Digital Signage, Visual Merchandising, Electronic Billboards…? Dictionary Please!

Yep, you've heard it a million times before... the digital age is well and truly upon us! You need only take a look around to see the world is converting to digital in every way - cameras, tvs, books music - so it is no surprise that signage has jumped on board and taken a step into the digital world.

Appearing everywhere before our very eyes, digital signage can be found in a variety of different places; the supermarket, post office, public transport, nightclubs and pubs. With the convergence of digital signage in a number of diverse industries and technologies, the digital signage industry is starting to become closely aligned with other, much larger industries such as point of purchase (POP) displays, or even advertising. While this integration into other industries is vital for the growth and evolution of things like interactive kiosks and digital signs, there is a definite problem moving forward... what do we refer to ourselves as?

Digital signage is referred to by a number of different names - captive audience networks, electronic display networks, digital dynamic signage, narrow casting, data casting, digital in-store merchandising, employee TV, out-of-home media networks, retail TV, digital media networks, electronic billboards... and this list probably grows week by week. There is a huge amount of overlap between these terms, but the slightly different connotations given to them by the different companies in the market makes it hard to figure out what to look for when doing a web search or talking to a consultant.

In a proactive stance, an American retail marketing organisation named POPAI has been created to promote the adoption of dynamic digital signage, technologies and applications. This new group is organised as part of the POPAI structure and focuses on issues specific to dynamic digital signage and in-store networks.

Whatever you refer to it by, there is no denying the benefits that the vast array of products and services under the umbrella of digital signage can provide businesses and venues alike.

About the Author:
David Steel
To get music, content and digital services pumping into your digital signage and reap the many rewards of this communication god-send, you need to talk to Rippamedia. It’s your one-stop-shop for everything digital! So visit http://www.rippamedia.com.au and see how they can make digital easy for you.
Article Submitted On: November 16, 2006
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/

6 Powerful Tips to Creating Testimonials That Sell Your Products Fast

There are many ways to market a product or a service and providing the potential clients and customers with testimonials is one of the best ways to market.

The power of testimonials can never be underestimated. People, especially nowadays, will only purchase products or avail services which have been referred to them by people whom they know. But most of the times, this is not an option that is in the hands of the business owner, he has to do the next best thing, which is to get testimonials from his past clients.

Testimonials are living statements from past customers or clients which states that they were satisfied by the product/ service. Every business must have testimonials to be able to stand out in the ever crowded markets.

There are many benefits of having testimonials. Here are some of them.

Testimonials appease the target market

Testimonials usually lessen the doubts of the target market. There are a lot of scammers and con artists nowadays, and this has turned the market into a fearsome one. Credible testimonials provide security to the people who are eyeing at a certain product or service. The provision of testimonials gives people a much more relaxed attitude towards a product or service.

Testimonials assure quality

Aside from confirming the existence of a business and lessening doubts, testimonials provide assurance to potential customers and clients of the quality of the product or service. The fact that they took time out to be able to write testimonials about the product reflect their levels of satisfaction towards the product/service.

Testimonials give advantage

Credible testimonials provide a competitive advantage for the product/service. There are many products and services out there and one of the ways to stand out from the rest is the use of credible testimonials.

There are many types of testimonials. Testimonials are usually categorized according to the source. Here are a few examples:

a) Testimonials from satisfied customers

This is probably the most effective type of testimonial. Nothing beats a testimonial from a satisfied customer because it is a picture of what the product/service is all about.

b) Testimonials from experts

Experts can be credible sources of testimonials. If a renowned dermatologist writes a testimonial for a beauty soap, it will surely help in boosting its sales, wouldn’t it?

c) Testimonials from celebrities

In a world that is run by mass media, celebrities have become powerful sources of testimonials. Today, even infomercials are infested by testimonials from celebrities.

People may think that getting testimonials from celebrities will cost a lot, but if it’s a real testimonial, celebrities may even waive their talent fees.

There is much more to making a testimonial an effective tool for marketing than gathering them. Good testimonials are the ones which can be compressed into a few catchy words. “I lost 20 pounds in two weeks time!” is an example of an eye-catching testimonial. However, one must never rephrase or edit what the client had said. How to get the right kinds of testimonials will be discussed later.

Credible testimonials should also contain the complete attributes of the people who gave them. Their titles, location and age should be included whenever possible.

Visual appeal will also be a great help in using testimonials. If the clients are willing, one must insist in taking photographs or videos for their testimonials.

