In today's fast-paced digital world, marketing has become an essential component of any business strategy. Our team of marketing experts has years of experience helping businesses of all sizes achieve their marketing goals and is excited to share the best tips, strategies and tactics to help you succeed.
(Rockford, IL) … Pam Maher, President of KMK Media Group, joined the University of Illinois College of Medicine Board in Rockford. The advisory board is comprised of business and community leaders who work with the dean to collaborate on regional initiatives and partnerships to benefit the college.
"Having worked with healthcare systems and private practices as a former medical reporter and as a marketing professional, getting the word out about the high-ranked medical college right here in Rockford is key to building a network of future healthcare providers for our region," Maher said.
Maher owns KMK Media Group, a state-certified woman business enterprise providing award-winning marketing services for the past 25 years to regional businesses, including web site development, graphic design, public relations, advertising campaigns and social media marketing. www.kmkmedia.com.
Last night, Rihanna took to the stage for an instantly iconic performance/baby announcement and advertisers flocked to the occasion to capture millions of eyeballs with their most creative and star-studded spots. Also, there was some football. It was truly an unforgettable night any way you look at it, but since this is a marketing blog and not a Rihanna stan account (unfortunately) we will look at the ads.
Best Use of Nostalgia: Clueless, Rakuten
I may be biased because Clueless is one of my favorite movies, but this reboot was pitch-perfect. Plus, it made sense for the brand. Who better to promote a site that offers cash back for shopping than the queen of shopping herself, Cher Horowitz?
Best Story: Jack’s New Angle: Doritos
This spot had it all; an inciting incident, a climax and a twist ending featuring a surprise celebrity cameo. Are the nominations still open for best short film?!
First video came for the radio stars and now its coming for your marketing plan. Just kidding! It’s already here. The rise of social media platforms like Snapchat and TikTok continues to alter the marketing landscape – even if you don’t choose to promote your brand on these Gen Z-skewed platforms. The proliferation of videos from these newcomers has filtered down to Facebook and Instagram and has users primed to respond to video content and, more importantly, is being favored by the all-powerful algorithms.
We’ve established that video is a must for your digital marketing plans, in fact, you’re probably already creating video content and are ready to stop reading and move on with your day. DON’T! Yes, video has been around for a while, but the landscape is everchanging and what worked last year might already be dated.
Read on for the top video trends for 2023!
Flip Phones
You need to meet your audience where they are, which is on their phone. Recent studies found that 99% or 4.43 billion social media users access networks using a mobile device and 78% or 2.97 billion users access networks exclusively on their mobile phone. Every platform now features vertical video, from Instagram reels to YouTube shorts to Snapchat and TikTok. If you want to create compelling video, the first step is rotating that camera.
A few months ago, I was asked to judge a design competition for local high school students studying graphic design. I saw this as a great opportunity to see the talents of young future designers and offer professional guidance.
Twenty-nine eager students from several area high schools were given a choice from five actual “business clients” seeking either a business card, social media post, or an app design. The students had two months to design a final product that accurately represented their chosen client. With the help of the judges and their teachers, the students were guided through the design process to gain real-world knowledge of a career as a graphic designer.
The first stage of the competition taught the students to hand sketch their design concept. All too often we, as designers, get caught up in a “I need it now” world and begin the concepting stage at the computer. However, I was instructed early in my career that there are no limitations in creativity from the hands. Whereas when using a computer, my limit is restricted by fonts, flow, and freedom (the 3 Fs).
After the students received constructive criticism from the judges, they took that advice with them to the next stage: digital. They “tightened up” their designs and translated them into a digital design more appealing to the eye.
After the judges reviewed the digital design, the next step was execution. During this stage the students made final adjustments and submitted their final design for evaluation. The judges chose the top 10 designs based on creativity and following guidance and direction. Students received awards in 4 categories: Typography, Vision, Illustration, Progress and Design.
My wife, a high school educator, was picking out her outfit for the next day’s work. She brought me the outfit she was putting together and asked me, “Does this match?” Instead of the traditional husband answer of “yes” (always the safest one), my answer was a typical answer of a graphic designer. I provided a detailed explanation that utilized my background in design to describe my reasoning of why the colors of her outfit don’t match. Amazingly enough, after my thorough explanation of color theory, she thanked me. She still asks me occasionally for advice on her outfits but not as much. I think she is either afraid of a long-winded response or figuring it out on her own.
Whether it be with patterns or colors, everybody utilizes matching skills in everyday life. So, is there a right way to match or is it by personal choice? My answer is a simple “YES”. It is both a personal choice and a correct way combined. For example: when designing for a client, one of the many questions to ask is a color preference. They may not prefer certain colors because it is used by a competitor or just a color they never liked. It is the task of a graphic designer to make the client’s choices of colors work whether they are compatible or not.
