Advertising for Agencies, Advertising for Businesses, Advertising for Companies

How Is Business Advertising Expected to Change in 2023?

Trends in business advertising change yearly, as companies review their past successes and failures, then adjust their campaigns accordingly.

Acknowledging this, some industry experts are already looking ahead in the hopes of predicting what the new trends in advertising for companies will be in 2023 to get a jump on them.

These are just some of the ideas that advertising agencies see coming to the forefront, that business owners should pay more attention to in the coming year.

  1. The Growing Use of AI and AR - The use of artificial intelligence is growing as a means of tracking and predicting user behavior, so business advertising agencies are focusing on more ways to implement this capability to learn more about them. Ads that use augmented reality to make them more interactive are also growing in popularity for the engagement they create.   
  2. Social Proof Is More Important Than Ever - From online reviews to customer testimonials on websites and social media posts, social proof is becoming the most important validation that new customers look for today. More valuable than company promises and even influencer statements, advertising for companies that include real opinions from real customers has become a critical element that boosts sales and creates more new customers. 
  3. The QR Code Is Back - The short-lived QR code is back and gaining in popularity since it is no longer necessary to download an app to use them. Built-in mobile camera technology has made it easier for business advertisers to make use of these codes and with this new ease of use, consumers are jumping back on the QR bandwagon. Advertising for companies can utilize them in creative ways to provide a point-and-scan link to more information to draw in more consumers and help them make informed decisions. 
  4. Value-Aligned Content - With a need for more and more creative content every year, advertising agencies are currently seeing a greater response from content that aligns with the values and needs of their target audience as opposed to especially promotional content. Consumers want to buy from brands that have the same values and will do so over a brand that simply tries to convince them to buy without relating. 
  5. Proximity Marketing A Key Method - Proximity marketing is taking local marketing to the next level through geo-tracking, providing a more personalized experience. By showing ads that are relevant to the locations where target consumers are positioned, companies can further research the behaviors of their target customers to reach the right person at the right time based on their proximity.

Heading into a new advertising year, it seems that personalization, social proof, and the growing use of AI and AR are at the top of the list for developing interesting, informative, and effective advertising for companies to get their word out.

As consumer opinions and technology all progress, business owners should expect to incorporate at least some of these ideas into their advertising campaigns in 2023.

Marketing, Marketing for Companies, Marketing Services

The Important Benefits to Investing in Professional Marketing Services!

Every business no matter the type, requires marketing in some shape or form.

Without it, it would be nearly impossible to attract customers, especially in highly competitive communities or industries.

While many business owners know a few things about marketing services, they probably do not know enough about it to be their own marketing professionals. 

Benefits of Using Marketing Services

Marketing for companies is a specialty all its own.

To achieve success through effective marketing, it is essential for business owners to budget for professional marketing services and partner with a proven agency.

In doing so, they will appreciate these important business-growing benefits!

  • Access to Tools, Technology, and Techniques - The main reason why every business owner should develop a relationship with professional marketing services is that they are devoted to marketing for companies and keeping up with the trends. Marketing trends and technologies change by the year, meaning what worked last year may not work this year. Marketing professionals have all the training and tools needed to progress their clients’ promotional campaigns successfully and keep up with the changes. 
  • Time to Focus on Business - Successful marketing involves a large time commitment, even for professionals. When business owners attempt to learn how to self-market their companies, it takes precious time away from the very business they are trying to promote. Instead of struggling to figure out effective marketing services, business owners that leave it to the pros and focus on running their businesses instead will do better in the long run. Owners need to be ready to meet the growth challenges that effective professional marketing services can offer them after all. 
  • More Cost-Effective Than DIY - Even those businesses that dedicate one staff member for taking care of marketing for companies end up spending more on salary and training than if they partner with a professional marketing service. Professional marketers have developed their skills and knowledge over years at great cost. Contracting a marketing professional provides the more cost-effective benefits of access to all those years of experience at a much more affordable cost, and a better ROI. 

Adding It All Up

In summary, there is much more to successful marketing for companies than most business owners realize.

To achieve the greatest results in the least amount of time and for the lowest cost, hiring professional marketing services is the best option.

Budget for professional marketing help to become more competitive and gain more customers without sacrificing time for running the business or the cost of fruitless advertising!

Cyber Security, Cyber Security Companies, Cyber Security Services

Effective Cyber Security Involves Much More Than Just Your IT Department!

A primary focus of cyber security and the prevention of cyber attacks revolves around investing in the right hardware, software, and personnel to promote a secure network that is not vulnerable to attack.

What many business owners do not understand is that there is much more involved in keeping their networks secure than simply paying for cyber security services.

Cyber security companies stress the importance of looking at threat prevention from outside of the IT room and how other players add to the vulnerabilities that make networks less secure.

Only by addressing these issues can any company achieve the level of cyber security required with everyone acting together. 

Problem – A System of System Risk

The biggest issues increasing risk in many cases include a cultural disconnect between the IT department and everyone else.

Those outside of the IT department frequently do not understand how their actions can negatively affect cyber security, increasing risk.

