Hitting Content Strategy Out of the Park

By: Casey Kleekamp, UMSL MBA Student
I recently attended an UMSL Digital Marketing Seminar: “Blogs to Buzz” hosted by Danielle Smith – A digital correspondent, host, storyteller, speaker, media trainer, vlogger and author! The seminar was not only very insightful, but totally fun and engaging! I enjoyed her style (both teaching style and fashion style – ha!) so much that I immediately started following her on Twitter and Pinterest.
dani
Danielle shared tons of information on Blogging – the history of blogging, how marketers should be leveraging blogging, how to get started, and how to go beyond just a blog utilizing it on all social media platforms.
The takeaway from the seminar that could be applied easily and quickly to your blog and our very own UMSL Digital Mindshare Blog is Jason Calacanis’ “5 Tenets of Content Perfection.” Calacanis is an entrepreneur, blogger and keynote speaker for the digital industry worldwide (so I’d say his advice is pretty solid!).
5tenHere are the 5 Tenets. Plus, I have included ideas on how the UMSL Digital Mindshare Blog could bring them to life.
1. Speak in Real-time: Talk about current events and show that you are “in the know.” There is so much going on in our world today and there is so much news every second of the day that UMSL Digital Students should definitely be “in the know” and most importantly, be able to connect it back to UMSL and our digital marketing program. An example shared in Danielle’s class is Evernote. On their blog they wrote about Fantasy Football. Evernote and Fantasy Football you ask? After reading the blog post, it all made sense. Evernote told their readers how to get the most out of Fantasy Football by using Evernote to stay organized.
2. Think Fact-Driven: Pretty self-explanatory.
3. Use Visuals: Blog posts with images = 94% better. Pretty simple right!? Even for this blog, since unfortunately I wasn’t able to take personal photos, I used visuals that hopefully have made reading this post a little more fun?! Danielle might have thought it a tad bit weird if I was snapping photos of her during the seminar – right?
4. Be Efficient: Resources. Let’s get smart with the important questions: Who, What, When, Where, Why, How? One thing that really stood out to me in the seminar was “micro-blogging.” I love the idea that we can create a blog and then pick “pieces” of it to share out across other social platforms. Or use “story-telling” where you can write several blogs all at once on one topic and then post one blog at a time over a period of time. Seems pretty efficient to me!
5. Curate: Discover and share the best. For UMSL, we could have someone focused on looking for fun, informational and engaging content to repurpose and connect with UMSL Digital.
After reading my own post, I realize it’s not rocket science what I’m talking about here, but it does take time to get organized and plan. I hope this was helpful and that UMSL’s Digital Blog can continue to be a source of great content for digital marketers and beyond.
And just in case I didn’t say it enough – take the Digital Marketing Class and Danielle Smith’s “Blogs to Buzz” seminar as soon as you can. You will NOT be disappointed!
All seminar course descriptions and dates are here: http://umsldigital.com/courses.

The UMSL Daily Blogs RoundUp

logo
Have you checked out the UMSL Daily – UMSL’s very own blogs? The blogs feature lifestyle articles about student, faculty and staff, along with coverage of academic news and events. Here are a few recent articles to check out. Subscribe or find your favorite UMSL blog or topic at the UMSL Daily.


All business is global business: College of Business Administration realigns to better prepare students
glam2
“All students, especially business students need to understand and compete in the global economy. After consulting with the faculty, our advisory boards, the central administration and our students, this reorganization of the college will enable our students to think globally while they prepare for their careers,” said Charlie Hoffman, dean of the college. “This renewed global focus in the classroom and in the community will emphasize the skills and capabilities our students need to manage and lead global organizations.” More.

UMSL’s chief marketing officer earns rare Distinguished Toastmaster distinction
toastmasters_gossen_818_526
Toastmasters International recently bestowed the organization’s highest honor to Ron Gossen, UMSL’s chief marketing officer, senior associate vice chancellor for marketing and communications and the founding president of the Triton Toastmasters Club. Only about one in every 200 toastmasters has received the award in Toastmasters International’s history. More.

Businessman returns to school to earn MBA, mentor entrepreneurial scholars
yakstis_bill_16x91
“When I started in the 1980s, the entrepreneurial community wasn’t as strong as it is today,” he said. “The Small Business Administration was the only resource we had. Not like today, where there are so many resources and support. It was a different world. I was under capitalized. I didn’t know my market. You name it, I did it wrong.” More.

Young innovators compete in entrepreneurial program
the_pitch_818_460
Scott was among 30 high school students who participated in The Pitch, a summer entrepreneurial program organized by the University of Missouri–St. Louis College of Education. The program challenged teams of students to develop innovative business projects. They focused on solving real-world commercial and social problems, giving the students free range to test and refine their wildest ideas. More.