One choice of compatibility might be warm colors (reds, yellows, oranges, etc.) together or cool colors (greens, blues, purples, etc.), mostly because they share a common mix of colors. The use of a color wheel can be very helpful in the process. It will show those compatibilities using primary and secondary colors. Once you have your colors figured out, try using variations of them. Instead of green use a lime green, instead of red try a burgundy for a richer look.
Once the color choices have been made, your next variable relies on your audience. What is your client’s focus group? Is it moms, young children, teens, or elderly? If you decide on red, yellow, or orange, the primary bright versions may work for the young crowd but for parents or a slightly older audience, richer colors are ideal. Such as a deeper red like a burgundy, or a deeper version of yellow like ochre or a brighter rust for orange. For the elderly, perhaps choose a toned down or muted version of those colors to create a peaceful aesthetic.
So does it match? Ask the client and if they are unsure, make subtle suggestions and comparisons. Some may think they know; some may need a little push in the right direction and others may claim defeat and ask the expert (you) for advice.
(Rockford, IL) … KMK Media Group, a woman-owned marketing firm based in Rockford, earned a Silver W3 award from the Academy of Interactive & Visual Arts for its design of the North Suburban Library District website. The site is found at https://www.northsuburbanlibrary.org/.
“We are proud to know our work is industry-recognized and delivers results for our clients,” said Pam Maher, President/CEO of KMK Media Group.
There were over 3,000 entries to the academy for the 2022 awards. Website entries were judged on creativity, usability, navigation, functionality, visual design, and ease of use.
The North Suburban Library District is a leading resource of educational services within the community, offering easy access to essential learning materials online and in print.
In business for more than two decades, KMK Media Group is an award-winning woman-owned marketing firm specializing in web site development, graphic design, public relations, advertising campaigns and social media marketing. www.kmkmedia.com.
(Rockford, IL) … KMK Media Group launched a new website for Modern Plating Corporation. The site, https://www.modernplating.com/, showcases the manufacturer’s proprietary coatings and finishes for products including cars made by major automobile manufacturers. The site includes a searchable tool to find the correct finish by make and model.
Modern Plating, with offices in Freeport, IL and Elizabethtown, KY, is one of the largest zinc alloy plating providers in the United States.
In business for nearly 25 years, KMK Media Group is an award-winning woman-owned marketing firm specializing in website development, graphic design, public relations, advertising campaigns, and social media marketing. www.kmkmedia.com.
(Rockford, IL) … KMK Media Group received a Gold Marcom International Award for its creative work for Pearson. KMK Media won for its production of the “Welcome to the Midwest” 30-second television spot for Pearson Plumbing, Heating & Pest Control. The animated commercial highlights the year-round HVAC services offered by Pearson to residential customers across Northern Illinois.
The Marcom awards are administered by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals (AMCP). The competition honors excellence in marketing and communications work and is one of the largest creative competitions in the world, drawing approximately 6,500 international entries annually.
“We are proud our creative storytelling for our clients received the highest recognition at an international level,” said Pam Maher, the President/CEO of KMK Media Group.
KMK Media earned a national silver W3 website award last month for its development of the North Suburban Library website.
In business for more than two decades, KMK Media Group is an award-winning woman-owned marketing firm specializing in web site development, graphic design, public relations, advertising campaigns and social media marketing. www.kmkmedia.com.
(Rockford, IL) …KMK Media’s work with Rochelle Community Hospital was recognized with the highest-level statewide Pinnacle Award from the Illinois Society for Healthcare Marketing and Public Relations organization (ISHMPR).
The KMK Media-produced video “The Story of Rylan and Sonic the Hedgehog” earned the competition’s highest Award of Excellence in the Video Production category. The video features orthopedic surgeon Dr. Gadini Delisca, his 3-year-old patient, Rylan and his stuffed friend, Sonic the Hedgehog. It portrays the high level of orthopedic care provided to all ages at Rochelle Community Hospital and was used for digital marketing.
“KMK Media works with several healthcare clients in the Northern Illinois region and understands communication is key to understanding what’s available in your community,” said KMK CEO Pam Maher. “We love working with Rochelle Community Hospital to promote its excellent providers and care it offers to the community it serves.”
A total of 63 entries were submitted from 25 healthcare networks, hospitals and vendors throughout the state. The entries, which spanned a total of 19 different categories, were judged based on their own merit in accordance with established criteria for project planning, implementation and overall results.
