All Posts By

Kendra

Jun 14
0

AMA Marketing Legend -Kendra Ramirez

By | Digital Marketing

I am blown away by everyone’s support! I was ecstatic when I was nominated as a top 10 finalist for the AMA Marketing Legend award as we have such a wonderful and large marketing community.  Then to be notified that I was voted in the top 3 and named an AMA Marketing Legend at the Pinnacle Awards Dinner is so humbling! This prestigious new award recognizes professionals who have made a lasting impact, and brought acclaim to the city of Cincinnati and the profession of Marketing.  Unfortunately, I was out of town and couldn’t accept the award in person. Here is the video I submitted as my thank you while out of town. Thank you for this incredible honor!

 

A few of the nomination comments:

Kendra has been a market leader in the digital marketing space since 2005.  She recognized the power of digital marketing long before others, who told here that “you can’t make a business out of that”.  Well she has, and in doing so, has helped dozens of companies in the area improve their top line performance and brand image.  Kendra understands the power of digital marketing and has a knack for explaining it clearly and simply to those that may not get it, yet write the checks.  Her clients love how she actively listens to understand the problems to be solved and goals to be achieved.  Her ability to crystallize the goals and message into a strategy has made her a valued business partner to her clients.  Kendra recognized the power of digital marketing early on when others didn’t see it.  She then made it her mission to educate companies on how to harness this strategy for their own success.  For these, and many other reasons, Kendra is truly one of Cincinnati’s Marketing Legends. ~Mark

Kendra not only is a pioneer but she’s a humble one that brings others up with her. She’s always ALWAYS and always willing to help others without hesitation or expectation of anything in return. Humility and caring are not two typical attributes of pioneers. She possesses those traits and much much more. ~Ray

I think Kendra was the first Digital & Social Media guru in Cincinnati. She started publicly speaking on the topic in 2005. She proved that it is possible to build a career around Social Media. She has assisted hundreds of job seekers for free update profiles or navigate social for finding jobs. She is an amazing connector! She finds joy in helping others to be their most successful version of themselves! She is certainly a Cincinnati Marketing Legend! ~Nikki

Leader in digital marketing strategy. Was one of the first in this region. When she started, business “coaches” told her “it’s a fad” and that she couldn’t make a living doing it. Kendra forged forward. Lucky for Cincinnati she did!

A very special shout out to Debbie Siegert who was kind enough to accept the award on my behalf. Thank you so much.

Congratulations to all the finalist and winners of the AMA Pinnacle Awards!  http://amacincinnati.org/cincinnati-marketing-legends-2017/

May 26
0

Top Digital Marketing Tools in 2017

By | Digital Marketing

I am often asked what tools we are using with our business and for our clients. These are great tools for small to mid-size businesses. Most of the tools below are free or charge a minimal fee. Of course, you don’t need all of them. With over 5000 digital marketing tools, it can get overwhelming. Let me know if you have a tool that you love that we should add to the list. Thank you for visiting.

 

Video and Visuals

Pixabay free images

Pexels free images

Librestock to search over 40 free images sites

PicMonkey image editor

Ripl images with movement

Lumyer images with movement

Canva to create images

Animoto for slideshow videos

Adobe Spark for videos and images

 

Social Media Management

Hootsuite

Buffer

CoSchedule

*remember to schedule Facebook posts in Facebook not through a 3rd party tool

 

LinkedIn

Hunter Chrome extension for finding email addresses

 

Instagram

Repost app for sharing other people’s post

Upload images from your desktop-Chrome extension click on Ctrl-Shift-I and click on the device mode icon 

 

Twitter

Tweetdeck

Analytics.twitter.com for data

Followerwonk for searching bios

Quick tweet Chrome extension for managing multiple twitter accounts

 

Facebook

BeLive.tv for live streaming

 

Content Discovery

Tweetdeck

Feedly

Buzzsumo

Answer the Public -love this for content ideas

 

Email Marketing

Mailchimp

Emma

Aweber

 

Inbound Marketing

Hubspot

Infusionsoft

ClickFunnels

 

 Website

Google analytics

WordPress

WP Live Chat

Google PageSpeed test 

 

SEO

Moz

SemRush

SpyFu

Yoast for WordPress

 

Podcast

Go to eonfire.com for all things podcasting. John Lee Dumas shares the mother load of who, what, when and how on podcasting. Thank you John!

 

Webinar

GoToWebinar

WebEx

Join.me

Zoom

 

Other must have business tools

Mile IQ for tracking business mileage

Schedule Once or Calendly for online scheduling

Quickbooks or Freshbooks for invoicing

Loom or Screenflow for recording your screen

Google alerts to monitor you, your business and competitors

Truecaller app to block spam callers

StayFocused limiting the amount of time that you can spend on time-wasting websites. (Not that any of us ever get distracted. Look squirrel!)

Email signature generator by Hubspot

Waze app for live navigation and traffic alerts

Screenshots -Jing by TechSmith

Google docs for sharing and tracking documents and files

 

Wow, I didn’t realize how many tools we have been using. Hope you find this list helpful.

