Last week Apple announced their new 4^th Generation iPod Touch. And they did it without rolling out a new advertising campaign. Their marketing strategy for the newest installment of the iPod Touch was to let the fans generate all the hype. And it seems to be working. With online orders currently being accepted, and shipments scheduled to begin in about four weeks, Apple fanatics are eagerly waiting to try out this latest technology.

A company like Apple that has a reputation for quality products and a large (and devoted) fan base can get away with saving money on traditional marketing and advertising campaigns because Apple fans know they listen to their users and take their ideas into consideration. As usual Apple listened to their fans’ praises and concerns and have added higher demand features to the iPod Touch 4G that have been discussed on blogs, forums and social media channels. (In particular, the addition of not one but two cameras to the 4^th Generation is causing a buzz.) Apple has been known for quality so the initial reviews should be good and I predict sales will be high even in a struggling economy—good news for Apple that hopes the iPod Touch 4G will reignite iPod sales across the board.

For most companies, removing traditional advertising during a product launch is unrealistic. Apple relied (and still does for other products) on traditional advertising to build and reinforce trust and loyalty in their customer base in order to be in the position they are today. Now they can rely on word-of-mouth to generate excitement about new, upgraded products that are extensions of successful lines. But in this struggling economy it is even more critical that brands get their name and products/services in the public eye. And for the majority of brands, a strategic infusion of advertising is the most effective way to do this.

While all brands strive to have a reputation like Apple, most brands need to spend more time advertising. Could your brand be the next Apple?

Read more blogs at SCG’s 41 Stories.

-Chad Breske

The end of July is only a few days away, and that means that the Vikings training camp is about to start. Just like last year the big question everyone is asking is, “will Brett Favre play for the Vikings this year?” Last year he missed most of the preseason while deciding whether or not he was going to play while nursing an injured bicep. This year it is ankle surgery that’s making him question his future in the NFL. Many say the ankle surgery is not considered as serious as last year’s situation, but is it enough to keep him from not playing this year?

I personally think Brett will play this season. He is considered one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, and while a professional football player in his 40s is very rare, I think he has too much love for the game not to play this season. I also think Favre is hesitant to participate in training camp, so just like last year he will think it over for a while and then start later in the preseason. Until then, he’ll keep us guessing.

Do you think Brett Favre will return and play one more season with the Vikings? Do you think Favre can still hold his own in a league that always has the fresh talent up and coming?

-Chad Breske

If you break down business websites on the Internet, there are really two kinds of major sites out there: corporate sites and microsites. A lot of companies feel that they need to host a large corporate site that contains all of their information. And well, for the most part they are right. A corporate site should contain a variety of relevant information for all appropriate audiences. It should be robust and have a little bit of everything.

The problem is that since corporate sites do need to have something for everyone, their size actually becomes cumbersome. Hence the need for microsites. Microsites can be more versatile; they target specific audiences or address a particular issue. Visitors to microsites find what they want to know faster and without the frustration of clicking through multiple pages because information important to them is prominent on the site.

Some claim that microsites add confusion to a brand, but actually it is quite the opposite. Microsites and corporate sites, when properly designed and planned, complement each other. For example, one of the major factors that improves SEO is having inbound links. A microsite usually has a link to the corporate site thereby helping to give the corporate site more visibility. If the corporate site also has a link to the microsite(s) then that increases the traffic both ways. The increased traffic gives both sites a higher search ranking and more visibility, and having more visibility for your brand can only be a good thing.

There are many other uses for microsites too. If you’re executing a direct emarketing campaign it is more memorable to have the link be SpecificNeed.com instead of CorporateSite.com/Topic. And let’s not forget about blogs. Blogs are one of the best examples of a great use for a microsite. Set your company’s blog up as its own unique site that is subsidiary to the corporate site instead of just having it be another piece of the giant corporate puzzle. This will add more character to your blog and your brand, and let your visitors get a better feel for your company.

So when it comes to the Internet, bigger is not always better.