Beyond Networking Welcomes Perry Drake!

arch-1
The Who, the When, the Where?
On Tuesday, 9/22, Perry Drake will be covering Social Media for St. Louis’ Beyond Networking. Beyond Networking is a very important and one-of-a-kind resource available to St. Louis’ job seekers and business professionals. Beyond Networking’s mission is to help others as they are pursuing a new position or a career change.
How Beyond Networking Helps
Losing your job can be like losing your identity. Leading up to and during the Great Recession, the St. Louis business community experienced major simultaneous layoffs. Many of those who were laid off had not thought about their resume or dressing for an interview in years, if not decades.
networking-imageBeyond Networking (formerly GO!) was created out a need for the development of the soft and the hard skills new job seekers need to land their next role. Beyond Networking assists with everything from best practices for resumes, completing online applications and answering interview questions to providing emotional support and financial information.
Weekly Meetings
Every Tuesday, Beyond Networking meets from 9:00 – 11:45 am while a guest speaker discusses various aspects of the career transition process. Participants enjoy coffee, learn a new professional best practice and network with other attendees – for free. All are welcome, including students.
All upcoming meetings can be found here and the next several meetings are below:
9/22: Perry Drake Presents “Social Media… Just What is it?”
Perry Drake, Asst. Teaching Professor & Director of Business Collaboration UMSL – Social Media, will lead a discussion detailing the benefits and pitfalls of social media.
9/29: Kathy Bernard Presents “Personality Tests”
Did you read the recent article in Time Magazine? Companies are relying upon personality tests to see if you fit in their culture and philosophy. Have you taken Caliper? Wunderlik? Kathy owns WiserUTips.com and has provided many seminars on important tools to use. LinkedIn changes every day, are you doing the most to maximize your presence?
10/6: David Hults, Career Coach, Author and Speaker
David’s ‘game’ helped launch Beyond Networking-STL, providing assistance on changing careers, now with a new project to help folks that are employed, stay on top.

2015 St. Louis Design Week Preview: September 19-25

11902468_882834898431459_8219912847161200264_nSt. Louis Design Week originated from a want to inspire and promote the practice of design in St. Louis. From September 19-25, you have 45 chances to “Learn something. Make something. Do Something.” With events all over town, every creative or non-creative can find something up their alley. Here is a small sampling of some of the events you can attend. For the full schedule, visit http://stldesignweek.com/.
St. Louis Design Week Opening Party | Converge with all of the creatives, designers, principals, entrepreneurs, and design fans to celebrate the unfolding of an entire week of all things design! Join us for music, interactive exhibits, installations in the space and schmooze with design luminaries from the community at World Chess Hall of Fame. More Info.
The Sunday Story | The Sunday Story breathes life into one person’s untold story, bringing to life the important lessons and meaningful impacts. The storyteller partners with a team to elevate their story through design, public speaking coaching, and experiential event planning. Think of it as a blend of a religious sermon (with all the lessons but without all the religion), TED (with the same emotional impact but less speakers and data), and an Apple keynote (without the sales pitch). Join us for the Sunday Story and connect with St. Louis’ untold stories. More Info.
The Business of Creativity Panel | We’ve assembled a panel of leaders from a spectrum of design-related businesses to discuss the joys and hangover-inducing challenges of running a creative company. Panelists will share stories of their successes and failures related to attracting new clients, defining expertise, growing a successful business, hiring disgruntled liberal arts majors and more. More Info.
Design’s Role in Social Innovation Panel | Although design’s role is so prevalent in society through day-to-day interactions and global innovations, it can be argued that design is one of the most invisible fields of innovation. Through design thinking and social entrepreneurism, design has the potential to improve global difficulties and challenge human rights and social justice issues. Hear local designers and entrepreneurs discuss how design entrepreneurship can change the social sector, redefine the notion of social entrepreneurship, and be a catalyst for social innovation. More Info.
Women in Design Panel | How does the female perspective help define design today? Join us in celebrating and discussing the many roles women take on in the world of design, from creators to consumers. This one hour panel will bring together several local women from a variety of fields, including fashion, interiors and digital strategy, who will share how their diverse backgrounds, experiences and disciplines have helped shape their careers, their local community and their creations. More Info.

4 Online Tools for Digital Marketers

By: Kathryn Todd

In a world where digital marketing is so prominent, it’s hard to decide which tools will produce the best results for your product & customer. Digital presence is now necessary for companies, and it is a huge part of the overall brand experience. It’s easy to let digital and social take over your schedule, so here are some helpful tools to streamline some of your digital marketing efforts.
Managing Multiple Social Communities
With the presence of so many social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Vine, and more, it is hard to manage all of the 512px-owly-grad-hsuposts and presences. The CMO Council states that 46% of global users go to social media to help make purchase decisions, and 71% of customers purchase from brands they are following on social media. These statistics show the huge impact social media makes on a brand and its success. Websites such as Hootsuite help manage different social media websites. This website allows users to schedule and post to up to 35 different social media platforms.
Inbound Marketing Automation
The CMO Council also states that content marketing generates 3 times as many leads as traditional outbound marketing at 62% less of a cost. Hubspot was founded in 2006 and aims to help businesses to “attract, engage, and delight customers by delivering inbound experiences that are relevant, helpful, and personalized.” This company has over 15,000 customers in over 90 companies to whom it provides blogging, social, SEO, analytics, CRM, and more.HubSpotLogo_Dark_Web_Flat
Online Creative Services
Ever wonder how brands create beautiful images for social, email or print deliverables? With companies like Canva emerging in the online graphic design space, even the novice designer can create simple and ultra-professional branding for your firm in a matter of minutes. Canva is free, with premium elements available for purchase. Start creating your visual content by using Canva’s templates or highly customize starting from a blank page. Digital options include blog graphics, cover photos, social media images and much more. Print templates include presentations, flyers, posters and invitations.
Scoring Marketing Tools
Does your inbox feel overpowered by great companies reaching out, but you don’t know where to start or who you really need? G2, a business software review platform, allows users to learn more about marketing products, compare them side by side and access full reports. Products are assigned a G2 score, a market presence score, and a satisfaction score. Viewers can see how many ratings each product has – ranging from 10 to over 800.
From start-ups to legacy companies, there are many different tools available to develop and evolve your digital brand. What are your favorite tools?