are many more ways to search for information other than typing. Searching with voice and images are just two ways companies will have to start considering. As well, AI is making it easier for search engines, such as Google, to understand queries, resulting in more information being found more easily. Companies will need to be extremely up-to-date and innovative with their SEO practices to stay on top of these changes. Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality Integration Advancements in VR and AR should be top-of-the-mind tools for marketers in 2024. Integration of these technologies can make marketing more personalized and customizable, whether it’s a VR showroom tour for a car company or an AR app that lets users visualize how furniture will look in their home. Utilizing these tools can set your company apart from others. Sustainability, Social Responsibility, and Ethical Marketing Although these ideas are not new to consumers or marketers, they are increasingly important. Purchase decisions now go far beyond the realm of price and quality. Consumers want to understand brand values, beyond their products and services,  particularly concerning environmental and social responsibility. While quality is still important for consumers, marketing in 2024 is as much about values as it is about value. Dominance of Video Content Finally, video content, especially short form, will be the dominant content format in 2024. The rise of short-form video platforms has made this type of content particularly enticing for consumers and marketers alike. This dynamic and visually appealing content is perfect for advertising, storytelling, product launches, and even customer testimonials. Even with these predictions, the ever-changing marketing world can be tricky and confusing. Luckily, unLOCKEd can help with that! Contact us to ensure your marketing doesn’t fall behind while you’re busy running your business. Author: Sarah Murphy

In a previous blog, The Importance of Interior Branding, we discussed how branded environments or interior branding can benefit your company. It is not only important for aesthetics and showcasing your logo, but also to demonstrate brand values and create consistency. Many design elements, such as colour, textiles, and even furniture, can be used to achieve this effect. To give you some inspiration for your space, this blog will provide a few examples of brand values and how they can be created through interior design. Accessibility Accessibility has become a common concern among brands. Companies want to make sure that their products, services, and benefits are accessible to everyone. If your brand claims it prioritizes accessibility, your space needs to show it. Make sure your location is updated with wheelchair ramps and accessible parking spots, and that your signs include braille along with text. Accessibility can also be implemented visually by making sure text is large enough to read from a distance, and the text colour is easy to read against the background colour. Further, ensure that all customers can equally access experiences within the space by gaining insight from a diverse range of people. Inviting feedback is also a great way to ensure your location is accessible to everyone. Sustainability Customers love to know that their product is sustainably sourced or made, but what about the packaging or the store? When someone orders your product, do they have to tear through multiple layers of packaging that will end up in the garbage? Using minimal packaging and making it recyclable or compostable is one way to showcase your sustainability. In-store, live plants or a moss wall make your interior design more eco-friendly and can even help clean the air. Lots of natural light can also create this feeling for customers. If your brand values sustainability, ensure your products and the feel of your space reflect this. Comfort Comfort can be included in a branded environment with simple design elements that are uncommon in commercial spaces. Warm light rather than harsh white light is one way to do this. If you want customers to feel good buying and using your products, create a comfortable, relaxing space they can do it in. A bookstore is one example of a business that values comfort. Soft, warm light and cozy chairs to read a book create this atmosphere for their customers. Paint and furniture colours can also have a similar effect. Luxury Think of a jewelry store or a travel agency. As soon as you step into the space, even if it’s just inches from a crowded mall hallway, you are transported into the world of luxury. Gold and glass cases line rows of deep purple, burgundy, and ivory tiles. Twinkling lights reflect on the diamonds and emeralds laid perfectly on velvet cushions. You are surrounded by the luxurious aesthetic you are shopping for. Or maybe full wall murals of a sunset or an attractive couple on a beach envelop you as you walk in. You can practically feel the sand beneath your feet and hear the crashing waves. If your company promises a luxurious getaway, show the customer the beautiful scene they don’t want to miss. We hope these examples give you some ideas on how to turn your space into a branded environment. unLOCKEd marketing experts can help you with projects like this and more! Check out our services on our website to start improving your marketing strategy today. Author: Sarah Murphy