-Chad Breske

For the past few months there has been a lot of buzz about Apple’s iPad. I admit when I first heard about it I was excited. A cool new piece of technology from a company that has built good rapport with its customers—how could you not be excited?

Initially, the buzz was over how much it was going to cost. To most people’s surprise it starts on the low-end at only $499, which is much lower then the $1,000+ price tag that many critics where expecting. The cost-driven hype did wonders for sales. The iPad is selling better then expected, so much so that Apple is delaying their international release date to meet demand.

Now that the iPad is available, everyone is asking, “what do you do with the iPad?” If you already own a laptop and an iPod Touch or iPhone you have access to all of the features of the iPad covered because the iPad does not introduce any ground-breaking features. In fact, it limits some features (like no flash while web browsing). It does not have some features that were expected by consumers (ex. a camera). And while some where hoping it would be a good eReader, the iPad is a backlit device, which is one of the causes of eye-strain and why other eReaders are not backlit. To me, the iPad just seems like an iPod Touch with a bigger screen or a smaller laptop lacking in power and many features.

I personally do not own an iPad, and since I already own a laptop I can’t come up with a justifiable reason to buy one. Can you?

-Chad Breske

I’m sure most of you have heard about the browser wars that went on in the 1990s.  The truth is they are still going on today—the players have just changed. Back in the ‘90s Microsoft’s Internet Explorer (IE) became the leading browser. Some people question how it happened and often point to the fact that any PC that came installed with Windows also came with IE as the default (and only) browser.

Today the major battle is between Firefox and IE, with a few emerging players like Safari, Opera and Chrome. In early 2002, IE was being used by about 85% of Internet users. But as of August 2009 they only held approximately 39% of the users compared to Firefox’s 47%. Here is a chart that shows this change. So why the shift? One of the things to consider is how the Internet has evolved. When the Internet was young, things like CSS and Flash were not a part of a website, while today these are commonplace. (To keep up with all of the changes, the W3C was created. It helps maintain web standards and guidelines).

Firefox has been one of the best at keeping up with the standards. Web designers use those standards to make their sites attractive and engaging. Guess what? IE does not follow most of the W3C standards. Instead Microsoft tried to reinvent the wheel and developed their own standards. In fact, IE6 is one of the worst browsers for following the W3C standards.  Have you wondered why a website looks a certain way in Firefox but not the same in IE? Well, this is likely the reason.

If you look at that chart again, you will see that IE6 has been in use from January 2002 to August 2009. No other browser on that chart can claim that, but that is not necessarily a good thing. IE6 cannot handle the new features that are now standard on the Internet. Microsoft does not even support IE6 anymore. As is the case with most software, only the latest version is supported by the manufacturer. So why cling to IE6 since it hinders the viewing experience on the Internet?

If you’re still sticking to IE6, chew on these thoughts. Would you still use your vacuum cleaner after it breaks? Where would the world be if everyone still used horses as our main transportation?  The truth is IE6 is dated and broken. I recommend you upgrade to Firefox or one of the other browsers that conform to the W3C standards.

This just in…YouTube recently announced they will no longer be supporting IE6. Need further reason to switch?

-Chad Breske

Thanksgiving is upon us! It’s time to pile our plates high with turkey, yams and pumpkin pie.  But before we do, we asked ourselves, “What are you thankful for this year?”  Here’s how we replied…

Steph is thankful for her clarity and sanity.

Whitney is thankful for her family. “They can always make me laugh and have given me such unwavering support throughout this year.”

Trevor is most thankful for “my beautiful, healthy baby girl Luella. I am also thankful for how stinkin’ happy she is all the time!”

Joy is thankful that, “even though my family lives in three different states, we will all be together for Thanksgiving!”

Patricia is thankful for the trust our clients have placed in us during this challenging 2009.

Patrick is thankful that our agency was able to withstand the economic downturn and that our clients have generally weathered the storm very well.

