http://www.corecubed.com/blog en leigh-ann.heuer@corecubed.com Copyright 2012 2012-05-14T15:23:15+00:00 http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/corecubed-named-finalist-in-the-10th-annual-stevie-awards http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/corecubed-named-finalist-in-the-10th-annual-stevie-awards#When:15:23:15Z This week corecubed was named a Finalist in the 2012 American Business AwardsSM (also referred to as The SteviesTM) for our work designing and developing a website for the Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass (AACG)! This year, The Stevies garnered more than 3,000 nominations from organizations in virtually every industry to be considered in a wide range of categories. Finalists, including corecubed, were chosen by more than 140 business professionals nationwide during preliminary judging in April and May. More than 150 members of 10 specialized judging committees will determine Stevie Award placements, Gold, Silver and Bronze, during final judging, to take place May 14 – 25. Details about The Stevies and the list of Finalists in all categories are available at www.stevieawards.com/aba. This outstanding award is validation of the valuable work corecubed produces and the commitment we have to our clients. We will continue onward and upward and produce even more great work! corecubed’s  more than 15 years of designing, developing and delivering results-driven, award-winning business marketing, has translated into crafting campaigns and products that streamline and simplify marketing a business. For more information about corecubed, please visit www.corecubed.com. News, 2012-05-14T15:23:15+00:00 http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/buyers-remorse-the-high-cost-of-a-cheap-website http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/buyers-remorse-the-high-cost-of-a-cheap-website#When:11:18:32Z Are you bargain hunting for a new website? Buyer beware! Shopping for a good website designer and developer should be like a marathoner shopping for the perfect running shoe. A marathoner doesn’t skimp on quality when it comes to her shoes, because she realizes the importance those shoes will have in helping her go the distance. (corecubed’s fearless marathon-running Managing Director, Anna Kitson could attest to that!) A marathon runner does her research and soaks in the advice of the in-store shoe experts on what size and style will be most suitable for her body. She does this because she knows that the wrong shoe could mean an aching knee, excruciating heel pain, or worse yet, a torn tendon that could take her out of the race entirely.   Not convinced that a website will be the cornerstone of winning your marketing race? Think of it this way: According to the Pew Internet and American Life Project, 78% of Internet users conduct product research online. That means your website stands a good chance of being a prospect's "first impression." And when the competition is stiff, you know how important that first impression is! Why take a chance on a website design that is hard to navigate, doesn’t create a fantastic impression within seconds, or could be vulnerable to security risks at a time when website hacking has risen by 81 percent? What many site owners don't realize is that if your site gets hacked, Google can (and will) blacklist your website, essentially taking you out of the race for new prospects online. So how do you shop for a top quality website designer and developer?  Take a look at their portfolio. What kinds of sites have they designed? Are they easy to get around?  Clean and not too busy? Are they attention-grabbing? Is the text relevant and clear, and does it contain prominent calls to action? Take a look at company reviews, their customer testimonials and their social media accounts. Does it look like they are wowing their customer base? Dig a little deeper and talk to the website design company’s clients. Was the company easy to work with? Has their site had any issues? How did the developer work to solve any problems? Take note of their customer service. Are they quick to respond to your questions? Do they seem willing and able to help with clear turnaround times noted? Ask about search engine friendliness. Will your site design be built with SEO best practices? Ask about mobile ability. 69% of U.S. users access the mobile Internet daily and it's important that your site looks great across all platforms. Ask about website upgrades and security. Will the company inform you when a security update or website upgrade is available and then assist you with that website maintenance to protect your site from vulnerabilities to hacking? Ask if the website design is easily expandable so it can grow with your business. Are you able to add content, images, and pages yourself?  Like a quality pair of running shoes, your website is a good investment that will help you go the distance. People are often more than willing to pay a large sum of money for an advertisement, and your website is your biggest advertisement! Have it done right the first time and avoid the cost of having it redone later when you realize you’ve purchased a website equivalent of off-brand, clearance shoes that only cause you pain. Pay once for high quality and get where you need to go with your marketing quickly; or, pay several times for low quality and never get ahead. You decide! corecubed’s website design team is well known for high quality website design and development that gets your business to the finish line for a fantastic return on your investment. Give us a call and try the above 7 steps for quality on us! We’d love the chance to exceed your expectations in website design and maintenance. Design, Security, Web Development, 2012-05-10T11:18:32+00:00 http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/corecubed-work-wins-aster-award-recognition http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/corecubed-work-wins-aster-award-recognition#When:18:40:18Z corecubed began the week with a pat on the back. The Aster Awards, one of the largest national competitions of its kind, and hosted by Marketing Healthcare Today Magazine and Creative Images, Inc., recognized work entered by corecubed as among the best in healthcare marketing. This elite program honored outstanding healthcare professionals for excellence in their advertising/marketing efforts for the calendar year 2011. corecubed was honored with SILVER Aster Awards for our brochure work for Advanced TeleHealth Solutions AND Premiere Home Health Care. Congrats to all involved! Awards were issued for entries that received top marks from judges placing them in the top 16% of the nation for advertising excellence.  