New & Improved Marketing Melodie
Posted by: MarketingMelodie on: January 9, 2009
I’m currently working on a new and improved website layout. Please stay tuned for some exciting changes!!
My Myspace Fail- So Here’s My Salute to You!
Posted by: MarketingMelodie on: January 8, 2009
Dear Myspace,
All I want to do is change my log in email address! I’m a loyal user who signed up almost five years ago when you were just getting started. I’ve experienced many usability changes throughout the years. Some more efficient, others a bit annoying but I want to know why you haven’t created a simple option for changing my email address!
The email address I used to sign up for myspace an old hotmail address that was deleted due to inactivity so I have NO WAY of logging on to that account.
Attempt 1: I go into “Contact Info” of course the option to manually change the contact address is disabled!
Attempt 2: I go to “Account” and change my “Requested Contact Address” and then pops up “You have requested to change your contact email address. A confirmation email was sent to your previous email address. Please confirm this change by clicking the link in the email or entering the confirmation code below.”
Do you understand that my old email account was deleted? There is NO WAY for me to log in to “click the link”.
Attempt 3: Ok Myspace it looks like you’re catching on and you DO understand that I can’t log in to my old account to “click the link”…so what should I do now? Let’s “Contact Myspace”. Subject: My Account, Sub Topic: Change Email Address. This immediately leads me to the FAQ without even giving me a chance to submit my own question because of course someone else has already inquired about this so you don’t want me to email you about again. What? Tom from Myspace won’t really get my message?! Looks like I can’t really contact you about this issue.
Attempt 4: FAQ. I guess I should read it now.
If for some reason you can’t access your old email account, you’ll have to email help@support.myspace.com Send them a salute along with the new email address you want to use. WHAT THE HECK IS A SALUTE?! Ahhh, you knew I’d ask so you expain…
To create and send a salute here’s what you’ll need to do:
- Create a handwritten sign with the word MySpace.com and Include your MySpace Friend/Profile ID number. (Your friend ID is the number after “&friendID=” in your profile’s web address/URL. If you can’t login, you can get this info by clicking on your profile)
- Get a picture taken of you holding the handwritten sign. Be sure the photo is clear and the handwriting is easy to read. If we can’t read the information and see your face clearly, then we will ask for another salute. (If you do not have access to a digital camera, please consider the accessibility of disposable cameras and digital film processing available at most drug stores)
- After you take the pic, send us an email to help@support.myspace.com with the salute attached. You can also provide us with the web address/URL where the image has been uploaded.
- Include what you want your new email log in address and password to be. Again, if the email is being used by another MySpace profile we can’t use it, so make sure it’s not associated with any other profiles. Once we receive this information, we will update your account for you.
- We use a salute as a means to identify and confirm ownership. If there are no photos on your profile we can use to confirm you own it, we won’t be able to provide you with the information you’re requesting. If that’s the case, you’ll need to create a new profile. Sorry, but we take user privacy very seriously.
When I read the first line about creating a Handwritten Myspace sign. I seriously thought someone hacked into the Myspace FAQ and wrote it as a prank! Then I read the last line about Myspace taking their user privacy very seriously. So of course it’s not a prank! But c’mon I seriously have to hold up a sign? You’re a high tech company so you know that consumers want thing instantaneously. We don’t want to look for it, we don’t want to go through lots of steps to find what we want and we certainly don’t want to take a picture of us holding a handwritten sign!
So if anyone from Myspace is reading this, can this blog post please suffice as my “SALUTE”?! Please? Change it from “mymelodie13@hotmail.com” which no longer exists to “melodietao@gmail.com”. I’d give you props for actually finding this post because you’re tracking things that are said about you. I’d also give you props for great customer service. Thanks Myspace!
Sincerely,
Melodie Tao
Build a Strong Foundation with Online Marketing Education
Posted by: MarketingMelodie on: January 5, 2009
By now I’m sure we’ve all made our New Year’s Resolutions. I’m also sure that many of us have already broken some of them 
. I made some personal resolutions but I also made a career resolution. My career resolution is that in 2009 I’m going to emphasize education behind online marketing. In addition to helping you develop your marketing strategy, I’m also going to educate you every step of the way. Many business owners have basic knowledge about SEO, Social Media, PPC, etc but don’t understand the strategy behind it. Understanding the foundation of your campaign is extremely important to keep your business ahead of the competition and at the forefront of your industry, especially in such a challenging economy. Let’s backtrack and bit to 2008.
