Marketing – Simona David Consulting

Destination Branding – What It Is and Why It Matters

Posted on 5 Feb 2022 by Admin in Blog, Branding, business, Economic Development, Marketing, trends

A new era for tourism is emerging as we plan for the post-pandemic world with an eye on sustainability. At the heart of destination branding is a well-told story about what makes a place unique, welcoming, and memorable. A good story articulates a place’s distinctive traits while at the same time builds affinity and excitement.

As The Place Brand Observer notes, destination branding is more than just economic development, and it encompasses in fact a range of metrics including the local community’s well-being, the livability of cities and towns, and the general feeling that the stakeholders share about how well these initiatives are actually performing.

To successfully position a destination, one must certainly emphasize local landmarks and iconic attractions, but at the same time think strategically about what visitors might remember a week, a month or a year later. Also, since tourist attractions don’t exist in a vacuum, equal emphasis should be placed on investing in local communities. As one tourism authority once put it, a happy place will attract happy people or people who want to be happy.

Heritage destinations have always been popular. In addition, visitors are also looking for off-the-beaten path experiences, and occasionally insider tips to make the most of the experience. Content creators, mindful of these trends, will have to keep in mind that visitors are interested not only in memorable moments but also in how the experience itself will make them feel.

According to Destination Analysts, a tourism market research firm based in San Francisco, when planning a trip, people do prefer to consult with family and friends, but also review websites such as TripAdvisor and Yelp, and travel business websites like hotels, attractions, and airlines.

2022 Marketing Trends

Posted on 8 Dec 2021 by Admin in Blog, content marketing, Marketing

As 2021 comes to an end, marketers take stock and plan for 2022 in anticipation of higher marketing budgets.

HubSpot conducted a survey with over 1,000 global marketers and identified five main trends to watch in 2022:

Short-form video
Influencer marketing
Audio content
Social responsibility
Inbound marketing

The pandemic has propelled short-form video at the forefront of digital marketing as a fun and convenient way to disseminate information. Short-form video will continue to rise in popularity in 2022.

As revealed by HubSpot, in 2021 influencer marketing has provided the highest return on investment (ROI) for marketers, and 2022 is shaping up to be an influencer marketing year as well. One trend we might notice is brands migrating towards micro-influencers as opposed to the most popular names because micro-influencers are likely to provide access to a smaller but more engaged audience.

Audio content is on the rise. Marketers have gotten comfortable with using podcasts and other forms of audio content to engage with their audiences on the go. One can listen to audio content while cooking, hiking, or engaging in other activities and avoid the screen fatigue that comes with video content consumption. 2022 will bring an even higher consumption of audio content.

To read the full report, visit https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/b2c-marketing-trends.

Collaborative Marketing Ideas

Posted on 13 Nov 20211 Dec 2021 by Admin in Blog, Business Development, Commerce, content marketing, Marketing, social media

Photo by Jess Bailey Designs on Pexels.com

Complementary brands with a similar audience or marketing goals often engage in collaborative marketing, in other words combining resources and efforts, to amplify outreach and boost sales. Benefits of collaborative marketing include reaching out to new audiences, cutting costs, combining expertise, and benefiting from brand association. Successful collaborations enhance customer experience and sometimes even offer products and services that are exclusive to the said collaboration.

As the holidays approach, companies think creatively about marketing their products and services.

Collaboration with complementary brands may include:

Pop-up stores
Joint events
Joint advertising
Exclusive deals and discounts
E-books
Newsletters
Partnership emails
Blog guest posting
Social media shout-outs
Instagram takeovers
Podcasts
Affiliate programs

Frequently bought together items on Amazon for instance may give small businesses some workable ideas.

Here are some examples of collaborations that we love:

deals and discounts partnerships between hotels and ski resorts;
joint advertising between apparel and outdoor activities;
partnerships between gyms and personal trainers;
joint events between bookstores and coffee shops;
cooking classes hosted by farms and restaurants.

Finding the right partnership is key to a successful marketing campaign. Collaborative alliances ought to be designed as a win-win situation for both parties. The terms of participation must be clarified since the get-go. Often times these efforts lead to ongoing cooperation.

