Blonde Productions Group

When Unleaded Software released its Kindle book on Amazon entitled “NONSTOP: Uncommonly Good Advice About Taking The Internet To New Levels,” we hoped to influence a global SEO Internet audience. We never seriously expected that our audience of promoters would extend to New Dehli (as in NOT pastrami), but today we learned that our online resource book is being promoted by the Indian experts on internet SEO.

Thus, while we stand proudly behind our American roots and we are loyal to protecting jobs and careers keeping all of our productivity inside the U.S.A., we’re getting global props. And frankly, nothing feels, well, more deserved.

Our only outstanding question: how much is $6.95 in rupees?

For SEO that ranks, contact ryan@unleadedgroup.com.

To purchase “NONSTOP,” go to: http://www.amazon.com/Nonstop-Uncommonly-advice-Internet-ebook/dp/B002RL9KWY%3FSubscriptionId%3DAKIAJZO3MQ7Q5AC567OA%26tag%3Dsoftishop-20%26linkCode%3Dxm2%26camp%3D2025%26creative%3D165953%26creativeASIN%3DB002RL9KWY

When Helen of Troy inspired a full-on war (“a face that launched 1,000 ships”—Iliad), she had nothing on Facebook—literally and figuratively. Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg launched his Internet social media website in 2004 and today it has 300 million registered users. Here’s the latest stats on Facebook taken from a report released in the New York Times on Sunday, Nov. 15, 2009:

-300 million people are on Facebook and that number is growing daily

- 1.4 million fan pages are currently collecting more than 10 million fans every day

- Businesses can create fan pages and then the business gains publicity each time someone becomes a fan because it is seen by the fan’s friends on minified.

-It is important to establish objectives and strategizing accordingly before setting up anything on Facebook

- Ask your friends to fan your page first so that you have a fan base when you launch

-Personalize your page with photos, videos, updated information and specials

-Do not hard sell. Facebook interaction should be a conversation

-It is a customer service more than a sales tool, but it can generate significant revenue

-Facebook advertising is affordable and highly targeted, you can even target very specific demos like status or location.

-You can also target ads through social claims. Example: if someone sends a message to a friend asking if they’d like to go get a burger sometime, you can market your hamburger stand to the individual directly.

-You can elect to pay per click or per impression

- Advertisers have the ability to schedule the day the ad runs and set a daily
maximum budget

-Facebook provides the number of clicks and impressions so you can experiment with which ads are most effective

-The classic marketing tactic: offer something free works well on Facebook because it brings consumers from cyberspace to your doorstep.

For help with social media, contact Unleaded Group, an affiliate of Unleaded Software at www.unleadedsoftware.com, Blonde Productions Group at www.blondeproductionsgroup.com, Unleaded Productions at www.denvervideo.com, www.tradeshowemporium.com and www.BeanstalkSolarHosting.com.

Or call 720-221-7126 to enroll in our social media classes.

Is the language of Twitter so brief it’s dangerous?

Best known as the author of “The Elements of Style,” William Strunk Jr. was famous for urging writers to cut out the excess. He hadn’t met Twitter yet.

Last week, two US Governors, Sarah Palin and Arnold Schwarzenegger, came under fire for shortening their Twitter messages to a point that they were less than clear. And everyone knows how clearly politicians address their constituency, ahem.

Yahoonews.com reported that Palin’s abbreviated Tweet went like this:

Re inaccurate story floating re:ethics violation/Legal Defense Fund;matter is still pending;new info was just requested even;no final report.

Schwarzenegger accompanied his Tweet with a video of him holding a knife big enough to fend off a polar bear (oops, wrong Guv.) Even his press secretary couldn’t explain why.

Tweet limits the writer’s commentary to 140 characters. That leaves little room to elaborate or even explain.

While the brevity might have impressed Strunk at first, it’s certain that the Master of Succinctness would have blanched at the resulting confusion. After all, writing well is a means of communicating, not obfuscating.