The hardships we faced in 2008 including the credit crunch, out of this world gas prices, mortgage downfall, high unemployment rate and extreme national debt made 2008 by far one of the most stressful years in history. I’ve seen more companies go out of business in 2008 than in my entire lifetime. However, despite such a down economy people are still spending, investing and buying. There are still opportunities out there, it’s just a matter of being smart on how you market and position yourself. I know it’s easier said than done as Marketers in 2008 faced tremendous roadblocks:
- Inability in generating qualified leads
- Struggle to get your website found
- Ineffective strategies for tracking ROI
- Traditional Media not working
Thank goodness 2009 is here and we all know it’s a year for change! Take action and don’t let the same roadblocks get in the way. When every single sale does matter and budgets are being cut left and right, developing a strategic and cost effective marketing campaign for your business is essential. I recommend you constantly educate yourself on new marketing strategies and not repeating old school methods that don’t work.
This February 4th-7th, marketers, business owners and anyone interested in learning will have a chance to accelerate their marketing knowledge at the Online Marketing Summit in San Diego. They’re providing unique educational opportunities to attendees with certification programs, a career fair, hands-on workshops, on-site usability and SEO labs, thought-leader presentations on a myriad of online marketing topics and networking opportunities. This event is the perfect way to pump up your business for the new year!
Register here and receive a $400 online discount by January 10th. To ring on the new year I’m also giving away a free conference pass to 1 lucky winner. The prize is valued at $1,695. To enter please leave a comment with your biggest marketing challenge in 2008 and what you plan to do about it in 2009! Short comments are ok, doesn’t need to have a lot of details but if you’re willing to share I would love to hear more! Let’s get a dialog going! Make sure to leave your email address. A winner will be randomly chosen on Tuesday January 20th, 2009 (Inaguration Day!) Good luck and Happy New Year!
Traditional Media Companies- It’s time to Go Digital
Posted by: MarketingMelodie on: December 10, 2008
Got some good feedback for a blog post I wrote a while back for Internet Marketing Inc. In case you missed it here it is again!
Melodie here, your Digital Marketing Consultant for Internet Marketing Inc.. For my first post I’m going to touch on a topic that’s very close to me: Traditional Media. I worked at a Traditional Media company for 4 years before making the transition to an Internet Marketing Consultancy and over the past few years I’ve seen the evolution of Traditional Media as it attempts keep its audience during an age where the accelerated pace of Social Media is taking over.
In many cases, there is little or no attempt from traditional media to engage their audience through social media. Setting up a Twitter account for your radio station and having it sit there doesn’t count. Creating a Facebook group for your TV station and never updating doesn’t count. Attempting to put your newspaper online word for word without a Social Media Optimization campaign, also results in FAIL (aka: the famous internet term for something gone wrong!).
For as long as we remember people relied on Traditional Media as their main source for news and entertainment. That is until recently. In the last year, Social Media has trumped Traditional media in usage. People spend more time on Social Media than they do reading the newspaper, watching TV or listening to the radio combined. This not the end for traditional media. This the beginning of a new opportunity to engage, interact and compel your audience to continue viewing your media as a credible resource!
Radio on-air personality excited to announce their new Social Media Networks.
Traditional Media companies pride themselves in being at the forefront of what’s current so if you don’t have an effective Social Media campaign you’re contradicting yourself. Need some ideas?
Radio: On-air personalities should create a Twitter account to connect with listeners through microblogging. Promote your on-air contests, on-site events and online photos and videos in real time to keep your listeners engaged even when they aren’t tuned in.
Newspaper: Most newspapers have digitized their articles. But few have worked on community building. Allow forums so readers feel connected as they post on different news stories. Allow readers to easily share articles through social bookmarking.
TV: Have your personalities blog about their broadcasts to create a more authentic voice than reading off a teleprompter! Blog about the TV shows on your station to boost your traffic from an entertainment standpoint.
