“So do you Tweet? Twirl? Tag? And Share?”

If not, let us take you through our Social Media Springboard session and learn:

• The functions and strategic usage of social media to support marketing efforts
• The rapid evolution of the communication landscape
• The key social media tools and how to effectively use them
• Case studies of how other businesses have successfully (and unsuccessfully) used social media to
• promote their brands
• The rules of social media engagement: Social Media Guidelines
• How to capitalize on this ever-evolving shift in communication
• Strategic next steps for social media implementation and engagement to benefit your brand
• How to unify your online presence
• How to track and monitor your brand online

“Embracing and Sharing the Love”

Ready to dive right in? Our social media specialists can springboard you to success by implementing a program custom designed for you. Still thirsty? Visit www.merlotmarketing.com and check out our Services section, then click on Social Media!

“All Blog, No Bite”

“Just like with any marketing initiative, employing social media requires strategy. You don’t want to simply dabble in it,” says Debi Hammond, president/CEO of Merlot Marketing. “A lot of executives and communication professionals know what social media is, but are not comfortable enough with it to implement a social media program on their own. With our Social Media Springboard, we are able to educate companies and elevate their level of comfort with this shift in communication, so that they can take full advantage of these powerful tools that allow them to speak directly to their customers and the media.”
For more information about Merlot Marketing, our Social Media Division and exclusive Social Media Springboard, please email SocialMediaSpringboard@merlotmarketing.com.

Recession? More like recess! Okay, not exactly, as K/BIS 2009 was a far departure from the glitz and glamour of previous years. But there was nothing subdued about the success enjoyed by two of Merlot Marketing’s clients, Eldorado Stone and Everpure. Back-to-back interviews, a Best of K/BIS award, and the securing of new customers is just a sampling of our clients’ K/BIS triumphs. Sure, the show was slower than those of previous years, but we saw the slowdown as a showdown. Our clients’ new products still generated plenty of buzz and the feedback from both the media and attendees was well worth the trip. Through diligent pre-show planning, a full interview schedule and a comprehensive media guide, these clients turned a sour situation into lucrative lemonade—made especially delicious by Everpure’s Exubera System! (Sorry, we’re still in K/BIS mode).

ELDORADO STONE

With an aggressive pre-show PR campaign and buzz surrounding the new Eldorado Stone products, Merlot Marketing put on its reflective crossing-guard gear and directed media traffic to the Eldorado Stone booth. Among the show highlights were private meetings with Food Network Magazine, Veranda, Gourmet, Garden Design, This Old House, LUXE, Dwell, and Metropolitan Home.

Eldorado Stone leveraged the exposure at the show with the unveiling of its new Eldorado Outdoor line. Outdoor kitchens and entertainment areas are a hot trend, but there’s that pesky requirement of “creating them” before the tri-tip can hit the grill. Even after days of toilsome and messy masonry work, a distinguished custom result isn’t guaranteed. For those seeking an instant transformation, meet the Eldorado Outdoor line—a collection of modular units that quickly assemble into custom barbecue islands, kitchen counters, bars, fireplaces, fire rings and more. The best part? They’re all ready to be quickly dressed with Eldorado Stone and Brick. “Eldorado Stone is providing an easier solution to create an outdoor kitchen quickly and in a more eco-friendly way,” notes Brent Spann, vice president of marketing for Eldorado Stone. “An L-shaped island that would normally take 64 hours of labor can now be done in just eight.” That equates to at least 55 extra hours to perfect your barbeque sauce recipe. Move over, Bobby Flay!

Best of K/BIS

In addition to the exclusive unveiling of Eldorado Outdoor, the Eldorado Stone Gemstone™ Walls collection received a Silver Award in the Best of K/BIS competition; bath category. With more than 90 entries, Eldorado Stone was one of 11 manufacturers to have received this award and the only architectural stone veneer manufacturer to be recognized. To see this award-winning collection for yourself click here: Eldorado Stone Transformation

(Warning: you will want to remodel your bathroom after watching).

EVERPURE

At K/BIS 2009 Everpure continued to demonstrate that water bottles are so passé. They introduced two new products, including the new ViruPure™ Filtration System, which filters out even the smallest possible viruses from drinking water. If you’re interested in a whole-home system, be sure to check out Everpure’s new Protega Whole-home Ultra-filtration System. Unlike point-of-use systems installed at a single faucet, the Protega is a point-of-entry system; which means it filters all of the water that enters the home.

Between the launch of these industry-first products and the growing trend of water filtration, the media was drawn to the booth like contaminants to a water filter (science geeks will appreciate our analogy). Among the show highlights were exclusive meetings with high caliber media such as Traditional Home, Food Network Magazine, Better Homes & Gardens SIPs, Gourmet, LUXE, Fine Homebuilding, and the highly-acclaimed Veranda. A podcast with House Beautiful magazine was also filmed and is scheduled to launch in August 2009. Phew. Just thinking about it makes us tired all over again.

