I am happy to announce that Norco Management launched their new site this week! The website was developed in WordPress and was designed to match their company logo and colors in a fresh, updated way. The site provides an overview of their services and showcases each of their property complexes. They are able to easily upload photos and information for each of property in the content management system.

Mike Duncan, Sage Island’s CEO, will be presenting a seminar on digital customer service during the upcoming Surf Expo trade show.

Surf Expo, Orlando, FL
Sunday, September 12 @ 2:30

Shaping the Digital Customer Service Experience

The face of retail is changing and so is customer service— for the better. As featured on CNNMoney.com, Mike Duncan speaks to the digital age of customer service in specialty retail. By integrating social media, product recommendations, consumer reviews,  Live Chat, and more,  learn how to enhance your customer’s shopping experience and supersede any storefront customer service.

Today we launched the new Results Production and Post website.  The site is a redesign of the site we developed several years ago.  The new website was developed in DotNetNuke and will allow the client to keep it up to date with their latest work and clients.  The site features YouTube videos and audio clips of their past work and provides a way for potential customers to contact Results Production and Post.

“The term “Yellow Pages” has been a literal description of a business directory product and the name for the industry which has produced it for over a hundred years. Rapid evolution of internet media seems to be revoking the conceptual connection between printed pages which are yellow and sources for finding local businesses. So, is the “Yellow Pages” name itself becoming obsolete?

As a product transfers from one medium or evolutionary stage to another, it’s normal to try to adapt its legacy nomenclature to fit the new version—all that promotional good will built upon the old product name in the past can be leveraged to promote the new version of the product.

In some cases the product name will continue to be used into the future. However in other cases, the marketplace’s devotion to the legacy name begins to disconnect, and eventually the legacy name becomes obsolete.

I think there’s reason to believe this has been happening with the Yellow Pages.”

Read more at Search Engine Land

On Monday, General Motors launched a new ad campaign and website to promote the RE: Invention of GM.  This new campaign coincides with the seemingly inevitable Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing which also occurred on Monday. In a very apparent and smart move, the new television commercials directly address many concerns that consumers have with the recent bankruptcy.  Coincidentally enough, the first time I saw this commercial, was near a recent news segment about the GM bankruptcy filing.

The commercial can be seen below and includes iconic American imagery and an honesty that they are hoping will resonate with all Americans.  It is the great American dream in a 1-minute commercial spot.  There is the element of defeat, the one-in-a-million odds for success, to illustrate how GM can no longer continue with their past business practices of many weak brands and an inferior cost structure.

The message of hope provides solutions on how GM plans to give rebirth to the American car. Clearly and concisely GM states how it will change for the future of their company.  By focusing on few stronger brands and models, increasing efficiency, striving for better fuel economy and developing new technology, GM hopes that they can re-emerge as a strong contender in the automobile industry.

The conclusion of the advertisement encourages a focus on success, reinvention and Chapter 1.  For GM, this is a great opportunity to streamline their business to reinstate themselves as a powerhouse in the American automobile industry.  While many Americans and news channels focus on Chapter 11, GM is focusing on Chapter 1, the beginning of a new era of innovation for General Motors.

Feel free to browse the new GM micro-site for their Reinvention of GM campaign to further explore how GM is connecting with their customers.  They are reaching out to answer customer questions and begin a conversation about the reinvention and recent court filing.  While we all hope the best for this American company, it will be interesting to follow how this positioning and conversation will affect American and world-wide consumers.

Unlike what some viewers believe, creating a design (ad, website, print pieces…etc.) isn’t just plopping a pretty picture on a page, throwing in some creative text, neatly tying a bow to complete the presentation and happily yelling, “Voila!” There are actually many steps and strategic thoughts that go into the creation and development of the perfect, eye catching, and memorable design.

Besides content, font, and image usage, and design layout are among the first thing the average viewer makes note of when studying a design. Grasping the viewer’s attention appropriately is so vital to the advertising world that currently numerous eye-tracking and scanning studies have been completed. Even Google uses eye-tracking technology to gather valuable information to better help with layout and ad image placements.

Recently, I came across a great article displaying search results completed by specialists Bunnyfoot and Think Eyetracking. These studies provided concrete evidence on how layout and chosen images affect the customer’s focus on the design. These studies deal with selected lifestyle images and where they are positioned. It is clear from these studies that image placement and the image selected does in fact influence your viewer’s eye placement. See for yourself. Where do you focus with the below ads?

As you can see from the below results, the model’s eyes influence your eye focus. The images selected here make a big difference—one image selected makes the viewer focus more on the product. Another you end up focusing more on the model, losing site of the product and purpose of the advertisement.

Try again! Where do you focus with this baby ad?

As you can see, image selection is huge! Selecting an image where the subject faces the content is most ideal. Your eyes tend to follow where the subject is looking.

Test it yourself! Next time you look at an ad, take note of the precise image selected and font placement. Take a few moments to perform your own eye-tracking scan and remember, the models used aren’t just a pretty face!

With Internet usage almost overtaking TV usage and the recent rave for social networking groups such as Facebook, Twitter and MySpace, companies all over are jumping on the bandwagon and doing their part to invest in this new form of advertising. Buzz questions such as “Are you my Facebook friend?”, ”Have you tweeted recently?” and “Did you check out that blog?” are heard around the world from audiences of all demographics. Sounds like they may be speaking another language, but in fact this is the language socially accepted in response to the new age of  social media marketing.

In an effort to compete with advertising across a social platform, Downy is promoting a new way to stay connected with friends and family. Until May 31, those who enter a snapshot photo with a pledge caption are automatically entered to win the ultimate reunion trip. Downy, the fragrant fabric softener, wants you to share this pledge with the world and connect with family and friends in a whole new atmosphere. So check it out, submit your own Downy pledge and stay connected with family and friends in a whole new way.