You know what they say, “If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em!” What does this mean? Don’t get stigmatized as an old-school dying industry.TV stations, Newspapers, Radio Stations, Magazines, it’s time to hire an Internet Marketing company to help you with an overall Social Media strategy that really shows your audience you get it!
Melodie is a Happy (Bar)Camper
Posted by: MarketingMelodie on: November 21, 2008
Last Saturday I did something completely out of the ordinary: I attended BarCampSD4! When I first heard about Bar Camp a few months ago I honestly had no idea what it was! In a nutshell, it’s an a (un)conference made up of the collaboration of it’s participants. Anyone can attend and anyone can contribute so it’s really what you make of it. To be honest I was a bit nervous before attending as I envisioned everything being completely tech related. To my pleasant surprise I was engaged and entertained with so many different presentations (each presenter gets an hour). I was going to create an SEO presentation but realized everyone at the event either knows about SEO or thinks they know so I decided to be more creative and teach an origami class! I appreciate everyone who attended and thank you for all the positive feedback! Here’s everything I learned:
1. Art School Programs
2. Improving Memory
3. FMRI (Neuroscience Stuff)
4. How to Play Telephone Pictionary!
5. Turning vegetable Oil into fuel
6. How wine is made
7. Making Gin drinks
Alright enough writing. Let’s see some interactive media from BarCampSD4!
Teaching Origami at BarCampSD4
@DanLarsen learning origami at BarCampSD4
Finished Origami Products at BarCampSD4
@MyMelodie's Twitter Stream During BarCampSD4
Hello from BarCampSD! on 12seconds.tv
Thank you #BarCampSD4! Had a great time! on 12seconds.tv
Why You Should Hire a Millennial Marketer
Posted by: MarketingMelodie on: November 11, 2008
I’d like to start off by saying I have the utmost respect for those who have been in the internet marketing industry for years (many marketers I meet say at least 10 years). I commend you for being an early adopter, futuristic and constantly adapting to the internet as it evolves. Your success is my motivation!
Whenever something new enters the market, there’s always speculation along with anticipation. Will the new restaurant succeed? Will this new product take off? How is the rookie going to do when faced with all seasoned Veterens? or you can look at it in a more positive way. I can’t wait to check out that new hot spot! The new product is going to blow away all the others! This blog post is dedicated to my own unique selling points as fresh, new Internet Marketer and why my new status will benefit your marketing campaign.
I’m a Millennial Internet Marketer! The Millennial generation born between 1980-2008 (may be variations), growing up in the 90s and 2000s and educated with bleeding edge technology. I entered the workforce merely less than 3 years ago with more drive, ambition and hunger for learning than you could ever imagine! I’ve created a buzz, challenged old school thinkers and started a revolution of new ideas from the perspective of the actual end user. I too was there from the very beginning in an even more engaged and active way than most.
- YES I was on Facebook when only college students had the privilege to use it
- YES I had a Friendster in high school when all of you who now use Facebook and LinkedIn thought Social Media was for “kids”
- YES I blogged on Xanga almost every single day!
- YES I knew every single numeric code for pagers
- YES I had a brick cell phone when they were embarrassing to be seen with one!
So what does this mean? I may not have 10 years of marketing experience but I have more than enough experience with the technology that these “kids are growing up with” because I AM that Millennial Kid! Couple that with my strong background in traditional marketing where I bring the successful aspects of old school marketing and accelerate those elements with the internet and my passion for the the industry and you have me! Melodie Tao aka: Marketing Melodie aka: @MyMelodie on Twitter aka your Millennial Internet Marketer!
If that doesn’t overcome your objections to hire me for your next Internet Marketing campaign then I encourage you to reach out to me with more questions and challenges. I love what I do and I love educating people on why it’s essential to have an effective internet marketing campaign!
3K Interactive brings Internet Marketing to Las Vegas!
Posted by: MarketingMelodie on: October 19, 2008
Earlier this week, the 3K Interactive team packed our bags for Vegas to show the DMA08 what Internet Marketing is all about.
DMA08 Attendees Scrolling the Exhibition Hall and in search of Internet Marketing help!
