In today’s society, all of us follow influencers, whether we realize it or not. Influencers impact what we listen to, what we wear, what we watch, what we eat, and what we do. After reviewing the 60 minutes transcript, I realized that I follow many influencers. One of the influencers I follow and watch Youtube videos from the most is Carrie Dayton. She is a woman in her early thirties who does thrifting videos, clothing hauls, day-to-day in the life videos, along with other topics. I started watching her two years ago and enjoyed watching her funny comments, bubbly personality, and fun-loving self as she shared part of her life with her audience.

For the type of marketing Carrie does, which is posting vlogs on Youtube, I notice that this type is becoming more and more popular with those in their early twenties and in their teenage years. “Youtubing”, as many call it, has become more popular than the use of Twitter, the use of personal written blogs, and more popular than other social media platforms, such as vine and facebook. Having an account and posting on Youtube has become equivalent to digital streaming apps. In this type of Youtube marketing, marketing strategies are being employed, such as giveaways, entering into sweepstakes, and meet-and-greets, just to name a few. When one of these Youtube names gains enough popularity, he or she is often rewarded by being able to hand out certain products or enter their followers into a certain sweepstakes if the Youtuber brands their particular product. Also, if the Youtuber has a well-established platform, he or she sometimes hosts meet-and-greets around the country in order to establish better relationships with their followers.

Influencers like Carrie, also known as a Youtuber, play a huge role in marketing. As popularity on Youtube grows, the role these influencers play also grows. They are looked up to more, watched more, followed more, and become the “go-to” people that companies ask to brand their products to try and grow their market. Without these influencers, companies would not be able to gain the recognization that they work towards, and those that the influencers reach in their markets would not be able to connect with more “ordinary” people as compared to celebrities. The influencers are the ones who influence their consumers to check out certain stores, buy from certain makeup lines, purchase the most fashionable and trendy clothes, cook the healthiest recipes, and travel to the most exotic and unique places. Without them, the stability of all the companies then fall into each of these categories would fail. The use of marketing perspective impacts the relationship between the company and consumer, because if any influencer is strategic in the way he or she brands products then the influencer will be successful in his job. Influencers tend to play large roles that close the gap between companies and consumers, because the influencers are the ones who brand and encourage their audience to try certain products. Therefore, if the influencer uses the marketing perspective to his or her advantage, the company being advertised will grow and create healthier relationships with new and old consumers.

For my chosen examples of digital media, I chose to read and analyze was The Voice: Integration with Live Television. After reading through the article, I believe I am able to answer a few questions. First, I believe the article did a great job at explaining how the show, The Voice, appeals to the wants and needs of its target audience. The show is able to do this, because not only is it a show that brings joy and laughter to people, but it is also a show that socially engages its audience in each episode. As the article discussed, three of the best ways the show has hit the wants and needs of its target audience is by extending the storytelling of the show so it is real and authentic, engage their audiences through social campaigns, and by creating urgency by incorporating live social activations tied to the on-air show. Not only does The Voice meet the wants and needs of its target audience through these ways, but these three points also help address the social and consumer experience. I believe that by the show offering these experiences to its audience, The Voice manages these successfully. Through these offered experiences, millions of fans engaged with the show’s content and offerings, setting so many record on all social platforms.

The digital media followers of the show were handled as fans who could try and personalize their own experience with the show. The Voice wanted to create an experience like no other for its fans, so it launched live backstage videos on Facebook, created Bitmoji stickers, integrated the artists’ own snaps on Snapchat, offered a virtual backroom stage on Instagram, and launched fan art on Tumblr. These are just a few of the many ways the show handled digital media followers and through each of these experiences the show was successful and efficient. I do not believe that there is anything that could have been done differently to make those experience more efficient, because The Voice offered so many different experiences that reached so many fans, by utilizing various forms of social media.