Rochelle Community Hospital is a leading rural community hospital, offering convenience combined with high-quality care to those it serves from its hospital, convenient care clinic, and health and wellness center.
As that great ad man Don Draper once said, “if you don’t like what's being said, change the conversation.” Tweaked for public relations, “if you don’t have anything newsworthy – make it.” Now, we’re not suggesting you pull a Peggy Olson and pay people to fight over your product in store to generate publicity, but public relations is often less about waiting for something newsworthy to happen with your company and more about creating something newsworthy to gain media attention.
A few (non-shady) ways to generate good PR:
Hold a Contest
Find something related to your brand and ask your followers to make a video/paint a picture/write a song about it and then pick a winner! You’ll get the media mentions promoting the contest as well as the follow-up once you award your winner. Pro-tip, the more deserving your pool of contestants - i.e., teachers, nurses, volunteers - the more media coverage you’ll attract. Recently, we held a contest for our client Yowie to award a local teacher $1000 for their classroom and Yowie chocolate for the whole school! We secured two interviews for the Yowie CMO leading up to the contest and coverage of the award presentation!
Give a Gift
How far do you travel when you search online? The third page? The second? Or do you only look at the top five results?
Imagine if your website was on the 30th or even the 15th page of Google or Bing. It would rarely, if ever, see traffic. This is where SEO comes in. Sprinkle keywords strategically throughout your site (and create landing pages on the backend) and traffic to your website will increase! Keep reading for more tips and tricks to improve your site’s SEO!
Let’s Break it Down!
SEO stands for “search engine optimization.” Essentially, you place keywords or phrases throughout your website to improve your website’s visibility when people search for products or services that are related to your company to drive organic traffic. The tactfully placed words or phrases notify search engines’ algorithms that your page belongs in a search query.
By focusing on improving your website’s SEO, your site will rank higher in search engines. The higher it’s ranked, the more often people will come across your company. The more people who come across your company, the more ROI you will have. You can’t earn revenue or gain new customers if prospective customers can’t find you online. Over 68% of online experiences begin with a search engine!
(Rockford, IL) … With 30% of high school students considering a career in the trades and the demand expected to grow through 2030 according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, KMK Media Group helped one local trade union boost its online profile, launching a new website aimed at apprenticeship opportunities.
The site, https://www.apprenticeshiplocal11.com/, profiles the increasing demand for plasterers and cement masons whose job security is estimated to continue growing through 2030, resulting in nearly 400,000 new jobs.
The new vocational website provides information about jobs and benefits, training and applying for an apprenticeship.
In business for nearly 25 years, KMK Media Group is an award-winning woman-owned marketing firm specializing in website development, graphic design, public relations, advertising campaigns, and social media marketing. www.kmkmedia.com.
(Rockford, IL) … KMK Media Group, Inc was hired by Architectural Building Solutions based in St. Charles, Illinois, to create its website and manage its social media and email marketing, communicating its work with roofing and building exteriors.
Architectural Building Solutions works with customers across the Midwest to supply building materials that fit the specific application, are environmentally friendly, and are made and tested by proven manufacturers.
In business for more than two decades, KMK Media Group is an award-winning woman-owned marketing firm specializing in website development, graphic design, public relations, advertising campaigns, and social media marketing. www.kmkmedia.com.
(Rockford, IL) … KMK Media Group, Inc is working with Rochelle Community Hospital to create a series of videos introducing the hospital’s healthcare workers to the community. The first video features nurse practitioner Stephanie Crawford, who grew up in the area and returned to serve her community through the Family Healthcare Clinic. Future videos will continue to highlight the breadth of services residents can access in Rochelle and will be found on the RCH website as well as their social media channels. The current video introducing Stephanie Crawford can be found at https://www.rochellehospital.com/find-a-provider/stephaniecrawford/.
In business for more than two decades, KMK Media Group is an award-winning woman-owned marketing firm specializing in website development, graphic design, public relations, advertising campaigns, and social media marketing. www.kmkmedia.com.
Doesn’t it pique your curiosity? Where is it going to take you? We know them as QR codes or Quick Response Codes, those funny patterned squares used to lead the viewer to a website, social media page or even a menu at a restaurant. It’s free, convenient, and easy, mostly because the majority of the world’s population has the ability to use them with their cell phones.
When they were first introduced an app on your phone needed to be downloaded. Eventually, as they became more popular the app became obsolete and the camera on your phone could capture them and take you to the online destination.
So, how does a QR code work?
The large corner squares tell your device it’s a QR Code and all the little squares (or dots if you prefer) are 3-digit binary codes of each part of the URL you want to link to. For example one small portion will read as Code 000, another 001 then 010 and so on.
