10 reasons why companies must blog

Blogging for communications with customers :

1. Blogs are interactive: In many cases, marketing is a monologue
2. Blogs are humanizing: It can be honest and credible, most blogs are written in one strong, opinionated voice
3. Blogs are inexpensive: In most cases, a blog's only cost is for the value of the time and talent required to create and maintain it.
4. Blogs are immediate: A blog lets you draw out invaluable feedback.
5. Blogs are infectious: Like any good viral marketing campaign â?? even offline, traditional publications â?? won't hesitate to pick up an interesting post and republish it.
6. Blogs are empowering: Gallup survey that people in advertising was very low rank for their honesty and ethics.
7. Blogs are enjoyable: A pleasure for both author and audience.
8. Blogs are authoritative: Ideally, your blog will provide readers with plenty of fresh, premium content they can't find anywhere else.
9. Blogs are valuable: A blog is tailor-made for storing and managing intellectual capital.
10. Blogs are popular: Last year, â??blogâ?? topped Merriam-Webster's list of the 10 most looked-up words. And blogs received wide acclaim in The New York Times Magazine's recent â??Year in Ideasâ?? issue. From this evidence, it would seem that blogs are here to stay.

Bob Cargill is an independent creative director and copywriter.

You are as good as your weakest link

The 10 New Rules of Branding by Simon Williams

1) Brands that influence culture sell more; culture is the new catalyst for growth.
2) A brand with no point of view has no point; full-flavor branding is in, vanilla is out.
3) Today's consumer is leading from the front; this is the smartest generation to have ever walked the planet.
4) Customize wherever and whenever you can; customization is tomorrow's killer whale. The second advent of the Internet has consumers wanting something all their own, 'I need something that is mine, not mass-produced for everybody.'
5) Forget the transaction, just give me an experience; the mandate is simple: Wow them every day, every way.
6) Deliver clarity at point of purchase; be obsessive about presentation.
7) You are only as good as your weakest link; do you know where you're vulnerable?
8) Social responsibility is no longer an option; what's your cause, what's your contribution?Consumers now expect corporations to get involved in cause marketing. Businesses are doing a better job at getting behind causes,
9) Pulse, pace, and passion really make a difference; had your heartbeat checked recently?"We're in a crazy world. We keep piling more devices upon us. The more you have, the more you need.
10) Innovation is the new boardroom favorite."Brands are inspired by Apple more than anyone else," Williams says. "They transformed the music business, and people are taking what they did seriously.

The 10 New Rules of Branding by Simon Williams, Diretor da Sterling Group, consultoria de Branding de NY
Destaque da Fernanda Romano, agora em NY, para o Blue Bus