Judging criteria included creativity, layout and design, functionality, message effectiveness, production quality and overall appeal. The 2012 Aster Awards received nearly 3,000 entries. All winners are posted on the Aster Awards website, as well as published in Marketing Healthcare Today, a national healthcare marketing magazine. Don't forget to check out the other awards corecubed has won on our awards page. News, 2012-05-01T18:40:18+00:00 http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/home-care-marketing-just-got-pinteresting http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/home-care-marketing-just-got-pinteresting#When:21:23:28Z Humans are visual creatures. A powerful image can evoke emotion and brand recognition. Marketing, at its roots, uses visuals to convey a message.  In the evolution of social media marketing, we are finally at a point where visuals are becoming a dominant, driving force. What do we mean? As potential referral sources, patients, clients and family members become more search-centric when they need products and services, they are looking online, specifically to social media to help make purchase decisions. There is no quicker way to evoke influence than via visual image, which is why home care social media marketing just got Pinteresting. With the meteoric rise of social media newcomer, Pinterest, and Facebook's new Timeline format, home health care marketing has the opportunity to transform itself and create fresher and more visual campaigns that resonate with users, while driving a home health care agency’s website up in the search engine rankings. However, social media itself is changing. With platforms emerging monthly, social networking is becoming a more visual medium giving companies the chance to bring the graphic-based aspect of their brand to the forefront. Ready to try your hand at social media? Before diving into any kind of social media marketing, and especially because of compliance and privacy issues in the health care industry, it is highly recommended that a first step be to implement a social media policy.  This puts into place a set of parameters which helps with standardization, as well as protects your business, your employees and your clients.  For an example of a social media policy, click here. Pinterest: The New Face of Social Media Marketing Businesses that haven't yet been introduced to the highly addictive and wildly popular Pinterest, should be aware that since its soft launch to developer Ben Silbermann's close friends and family in early 2010, the site has skyrocketed and is currently the third most popular social media network in the U.S. A highly visual site, Pinterest allows users to create boards and “pin” interesting photos from other sites around the web to those boards. These “pins” link other users back to the website from which the image came, creating the potential for a vast network of prospective new clients for companies who previously had a more limited reach. For more information about Pinterest and how it works, visit www.pinterest.com/about/. For a real life example of how to use Pinterest as a marketing tool, visit www.pinterest.com/corecubed/. While the connection between Pinterest and home care marketing may not immediately leap to mind, the site offers agencies a great way to display information about their services, caregivers, and more in a fun, more visually dynamic way. People seeking information about  in-home care  are seeking a way to trust and build confidence that the home health agency will care for their loved one. The soft touch of Pinterest and its visuals can go a long way to accomplish just that. Tap into current and potential clients' needs by creating pinboards like: Healthy Recipes: Many home care clients have special dietary needs, and the families of these clients are constantly searching for heart-healthy or diabetes-friendly meals. Pin images of tasty, yet healthy recipes that your clients can enjoy on a Healthy Recipe pinboard. Should a client find a recipe interesting, the photo links directly to the site from which it was pinned, so finding the actual recipe is easy. Home Health Products: Many agencies either sell in-home care products or work closely with a specific manufacturer whose product line they recommend. A pinboard with recommendations for home medical equipment gives clients a convenient spot to find what they need from a source they trust. Plus the visuals make the product “spring to life” with the opportunity to show a product in action as opposed to just a sales photo. Health- and Caregiver-related Articles: Pin news articles that your clients and caregivers might find helpful or interesting. This is another great way to demonstrate that your agency stays current on industry news, which will in turn engender trust from potential clients. The more interesting the article, the more the possibility that someone will repin it, thus giving you even more social media clout. Exercise