May 24th, 2010
**Contact us for help with international and multicultural marketing to reach your target market.**
Successfully marketing to diverse audiences is a business imperative. Multicultural consumers dominate major markets, our largest states and many of our most valued consumer segments, such as new moms and households with children. Any projection for meaningful growth must include and factor in diverse consumer segments to be remotely achievable. The continued growth of our brands depends on our focus and inclusion of multicultural consumers.
–Mark Addicks, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of General Mills.
Read more of his thoughts.
AG Communications Groups takes your message to a multicultural and global environment. Contact us today.
April 21st, 2010
As reported by the Associated Press, first-quarter earnings for the Internet company Yahoo nearly tripled as its revenue edged up for the first time in more than a year.
The performance reflected an increase in online advertising, the main source of Yahoo’s income. Advertisers have been spending more freely amid signs that the economy has emerged from its worst recession in more than 70 years.
Display advertising, a category that includes online billboards and other visual marketing campaigns, surged 20 percent from last year, the company said.
Naturally this is good news for advertisers targeting Internet savvy black women and expatriates. Their capacity and inclination to spend, which has always been high, is increasing along with the recovering economy.
The recently launched AGCG Advertising Network is perfectly poised to help you reach those markets.
April 16th, 2010
March 8th, 2010
This is my first blog post of 2010. I spent the first month of the year in the capital of the United States and while I worked on a client project, I spent the rest of my time basking in the glow of being with my family and old friends. I didn’t want to spend any more time on the computer than absolutely necessary. So I limited myself to work and correspondence with the ones I love in Sweden, and arranging social activities in Washington, DC.
February took me to Lappland and the Ice Hotel and I was on the look out for the Northern Lights and all of the other magic associated with northern Sweden. Again, no motivation to blog during this once in a lifetime (for me) trip.
But today I read an article in Forbes online magazine that predicts an increase in digital advertising spending, and for the first time, that more money will be spent online than in print. Written by Dirk Smillie the headline reads:
Web ads to get a 10% boost in 2010. For the first time advertisers will spend more on digital than print.
We’ve been waiting for this: A study by Outsell, to be released Monday, reveals that U.S. advertisers are spending more this year on digital media than on print. Long predicted, this Madison Avenue milestone has finally arrived thanks to a 9.6% boom in digital advertising in 2010.
That number comes from Outsell’s annual advertising and marketing study, which collected data from 1,008 U.S. advertisers (both consumer and B2B) in December 2009. Of the $368 billion marketers plan to spend this year, 32.5% will go toward digital; 30.3% to print. Digital spending includes e-mail, video advertising, display ads and search marketing. “It’s a watershed moment,” says the study’s lead author, Outsell vice president Chuck Richard.
Read the full article on Forbes.com.
I, like every other website owner, welcome this news. Particularly since I am focusing on leveraging the wide reach of the AG Communications Group (AGCG) Advertising Network. The AGCG Advertising Network includes 8 websites that focus on black women, and expatriates. Specifically these websites focus on black women in Europe, women of the African Diaspora, black expatriates and expatriates in Stockholm and other parts of Sweden.
Niche is in, especially when spending money on advertising. Advertisers want to be sure that they are getting their message out in front of the right people.
November 24th, 2009
I am trying oDesk as an additional tool to find interesting clients I can help using intergrated marketing communications strategy and implementation.
I am excited about using oDesk not only because it will enable me to find International clients but also build an International team:
The Solution — A Marketplace and a Workplace.
oDesk’s unique approach enables companies to hire, manage, and pay remote contractors as easily as if they were working in the same office. The oDesk work diary and team room provide accountability across a distributed team, giving you full visibility into work done and the time spent doing it. Individual profiles offer a verified work history and feedback to help you make informed decisions in selecting team members or companies. oDesk’s payment system is simple and headache-free, so you can trust that your time—and money—are well-spent. This combination of accountability, credibility, and trust is the foundation for the oDesk Guarantee.
While the administrative support, client selection process and online working tools oDesk provides are innovative, these two guarantees are equally impressive:
We guarantee work to employers that every hour billed is an hour worked.
We guarantee payment to providers that every hour worked is an hour paid.
oDesk has also created a community via their blog, forums and groups and is also leveraging other social media tools like widgets and Facebook connect. Since I travel between the US and Sweden fairly regularly as well as to other destinations I am excited to be using a new tool that will help me manage life as a consultant.
If you are or want to be a remote worker and you are a web developer, writer, translator, customer service, software developer, sales and marketing, administrative support, business services, networking and information services, and design and multimedia; why not try a free oDesk account? Join the On Demand Global Workforce.