Carol is so thankful for Makarei, her little granddaughter. “We get up at 4:30 in the morning to get ready for work and school.  On Saturdays she has piano lessons and choir practice.  She goes with me to Lay Organization and Missionary Society meetings and stays in a separate room dancing and singing.  Makarei is the joy of my life and I am so happy to have her in my life.”

Chad is thankful for his family.

Randy is thankful that his cousin Trent returned safely from Djibouti, Africa, after spending a 7-month tour of duty in the Marines.

Jenny is thankful for the small group she joined recently through her church. “We meet each Sunday night for a time of faith, fun and fellowship. It has already been such a gift and a wonderful way to start a new week. And our host is truly Rachael Ray Jr. so I leave each week with lunch for Monday!”

Jeron is thankful the economy has reminded him (and certainly many others) how much more valuable family, health and friendships are than material items.

Jane is very thankful to have a wonderful, big family that surrounds her with love and support. “I am also thankful that both Dan and I are employed and that our family is healthy and happy. And I am thankful to have been fortunate to have adopted such an amazing, loving dog to add to our family…we are so blessed to be able to share every moment of Lily’s life.”

What are you most thankful for this year?

We hope you enjoy your holiday with family, friends and those closest to you. Happy Thanksgiving from all of your friends at SCG!

Right now on the Internet there is an ever-increasing amount of Content Management Systems (CMS) available and a lot of web firms are using them so they can crank out websites in an assembly line fashion. CMSs are great, for the right kind of websites or even just portions of a website but there are many drawbacks to these “simple” inventions of modern technology.

Depending on the CMS chosen you may find that it is difficult or impossible to place good SEO meta tags on the site or be limited to one set that blankets the whole site. Most CMSs create their websites dynamically on the fly, which can provide issues with some search engine results. The whole site is usually stored in one database. Guess what? If that database gets corrupted, your whole site is lost. Compare that to a non-dynamically created site, if one file gets corrupt it just affects that one file.

CMS websites also have to conform to the guidelines of their backend programming. For example, the CMS may require that your navigation be in a certain place such as only horizontally across the top or only have four main sections. The layout of the design also has to be completely uniform through out the whole site. So no pages can have any special circumstances, such as a secondary navigation on a few pages.

What about the support you get with a CMS website? Most companies that offer them (and especially the ones that push them) offer no support for the website after the initial completion. If you do not know how to use the CMS after the initial introduction you are probably going to have to pay more to have someone do your updates for you or to show you how to do them. Also if you do not know how to edit images you are probably going to have to pay for that too or even hire someone to handle updating your website with the CMS. Otherwise, you may update an oversized image and it “breaks” the whole site. Without the design eye that a experienced person can provide to your website it can easily degrade into something less than attractive. A CMS website is much like the visual WYSIWYG (What You See Is What You Get) editor that comes with them and not a lot more.

I am not saying that CMS websites are not good (I use to work for a company that exclusively worked in CMS websites). In fact, there are situations where a CMS website is ideal. But there can be limitations to them and for a lot of companies the drawbacks can out weigh the benefits. I am merely trying to state some of the issues that should be considered when deciding whether to CMS or not to CMS.

So you need to ask yourself if a CMS website right for you?

-Chad Breske

I previously blogged about how social media is affecting personal privacy. (You can find it here.) Now take a look at it from a brand standpoint. What kind of affect can social media like Twitter and Facebook have on a brand? There are already examples of negative effects and good campaigns.

Here are a few questions to consider in regards to social media. How much damage can two people with a video camera at work do? (Remember Domino’s?) And how fast do you have to respond to that? What about offering a great deal over the internet, but then realizing you did not properly plan for the response or inform your stores of your corporate plan? (Quizno’s for lunch anyone?) Are you prepared for the backslash from annoyed customers? Did your great deal help or hurt your brand? Let’s put it on a smaller scale: someone can post on Twitter while they are getting bad service at a restaurant. What are the repercussions to that, and how many current and potential customers do you lose?

