Pinterest

In case you haven’t heard, Pinterest is the latest social-media site. More specifically, it’s a social photo-sharing website, where users create a bulletin board of their favorite images centered around a particular theme.

For example, if you are planning a holiday party, you can post photos (known as “pins”) of all the products or design ideas that appeal to you and link them to the web sites for easy access to information. Users can follow specific Pinterest boards like a Twitter feed. And like Facebook, it’s an “invitation-only” site, so access can be controlled.

Increasingly, businesses are using Pinterest as a kind of virtual storefront. Because it’s format is so visual, pinning new products and linking those photos to product descriptions or ecommerce sites is effective. Studies show that the vast majority of Pinterest users are women (the heaviest shoppers) and that they spend an hour or more on the site each visit.

But can Pinterest work for an association? The answer is… maybe, depending upon how you use it and what gets pinned.

Rule #1: Make sure what you pin is visually interesting.

If you are posting annual reports that do not have an aesthetically appealing cover or graphics that are eye-catching – few will click on it. Pinterest users want pictures, not copy.

Rule #2: Make sure the pins are useful and interesting to users.

Try not to be entirely self-serving. Post helpful information to keep members coming back and promote re-pinning. Invite “guest” pinners to contribute to your Pinterest site to help build a following.

What should you pin?

Associations have a wealth of material that is appropriate for this media.

First and foremost, your job is to bring together people with similar interests – networking is a huge part of building an active membership. So the most obvious pins would be photos from annual meetings, award ceremonies and any other industry related events where members can be showcased. You might even consider setting up a special board that showcases business cards of members to promote networking and resource sharing.

Next are your information materials, i.e. reports, industry-related articles, links to webinars. But to be effective, it may be necessary to redesign the report covers to create a more visually appealing product.

Third are industry-related items of interest, such as cartoons, books, films, online courses, etc.

And finally, don’t be afraid to “re-pin” from outside boards. Information sharing builds awareness.

Because of the rapid growth on Pinterest, it’s a good bet that even if your membership is not currently using Pinterest—it will be soon. Reaching potential members and remaining relevant is the key to successful membership building efforts. Pinterest may be a wonderful tool to help you reach your membership goals.

SOURCES:

http://blog.omnipress.com/2012/05/pinterest-for-associations-visual-content-is-key/

http://www.scdgroup.net/2012/02/pinterest-6-potential-uses-for.html

http://blog.avectra.com/pinterest-for-associations-new-audience-new-addiction/

http://www.searchenginejournal.com/pinterestingly-enough-interesting-pinterest-stats/45328/

COLOR:

This year’s new “hot” color is the 2011 Pantone Color of the Year: Honeysuckle. Although Pantone describes Honeysuckle as “…a vibrant, energetic hue…” the fact is: it’s pink. No matter how it’s described, pink is historically associated with feminine characteristics. So one must ask — is that right for YOUR image?   
SOURCE:
http://www.pantone.com/pages/pantone/Pantone.aspx?pg=20821&ca=4&utm_source=eb20101209

Whether your marketing materials embrace the latest color trend or not, one color rule is universally applicable. Contrasting colors are important and color schemes should be limited to only two or three choices. If a strong base color is used, it becomes easier to infiltrate a contrasting color such as “honeysuckle”.

ILLUSTRATION:

Another design trend is the common use of illustrations based on mobile device graphics, like dimensional icons. The popularity of smart phone apps, and web-based media has changed the way we communicate visually. But again, the question becomes—is that image right for your organization? An association that represents quilt makers in America may not want to appear too cutting-edge in their design.

For those sorts of situations, freehand illustrations are trending, perhaps a backlash to the ultra-techie design elements. Images that resemble a sketch or a doodle may be more appropriate, providing a more personal feel to your materials.