November 22nd, 2009
The Coca-Cola Company is sending a team made up of three young explorers on a quest to find out what makes people happy. The team will visit 206 countries in the world where Coca-Cola is sold within 365 days. The journey begins in January 2010.
The big mission is to discover an answer to the proverbial question of what makes people happy around the world. From meeting new people, seeing amazing places, experiencing different cultures and attending local events, the team will be taking part in all kinds of experiences–some planned, some unplanned. They’ll be blogging, uploading videos and photos along the way.
www.Expedition206.com
November 4th, 2009
Social Network Boasts Over 600 Members Around the World.
Rotterdam, NL/Stockholm, SWE November 3, 2009 – Women of the African Diaspora website (http://www.WomenOfTheAfricanDiaspora.com) and social network (http://www.BlackWomenUnite.ning.com) is having a birthday complete with gifts for its readers and members. The website and social network, which celebrates Black women, has visitors and members from across the globe.
“Women of the African Diaspora website and social network continue to grow,” says Sandra Rafaela, Women of the African Diaspora’s co-founder and co-editor. “We are constantly working very hard to improve our website to provide information, inspiration and more for Black women around the world.” Women of the African Diaspora website leverages the global reach of the Internet, social media and widgets to share relevant news, event notices and showcase a wide range of talented Black women including authors, artists, musicians, entrepreneurs, and others. And with Black women living on virtually every continent, it certainly has a large and influential market.
“Women of the African Diaspora’s website content strives to be very compelling and shine a positive spotlight on Black women that main stream media far too often ignores,” says Adrianne George, Women of the African Diaspora‘s co-founder and co-editor. “The number of visitors to the site continues to increase each month, and social networks like Facebook give us a platform to network we didn’t have when starting out. We continue to be the perfect choice for advertisers who want to reach the important market of Black women consumers.”
The year has again been marked with highlights for the Women of the African Diaspora co-editors, with Ms. George’s Black Women in Europe blog (http://blog.blackwomenineurope.com) being a finalist for a 2009 Black Weblog Award for Best International blog as well as being a featured blog on Ebonyjet.com. “We’ve come so far in just two years,” explains George. “Our social network has over 600 members in North America, Europe, Africa and beyond. Rafaela explains, “We really enjoy meeting accomplished and positive Black women while providing them with a unique platform for exposure. We’re ready to take on year three.”
Let Adrianne and Sandra know what the Women of the African Diaspora and Social network mean to you to get prizes from their sponsors:
http://spreadsheets.google.com/a/womenoftheafricandiaspora.com/viewform?hl=en&formkey=dGhSaFZQOFNRYjUwSERtUDBqTEFLckE6MA
Anniversary gifts are provided by Sheabutter Cottage, Greatness By Design™, Sisay International, Author M.H.A. Menondji, Northwest Scents Natural Black Hair Care, Creating Tomorrow, Simplicity Mastered™, and Donna Elmore’s Send Out Cards. Businesses with products or services for Black women can participate in the anniversary celebrations by purchasing an advertising package for the website and social network at a 20% savings. More information is available at http://womenoftheafricandiaspora.com.
Contact: Sandra Rafaela sandra@womenoftheafricandiaspora.com
Adrianne George adrianne@womenoftheafricandiaspora.com
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November 2nd, 2009
Social Network Boasts Over 600 Members While Website Visitors Come From Every Corner on Earth.
Stockholm, SWE November 3, 2009 – The multiple award winning Black Women in Europe™ Blog (http://blog.blackwomenineurope.com) and its companion, the Black Women in Europe™ Social Network (http://blackwomenineurope.ning.com) is having a birthday complete with gifts for its readers and members. The website and social network, which celebrates Black women living in Europe, has visitors and members from around the world.
The Black Europe in Women™ Blog turns three and the Social Network turns two this year. “Two and three successful years on the Internet is more like 572”, jokes Adrianne George, Black Women in Europe™ founder. “The Black Women in Europe™ Blog and Social Network are growing daily,” she says , “I am humbled by and grateful for the faithful readers and members and take great pride in raising the profile of Black women living and thriving in Europe. Yes there are Black women in Europe!”
The Black Women in Europe Blog and Social Network leverages the global reach of the Internet, social media and widgets to share relevant news, event notices and showcase a wide range of talented Black women from all walks of life including politics, social activism, entertainment, journalism and more. And with Black women living in virtually every country in Europe, it certainly is a large and influential market.
“The Black Women in Europe™ Blog and Social network are an important part of my life and identity,” says Adrianne George. “In the not-too-distant future I plan to obtain a non-profit status for the Black Women in Europe™ Social Media Group (http://BlackWomenInEurope.org) to enable the sharing of information from Black women’s organizations across Europe. I want to be the funnel through which this information flows.”
