ChrisPond.com

The Value In Email Marketing

2011-05-21T09:15:00.000-07:00

With availability, and cost efficiency of advertising on the web today it is the first choice for bands, to use myspace, twitter, facebook and youtube to market themselves. These outlets are all free, easy to use, and gives bands access to thousands of people. The pit fall in social networking is the saturation of the market, and the amount of work needed to update them all. With the amount of friends facebook/twitter users aspire to have, they are bombarded with self promotion from the time they login. I believe there is a better solution to promote, and gain valuable information in return from fans, and that solution is email marketing.

Although this service isn't always free, if set-up properly can be a very easy/effective tool to target fans at specific times and locations, and even months in advance. With the software that is available today a band can create an email for every show, set a timer of when to deploy the email to all the fans within 100 miles from their show and deliver the email exactly a week before the show. This leaves the band hands free from having to promote while on the road. Technology also allows the band to see how many people have opened the email and what they are clicking on.

The advantage of email marketing is the information that can be tracked and used for better target marketing. This can become very useful prior to a tour. A band can send an email with new merchandise designs and track which items people are most interested in prior to making orders, and saving money on product that people aren't interested in.

Another strong advantage to email marketing is direct delivery. Bands don't have to make a post on their social networks and hope people are looking at it. When you send an email it goes directly to the person, and you can track to see if they've opened the email. A fan will have a facebook, twitter, myspace and youtube account but those accounts were created by one email address, which narrows down the hassle of trying to get their attention on which ever social networks they are signed up with.

The cost of email marketing is very manageable, some services offer free accounts for businesses with a limited amount of subscribers. If your list exceeds this number there are various payment methods, like a monthly payment plan or pay as you go. The bulk of your cost is in the start up, hiring a designer and developer to create the initial email templates and set them up for businesses to re-use.

This type of marketing has been around since the beginning and will be around till the end of the internet. It’s not a trendy technology that’s going to go out of style at some point in the future. Emails are the most stable source of communication now and forever for internet users. Emails are required to sign-up for all social networks and a must have for online users. Offline users are required to provide an email for job applications, health forms and government documents. So take advantage of this stable technology and use it to help reach fans or customers and gain valuable information to operate more efficiently.

Celebrate Earth Day And Help Save Beaches

2010-04-22T12:00:00.000-07:00

Happy earth day! In honor of today I thought I would highlight one of my clients, ASR whose passion for the earth is their everyday job. ASR is based out of New Zealand but has influence across the globe. Their mission is to save and maintain beaches, and animals who rely on healthy coastal regions. According to recent studies 51% of coastal regions are at medium to high risk of degradation. ASR is fighting to lower that percentage by understanding the natural processes, and designing innovative and sustainable solutions that work with nature instead of against it. Their goal is to enhance both human and environmental conditions the best way possible with minimal environmental impact.

We don't all live by a beach but I think it's safe to say that we'd all be upset if a beautiful beach was no longer part of our all inclusive vacations. To see the impact that they’re having on our coastal regions visit their website www.asrltd.com. If you would like to support ASR and the work that they are doing sign-up for their e-newsletter, or follow them on facebook, twitter, youtube or their blog.

Canadian Artist Promotes For New Album Release

2010-04-13T12:00:00.000-07:00

I have teamed up with Canadian artist Dan Bremnes to help promote his upcoming album release and stay connected with his fans. To help with promotion we launched a new facebook page on his artist profile where fans can sign-up for an e-newsletter and send a referral email to their friends. To help stay connected we created an e-newsletter that allows Dan to communicate with his fans and let them know about shows, merchandise, news, and music releases. This way of communication allows Dan to give the fans an update when it happens, rather than relying on them to continue checking his website or facebook.

