According to a recent report by Nielsen, 13-17-year-olds send the most text messages every month. That probably doesn’t come as a big surprise. If you’ve got a business that includes teenagers in its target market, text message marketing can be a great way  to connect with this audience.

The report also observed that teens are making fewer calls—an average of 572 minutes per teenager. Why? The top three reasons given by teenagers for why the text instead of calling are that, according to them, it’s faster, easier and more fun.

Also interesting to note is that girls are texting more than boys. To be precise, female teenagers typically send 1,137 more text messages each month than teenage guys.

If you’re interested in learning more about how you can use text message marketing to connect with your customers, give us a shout… or send us a text! Text FLIPSIDE to 555444 to try out our FlipText system. (Your provider’s standards message rates apply.)

How many text messages do you typically send in a month? Do you text more than you call? What's the most text messages you've ever sent in a single month? Share a comment below.

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Keeping on top of the ever-changing would of social media can certainly be a challenge. Just when you start to think you've got it figured out, along comes a whole new platform that apparently took the world by storm while you were sleeping.

The latest culprit? Pinterest. What is Pinterest? Here's the official explanation:

Pinterest is a virtual pinboard. Pinterest allows you to organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. You can browse pinboards created by other people to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests.

People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and share their favorite recipes.

Have you tried it out yet? At Flipside Marketing, we're not pinning like crazy yet, but we are intrigued by this new avenue for sharing and would love to hear what your thoughts are on it. Please, leave a comment below.

At the moment, Pinterest is an invite-only platform. If you'd like to give it a try, just e-mail connect@flipsidemarketing.ca and we'll be happy to send you an invite.

On a side note, we've entered the Freshbooks Creative Workspaces contest. We're currently in third place but just need 8 votes to take the lead. The contest ends tomorrow. If you'd like to vote for us, log into Pinterest, head to http://pinterest.com/pin/107945722288812090/ and 'Like' our workspace.

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At Flipside Marketing, we're big promoters of using text messaging to connect with your customers. One great way to do that is to encourage those customers to text in to receive valuable information or tips from your business or organization.

It's important to take time to carefully consider every text message marketing program before you launch your campaign. Consider the return on investment potential, the target market and how the campaign will be promoted.

Here's an example of a campaign that perhaps wasn't thoroughly thought out. This public service announcement on a highway billboard contradicts itself, don't you think? I'm not sure where this is, or if it's even genuine, but thanks to Derek at Tatango for sharing! At the very least it serves as a great reminder to marketers to slow down and think your campaigns through.

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So you think you want to run an online contest.

Perhaps you haven’t worked out all the details yet, but you know that Facebook is popular, you like the idea of creating videos and you want to grow your e-mail subscriber base.

It’s true that contests can be great ways to encourage engagement. But the key is to think through you contest idea thoroughly before you announce it to the world.

This is the first of a four-part blog series with tips for effective online contests.

Have a goal and understand the tools you'll be using.

The key is to start with a goal and then build your contest around achieving that goal. Too often I see small businesses start with a cool contest idea, and then try to find a way to make it achieve their goals. This backwards approach fails more often than not, leaving a bad taste for contests in the mouths of the business owner, and often the contest participants as well.

Once you've got a goal, consider the tools you'll be using and how they can work to help you achieve that goal.

Keep in mind that a social contest should be just that—social! If you want to encourage engagement, you need to make that an integral part of your contest. If you want you contest to go viral, it has to be designed to do so.

Too often I see contests promoted on business Facebook pages with a line like this:

“Like our page for a chance to win. Make sure you tell all your friends!”

There are two major flaws in this concept.

For one, if you’re promoting the contest solely on your page, you’re for the most part only reaching people who have already liked your page. Are existing fans eligible to win your prize too? You’ll need to make the answer to that question clear in your rules. If not, how will you know who was a fan beforehand? What if they "unlike" and then "like" your page again? Make sure you’ve got the answers to those question before you launch.