Currently, according to the website, The Voice is still effectively offering all of these same experiences to its fans, all throughout the globe. Those who run the show and its adjoined social media outlets have seen how popular and successful these experiences have been for its fans and therefore appear to want to keep what works running. Each of these offerings on each form of social media platforms consist of ethical engagements that are helping with the effectiveness of the show and its fan base. The show and its social media platforms stand by ethical processes and not only want to keep these but have found a solid and stable way for these to be apparent, while the show’s fans also enjoy their experiences. The Voice also has a mobile app that meets the consumer’s needs. On this app fans can play along, vote, and save as they watch along with the show. As the show goes live, each fan has their own button on their app which they can hit during the Blind Auditions to make their voice heard. Finally, on the app fans can watch video’s of the artists’ performances and also watch digital exclusives to the app. Overall, The Voice has been very effective at what it does, doing the job of meeting the consumer’s wants and needs, while also providing a great and fun experience.

On a daily basis, there are three main sites and applications I visit: Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat. I mainly use Facebook to keep in touch with friends regarding their life updates, and I use the associated Facebook Messenger to check in from time to time with events that are happening or planning to meet up. Facebook provides me with an easy way to keep in the loop with what is going on in the community around me and also helps me stay in touch with friends who I do not see often or may have moved away. Instagram provides me with similar experiences, but also allows me to follow and keep up to date on anything I wish to search, such as new food releases, movie releases, bakeries and cafes. Snapchat is used to view my friend’s stories they post about life updates, and also to send and share instant pictures with friends as another form of texting.

When using certain types of digital media, I often have mixed reactions to what I see. For example, using social and digital media platforms for purposeful reasons such as posting life updates and connecting with friends are harmless and encouraged. However, when people get into political debates or arguments over various topics, I feel more negative reactions to why people are allowed to exhibit such behavior over the web. For the most part, I feel more positive reactions than negative when I am focused on observing and using digital media for the right reasons.

I would like to say that I find that my needs are quite satisfied when using any form of digital media, as long as I am able to accomplish what I wanted to do – post a life update, message friends, or find information regarding a certain business or restaurant. I do not feel that my needs are satisfied when using one particular form of digital media over the other, because depending on my mood and the media form itself, my needs can change.

As far as if I receive emails from companies, I do receive quite a few. I have tried to limit which companies I receive emails from, as I do not like having unnecessary emails sent to me that either do not apply to me or contain information I will not use. Within the emails that I do receive, the type of email that catches my attention the most are ones that contain store coupons. I like to shop and use discounts, as I never enjoy purchasing products at full price. I like being able to purchase more for the price of one, so I have signed up for many reward programs that I receive coupons from. Being able to look out for coupons in my email to use on groceries, clothing, cleaning supplies, and other products feel satisfying when I end up taking a trip to the store.

For the most part, I notice that the use of digital media in marketing today has increased drastically over the past several years and appear to keep increasing as business rely more and more on digital marketing. While there are advertisements that appear in magazines and newspapers, the majority of advertisements appear digitally. Sometimes, they appear right in front of us and we do not even see them because we are so prone to advertisements being on almost every website these days. Digital marketing is growing as technology advances and it is exciting to see how successful and widespread it has been up to this point.

When looking at ethical practices in an integrated marketing, there are three most important practices.

The first one is for a business to maintain a high level of professional competence and integrity in order to exercise the most professional judgement. By doing so in an integrated marketing campaign, this will best benefit individuals who are expecting the business to perform at a high level and reach their potential audience through various marketing strategies.

The second practice is for the business to promote meaningful and inclusive participation of individuals who are deeply apart of the company. If the business is solely aimed at promoting their product selectively and exclusively, they may be at a higher risk for receiving negative feedback and constructive criticism. By being inclusive with their promotion, they are giving their current and potential customers the opportunity to be a part of something so much greater than just an advertisement. They are allowing them to be a part of growing and expanding the company.

The third practice is for the business to maintain the professional standards, policies, laws, and regulations which are put into place to help the business be the most successful. By obeying and following each of these, the business will continue to maintain a higher standard of professionalism, and customers will be more drawn to the business as a result of their upheld mannerism.

While all of these ethical practices are the best for a business to follow during an integrated marketing campaign, there can be potential concerns than can occur if best ethical practices are not followed.