Ogilvy Report Highlights Shifts in Human Behavior and Societal Trends

Posted on 5 Oct 2021 by Admin in Blog, Marketing, News

Ogilvy released a report called “Hope Creates Impact: Six Shifts from the Intersection of Culture and Commerce” that analyzes the shifts and the brands’ response to them in making the world a better place. As a backdrop, the company highlights the intersection of “Apocalypse Now” and “Hope for Tomorrow”, two co-existing and competing trends defining our current time.

As detailed in the report, the shifts were identified after months of tracking the intersection of culture and commerce and discovering what has made an impact. Fashion, movies, art, music, advertisements, new product launches, business, gossip, and news – they were all analyzed to uncover ways in which human behaviors, desires, and motivators have shifted during these tumultuous times.

Six key shifts were identified:

1. Beta-Testing Self
2. Kind Connection
3. Slow Down
4. Net Positive
5. Heal Yourself
6. Feel Alive Again

Beta-Testing Self is a shift in how people approach life choices, including career opportunities – we are all now in a state of permanent beta-testing, exploring new things and new avenues. Brands are capitalizing on this trend and enabling self-making and adaptability.

Kind Connection is a shift in how people view relationships. To quote from the Ogilvy report, “The pandemic was a big driver of this trend, as it equated solitude with safety. But more than that, the lockdown brought clarity and fresh perspective to our relationships. We realized who our true friends were, and we deepened our connection with them.” A manifestation of this trend is what Ogilvy calls “COVID weddings” – the ballroom ceremonies were swiftly replaced with intimate affairs that only included a handful of guests.

Slow Down is a shift that, once imposed by the pandemic lockdown, has forced us to re-assess the cost of the old way of doing things. Moving to the country, embracing remote work, and other lifestyle choices are here to stay. Intimate, outdoor, and mindful experiences are what people are looking for, and brands are capitalizing on that.

Net Positive is a way of doing business which puts back more into society, the environment and the global economy than it takes out. The pandemic has accelerated this trend. According to the Ogilvy report, “ninety percent of consumers believe that companies have a responsibility to take care of the planet and its people.” That is something that brands cannot ignore.

Heal Yourself is a shift caused by the pandemic that has led people to consider their health as something crucial to protect. People are making lifestyle choices and are also creating contingency plans like never before. And brands are called upon to enable meaningful changes.

Feel Alive Again is a shift emerging as we come out of the pandemic lockdown, and once again seek excitement and experiencing life to its fullest extent. The Ogilvy report mentions The Immersive Van Gogh Experience in Chicago and New York City as one such new way of feeling alive in a post-pandemic world. It is estimated that the experience economy will be worth $12B or more by 2023.

To read full report, visit https://www.ogilvy.com/ideas/hope-creates-impact-six-shifts-intersection-culture-commerce

The Marketing Funnel – A Brief Overview

Posted on 22 Jun 2021 by Admin in Blog, Marketing

Conduct marketing campaigns to generate leads

Question: how do people learn about your business?

Answer: create digital ads, social media posts, events, webinars, direct mail

Provide leads with targeted information about your products and services

Question: what should your target audience know about your products and services?

Answer: distribute newsletters

In this stage leads become prospective customers, and are being provided even more targeted content

Question: what else should prospective customers learn to seal the deal?

Answer: present case studies, demos, free trials

Prospective customers move closer to becoming buyers

Question: when prospective customers show a clear purchase intent, what else should they learn so any reservation is removed?

Answer: host a Q & A

Buyers make the final decision

Question: what makes a strong case to seal the deal?

Answer: make the final pitch

The deal is closed

In The Catskills Chronicle

Posted on 18 Sep 202027 Sep 2020 by Admin in Blog, Fundraising, Marketing, News

For quite some time I’ve had the honor and privilege to work with both the Hospital Foundation and the Auxiliary to raise funds for this worthy cause. Read about the Auxiliary leadership team in the Catskills Chronicle, and learn about the goals set for the next two years. Visit margaretvillehospitalauxiliary.com for more details.

How to Leverage Content Marketing to Boost Reputation and Sales

Posted on 7 Apr 201927 May 2019 by Admin in Blog, content marketing, Marketing, Publishing

Content marketing is a critical component of digital marketing given its effectiveness in increasing brand awareness, engaging online communities, generating new leads, and increasing sales.