Here’s the other flaw in the above contest idea. Although you’re inviting your fans to tell their friends, there’s no incentive to do so. Well, I suppose knowing that a friend could win something is a bit of an incentive. But if there’s a great prize and I’m not going to get an additional chance to win by sharing, then the last thing I’m going to want to do is share. The fewer the entries, the better my odds!

Here’s a better contest idea:

“Tell us why you love shopping at our store. Post your answer on our Facebook page. Share it with a friend for an additional chance to win.”

This is just one idea. There are literally thousands of ways to use Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, you website or your e-mail newsletter to run effective contests.

One other thing to keep in mind is that the different social media platforms have their own rules for use, engagement and often contests specifically. Zack Spear from Informative Computer Solutions pointed out in a guest post last October that Facebook in particular has a stringent set of rules for online contests. Make sure your contest is in line with Facebook’s Promotion Guidelines.

Future topics “Stay within contest law”, “Set clear rules and post them up-front”, “Be ready to select a winner, and to respond to complaints”.

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To register, contact the Saint John Board of Trade:

• register online
• e-mail info@sjboardoftrade.com
• phone 506-634-8111

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I had a great conversation yesterday with Heather and Chantel from H2C Online. Among many other things, one of the things we talked about was providing really great customer service. And specifically, not "nickeling and diming" your customers.

On the one hand, it's really important to recognize the value of the work you provide. Marie Leslie wrote in her blog post yesterday on Six Rules for Entrepreneurial Success, "If you do not place value on your product or service and really own that value, no one else will either."

But on the other hand, you have to genuinely be providing value if you're going to send an invoice. And, it never hurts to hand out a little friendliness and general helpfulness for free. Is it really necessary to invoice for every phone call and every chat over coffee? The girls at H2C don't think so, and neither do I!

That gets me to the point of this post. If you want to get paid, make sure you set clear payment policies.

On each of my invoices, I include the following:

Thank you; we really appreciate your business. Please send payment within 21 days of receiving this invoice. Interest is charged at 24% annually (2% per month) on overdue accounts.

Freshbooks recommends that you try the following in order to get paid faster:

1. Be Polite – "Please" and "Thank you" can give you a 5% boost in payment time
2. 21 Days to Pay – Specific terms encourage payment. Also, not every client will understand “net”, so try “days”
3. Interest On Late Payments – This may help to encourage your clients to prioritize your invoices

This is all well and good, but even more important than including terms on your invoice, is ensuring that no invoices come as a surprise!

Your customers should know exactly what constitutes "billable time". Make sure your customers know, before you begin a session or start working, that they'll be being billed, and give them a quote or as accurate an estimate as possible--preferrably in writing.

I include the following line on the bottom of every single e-mail I send, so that my clients are reminded of my billing policies and can find where to review them at any time.

Visit http://www.flipsidemarketing.ca/policies.shtml to view our Privacy Policy and our Billable Time Standards of Practice.

Do you have any suggestions for ways to make sure you get paid on time? I'd love to hear them! Please leave your comments below.

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One of the services we offer at Flipside Marketing is our FlipText mobile marketing platform. It allows small businesses to use text messaging to connect with their customers.

There are all sorts of nifty uses for this type of technology, including mobile contests, mobile trivia games, mobile VIP clubs, the list goes on. If you can think of a creative marketing strategy, there's probably a way to implement mobile text message marketing into it.

Here's an interesting use of mobile text message technology not to promote a business, but to protect children. How cool is that, eh?

And now, in Canada, you can receive AMBER Alerts directly on your mobile device via text message.

So, how does it work?

Text the word AMBER to 26237

You'll get a response asking you what language you want to receive alerts in. For English, reply with EN. For French, reply with FR.

Now you'll get AMBER Alerts for your province directly on your phone.

What's especially neat to me about this service is how it's such an elaborate partnership. Police agencies, wireless carriers, a technology provider and corporate ambassadors have all recognized the value of such a service and have come together to offer it free of charge. Please, spread the word!

You can learn more at http://www.wirelessamber.ca/.