Here at unLOCKEd, we offer a range of marketing services to help unLOCKE your business’s full potential. We’ve discussed The Value of Outsourcing Your Marketing Over Using AI and answered the question “Why Hire a Social Media Manager?” in previous blogs, but today, we are diving into the benefits of using one company/contact to take care of all of your marketing. From signage to social media to website design, we can do it all, and here’s why that’s so important. Communication One difficulty of partnering with any outside party is communication. Through the pandemic and the broader world of social media, we have learned how much can get lost in a text message or social media post. The risk of miscommunication in online formats or even just between two people can scare companies into remaining self-reliant and resisting outside help. Much of this can be avoided by using one marketing contact. You don’t have to be worried about emailing multiple marketing contacts working on numerous marketing projects or how a social media campaign conflicts with a piece of information on your website. Additionally, unLOCKEd is a local company. We work with clients in our area so that we can meet with them in person and understand their business or the space they are working in. This face-to-face connection helps avoid any confusion or misinterpretations in order to properly manage your marketing projects and deliver your vision. Cohesion In line with this communication comes the second C: Cohesion. When displaying your brand, you want to be authentic and recognizable. One way to do this is to ensure all your marketing channels are aligned. Your brand colours, logo, personality, style, etc. should be consistent, from your signage to your social media platforms to your website to your interior design. This allows customers to find you more easily and have a uniform view of your business. Achieving this kind of cohesion is almost impossible with multiple marketing contacts. unLOCKEd offers you a different marketing experience. You work directly with one person with in-depth knowledge of the industry and the region, who is dedicated to managing and taking care of your marketing projects. This same person draws from a network of experienced professionals who specialize in every niche, identifying the talents, backgrounds and ideas best aligned with your business. This allows every marketing endeavour to align with your brand’s values and aesthetics while still getting the best in every field you need. Control The final C is a big fear when many companies consider outsourcing their marketing: loss of control. However, contrary to this, outsourcing your marketing with unLOCKEd actually gives you more control. If you plan on outsourcing your marketing, your company likely does not have the resources to make it what you want it to be. unLOCKEd marketing experts ensure you get the best in the field you need, allowing you to have better control over the impact and influence your marketing has. You work directly with one contact who keeps you in the loop through every project as we understand the core competency of owners and managers and work on your behalf. By working with unLOCKEd, you keep control of all your marketing channels and your vision while attaining better control over the results and metrics they achieve. unLOCKEd works with your company to make your marketing the most effective. You work with one contact and receive the best in every field, allowing your marketing experience to comprise of the 3 C’s: communication, cohesion, and control. Author: Sarah Murphy

When discussing your website and marketing strategy, one of the key terms that come up is search engine optimization (SEO). Most people understand that SEO is important for their company and website traffic, but how to improve it is a little more questionable. If you are uncertain about SEO and how it works, you’ve come to the right place. This blog will give you a crash course on all things SEO, including what it is, what affects it, how unLOCKEd can help, and more! What is SEO? SEO is the practice of orienting your website to rank higher on a search engine results page (SERP) so that you receive more traffic. Google surveys web pages to find the ones that are relevant and optimized to appear when someone enters a search query. What is SEO ranking, and why is it important? In SEO, ranking refers to your content’s position on the SERPs. A #1 ranking means that when people search for a particular term, your web page is the first result (apart from promoted results, featured snippets, and answer boxes). Appearing in the top 3 results is excellent because your click-through rates skyrocket the closer you get to #1. Appearing within the top 10 results is useful because it keeps you on the first page of search results. The higher your position on the SERP is, the more relevant, organic traffic your page will receive, resulting in more leads and sales. What are SEO ranking factors? Now that you understand what SEO does and why it is important, let’s discuss what Google looks at to decide if your website is optimized. OptinMonster recently provided a guide to Google’s top 10 current SEO ranking factors. These are some steps you