Routines for Seniors: The web is full of short work-out videos, many geared toward seniors. Pin some exercise videos to help inspire clients to get up and get moving. Images from the Agency's Website: One of the biggest benefits of marketing through Pinterest is that pinning images from your website will lead users right back to your virtual front door, so don't leave out your own visuals. If your agency maintains a blog, pin any images that go with blog posts to a “Blog” pinboard. Have an image that goes along with a Senior Resource page? Pin that as well. And make certain to share the people behind the service. Personalization is what Pinterest is all about. The New Face of Facebook Pinterest isn't the only social media platform with a visual pull. At the beginning of April, Facebook changed the format for all business pages with their new Timeline format. Timeline adds a new, bold cover image to the top of the page that allows companies to create a truly visual Facebook brand. Other features like highlighting important posts, more engagement with followers, and more comprehensive data tracking are also incredibly beneficial for marketing purposes. For home care, Facebook's Timeline opens up bigger and better branding opportunities and the ability to share more news and information, all while reaching a broader audience outside the typical referrals. Some great ways for home care marketers to use Facebook include: Show off Your Caregivers: When family members begin the search for home care for a loved one, a top question is “Who will be caring for my mom, dad, etc.?” Providing potential clients with images of your caregivers in action can give them a sense of security and build trust. (Be certain to get releases from your caregivers to use their image.) Referral Testimonials: Happy referral sources are great for business. How about posting positive referral sources and linking back to their website? Client and Client Family Testimonials: Happy clients are the best for business, and with Facebook, agencies can post photos of their clients along with testimonials to show their happy patients and families off to the world. (Beware of HIPAA and get releases from any client prior to showcasing them as well.) Showcase Your Services: Along with the agency website, Facebook is a great place to highlight service offerings. Promote Upcoming Events: Many agencies are involved in or sponsor local events such as Alzheimer's or breast cancer walks. Facebook can help get the community involved through event postings and promotions. Post Items of Interest: Demographic information, disease information, trends in long term care, cures for chronic illnesses -- all of these and any item that catches your attention can be shared through Facebook. There are virtually limitless ways to use both Facebook and Pinterest in marketing home care agencies, but the main thing to notice in the popularity of these two sites is the trend toward the highly-visual. If you find that your site lacks sufficient “pinable” images, it may be time to consider an update to keep up with the visual marketing age. How an agency goes to market is changing rapidly in today’s connected world. Get with the social media movement, and you will be impressed with results in a short time!   Marketing, Social Media, Strategy, 2012-04-12T21:23:28+00:00 http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/buzzworthy-creating-intrigue-via-social-media http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/buzzworthy-creating-intrigue-via-social-media#When:15:13:02Z Last week, the Asheville contingent of corecubed waited with bated breath for an announcement of, for our area, epic proportions. As Beer City, USA, we love our brews, and over the last year the New Belgium Brewing Company, maker of the popular Fat Tire brew and ranked consistently in the top 3 among craft brewers, has been narrowing down the field to figure out where to build their East Coast operations. When City Council let slip that there would be a big announcement on Thursday, local social media went wild! One local blogger and avid Twitter user took to the streets trying to find actual evidence that an old stockyard would be the site for New Belgium: He then followed up with tantalizing tweets from the Chamber of Commerce's economic development meeting: All of which led to a grand announcement that, yes, Asheville would be the East Coast home for New Belgium. How many “Going out to buy some Fat Tire to celebrate!” tweets did I see after all that build up? Dozens. Why? Four words: Intrigue, Excitement, & Pay Off. The beauty of social media is its ability to rally people together around a common cause or idea; in other words, create buzz. Have a new product coming out soon? Introducing a new service line? Want to get some interest in an upcoming event? Here are a few ways to use social media to create some buzz: Use Twitter to drop hints about your upcoming news. Create a contest on your company blog. Think of a giveaway that relates to your upcoming news or event and encourage people to comment on the blog itself, post the blog on their Facebook pages or tweet about the contest on Twitter. Then, choose a random person who has commented, posted, or tweeted (or all of the above) to be the winner. Make it visual. Pinterest is the #3 social network right now, which means focusing on visuals is becoming more and more important. Breathe Magazine has been having an ongoing giveaway from one of their sponsors, Planet Shoes, on Pinterest. Click here to see the campaign. The graphics for each giveaway link back to a form for people to fill out to enter the contest. As an added bonus, as people on Pinterest repin the graphics, the contest reaches more people, thus getting more and more buzz. Use all your networks. No matter which social media site you're using to gain