Content Sites Still Rule With Consumers
With everyone falling over themselves to have the most engaging social media profiles (with varying degrees of success), a recent survey shows us that brands would do well not to take their eye off their own website.
The study by the Association of Online Publishers found that 60% of respondents trusted content they came across on a brand’s site, compared to a measly 14% trust level for a social network profile.
While it’s still crucial for most brands to engage in social media spaces (as that’s where your audience is generally hanging out), a brand’s own destination site is important for projecting your ethos, building credibility & authority and gaining trust.
The best way to go about it will vary from brand to brand (it’s something that All-Leo are experts at, should you need some help), but if you’re looking for inspiration, we reckon Innocent, Ribena and Skinny Cow (we just happen to run this one!) are good places to start.
Read more about the survey at New Media Age.
Pic thanks to Skinny Cow.
Be Thankful This Christmas
At this festive time of year we’re all told that we should be grateful for something, be it family, friends, Facebook or twitter. But what is it that tops the list, what are we truly grateful for?
The people at Thankfulfor.com took it upon themselves to figure it out; they’ve also provided a handy infographic if you don’t fancy reading their 55-page report.
Thankfulfor collected over 25,000 entries from its archives and categorised them into 42 categories. Unsurprisingly the top category, with nearly half of the posts, was people that were thankful for the other people in their lives. Perhaps slightly more unexpectedly though was that money and jobs only appeared at tenth on the list. It just goes to prove that money isn’t everything, despite what some people might think.
We’re thankful for the guys at Mashable for the story.
All-Leo Asks…Joe Sparrow, Music Blogger
Joe Sparrow runs the wonderful A New Band A Day blog where he… well… suggests a new band a day for aural inspection. He kindly took time to answer a few questions for us as part of our now seminal Asks… series.
Why do you do what you do and how did it start?
I started A New Band A Day for a few reasons – I realised I loved writing, and that I loved new bands, and that also there was a John Peel-shaped hole in my life after he died. Having a creative output is really important – I used to be a visual artist, but found it very hard to let go of my work and allow it to be sold.
So, I like the immediacy and throwaway nature of blogging as a creative endeavour. In fact, I enjoyed it so much, I started a second blog, www.badcoverversions.com, which finally proved to me that I have too much free time.
How do you drive traffic to your blogs?
The usual: Twitter, Facebook, etc. But the most important tactic, if you can call it that, is just to create relationships with people, by email or in real life. The traffic as a result from those sources is a happy by-product.
Do you feel there’s competition between bloggers, or is it a friendly community?
It’s both, weirdly. American and Scandinavian bloggers are very friendly and open as a rule – but many UK bloggers seem very insular and keep each other at arm’s length. I can’t see the point in that attitude – if you hold onto what you’ve got, the world moves on without you. I think it’s cultural. That said, I have good British friends who are bloggers.
What do online PRs do well, and what do they do badly?
How long have you got? Put simply – a good PR knows, at least vaguely, what music a particular blogger will potentially like, and they’ll cultivate a real relationship with a blogger. Bad PR is effectively spam email. And keep it brief: you can’t go wrong with three lines of blurb, a photo and a Soundcloud link.
What advice would you give to aspiring bloggers?
Keep going! Write every day about what you love, not what you think drives traffic. And email other bloggers to say hi! Don’t worry about your Google Analytics stats. Quality, not quantity. Ignore the squeaky wheels. Etc.
Who’s writing style do you most admire online?
I love Roger Ebert, the US film critic.If I could write one column as good as his, I’d be happy forever.
Is blogging a viable way to make a living?
*HOLLOW LAUGHTER*
Which sites have you got bookmarked?
In terms of music blogs, the excellent: rawkblog and thepigeonpost and http://www.rawkblog.net
And then in terms of everything else, it’s the ubiquitous Reddit and Boing Boing. I’m an internet grazer.
All-Leo Asks…Alex Kazemi, Music Blogger
We managed to grab hold of the brilliant Alex Kazemi for our Asks… series. He’s a straight-talking scene teen that has very quickly made waves in the blogosphere… Check out his bio here.