Simona David — Content Marketing Class for the Greater Roxbury Business Association

What makes content marketing effective is that people trust editorials more than they trust advertorials. In essence, content marketing is a form of marketing that focuses on creating, publishing and distributing creative content for a targeted audience to generate leads and sales while informing and entertaining. Traditional marketing focuses on pitching products and services, while content marketing focuses on publishing engaging content.

Although content marketing gained traction during the digital age, the practice is nothing new. In 1895 John Deere founded The Furrow, a magazine designed to educate farmers about the latest advancement in the field, and help them find solutions to their problems. The magazine continues to exist today, not just in print but in digital format as well; it has a large social media platform, and is published in several languages around the world. The magazine helped crystallize the John Deere brand, and grow its market.

Forms of content marketing include: how to guides, white papers, newsletters, presentations, blog posts, social media posts, videos, podcasts, infographics, product descriptions, reviews, testimonials, and others.

#GEInstaWalk is a clever example of content marketing which allows the company’s Instagram followers to take a peek into GE’s facilities where cutting-edge technology is being manufactured. Amazon’s Building Your Book for Kindle free e-book is another clever example designed as a free guide to creating and publishing e-books. This is a great tutorial during the consideration phase when aspiring authors are weighing in their options. An example you might be familiar with is the Phyllo Shells recipes on the back of the package – the recipe itself might be enticing enough to make one buy the product, or vice versa. This isn’t something unique to Phyllo Shells however; there are plenty of food brands that offer recipes on the back of their package. It’s an ingenious form of content marketing.

Two local examples that stand out are the Catskill Dream Team’s real estate blog, and The Roxbury Motel’s whimsical themed rooms as featured on social media. How to Buy a Home in One Year: A Step-by-Step Guide, for instance, educates prospective buyers, but it also builds expectations of a lifestyle, and that’s exactly what a real estate blog is about. The Roxbury Motel’s internationally renowned themed rooms also have stories to tell. Breakfast at Tiffany’s, for instance, designed as a tribute to Audrey Hepburn, has the walls stained to match Tiffany’s flagship store on 5th Avenue. The chandelier that hangs above the bed matches the mini chandelier in the Tiffany window at the opening of the movie when Audrey is eating a croissant and staring in the window. The owners of the motel confess that in their twenties they would go around Manhattan re-enacting scenes from the movie. The following Audrey/Truman Capote quote guided the design of the room: “Tiffany’s! Calms me down right away. The quietness and the proud look of it; nothing very bad could happen to you there. If I could find a real-life place that’d make me feel like Tiffany’s, then – then I’d buy some furniture and give the cat a name.” These fun facts shared on social media are bold examples of clever content marketing.

Moz identified four phases of content marketing, which one of them carrying out distinctive goals and types of content to pursue:

I. DISCOVERY PHASE

Goals: educate, increase brand awareness, generate interest

Type of Content (educational): blog posts, webinars, guides, videos, newsletters, presentations, tours

II. CONSIDERATION PHASE

Goals: direct customer acquisition

Type of Content (solutions): case studies, how to guides, demo videos, product descriptions, data sheets, recipes

III. CONVERSION PHASE

Goals: customer transactions

Type of Content (unique value proposition): product descriptions, reviews, testimonials, comparison charts, direct sales pitch, streamlined sales process

IV. RETENTION PHASE

Goals: retention of existing customers

Type of Content (help, support, advocacy): customer support, help documentation, insider tutorials, special offers, follow-ups

Here are a few steps to help you design your content strategy:

Clarify your vision (three – five year plan)
Define your audience (i.e., demographics, media consumption preferences, channels, what are they looking for, who do they follow, what are their wants and needs, etc.)
Audit existing content (inventory, metrics, patterns, etc.)
Set goals (meaningful, measurable, reasonable)
Align your content style, tone and voice with your brand’s personality (set up guidelines)
Documentation (governance rules and workflow)
Content ideation, creation, promotion and distribution (team, tools and infrastructure)
Analytics (metrics to evaluate success)

Depending on the size of your project, building an adequate infrastructure will help carry out the tactics and the execution of your content strategy, both creation and distribution. Often enough the work is outsourced to content strategists, writers, editors, and coordinators equipped with tools to designing and implementing an effective strategy.

