Insights

Instant Social Media Content For Your Brand And Advertising Agency

June 16, 2020 By Peter Leave a Comment

I’ve updated this blog post about, well, I’ll repeat the title for you, and especially Google. Instant Social Media Content For Your Brand And Advertising Agency.

OK, I admit it, there is no totally instant social media content. But, there is fast. In fact, fast and good. In fact, there really is fast + good + cheap. Which, as you might suspect, will make a brand and any advertising agency very happy.

I have used a few different methods to accelerate the generation of my more than 700 blog posts. Try a few of these on for size.

TikTok

I am going to write about TikTok in detail in the very near future. TikTok which, given its size and growth, is the most underutilized advertising agency business development social media platform. Hmmm. Why?

Here is what I think. Some possible agency excuses not to use TikTok…

TikTok is too young.
Too international.
Too new. As in, why should I bother? Um, remember when you didn’t use Instagram?
None of my clients have asked about it.
Worse… I do not have a TikTok account.

Interviews

Interviewing an expert, or even a consumer in your client’s or client industry or target market can take as few as 5 minutes up to say 45. A 45-minute interview will deliver approximately 8,000 words that you could cut up into 4 2,000 word blog entries or whatever you like to do with social media content, ur, I mean highly valuable insights. My book on presenting and pitching has multi interviews that I also amplified into blog posts. You bought the book so you’ve read those interviews and will now win more pitches – right?

I was recently interviewed for the Working Without Pants podcast. After Selling Your Agency, was published, I sent it to Rev.com and now have an 8,000-word transcript I will soon edit down into bite-sized blog posts. One will be a foundational blog post on how and why to sell your agency.

Do Videos

Easy… just turn on your webcam (or iPhone) and talk. I mean, you are an advertising agency, right? You can do this and start to own some SEO juice on YouTube. Less easy, but easy enough ideas: Go on the street and do some interviews (social distance yourself, please) or do a webcam interview with a genius (remember you can turn that into copy via an audio transcription company like REV.com.)

Rip Off A Podcast

Here’s a post I created by responding to the Adage interview with Lindsay Slaby. I took the interview, sent it to rev.com for transcription, and commented on what Lindsay was saying. Easy, smart, and brilliant. All around. Here is the blog post that was created by borrowing some content from Ad Age, Ad Age Small Agency Conference Podcast.

Do Your Own Podcast

I have a new Advertising Stories podcast. I interview people. They talk to me. I, well do not steal, but I do get lots of smarts out of their mouths. Plus, the entire process is essentially free.

Do A Google Survey

I Stole From Gary Vaynerchuk And Mahatma Gandhi

June 7, 2020 By Peter 2 Comments

I stole from Gary Vaynerchuk, Chris Burden, Derek Sivers, and Mahatma Gandhi.

Let me explain. I “stole” a few of the design elements of this new Peter Levitan website. Some of the core elements are from the Gary Vaynerchuk home page. Stealing, art that is, is OK. Picasso said I could do it.

And, don’t tell the Judges at award ceremonies that most of the great advertising ideas were “borrowed”. No, I am not being pissy. Ideas regenerate. Keep reading.

What I Stole From Gary Vaynerchuk. Go To My Home Page.

If you look at the Gary Vaynerchuk website next to mine, you will see similarities. Each website leads with a chest-beating video (always a good thing) and then a clear benefit statement (even better). Both websites are very clean and direct. Thank you, Gary.

Why steal from Gary Vaynerchuk? He is a dude that gets personal brand marketing right. Need more?

What I Stole From Chris Burden? Go To My Home Page.

Chris Burden was a genius performance, sculpture, and installation artist. He is very well known in the art world for instillations like the rows of lampposts outside of L.A.’s LACMA museum and got his first taste of major-league art fame when he was shot in the arm in his “Shoot” performance video. Shot by accident by the way.

I stole the idea for my lead video from Chris’s 1970s TV commercial. Just so you know, I am not the only person to have stolen Burden’s idea. To state the obvious, the video is all about name association: Van Gogh and Burden. Droga and Levitan. Look at Chris’s video interview – the idea I stole is at the 4:50 mark. How did I do?

What I Stole From Derek Sivers. See My About Page.

I have been wrestling with how to tell the story of my 30-year advertising; digital; internet startup; and advertising agency business consultation career. It could take a long time. Too long.

I finally figured out how to do it from Derek Siver’s website. Derek is the founder of CD Baby. This is what Esquire said:

“Derek Sivers is changing the way music is bought and sold. A musicians’ savior. One of the last music-business folk heroes.”

Derek covers his extensive and very cool career with his home page help-the-reader bio subheads: Me In Ten Seconds?; Me in Ten Minutes? What I Am Doing Now? Concise, fast, easy to absorb. I needed this degree of simplicity, so I stole his idea.

What I Stole From Mahatma Gandhi. See My Contact Page.