Why do you do what you do?
I want to educate people about pop music in a new perspective…Some people sadly don’t know that there is usually a really cool process behind that song they play every hour on their iPod. Music is art, it’s creative and artists work hard.. I want people to see musicians in their work ego, showing off their creative side as an artist.. If I were to talk to Lady GaGa, I wouldn’t give a fuck about her religious views or who she’s dating.. I would get straight to the point and talk about “Team Lovechild”, recording under Def Jam and a lot about working closely with Fernando Garibay and RedOne. I don’t want my interview to be quoted in the Daily Mail or in the Post, I want it to be quoted on MTV.com or somewhere hard core music fans will be able to appreciate the quote. I don’t want a reader to learn about someone’s favourite hair product at the end of reading one of my interviews, I want to stick to the music and talk strictly about music… I’m really inspired by 90s Rolling Stone articles and MTV hosts from the past like Carson Daly. I do it because it keeps me happy and I know I was brought in this world to do something and I’m not that athletic or good at becoming a doctor, so this is one of the only things I’m useful for.. I remember watching MTV when I was younger and knowing that’s what I wanted to do. It’s simply my passion.
What’s been the reaction to your blog, both from other bloggers and readers?
Music Bloggers.. Hmm, well I like to consider the royal hierarchy of music bloggers “The Plastics.” Yes, a reference to the movie “Mean Girls.” #BewareOfThePlasticsTheyreBlogRoyalty
¬ Arjan Writes
¬ MuuMuse
¬ TheProphetBlog
¬ PopSlags
¬ MTVBuzzworthy
¬ PopJustice
I get an occasional great job and sometimes RTs and it makes me feel welcomed but advice to any new music blogger, stay away from that group because they’re running the game right now.. So until you have an interview with Bloodshy & Avant, Britney Spears or Klas Ahlund back off…
MuuMuse is like a number one Britney Spears album on the charts that you can’t knock off, he is absolutely brilliant! I hope one day to enter this group like Cady Heron.
I was surprised but I do have myself on Google Alert and I see when forum members say things like “Oh, that was a brilliant interview!” “Oh my god, I loved when she said that.” Seriously, amazing and makes me super stoked and reminds me of why I do what I do.. Occasionally, I get weird things like “Why do you have a photo with an artist smoking, you’re corrupting the youth of today.” *Kanye Shrug*
What’s the best and worst thing about blogging?
The best thing about blogging has to be all the free stuff, I mean it’s great! Lots of cool things and I love how I can give a pop music follower a physical CD with the contest option on my site… I also love the fact that I can send a message to so many people virally with electronic word of mouth.. I just want to send positive vibes and keep everyone happy in the most fun way I can. The worst thing has to be people being rude and spiteful for no reason without any backup to their comment, it’s like you sound uneducated, just stop before you look dumb. I remember writing an article for Much Music and getting hate mail saying that it was a rip off of some YouTube video I’ve never even heard of before? That stuff is ridiculous but also something to laugh at.
How do you drive traffic to your site?
When I had a Facebook, mostly Facebook… Twitter, Music Forums, telling friends.. The word gets around I guess! I think I might print out street team flyers, to throw all over the streets of downtown.
Where do you hope to be in 3 years’ time?
Definitely something under Viacom.. MTV Networks and I will have an unstoppable collaboration… I hope to be hosting TRL to coincide with all these new artists breaking out.. I want to send my message to something as big as MTV, I want you to turn off Jersey Shore and Teen Mom and remember that this is the channel that has brought so many memorable events in the pop MUSIC world…It needs to be like that again, I will make it that way again. Pray for MTV! I also will probably attend The Clive Davis department at NYU when the time is right.
If you were CEO of a major label for a day, what would you do?
