Spire Express

Opening a window on the Mac

Mike — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 20:03:48 +0000

Interesting article in WSJ last week. Some handy hints on making the switch – Opening a Window on the Mac. I can still remember the moment for me when I came over from the PC side. It was about 1994. I was using Windows 3.1 at work; was familiar and comfortable writing batch programs, used DOSSHELL. Computing had come a long way at that time. However, I didn’t know what I was missing. I had tried to purchase some typesetting some years prior from a company that used an Apple Leasa (sp?). It was a not-so-great experience.

That was still fresh in my mind when I went to work at my hometown’s newspaper. I can remember the first night. I got a 10-minute introduction to the mac plus that they were using and then left on my own to type up some stories. I decided that it would be a good idea to create a folder to keep the stories in. I managed to somehow get a folder on the desktop (what was this desktop, anyway?) and then proceeded to look for a command in the menu structure to name it something other than “untitled folder”. I rummaged through all the desk drawers until I found a manual. The manual was quite sparse as I remember. Where were all the hundreds or thousands of pages that described every command in minutiae? Frustrated, I turned back to the tiny 9″ hi-res screen and clicked on the folder name. It became highlighted!! I then typed the name of the issue and I was converted to a mac user at that instance. I never looked back.

Should you be tempted to make the switch, this article explains some of the differences between the 2 operating systems.

story here

Very cool printing apps for the i-phone

Mike — Wed, 30 Dec 2009 19:48:39 +0000

$10 seems like a fair price not to have to carry a pantone book around with you. Of course, there’s no substitute for the real thing when you really need to know how a color will print. But this app is really neat. Allows you to assemble suites of different colors and even lay them on top of a reference color (something that you have photographed, for instance.) I can’t wait to try out the photoshop app as well.

See a review here

See a youtube tutorial here

Engage Your Readers

Mike — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 19:59:53 +0000

When you read studies showing average e-mail open and click-through rates, do you compare your own results to these statistics with glee or chagrin? In either case, you have the opportunity to improve your reaults if you put a laser-like focus on your audience members. Give them content and offers they want, and you have a better chance of engaging them

PURLs of Wisdom

Mike — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:11:17 +0000

For companies that had their heads in the clouds when it came time to upgrade their computers, Hewlett-Packard, Intel and JDA Software Group thought it was time for some skywriting. The technology firms sent out personalized direct mail pieces that featured a man with his arms spread upward, experiencing an epiphany due to these fluffy words forming above his head: “Bruce Schwartz, The Moment Has Arrived.”

Test for Success

Mike — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 16:59:23 +0000

Improve your results one e-mail at a time

It’s a new year, and this is the perfect time to make plans to improve results from your e-mail programs by conducting some meaningful tests.

Web Sites Debate Best Values for Advertising Dollars

Mike — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 16:38:18 +0000

FOR A TIME, Internet advertising was a rising tide lifting all boats. But as ad spending ebbs, there are more arguments about where on the Web advertising is the most fruitful. The fight over shrinking Internet ad dollars pits online publishers that offer premium content against major Web portals such as AOL, MSN and Yahoo. Portals and publishers, meanwhile, also have to compete with the ad brokers that sell often cut-rate leftover ad space on Web pages with less visibility.

Keeping Up With the Joneses

Mike — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 16:18:49 +0000

A three-step game plan to conduct an e-mail audit

Every company has marketing activities it performs exceptionally. For example, one marketer may have superior e-mail creative, while another may have mastered the use of triggered messaging. While we all strive for excellence, it’s a fact that we can’t shine in every area. It’s a good idea to turn your focus outward and analyze your competition. You just might learn something.

Digital Remix

Mike — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 16:04:33 +0000

The down economy pushes B-to-B marketers to embrace digital tactics: b-to-b marketers tinker with online channels, watch social media emerge and fret over fitting it all into a marketing mix dominated by conventional approaches. As the current recession continues through 2009, a company’s marketing mix must produce sales-ready results using less expensive channels.

Define Your Customers

Mike — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 15:56:42 +0000

Take a look at who your customers really are Most multichannel marketers think of customers in straight-forward terms: females, 45 to 60 years old, $75,000-plus household incomes, for example. These broad-sweeping demographic descriptors have a place in customer definitions but aren’t the end-all, be-all in defining who does business with you.

Customers Rule

Mike — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 15:02:56 +0000

Two principles guide ICM. First, the customer portfolio – the universe of prospects and engaged customers with the brand-is an organization’s most strategic asset. Second, an organization’s ability to optimally manage and grow the value of this customer portfolio is the key differentiator between market leaders and, well, everybody else.