So, why water filtration for your home? Just check out the booth display above (Merlot’s award-winning display): “Americans used 50 billion plastic water bottles last year; and 40 billion ended up in landfills.” With each bottle taking up to 1,000 years to biodegrade and bottled water costing more than gasoline per gallon, it only makes sense that we begin to take better care of the environment and ourselves.

A TWEET SUCCESS!

But the hits didn’t stop there. Another K/BIS highlight was Merlot Marketing’s use of Social Media to promote our clients’ presence at the show. And why wouldn’t we? We’re so bloggable.

On behalf of Eldorado Stone, Merlot Marketing utilized social media tools to promote Eldorado Stone’s new Gemstone™ Walls. Merlot Marketing tweeted (if you don’t yet know about tweeting, we need to talk) about the company’s new products and YouTube video in an effort to drive traffic to the Eldorado Stone booth.

As a result of our tweeting live with media and designers from the show, we garnered increased traffic to the Eldorado Stone booth and website, as well as, increased views of the YouTube video. Through our K/BIS social media efforts, we have built stronger awareness of the Eldorado Stone brand and new product lines. See? Social media really does work (if you know how to work it).

Merlot brings home Seven ADDYS at the American Advertising Federation ADDY Awards (AAF) and Media Person of the Year!

At this year’s Addy Awards show, Merlot Marketing brought home Addys for every day of the week: we won four gold and three silver awards, and we quickly ran out of hands to hold them! The showstopper, however, was Merlot Marketing’s own Brenda Granucci, who was awarded the AAF’s Media Person of the Year.

Honestly, we can’t say we’re surprised. Brenda has researched, planned and placed millions of dollars in media on behalf of our clients, and her passion and enthusiasm for our clients’ business is second to none. She has negotiated literally millions in savings for our clients and has great relationships with the media. Obviously we’re not the only ones who think she rocks. What can we say? It’s a well-deserved award… CONGRATULATIONS, BRENDA!

In addition to Media Person of the Year, awards were received for the following projects:

ADDY Awards:

• Bug! Realty Custom Photography
• Everpure Aqua Party
• Everpure Exubera Brochure
• Everpure Water Bottle Display
• Merlot Marketing Holiday Card
• Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure Poster
• Thermique Custom Photography

However, the ADDY awards were just the beginning. Below is our rapidly growing list of awards received in 2009:
International Academy of the Visual Arts (IAVA) Communicator Awards: Eight total (Gold/Silver)
Association of Marketing & Communications Professionals (AMCP); International Hermes Awards: Eight total (Platinum/Gold)
International MarCom Creative Awards: Eight total (Platinum/Gold)
Sacramento Public Relations Association (SPRA); CAPPIE Awards: Six total (Gold/Silver)

The survey was released this week and in our next volume of Uncorked, we will share the topline highlights so that you too can gain insight into the media’s use of social media and the preferences of today’s most prestigious editorial staffs.

Stay tuned!

* Source: Arketi Group

The individual efforts and sheer volume of total successes would be too numerous to list here but following is a summary of our key clients’ marketing highlights for 2008:

EVERPURE
Everpure saw fantastic PR results in 2008. Featured on the TODAY show in June, Everpure’s H-300 under-counter water filtration system was hailed as the best on the market. A month later, Everpure received a mention in Parenting magazine, which reaches more than two million consumers across the country. A mid-year feature on RealSimple.com completed the TV-print-online trifecta. It certainly appears the national media is taking notice!

Merlot Marketing took home four awards in 2008 for Everpure marketing and PR collateral, including a Harvey-Q Award for outstanding achievement in advertising for the “Take Ordinary to Extraordinary” campaign appearing in the May 2008 issue of Kitchen & Bath Design News.

WALKER ZANGER
The 2008 communications campaign for Walker Zanger went above and beyond and proved to be a success that developed new media relationships and expanded the program through aggressive PR. Walker Zanger was positioned as an innovator in design and authenticity in both the consumer and design communities. Results showed noteworthy equivalent figures!

• Overall Figures: Featured in more than 406 publications in 2008. The circulation numbers for all 2008 publications featuring a Walker Zanger product totaled more than 186 million readers, a 196 percent increase from the 2007 campaign.
• If the aforementioned public relations features were translated into an ad campaign, Walker Zanger would have spent more than $7.5 million for all the 2008 publications in which they were featured. This equates to a 76 percent ad value increase from the 2007 PR campaign.