Even bloggers at the Christian Science Monitor poked fun at the politicos by compiling examples of political tweets in a post entitled, “Politicians using Twitter: Morons or visionaries?”

At Blonde Productions Group, a member of the Unleaded Group, we urge our clients to Twitter thoughtfully. Too much too often is annoying to followers. Deploy your tweets sparingly and save the planet.

Book sales are off; Kindle is up. Amazon, the godfather of the Kindle e-reader, reports that 35% of its book sales are now books read on Kindle. Across the board, there’s been a 150% rise in electronic book sales in 2009 compared to the same period in 2008. And there’s been a 4% decline in sales of printed books on paper.

What started out as an indie notion has been widely adopted. Seemingly overnight (Kindle is two years old, but most of the world didn’t begin to recognize it by name until late 2008 and early 2009), clicks are the new currency of reading.

This new form of New Media Gloss is here to stay. Cultivating green reading; sparing forests.
Be sure to read Unleaded Group’s new kindle release “Nonstop-Uncommonly Good Advice About Taking The Internet To New Levels. Only $6.95.

Think about it - just about everyone under 35 uses phone books as door stops and has no use at all for print media or land-line telephones. The X Generation, under 45 and over 35 are joining the electronic revolution in droves. Gen Y has only one question when it comes to old-school phone books: Why bother?

The masses today are wired, making big purchase decisions - homes and cars - and even casual connections like dinner reservations, through the virtual world. The web is where they do their business, locate product, reserve concert tickets, plan vacations and even get grad school credits.

They Google and Yahoo and Twitter and Facebook their way to an instant connection. They want what they want right now, and they expect it to be there in seconds on a hand-held, desk-top or lap-top with a minimum of typing and texting, and with a few simple clicks.

If making the leap from wired to wireless has you buffaloed, contact Blonde Productions Group, a member of the Unleaded Group for Twitter Tutoring and marketing consulting that will make a difference.

Just for grins: Does anyone out there remember phones with cords?

Less than 13 hours ago, a Florida man saw Jesus in his toast.

Yes, believe it. It’s on msnbc.com, so it must be true. Or not.

Have the post-election doldrums caught up with us? The campaign over and campaign analysis whittled down to bare bones, leaves, obviously, little for the media to report.

Ahh, there’s no better time to get your corporate story into the press. If it is a positive story, i.e. your company has captured an enviable contract or your think tank has proffered up a genius theory, guaranteed it will be the only good news in that day’s tabloid. With today’s news that General Motors might not survive ‘til year-end and Circuit City seeking bankruptcy protection, it’s time for a come-to-Jesus and apparently that confab was held in Florida with no advance notice to the waitress in Broward County serving the French toast.

Blonde Productions Group, a member of the Unleaded Group headquartered in Denver, CO, can help you get your good news out into the world of airwaves and pixels, internet and even direct mail.

Contact us at 303-399-8635 or 720-221-7126.

What makes a magazine inviting to pick up and worthwhile to read?

Blonde Productions Group completed two focus groups in October for a national women’s magazine that focuses on healthy living, relationships and prosperity.

Two groups of 10 women each participated. Ranging from their 20s through 70s, the participants reviewed four issues of the quarterly publication prior to meeting jointly. Discussions were facilitated by Nancy Clark of Blonde Productions Group.

The purpose of the focus groups was to ascertain whether the publication’s original intent was being achieved, according to reader perceptions. Other than a focus group, the publisher had no real way to formally assess readers’ responses to their efforts. Sure, subscription numbers are a telling way to determine whether a publication is hitting the mark, but that takes years to tally and requires an advertisement investment of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Studies show that people will register a complaint more frequently than a compliment and that complaints travel nine times faster than positive reviews. In a competitive publishing world, the focus group findings can be used to exponentially improve the attraction, reach and results of the publication. Now, rather than too late.

