With more and more individuals realizing the importance of a solid education in this economy, academic and career-focused institutes are becoming more aggressive when reaching out to prospective students. Using a targeted online marketing strategy, one educational organization has implemented a successful digital advertising campaign to attract new students.

Sarasota County Technical Institute (SCTI), a specialized training school, provides 39 different programs and offers continuing education for those who are currently employed and in need of new licenses or certifications. SCTI began 2012 by rolling out a digitally focused campaign from Patterson/Bach. The graphics, which run through geo-targeted online advertising, such as Google keywords, seek to usher potential students to the SCTI website where they can learn more about the school from current students, SCTI alumni, and prospective employers. The ads feature the message, “Get the education you need for the career of your choice,” highlighting SCTI’s profession-focused academic plans. The ads are scheduled to run throughout 2012, giving SCTI maximum coverage through a high-traffic environment.

In the campaign’s first month of running, the ads have received over 219,000 total impressions, including increased clickthroughs and site visits from mobile and tablet devices. Of all visitors to SCTI’s website, 35% are new visitors. The ad campaign is growing visitors and raising the amount of potential student interest.

Call Patterson/Bach for creative, effective solutions to your advertising needs at  (407) 645-1880.

Your professional network is a resource that can link your past to your present and provide inspiration and education for your future and the success of your clients.

Networking has always been a great way to stay in tune with your industry, with LinkedIn and other social and business networking sites creating special common interest groups, alumni groups and more, you can build connections quick and easy.

But who do you need in your network? Four key people in my network include, the mentor, the attorney, the tech, and yes, the sales person.

The Mentor— That person who has helped you throughout your career and who you have relied on when making decisions, usually they are in a similar line of business and have experienced many of the things you will. They also open the door for you to a larger, deeper group of contacts and additional industries.

The Attorney— Corporate attorneys are great because the touch every aspect of business. From sponsorship to real estate, they work to protect their company’s interest and often times interact with a diverse group of people from all industries. They are great sounding boards and can keep you out of trouble.

The Tech— The world is moving faster and faster with new technology and opportunities emerging every day. Having a network that includes developers and programmers can show you the way to future opportunities for your business and get you ahead of the curve.

The Sales Guru— Good sales people try to sell you their products. Great sales people help you achieve your goals. The best thing about having great sales people in your network, much like the tech savvy contact, is that they are usually on the cutting edge of projects and development and bring the opportunities for you and your clients. You still have to be able to determine the good from the great, but great sales people are great networkers and can help you in a variety of ways.

Finally, while technology has allowed us to connect and re-connect with old business acquaintances from around the world, don’t forget there is nothing better than meeting and networking face-to-face right here in your own community.

Most organizations are searching for social media strategies that engage users and create a substantial following. In November 2011, Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority (THEA) announced a partnership with Tampa Bay Times Forum, and Patterson/Bach crafted a strategy to turn to their partnership into a social media sweepstakes success.

P/B took hold of THEA’s Facebook fan page and began giving away tickets to Tampa Bay Lightning games throughout their 2012 season at Tampa Bay Times Forum. Using a customized-Facebook application, P/B increased THEA’s fan base by 100% in the first 24 hours of the sweepstakes!

Check out THEA’s official Facebook fan page to see the customized sweepstakes tab for yourself, and contact P/B if your company is in need of a successful social media campaign by calling 407-645-1880.

Today, social media is a part of most every marketing/communications plan, and in a world where everyone is trying to stand out, many organizations (including many P/B clients) are turning to social media outlets for promotions, sweepstakes, and contests to ramp up their campaigns. What many organizations don’t know is planning and executing a social media contest isn’t as easy as “ABC” and can create legal consequences. To ensure your social media contest is effective and compliant with all necessary rules and regulations, let us help you with eight important steps.

1. Define your target audience and choose an outlet by which that audience can be best reached.

2. Get creative! With hundreds of thousands of brand pages, make sure your idea stands out.

3. Know the difference between sweepstakes and contests. Sweepstakes are prize giveaways where the winners are chosen by luck. Contests draw a winner based on some merit (e.g., making a pledge to not drink and drive, best photo, etc.).