The year has again been marked with highlights for the Black Women in Europe™ Blog and Social network, notably the granting of the trademark for the name of Black Women in Europe™. The blog was also a finalist for a 2009 Black Weblog Award for Best International blog, was a featured blog on Ebonyjet.com, and was a guest blogger on PBS’s Tavis Smiley blog.
Tell me what the Black Women in Europe Blog and Social Network mean to you to win prizes from our anniversary sponsors.
Anniversary gifts are provided by IronSun Organics, Creating Tomorrow, Morganna’s Alchemy, Sheabutter Cottage, Simplicity Mastered™, Donna Elmore’s Send Out Cards, and Zhana’s Success Books. Companies who would like to participate in the celebrations can purchase advertising for a 30% discount. More information is available at http://blog.blackwomenineurope.com.
Contact: Adrianne George contact@blackwomenineurope.com
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October 26th, 2009
We are having our 4th and most likely our last after work networking event of the year. So we are going out with a bang by presenting two incredible opportunities for one deserving social entrepreneur: free office and meeting space in Östermalm and a day of sales & venture capital coaching; 8 hours + 2 follow up coaching calls (1 hour).
What makes this opportunity even better is that the office space is at The Hub Stockholm, worth between 13,800 to 16,800 SEK; and the coaching is from the experts at Startup Sales Systems worth 40,000 SEK. So that adds up to at least 53, 800 of incredibly helpful services available to a social entrepreneur in Stockholm. It’s good to be a social entrepreneur, isn’t it?
Not sure if you are a social entrepreneur? Here are two examples of Hub Social Entrepreneurs:
http://www.the-hub.net/people/giovanna.gomersbach
http://www.the-hub.net/people/olivier.gaillard
About The Hub
http://www.the-hub.net
Hub World is a social enterprise with the ambition to inspire and support imaginative and enterprising initiatives for a better world with locations in 18 cities around the world. In Stockholm, we support an increasing number of diverse people to actively engage with each other – locally and globally – in meaningful and innovative ways, creating imaginative and entrepreneurial initiatives for a radically better world.
About Startup Sales Systems
http://www.startupsalessystems.com/
We help startups in Technology, Telecoms, Internet, & Clean Energy to acquire customers and reach profitability faster by using – specially developed – industry specific – sales tools and processes. We also help startups boost their sales using our extensive network of potential clients, sales channel experts, specialists and business partners to open doors in local, regional and international markets.
How you can win this package:
To be considered as the social entrepreneur to receive 3 months free office and meeting space, and a day of sales & venture capital coaching 8 hours + 2 follow up coaching calls (1 hour); email the name, concept and description of your social enterprise to adrianne@agcommunicationsgroup.com. Everyone who enters must be a member of the XING Stockholm group and attend the November networking event to be eligible to win. Follow this link to join: http://www.xing.com/group-23121.519786/3509921
We also have several gifts for everyone who attends! You’ll see them listed below.
WHO: Official XING Stockholm Group
WHAT: After work Business and Social Networking Event
WHEN: 18 November @ 17.30-19.30
WHERE: Scandic Malmen Atrium, Götgatan 49–51, 102 66 Stockholm
WHY: Make new business contacts and solidify others. Connect with new friends and catch up with old ones. Learn about The Hub Stockholm, an innovative work space for social entrepreneurs.
AGENDA:
17.30 – Networking
18.30 – Welcome by XING Stockholm Ambassador, Greetings from Anna Spjuth, General Manager of Scandic Malmen and Presentation by Kent Edquist of The Hub Stockholm who will also announce the social entrepreneur winner.
18.50-19.30 Networking and distribution of gifts
SPONSORS AND GIFTS:
>Scandic Malmen – networking space and snacks
>The Hub Stockholm – 3 months free work and meeting space
>Startup Sales Systems – a day of sales & venture capital coaching 8 hours + 2 follow up coaching calls (1 hour)
>Derricknym offer from Derrick Hayes, author of 1 WORD Is All It Takes™ (Fall 2009), and publisher of The WORD
>Free one-hour coaching session with Justin Sachs (worth $500)
>CDs on On-Camera Media Mistakes to Avoid in Business with best-selling author Elisabeth Fayt; and Crisis Communication, with Shawne Duperon, Media & Gossip Expert and Alan Stevens, both donated by Shawne Duperon
RSVP:
https://www.xing.com/events/4th-xing-stockholm-work-business-networker-2009-win-office-space-surprises-409730
October 26th, 2009
I did a brief stint in the Public Affairs office of Ford Motor company before social media exploded in society. I am very impressed with Ford’s use of social media. For example, their social media director (first of all they have an executive position slotted for social media) was at Blog World!