First off, I would have major control on who gets my artists music…If I’m signing a vulnerable 17 year old pop star who has no composure and sends all her music out to her friends who aren’t going to give a damn about her in three years when she’s signed and will probably leak her music, I want to have that music in a vault. New artists leak their own music, real composed pop artists aren’t suppose to have their music on their iTunes library, really? In this freaky internet age you want to have music that was spent thousands and thousands of dollars on your computer? It should be locked up in a vault and when you see an artist complain on twitter “SORRY BUT HOW THE FUCK HAVE SOME PEOPLE HEARD SONGS OFF MY ALBUM?” it’s because you sent them to the person and you leaked your own music, you’re your own victim. I would also give artists lots of creative control but to the extent where it’s necessary.. So they don’t have to go crazy and fire all their A&R and the people who are helping them out.. It’s like when you sign that pen and you expect success, you listen to your label because they know what’s right, you don’t… Of course you can have some integrity but on the first album, do what you have to do to get out. Do it the right way, that’s why a lot of new artists have been flopping because they feel like they have the control over what they’re doing but they really don’t, the big guys do.
Which musicians do you think communicate really well online?
A lot of artists are getting better at it but then you see some artists who don’t repay at all and its like get over yourself, you will literally make someone’s day by replying to their tweet.. So why not past that chance from spreading positive vibes? Lolene, Frankmusik, Colette Carr are artists I always see replying to fans… Some new artists, really need to learn PR skills. It’s quite sad.. Just do everyone a favour and go on a press freeze until you’re ready to speak.
What do you think will be the ‘next big thing’ online?
I received my Spotify media pass in my mailbox the other day and I literally did a back flip, what an amazing program.. It fascinates me that I can type “Bloodshy” in and have every label released Bloodshy remix to stream.. It’s very refreshing, cleansing, god sent etc.
All-Leo Asks…Yvette Snowden, Find-Me-A-Dress Founder
We’re thinking fashion today as our latest Asks… interview uncovers more useful online tips. This time from the CEO and founder of find-me-a-dress.com, Yvette Snowden, pictured below with designer Matthew Williamson.
Why do you do what you do & how did you get involved?
I am CEO & Founder of the UK’s première dress comparison website www.find-me-a-dress.com & I launched the website on the 12th June 2009, after graduating from university, where I ironically studied politics! But my passion for fashion made me want to want launch my own fashion business.
What are the biggest challenges you face?
The biggest challenges I have right now is growing the business sufficiently with a limited budget; I have a lot of big plans for the website and the “Find-Me-A” brand so it would be great if we could get some venture capitalist funding soon.
What’s your favourite thing about working online?
I love the freedom working online gives you… I don’t have to be in a office to run my business and I can pretty much operate from whichever country I want… its great.
Any dislikes?
The only criticism I have about working online is that working online gives everyone the opportunity to become a critic of your work/business; whether they’re anonymous or not. Anyone and everyone can form a direct criticism of your work, which can be quite disheartening but I have learned to brush off negativity and use constructive criticism to further build and strengthen the FMAD brand.
Which sites have you got bookmarked?
Surprisingly, I have a lot of business/start up articles bookmarked from drapers, media week, retail republic etc.. as well as the obvious fashion sites such as Vogue.com, Harpersbazaar.co.uk, Graziadaily.co.uk & Style.com bookmarked & a ton of individual designer websites such as those of Matthew Williamson, Alexander McQueen, Alexander Wang and currently I’m OBSESSED with Boudicca’s fragmented dreams site at www.frag-dream.platform13.com — it’s a gorgeous site & their s/s’11 looks are gorgeous; but fundamentally, I like to keep up to date on what’s going on in the online fashion industry to help me grow my business & keep an eye out for any possible business partnerships or collaborations.
What are your hopes and plans for FMAD?
Right now I am currently focusing on growing FMAD into a brand and I plan to do this by first launching the men’s version of Find-me-a-dress next year [stay tuned to find out which item of clothing our niche site will focus on for menswear!] and really exploring ways of growing the “Find Me A” brand into a fashion & lifestyle brand,
Any predictions on what the ‘next big thing’ in digital will be?
Yes! I predict that the next big thing in digital will be the virtual changing room for ecommerce; The application was build by Estonian team fits.me and their virtual changing room I feel will revolutionize the way we shop online in the next few years.