Tingalls

Tingalls Blog - Marketing Tips & Tricks

Guidelines for Facebook Banners

  Tingalls Graphic Design is often asked to update cover images for our clients on Facebook and we’re more than happy to help you reinforce your brand, increase customer loyalty and recognition. We feel it’s important to share Facebook’s guidelines for cover images so you can get the most out of your social media banner on Facebook and so you don’t “get in trouble”. Remember, Facebook reserves the right to reject a page at any time for any reason, so you want to play by their rules. No pricing information in the cover photo. This means you can’t advertise your sale price, you can’t post the percent off or even […]

Read More
Posted in Branding, Logo Design, Social Media Marketing, Tips

Are You Effectively Using Your Mobile Marketing Budget

The phone, or mobile device, has evolved so much that people now carry their photos, their calendars, their personal data with them at all times and constantly refer to it to stay connected with loved ones and the world around them. Obviously, this hasn’t gone unnoticed and marketing to people on mobile devices has become a huge business. In 2012 mobile ad spending in the United States is expected to hit $2.6 billion and by 2015 it’s predicted to be slightly less than twice that amount. But is this money being spent effectively? Many people are having a hard time adapting to this new technology and are approaching it as […]

Read More
Posted in Advertising, Email Marketing, Marketing, Tips

The History of Iconic Logos

The logo creation process is unique to every company logo. At Tingalls Graphic Design we have a set procedure for designing logos but, as we sometimes find, the ideas can come at anytime and anywhere, which got us talking recently about iconic logos and how they were created. We found this so interesting we thought we’d share the stories of how some famous logos came to be. Nike The Nike Swoosh is recognized around the world and hasn’t changed much since its inception, but what is the history of the Nike Swoosh? In 1971 a graphic design student, Carolyn Davidson, agreed to do some freelance work for Blue Ribbon Sports, […]

Read More
Posted in Logo Design, Tips

5 Big SEO Mistakes

We’ve covered SEO tips in the past, but what about SEO mistakes? What are you doing, or not doing, that can actually be harming your website’s ranking on the search engines? 1)      Keywords – you’ll repeatedly hear how important keywords or keyphrases are to your SEO, similarly, using the wrong ones can hurt your company. Take the time to know what terms people are using to search for your company or your competition. For example, more people search with the phrase “Real Estate” than “Home for Sale”; so you want to optimize for the keyword “real estate”. 2)      Click Here – How often have you seen “Click Here” on a […]

Read More
Posted in Search Engine Optimization, Tips, Website Design

Google Places for Local Businesses

I recently attended an SMBA meeting with representatives from the local Google office. The topic of the day was Google Places and why your business should register with Google Places. Google designed its Place Pages to help people connect to local businesses more easily and getting set up couldn’t be more convenient with representatives from Google coming to your business to walk you through the procedure at no charge. Why do you want to be listed in Google Places? One out of five searches on Google are related to location and by properly tagging your business to your location you can reach that audience who is searching for your company. […]

Read More
Posted in Marketing, Search Engine Optimization, Tips

How to Incorporate Social Media into a Print Campaign

A recent study by the Pivot Conference discovered that 37% of marketers plan to be more active in their social media campaigns in 2012. Why the push for social media? It appears as though people are beginning to grasp the benefits of a social media arm inside of their marketing strategy. There are a number of different ways to incorporate social media into your customer outreach programs but most of them are web based. How can you use your print marketing to boost your social media interaction? The easiest way to bring social media to your print materials is to include your social media information, Facebook web address, your Twitter […]

Read More
Posted in Advertising, Marketing, Networking, Social Media Marketing, Tips

Marketing Your Message Through Social Media

A “GOLD NUGGET“ from the WWE Panel Discussion on “Marketing Your Message Through Social Media“.  Thank you to the Panelists: Cathy Yerges, PEAK PROFITS, LLC; Rena Ripp, Hummingbird Social Media LLC, & Barbara Samuel, ALL WRITE, LLC 1)  If you are going to be on social networks, be consistent on them at least once a week with a message. 2)  Have a goal in mind before you start your social media presence. Identify your target audience and what you want to share with them. It will help you choose the best social media platform to use and allow you to strategically craft your message. 3)  Be a giver. Be present and […]

Read More
Posted in Social Media Marketing, Tips

How to Search on Google

While most people feel that they can confidently find the information they’re looking for on Google, they’re often doing it in a haphazard way that can waste valuable time. This is why we’ve come up with five tips on how to more efficiently search on Google. Exact phrase. Let’s say you are looking for a hair product you got at your salon. You can type hair salon into Google, but your results include hair care, hair products and nail salons along with your hair salon results. By putting the exact phrase you want, “hair products”, in quotes you insure that you get results for that exact phrase. Minus that. Let’s […]

