Against the Grain: Web

When taking on your first “real” project as an intern, a lot of thoughts go through your mind, “Am I ready for this? Where do I start? I hope I don’t blow this,” but none can beat the rush you get when you realize it’s time to prove your worth. It can be scary taking on a project with such a high value to our company when you have never done anything like it before. It’s like being thrown into an ocean, not knowing how to swim, and having to fend for yourself. Well, with no arm floaties, I had to learn on my own.

I soon found out that meetings are critical to the success of a project. It’s so easy to get the right group of talented people together, each from different departments, sit down and come up with tactical options on how to complete a project in the allotted timeframe and within the budget. My one-man project quickly turned into a group effort. Unlike class up at school, I was able to delegate tasks to each department at hand that specialized in that particular work. The creative ideas went to our creative department, the press release and announcements to our PR department and the website specifications to our interactive/online team. With follow-up meetings, I was able to put together a great marketing plan for the project. What would have been a semester-long project in school was put together in a little over a week.

The implementation of the marketing plan would not have happened had the plan not been approved with oversight from the CEO, President, account executive and head of the research department. This was a little intimidating to say the least. Facing a panel of four of your superiors and pitching a marketing plan that was little more than an idea a week ago was not an easy thing to do. All in all, I thought the presentation went over fairly well. Of course, for being the first “real” project I have put together, there were a couple tweaks here and there. But the project got approved. (That’s gotta’ mean something right?) Overall, it has been a great learning experience putting together a “real” full-blown marketing plan. Now comes the execution…

Most companies have had a website for 10 years or more. They’ve probably completely revamped it two or three times. And They’ve probably never really found the pot of gold at the end of the cyber rainbow.

That’s because they built an online brochure or a reference shelf, not a sales or lead generation tool.

But like all other marketing tools (and it is a marketing tool, regardless of what IT says), a site’s primary goal should be converting cold prospects into warm leads. Can it have other uses and be a deep resource of content about a company and its products? Certainly. But don’t let that get in the way of closing business.

Trilix is a full-service advertising agency headquartered in the Midwest with expertise in helping manufacturers market effectively and drive sales success. Learn more at www.trilixgroup.com or email Todd Senne at tsenne@trilixgroup.com. 

If you’ve never heard of Great Ape Trust, now is your chance to check out the fascinating science, research and conservation that this world-class organization has to offer.

Trilix recently partnered with Great Ape Trust on a website redevelopment project that allows users to experience Great Ape Trust in a whole new light. This latest version of the website has been nearly eight years in the making as Trilix and Great Ape Trust have partnered on various marketing communications efforts over that time – including the Trust’s original award winning website. The new site has allowed everyone involved with this project an opportunity to tell Great Ape Trust’s story in a captivating way like never before.  

Great Ape Trust is a scientific research facility in Des Moines, Iowa, dedicated to understanding the origins and future of culture, language, tools and intelligence, and to the preservation of endangered great apes in their natural habitats. The Trust is home to a colony of six bonobos involved in noninvasive interdisciplinary studies of their cognitive and communicative capabilities. The Trust is also currently home to six orangutans.

With limited visitation to their campus, the Trust relies heavily on its website to provide visitors with the scientific research, photos, videos and conservation projects that encapsulate the efforts of the scientists and staff that work with these magnificent apes.

One unique challenge set forth during initial planning stages for the new site was to give the user a first hand look into exactly how the apes and scientists at Great Ape Trust communicate. Bonobos use lexigrams made up of 128 symbols per board representing various words. Trilix worked closely with Great Ape Trust to develop an Interactive Lexigram experience for users representing a replica of the current boards that would allow users to interact with nearly 400 words used by the bonobos.

An extensive look into Great Ape Trust’s conservation initiative in Gishwati, Rwanda – the Forest of Hope – is highlighted within the site with features such as a blog, team member profiles, an interactive magazine, chimpanzee cam and various facts about Rwanda’s geography, people, government and economy.

Great Ape Trust also uses their website as the hub for their communications with social media networks such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. The new site allows for easy sharing and integration among these extremely valuable communication channels.

The most important element taken into consideration during development of this new site was Great Ape Trust’s need to be able to self administer a large majority of the sites content following its initial launch. This included scientist and ape biographies, photography, video footage, various resources, news releases and site features such as banners, buttons, breaking news and more. The new content management system will allow Great Ape Trust the ability to keep their site fresh and vibrant with the latest news and information as it happens.    

Experience Great Ape Trust Like Never Before at www.GreatApeTrust.org.    

Last week, I attended the National AgriMarketing (NAMA) conference in Kansas City. The 2010 conference drew a record number of agri-marketing professionals and featured two days of social media, e-mail marketing and branding discussions. Armed with my beloved BlackBerry, Twitter app and the conference hash tag, I was anxious to catch up with old friends, meet new ones and share everything I learned with my Twitter followers.

I was amazed by the number of attendees I recognized by their Twitter avatars and how many conversations began with, “Hey, I know you! I’m @KeyleeP.” As I chatted with tweeps, I jokingly suggested our Twitter handles should be listed on our name tags. But seriously, they should’ve been! How opportunities to make a face-to-face connection with online “friends” did I miss because I didn't recognize them? Most marketers would agree that we're in a relationship business and the ability to network is key to unlocking new opportunities. The beauty of Twitter is that it creates an introduction, a virtual handshake if you will, to make real life connections that can help your business grow.

In addition to its networking perks, Twitter is a great platform to raise awareness about your company and promote your products and services. Some companies are fearful of using social media because they lose control of their messaging. But it’s time for these timid, late-adapters to be brave and log-in. Customers are already talking about your company, products and services and you'd better be monitoring what they're saying. Tweets can spread through the Twitterverse like wild fire and if the messages are negative, you’d better be ready to respond — STAT!

Social media has added a new dynamic to the marketing mix. You must get engaged in the online conversation to connect with your current and potential clients and monitor what they're saying about your brand. You never know who is listening. The next virtual hand you shake may just open the door to a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

Welcome to the re-vamped Trilixgroup.com. It has some new features we think will help you get to know us a little better.

Campaigns and Work Samples – We've included comprehensive case studies and work samples to showcase the work we do on behalf of our clients. 

Against the Grain – Ever feel like you don’t hear enough about Trilix? Check out Against the Grain, our new blog where we post just about anything we’re thinking about. I don’t want to make any promises, but you might just see some of the most innovative marketing ideas ever posted right here. We can dream, right?

Videos – Our new video section features a few of us, talking about what we do best, and some client feedback we’ve received over the years. Watch for future videos to give you some real-time flavor of what it’s like to work and play at Trilix.

Thanks for visiting our site. It’s our hope that it gives you better insight into why we love what we do, and we do it so well.