TYPOGRAPHY:

Using web fonts is a creative way to ensure that fonts are always displayed properly on the viewer’s display. Before access to web fonts, designers had to convert unique typefaces into an image. Font hosting services allow users to pay a subscription to host non-web-safe fonts online. Most services host the font and provide the necessary @font-face CSS declaration tag.
SOURCES:
http://mashable.com/2010/05/27/type-and-the-web/
http://www.alistapart.com/articles/fonts-at-the-crossing/
http://webfonts.fonts.com/

WEB DESIGN:

 Web designers are less concerned about beauty for beauty’s sake, and are really focusing on increasing the functionality of the sites they design. These new approaches are smart and responsive to the changes in our lifestyles, including designing for touch screens, making designs more mobile ready, integrating Quick Response so that barcode photos via your smart phone will automatically launch the intended web site and using CSS3 + HTML5 and less Flash. Simple color schemes with more white space to allow copy and/or photos to pop, Parallax Scrolling (which allows different planes of graphics and/or animation to scroll at different rates) and the integration of depth perception design to give the illusion of true 3D, a hot feature in movies and TV now. All of these innovations are the direct result of the Internet as mainstream communication.
SOURCE: 
 http://webdesignledger.com/tips/web-design-trends-in-2011

CORPORATE IDENTITY:

Finally, corporate branding has seen some changes this year as well. Much of the change in this area is the direct result of more sophisticated and readily available printing methods, allowing for more complex use of colors and blending. A more subtle use of typeface for a lighter, more sophisticated approach is popular.

Logo merging has emerged as a way to create a singular logo for two companies that have merged. For example when United Airlines took over Continental Airlines they incorporated the Continental brand mark and typography into the new logo. When AT&T took over Cingular they incorporated the Cingular “orange” into their brand identity. 

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At LTD, we stay on top of the latest design trends without becoming a slave to fashion. As with all of our projects, we design printed and online materials that enhance your corporate identity and work to achieve your marketing goals for this year, and beyond. Contact us today for a design consultation and see how we can give your materials a modern makeover.

Creating A Social Media Calendar

If your organization has begun incorporating social media into its marketing plan you need to hunker down and get organized. Social media marketing success revolves around creating an effective and well-planned strategy. Merely posting the occasional blog or sporadically updating your Facebook account will neither develop a strong online presence for your brand, or connect with prospects. The initial time investment will be larger than one might expect, but that investment will produce results if you stick to it.

Here are some tips to help define a game plan, keep you organized and ensure your social media efforts produce the results you want.

1. Pick Your Poison
The first step is to decide which social media platform(s) will work best for you… Facebook? Twitter? LinkedIn? Blog? eNewsletter? You’ll need to figure out where your audience resides, which combination reaches the broadest base and how much time you can devote to social media marketing each week.

2. Content Is King
Finding enough content is always a challenge but remember, the point of social media as a marketing tool is to create a dynamic medium that can deliver YOUR UNIQUE SKILL SET to an interactive, engaged, audience. If you can’t deliver fresh, compelling content 3x per week, scale back your efforts to 1x per week. Make every effort count, don’t get caught up in counting all your efforts.

3. Organize It. Map It. Stick To It!
Just like your personal life, you’ll need to develop a social MEDIA calendar. It’s the only way to ensure you continue to provide reliable content that is valued by your audience.

A social media calendar is just what it seems, a spreadsheet that maps your social media strategy over the course of time. You can create your own spreadsheet or you can use some available online tools such as the Google docs-based social media calendar template.

A. Start by tracking industry events such as conferences, release dates, association or industry events etc. Define content and frequency around those important dates.

B. Create a schedule for your content… Tuesday for personal commentary, Wednesday for industry news, Thursday for best practices, etc.

C. Select your medium by day… Tuesday for Facebook and Twitter updates, Wednesday for eNewsletter releases, Thursday for blogs and Twitter, etc. Plan to use the same content topic per day per medium to re-enforce the message.

D. Define Your Content—But Be Flexible
Decide in advance which topics will be discussed on which days. Regularly annotate the calendar with interesting factoids, relevant links or photos, and keywords as you gather them, so when the time comes to write up each topic, you’ll have reference notes on the calendar itself. Taking the time to put together an editorial calendar every 6 weeks, and updating it on an ongoing basis, will save time in the long run and ensure you spread the content evenly over time.

Most importantly, be prepared to change your planned content calendar to accommodate breaking industry news, guest bloggers, etc.

E. Remember To Interact With Your Audience
Initiate polls, ask for commentary—create a forum for discussion. Often, your audience can provide better content than you can.

SOURCES:
• Communications Conversations by Arik Hanson
• Basics of the Social Media Editorial Calendar by Stephanie Schwab: Socialologist
• Social Media Examiner: 5 Easy Steps to a Winning Social Media Plan, By Emily Soares Proctor