Walker Zanger’s presence at the world’s largest Kitchen and Bath Industry Show generated outstanding publicity. A custom press event attracted the attention of 67 media organizations, 83 media professionals and led to features in Elle Décor, LA Times, Interior Design and segments on programs such as HGTV’s Kitchens and Baths 2008, BetterHomesandGardens.com and WGN Chicago Morning News show.

Merlot also secured an interview with Meghan Carter on Ask the Decorator:

RIVER CITY BANK
2008 was a phenomenal year for River City Bank’s public relations efforts. Merlot Marketing has worked with the Sacramento icon since 2006 and steadily increased coverage of the bank each year. 2008 was no exception with impressive increases from 2007:

• Total number of clips: 320; an increase of 203%
• Circulation: 121,329,910; an increase of 156%
• Impressions: 136,685,568; an increase of 165%
• Ad Value: $4,397,821; an increase of 251%

ELDORADO STONE
With the consumer advertising campaign gaining momentum over the previous two years, 2008 was poised to be a year of exponential success for Eldorado Stone. Through aggressive negotiation and strategic media buying, Merlot Marketing developed an advertising campaign that reached the target audience at a minimal cost while gaining maximum exposure. In 2008 alone, Eldorado Stone advertisements were positioned in front of more than 43 million consumers in national publications such as Architectural Digest, Sunset and Southern Living. The 2008 consumer marketing campaign showed increases in nearly every category including website visits, consumer magazine leads, and literature requests, over 2007.

In addition to the valuable exposure Eldorado Stone garnered from a well-planned advertising campaign, Merlot Marketing was also able to negotiate numerous added-value programs at no additional sponsorship cost. These bonus programs included online advertising placements, special event sponsorships, company listings and show home sponsorships. Eldorado Stone reached a targeted audience through these programs, providing invaluable support for their advertising campaign.

A particularly important component to Eldorado Stone’s success in 2008 was its numerous show home sponsorships, allowing consumers to experience and be inspired by the product first hand. From the 40,000 visitors to the Sunset Idea House in Monterey to the 10,000 visitors to the Coastal Living Idea House in Maine, Merlot Marketing effectively geo-targeted regions across the United States. With additional show home sponsorships in high profile locations such as the Mall of America and Grand Central Station, Eldorado Stone reached a total of approximately 7,590,000 consumers who toured these homes in 2008. A significant victory by any measure!

MCCORMICK & SCHMICK’S SEAFOOD RESTAURANT
We were honored to be asked to support the opening of the new McCormick & Schmick’s Seafood Restaurant in Roseville, California. In just three months, we secured 22 media hits for the restaurant on television and in print. We also coordinated several radio promotions, giving away McCormick & Schmick’s gift certificates to lucky listeners. All in all, in the three short months focused on the opening, Merlot Marketing was responsible for producing media coverage that amounted to more than $450,000 in equivalent ad dollars reaching a total viewer circulation of 6.9 million consumers!

FUEGO
The 2008 communications campaign for Fuego exceeded expectations and proved to be a phenomenal success that garnered new partnerships, expanded the program and secured the Fuego grill as an innovator in design and grilling in both consumer and trade communities. Among the leading PR features was a spread in Outside Magazine, Ebony Magazine, and a segment on CBS The Early Show on the 4th of July! While we would love to share the details of each and every feature, we’ll just recap the highlights.

• Overall Figures: Featured in 113 publications; 46 individual blogs hits and 43 consumer and trade publications. Circulation numbers for all 2008 publications featuring a Fuego product totaled more than 73 million readers.
• In its first year at the Hearth, Patio & Barbeque Expo, Fuego’s presence at North America’s largest indoor/outdoor living show generated outstanding publicity and lead to a coveted Vesta Best-In-Show Award for the newly launched Fuego 02 Electric grill!

SMA AMERICA

SMA America saw a number of “firsts” in 2008. In May, SMA America participated in its first-ever live radio show, reaching almost one million consumers on Home Magazine Live. They also became the first solar inverter manufacturer to cross over into building trade publications with features in GreenBuilder (the #1 building trade publication on the market) and Remodeling. SMA finished the year strong by being the only company with products featured in both of Environmental Design + Construction and Sustainable Facility’s “Top Products of 2008″ lists.

2008 was a banner year for solar power and SMA America. By year-end, SMA America had increased its PR audience totals by 126% over the previous year. The momentum continues to build and 2009 looks like another sunny year for SMA.

On Monday morning, February 2nd the day after the “Big Game,” Debi Hammond, President/CEO of Merlot Marketing, shared her opinion that, “Although entertaining, this year’s Super Bowl Ads lacked creativity and originality.” To access the entire video clip, click on one of the images below.

