Charlotte Advertising Agency CGR Creative Featured at Working Charlotte’s Business Prosperity Conference

Charlotte Advertising Agency CGR Creative was featured at Working Charlotte’s Business Prosperity Conference Saturday

Charlotte, North Carolina - Julio Colmenares, Chief Creative Officer of Advertising Agency CGR Creative, LLC, spoke about New Media at Working Charlotte’s Business Prosperity Conference on Saturday, April 10, 2010. Charlotte Advertising agency CGR Creative has been a supporter of small business in Charlotte since it's founding in 2002. The Working Charlotte Business Prosperity Conference 2010 was a great way for CGR to give new media advice to small and medium sized business owners seeking to boldly unlock the "know-how" and the "how-to" of doing business in Charlotte.

Julio began his presentation by explaining that, "What ‘new media’ means changes rapidly so the question becomes, “how can I keep current without going crazy or bankrupt?” The answer is simple, “Jump In!” Learning to swim requires that you get in the pool. You can research, compare, look to your competitor, etc. but eventually you must get wet."

Julio also provided these 7 pieces of advice for attendees to take away from his presentation:

NEW MEDIA: Sink or Swim!

Enjoy the Water: Don't try to be everything to everyone. No product or service will appeal to everyone. Many business owners, including corporate executives, try to come up with ways to reach every market. Typically, this does not work. It can spell disaster for small businesses, who cannot afford to spread themselves too thin. Therefore, find your market and be everything you can be to that audience.

Swim with a Strong Buddy: New Media is one area where people try to tell the professionals what to do and how to do it. You wouldn’t tell a doctor what treatment to prescribe, just like you wouldn’t tell your lawyer how to defend you. Companies can lose a lot of time and money while trying to act as their own ad agency. Agencies are experts. They charge for their time and experience and have one goal in mind: To get the best results for their clients in order to keep those clients.

Beware of Rip Tides: Many companies offer quick fixes for little investment. These are often a simple "Buy your Rankings" package which can work for a short time and leave you stranded in deep water after the initial investment is gone. Work toward developing a consistent managed strategy that will work for the long term.


Know How Deep the Water is: Make your new media decisions based upon research and a formal marketing plan rather than a predetermined target budget. New media is often less expensive than traditional channels but you still get what you pay for.

Constantly Work on Your Stroke: Monitor your new media performance! You need to find out what works best for you. After you find this out, you’ll want to stay the course. Keep track of how SEO efforts and keyword campaigns not only how they drive traffic to your business but at what rate they actually produce sales. Consider testing each new media channel before deciding on which to explore more fully.

Have a Lifeguard: You should always have a professional that you can rely on for no nonsense feedback and creative ideas for all your new media campaigns. Preferably this is someone with a vantage point with which to measure your efforts and who can point you in the right direction.

Pay Attention to the Other Swimmers: Put your new media dollars in the right places. Your favorite website, social media outlet, blog, or even search engine might not be a favorite of your audience. Know what they read, peruse, and where they get their info, and advertise in the new media channel that reaches your target market.Julio Colmenares, Chief Creative Officer, CGR Creative, LLC - Description: Explore "New Media" (Websites, Search Engines and Social Media) and how to stay current without going crazy or bankrupt. Learn how to leverage technology to build awareness of your company.

About CGR Creative: Charlotte based CGR Creative is a full service advertising agency, marketing firm, design studio, and interactive marketing agency. CGR Creative prides itself on supporting their customers in a way that larger agencies can’t, often times committing all their resources to ensure the success of their client’s projects. CGR Creative’s fundamental belief is that the client’s success is their success. The agency, with an office in Charlotte, North Carolina, is fully bi-lingual, with a Latino marketing division that offers a variety of marketing channels that are specifically targeted to reach the Hispanic market.

For more info on CGR Creative visit http://www.cgrcreative.com