If you have been keeping up with social media you might already have some opinions on these issues. But it is not all risk. There are good campaigns out there making effective use of social media. For example take a look at this article about what Target did. I have to say I think this campaign was a great way to make use of social media. Have your customers decide what you will do with your money, based on popularity. Plus, it got the word out about a few good causes.

With the swarms of people heading to social media, brands definitely need to have a plan for crisis control. They should not stop there though; there are plenty of new and undiscovered ways to try to use social media to their advantage. Some of them might fail, but some could also be gems. That is the risk when trying to figure out how to use this new media. Whatever each brand decides to do they should realize that social media is here and it needs to be addressed.

-Chad Breske

The internet has become a very public place. It seems that you can find something on just about anyone now. Social media has been growing for the past few years and continues to grow at an alarming rate. Sites like mySpace, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and LinkedIn allow you to know almost everything about someone before you even meet them.

Many have embraced this change in the way we communicate. In some ways it is great; you can get instant updates on family or friends that live in another state, get reacquainted with old friends, meet new people with similar interests, etc. Because the world has become so connected due to social media, it is hard to ignore the benefits it has provided.

But what about the negative effects? For instance, did you know that high school reunions are disappearing? A fair amount of people no longer see the point in attending high school reunions since many are already up-to-date on their old friends. And do you really want your co-workers or future employers to see those “college drinking” pictures your friends posted? Maybe you had a rough week and someone got it on video—do you really want that on YouTube? Do you want to go in for an interview and have the employer know what you look like, who you associate with, and pretty much everything else about you before you even get a chance to open your mouth?

Some people like to be very public, but what about those that like their privacy? Will they lose out on opportunities because they are not as public as some of their peers? While people continue to swarm to social media, have they stopped to think about the consequences? I believe there will be a movement to recoup privacy in an ever increasingly open world.

Do you think the backlash on lack of privacy has already begun?

-Chad Breske

I recently became certified as a Muay Thai instructor with the Thai Boxing Association of the USA, TBA for short (thaiboxing.com). It was started by Ajarn Surachai “Chai” Sirisute and has become one of the largest martial arts organizations in the world. To even be considered for an instructorship you have to have been studying Muay Thai under Ajarn Chai’s TBA for at least three years, pass two student level tests and be recommended by another instructor.

The first time I saw Ajarn Chai was more than four years ago and he left quite an impression- how fast he could move, the shape he was in, his emphasis on form and his core rule of discipline. I did not know then that I would one day wish to seek an instructorship under him and his organization but I do remember that after his seminar I was very intrigued with Muay Thai. I also personally have an emphasis on good form so his philosophy meshed well with mine.

At some point in my training I decided I would like to seek an instructorship under Ajarn Chai so I talked to my instructors about it and they helped me lay out a plan to achieve this goal. Without going into all the details of that plan, the jist of it came down to Ajarn Chai’s core rule: discipline. The harder I worked and more disciplined I was, the better I would perform on the final instructorship test.

From there, a typical week training and preparing for my test looked like this. After work, I headed straight to the gym, trained until about 9 PM (or later), headed home to sleep, all while trying to eat every 2-3 hours (except during training and sleep) to keep my body healthy. Saturdays were a day of rest and I spent a few hours training Sunday mornings/afternoons. That was my schedule for more than nine months.

So after four and a half years of studying Muay Thai and in particular that final year of extensive training, I passed my instructorship test on April 26th, 2009 (also my birthday). After all of my dedication and discipline I received my Apprentice Level Instructorship. Interestingly, after all of that hard work I now get the honor to start my training and teaching.

To reach the next level of instructorship requires another three years. Ironically, in a world filled with instant gratification and feedback from things like Twitter, it took years for me to reach the beginning. Much like a high school diploma this certification just means I am ready to begin my journey, not that I have reached the end.

I would like to thank all my instructors, coach and training partners that helped me through all of this and gave me strength even when I did not feel like I had it. This achievement is as much yours as it is mine. I would like to especially thank Ajarn Chai for everything.

Thank you, Sir!

-Chad Breske