Dan is no stranger to music having already recorded and toured with other artists, however, he has just started his journey as a solo artist. Already he has gotten radio play on stations across Canada and is a finalist in the International Songwriting Competition (ISC). You can also expect to see a new full length album out in June of this year. If you would like to know more about Dan Bremnes and his music, you can follow him on facebook, twitter, youtube, or go to danbremnes.com

I made a facebook account, where's all my money?

2009-12-18T12:00:00.000-08:00

I find it funny, that today if someone starts a business or a band they make a facebook account and put so much faith in it. But what they do not realize is it is all superficial attention, that is not holding a lot of weight. But did it not worked for president Obama? Yah it did, because he realized what facebook is best for… a fan club; not to mention, he target a market that was being unnoticed by other candidates. He stood out.

Before myspace and facebook, I remember surfing band websites and seeing wicked new design and development ideas that made their album covers come to life. They were personal, and really gave you a feel for their style and promoted their bands image. As a fan I knew I could go to their website and I was guaranteed to get the information I needed about their next tour, and so on. Now as a fan, I have to be a member of facebook, myspace, twitter and many other relentless social networks to be up to date on everything. Facebook, twitter, youtube etc., are all great tools to use but some are being mis-used and some are being under-used.

Bands are not making it easy for their fans to go to one place and get all the info they want and need. Over the years they have abandoned having a website and relied on other sources. If a band is going to miss a tour date they might update their twitter, but what about their myspace, facebook, etc.? It is a hassle for the band and the fans.

I personally think that myspace is the biggest piece of garbage on the web today. Every band profile is a hack job, that takes forever to load and it is not user friendly to the fan or the band. Not mention it is a dying scene, so why put the effort into something that will one day be a has been? Yes you can integrate a lot onto a myspace account but it just does not look professional. Hundreds of bands are trying to make it in the business, but how are you gonna stand out when your like everyone else?

Lets talk about facebook. I believe that this is a good tool for bands and businesses, but all it should be used for is a fan club. Facebook limits bands and businesses to use their template and colors, and the most you can do to promote your brand or identity is through a profile picture. Not to mention you have no control over anything that is posted on facebook, they reserve the right to keep it and use it. You also have no control over how your being portrayed, your at the mercy of the users to comment and post photos that represent you appropriately. So using facebook as the hub for your band or business does not seem like wise marketing to me.

In my personal opinion bands should get back to having their own websites. With the technology today, you can integrate, blogger, flicker, twitter, youtube and many more applications into a website. In doing so, you are making it easier to update your website and give your fans one place where they can see everything all at once and not be distracted by other advertisements. More importantly, you can brand your website to reflect your bands identity; you are in control of what your fans are seeing. You upload good photos to flicker, and integrate it on your site so your fans can see you at your best, not see a picture taken by a disposable camera of you puking on stage with your fly down.

Facebook and myspace do have an advantage, this being the social networking part of it. You can post a message and it will be available for hundreds or thousands of people to see. This is good; however, there is something even better then that, this being an email. Posting something on your facebook account gives a user the "option" to view it along with many other distractions. An email is sent directly to the person, and it is harder to avoid. Not to mention again you can brand an email, you can even track the results of your emails so you know what people like and do not like and how many people have seen it. I see bands with their e-newsletter sign up forms, but I still have not received any emails… START USING IT!!! Your fans will enjoy it and you will get good results. Why make updates to facebook, twitter, myspace, etc., when you can send one email? Your fans have an email, and the proof is that they are forced to use it to create their facebook, myspace, twitter etc etc accounts. So kill 4 birds with one stone and send an email.

Lastly, to all you bands and business owners that do business over facebook. STOP! You have no control. Facebook is a good place to get contacts, but go further then that, get their email, phone number, etc. When I was in the band scene a promoter had all of his contacts on myspace… his account got hacked and he lost everything. Besides the sketchy security of a social network account, when doing business it is far more professional to call or write an email.

Facebook, myspace, twitter all of these things will go out of style, don't let your band or business go with them. Create something of your own that you can keep, that you have control over, that is flexible to change and something that represents who you are.