For the first practice of maintaining a high level of professional competence and integrity in order to exercise the most professional judgement, the business’s reputation can be severely damaged if this is not followed. Most customers look to purchase a product from businesses who maintain a high professionalism in their attitudes, language, social media profiles, and mannerism. If any of these qualities are not followed, the business’s reputation will no longer proceed them as a reputable, honest, or helpful business to purchase from.

When it comes to a business promoting meaningful and inclusive participation of individuals who are deeply apart of the company, this is crucial for the business to maintain a highly dedicated customer base. Without allowing their customers to be a part of all that they do within the business, they are be exclusive rather than inclusive. Often, many individuals want to be a part of a business family which treats them with professionalism and consideration, allowing them to have a voice in some of the decisions and actions made to move the business forward. Without this, the business will receive harsh and negative feedback, along with constructive criticism which could majorly lower their appearance to the public.

When it comes to the business maintaining the professional standards, policies, laws, and regulations which are put into place to help the business be the most successful, these are critical. Each of these standards, policies, laws, and regulations are put into place so that the business might maintain integrity, professionalism, honesty, and dedication to their business products and what they as a business stand for. By choosing not to follow these, the business would be acting irresponsible and inattentive to their duties.

Following through with ethical practices are crucial for a business if they choose to maintain high profiles on the market, especially when it comes to working on integrated marketing campaigns.

SMART goals are something used very often in all areas of life – personal, professional, or educational. SMART goals help define what the problem is, how to approach it, and how to solve it. However, SMART goals dig deeper than just the surface appearance of what they are created for. In order to breakdown the pieces of what makes up a SMART goal, everything must start at the beginning. Goals, strategies, and tactics are often used interchangeably in today’s culture. However, each of these three words has such a deeper meaning behind it. To begin, goals are a thought or idea, designed to be achieved within a period of time. Goals = primary outcomes. Following the creation of a goal, tactics are actions that are taken in order to reach a certain point within the goal. Strategies = approach taken to achieve a goal. On the other hand, strategies are defined as plans which are used alongside tactics to help reach a goal. Tactics = tools used alongside a strategy.

When looking at the use of SMART goals in business, they are often used when creating marketing campaigns. In fact, SMART goals are key to creating marketing campaigns. By setting SMART goals, a business will be able to clarify what its ideas are, while being able to put more focus on its efforts in attaining them. These goals are meant to be realistic and attainable, while also challenging one to stretch beyond his or her limits in order to achieve success. When looking to establish SMART goals when creating marketing campaigns, there are six questions that can be asked. These questions deal with the who, what, when, where, which, and why aspects.

1. Who is involved?
2. What are you seeking to accomplish?
3. Where will this be taking place?
4. When will this be happening and in what time frame?
5. Which requirements are you seeking to achieve? Which constraints are holding you back?
6. What is your purpose? What is your reasoning?

After examining all the different questions about what should be examined within a SMART goal, the next step should be examining how marketing tactics align to strategies in order to support the proposed goals. The first example would be looking at balancing and aligning management. If a business wishes to succeed in their marketing campaigning efforts, the goals need to be established right away, followed by proposed strategies and tactics. However, not only do all three of these areas need to be established, but they also need to be aligned with one another. Those involved in the marketing campaign need to be able to understand each other, see eye to eye, and be working towards the same goal. The second example is making sure everyone involved in the marketing campaign communicates the goals. Creating a marketing campaign involves multiple departments and many employees. In order for the proposed campaign goal to be understood by everyone, effective communication is key. Without it, the strategies and tactics would be lost. Alignment is only truly achieved when the goals, strategies, and tactics reach deep down into each department, yet each department works together to achieve the business’ goal.

In order to be sure than SMART goals are met, businesses need to use key performance indicators, otherwise known as KPI’s. Key performance indicators are a type of business metric which are used to track and measure performance in relation to a business’ specific goals. An example would be a business seeking to provide the best services to ensure customer satisfaction, and the business would use customer surveys as their form of KPI’s. By using these customer surveys, the business would be able to collect and track all the received data and analyze what truly works and what the customers want and need.

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

• Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
• Because it will help you focus you own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

• Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
• What topics do you think you’ll write about?
• Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
• If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.