I spoke to over 100 companies. Only about 5 were online/interactive companies. I know it was the “Direct Marketing” conference but I’m still perplexed by the number of traditional marketing companies present: specialty envelops, address list brokers, postcards, telemarketing companies etc. (especially since the event itself was marketed as a global event for “Integrated” marketing)
To all of the traditional marketing companies, I’d like to educate you on why you too should have an SEO campaign with 3K Interactive. If you are 1 of 50 companies who sells specialty envelops for direct mail advertisers, how are you going to stand out from all the others?
I actually asked this question to many people. Most responded with something along the lines “We’re the only company who uses soy based ink”, “We are the only eco-friendly company”, “We sell clear envelops that don’t look like junk mail.” It’s great to have a unique selling point but this does not mean potential customers will find you.
If I told you I have a way to get people who are ready to buy your service go to your website and place an order with you right away, wouldn’t you listen? Better yet I can even track it for you so you know where your customer are coming from! Sound too good to be true? Not even! This is reality with the career that I have become so passionate about, Internet Marketing!
The 3K Interactive team (missing Myles) Enjoying Las Vegas after a working hard all day at DMA08!
I will optimize your website by making it more user friendly, set it up to it easily tracks conversions, increase conversions, decrease bounce rates and so much more! Just ask and I’m happy to provide you with a free website analysis. If anything this will give you insight on what you can do to enhance your current online strategy.
San Diego Speed Networking, The Show Must Go On!
Posted by: MarketingMelodie on: September 30, 2008
I founded San Diego Speed Networking Dennis-Michael Broussard of Silk Road Productions over a year ago to create a professional networking event that overcame these obstacles:
a) Networking at loud bar with music where people are yelling over each other because they can’t hear
b) People aimlessly wandering around in an attempt to meet everyone with no formal introductions
c) The awkwardness of interrupting a conversation or leaving a conversation
Here’s how it works.
-Each company attends with TWO representatives If you only have one person at your company then attend with a friend/ referral partner/ someone you collaborate with.
-Each company receives a table top to set up marketing materials, promo items, visuals, etc. Rep 1 from the company remains at the table while Rep 2 from the company is assigned to move around to each table
-When the Speed Networking sessions begin Rep 2 moves to the table next to table and 3 minutes are alloted for each session. When time is up Rep 2 continues to move to the next table until every company has had a chance to meet every other company.
Each person will connect with everyone in the room. The speed networking session is long enough to establish a connection and short enough to move on if no connection is made. At the end there is a mixer. That’s the event in nutshell.
I’m having many challenges with my marketing campaign for the event. It’s extremely frustrating. As a Marketer I know exactly what needs to be done but don’t have the means to do it.
I don’t have access to my domain name so I can’t redirect the website currently hosted under the Silk Road Productions Website. The domain was purchased by former partner who has the password and has not disclosed it. I tried calling GoDaddy they were no help. Any SEO work I attempt will not be credited to: www.sandiegospeednetworking.com since it’s not hosted as its own entity.
I’ve also been unsuccessful in hosting a wordpress blog within the site. I’d like it embedded into my site as a page but it only links to the blog on the wordpress site. Dennis-Michael has done a great job with the site given that neither of us are developers or designers. I’ve become so discouraged with the marketing that I’m compelled to cancel the event, but we’ve already invested a lot and thus the show must go on!
If you read this entire Blog you get a $10 discount to the event. Regular price is $50 per company. My blog readers get in for $40. That’s $40 for two people. Includes hosted appetizers! Twitter followers @SDSpeedNet also get the discount! If you have any feedback for my website, marketing strategy or event in general please comment! I hope to see everyone there. Reserve your spot today space is limited!
A Clear New Vision
Posted by: MarketingMelodie on: September 13, 2008
For those who don’t already know I resigned from my position as a Marketing Consultant at Clear Channel Communications. I begin my new venture at with 3K Interactive on Monday Sept. 22nd. I am excited to move into Online Marketing. The Internet is growing exponentially and the opportunity is unlimited! I’ll be a true consultant, resource and connector for my clients.