Do I have to say this? Sure, why not.

“Mahatma Gandhi was an Indian lawyer, politician, social activist, and writer who became the leader of the nationalist movement against the British rule of India. As such, he came to be considered the father of his country. Gandhi is internationally esteemed for his doctrine of nonviolent protest to achieve political and social progress.”

I spent the month of January 2020 in India. I visited Gandhi’s home in Mumbai. I picked up on his vibe and wanted to have him do a testimonial. Of course, it has been over 40 years since his assassination. So, I found a modern-day Gandhi to deliver the testimonial.

You can see what I mean when you scroll down my Contact page.

By the way, I also stole from Donald Trump – he is at the bottom of my home page. I admit it, I am a bit less proud of that theft.

Ok, OK… I Also Stole From Austin Kleon.

In this case, Austin’s best-selling book “Steal Like An Artist” – buy it at the great Powell’s Books. He told me to steal. As Austin points out…

Picasso said, “Art Is Theft.”

I hope you enjoy your own art of stealing.

Little Bird Marketing Kicks Ass

May 10, 2020 By Peter Leave a Comment

I apologize for saying this. It sure seems to me that a lot of advertising agencies are on their back foot. They are in de-accelerate mode. That means it is a great time to accelerate your business development program. There is a gap. Take advantage. Fill it. Juice it up.

This post is about how the advertising agency Little Bird Marketing kicks ass.

But wait, there’s more. Over a couple of blog posts, I am going to highlight three firms in the advertising agency business development space that are making it happen. Strangely, it just so happens that they tapped me to participate in their acceleration mode.

Little Bird Marketing Kicks Ass…

One of my first advertising agency business development clients was my NOW wonderful friend Priscilla McKinney of Missouri’s Little Bird Marketing.

Things I like about Little Bird and Priscilla:

This is a proactive company. They do good work; are well-known in their markets; their website is an active sales tool that is designed to capture leads (not what one usually sees); they are on top of inbound marketing (mucho blog posts and thought leadership).

Priscilla is very active on LinkedIn (and 3,700 Followers on Twitter). You will see lots of posts and videos plus a high volume, awareness-generating podcast. The Ponderings From The Perch podcast is designed to promote and sell the agency by also promoting people like me. For example, I am sharing my podcast interview here. Quid pro quo. Plus… Priscilla is the kind of nice, smart, caring person that clients want to work with. Believe me, this additional ’emotional’ hook works.

My Interview

Below is a brief sample from Little Bird. It is a mini-podcast audio moment promotion that they want me to put on my website to reach you to support them (they also gave me the lead graphic at the top of this podcast). Smart. Click on the image b e l o w before you go listen to the full podcast.

Now… Listen to the full podcast interview here. Note that I am pointing you back to the Little Bird website. That’s what they want to happen. By the way, I was ON that day. It is a brilliant interview about my take on the state of today’s advertising agency and how agencies need to intelligently accelerate their business development program – now.

Random Marketing And Advertising Resources

May 7, 2020 By Peter Leave a Comment

How do you know that Google is working for your company – as in SEO? Here are some random marketing and advertising resources that make me feel that Google loves me.

Ok, wait. I do know that Google loves me just by looking at my Google Analytics. The other way I know is that I get qualified leads. Plus, lots of incoming from companies looking to have me put links to their websites from my Agency Resources page. They would not find me if they did not do their own Google searches. So, to move fast to help them, more so you and a little bit me, here are some new resources for you.

A Marketing Point

A pre-point… I have a very well-read Advertising Agency Resources page as well as a few blog posts about resources. This drives traffic to me. Driving traffic is a good thing. The following companies do just that with their tools. I think, understatement coming, more agencies should develop some tools. How do your clients find you?

The Random Marketing And Advertising Resources

Business Name Generator: Chris from The Really Useful Information Company sent this business name generator. This tool works, is fun to play with and grows The Really Useful Information Company… and make some bucks from referrals to GoDaddy.

Business Plan Template: Bridget from Growthink.com sent this handy business plan guide. Why is this important? Important that the great majority of advertising agencies do not have an active business plan. I’m not talking business development plan. I’m talking having a go-to-market business plan.

Airtasker: Roy from Airtasker helps you find people who will do tasks for you. I’m thinking that this is very UK and Australia centric. But, hey, give it a go wherever you are.

Convertica: Kurt turned me on to Convertica that says “Convertica are the done-for-you conversion rate optimization specialists that allow you to maximize revenue from the same search engine rankings or paid advertising campaigns on your Affiliate, Lead Generation or eCommerce website.”

LinkedIn Marketing Guide: Miles from Wisconsin’s Imaginaisium ad agency produced this guide to LinkedIn marketing. Since advertising agencies come to me to help them with their marketing, why would I include someone else’s LinkedIn guide? 1) Because it looks good; 2) because you probably should read it.

Want Some Quality Leads? Call Me.

Just do it. it is painless.