Happy St. Patrick's Day

I read somewhere that the annual celebration is mostly about pounding beer as long as you can stay upright. Partiers will revel 'til the wee hours of the morning over their heritage, adopted or true, then stumble home (designated driver at the helm, please) their green boas and goofy glasses still partially intact.

But will they remember you come morning?

For those of us in the business of marketing establishments that sell Guinness, Bushmills and even green beer, St. Patrick's Day is a true pot of gold. If you're not being proactive you could end up with Leprechaun gold – fools gold or vanishing gold. Call it what you want if you're a one day hit wonder you're wasting a golden opportunity. St. Patrick's Day is a business opportunity. Let me say that again, St. Patrick's Day is a golden business opportunity! It is not just a day to rake in the reveler's cash at the tap. Meaning – if you're going to throw the party make sure you're remembered, or should I say retweeted. It's time to get out your green thumbs, and I don't mean the one's that plant flowers. It's time to be social about it - text, tweet, tag, pin and post. The idea is to get everyone talking before and after. Create a buzz! (pun intended) It's just common sense that the longer they're talking about you the better they'll remember you. And let's not forget, in this digital age, they'll tell 20 friends (especially if they're in the photo) and they'll tell 20 friends and 100's, 1000's even, will hear about you.

How will they remember you?

A word of caution: If you're not tweeting, pinning and posting, someone else is bound to be. So then the question is, Who's going to be in control of what's spread about you? Is it the guy with the photo of his friend the town idiot who just happened to make a fool of himself at your bar? Or will it be you with great posts of the nights highlights – your great food and beverage concoctions, photo's of your happy customers, the festivities and decor, recipes, giveaways and more?

Happy St. Patrick's Day 
- here's to your pot of gold going viral!

Small Gains

When you first start out, almost everyone compares themselves to others who are farther ahead. That kind of thinking can have a negative, even crippling, effect. I'm here to tell you, Not to worry! There will almost always be someone ahead, but they were in your shoes at some point. Instead, think of it like this, they've paved the way for you.

Regardless of who's ahead of you and how far –

You must utilize the Internet to be competitive in today's world.

Here are a couple simple things you can do to start improving your social media skills –
First, you can learn a lot by simply exploring other websites. Familiarize yourself with your competitor's websites and get cozy with relatable blogs, websites and social media outlets. Start monitoring what they do. Don't use the excuse you don't have time. I've said it before and I'll say it again, set aside 15-30 minutes to get yourself started and don't go beyond it. Set a timer if you have to. Thereby not allowing yourself to say it's too time consuming. The more you familiarize yourself with your industry on the web the easier it will be for you to take on your online marketing. There are lots of great examples out there. Next, leave a trail of bread crumbs back to your website. As soon as you've found a few relatable blogs start leaving comments. Once you've begun commenting, create your Gravatar. A Gravatar is a photograph of yourself or your logo (artwork usually in .jpg form) and is a simple, effective way to start getting some recognition. Now, follow and comment often!

Bellow is one of my business Gravatars –

And, here's what it looks like as an actual comment –

Social Media & Tech Habits: More Insight

Traveller types based on social media and technology habits by Expedia Media Solutions - 

Need More Convincing?

Here's yet another take on social media's impact on travel. It too illustrates that social media is not just a player in travel marketing, it's taking the lion's share. From planning a vacation to posting reviews upon return, there’s no denying social media’s impact on travel planning today.
To demonstrate how more and more people are using social media and mobile technology throughout their vacations, MDG Advertising developed the following informative infographic.

Infographic by MDG Advertising

Are you marketing for today's traveler?

The impact of the Internet and Social Media on travel is very significant.
Check out this infographic from Funsherpa, which looks at the influence of social media on travelers, how travelers use the internet, and how social media has become a major part of the vacation.