Read More
Posted in Search Engine Optimization, Tips

Create an Effective Social Media Plan

It seems we’re constantly barraged with social media today, from friends to corporate marketing strategies and everything in between. Because of the wide use and acceptance of social media it has become a very valuable marketing tool; so how do you take advantage of it to help your business? To create, develop and carry out an effective social media marketing plan there are three steps that you need to follow. The first step is to listen to what people are saying. Follow your company news, customers, clients etc on social media outlets to see what people are saying about you. Listen to both the positive and negative comments and try […]

Read More
Posted in Marketing, Networking, Social Media Marketing, Tips

How Not to Use Social Media

Social media is becoming a huge part of company strategy and marketing, but it’s still a fairly novel invention, which means there are social media mistakes abound. So, just for fun, let’s take a look at some of the biggest social media mistakes companies have made. Kenneth Cole Using current events in your social media posts can be a great and clever way to promote your business or get people talking. But, as Kenneth Cole learned last year, good taste and common sense must come into play as well. During great unrest (and much violence) in Egypt, Cole decided to promote his clothing line with the following tweet. “Millions are […]

Read More
Posted in Social Media Marketing, Tips

Tips on Planning for a Tradeshow

Too many companies sign up for a tradeshow and then forget about it until a month before the show when they realize they’re going to need some material. Some companies don’t even put that much planning into it. To get the most out of a tradeshow and have the best attendee response you need to plan for the event. The first thing to remember is that a tradeshow is a marketing event and this means it needs to be treated like every other marketing event. You need to define your goals and then identify the metrics you will use to see if you’re meeting them. Then, it’s time to create […]

Read More
Posted in Advertising, Tips, Tradeshow Marketing

How Pinterest Can Help your Business

Pinterest is quite possibly the hottest thing to come along in social networking since Twitter, or perhaps even Facebook. As with any new social media venture, marketers are looking at it to see if it can help their company gain new customers. Think of Pinterest as an old-fashioned bulletin board where you pin your ideas, recipes, notes and other information. Pinterest is a very visual medium, which makes it particularly useful to companies that are selling products that are visually appealing and even some services like landscaping or hair styling. But the visual element doesn’t mean that content driven “pins” aren’t successful, quite the contrary. Currently, Pinterest is an invitation […]

Read More
Posted in Social Media Marketing, Tips

Changes to Google Analytics: i.e. Organic Keywords

Sometimes it seems as if Google changes more often than the weather in Wisconsin and all we can do is bring an umbrella and prepare for the downfall. Many of our clients like using the Google Analytics tool because it’s a free analysis of their website, providing them with detailed information on how many people are visiting their pages, which pages are most popular, what days attract more customers, how many more customers came during a promotional event, what keywords people are using to find the website – oh wait! Google Analytics will no longer be providing keyword information. For avid fans of analytics this will come as a big […]

Read More
Posted in Search Engine Optimization, Tips

New Google Changes to Search Algorithm

Google has done it again, they’ve just announced another change to their algorithm but this one is expected to have a very significant impact, possibly affecting up to 35% of all searches. The new focus of the algorithm is on getting fresher and more-timely results for queries. Many Google searches are time sensitive and the people searching want the most recent news or cutting edge information and Google is now attempting to respond with up to the minute fresh information. What does this mean to website owners? It means that keeping current on your website and adding news or blogs will help your website appear fresh and packed with news. […]

Read More
Posted in Advertising, Search Engine Optimization, Tips, Website Design

Play by Search Engine Rules

Almost every website is hoping for that coveted #1 position on Google and there are a variety of ways to get there, legitimate and not-so-honest methods. The important thing to remember is legitimate search engine optimization (SEO) is an integral part of your website and will help you throughout the site’s lifespan. Spammy or SEO trickery will harm your website in the long run and can even get you booted off of a search engine. Tingalls Graphic Design always plays by search engine rules and would love to help you with your SEO strategy. No Keyword Stuffing Keywords and keyphrases are very important to your website, using them frequently and […]

Read More
Posted in Search Engine Optimization, Tips

Beware of SEO Scams

You’ll notice that Tingalls Graphic Design has added some Search Engine Optimization (SEO) services to our roster and we’re proud to announce that our clients have seen results in the placement of their website on search engines, especially the coveted Google. But we’ll never guarantee that you’ll get a first place placement on Google or even that you’ll reach the first page because this is something no one can ensure. That’s right, whether you’re using good, legitimate SEO techniques or if you’re trying every dirty trick in the book you still cannot guarantee placement on the search engines. We felt it was important to point out this fact because lately […]

Read More
Posted in Search Engine Optimization, Tips