Spring is around the corner and my thoughts are turning to spring cleaning! Sprucing up your office is a good opportunity to get rid of clutter and decorate a little. So, here are some tips to get you started and keep you motivated:

1. Clear out the clutter
   Before we can decorate, we need to clean up.  A few years back, I read an article that concluded most employers won’t promote a person with a messy workspace into a position of responsibility. A messy desk says that you’re like the vast majority of people. But, it can also portray you as stressed, overwhelmed and disorganized. So let’s clean it up!
2. Organize
   • Set up a filing system
   • Have papers and materials for only the task at hand on your desk
   • When you’re done with something, put it away
   • Keep equipment such as phone, printer and fax within reach
   • Get a calendar and use it
   • Ask the intern to clean up for you (you never know, he might do it)
3. Personalize Make yourself comfortable! Invest in a comfy chair, a mouse and a keyboard that fits your style. Post pictures of things that inspire you. eHow suggests buying a colorful desk lamp to offset harsh overhead lighting.
4. Show off your spruced up workspace Send your before and after pictures to me at rmiles@canyoncomm.com and I’ll show off your hard work.

So let’s get cleaning!

Photo courtesy of http://seejanework.com

I have social media on the brain. Again.

It’s evolving, mysterious and a blank canvas for marketing creativity and strategy. I think it’s safe to say that everyone involved in social media is learning as they go. And, while there are some nay-sayers about ROI for social media, there is one point that can’t be argued. Social media can help improve your Search Engine Optimization (SEO), when done effectively, of course.

So, HOW can social media improve your SEO?

1. Direct Links. Social media sites provide links. Lots of links. Google likes links. Google ranks sites with lots of links to them higher than those with very few links. Add links to your Web content on sites like Twitter or leave comments on blogs with relevant links to your site.
2. Keyword-optimized content. Have you noticed Tweets showing up in Google search results? Google and Yahoo index Tweets, so keep adding content to social media platforms for added visibility. The more valuable your content, the more likely someone else is to share it with their network.

How are you optimizing your social media content? Here are some helpful tools for Social Media Optimization.

In the next couple of blog posts I will be exploring some simple “insider” tips about what to do with your project before it gets sent to design.

Design, put simply, is the presentation of information. And, good design does this in the most pleasing way possible. For the latter to become a reality, designers need to have the project’s “information” in tip-top shape BEFORE the design process gets started. The last thing a designer should be paid for is proofreading! It’s not that designers are incapable; it’s just that we’d rather be DESIGNING.

Ensuring consistency in a project’s details before it goes to design is critical. This means em-dashes versus dashes, initial caps versus title case. We’re not just talking about spelling and run-on sentences. Taking the time with your project and information before it gets to design helps move it along at a more efficient and cost-effective pace.

Stay tuned for my riveting second blog installment, titled, “When it comes to copy, size DOES MATTER—dealing with the more-than-ever-prevalent and scary ‘paragraph-length’ headline (AKA “paragraph-line”).”

photo courtesy: www.flickr.com/photos/Nic’s events

I keep hearing marketing professionals extolling the benefits of social media for businesses. I always laugh when I hear, “social media is free.” Are you kidding me, people? While I agree that signing up for accounts on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, Flickr, WordPress and the like comes at no charge, social media participation for businesses is hardly free.

First, you can’t just set up these accounts, post a few things and let them sit. To maximize your efforts, you must constantly update, tweet, friend, connect, write and reply. It’s about developing and distributing fresh content that your audience will be interested in and carrying on conversations, which takes a tremendous amount of time—and, time is money.

Also, social media is about listening and reacting quickly if your brand comes up in conversations. This takes planning and diligence in monitoring, which takes time, time you pay your employees and agency partners for. At Canyon, we developed guidelines for social media participation that our employees must abide by—this document wasn’t free to develop.

Oh, and technically, since social media tools are web-based, internet connections, mobile devices and bandwidth is all paid for through your ISPs and wireless providers.

Have you been able to spend the time to maximize your social media efforts? Has your social media involvement resulted in enough return to justify the investment? Still think social media is free?

photo courtesy: www.flickr.com/photos/Sean_McColgan