can take to begin improving your SEO ranking: A Secure and Accessible Website – If Google is unable to access your page, it will not be able to survey and rank it. Page Speed – Google wants to provide users with the best web experience, and being able to access information quickly is a big part of that. Mobile Friendliness – More people now use mobile devices to access the web than desktops, so the mobile experience plays a significant role in how Google ranks search results. Domain Age, URL, and Authority – Google prioritizes websites that have been around for a while (3+ years). A relevant URL is only really important before this; focus on a URL that reflects your business and then optimize the content instead. Authority has to do with great content, the content’s creator, and off-page SEO (inbound links, social shares, etc.). Optimized Content – Factors such as organic use of keywords and terms related to the main terms people are searching for (LSI keywords), understanding search intent (navigational, informational, investigational, or transactional), content length (2000+ words ranks better), content optimized for answer boxes, and use of video content affect how Google’s algorithm ranks your content. Technical SEO – Google can better understand pages with the correct coding and layout (keywords in page titles, proper heading hierarchy setup, image alt tags, etc.). User Experience – Google uses AI to better understand your page’s user experience, a signal they call RankBrain (click-through rate, bounce rate, and dwell time). Links – Google uses inbound and outbound links to determine your authority and relevance, and internal links to tie together and boost other pages on your site. Social Signals – Social shares can indirectly improve your SEO by increasing traffic and building backlinks, although it is not a direct ranking factor. Real Business Information – This includes name, address, phone number, business listings on Google My Business and Facebook, reviews, and the right local search terms. How can outsourcing your marketing improve your SEO? Reading through this list may seem like an overwhelming amount of information. Although some of it can be implemented through simple changes, other ranking factors require large amounts of work or even redoing parts of your website. This is where unLOCKEd can help! Our marketing experts can devote the time and knowledge needed to improve your website and SEO. We know all the tips and tricks to help without taking your time away from running your business. Contact us for your website and other marketing needs. Author: Sarah Murphy

Understanding how your business is doing online isn’t always easy. Knowing whether your website is showing up in search engine results or if people are receptive to a new marketing campaign isn’t obvious at a glance. The good news is, Google Analytics can help. Google Analytics provides website owners with valuable insights into how users are interacting with their digital assets and marketing campaigns which can help them improve. But if you’re not sold, here’s what you can learn from Google Analytics to help your business. Making Data-Based Decisions Google Analytics provides website owners with data from users’ activity and interactions on their website. This allows businesses to make decisions with accurate data rather than guessing what customers will respond to. If a product is doing well in-store, you can use this observation and make the decision to stock more of it. Likewise, if a blog or product is attracting a lot of traffic on your website, you can make marketing decisions, such as writing similar blogs or advertising that product, based on the data provided. Google Analytics takes out the guesswork. Understand Client Behaviour Between economic struggles, changes in spending throughout the pandemic, and rapidly changing trends, it can be difficult to understand your customers’ behaviour. However, Google Analytics includes user IDs that aid in tracking behaviour with regard to your business. This allows you to see user activity beyond singular interactions. Instead, you can track user behaviour from acquisition to purchase to retention. This data can help you understand where in the process your website may need to improve and the demographic of customers that come back to your business repeatedly. Targeted Marketing Further than benefiting the improvement of your website, this data can help with your marketing strategy. The demographics and activity of the users on your website can be used for targeted marketing. These data sets can be used for ad personalization, which plays a significant role in marketing. For example, Google gives you the option to set up personalized ads relevant to the geographical data collected from your clients. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Of course, we can’t forget SEO. Using Google Analytics can help you understand how your website pages are doing in the search engine results – you can’t track users’ activity if they never find your page! The tool gives insights regarding the pages of your website that are gaining a relative number of visitors and your best-performing pages. This can help you strategize what kind of content to invest in and how to allocate your efforts accordingly. In the past, business success was simply measured by sales. Today, the name of the game is digital marketing. You can learn a lot about the activity on your website through Google Analytics, but if you want to go the extra mile, unLOCKEd can help. Benefiting from years of experience in the management process, Victoria LOCKE understands the core competency of owners and managers and works on your behalf. Author: Sarah Murphy

