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I am fairly level-headed in most cases and try not to let ads and brand names sway me. However, I freely admit to being sucked in by Apple’s ingenious marketing schemes. I look forward to each new ad out featuring the Mac and PC characters. I will go to Apple’s website and watch them, snickering quietly as my husband stares at me. In my opinion, Apple has successfully combined breathtakingly beautiful products with clever branding. Their iPod has set off an industry of gadgets. Anything cool nowadays begins with an i.

With all the bargains to be had this year, the Christmas tree towered above a bevy of gadgets. My favorite present by far was my Apple iPod touch. As I explained to my husband when asked why I wanted one, the reasons were very plain. An iPod touch is a very useful tool in every day life. It can keep track of your appointments, surf the net, store your formerly-wallet photos, and, most importantly, it looks oh-so cool. I easily defend my choice when asked why not a cheaper MP3 player. A simple they’re not Apple will suffice.

There seems to be no end to the entertainment an iPod touch can provide. I have uploaded my favorite music and latest photos, my favorite games, and I finally started an appointment book I hopefully won’t lose. There are numerous free applications to put on your iPod touch including Pac-Man and Facebook. If inclined, I could even turn it into a lightsaber! No bright light, but definitely the cool sound effects.

As with the other Apple products I own, this was no disappointment. I love to scroll through everything I have on this beautiful little machine. I carry it with me everywhere. I am now and possibly forever, an Apple fan.

Marketing In A Recession

Well it is now official – according to the National Bureau of Economic Research the United States has been in a recession since December of 2007. Many companies are probably thinking that cuts have to be made…but where? Marketing? No way says a study conducted by McGraw-Hill Research. The study found that business-to-business firms that maintained or increased their marketing expenditures during past recessions averaged significantly higher sales growth both during the recession and for the following three years than those which eliminated or decreased marketing.

There is no doubt that recessions are scary, but this should be a time when marketing your product or company can be seen as a real opportunity for growth. While others are cutting back in hopes that the recession passes, proactive marketing can propel a company to gain a significant competitive advantage in brand equity.

How is your company going to take advantage of this recession?

How Important Is Customer Service To You?

The duplication industry has seen significant changes over the past decade. Technological advancements from VHS and cassette tapes – to CD and DVD – and now high definition blu-ray. Replication companies implementing automated customer service is another trend that seems to be growing. As more and more companies move in this direction we feel that it is important to separate ourselves from this trend and maintain the “human” side of our customer support. In a recent survey, almost 79% of all customers will press “0″ to bypass automated support to talk to a real person (BusinessWeek 2008).

For every single customer at Great Lakes Media there is an assigned Account Manager and Customer Service Representative. It is important for us to understand exactly what it is the customer is looking for and to be able to customize each order to the very last detail. Our team takes pride in developing relationships and really getting to know our customers whether they order from us once a year or every day! That is why Great Lakes Media Technology will always use real people and real service when answering our phones.

GLMT StoriesAnnual Holiday Disc Unveiled!

GLMT and SoundByteStudios Team up for this year’s 2007 Holiday Greetings Disc.

Every year we have the pleasure of sharing our passion for the season by teaming up with one of our customers to create a special offering to all of our valued partners.
This year we teamed up with SoundByte Studios, a Chicagoland choral recording specialist, to bring you a very special recording of the Lake Forest High School Choir under the direction of Timothy Haskett.

As we approach this special time of year, we would like to send you our 2007 Holiday Greetings CD for FREE!! Please click here and include your name, address, and way we can serve you better in 2008 to receive your 2007 Holiday Greetings CD in time for the holidays!

Packaged Media v. Digital Downloading

Great Lakes Media Technology recently attended the Home Media Expo in Las Vegas. The purpose was to examine the future of the entertainment and communications industry. Many in the packaged media industry feel threatened by digital downloading. We are not threatened as we see ourselves as a communications enabler and will invest accordingly as long as we are serving our valuable customers. As we look to invest in the future, we wanted to know where the consumer was headed. We obtained valuable information from not only research experts but also panels of regular entertainment consumers. When asked about the impact of digital downloading, Tom Adams of Adams Media Research said,”Never has a product with so little market share received so much press.” His models showed in the video entertainment market, digital downloading represented 8% of the total market. By 2012 both Nielsen and Adams expect digital downloading to capture a max of 12% of the total market. An executive from MovieLink, a leading entertainment download site, discussed many of the quality, security, download time, and marketing pitfalls that they encounter with the service.We came away with the conclusion that the best experience for consumers of media will continue to be delivered on disc for the best experience, and digital downloading is best used as a supplement to the rich disc experience. If you wish to discuss, click discuss!

