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Da Mao, a panda at the Toronto Zoo, was not quite sure what to do when he was given a blanket.
Pandas don’t sleep with blankets or pillows, so he treated it as a toy and it quickly ended up on his head.
It looks like Da Mao was owned by his own bedding, but maybe he’s just a few months early with his ghost Halloween costume.
More about Youtube, Panda, Cute Animals, Viral Video, and Watercooler
http://ift.tt/1SSuLT0Scott Gursky is VP of design at Knozen, a free social gaming app. Knozen’s roots are in the workplace: The app was originally a platform for rating colleagues, but has expanded its scope to hit a more general target — you can connect via Facebook or with your contacts to play the personality-based games. Gursky’s roots, on the other hand, are in a different world. Before diving into the startup scene, Gursky was the drummer of Obits, a Brooklyn-based punk band. Gursky’s five-year run with Obits spanned the release of two full-length albums via acclaimed indie label Kill Rock Stars, radio appearances and stretches of international tour. Read more…
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http://ift.tt/1JfhNf4There are many components that make up company culture: Morals, ethics, values, vision, and of course, the people. Small or large, every company has a culture; it’s how you cultivate it that makes employees want to work hard for the greater good of the company
One of the most important factors when looking to create amazing company culture is focusing on the employees. What makes them tick? What kind of benefits are they looking for within a company? Where does work-life balance fit in?
Join us Wednesday, June 3 at 2 p.m. ET for our next #BizChats Twitter chat, where we’ll be discussing what it takes for employees to fall in love with where they work Read more…
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http://ift.tt/1I6iDHPWhen people land on your website, you want them to do something.
Sign up for your mailing list, share your content or purchase a product – something that progresses your goals.
But how do you get them to take the specific action you want them to?
Encouraging a prospective customer to take a desired action is one of the hardest tasks we have as marketers.
You need to focus less on beautiful design or amazing copy – and more on creating a powerful and compelling call to action.
A clear next step for your visitors, usually in the form of a clickable button.
So how do you create a compelling call to action?
Let’s take a look at some expert examples for inspiration.
These are just a few examples of companies that have nailed their calls to action to enhance conversions. Others include Instagram, Pinterest, OKCupid, and GoToMeeting.
Perhaps you have invested a lot of time and effort into your online marketing strategy, but aren’t seeing results.
Maybe you are getting traffic, but no conversions?
Your calls to action may be letting you down.
Here are 5 tips to create a compelling call to action for your website.
Stop beating around the bush.
Your website means business and you should be direct in your approach. Be precise and tell your visitors what you do and what exactly you would like them to do.
The action must be simple, short and strong.
Make sure there is no room to play guessing games so your visitors aren’t clueless about what to do next.
Some examples of direct language include; ‘get started,’ ‘sign up,’ ‘submit,’ or ‘download’.
As a marketer you already know that it is crucial to differentiate yourself from your competitors.
Find something that makes your call to action special; it could be ridiculously simple or something that aggravates a problem.
For example, Quick Sprout’s “I Want To…” call to action, plays on their prospective customers’ desire to solve a problem.
Realize that some verbs and phrases are stronger than others.
Use action words that compel your visitors to do what you want them to.
“Call us today for a free sample,” for instance is a good call to action as it is actionable. You are giving clear direction to the reader using the verb “call”.
In contrast, something like “Give us a call for a free demo” is a less desirable call to action. Even though the verb “give” is actionable, it’s meaning is usually associated with handing a tangible object to someone, rather than making a phone call.
Your call to action should create urgency so that your visitors convert.
You can do this by conveying a message that your visitors are missing a great opportunity should they choose to do otherwise.
Convince them that the clock is ticking and delaying would result in missing the opportunity. Take examples from sites such as Amazon where they create a sense of urgency with calls to action like “Buy now to get 50% off.”
A well tested approach is to show an introductory price and mention clearly that the offer is available only for a short while and the price is likely to go up once that time is over. Using words like “today,” “now,” or “immediately” can work wonders here by adding a sense of urgency.
While “today” is a good word to add in your call to action, using “now” or “immediately” is even better. These words imply a greater urgency and also make it clear that the offer may not last forever.
The transition from call to action to performing the task must be seamless.
A complicated call to action is bound to fail. For example, if you want your prospective customers to call, provide your phone number.
Also, tell your prospects that converting is not timely or costly. If you are offering something free of charge, such as a free demo or a free sample, don’t forget to mention that in your call to action.
Similarly, if you want your visitors to sign up for your newsletter, make sure it does not take a long time to complete the process. There is a reason why most successful magazines and blogs, use calls to action like “sign up in less than 60 seconds.”
Creating a persuasive call to action takes creativity and time.
It needs to be simple enough so that users can easily understand your message and at the same time compelling enough to persuade them to do what you want them to do.