This system of systemic risk should be identified and addressed within a company to ensure that all employees fully understand the risks they create and how to reduce risky actions that can threaten the network. 

Need for an Accountability Policy

To enforce these policies and make employees aware of the risks they create and acknowledge the policies being put in place to prevent cyber attacks, cyber security services recommend putting an accountability policy in place.

This policy must be carefully developed to reward those making the best decisions, yet without creating a culture that unintentionally becomes so restrictive that it slows job efficiency. 

Above All – Communicate

An important part of all of these methods is communication and building a company culture that can talk to each other.

Non-IT executives must be willing and able to discuss cyber security with the IT department, then translate that information to everyone else in the building and enforce cyber security protocols.

Executives must also be vocal about balancing these protocols to everyone’s benefit, rather than allowing an environment that is either too restrictive or not restrictive enough, then placing blame when cyber threats become a problem. 

Cyber Security Involves Everyone

Ultimately, cyber security companies can only stress that effective cyber security is a company-wide effort that all personnel must be aware of and take part in.

While implementation of cyber security services may lay in the hands of the IT department, making use of those protocols is everyone’s responsibility.

With good communication, awareness, training, and good communication, businesses can ensure that all employees do their part to promote a safer network environment.

Marketing

Gain Marketing Success in 2022 With These Trends!

Marketing trends change by leaps and bounds every year as marketing services experiment with their strategies and others follow suit.

2022 is no different and halfway through the year, these are the trends that every marketing department should be paying attention to if they are not already doing so.

Including these techniques in every marketing development strategy is sure to bring more success to every business seeking to increase its brand exposure, get better pagerank, and simply get more customers.

  1. Video Marketing - Video marketing has become one of the most important methods being used to increase brand awareness and gain new customers and followers in the most cost-effective way. From video content on websites to advertising on video platforms, incorporating video into marketing development is a must in 2022.
  2. Social Media Content - As social media use has skyrocketed, so has the effectiveness of using it within a marketing strategy. Businesses not only need to build and use their social media pages, but also invest in social media advertising and create short video content for posting on social media to gain and engage followers and build their customer base.
  3. Defining Customer Needs - Customer research has always been a critical factor in marketing. Today, there is a greater emphasis being put on defining customer needs as opposed to touting a product or service and finding customers based on those needs. A company that can fulfill a customer’s needs by knowing what they are and offering good solutions will more easily find and convert those customers.
  4. Better Customer Experience - Marketing services and sales departments must work together to create the best overall customer experience to gain more customers. Online UX and messaging must combine to work together.
  5. Great Content - Still important all these years later is high-quality, optimized content on every website, social media page, and paid ad. In this case, the basics will always be relevant for great marketing, even in 2022. It is these basics that ensure all other elements within marketing services can achieve their greatest returns.

Every year that goes by there is more competition doing business online and every year that goes by, marketing services find more effective methods to get their customers more customers.

With video content and marketing leading the way in 2022, these five tips for marketing development can help any business find their target audience more easily and convert many of them into new paying customers.

Cyber Defense Companies

Learn the 7 Steps to Protect Against Ransomware!

Ransomware attacks are some of the most dangerous and destructive attacks that any business without effective ransomware attack prevention in place might encounter.

As these threats continue to become more prevalent, it is essential that businesses plan their ransomware attack protection in addition to any other network security they already have in place.

The seven steps briefly outlined below follow the protocol that cyber defense companies use to protect against ransomware attacks and other serious cyber threats.

  1. Maintain Thorough Data Backups - Complete backups of data, applications, and all other network data and settings that are stored offsite and offline are the single most important ransomware attack protection tools for reinstating a company’s network after an attack.
  2. Develop Security Policies and Plans - IT teams must have a plan in place on how to react to cyber threats and the company must have policies in place that serve to reduce exposure for effective ransomware attack prevention.
  3. Manage Port Settings - Ransomware frequently takes advantage of certain open network ports. Cyber defense companies recommend doing a review of all network ports to analyze their use and closing down unused ones to reduce the number of entry points for this software to enter.
  4. Create Secure Networks - Network security is as much about up-to-date hardware and securely planned digital network architecture as it is about having secure applications and safety protocols implemented.
  5. Update Regularly - Software and application updates should be done as soon as they are available to reduce the chance that any discovered vulnerabilities will be exploited. Installing updates promptly also adds the benefits of additional security features that software companies may have newly built into their products to make them safer.
  6. Add An IDS - While certain techniques prevent ransomware from entering a network, an Intrusion Detection System (IDS) as part of ransomware attack protection will actively look for threats that may have made it past security features and alert to their presence. This is done by monitoring traffic logs and network signatures, looking for suspicious network behavior that could mean some kind of breach of the network.
  7. Provide Employee Training - Given that most ransomware and other malicious files find their way onto networks in suspicious emails and by clicking on insecure websites, employee training on how to recognize these things is essential.

Protecting a business network involves many different processes, including ransomware attack prevention that stops or tracks these malicious files or provides reliable ways to restore a network when necessary.

Businesses utilizing IT should work with qualified cyber defense companies to protect their data, their personnel and customers, and their ability to remain in business, even in this day of heightened cyber threats.