Increase Your Definition

We recently attended the HD Expo in Chicago and learned a lot about High Definition Video’s emergence into a variety of presentations: DVD and streaming video. Regardless of the ongoing format war between HDDVD and Blu-Ray, High Definition footage can totally impact your standard DVD or online video. Are you capturing your footage in HD? The time has come to look into it. If you don’t shoot your own footage, chances are your production company is. The difference is really profound, and everyone is upgrading to accommodate – not because of trend, but because of the superb quality it offers.

If your program contains HD footage, contact us to discuss presentation formats – both DVD and streaming. We’ll help get your quality footage seen – and we guarantee people will be impressed.

The Selling of Media

Since I was a kid, media formats have changed, and now yet another has come into the fold: digital. Consumers by the boatload are sold on this format’s convenience. They know the quality of the audio is less, they know they won’t get much in the way of artwork, but they also know that they can take their music with them pretty much anywhere. Convenience is a value driver not used since the days of the original “boom box,” and later the walkman, in music and related advertising. Mostly, quality has always been the focus. But, times have changed.

Record labels and musicians all over the world are interested in getting their music in people’s ears, and if customers are buying into a new format, you can be sure that record labels and musicians are going to try to accommodate. It’s the basics of business. But let’s look a little deeper into the business of it, and see what’s really happening.

A record label initially determines the margins on CD sales. There are a variety of ways to approach this – packaging, limited editions, bonus material, etc. In essence, there’s room to control the perceived value in the product. Then, whether the product is sold to a distributor, retail, or directly to consumers, pricing can be based on those value points, and with smart planning, can better ensure that costs are covered, and profits are made.

With selling digital, there is not this freedom. Sale prices are determined by the digital stores (iTunes, eMusic, etc.), and royalties are paid after their expenses, sometimes leaving as little as .20 per track to go to the record label or artist. At .20 per track, selling 10 songs will get you 2 bucks. Not a lot.

Now, you might be thinking, “yeah, but I won’t have all the production costs associated with making discs.” True, but you’re not without costs. You likely paid something to record the music, you likely have produced some other marketing material to drive sales of said music, and, perhaps most importantly, there is a value to the material that you have created, a value that should be compensated for. Are you going to be able to recoup your costs on .20 per track? Good luck.

Think creatively. I’m not saying that digital is bad or useless to record labels and musicians. It’s very important to provide products and services to your customers in a way that appeals to them. But, you have to do it smart. Taking a black and white stance will only exclude you from the benefits of the other.

Now, send me an email and let’s talk about how to make your next disc drive more money your way.

Digital vs. Physical

Late last year, I got an mp3/video device. Without naming names (the brand isn’t the focus of this post), it’s one of the best available now – huge capacity, video capability, etc. Theoretically, it’s the poster child for not using physical media (CD/DVD). I’ve been interested in this product for quite awhile now – no more road trips with piles of CD cases bouncing around the car, no more trying to decide in the morning what I wanted to listen to on the long commute to work. Now, I could have thousands of discs at my fingertips, no matter where I was going, and I could listen to whatever fit my mood. Great!

As I’ve spent about 4 months with the device, through daily commutes and two trips both national and international, I’ve certainly experienced the positive aspects listed above. But I’ve also realized some other things: batteries need to be recharged, I don’t like watching video on a 2” screen, I don’t like the effects of compression, I’m annoyed by the lack of information that accompanies purchased downloads, and ironically, I’ve started to bring CDs in the car because it’s quicker to simply put the disc in the player, than to plug in and scroll through 3,000 albums to get to the one I want to hear. That’s way too many choices before I’ve had my morning coffee!

Ironically, downloading music is designed to get music that people might not have heard before to the public in a quicker and more accessible way. However, once you have it, you might not know any more about it. I recently purchased a download and have been listening to the record repeatedly for a few weeks, amazed by the drumming it featured. “Who is this guy?” I thought. I scanned through the pages of my player, only to see a small jpg of the cover, which I couldn’t even really tell what was on it. This single jpg, and the band name and title were all it posted; essential yes, but who was the drummer? It was this moment where I longed for the gatefold LP jacket – featuring giant pictures, liner notes, creative design, imagery to match the music, creating a memorable experience – not just ‘a song.’ Oh, yes, and the name of the drummer could easily be found on most packaging.

Convenience is a fine thing, and music and video on the go is certainly useful, but physical material serves a larger purpose – it acts as a reference guide, it supports the design and concept of the content, and its serves as a physical reminder of something we cherish – much more effective than an ambiguous sea of 1s and 0s.

Sharing Business Ideas Through Digital Media

Featuring presentations from renowned authors and business experts, the LeaveSmarter series, hosted by 800ceoread, offers Milwaukee area business people a forum for new business ideas. Each event will be captured on video, compiled with other exclusive footage and author related documents, and presented on CD media which will then be distributed by 800ceoread within a limited number of author-signed books. To accomplish this, 800-CEO-READ has partnered with us. This partnership creates a platform where multiple publishing formats and live experiences create interaction between attendees, authors, and the business community at large.