Anyone can create one by logging on to sites like: https://www.qrcode-monkey.com/ and placing the URL of your choice in the space needed. The URL can be from anything found on the internet: favorite video clip on social media, your Etsy craft shop, a favorite restaurant, website, email, even your phone number! But wait there’s more!
Social media is a great way to advertise your business and with 1.86 billion active users a month on Facebook alone, it’s no longer optional, but essential. However, if you’ve fallen into the rut of simply pushing out posts about your products or services, you’re doing social media wrong.
The beauty of social media is that it allows you to interact and engage with your audience while showing off your brand’s personality. Posts show up in the same place where people get daily updates from friends and family. Keeping your social media content conversational will help customers see you as personable and engender deeper brand loyalty. Keeping a consistent voice for your brand is important. Here are a few ways to inject your feed with a little joy while still staying on message!
The bottom line is, although most companies view social media as a vital marketing tool (which it is), don’t forget it started as a means to socialize. Do you want to be the boring person at the party who can only talk about work? Of course not. So, have some fun!
(Rockford, IL) June 7, 2022… KMK Media Group, a marketing communications firm in Rockford, IL designed marketing materials and organized a press conference with the Rockford Area Convention & Visitors Bureau to announce the 2023 Midwestern & Pacific Coast Synchronized Skating Sectional Championships.
KMK designed a custom logo, six large-scale signs and skater silhouettes measuring 4’ x 6’. They also invited the press and handled all organization of this exciting announcement.
The sectionals will be held January 23 - 29 at BMO Harris Bank Center. The event is expected to generate $2.1 million in economic activity.
In business for more than two decades, KMK Media Group is an award-winning woman-owned marketing firm specializing in website development, graphic design, public relations, advertising campaigns and social media marketing. www.kmkmedia.com.
The digital world is the new norm and how it evolves affects everyone in various ways, especially businesses. Over the past year, Hootsuite and We Are Social compiled an overview called the “Digital 2022 Global Overview Report,” detailing all things digital including social media, search engines, e-commerce, online ads, and more. This “must-know data” is key to what agencies like ours interpret and use in giving our clients the best digital strategies to fit their needs and target audience.
Intrigued about key digital takeaways over the past year? Here’s a snapshot of what you need to know:
The continued rise in social media users: Social media users have risen 10.1% over the last year. There are now 4.62 billion people using social media around the world. With the increase in social media users skyrocketing year after year, it is important for your business to use the right platform to reach its audience. Your audience is there, and your competitors are there, too.
The continued rise in social media advertising: In 2021, the global social media advertising spending (USD) was $154 billion, which is $23 billion more than it was in 2020. One-third (33.1%) came from Facebook. Facebook is currently the world’s most used social platform. Features like Ad Manager make advertising on social media reliable and trackable. Despite tightening marketing budgets in the face of the pandemic, businesses continued to put more money into social media ads. More than half of the 18,100 marketers who contributed to the social trends 2022 report said they’re planning to increase their paid spending in 2022.
Results driven by an analytical overview show that brand awareness on Facebook greatly impacts a company’s ROI. Therefore, it may be time to put your company’s Facebook to use and begin paid ads.
(Rockford, IL) May 23, 2022…KMK Media Group developed and launched a new website for the North Suburban Library District at www.northsuburbanlibrary.org. With locations in Loves Park and Roscoe, NSLD provides the community with critical resources and programs for adults, teens and children. With a fun, colorful palette, the new website highlights all their amazing services - like a searchable online book database, resources to help students with homework, reading suggestions for all ages and much more!
In business for more than two decades, KMK Media Group is an award-winning, woman-owned marketing firm specializing in web site development, graphic design, public relations, marketing, ad campaigns and social media marketing. www.kmkmedia.com.
Twenty years ago, it wasn’t unheard of for a business to exist (and even succeed) without an online presence. The ubiquitous nature of the internet has made that very untrue today and in 2022, having an outdated website is almost as bad as having no website at all. If you grudgingly created a website in 2002 and haven’t updated the style since this blog is for you.
With modern websites, less is more. A minimalistic design puts the spotlight on your product or message and looks clean and professional. The easiest way to incorporate that design into your website is by using white space to visually organize your elements like images, content and calls to action. Pro tip: white space doesn’t need to be white! Any color can be used to create some breathing room on your site.
Scroll effects are an easy way to make your content interactive. They include:
Ensure your website color scheme matches your brand's tone but keep it bold to grab attention and make your brand instantly recognizable.
Who needs pictures when you can make your content look like art? Pick a unique (but still easy to read) font that will become instantly recognizable as your brand and make your name the focal point of your homepage!
