(Re-posted from YourPBC.org)

by Ceci Dadisman of CeciCreative

You may have seen them and not even known it! They seem to be everywhere these days if you know where to look. (I got a pint of Haagen-Dazs ice cream the other day and there were QR codes all over it!)

QR codes (the QR stands for “quick response”) are bar codes that allow you to link them to an event, website URL, bit of text, or virtual business card. My colleague Slade Sundar talked about them in a previous YourPBC.org blog post. Scanners for these codes are free and can be downloaded to any smart phone. (I use one called NeoReader but there are others such as Kaywa that are good as well.)

But, you ask, how can a non-profit arts organization use this newfangled technology? Well, remember when you got your first Facebook page and then you started putting a little Facebook icon on your marketing materials or listing the URL? Well, it is just that easy. Any site that allows you to make a QR code will allow you to download said code so that you can put it anywhere. Here are a couple of examples of great uses of QR codes:

1. The Cleveland Museum of Art

(I know they’re not in Palm Beach County, but they are doing great things with regard to QR codes!)

Check out this poster which is part of their latest marketing campaign. Very compelling, no?

Here is what Kesha Williams, their Digital Communications Manager has to say about it:

“The Cleveland Museum of Art chose to use QR code samples because we wanted to try this innovative technology as a refresh of our How Do You See It? Marketing campaign. We saw the QR codes as creative way to offer access to our collection objects during the summer visit season. We recently re-opened our Ancient Greek and Roman art galleries after a five-year hiatus during our construction project.”

AND this sort of use is super simple to create yet is perhaps more compelling than a traditional poster.

2. Palm Beach Opera

Palm Beach Opera is using QR codes on all of their advertising and collateral materials for the 2010-2011 season.

This is the mailing panel of their soon-to-be-released season brochure. Notice the QR code tucked handily in the lower left corner. You will be seeing this also on all of their print advertising as well.

So, how can your organization use QR code to further it’s mission? If you are someone who attends arts performances, how would you use a QR code if you saw one? Perhaps in a program book where it is linked to behind-the-scenes information about the performance. Or maybe as a sign in the lobby with a link to the next event that can be easily added to your calendar.

So, the next time you see a QR code, scan it!

…on all things AMA – South Florida!

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from Mashable.com

According to a recent report, while upwards of 70% of businesses are said to operate under a formalized social media strategy, many plans don’t include measurable goals. Gimmicks, viral videos, and creative campaigns aside, social media marketers must learn to introduce “clicks to action” and outcomes that steer consumer experiences toward desirable results.

Engagement through conversation is a start, but reaching people where their attention is focused and compelling them to take an action is powerful. Clearly defined objectives and milestones, combined with a little conversion science, will increase the value of engagement and drive desired outcomes.  READ FULL ARTICLE…

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from Mashable.com

For all the praise that brand advertisers have for social media, they must be aware that it’s very much a double-edged sword. And for all the free marketing, advertising and brand promotion via Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, and other platforms used to help build an identity and relationship with your customers, it can just as quickly turn on you and your brand.

Social media disasters occur for a number of reasons, the first being that your company probably messed up. It may not have been intentional, but something, somewhere down the line, went wrong enough for someone to complain and it was enough for others to vocalize that complaint en masse. One mistake is all it takes for social media to turn against your brand.

No one is perfect and you can’t expect to please everyone all the time, so the best trick is to be prepared for how to handle things if your company finds itself under attack in the social realm. Here are three examples of companies who were attacked by social media and how they handled, or should have handled the situation. Learn from their mistakes or successes so you can stay on social media’s good side.

READ THE FULL POST…