When you think of media and marketing, most of what comes to mind is likely digital. Whether the newspaper or magazine you keep up with has gone online or the business you’re looking for tends to advertise on social media, a lot of what we consume is found on our phones or computers. However, this does not necessarily mean that printing is dead. Print media and marketing continue to be made and distributed despite the misconception that it is being replaced. Here are a few reasons why printing has not yet reached its end. Direct Mail vs Email Contrary to the increasing number of businesses turning to email campaigns for marketing, both methods have their advantages and disadvantages. While direct mail is more expensive and its effectiveness is more difficult to trace, it tends to have more impact due to the lower volume of mail than email. Further, mail is kept around and looked at for longer than emails are, which can improve its effectiveness and increase the attention it receives. On the other hand, email campaigns are more cost-effective and can be personalized, but it is overused, and the repetitive and overwhelming daily task of sorting through emails can turn many people off. Marketing emails are also often deleted without being opened, and even if they are, privacy advancements are making it harder to trace links and track emails opened. A survey of words customers associated with these marketing methods showed that email is viewed as quick, spontaneous, interesting, informative, smart, and informal, and direct mail is viewed as formal, official, considered, believable, important, reliable, informative, and personal. It was also discovered that many find physical mail more engaging and memorable than email and social media advertising. A Needle in a Haystack As mentioned above, while digital marketing seems to be the more popular option currently, it is overused, and it can be challenging to be noticed in such an oversaturated medium. Both social media advertising and email campaigns have this issue, and using this method can be like dropping a needle in a haystack and hoping your desired audience finds it. While there are specific metrics and features built into social media apps, such as target advertising, to help with this, it is becoming an increasingly difficult space to be noticed in. Direct mail or print advertisements may stand out or be seen as more appealing simply because they are not on our digital devices. The Paper Experience Many people prefer a physical copy of the book they’re reading; the same can be said about print marketing. The tactile and sensory experience of print should not be overlooked and cannot be entirely replaced by digital media. Physically holding a piece of paper in your hand is more concrete and permanent than an advertisement that can be scrolled past, and this can make a significant impact on your audience. Print media also offers a break from your phone. Once your eyes hurt and you’re sick of scrolling, print media offers a less demanding option which allows you to pay attention to every page rather than an endless scroll. There are also fewer distractions of notifications and ads popping up than its digital counterpart. Finally, not everyone is online. Despite the popular idea that the world is now online, depending on the demographic, this is not always the case. Print media is an accessible option for those who choose not to use the internet, do not understand how to use the internet, or live in a remote or low-income area where they do not have access to the internet. Conclusion So, is printing dead? The answer seems to be a resounding no, and some say it never will be. Instead, it appears that the best strategy is a combination of print and digital content to reach the largest audience effectively. However, what weighting of each works best varies from company to company. unLOCKEd marketing experts have experience with all kinds of content and distribution, both print and digital, and know how to get you the best results. We hope we can help with your next marketing endeavour, providing the support and insight you need while you’re busy running your business. Author: Sarah Murphy