Facebook? Home-wrecker? Creepy old man? YEP!

2009-12-14T12:00:00.000-08:00

Facebook just released new privacy settings this last week and I encourage everyone to monitor their privacy settings and really think about how to protect themselves and their friends. Before facebook, my personal information and life was kept fairly secure. I knew who my friends were and how much they knew about me. I knew which friends of friends I could trust and which ones I could not. Right now I have no clue how many people have seen pictures of me in my underwear playing guitar hero. This, I take pretty lightly, but how many people have access to pictures of my wife, my sister, or jump ahead 30 years, my daughter? That I do not take lightly.

90% of the photos on facebook that are pictures of me, were posted by someone else. 100% of the photos on facebook that are tagged of me were tagged by someone else. Facebook gives me control of the photos that I post, but they do not give me any control over photos that other people post; I have no control over who has access to those photos. If facebook cares so much about our privacy should we not have control to delete photos that we are tagged in? I have a personal collection of vacation photos of my wife and I that I feel comfortable showing my family and friends in privacy; however, I find it unreal that someone else feels it is okay to share photos of someone else's wife, sister, or kid and tag them in attire that is not deemed appropriate in public places like a mall or restaurant. Now, if someone tags me with my shirt off I can untag myself, but if there are other people tagged in that photo, all of their friends and possibly their friends friends have access to that. Now I am fine walking down the beach and having guys look at my wife, but I am not okay with 1000's of people having a still image of my wife, sister or future daughter in clothing that is not acceptable anywhere but a beach or pool. If it is okay for facebook to allow this then why are we not shopping at Wal-Mart in our underwear, or going to a restaurant in a towel? Why is this acceptable on the internet, and why are we supporting this?

Let us look away from the privacy issues and take a brief look at the rising divorce rate in north america. Facebook blasts everyone with constant temptation of recommending old girlfriends, flings and crushes. I believe stepping into an affair today is a blind process that is not recognized until it is too late. Many affairs start in the work place because you are around the same people where the relationships are developed slowly over time and the warning signs are very subtle. Facebook has created a replica of this environment where we are around all the same people everyday, hearing about their lives and getting to know them more and more. As a married person, how are we protecting ourselves and our marriage from a divorce? It is disrespectful for me to check out another girl walking on the street, but why is it okay for me to add girls my wife does not know about?

Millions of people are affected by divorce, broken homes and sexual abuse, but how hard are we protecting ourselves? When we are on the internet, we hesitate to give out our phone number, email, home address and credit card information. Why then are we so quick to jump at the chance of posting photos, writing stories, updates about our lives, and accepting people we don't know into our lives? Money, a home, a phone number, and an email are all things that can be replaced, EASILY! My wife, my family, my future kids can not be replaced, and those relationships are not easily fixed. Lets put our priorities in check and start protecting our lives more then our money.

Facebook is my best friend.

2009-12-09T12:00:00.000-08:00

Is it just me or does it seem that facebook has become everyones best friend? Facebook offers everything a true friend should give, except a hug. Now I'm not talking about your friends on facebook, I'm talking about the actual site its self. People look to friends for confidence, support, advice, sharing secrets and frustrations, really getting to know one another. Today a lot of people post everything and find everything they want through facebook, they wake and go to sleep checking their facebook. The scary truth about our society today is that kids are learning their social skills on facebook and investing their time building relationships that won't last, and when it comes to being in the real world, they'll be frozen like a deer in the headlights.

Facebook has created the best, best friend anyone could ever have. People constantly check their facebook to get updates on their friends lives without ever talking to them, or having any interaction, and at the end of the day they feel satisfied that facebook gave them all the updates on their friends. People everywhere are investing hours of time on friendships that won't go any further then a comment on a picture or status update. And then there are the real relationships with true friends and family, that are dealt with over facebook. Conflicts, expressing your feelings are easier done through a facebook message then face to face or even a phone call.

