[Gary] Peeples Helping People, LLC

A history of cans - Coke v. Pepsi [Pic]

Spotted this post by Gabriel Beltrone on Adweek.

Since I worked at Coke, it's interesting to me - therefore, I deem it interesting to you. Take that!! Also, let me acknowledge that I'm biased on my decision of who's done a better job - WHOWOULDN'TBE!?!?!?

I have NO problem saying, I think Coke kills them in consistency of brand. Hands down. And that, I think, is the #1 most important thing here. And so does Coke, obviously.

Killer idea to manage time spent with email

Came across this today: http://five.sentenc.es/

Basically, the suggestion is:

Create a personal policy to limit all emails to 5 sentences or less.

Makes sense to me for a number of reasons:

1. If it can't be said if 5 sentences, the point may not be clear enough. 

2. If it can't be said in 5 sentences, you probably lost the reader before they got to your point.

3. If you want a quick response, 5 sentences isn't too overwhelming to quicklyl look at and react to [vs. a few paragraphs].

4. Rarely can you ask multiple questions within 5 sentences, so it limits what you are asking for, which again should get you to a quicker response.

5. Stuck to, this rule could help you manage your time spent with email. 

The site even has a disclaimer you can put at the bottom of the email so people know why you limit responses to 5 sentences!

Oh, and what if you have more to say then 5 sentences? Call them. Schedule a meeting. Write it up in a document and send it. Post it online then link to it.

Get to your point in 5 and leave them wanting more. 

11 useful Google+ tips [cheat sheet]

The is a re-blog of a post by Kipp Bodnar [@kbodnar32] that I found on Hubspot.

As Google+ begins to make some traction [and we all try to figure out how in the world we are going to have another tab open in our web browser] we are all going to be looking for tips on how this thing works.

Here is a cool cheat sheet courtesy of Simon Laustsen. This handy guide uncovers some of the mechanics and shortcuts to help you successfully use Google+.

Outbound marketing vs. inbound; how balanced are you? [Infographic]

Outbound vs. Inbound

Outbound marketing is the "traditional" effort: cast a wide net [trade shows, cold calls, emails] and if you go big enough, you'll hit the few needles in the haystacks. Most of these people are trying to ignore you.

Inbound marketing is a focused effort: drill down to the people who are looking for you [searching, learning, raising their hands]. All of these people are looking for your help.

I would never advocate that there is a magic mix [i.e. 50/50 or 70/30] but I can say, put as much of your budget as you can into inbound because:

1. There is less noise and distractions in the search and learn channels

2. It's easier then ever to research and learn so more people do it

 

Transform Your Marketing

Here is a great presentation I found on Hubspot:

Transform Your Marketing

View more presentations from HubSpot Internet Marketing

 

Where Is Inbound Marketing Headed? [Infographic]

And here is a fantastic infographic on spend, also from hubspot. But first, check out this quote from poster Jeanne Hopkins:

[Businesses employing inbound marketing techniques are] experiencing business benefits that include a 62% lower cost-per-lead average from inbound marketing compared to traditional outbound marketing.

Where Is Inbound Marketing Headed? [Infographic]

 

 

5 Improvements with new Pandora

Pandora has put on a fresh coat of paint, and along with it — added some features.

I once read that the dude that invented Pandora was in the red for years — like, since 1973 or something.

The company has recently gone public, as many know. My assumption is that he is no longer in the red.

The downside to "public" is: the public now owns Pandora; there is an accountability to perform that didn't exist before. Hello Wall Street. [I'm sure it will be fine though.]

Personally, I'm excited for the facelift.

It's done in HTML 5, which I know almost nothing about. What I do know is: HTML 5 is a current trend, and the buzz on it is picking up. For me, that is plenty of evidence that it's cool and good.

Here is a quick list of things you'll be able to enjoy with new Pandora:

1. Looks cooler and loads faster. The 10 seconds you were waiting for it to load should now be 2-3.

2. It's a social network now. create profiles, friend people, check out their music, activity feeds, Farmville [SIKE]. No Farmville. I would never visit Pandora again.

3. Better controls. Now that you can go "deep" in the site [looking at profiles and such], it was important to have a playback bar that is always accessible. It stays with you as you surf the site.

