It's Hip To Be Square- In 2018, I'm Moving My Blog from Blogger to Squarespace

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!

In 2018, I am rebranding and re-launching my Marketing Blog on Squarespace. I'm saying goodbye to the blog name, format, and Blogger platform. 

Here's the scoop:

I've been blogging about social media marketing and my adventures in networking in Nashville since 2009. Over the years, I stuck with the Blogger platform because it is owned by Google and I believed that would help with my SEO juice and Google rankings. Side Note: I also used to be a believer in Google+ taking off. We all know how that turned out. 

Admittedly, I have fallen off of a regular blogging routine because it has been a hassle to populate content on Blogger. A simple post takes hours of editing to get the layout, spacing, and text to populate how it want it to appear - especially on the mobile version. This experience has deflected me from doing what I'm passionate about- sharing my knowledge and insights!

I'm taking action. Much like technology and the world of marketing, my experience has evolved, and I'm not putting all my eggs in Google's basket. I need a blog platform that reflects my lifestyle- ease of posting, with not a lot of coding to fool with. I want a magazine-style, mobile-first site that is easy to navigate and provides a pleasant user experience.

(Drum Roll, Please) 

January 2018, I am moving to the Squarespace platform with a Marketing Blog that focuses on broader "Marketing" stories and trends. The "Nashville" content will stay and evolve. In 2018, I'm adding a new section that brings in my personal inspirations, influencers, and beliefs -I'm calling this section of my blog "Karma." 

The largest catalyst for this change was "Karma" inspired. I invited a friend and former co-worker, Lisa Dunn of LisaDunnDesigns.com, to a Nashville Women in Digital event, where we struck up the conversation about my intention to rebrand my blog. She and a few others highly recommended Squarespace. I did my research with a free 2-week trial and was impressed!

Getting familiar with an entirely new blogging platform was not easy. I was two hours in, and ready to throw up my hands and go back to Blogger- when Lisa stepped in to guide me through and simplify my Squarespace blog.

As it turns out, Lisa is a talented Graphic Design Coach, who just happens to be a certified Squarespace Trainer! She helped me get started and learn to navigate the setup of my new blog website. I definitely recommend reaching out to her if you are thinking of using Squarespace, and need some help.

I still have a lot of packing, unpacking, sorting and decorating to do throughout December, but I hope to be ready to open my doors to visitors on my new blog website in January. Thank you to all of my followers on Blogger- and I hope to see you next year after my move.

Be on the lookout for my new blog coming January 2018!

Top 13 Shopper Marketing e-newsletters for Digital Divas like me

Nashville is known for Country Music, Tourism, and Publishing…but there are several hidden gem Retailers (Dollar General, Tractor Supply Company, Journey’s, Kirkland’s) and CPG companies (Mars Petcare, Oreck, GooGoo Clusters, Griffen Technology) right here, as well as the Shopper Marketing Agency I work for, Catapult Marketing…where the focus is on you- the consumer.

I’m fascinated by the intersection between digital technology (apps, beacons, targeted digital ads and coupons) and the connection between the brand, consumer, and retailer. It’s a growing segment of digital marketing, focused around ever-changing shopper habits, called “Shopper Marketing”. 

Below is the list of Top 13 Shopper Marketing e-newsletters I subscribe to in order to stay informed of the latest trends. Many of these Shopper Marketing e-newsletters feature case studies where retailers and brands are finding success in digital shopper marketing. There are no rules, so the playing field is wide open and I am a huge fan! Let’s watch it play out together. 

Get your inbox ready! The links below will take you directly to the Shopper Marketing e-newsletter’s subscribe pages. You’re welcome ;) NOTE: These are in NO particular order. 

Top 13 Shopper Marketing e-newsletters: 

13. RetailTouchpoints - Retail TouchPoints (RTP) is an online publishing network for retail executives, offering content focused on optimizing the customer experience across all channels. 

12. Retail Leader - 100% Senior Executive Focused, Retail Leader delivers news, analysis and information specific to the needs of top managers in the retail, food, and allied industries.

Joe Pulizzi on Content Marketing | Notes from 4/6/17 #nashvilleama Presentation

Pic: Me & Joe Pulizzi at #NashvilleAMA on 4.6.17.

Today I attended a local NAMA (Nashville AMA) Marketing program, and here’s what I learned about Content Marketing from Joe Pulizzi, founder of Content Marketing Institute. 

Content Marketing is where digital marketing lives and has long term success. Hoping some of this can help you in your long-term marketing strategies! 

First things first. Some CEOs and CFOs may ask, "What's the point of content marketing?"

Per Joe Pulizzi, [it's] "building an audience in order to change a behavior" - AKA conversion.

HOW TO BUILD A CONTENT STRATEGY:

STEP 1: Find the Sweet Spot

• what is your customer's sweet spot? What do they want to know?

• What knowledge do you have that is valuable to them?

• What topic are you the leading expert on?

STEP 2: Content Tilt 

• Don’t just put out the same kind of content everyone else does on the same channels. Get crafty with resources.

• Where is there an area of differentiation that you can distribute your content to break through?

• What is your differentiator amongst your competitors? You must break through!

Best of #Nashville Instagram: Skylines

If you are like me, you love traveling and exploring new places…even in your own town. Lucky for me, I don't have to go far to see the best Nashville skyline views. I work, play, and explore in Nashville every day, capturing it all on Instagram.

I consider myself an "Instagram Photographer"- but aren't we all?! By using the #Nashville hashtag, I have discovered some great Nashville skyline views from some fellow fans of beautiful Music City. You will want to follow these Instagramers!

Here are my picks for the Best of #Nashville Instagram Skylines:

For the best "bird's eye" view- if the bird were a robot with a camera, follow the drone, @drone615!

A photo posted by Jason Hoffman (@drone615) on Oct 3, 2016 at 10:25am PDT

That Time I Hashtaged a Hot Dog in Nashville…

I gotta say, there’s nothing I love more than a good hotdog on a sunny day in Nashville. (I hear you chuckling! Let’s just get those dirty thoughts cleared away right away.)

I recently frequented Nashville’s beloved Hot Diggity Dog, and was pleased by not only their amazing menu, but by their social media suaveness. I Instagram’d a hot dog sign pic proclaiming my love with a #hotdog emoji (Thank you, Apple iOS 9.3!).

Later, I discovered @HotDiggityDog reposted my pic, giving me some love in return. They also followed me and “liked” my post. Just that little bit of social affection from them makes me love them even more. So of course, I had to tell you all about it! ‘Cause that’s how social media strategy works ;)

Here’s what they are doing right:

Social Signage:
In addition to all of their hot dog themed signage, Hot Diggity Dog has signs displayed throughout their location (on the wall, table tents, everywhere!), listing all their social media profiles and encouraging follows.