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Increasing your customer base when resources seem scarce can be tough. I'm always a big advocate of reaching out to your existing customer base first in order to drive sales higher. Afterall, an existing customer is six times more likely to buy from you again, and therefore six times easier to sell to, than a new prospect. However, at some point, you've got to keep growing that customer base.

I've got good news though! One of the best ways for reaching new customers is also one of the easiest ones out there. And yet it's one that's totally untapped by a lot of small businesses.

Partner with other businesses that offer services that complement yours. I'm not saying hit up your competition and ask them for their client list. Rather, find businesses whose target demographic is similar to yours. By partnering, they can introduce your services to their customers, and in exchange you'll introduce them and their services to your customers. No doubt you'll already share some customer too, and that's perfectly fine.

It's a win-win situation all around. Not only are both businesses benefiting from an increased customer base. But by partnering with a reputable business, you'll gain respect from your customers when you help them out through a referral.

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Facebook is at it again with new changes for its business users. Facebook pages will all be changed to the new “Timeline” layout at the end of March.

What does this mean for you?

It means that in order to grab the attention of your customers, you’ll need to take a few steps to change the look and feel of your page in order to work well with the new Timeline layout.

Specifically, you’ll want a new “cover photo”. That’s a new banner-type image that will appear across the top of your page. Your “profile picture” will no longer be displayed as a tall side banner but instead will become a small box inset partially into the cover photo.

You’ll also want to organize your “views and apps”, and check out new features like the ability to “star, hide and pin” content and send and receive messages as your business.

Flipside Marketing would like to help you make the transition to the new Timeline layout for your Facebook page. We’re offering a Facebook Page Refresh service.

Here’s what’s included:

• A consultation and training session for up to two hours with up to two people to review your social media marketing goals and show you the features of the new Timeline layout. (In-personal locally or by video conference.) This includes looking at:
  • Cover Photos (format and the dos and don’ts)
  • Profile Picture (why and how it needs to change)
  • Organizing Views & Apps (what they are and how to use them to engage with people)
  • The Star, Hide and Pin features
  • Exploring the new Admin Panel
  • Enabling and using Messages as your business
  • The About, Friend Activity, Milestones and Activity Log features
• Graphic design work to include creation of a new “cover photo”, new “profile picture” and three “views and apps” button images.

Regular Value:  $300.00

Limited Time Special Price: $195.00
Valid only until March 31^st, 2012.

Contact us today to sign up for your Facebook Page Refresh.

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People are getting excited about a chance to win a trip to New York City and $1,500 in Brunswick Square gift cards through part of an exciting contest that combines an old fashioned treasure hunt with modern mobile technology.

Brunswick Square Shopping Centre, in partnership with Flipside Marketing, launched the contest on March 5.

Powered by Flipside Marketing’s FlipText™ mobile text message marketing platform, participants can enter the contest by texting a special keyword to 555444. (To find the initial keyword, visit Brunswick Square in-store or online.) Once entered, they receive daily clues by text message, leading them on a hunt for additional keywords hidden throughout Brunswick Square, for up to 14 more chances to win.

Each keyword entered gives the participant another chance to win the grand prize trip valued at $2,500, and a chance at another $100 gift card.

Anyone who gets in late on the contest can find any clues they missed by visiting the Brunswick Square Facebook Page or by following @BSQCentre on Twitter.

Brandi Cooper, Marketing and Promotions Manager at Brunswick Square, says mobile marketing is the way of the future.

“Mobile usage has grown in exponential numbers and continues to do so, with the rise of social media and mobile applications and the use of smart phones.”

She says this unique contest is about engaging customers in a fun and effective way.

“It’s fun, it’s new, and there’s amazing incentives with a chance to win a trip to NYC and up to $1,500 in Brunswick Square gift certificates.  Our shoppers expect ‘different’ and we feel this campaign is just that.”

Brunswick Square has something that no other shopping centre in Saint John does--60 shops full of unique style and product.