So how does a business owner get started with the whole testimonial thing?

Here are some steps on how to archive testimonials.

1. Before anything else, only products/ services with outstanding quality deserve testimonials, so one must make sure that his product/service possesses exceptional quality.

2. Ask the help of your customers. One must be able to communicate to his customers his need of getting their testimonials. If they are really satisfied with the product/service, they would be more than willing to participate.

3. Interview your customers. Ask them about what they like about your product/service, why they chose your product and other questions like these.

4. Ask them if they are willing to make a written testimonial. You can offer to make the testimonial yourself based on their responses during the interview but the testimonial is still up for their approval. You might want to make the wordings catchy and let them approve the testimonials.

5. Ask them if you could record the testimonial using a tape recorder or video cam. A video testimonial is better, but of course, many people are camera-shy and this can be a limited option for most.

6. Choose the best testimonials. Use the best ones so as to maximize the benefits that your product can get from the testimonials.

Testimonials are very powerful and this is the reason why every business should have them. They provide assurance and security and reflect the real essence of a product or a service.

About the Author:
Scott Wilson is the author of "How to Create Money Sucking Ads That Work On Autopilot While You Go Fishing" a free 12 page report available for a limited time at www.smarterbusinessleads.com
Article Source: http://www.articles2k.com

Sex In Advertising: Does It Sell?

We're surrounded by advertisements that desperately compete for our attention. Everywhere we look, we find ourselves inevitably drawn to images of scantily clad attractive men and women that are supposed to somehow inspire us to purchase products they endorse. Sure, this attention-getting strategy is popular. But, is it effective?

Sex appeal can increase the effectiveness of an ad or commercial because it attracts the customer’s attention. It’s human nature to be curious about sex. A pair of long legs on a billboard is more likely to catch (and hold) a guy’s attention than a puppy, regardless of how cute it may be. Even women are drawn to them, perhaps with the desire of having goddess-like legs.

However, misuse of sex appeal can be costly. Many campaigns deemed offensive have started brand boycotts that affect sales and damage brand reputation. Abercrombie & Fitch has been involved in several scandals, the latest from their most recent catalog entitled “XXX Wet, Hot Summer Fun.” On April 18, 2002, only a week after the catalog hit the stores, the Illinois State Senate passed a resolution condemning A&F’s advertising tactics. This resolution, backed by several nonprofit organizations, suggests citizens and shareholders boycott Abercrombie’s products and to take a stand against the company’s marketing strategies. Although sexy images in catalogs are not at all uncommon, “XXX Wet, Hot Summer Fun” featured naked boys and girls frolicking in natural settings. Not quite appropriate for an apparel catalog targeted at teenagers.

Sex in advertising has stirred controversy for many years, an advertiser must be careful when incorporating it in a campaign. Great advertisers consider not only the attention-getting power of an advertisement or commercial, but also what kind of emotional response it provokes in customers. Studies show that the attractiveness of the endorsing model provokes positive responses. Nudity and graphic erotic content, while still increasing consumer’s attention, doesn’t really generate positive feelings among viewers. In other words, advertisers must be careful to avoid the “cheap shot,” which may negatively affect a brand’s image.

To avoid that, the sexual content in advertising must be appropriate to the product category and have a proper underlying message. In 2000, Heineken launched the “It’s All About the Beer” campaign. One spot, called “The Premature Pour,” shows a beautiful seductive woman pouring Heineken into a glass. When a guy across the bar responds by pouring his own, he nervously pours too fast and spills foam all over the table and himself. The sexual content is implicit, yet direct. The sexual reference in this and other spots in the campaign worked, causing sales to rise 13% in the first two quarters of 2002. However, Steve Davis (VP of marketing in Heineken USA), claims that, “Provocative is a very good place to be, as long as we’re not inflammatory. But the spots also work for a different reason. From the tag line to the plot, they are about a desire for Heineken. Our ads make the beer the hero.”

Sex sells, yes, but only when used “in good taste.” As marketers we must think not only in getting customers’ attention for the short term, but also in building a brand reputation that will yield long-term results.

About the Author:
Mark Levit is managing partner of Partners & Levit Advertising and a professor of marketing at New York University. Partners & Levit's clients include Procter & Gamble, UnitedHealth Group, and GE Commercial Finance. For more information call 212-696-1200 or visit http://www.partnerslevit.com.
Article Source: www.iSnare.com

The One and Only Purpose of Advertising

I migrated to New Zealand around four years back and because of my interest in real estate investing I decided to become a commercial real estate agent to learn insider secrets of investing in my new adopted country. It was a very brave step considering my background of a retired naval officer. I had zero experience in making any kind of sale.