buzz, using all your social networks to get the word out will give you a wider audience and increase intrigue. Want to get some buzz going about your company? Contact the social media experts at corecubed and let us get the word out. Marketing, Social Media, 2012-04-11T15:13:02+00:00 http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/custom-facebook-cover-photosdoes-your-brand-have-one http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/custom-facebook-cover-photosdoes-your-brand-have-one#When:14:25:25Z We told you it was coming! Facebook rolled out Timeline for business pages last week. Have you checked out our corecubed Facebook page? If not, head over to Facebook, take a look at our cover photo, and like us if you will! One of the most notable changes to business pages is the new background images that allow branding and corporate personality to be more prominent. corecubed has graphic designers that will make you look great in the social media space. To start, a great team photo or a picture captured at a recent community event can serve as a cover photo, and corecubed can add extra pizzazz with wording and design. Play with color, black and white or showcase your product—we say, get really creative! Or, if your brand has multiple logo images, using both—one for your profile picture and one for your cover photo—can create a polished, streamlined look. We understand your excitement for establishing a great public persona—and we want to help you come up with social media messaging that you will share with your customers throughout the life of your company. Strategic content confirms your credibility, connects to your target, motivates prospects, and concretes loyalty. Need help transitioning to Timeline or creating an awesome cover image to make your new Facebook page pop? Call corecubed today! And, if your business is not already established on social networks, corecubed can set up social media accounts, create a strategy for success, and implement! We know the value of social media as well as traditional media in marketing, and are staying ahead of the curve. Marketing, Social Media, 2012-04-04T14:25:25+00:00 http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/step-up-to-the-plate-with-a-marketing-partner-who-will-go-to-bat-for-you http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/step-up-to-the-plate-with-a-marketing-partner-who-will-go-to-bat-for-you#When:13:49:15Z At least once a year, the corecubed team gets together for some fun and hard work at a company retreat where we put our heads together to come up with new and innovative ideas on how to work better together and for the betterment of our clients. This year, we teamed up in the beautiful city of Louisville, KY where we visited the famous Louisville Slugger Museum. There, we not only learned about how important a part a bat is to baseball and the way bats are made, but we also learned a little bit about knowing when something feels right. One of the coolest things you see when you visit the bat factory and museum is the lathe on which the bats for professional baseball payers, like Hanley Ramirez and Derek Jeter, are made. This machine is programmed to cut a bat to the specific contour and weight that each individual pro player uses. This is important because each player is dependent on his bat for his livelihood, and the wrong grip or weight can throw him off his game. Our tour guide pointed out that once, a player sent back a shipment of bats claiming they felt “off.” And he was right. After remeasuring the bat, it was off by a fraction of a fraction of an inch. Because a bat is essentially a player's business partner, it has to feel right and be the right fit. Not only does Derek Jeter depend on it, but so does his whole team! The same is true for a company and its marketing firm. The two are business partners, and when they can collaborate together, each side contributing and respecting the other, providing the perfect weight and balance, that is when the best results are realized. Yes, there are times when a company is set on a vision that may not be right for the market, or a marketing firm may not listen enough to its client's ideas. In those (hopefully rare) cases, you may have to cut your losses and realize that things feel off and that neither party (marketer or client) is going to hit a home run with the wrong bat. And that's OK. There's nothing wrong with insisting on excellence in your product! As an experienced marketing team, we know the right bat when we feel it. We know that the right client relationship is focused on quality and mutual respect. We respect that our clients know their business like no one else, and in turn, we expect that our clients know that we have the experience, expertise, and creativity to produce the perfect product for them. If you're looking for a marketing team that will go to bat for you, give us a call and see if we're the right fit!   Team corecubed will go to bat for you!   Marketing, 2012-03-21T13:49:15+00:00 http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/lets-talk-website-security http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/lets-talk-website-security#When:18:15:28Z In the digital world, things change frequently, and if you're doing business online, you need to stay informed, up-to-date, and on top of things as best you can. Software is updated all the time with new features, enhancements, and fixes designed to patch holes or vulnerabilities in the software's infrastructure to ultimately keep your site and your business running smoothly and securely. This week, 30,000 WordPress blogs were hacked and infected by a “cybercriminal gang whose primary goal is to distribute rogue antivirus software”.  