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✨A lifestyle marketing blog with a side of, well, lifestyle ✨

THE LATEST

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MARKETING AND PR TRENDS

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THE LATEST ~ MARKETING AND PR TRENDS ~

Here are some interesting dates coming up to mark on your marketing calendar.
Social Media, Marketing Carolyn Delacorte Social Media, Marketing Carolyn Delacorte

Here are some interesting dates coming up to mark on your marketing calendar.

It’s the beginning of August and heatwaves and beach days are most likely your reality.

Here are some great internet holidays coming up to post about over the next few weeks:

August 8: International Cat Day

August 9: Book Lovers Day

August 15: 55th Anniversary of Woodstock

August 17: National Bee Day

August 17: National Thrift Shop Day

August 19: Full Moon (Sturgeon Moon) is a Blue Moon: occurs when there are four full moons in a single astronomical season, instead of the usual three. There will not be another Blue Moon until May 31, 2026

August 19: Coco Chanel’s Birthday

August 30: National Beach Day

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The Second Half is Here! Here’s What’s Trending in June and Beyond.
Social Media, Marketing Carolyn Delacorte Social Media, Marketing Carolyn Delacorte

The Second Half is Here! Here’s What’s Trending in June and Beyond.

Brand owners who sell wholesale know that June is the month that kicks off a frenzy of activity.

The big media players like Oprah, The New York Times, Glamour, Goop, Vogue ect are researching trends and investigating the popularity of specific brands for inclusion in their exhaustive holiday gift guides. They’ll roll out their recommendations to readers in late September through mid October, which means that if you have special designs, gift sets, price breaks or new products you’d like to sell a lot of at Christmastime, June is the month that you must start pitching.

The reason for this long lead time is the colossal importance of the season for media players who rely on the ad sales that these gift guides bring. Digital versions of these guides bring commissions earned from click throughs. Holiday gift guides also go a long way in the promotion of media brands - they can demonstrate their influence on the consumer product market by generating great sales, thereby attracting year round advertising revenue. Key editors from these guides appear on numerous morning shows and entertainment programs to promote their choices, further strengthening their brand and generating traffic and circulation to their pages.

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Here’s What’s Happening in March (that Lifestyle Brands Should Know About).
Creative, Marketing, Trends Carolyn Delacorte Creative, Marketing, Trends Carolyn Delacorte

Here’s What’s Happening in March (that Lifestyle Brands Should Know About).

March spells the end of Winter and there’s a palpable sense of relief from frost weary souls throughout North America:  

Create a sense of regeneration through social and blog posts and include your products that fit this vibe.  For media outreach, editors are looking for products and ideas that evoke a sense of renewal.

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SEO-powered storytelling is key for product placement PR in 2024. Here’s how to do it.
Marketing Carolyn Delacorte Marketing Carolyn Delacorte

SEO-powered storytelling is key for product placement PR in 2024. Here’s how to do it.

Major publications are under intense pressure to keep traffic flowing to their sites. They can’t do this if they write about subjects that aren’t hugely interesting, which is why there’s so much focus on celebrity news in pop culture media.

Years ago when I ran a commercial blog of my own, anytime I’d write about a celebrity, especially Kim Kardashian, traffic to my site would quadruple. And this is the effect that major publications live for … literally.

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How to Make the Most of Q5
Marketing Carolyn Delacorte Marketing Carolyn Delacorte

How to Make the Most of Q5

Q5, or the “fifth quarter” of the marketing year, also known as the post-year-end period, is an extension of time that comes after the completion of the traditional four quarters. Interestingly, Q5 is such a novel term to many brands that it’s defined differently depending on who is discussing it.

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Four Inbound Marketing Strategies for Your Lifestyle Brand
Marketing Carolyn Delacorte Marketing Carolyn Delacorte

Four Inbound Marketing Strategies for Your Lifestyle Brand

There is a lot of competition for lifestyle brands to weed through online.  Some 700 Million active websites around the globe have their hand up, trying to flag down traffic. Every minute about 5000 more websites launch.  And those estimates are probably a bit low considering there are currently some 1.7 billion registered sites. No matter how you look at it, getting viewers to pay attention to you online is a struggle.

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4 Myths About PR We'd Like to Dispel
Marketing Carolyn Delacorte Marketing Carolyn Delacorte

4 Myths About PR We'd Like to Dispel

Public Relations, PR and Publicity are crucial elements of any consumer facing brand’s success. There are no serious marketing pros that will contest this point.

From product placement in magazines and websites; guest posting on relevant blogs; to professional profiles in business media – PR is an elemental cornerstone of marketing for any B2C brand.

However, the method you employ to grease the wheels on your publicity machine can vary dramatically.

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Outsourcing 101: How Successful Brands Save Money and Capitalize On Outside Talent
Marketing Carolyn Delacorte Marketing Carolyn Delacorte

Outsourcing 101: How Successful Brands Save Money and Capitalize On Outside Talent

Bringing on employees for a burgeoning lifestyle brand is important – especially for core tasks like building a product creation infrastructure, directly managing retailers and consumer sales, and designing new product.  But many successful veterans of the entrepreneurial world know better than to attempt roles that are outside the realm of their core mission as a company.  They realize that their limited time and valuable skill set is best focused on creating product and will outsource for services that are best done by others.  

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Our 5 Favorite Sources for Free Marketing Photos
Marketing Carolyn Delacorte Marketing Carolyn Delacorte

Our 5 Favorite Sources for Free Marketing Photos

We’re all crunched for time, that’s no secret. So sourcing great visual content for your website, blog, press kits, social feeds and more can be daunting. While large brands have the bandwidth and budget to do endless custom shoots, smaller companies need to be more resourceful when planning their marketing strategy.

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Marketing Your Beauty Brand: Storytelling Decoded
Marketing Carolyn Delacorte Marketing Carolyn Delacorte

Marketing Your Beauty Brand: Storytelling Decoded

For a longtime now, the phrase “story branding” has been banging around. It’s not a new concept, but the lingo has changed, making the modern application of the practice a bit cloudy. Afterall, Estee Lauder figured out “story-branding” way back in the 1940’s. For Lauder, building a story-brand was just the natural evolution of her personality. By revolutionizing how products were introduced to women she virtually created the industry we know today.

Scanning through LinkedIn profiles you’ll see “brand storyteller” as a skill enough times to make your head spin. At times it can feel a bit like a box is being checked, rather than an earnest calling is being answered.

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How Lifestyle Brands Can Repurpose Content On Social Feeds and Blogs
Marketing, Social Media Carolyn Delacorte Marketing, Social Media Carolyn Delacorte

How Lifestyle Brands Can Repurpose Content On Social Feeds and Blogs

We all know content is king, but for solopreneurs and smaller brands, keeping blog posts and social feeds fresh and relevant can be a struggle. Time taken away from designing, manufacturing, and direct selling can be hard to give up.

And while the struggle is real, it’s important to keep those social marketing channels well fed and buzzing.

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When perfect really isn’t ….
Marketing Carolyn Delacorte Marketing Carolyn Delacorte

When perfect really isn’t ….

There’s an impulse to rely on the word “perfect” to describe everything from table-settings to lipstick shades.  “Perfect” is just fine, if the item in question is indeed flawless.  But perfection in this world is exceedingly rare, particularly when it comes to skin serums and lipstick shades.*

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