I started advertising in the newspapers and slowly my customer list began to grow. I soon discovered that it was impossible for me to contact my clients on telephone or through postal mail when a new property came up on the market because it was simply too time consuming. I then hit upon the idea of creating e-mail mailing lists on outlook express. I divided my clients into various investment categories and sent them details of properties that were of interest to them. I also sent them regular news letters. I did not realize that I had accidentally hit upon the idea of e-mail marketing. Whenever I sent details of a property to my clients invariably I received 5 to 10 inquires which resulted in one or two offers. Soon other agents in the company realized I was getting so many offers that they started approaching me with their properties to sell and my business grew. Within a very short period of time I became one of the top selling agent in my company. Whenever a new customer responded to my newspaper or a web advertisement, I request them for their e-mail address before asking for their telephone number. I knew that my sales came from repeated offers made through e-mails to my list. That in a nut shell was the true secret of my success.

The tragedy is that when I started marketing on the internet I missed this basic point of inherent strength of the e-mail lists and got carried away by the hype of short cut and lazy methods such as ad blasting, buying guaranteed sign ups etc and in doing so parted with lot of my hard earned money to the so called Internet gurus.

Fortunately I realized my mistake and got back to the basic success formula of generating qualified opt in lists to succeed online.

I will be brutally blunt with you. If you do not have a responsive list of subscribers who have agreed to receive your offers then You simply Do Not Have An Online Business!

It sounds a bit harsh (I know), but from personal experience I can assure you that the good old myth is 100% true. The Money Is In The List! But please do not perceive it as a myth, face the facts and drill it in your head that you NEED to build a list.

You see, many marketers report making $1 per month – per subscriber. This means that if you grow a responsive list of 5,000 subscribers, you can realistically expect to gross $5,000 in sales each and every month!

'When I Had No list, I Made No Money!'

It is true, I made zip, nada, zilch when I did not have a list. And although I kept hearing time after time that 'The Money Is In The List'. For some strange reason I just never built one for my internet business.

I always felt that there had to be another (easier) way to profit online, so I kept searching for a solution for 12 entire months, and guess what? It was a complete waste of time & money.

But then one day, after 12 months of grueling failure, I finally decided to devote all my time & effort to build my own cash-pulling opt-in list (that has truly been the wisest decision I've ever made)!

Today I make a very rewarding income from email marketing alone,and I'm about to reveal EXACTLY how you, too, can do the same.So keep reading!

The three basic tools you will need to start making very targeted opt-in lists for your various campaigns are:

A) Lead Capture web pages
B) A cheap hosting account for your web-sites
C) A reliable auto responder service

These are the basic tools of your trade. You simply can not build a list without these tools.

The one and only purpose of advertising is to capture the e-mail address of the visitor/ customer otherwise you are simply throwing away your advertising dollars. To achieve this your website has to be designed around a lead capture page.

Once you create your lead capture page for a program you must only advertise this page. This will give you the best bang for your advertising dollar. The name, e-mail address & other details you capture through your page are now your property. This has two advantage. Firstly you can send follow up messages through an auto responder. It normally takes anywhere from 5 to 7 messages to establish a relationship with a potential customer and explain him the details and benefits of your product before a sale is made. Secondly, you now have the ability to make new offers and maintain an ongoing relationship. Over a period of time you can refine this list to service your most prized clients for repeated business. Earlier you were wasting your dollar on one time advertising or acting as an agent of a program that was collecting your client list in their data pool to grow their business. Over a period of time you will build a list of highly responsive clients and your business will explode with advertising costs dramatically
being reduce.

One of the best software products for generating lead pages has been created by Gabriel Aguinaga. This lead page generator is one of the best and easiest to use.

For the hosting account I recommend Hostgator. It is very cheap at $9.95 per month and you can host multiple sites. Hostgator has multiple features.Please study their programme by visiting their website.

Aweber and Getresponse are the two most popular auto responder services. I use Getresponse because it is simple to operate & allows me to create multiple campaigns & send attachments so that I can send free e-books and offers to my clients. You can check out the services by visiting:

There are some costs involved in setting up your systems but there is no escape if you are serious about building your online business. You can not do internet business without having your own website or building your client base. Auto responders once set up correctly make this task very easy. Follow up messages go automatically without your intervention. They put your business on auto pilot.