In sum, content marketing works because:

It provides valuable information;
It provides entertainment;
It sparks conversations that bring people together;
It forms communities;
It converts potential customers into actual customers;
It creates loyalty;
It establishes authority.

Business Workshops for the Greater Roxbury Business Community

Posted on 22 Jan 201925 Oct 2022 by Admin in Blog, Business Development, Business Writing, Marketing, workshops

GREATER ROXBURY BUSINESS ASSOCIATION (GRBA) ANNOUNCES ITS 2019 BUSINESS WORKSHOPS SCHEDULE SPONSORED BY MARGARETVILLE TELEPHONE COMPANY (MTC):

Run Your Business Smarter Not Harder with Mercedes Gonzalez / January 29, 5:30 – 7 pm;
Effective Website and SEO with Susan Aleksejczyk / February 26, 5:30 – 7 pm;
How to Leverage Content Marketing to Boost Reputation and Sales with Simona David / March 26, 5:30 – 7 pm;
Grant Writing with Peg Ellsworth / April 30, 5:30 – 7 pm;
Social Media for Small Business with Becky Tyre / May 28, 5:30 – 7 pm;

All workshops are tailored to small business owners and entrepreneurs who seek to grow their businesses by learning new skills and gaining expertise from leading business professionals in our community.

I. Run Your Business Smarter Not Harder with Mercedes Gonzalez / January 29, 5:30 – 7 pm

You have a business now what? How do you scale, how do you grow and most importantly how can you balance life and work? One of the mantras Mercedes Gonzalez believes in is “how do you work as little as possible for the most amount of money.”

The hour plus workshop will help you put a plan of action together to help you work smarter and not harder.

Mercedes Gonzalez has been considered a retail industry leader for over 20 years – having founded her own strategy and brand developing agency, Global Purchasing Companies, in New York City in 1998. She has traveled to over 50 trade shows every year in eight countries since then, establishing plans and strategies for retailers and emerging designers across the globe. Her debut book, Chronicles of a Fashion Buyer, is currently the number ONE new release on Amazon for fashion and textiles, and it has already sold out four times in the few months since its release. Mercedes is a preferred speaker at a multitude of regional and international fashion events including Miami Fashion Week, Jamaica Fashion Week, Asia Fashion Summit, and the Istanbul Textile Conference thanks to her “no-nonsense” reputation. She owns Just Shop Boutique, a designer discount store located in Arkville, NY.

II. Effective Website and SEO with Susan Aleksejczyk / February 26, 5:30 – 7 pm

Susan Aleksejczyk, designer and content developer for Catskill Muse, will review the best search engine optimization (SEO) techniques to improve search engine results for both new or existing websites. Susan will discuss the best website design and hosting options as well as compatibility with top search engines to help you get high rankings based on relevant searches.

Susan Aleksejczyk has built her career in the advertising and marketing industry. She was previously employed at a NYC marketing firm whose clients included big brands. Susan is currently the Sales and Marketing Coordinator for MTC. Her vast experience in various industries has allowed her to provide her clients with a unique perspective on their marketing and website needs. As owner of Catskill Muse, she concentrates her business on website design best practices and the latest in SEO techniques.

III. How to Leverage Content Marketing to Boost Reputation and Sales with Simona David / March 26, 5:30 – 7 pm

This workshop will expose participants to the benefits of content marketing such as increasing brand awareness and name recognition, attracting new leads and prospects, increasing sales, and retaining and expanding customer base through a series of case studies and best examples from the industry. Rather than making a direct sales pitch, content marketing engages the audience through valuable creative content, and establishes an emotional connection with the followers, who, in the words of Seth Godin, will become your “tribe.” Examples of content marketing include: how to guides, white papers, newsletters, presentations, blog posts, social media posts, videos, podcasts, infographics, product descriptions, reviews, testimonials, and others.

Simona David is a media consultant with over a decade of experience in the publishing and marketing industry. Ms. David has worked with lobbyists, award-winning advertising executives, travel and tourism professionals, artists, writers, entrepreneurs, and non-profit organizations. Her website is simonadavid.com.