The main question I get is “Why did you leave?” First I’d like to say that I absolutely loved working at Clear Channel. For almost 2 and 1/2 years I have felt nothing less than proud to represent the company. It was a difficult journey and succeeding there is by far the hardest thing I’ve ever done. Long nights, stressful days, driving all over town, cancellations, internal battles etc, but my hard work at Clear Channel was well worth it! The things I learned about building client relationships, developing targeted campaigns, interpersonal relationships, having a strong work ethic and marketing in general are priceless! The perks of working in radio aren’t bad either!
After working there I am confident that I can take on any challenge and succeed. It was a stepping stone that opened up so many doors. I didn’t leave because I wasn’t doing well or I didn’t like the company. The more I grew in my position there, the more I wanted to offer more to my clients. By creating campaigns for people only within Clear Channel Properties I became extremely limited. I wasn’t creating targeted campaigns. I was reaching out to thousands of people with a commercial that probably only 1% of listeners actually cared about. Out of those 1% only another 1% actually remember to go home and look up info about the ad. Radio is the largest form of word of mouth and works great if you’re a huge corporation with a large marketing budget but for companies who can’t afford to spend as much as Coke or McDonalds the online presence is essential before considering any other medias. Thus my transition to online marketing.
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- A Clear New Vision into Online Marketing
I’m an Entrepreneur at heart. I’m always formulating new ventures, business ideas and plans to grow my career so the transition to online marketing is perfect because . I never sold a campaign that I didn’t believe would work but the more I learned about marketing, I realized that there is more that I can do to help businesses grow. I will now create campaigns where my clients will be found by consumers specifically searching for their product/service instead of trying to find consumers who probably don’t care. My campaigns will be permissive and the advertising will be sought after rather than interruptive like most TV and Radio Ads. I will help my clients build a community to really engage their customers. I will optimize websites to increase conversion rates and I’ll be able to track everything which will allow me to fine tune and customize the campaign as it progresses. I could go on and on about what I’m now able to offer with the online world! If you’d like to learn more about my new marketing resources please don’t hesitate to reach out to me!
So there you have it! The real story about my transition and new business venture!
Blogger’s Block, No More!
Posted by: MarketingMelodie on: September 8, 2008
- In: Blogs
- Leave a Comment
Recently I’ve been getting writer’s block (or blogger’s block in this case) when writing blogs. I realized I’ve been putting a lot thought into my blogs because I want them to be fine-tuned without any errors to sound professional. Someone brought to my attention that I just need to sound like myself when I blog. Well, “myself” does not have any problem with thinking of things to say or talk about. I’m good at impromptu and adapting my answers and comments to any given situation. I speak what’s on my mind and my passion for reflects in my delivery. From now on I’m adopting the same policy with blogging as speaking. I want my blog to reflect my unique personality, not sound like a corporate website. Blogs are unique to each individual and for the most part have no set standards, formulas or structure.
Blogger's Block
Now that I understand the power of blogging, I’m going to write what’s on my mind and if someone doesn’t agree, then they should start their own blog.
Another step forward to Marketing Melodie 2.0. Thanks to everyone who’s been supportive of my web transformation. Even when I have technical questions my new web community has been quick to answer them in order to guide me in the right direction. Happy blogging everyone!
Follow Me on Twitter
- MyMelodie: @ayb Even gave you/ @EasyTweets a shout out in my blog post on 10 Things I do to Work a Conference Before it Begins http://bit.ly/1xnMMc #
- MyMelodie: @ayb look forward to your panel & meeting you! I use @easytweets all the time. #PubCon
- MyMelodie: @souplantation definitely! I waited & ate dinner, delicious as usual :) altho I will need to remember to bring my club veg coupon next time!
- MyMelodie: @SDRadio need to be picked up in Mission Valley by 8:20am
- MyMelodie: Needs a ride to the airport tomorrow morning! Please? #PubCon
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- Melodie Celebrating Krissy's 30th bday & CHARGERS WIN @ Shore Club!
- Melodie I'm looking to order a Cupcake Cake for my birthday (a cake put together with individual cupcakes) Any recommendations?
- Melodie If you live in North County (Oceanside) and want to see a FREE screening of 2012 next Wednesday please let me know!
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