Which Super Bowl ad was your favorite? Visit our blog to comment:
www.merlotmarketing.com/GetToTheGrapes

Through good times and bad, we can all use a little luck. Hence, the Merlot Lucky Monkey. You’ll find the Lucky Monkey coyly perched on the wall in The Red Room, watching over us with a grin, ready to pitch the “fortune fruit” in our direction. It is widely believed that the Lucky Monkey stirs the creative energy that generates compelling ads, spot-on publicity efforts and unique marketing programs.  He may just be the method to our madness…or the madness to our method―either way, you will do well to heed the Lucky Monkey verse:

“Don’t fear this lucky monkey or the fortune-fruit within his hand.
He may taunt you, he may dance with you, and if you are very lucky,
your lucky monkey may hurl the fruit of good fortune your way!
Keep your lucky monkey with you always and be ready when he strikes,
for the fruity juice of luck may be yours.”

More than 1,600 companies exhibited at the 2009 International Builders’ Show including two of Merlot Marketing’s clients, Everpure and Eldorado Stone. Through diligent pre-show planning, a full interview schedule and a comprehensive media guide, these clients attained great success.

Everpure
This year’s International Builders’ Show was a great success for this leader in commercial-grade, residential water filtration systems which filters out 99% of bacteria, viruses, and other minerals, chlorine and contaminants. Exhibiting at the show for its second year, Everpure doubled its media meeting list from the previous year to a full 23 interviews over two days. Interviews were conducted with several major media outlets including Better Homes and Gardens, Traditional Home and Sunset magazine. Everpure was featured on the Home Live radio program while at the show and has already seen features in major trade publication websites including Builder, Remodeling and This Old House. Everpure was also selected as one of four green “finds” by EcoHome.

Eldorado Stone
While 2008 was not the best year for the building industry, the 2009 International Builders’ Show was full of life and building innovations. Eldorado Stone leveraged the opportunity with the unveiling of its new GemStone™ Walls, a world’s first concept that introduces architectural stone veneer as a believable, attainable and purposeful solution to interior design.

Momentum from the 2008 PR campaign and buzz surrounding the new GemStone Walls drove media traffic to the Eldorado Stone booth with a 47 percent increase in editor attendance from last year’s show. Among the show highlights were an exclusive booth tour with the Editor-in-Chief of Better Homes and Gardens, a webcast for House Beautiful, and a 10-minute interview on Home Live radio to nearly one million listeners!

With the economy struggling, there was a lack of enthusiasm by writers at The Sacramento Business Journal when it came time to generate their annual list of the fastest-growing companies. They wondered how much growth would be required to make the list. Would 2 percent be enough? It turned out that a single-digit figure wouldn’t be nearly enough as the fastest-growing companies in the Sacramento region increased their revenue by at least 15 percent and as much as 1,222 percent. At 60.54% revenue growth from 2005-2007, Merlot Marketing ranked 45.

When asked about our growth strategy, President/CEO Debi Hammond responded, “Merlot’s diligence to long-standing client relationships and focus on client service has allowed us to not only sustain but grow during a time when many organizations are downsizing. It’s a testament to the value of our clients’ products and services as well as the value of our efforts to successfully promote them.”

The Sacramento Business Journal summarized three observations:

1. Expanding or changing marketing strategies was the most-cited reason for revenue growth.
2. Green and clean tech companies dominated the top 10 spots on the list for 2008 with solar far and away the biggest growth sector.
3. Government contracts continue to be a steady source of reliable revenue.

The strategies for revenue growth are certainly as diverse as the organizations represented on the list. We are grateful to be in the company of such an impressive group that are all looking to grow and prosper during a time of ever-increasing business challenges. Here’s to making the list again next year!

Ready for a relaxing, but fun ride? Within the streamlined and punchy compartments of Merlot’s new website, you’ll discover a few hidden treasures throughout — rolling over certain graphic elements reveals the site’s creative character, inspirational Merlot Mottos and more. Watch for changes in the cursor to find direct links to our blogs and other surprises. You can even customize the site to fit your own aesthetic preferences! We’re “creative” types — can you blame us?

The site also showcases Merlot’s unique DiscoveryProcess™, the methodology that embodies the Merlot difference, our Mission Statement and a plethora of flavorful facts! Keep up with Merlot’s expertise in the News section and explore the in-depth Services to see all that we do that contributes to our clients’ success!

While you’re there, you can virtually get to know the Merlot team. Did you know that Brenda starts her day at 4:30 a.m.? Brad makes decisions with the aid of a magic 8-ball? Jana’s favorite food, libation, or restaurant is simply “cake”? Find out about their backgrounds, awards, years in the biz and numerous quirky (and impressive) facts that constitute Merlot’s dynamic bouquet.

Visit merlotmarketing.com