Apr 28
0

Grow Your Business Using Social Media

By | Digital Marketing, Events

NAELB, Blue Ash Business Association, SummitUp, Home Builders Association and African American Chamber, Oh My! So many wonderful learning opportunities!

 

NAELB event in Memphis on April 28. Two great sessions on Digital Strategy Success and LinkedIn for Business Development

 

Blue Ash Business Association event: Grow your business and brand using social media

Join us at The Northmark Business Center on May 18 from 8-10 a.m.

Register today! https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2017-may-coffee-hour-tickets-33905178301

 

SummitUp on May 24 from 8:30-4:30 in Dayton at Sinclair Community College. This is our 8th year!

I will be kicking things off with “What is working or not working in digital.”

Register here: https://summitup.org! See you soon!

 

African American Chamber Sudduth Candidates on May 31 from 9-10:30. We will be discussing digital marketing success for small business.

 

Home Builders Association of Northern Kentucky on June 1 from 12-1. We will be discussing how to grow your business using social media.

 

It is an honor to spend time with each of you! I look forward to seeing your smiling faces!

Apr 03
0

Women in Digital Conference

By | Blog, Events

Come See Me at the “Women In Digital” Conference!

I am thrilled to announce that I have been asked to speak at the first Cincinnati Women in Digital Conference! My talk will focus on how larger corporations struggle to find their digital footing and how you can stand up and inspire change from within.

Women in Digital is a great organization I am so fortunate to be apart of. With a network across the country, they are expanding rapidly and are beginning to host conferences in more cities—like Cincinnati! Members of Women in Digital strive everyday to empower women in the digital industry through networking, conferences, and mentor/mentee relationships. 

The conference is on April 6, 2017. Visit Women in Digital’s website to learn more, and register to attend the conference here.

 

Mar 02
0

Learn How to Navigate the New LinkedIn

By | Events

Join us on April 5 from 8-10:30 for an interactive session! Come learn how to effectively apply social selling strategies to your overall business development. This session will go beyond the basics and focus specifically on how to use LinkedIn to boost business development and increase sales.

Who Should Attend: Professionals at all levels who want fresh strategies for marketing themselves and their company, finding prospects, shortening the sales cycle, and getting results.

Takeaways attendees can expect:

  • How to navigate the new, sometimes challenging, LinkedIn enhancements.
  • How to connect with people in companies you are targeting.
  • How to find industry and competitive information.
  • How to establish yourself as an expert.
  • How to build great positioning statements when leveraging warm connections

Register today: https://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/event/160513/2017/courier-classroom-linkedin-for-business-development

 

Mar 01
0

UC Social Media Week

By | Events

Unfiltered Views

University of Cincinnati Social Media Week is back!

UC’s Social Media Week engages student, faculty, staff and community voices in a collaborative, educational environment centered on the evolving use of social media to influence real change in the world.

Save the date for the week of April 3-6, 2017. The third-annual event will include presentations and workshops on all things social hosted by UC faculty and staff, complimentary professional headshots (perfect for LinkedIn) and the ever-popular Pinterest parties.

Capping off the week, UC will host an entire day of programming aimed at connecting students, faculty, staff, professionals and the Greater Cincinnati community — a UC Social Media Summit on Thursday, April 6. Speakers from the Cincinnati business community, UC faculty and staff members and special keynote addresses will highlight the summit. Register now (it’s free!) and receive schedule updates and other key communications as Social Media Week nears.

Looking forward to our panel discussion on Social Media and Your Job Search!

Register here: http://www.uc.edu/ucomm/web/social_media/socialmediaweek.html

 

Feb 17
0

Live Video Isn’t Just Consumer-Focused

By | Digital Marketing, Uncategorized

Oftentimes, we think of live video as a B2C marketing tool. Brands can use live streaming to interact in real-time with the customers who will directly use their services or purchase their products. As a result, live video is a largely untapped tool in the B2B marketing world—which is why you should be utilizing it.

 

General Electric (GE) recently spoke about why their executives utilize Facebook live to connect with other businesses. “You have to go where the world is, and everyone’s on Facebook,” said Beth Comstock, GE’s Vice Chair. Communications Specialist Alaynah Tombridge adds that live video “is a real-time feedback loop…the conversation can sometimes go in different directions. And there’s something much more authentic about that.”

 

Facebook Live, Instagram Live, and other live stream media outlets are ideal for B2B marketers because conversations among businesses can develop organically, similar to a face-to-face meeting. B2B marketing is about transparency, honesty, and accessibility, and all of these things are present in video live streams. Your credibility and trust level increases when others can connect with you live.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Not only are there tons of things you can capture on live video, but you can repurpose those videos to generate YouTube videos, blog posts, and website content. Going live at a seminar, conference, or company event allows people to connect with your business and industry in a way that they couldn’t before.