That being said, it is essential to remember that practice makes perfect.
Be experimental and see what works best for your audience.
Guest Author: Vaibhav Kakkar Co-Founded RankWatch, with an idea of making internet marketing an intelligent process. Apart from helping businesses succeed online and writing about Internet Marketing, he’s usually found digging deep into the beautiful world of search engine algorithms. You can connect with him on LinkedIn.
The post 5 Tips to Create an Irresistible Call to Action appeared first on Jeffbullas's Blog.
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Whether it’s down on the farm or up in the air, baby goats are the cutest.
The Nigerian dwarf doelings bopped around on a trampoline for awhile to explore the new, bouncier territory.
The crew of three tiny kids huddled up in the end, presumably to discuss the transition to springier pastures.
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http://ift.tt/1Fp7MFQThink about surfing, and you’re likely to conjure up images of waves, wax and blue skies. 3D printing and software, not so much.
A number of Australian startups are uniting the beloved sport with technology in innovative ways, making high-tech surfboards, helping surfers find their perfect board shape and size, and challenging the hold big brands, like Rip Curl and Quicksilver, have on the market.
Australia has 35,877 kilometres of coastline to play with, so it seems only right the country dominates surfing-related startups. Disrupt Surfing, Boardcave and Vader Surfboards are three Australian companies doing their best to bring the sport into the 21st Century. Read more…
More about Startups, Australia, Apps Software, Dev Design, and Us World
http://ift.tt/1JcPkX6Stories are in our make-up.
They help us interpret meaning, connect with people across generations, and articulate really complex stuff in easily digestible snippets.
The advertising & media industries are built on their ability to tell compelling stories.
Stories of love, stories of hate, and stories of redemption.
Your ability to tell a compelling story was the differentiating factor for the Mad Men era of agencies.
Brands would pay big bucks for a story that would influence their audience into making a purchase.
Mass media provided a captive audience for these stories, with eyeballs and the associated hearts & minds of a generation unburdened by the internet.
We were living in a world of dreams – where our aspirations of wealth, health, acceptance and excitement were fuelled by the promises of advertising creative and PR spin conceived in agency boardrooms; and those with the desire & means to pay for it.
Tell people who you are, tell it with the right reach and frequency, tell it with a creative treatment or angle that is new, relevant and exciting.
Hire a model, take a picture, throw a party, sell a dream.
And it worked.
Only a certain number of full page adverts will fit in the newspaper, there’s only a certain number of 30 second slots available during prime time broadcasting, and there’s only a certain number of outdoor locations with the foot traffic and visibility to warrant a billboard.
Hungry for attention, advertisers scrambled to secure media space to broadcast their stories, and media owners happily packaged up every available spot for sale. Global media revenues ballooned and those who owned the real estate (or sold it for commission) profited.
You only have to take a walk through Tokyo, Times Square, or virtually any community in which the global brands play, to see the overload in action as a result of this media generation.
This is the media model upon which the majority of the world’s agencies, and indeed the success of their clients, has been built.
For the first time, we live alongside a medium that is infinite.
The social-mobile revolution means the ability to both produce and publish content is no longer restricted. Nor is the space through which good stories can spread.
As the volume of content has exploded and attention spans have shortened, captive audiences held hostage by the medium no longer exist. As humans, we now set our own filters, we tune into those we trust or care about most and our ability to ignore comes at the peril of those that have commanded our attention for so many years.
As the power to produce and spread content moves away from traditional media owners and into the hands of the individual, the role of brand & marketing teams, and the role of the agency partners they trust, is perhaps in the midst of its most fundamental shift to date.
Brands and publishers must now, more than ever before, become masters of storytelling rather than simply creating advertisements.
In today’s social & mobile powered world, brands are once again who the people say they are. No matter how creative the marketing campaign, or how loud it is told - the voice of the people now has the potential to be louder.
Before mass media, quality products and meaningful causes inspired the masses and spread via word of mouth - via media that was earned not bought.
We are entering a new age, where the ability to earn your audience is now once again the most valuable media asset. Although this time, the village is a global one.
Forget the complexity created by the proliferation of media or the frantic pursuit of the next silver bullet.
Stop. Because the equation is now once again incredibly simple.
Good wholesome products, good wholesome service experiences and good wholesome stories are a currency on the rise again.
Produce a quality product, deliver an experience that delights. Be worth talking about. And the people will talk.
And if you don’t, they won’t.
The objective is rapidly shifting away from telling people our stories, to empowering our customers to tell the story for us.
Instead of talking at your audience, create experiences worth sharing. Earn the right to a share their voice, then curate the story they tell.
Produce something remarkable.
Then nurture your own media based on the goodwill you will earn.
The post The Art of Storytelling in a Digital Age appeared first on Jeffbullas's Blog.
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