“Our shoppers know the meaning of fashion, edgy, and style… so what better place to send them then NYC?”

This mobile treasure hunt is a great fit for Brunswick Square, a shopping centre that’s leading the way in terms of providing a one-of-a-kind shopping experience.

“Brunswick Square is known for unique style and product.  Many of our boutiques are locally owned and are exclusive Brunswick Square.”

Daniel Mark Wheaton, a marketing consultant at Flipside Marketing, is excited to see Brunswick Square offering such an original and innovative contest.

“It’s great to see local businesses of all sizes take advantage of the opportunities that exist for them to really connect with their customers using modern technology.”

He says that too often local businesses think that they have to resort to only traditional means of marketing, but that’s simply not the case.

“By using social media, other forms of internet marketing and mobile marketing tools, building a relationship with your customers is easier than ever, and it’s affordable.”

The contest ends and all winners will be announced on March 21.

For more information about the contest or about Brunswick Square Shopping Centre, contact:

Brandi Cooper
Marketing & Promotions Manager
Brunswick Square Shopping Centre
506-648-1667
brandicooper@fortisproperties.com

For more information about the mobile technology behind the contest or about Flipside Marketing, contact:

Daniel Mark Wheaton
Marketing Consultant
Flipside Marketing
506-648-9119
daniel@flipsidemarketing.ca

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by Daniel Mark Wheaton

It used to be challenging to keep up-to-date on industry news. Following trends, catching announcements and generally being aware of where an industry is going required reading through journals and magazines and attending conferences, seminars and workshops.

Not anymore!

Sure, the printed publications still exist and there's still value in getting together with others in your industry for some face time on occasion. But as a small business owner, staying in the loop has never been easier, thanks to modern media.

Here are some tips staying on top of what's happening in your industry:

1. Use Google Alerts to track news stories and blog posts on certain topics. Use keywords related to your industry to receive the latest from the web in your inbox.
2. Use an RSS feed reader to follow industry-specific news sites or blogs. You can also have blog feeds delivered to your e-mail inbox as well.
3. Create lists on Twitter following hashtags related to your industry, your competitors or your target market.

Each of these things are fairly simple to set up. And then once they're in place, you'll spend less time searching, and wondering, and more time reading focused updates and being more aware of what's going on.

Of course, if you need help, just give us a call at Flipside Marketing!

Do you have any other suggestions for ways to keep informed about your industry? Please, leave a comment.

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Getting people to engage with your mobile marketing strategy isn't something that happens without putting a little bit of thought into it.

While people do love mobile technology, love to text, and love to engage with the businesses they want to support, they also value their time. They know that once they sign up for your mobile marketing program, they'll receive messages from you. And if they don't suspect they'll receive value from you in those text messages, they're not likely to want to be bothered with reading (or even receiving) those messages.

So, you need a good hook! You need an awesome call to action--a reason to sign up that they can't resist. Maybe it's a giveaway, a contest, or just details about what they'll get on an ongoing basis as a subscriber.

If the hook is based on a "one-time-thrill" such as an instant giveaway or a chance to win, people opting in need to also know, up-front, if they'll be receiving future messages from you.

Art of the CTA is a great website to check out if you're stuck for great call to action ideas. It's a collection of literally hundreds of call to action examples that have actually been used, with a short review of each. Take a look!

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We're pleased to announce that Flipside Markting's Jacques Desjardins has been named as a finalist in the 2012 Enterprise Saint John Business Pitch Competition.

Congrats to Jacques and the four other finalists!

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by Daniel Mark Wheaton

At Flipside Marketing, we operate out of a home-based office on the East side of Saint John, New Brunswick. It's an arrangement that works well for us and our clients for a number of reasons. Our office is a very functional workspace, complete with strategically organized work stations, white boards for crunching numbers and getting creative, a couple of phone lines with wireless headsets, a shared multi-function printer, smart storage solutions and so on. It's just 8 minutes from Uptown Saint John, and even closer to Starbucks.

Until recently though what our office lacked was any sort of cool factor. All that has changed! Take a look at the image below that shows you just how drastic this transformation has been.