Clark guided the two focus groups through the publication, recording participant’s comments and input. She then assessed that data comparatively, drilling down to the common denominators and differences between the two groups. Finally, Clark was able to prioritize suggestions with an overlay of how the publication could use the data to net ownership of market share.

Often people limit their thinking about marketing to the front-end contact with customers, clients and buyers of their service or product. The fact is that customer retention (in this case, reader retention) is less expensive than it is to attract new customers.

Apply this to your own business, whatever that might be, by asking customers and clients:

• How did you find out about us in the first place?
• What can we do to help you?
• How can we improve?

Remember to look the customer in the eyes when asking these questions. Most people have become desensitized to the inquiry “How are you?” The auto-responder is, “Fine.” Business owners have to be brave to ask customers what it is they’re doing best as a business or what could be improved within their business operations. Some of the feedback can be painful. Realize that you won’t know what to improve upon if you don’t ask for customer input.

Hire Blonde Productions Group to perform your Focus Group and get feedback that will help you do business better in the future. Contact nancy@blondeproductionsgroup.com for details on customizing a focus group to gather data on your enterprise.

Denver’s award-winning website developer and SEO-industry leader Unleaded Software, Inc.
Is chosen to redesign and develop three phases of Cherry Creek North Shopping Districts websites

DENVER, CO - Unleaded Software, Inc. has been chosen from field of seven companies to redesign and develop three new websites for Cherry Creek North. Unleaded Software will redesign and implement additional functions to Cherry Creek North’s consumer website, build an internal website for  store owners/mangers, and a new mobile device website, further enhancing Cherry Creek North’s standing as Colorado’s premier shopping destination.

“We’re honored to be chosen for this important and immense undertaking of redesigning and developing the new websites for Cherry Creek North,” said Unleaded Software president Jarod Clark. “Cherry Creek North has decided to take a big step in its approach to design and functionality both to its visitors and its business owners, and that step will be a bold undertaking. The new websites should reflect positively and professionally on Cherry Creek North. That’s a task we don’t take lightly, and we’re excited about this partnership.”

Located in the Ballpark Neighborhood of Lower Downtown Denver at 2314 Broadway, in a mid-century building refurbished with state-of-the-art technology, Unleaded Software’s background in multiple mediums played a factor in Cherry Creek North’s decision. Not only does Unleaded Software design and develop award-winning websites, but is a recognized leader marketing, advertising and writing.

“The team at Unleaded Software reflects the creativity and enthusiasm we need to create a dynamic website reflective of the area,” said Christina Brickley, Cherry Creek North Marketing Director.   “The combination of writing, design and technical experience among the Unleaded Software team members provides the experience we were seeking in an online partner.”

Unleaded Software’s marketing division also has more than 50 years of writing, editing and publishing experience for both print and websites.  Unleaded Software, founded in 1996 in Denver, Colo., is a full-service web design and development agency that offers hosting for its clients, among other services.  It also specializes in Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and hybrid-built website design-proven strategies gaining wide visibility for clients’ websites. Unleaded Software’s affiliate enterprises-Unleaded Media and Blonde Productions Group-integrate the latest in video production for websites and produce award-winning editorial and PR, respectively.

Cherry Creek North is a 16-square-block shopping and dining neighborhood with the region’s largest collection of independently owned boutiques, restaurants and galleries.  The 320 galleries, boutiques, restaurants and salons/spas throughout Cherry Creek North surround Fillmore Plaza, the location of numerous community events including Films on Fillmore and the nationally renowned Cherry Creek Arts Festival.

For information on Unleaded Software Inc., contact Michael Kirschbaum, Director of Strategic Solutions at mkirschbaum@unleadedsoftware.com or call 720-221-7126.

Unleaded Software Inc. is located at 2314 Broadway, Denver, CO 80205 along with its sister companies: Blonde Productions Group, Inc., Unleaded Media, LLC, Trade Show Emporium, and Octane Coffee, a mobile Airstream coffee shop used for private events.