To succeed in business you have to assume leadership role sooner than later & create systems that leverage your time.

The money is in your List. You will need to organize your systems and your business will not only multiply but explode.

About the Author:
Praveen Kumar is a success coach who helps others to start home businesses and become financially free. Please click here to learn more about what he has to offer. To find the best home based business ideas and opportunities so you can work at home visit: http://www.WealthOnline-ProfitMachine.com
Posted: 06-11-2006
Article Source: ArticlesBase.com

You've Got The Traffic, Now What?

As webmasters are well aware, getting traffic is one thing; retaining that traffic can often be the tricky part. Surely we've all run across sites from time to time that were easy to stumble upon, but then made us scratch our head wondering how in the holy heck it got there, and what in the world did it do to deserve such choice rankings or links from other worthy sites. Unfortunately for webmasters, there isn't any one formula for a tacky site people won't ever want to step foot in again. There are however, several things that can be done to prevent that dreaded situation.

Boost Your Content
It goes without saying that you cannot just have a website with the basic "Home", "FAQ", "About Us", and "Contact" pages. Those represent grease on the wheel, so to speak. Having just those pages will make for one terribly boring site, while omitting them will make for a choppy site where people are bound to get stuck without these important navigation tools. Always include these whenever possible!

In addition though, you absolutely must, have a healthy amount of quality content. If you are selling something, this is especially important. Your visitors want to see you as an authority on your subject if they are going to buy your product or service. For example, if you are selling pet food - write some articles on pet nutrition, and heck - throw in some articles on pet care in general! Going this extra mile will not only make better use of your keywords, but also show you want to provide your valued browsers with relevant information instead of just selling to them. This also does wonders toward the end goal, which is to keep these guests interested enough to stick around and even bookmark you for later visits. Another great tool is to have something interactive for your visitors, like polls or even forums. Include them for input, and you'll automatically make them feel as though they're participating instead of just reading.

Use Appropriate Syntax
Always, always ALWAYS keep your audience in mind, and write your content accordingly. You don't want your articles to sound like a college thesis if you're trying to do a gaming site any more than you want to sound like you're goofing around in a chat room if your site is trying to sell floor laminate. Think about who will be reading the site, and match the tone so as to not alienate your readers. Nobody wants to read what may be really good content, in a format that is distracting or abnormal to them. Ask for feedback if you must, but remember who your target audience is, and be sure to write for them above all else.

Make It Nice To Navigate
One of the most annoying things you can do to your visitor, is to make them have to hunt down what they're looking for. Make your sidebar clear, concise and easy to use. If you stop and think of what kind of information you would want as a new visitor, you can usually pull this off. For example, if you're selling a service, do not neglect to to list rates and hours of service; if it's a product, don't forget size specifications and shipping guidelines; if it's a store then think about including a map and even a picture of the storefront for added recognition. Make all of these things easy to find!

In short, put yourself in the shoes of someone visiting for the first time, and be sure to include the information they will expect when deciding whether or not to pursue your products and/or services. Again, have someone unfamiliar with your business or hobby give you feedback on what you may be missing. All too often, people are so used to knowing everything about their subject, they forget others aren't as familiar and need help. This again, can and will alienate visitors. Having an outsider's perspective will greatly reduce the chances of omitting something obvious to you, but all too necessary for your visitors.

Add The Attraction Factor
Yes, this is the frosting folks. Only very select audiences actually want just the cake, so make it palatable and nice looking. Don't flood your navigation links with ad's, and remember to use colors with universal appeal whenever possible. Good color and pattern schemes will give it the wow factor it needs for users to experience that moment where they realize they've come across a truly well made website. Pay attention to your images, spacing, font selection and link placement. As with all other steps, don't hesitate to get feedback - from multiple people, preferably!

These are just a few tips for now, on how to retain that traffic once you do manage to get it coming in. Remember, your visitors don't just want good looks or loads of content. And with careful, intuitive foresight, you shouldn't ever have to sacrifice one for the other. So find the balance, and see where it leads.

Kimberly Bodane - http://www.helpmyhits.com

About the Author:
Kimberly Bodane - http://www.helpmyhits.com
Added: 28 Sep 2006
Article Source: http://articles.simplysearch4it.com/article/37955.html