Foursquare has grown exponentially over the last year to become a huge social network. Why not use it to market your business? Here are a few steps in creating a successful marketing presence on Foursquare –

1. Claim your business – Foursquare will verify your ownership through various instructions depending on how many chain locations you have. Once you have verified your business, you will be able to use foursquare’s built-in analytics along with other neat features.

1. Create special offers – When your business is verified, you can create for your customers various discounts and special offers. Customers can receive your discounts and specials when they check into your business. For example, someone that checks in for the first time might receive the newbie special, which could be a free drink or something.

Using Foursquare to market your business is a great way to become active with your customers. Not only does it help build customer loyalty, it can help your business identify various target markets.

Source: “Five Tips for Successful Foursquare Marketing”

This new camera by Canon, along with the other video capable DSLR camera’s available from nikon and other camera companies, is going to change the world of photography and video as we know it. Canon, who just released this new full frame camera has officially made full frame, incredible quality video and photography available to a non-professional market. While the price for this camera is fairly steep (a cool $3500 body only), its price tag pales in comparison to the $5000+ cost of other professional quality cameras in the canon line. The new 5d canon boasts a 22 mp full frame sensor with incredible low light sensitivity (think iso 25,600, which for those who do not know camera lingo, this means you can shoot photos in darker situations). This, paired with the camera’s video capabilities, makes it a must have for up and coming cinematographers and photographers. It is so incredibly versatile and feature packed in comparison to other video camera’s (ex: RED which retail in the $17000). It also allows you the ability to purchase other high quality lenses that allow you to customize your rig to the type of shooting you are aiming to do.

Now, what does this have to do with entrepreneurship? In today’s world, the ability to produce quality media and marketing is essential for survival in this digital age. A camera like this allows you to be confident with quality while spending a significantly lower amount of money on your camera. Plus, with the canon line, you can invest in lenses and so that when this body gets outdated, you will not have to start from scratch – you can simply use your old lenses on the newer body.

Ever wonder how a so-called “social network” website is making so much money?

I mean think about it… There’s no charge to join, no subscription fee, no new hardware or software to buy… How on earth are they pulling in millions and millions of dollars??

It’s simple really. ADVERTISING.

Facebook charges companies to place ads on the site. Ya know, those annoying things that are the side panel of every page, yeah those. Facebook has created a quick and easy way for companies to target their ads. By collecting all kinds of data about its users (through profile information, places they visit, likes, etc.) Facebook can place ads in just the right place at just the right time. Because of this pinpoint accuracy, advertisers flock to them for ad space!

That’s how they make money. They charge for ad space, and thousands of companies are willing to pay large sums for it.

So don’t overlook the potential of selling ads on your site!

It is not all that uncommon to see an advertisement go from a TV debut to being found on YouTube, but it’s not as common to have this happen in the reverse, yet this is Chipotle’s new tactic. They are set to debut their first television commercial on Sunday during the Grammy Awards. Why would they choose this venue to debut their two-minute animation depicting a farmer rejecting industrialization and returning to simple life he started with?

http://www.youtube.com/user/chipotle?v=aMfSGt6rHos

They chose this as their television debut because they were thinking when they made the commercial. The commercial features two Grammy heavy-hitters in one. The song is Willie Nelson’s (10 time Grammy winner) version of Coldplay’s formerly Grammy  nominated song “The scientist”. By debuting the add on the grammy’s, they are reaching a high market concentration that will be able to appreciate the intricacies of the commercial.

Yet, the plot gets even more brilliant because of Chipotle’s decision to debut the add on YouTube before debuting it on TV. This release scheme has allowed the word to get out at a lower cost to Chipotle (the typical run time for commercials is less than one minute and this commercial is two minutes). Plus, the commercial not only advertises Chipotle, but also Chipotle’s Cultivate Foundation that seeks to reduce the industrialization of farming and return it to a healthy small scale industry.

My last two blog entries have been on Uncrate . . . and this one is no different.

Uncrate & Devour are both connected through Zombie Corp, so there are a lot of similarities between the two websites. The way they allow other companies to advertise on their sites is a good example.

Uncrate adds five new products to its website each day. These product listings are how Uncrate allows others to advertise on its site. Although Uncrate does offer some traditional banner advertising, the majority of its advertising space is through the product listings. Each listing has a “BUY” tab linked to an outside site where the product is available for purchase.

Devour’s approach to advertising is very similar. Most of the advertising is done through videos. The video advertisements look the exact same as the other videos on Devour, aside from a small red “Ad” button below the title.

Uncrate & Devour use very little traditional banner advertising. You should check out their websites to see how clean they look because of their approach to advertising.

This past week I encountered a wonderful example of the difference that an Internet component to any business can make in it’s success. I had been looking at the website of a local florist shop out of the potential to work there during my college career. From touring the site, the arrangements were impressive and upscale. The online experience lead me to have a high standard for the business. This past week I had the opportunity to actually visit the shop in person. To my disappointment, the shop was nothing like I had visualized from the quality of their website. I actually had to search with my eyes for a few moments to find a living plant! The large store was nearly empty but for an obstructing table in the center of the room with a stuffed bear on top. There were no pre-made arrangements or decorations or displays. And all this lacking with one of the largest days in the floral industry right around the corner! It became very clear that the business was mostly doing well from the effort they put into their website.

So, here are a few things the florist did well to convey on their website to give that high-quality impression.

Presentation of the Product

First, not only did they provide many sample pictures of their work, but had a great photographer to do it well. Especially when it comes to flowers or art where the aesthetic properties can make or break a deal, it’s incredibly important to show a product off in the right light. A high-quality photographer is absolutely necessary to make your product look as best as possible. When selling online, the customer won’t be getting any other opportunity to view the product before it is delivered, so being able to grab the attention of website traffic and direct it to a good looking product is essential.

Organization

Second, the website displays a huge variety of products in a very organized manner. Having too few pieces to display makes it difficult to trust a company, while having an abundance in a chaotic format can be overwhelming and too confusing for a smooth transaction experience. Sorting products by holiday, occasion, gifts, sympathy, and price, anyone can feel confident that they are getting an appropriate gift for the right price for the occasion.

Relationships

Third, anyone can actually become a member on the website of the business and form their own account. This allows the customer to keep track of the order, for the business to be able to contact the customer in case of difficulties, and a better opportunity to market and receive feedback from customers. It creates a relationship between the customers and the business to keep people coming back for more. A personal account is not something one would expect to come across when just making a small purchase such as flowers. The business goes beyond the normal expectations for websites in their own industry to make a positive impression.

Although these are just a few small ideas, it was enough to convince me that the business was booming. Bottom line is, good website design can greatly influence the success of a business and it is worth putting resources and thought into. And as for working there, maybe I can get hired for having a few good ideas, too.