4. Make sure it’s LEGAL. Be sure to check rules & regulations on Facebook, Google+, Twitter, etc.

5. Define your prize. More importantly, if it’s over a certain dollar amount, you may have to register your contest with the state. For example, in the state of Florida, if a prize is worth $5,000 or more, it must be registered with the state.

6. Create an app for sweepstakes or contest and consider using a third-party resource to create it. This will give you the ability to customize your promotion.

7. Keep the contest interactive, but don’t let consumers take control. Don’t allow the public to choose your winner. This opens doors for cheating, lawsuits, and more.

8. Promote your promotion! Use your company’s mediums (e.g., newsletters, other social media outlets, website, email tags, etc.) to consistently keep your audience informed.

Call Patterson/Bach at 407-645-1880 for development of your company’s social media contest!

For as long as I can remember, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade has been a tradition to experience from the comfort of my home – not this year.

This year, we packed up our family and headed to New York City to see the parade live. Dylan (my son), Nancy-Ellen (my wife), and I, along with some of our family, set up shop at Central Park West and 63rd to experience this holiday tradition from a new perspective.

Holiday parades are always fun, especially with kids, but as you can imagine, this one is like no other with high school marching bands from as far away as Hawaii and Alaska, Neil Diamond, Cee Lo Green, and other celebrities singing from holiday floats and, of course, the balloons. Snoopy, Spidey, SpongeBob, and Kermit the Frog. No matter how big your Hi-Def TV is, there is no way to truly understand the enormity these incredible balloons and the holiday spirit that comes from standing street side with hundreds of thousands of people as Santa arrives on his sleigh.

You really have to be there… and take a kid.

Patterson/Bach Communications is proud to announce its new client, Feed Your Faith Ministries! Feed Your Faith Ministries has partnered with musical artist, Warren Barfield, as well as T.V. and film actor, Kirk Cameron, to highlight their events. The P/B Team is putting together a media campaign to help promote the cross-country tour.

Feed Your Faith works with national speakers, writers, and musicians to provide faith-based workshops and fundraise for charities throughout the Southeast United States. The organization is currently hosting a multi-city tour around the U.S. as part of their “Love Worth Fighting For” Marriage Event.

If you’re interested in a successful media buy, contact us at 407-645-1880!

We all talk about being relevant in the minds of our customers, managing the message to make sure it cuts through the clutter and creates a positive reaction to our products and services.

But what if they never hear it?

In today’s world we tweet, update our status, DVR our favorite shows, listen to podcasts, text, read e-books and e-zines, blog, shop online and watch videos of things we thought we’d never see.  But we still watch live TV, read real magazines and newspapers, listen to the radio and go places and do things.    With so many ways to communicate, sometimes it’s hard to determine where to start.

As technology continues to give us new ways to communicate with potential customers it is important to take the time to educate ourselves on where the audience is, how they interact and what motivates them, before bombarding them with texts, tweets or ads they have no interest in.  Now more than ever, investing in research and learning as much as you can about your audience is the critical first step in effectively reaching them with the content you want them to have.   Research can help you identify key attributes about your clients, what they react to and where to reach them, plus a whole lot more.

There are no easy answers, every business has different needs and different ways to reach their audience, some by National TV, some on organic SEOs, while others use billboards or direct mail to target their audience.  But one of the most important steps in delivering content and maximizing the dollars your company spends is taking the to time learn how to listen to what your Kingdom is telling you.

P/B recently hired Greg T. Otte as senior account manager. Greg is responsible for overseeing multiple account relationships, providing strategic direction, and managing tactical execution for the agency’s diverse client list.

Otte’s experience includes tenure with Tijuana Flats, Disney Sports Attraction, Aquatic Release Conservation, Grand American Road Racing Association, SeaWorld Adventure Parks, and Benedict Advertising. He has developed and managed marketing campaigns in the travel/tourism, hospitality, sports and retail industries, to name a few. Otte is a graduate of University of Central Florida with a bachelor of arts in communications.