Here's a slideshow with more Before and After shots, and a few from during the transformation.

It's a completely different room, but as a small company run by a couple of young entrepreneurs, the change had to be done on a budget, and it was! Here are details of what was done:

Some of the first changes included removing a hideously ugly built-in storage unit, taking out a small wall and building a new one slightly moved and ripping out some strange wood paneling "decor". With some supplies, tools and advice from the Home Depot, we put in some new drywall and crackfilled all of that and then primed EVERYTHING. From the new drywall to the previously painted wall space and all of the remaining wood paneling too, it all got primed for re-painting. Then we went to Kent for a gallon of Flipside red paint. They colour matched the red from our logo for a fun (shocking?) red accent wall. We also used the red to paint an old chair, the frame of a white board, and a cool old door that came fromt the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store.

We got the door for just $5. It's likely about a century old and features a large thick pane of glass. We cleaned it up, slapped the red paint on one side, replace the flap on the letter slot, installed a new doorknob and sprayed semi-transparent frosting on the glass. This allows light to flow into the room without us having to put on display the utility room on the other side.

The rest of the walls we painted "Volcanic Ash" grey. That along with a new rib-patterned black carpet from Ritchie's Building and Flooring Centre certainly darkened the room, but we trusted that good lighting and the right amount of white accent would brighten things up just enough--and they did! Our workstations feature thick all-white table tops and white shelving. The baseboards and door casings are white. The entrance to the room has a white door. Add a couple of white marker boards and our logo on a white background and the room isn't dark at all.

The sign with our logo on the wall was made very simply and inexpensively. It's a vinyl banner from Vistaprint that we cut the excess white space off the sides of. We then cut a piece of chipboard to just the right size so that the banner could be wrapped around the edges of it and stapled from behind.

To keep important papers close at hand, we got a small filing cabinet from Covey Basics that fits under the desks. And to protect the floor under our chairs are a couple of plastic floor protectors from Staples.

Four "vintage" social media posters are framed in $1 frames from the Dollarama. We went all out with $2 frames for the Flipside Marketing mission statement and our Saint John Board of Trade membership certificate.

Ikea did a lot to help us out. We started by ordering a few odds and ends, including shelves, cable organizers, desk lights and a new light fixture from Ikea in Boucherville, Quebec through the Ikea Buyer. Then we drove down to Stoughton, Massachusets to get our desks, more shelves and some finishing touches like a coat hook for the back of the door, wire mesh shelving and three waste baskets.

It was a bit of a lengthy process, but the end result is well worth the effort. We already got excited every day about the work that we do to help small businesses grow, but now we can get up in the morning excited about where we'll be doing it.

What do you think of our new space? We'd love to hear your thoughts. And keep posted for details about our clients and partners appreciation day open house coming later this Spring to celebrate our first year in business.

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When you run your mobile text message marketing campaigns, you'll want to know how effective they are. There are four metrics to watch. Derek from Tatango discusses in the video below what these four metrics are and how to calculate them.

Got questions about measuring the success of your mobile marketing campaign? Give us a shout. We'll be glad to help.

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Creating the perfect deal to be sent out in a text message isn't just a game of change or an abstract artform. There's a science behind it. And when you understand the science, that's when you'll start to see real results in terms of engagement and return on investment.

This infographic wasn't actually made for text message marketing. It was created for businesses developing deals for websites like LivingSocial and Groupon. You'll see though that it totally makes sense to apply the same theory to your SMS campaigns.

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Putting links in the text messages that go out to your customers can be a great way to encourage them to engage with you further. It could be a link to a mobile version of your website, a mobile edition of your menu, or an image or e-mail newsletter sign-up form.

But, if the link isn't clickable, very few (if any) people will actually take the time to copy-and-paste the web address to click it.

Here's an example of a message sent by a US mobile marketing provider that just doesn't meet expectations!