If you’ve been keeping up with our blogs, you may have read The Value of Outsourcing Your Marketing Over Using AI, which discusses the ways AI may fail to live up to the work of an experienced marketer. This blog, however, delves deeper into why you should outsource your marketing in the first place and, more specifically, why you should hire a social media manager. Social media plays an increasingly significant role in the success of a business, and it is no longer enough to have a randomly tasked employee sporadically posting on your socials. This is where a social media manager comes in. They take the time-consuming and constantly evolving task of managing your social media channels off your shoulders, while keeping you in the loop and a part of decisions. So, let’s get into all the benefits a social media manager can provide. 1. Staying on top of trends and algorithm changes The social media landscape is always changing. New trends pop up on different platforms, algorithms and user controls change, and feedback constantly rolls in. Any of these may require changes to your social media strategy or schedule, and a social media manager is the perfect person to stay on top of this and make these alterations. Business owners and managers are already busy staying on top of their company’s needs and changes within their industry; hiring a social media means you don’t have to try to stay on top of this too. 2. Increasing and managing engagement Social media platforms have become a place for companies to engage with their audience and for customers to make inquiries and ask questions. Social media is no longer about just posting but has become a two-way conversation requiring monitoring and management. Social media managers understand this important task and the best ways to connect with customers, relieving you of this time-consuming job. 3. Growing your audience On top of understanding how to foster engagement, social media managers also know how to grow your business on social media. Managing goals and promoting to your target audience requires monitoring posts and engagement to understand what does well and who is interested. Constantly implementing this feedback requires attention and time that should not just be tacked onto another employee’s workload. 4. Reporting and tracking metrics Analyzing your social media metrics is a large part of growing your audience and engagement. While anyone can just look at the number of likes a post has, utilizing reporting tools and doing a full analysis of posts, engagement, demographics, clicks of links, posting times, and more is much more helpful to your social media strategy and campaigns. A social media manager can look at this information, report it in a consumable way, and brainstorm ways to improve it or implement the results into future campaigns or creatives. Comparing this information across platforms can also help a company understand where to prioritize their effort and resources. 5. Consistent posting schedule and intentional content A consistent posting schedule can make a huge difference for most platforms’ algorithms. However, putting out content that has an intention or brings you closer to a goal is also necessary. Posting for the sake of posting is not helpful to you or your customers. A social media manager can do the time-consuming research on trends or topics and ensure your content is posted consistently in an engaging format. This will improve the quality of your social media accounts and the results they create. Hiring a social media manager allows you to get the best results from your social media content and utilize it to help your business. Marketing experts at unLOCKEd can help manage your social media presence while you’re busy running your company. Author: Sarah Murphy

Whether your business is large or small, your marketing is outsourced or internal, or your preference is Instagram or TikTok, it is valuable to know how to write a good caption. Although there is no one perfect formula, and it often depends on the platform you are posting on, we’ve compiled some tips in general and for specific apps. Hopefully these give you a toolbox of ideas to come back to next time you need to get typing! Instagram and Facebook Instagram and Facebook have similar caption styles and generally similar content for marketers. These captions should be front-loaded with an attention-grabbing first line and minimal details following, including a call to action. TikTok Captions on TikTok need to be kept short and witty. The main focus is on the video content, and the caption is just there to complement it. Captions that evoke emotions or pose questions to viewers can also increase engagement. Twitter Given the limited character count, tweets should also stay reasonably short. Twitter recommends that marketers emphasize urgency in their call-to-actions and pose questions to engage their audience. LinkedIn LinkedIn captions are where professionalism should be emphasized. While other platforms may reward humour and trends, LinkedIn tends to lean toward a more mature and businesslike tone. Meaningful content is extremely important on this platform, and stories or expertise are an excellent way to capture your audience’s attention and prove your credibility. General Tips: Create captions with intention/a goal Include a call-to-action Include popular and meaningful hashtags Encourage conversations/engage with your audience Stick to your brand values and voice Understand your audience Include humour, emotion, or emojis to spice up boring captions Keep it simple but unique; too much information can be confusing Break up walls of text Take note of what content, captions, and hashtags perform well Make sure your caption adds to the content rather than just reiterating it Keep it light-hearted and fun; you got this! We hope these tips and tricks help the next time you’re stuck for a caption. Of course, unLOCKEd is always here to help! Our marketing experts work on your behalf, while you’re busy running your business. Author: Sarah Murphy