 

Live video can be used for a variety of B2B marketing strategies:

  • Entrepreneur/startup community: share and learn with one another
  • Recruiting: share culture, employee testimonials to connect with passive candidates
  • Career and talent coaching
  • Education (share webinars, meetings, conferences, recap discussions, etc.)
  • Going “behind the scenes” to learn more about a company/industry
  • “Ask an expert” to share your passion and knowledge around a topic

 

The importance of live video in B2B marketing is just another example of why professionals need to get comfortable with being in front of a camera in 2017. Sharing your thoughts, passions, and insights via visual and audio elements is the ideal way to connect with other businesses, your customers and peers.

Feb 17
0

Instagram: The New Twitter

By | Digital Marketing, Uncategorized

In the past, we have considered the big 3 in digital as LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter. Now, the big 3 are LinkedIn, Facebook and Instagram. According to a study conducted by Webpage FX, Instagram is quickly outpacing Twitter and becoming the next big platform for marketers. The study cites that Instagram currently has 600 million monthly active users, growing 4x over the past two years. Furthermore, brands get 120x more interactions on Instagram than on Twitter, and 58x more than on Facebook.

 

Simply put, engagement levels are higher on Instagram. The simple feed design allows users to quickly access the posts of those they follow without having to sift through things their friends have liked, commented on, etc. Instagram also gives brands an outlet to be more creative than on other social media sites. Utilizing hashtags and photo campaigns is an easy way to engage customers and gain followers.

 

Additionally, the inclusion of Instagram Live in the app’s newest update provides a more organic way for brands to reach out to their customers. With this new feature, users can live stream a video that appears at the top of each of their followers’ home pages. Followers can click on the live button and watch what is happening in real-time. They can comment and like throughout the video, and these interactions appear to the user posting the live stream.

Instagram also offers paid sponsored posts that appear in the feeds of every user, regardless if they follow the advertiser’s account or not. Some posts even allow brands to post multiple pictures within one post that users can scroll through by swiping left or right. Instagram For Business also allows brands to put a “contact” button next to the “follow” button on their profile page, allowing users to quickly and easily email or call the brand.

Humans are highly visual, and the emphasis that Instagram puts on visual elements makes it an ideal platform for sharing information with current and potential customers. Webpage FX also created a list of best practices for creating Instagram posts, and recommend brands post more photos than videos, show faces and color, and utilize negative space.

 

There are, of course, some downfalls to using Instagram as a way to promote your brand. For example, the app is not very link-conducive. You cannot add hyperlinks to post captions or in comments. The only place to post a link to a website, body of work, or video is in the profile bio; however, with the app’s exponential growth and engagement, especially among brands and their customers, it is a strong possibility Instagram will fix this issue in 2017.

 

If your company does not currently have an Instagram, it may be time to consider creating one. Instagram is only expected to grow in the coming year, and it’s intense popularity may cause other social media outlets, especially Twitter, to become obsolete when it comes to marketing.

Feb 03
0

American Dreamers Radio Show-Let’s Talk Digital

By | Blog, Digital Marketing

American Dreamers Podcast

Last month, I appeared on 55KRC for a segment called “American Dreamers,” a radio show geared toward business owners that celebrates and connects small businesses. The iTunes podcast was sent out to 18,000 subscribers, which is awesome!

I spoke with co-hosts Tom Tasset and Robynn Anton about my job as a digital strategist, networking, and LinkedIn’s major upgrades—but we also had some fun discussing goldfish and MySpace!

Here are some highlights of the show:

  • As a digital strategist, I work with my clients to improve anything of theirs that is digitally consumed. This includes websites, social media, e-newsletters, landing pages, etc. I also work with them to develop benchmarks, strategies, and goals, as well as to determine the target audience and how to best reach those customers.
  • Use LinkedIn to form meaningful connections. Connect with those who you can help and vice versa, and take advantage of your contacts to introduce you to new clients.
  • Before creating a social media channel, consider which platform(s) match your target demographics and goals. What do you expect from Facebook versus Twitter versus Instagram, etc.?
  • LinkedIn redid the entire user interface of their desktop version in order to complement its mobile app. More updates include live video, chat function, and the loss of the free advanced search option.
  • Learn how to save your LinkedIn profile to a PDF.
  • Generate content from business conversations. What questions do you/they have? That’s a blog post.

I had so much fun with Tom and Robynn and am thankful for the opportunity to speak on “American Dreamers!” You can listen to the full podcast here.

Jan 25
0

SMPS Cincinnati Proactive Roundtable

By | Events

Join us on Feb. 28 from 3:30-5 for a fun roundtable. Hear from our local experts!

How It Works
The event is structured with five groupings with each speaker leading one group. He or she will share thoughts and perspectives of PR best practices for 15 minutes. We will allow 5 minutes for Q&A. Then, the groups will rotate. Attendees will pick three of the sessions to attend- choose wisely! Once the three rotations are complete, there will be time for networking.

Our table will be discussing the digital trends and how to stay on top of them.

Register here: http://greatercincinnatismps.org/meetinginfo.php?id=121&ts=1484678876