4.  Better artist & song info. They've beefed up the ability to click and learn — artist, song, album, lyrics, etc.

5. Easier to share. Because of the HTML [which used to be flash], stations will have their own url, making them easier to share. PS. you can also use the "back" button now too [without killing the whole pace and silencing the music.]

All in all, great updates. I'm sure something will be screwy, but they'll figure it out. 

What do you think?

Testimonials, infographics, and making cash with your blog

I liked a lot of content this morning, and I was thinking, "man, if I just tweet these, they will get burried. And I think they are more valuable then that."

I decided to give them a home. All three of these posts are worth the read. Enjoy!

 

Use Twitter For Testimonials

Social Media Examiner released a cool post about using tweets [that you mark as "favorites" to populate a custom testimonial on your site. Seems pretty easy to do; check it out: How To Embed Twitter Testimonials On Your Website

 

Make Your Own Infographics

Great post from Mashable: "If you like clever data visualizations, you’ll love Visual.ly, a startup that lets you find and make infographics with all kinds of web-based data." Check out this video [warning: it might be the greatest video of all time]:

 

 

12 Ways To Turn Your Blog Into Cash

Use that dusty old archive to make some bread with this post from Copyblogger: 12 Ways to Turn Your Old, Dusty Blog Archive into Cold, Hard Cash. Here's a little of it:

1.  eBook. Once you’ve accumulated 50-100 posts or so, you have plenty of material you can repackage into an eBook. Probably two-thirds of my first ebook was adapted from my first 75 blog posts. You can slice and dice your stack of posts different ways, too, using the same post in more than one eBook. Create a “20 Best Blog Posts” eBook, for instance, a “Best of the Mailbag” for the reader questions you answered, or several short eBooks on a few of your most popular topics.

The easy way to get them to choose YOU

What if people were interested in DVR'ing commercials? 

Or what if they googled their favorite ads every morning? 

Or signed up for advertising email lists from brands [specifically to be sent commercials, banners, sales pitches]?

Crazy thought. [But not so crazy if you are a marketer or advertiser. We are nerds.]

But the funny thing is, that is exactly what good content marketing leads people to do. 

Good, informative, relavent content will have people looking for — and engaging with — you everyday.

Bookmarking your page;

following your twitter;

linking-in;

subscribing to your blog and email.

It may seem counterintuitive: give your good stuff away for free — but look, it's 2011. And it's the easy way to get them to choose you.

It's like this:

the people that are perfect for your product or service are out there;

they want to buy your product or service;

at some point they are likely going to buy it from someone;

who do you think they would rather buy from:

(1) someone they've received good relevant information from, over a period of time

(2) or someone random. 

I know who I would choose. #brandloyalty

Social Media Explained. With Pee.

Yup; that's pretty much it.

The #1 biggest secret of success

Simplification.

A successful leader is one who — among other things — can take a complex problem and simplify it down to actionable steps that lead toward the solution.

It's a clarity thing.

Simply put, simple: 

takes less time;

allows you to focus on the purpose;

is less expensive;

is motivating;

is clear;

eliminates excuses.

And there are many ways to simplify — and I'm going to give you a few of them — but first let me simplify—even that—further.

Here's the Real Secret:

THE KEY TO SIMPLICITY IS FOCUS.

When something feels complicated, it's typically because you are focused on the wrong thing.

Think about that for a minute.

You feel like you have too much to do —  but you were on email for 3 hours.

The project feels like it's falling apart — but you probably let it get to far away from the goals.

You can't get everyone to agree — but everyone is arguing different points.

You have to sometimes take a step back — get out of the weeds  — and re-focus. When you re-focus, you simplify the situation back down to the main priorities.

That said, here are some age-old ways of simplifying:

1. Start early

2. Set time limits

3. Use lists

4. Shorten communication

5. Only meet if you have to

6. Clean up the clutter

7. Take a break every 90 minutes

8. Automate as much as possible

9. Do "it" now [get it over with]

Some might work for you, some might not — you'll have to try and see.

Good luck and hopefully this post wasn't too complicated. Wakka wakka wakka.

How content fits into the buying cycle [Greatest Infographic Ever]

A very simple visual representing:

types of content and distribution channels;

across the spectrums of business objectives, prospect goals, and performance indicators;

throughout the stages of the purchase cycle. 

Well done.

Found on B2B Bloggers; an infographic from Eloqua and Jess3.