Read more about the attack in this article from Networkworld.com. These kinds of hacks are nothing new. What is most relevant is the following: “Many of the blogs compromised in these recent attacks were running outdated WordPress versions, had vulnerable plug-ins installed or had weak administrative passwords susceptible to brute force attacks,” said David Dede, a security researcher with website integrity monitoring firm Sucuri Security. Over the past two weeks, I have had to clean up the mess left behind on three websites that were hacked. The websites were compromised because the owners had not kept the website software up to date; thus, the vulnerabilities in the old software were discovered and exploited. In each case, Google completely blocked the websites from being shown, adding them to a blacklist of infected pages. This blacklist is used by web browser companies to block known infected sites, so when you try to visit an infected site you get a big red warning message informing you of the danger. This is a good thing to have, as it stops the spread of viruses and Trojans, but it’s definitely not a good thing for your website to be on that list. And it’s hard to remove it once you have cleaned things up. The time involved investigating and fixing these messes far exceeded the time it takes to provide a simple maintenance strategy on an ongoing basis. Websites require routine maintenance and updates in order to stay safe from attacks such as this. Because we're Internet marketers, and do so much of our own business online, we do our best to stay up on the latest updates for WordPress as well as the other site hosts that our clients use. We encourage monthly site maintenance for all our clients. If you ever need help making sure your site is secure and up-to-date, or want us to take care of ongoing maintenance, contact the experts at corecubed for help! Internet, News, Security, Software, 2012-03-08T18:15:28+00:00 http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/facebook-timeline-for-business-pages http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/facebook-timeline-for-business-pages#When:13:44:35Z Recently, we blogged about Facebook's new Timeline layout that hit personal Facebook pages back in January. In that blog, we indicated that, in all likelihood, Timeline would eventually roll out for business pages as well. That time is coming! As of March 30th, all business pages on Facebook will be sporting the wildly different (and somewhat controversial) Timeline layout. If you're active on Facebook, you've likely already seen what Timeline looks like on some of your friends' personal profiles, and the look will be quite similar on the new business pages. During my research into how the new layout will change how we promote businesses today, I noticed many unhappy campers, and I understand some of their grief. The main downside is viewers will no longer be directed to custom welcome tabs, which many pages have used to advertise deals, redirecting fans back to websites, signing up new users to email lists, etc. These pages will still be viewable under the new layout, but they can no longer be your default page. That said, there's a lot to be excited about! With Timeline, pages will be much more visual, allowing your logo and branding to be more prominent. Important updates that feature images or videos in your feed will be larger, and important stories can be made larger still with the new “star” function. All these new functions will help drive engagement. To read about all the changes that Timeline will bring to your business's page, visit Facebook's Pages site, and check out their Pages Overview Guide. Need help transitioning to Timeline or creating an awesome cover image to make your new Facebook page pop? Call corecubed today!   News, Social Media, 2012-03-01T13:44:35+00:00 http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/are-you-in-with-linkedin http://corecubed.com/blog/entry/are-you-in-with-linkedin#When:06:26:37Z Most of you probably know LinkedIn as the social network for job seekers. In fact, many of you have probably recently used LinkedIn to get a leg up on a job search. What you may not realize is that there are several ways to market your company on LinkedIn, and not just to job seekers. While marketing on LinkedIn is arguably better for B2B businesses, B2C companies can also stand to benefit because the users who make up the bulk of the network are, in fact, consumers. The first step to getting some company recognition is to set up a company page. Here you'll have a description to fill out. Use it, in line with your website, to share with readers the value your company offers. There's also a specialties section where you can use those old SEO keywords to promote your company's strengths. After that, you'll be able to pick your industry and location. These two things will be big deals when LinkedIn users search, so make sure the industry you choose is the closest and most appropriate to your field. You can list up to five locations, so if your company is represented in multiple regions, list them. Keep in mind that all these seemingly little details will only help your overall SEO marketing! If your company maintains a blog, be sure to link your blog's RSS feed to your LinkedIn page. Doing this will allow your blog updates to show on your company's LinkedIn page, giving it more reach. Finally, your company should update its LinkedIn status regularly and include links back to your website and blog. This is your chance to make your page dynamic and interactive, as well as send traffic back to your website. LinkedIn is not, in my opinion, one of the easier social networks to figure out, but it can allow your company to cast a wider net and add to your overall search engine optimization, which is never a bad thing. If you need some LinkedIn guidance, don't hesitate to call the experts at corecubed! Marketing, Social Media, 2012-02-22T06:26:37+00:00