ILOOPDEALS: iLoop Mobile monthly newsletter is now mobile.
Check it out:http://bit.ly/ypbUnb reply HELP for help. Reply
STOP to cancel. Msg&DataRatesMayApply

The problem is that by not putting a space between Check it out: and the web address, the link can't be clicked from a smart phone. So what should have been a link to a mobile newsletter from the company, is instead just a frustrating bunch of unclickable characters.

(Click here if you're curious about where the link would have lead you.)

This could have been easily avoided by the senders sending a test message to themselves before broadcasting it to all of their opt-in subscribers.

We can help you make sure you avoid these easy-to-make mistakes! At Flipside Marketing, we're committed to helping you really grow your business, so we'll give you not only the tools, but the tips, tricks and training required to get the most out of your mobile program.

Have you checked out our new website showcasing the benefits of our FlipText mobile marketing service for restaurants? Visit http://www.fliptext.ca/restaurants to have a look.

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by Daniel Mark Wheaton

Who are your industry allies? Who could be your allies in industries that complement yours? These are important questions to ask yourself if you want to boost your value through co-marketing.

What is co-marketing? It can come in a couple of forms. The first could simple be sharing advertising expense. For example, if you're running a newspaper ad, buy twice the space and share it with someone. An ad twice as big won't cost twice as much, so you'll be saving on your portion. The same could be done by distributing double-sided flyers, with your message on one side and the message of a partnering business on the other side.

Another form of co-marketing requires a bit more collaboration, but can be highly effective. An example might be a restaurant that invites patrons to bring their ticket stub from a sports game in for a 10% discount after the game. The event venue will promote the discount as added value for its ticketholders, and you'll in return promote the event.

Co-marketing can also work well for two (or more) small businesses with social media following. By promoting each other, you both win. And by collaborating on a project that's promoted through social media, your viral reach is unstoppable.

Big businesses know co-marketing works. Beverage companies like Coca-Cola and Pepsi co-market with restaurants and convenience stores. Google co-markets its Android operating system with cell phone and tablet providers.

Here's a great example of a three-way co-branding effort between American Idol, Dominos Pizza and Coca-Cola:

What are your thoughts on co-marketing? Where have you seen co-marketing at work? Ever had a great co-marketing experience, or a bad one, as either a small business owner, or as a customer?

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by Daniel Mark Wheaton

The folks at ExactTarget have put together a report called Mobile Dependence Day. If you're interested in text message marketing, this report has got some statistics worth taking a look at.

For small business owners, nothing's more important when it comes to marketing than knowing there's a real return on investment. One of the stats in ExactTarget's report shows which smartphone marketing initiatives are most likely to lead to customers making a purchase.

It's no surprise to us at Flipside Marketing that text message marketing ranks near the top, second only to e-mail--definitely something to think about when you're considering where to direct your advertising dollars.

You can view the entire Mobile Dependence Day report by downloading it here: http://goo.gl/9HuVo

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by Daniel Mark Wheaton

Mobile marketing is changing how businesses advertise. Until not too long ago, businesses using mobile marketing were in the minority. But that’s quickly shifting. Now, if you own a business that’s engaging with its customers using mobile advertising, you’re actually part of the majority. In North America, 79% of advertisers and advertising agencies are embracing mobile marketing in one way or another.

I believe that if used correctly mobile marketing can help grow just about every business out there. So, why haven’t the other 21% jumped on board yet? Likely it’s because of fear or confusion. Mobile marketing involves new technology. Business owners are busy running their business, and don’t want to be bothered with learning how to launch, manage and track their mobile marketing strategies.

At Flipside Marketing, we understand all of that, and that’s why we try to make things as simple as possible for business owners. We take care of setting up your account on our FlipText™ platform. We give you hands-on training for how to use our simple text message marketing system. We help you track the success of your campaigns. We create your mobile website for you and either maintain it on your behalf or give you easy tools to maintain it yourself. And perhaps most importantly, we work with you to create a mobile marketing strategy that will help you grow your business.

Want to learn more about our mobile marketing program? Get in touch with us today.

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