IV. Grant Writing with Peg Ellsworth / April 30, 5:30 – 7 pm

This workshop will help equip participants with the tools needed to search and solicit grants from State, Federal and Local sources. Peg Ellsworth will discuss the basic dos and don’ts in soliciting grants and best practices for developing successful applications. She will also cover resources available from NY State as part of the Consolidated Funding Application for both businesses and not-for-profit organizations.

Peg Ellsworth is the Executive Director of the MARK Project, whose mission is to provide resources and help build the capacity of individuals, organizations, businesses and municipalities in the towns of Andes, Bovina, Middletown, Roxbury and Shandaken, and the Villages of Fleischmanns and Margaretville.

V. Social Media for Small Business with Becky Tyre / May 28, 5:30 – 7 pm

In this workshop Becky Tyre will explain the differences in each social media platform and show you some tips to make Facebook and Instagram work for your small business. Specifically, she will address Facebook Events, Page Layout, Hashtags, how frequently to post, how to reach a broader audience and gain more followers.

Becky Tyre is a writer, retail consultant @RetailDetails, contributing editor at Gifts & Decorative Accessories magazine and a shop local advocate. She lives in Roxbury, NY.

All workshops will be held at the MTC Building, 61 Academy Street, Margaretville, NY. To register, go to https://www.visitroxbury.com/business-workshops. Class fee is $25 for GRBA’s members, and $35 for non-members. For more information, contact roxburybusinessassociation@gmail.com.

Greater Roxbury Business Association (GRBA) for the Town of Roxbury, NY is a community / grassroots organization comprised of business owners and self-employed individuals working to increase awareness of existing businesses in the community, and to build a more cohesive and prosperous business environment, to serve the hamlets of Roxbury, Grand Gorge and Denver. The GRBA receives technical assistance from the MARK Project — a 501 ( c ) (3) not-for-profit community and economic development organization. For more information, visit roxburybusinessassociation.com.

Business Writing Workshop

Posted on 18 Jul 201625 May 2018 by Admin in Business Writing, Marketing, nonfiction, Publishing, workshops, Writing

Business Writing

Writers in the Mountains (WIM) introduces a six week long Business Writing workshop with Dara Lurie, running from August 11 to September 15, 2016. The class will be held Thursdays from 4 to 6 pm at the Phoenicia Public Library.

This class, dubbed Author Breakthrough, is a program for small business owners, artists and freelance writers who wish to create valuable content and great marketing copy. No one understands the heart and soul of your business better than you do. Now it’s time to communicate your vision using effective stories and expert content. You do not have to be a professional writer to create great content. The most important function of your content – whether it’s a book, blog, story or expert article – is to connect with your core message and bring that message into sharp focus for your audience.

In Author-Breakthrough you’ll have access to the experience of like-minded entrepreneurs who will provide the valuable feedback you need to develop and refine your message. The class includes engaging writing and dialoguing activities, content development sessions, creative think-tank environment to develop and test your ideas. By the end of the program you’ll have ready-to-publish articles, stories, or blogposts, and client-attracting copy for email or social media posts as well as an action-plan for best use of your content and copy.

Dara Lurie is an author, workshop leader and book coach who helps writers of all levels discover their passionate and original voices in stories. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Film & Theater from Vassar College and her M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Hunter College. Her first book, “Great Space of Desire: Writing for Personal Evolution” is a memoir and creative guide for writers. For over twelve years, Dara has facilitated writing workshops and retreats in diverse locations from college classrooms in New York City and the Hudson Valley to an open-air pavilion in the Costa Rican Rainforest. This year, she launched a new online mentorship program for small-business owners who want to create inspired content and marketing copy to grow their business.

To register, call Jean Stone at (607) 326-4802, or e-mail her at jtstone@catskill.net. To register online, visit writersinthemountains.org. Class fee is $100, if you register and pay by July 21, and $125 after that.

Writers in the Mountains is a 501 ( c ) (3) not-for-profit organization with a mission to provide a nurturing environment for the practice, appreciation and sharing of creative writing. Online at writersinthemountains.org.