I bet we all remember our first day of high school, walking tall with all our friends from jr high, thinking this is gonna be sweet. Then we go to our first class and realize we don't know a single person in the room and our confidence is left behind. Facebook is our jr high friends, it gives us all the confidence we don't have, and as soon as we leave our house and step into the real world we're a different person. Verbal communication between people seems to have disappeared. Growing up before the days of facebook even a phone call was considered a flimsy way of dealing with conflict or having a heartfelt conversation. I look at the youth of today and wonder what their gonna do when they get out into the real world and have to deal with conflict, and face to face relationships. My parents talked to me growing up, if they had to say sorry they'd come to my room and say, "I was wrong I'm sorry". Is the next generation gonna be so weak that their gonna text their children? or write them an email when there is something important to talk about?

I'm guilty of making these mistakes, but I think we need open our eyes and be careful about what we're teaching the next generation. Respect, has already seemed to fall far enough in our society, and if it gets to the point where we can't respect our best friends and family by talking to them face to face that's sad. I think it's safe to say that movies and media have warped the way we look at ourselves and how we should live our lives, lets not give up control of our friends and family either. This is the point in society where information is at everyone's finger tips, lets keep our personal lives to our self and at least have something left of our own.

Is facebook helping our society? or doing more damage then we give thought to?

2009-11-30T12:00:00.000-08:00

It's not long ago when MySpace was all the rave, and everyone was getting accounts, adding as many friends as they could. Bands were abandoning their websites and putting all their faith in their myspace accounts. Then Facebook came around and raised the bar of online social relationships. As a developer it was awesome to see some great ideas that facebook brought to the web. But as time has gone on, it seem as though everyone has put their life and faith in facebook and social networking in general. Over the next three weeks I will release 3 articles discussing the mis-use and negative effects that social networking has on our society now and in the future.

Neteller Luck or Skill Giveaway Microsite

2009-11-02T12:00:00.000-08:00

Neteller has just launched a micro site to promote their "luck or skill" giveaway contest for new and existing costumers. This project was a collaboration with Suitcase Interactive and Dan Opden Dries from Flashthetics. This isn't the first project I've done with Dan or Suitcase, so it's always a pleasure to work with them and collaborate.

This project was interesting for me cause it reminded me of my first project as a web developer, which was to take an existing site and build the translation versions French, German and Mandrin (I think???). At the time I was so overwhelmed and thought I'd never get it done ha ha, but it forced me to work with all the different parts of a web site, so I'm thankful for what the challenge forced me to learn. This time around I have more experience and was more pre-pared for working with multi-languages. I also got to work with some javascript/jquery so that was fun to play around with too.

This project has now been closed due to the end of the contest.

Athletes World Ambassador Email

2009-10-30T12:00:00.000-07:00

Athletes World has been on the hunt for ambassadors to help promote their brand. In light of rounding up a decent crew they put a call out to all of their current email subscribers to join the team. Suitcase Interactive brought me in on the project to take care of development side of the email. Visit my site to view the email.

Happy Launch Day!

2009-10-19T12:00:00.000-07:00

It's October 19th 2009 and this marks the launch of ChrisPond.com. I've been working towards this day for the last few weeks, juggling clients and trying to hit my target launch date. I'm really excited about this site cause it is the beginning of what I want to share with the public.

I am a front end developer who enjoys collaborating with other web professionals, and this site gives me the opportunity to share my experiences and knowledge. Consider it a reality series of my professional experience minus the cameras, endless drama and shameless promotions to become rich and famous. My intentions are pure, to challenge myself and contribute to the web industry, I'm not looking for fame or fortune. So if your interested in following me please sign-up for my e-newsletter and I'll let you know when there are new projects, articles and fun stuff you may or may not be interested in haha.

Thanks for your support.
Chris Pond

Everything is almost ready

2009-10-16T12:28:00.000-07:00

Just finishing up all the loose ends for the chrispond.com launch which is set for Monday October 19th.