RocketDog partnered with WTIA and Tech America for this year’s 12 annual Oktoberfest! RocketDog strutted their German attire at the event! The poster and all of the marketing materials for the event were done by RocketDog!

RocketDog Communications of Seattle, Washington received an award for outstanding achievement in Catalog and Promotional Campaigns in the 2nd Annual PrintROCKS! Awards, a region-wide printing competition hosted by the Pacific Printing & Imaging Association (PPI), a trade association for printing and the graphic arts in Alaska, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington.

RocketDog received 1st Place in Catalogs and 2nd Place for Promotional Campaigns. The company’s winning submission was a print piece/brochure for Wimmer Solutions. Click here to view the winning brochure.

“We are so proud of our winning team,” said Michael Elliott, VP of RocketDog. “It’s an honor to be recognized by the industry as a company that produces top quality, award winning materials.” Jules Van Sant, PPI Executive Director, agrees. “RocketDog should be very proud of their company’s achievement and the excellent work done by their employees.”

The PrintROCKS! Award recognizes those responsible for the creation and production of print communications in the region. The competition promotes excellence in print communications and rewards companies and individuals who produce the best in print media.

For more information about RocketDog Communications, call Corrie Westmoreland at (206) 254-0248. For more information about the Pacific Printing & Imaging Association and the awards, call Jules Van Sant at 503.221.3944.

Should you engage in the rage? During the last decade the experience economy has blossomed, and consumers have changed. People actively seek brands to help them identify who they are and what they stand for, much like earlier generations looked to religion or social clubs. And with the rise of on‐line social media, something intimidating has happened ‐ Brand control is now in the hands of your consumer. Why does this matter, because prospects trust consumers more than they trust you?

Before you entertain the idea of implementing a social media strategy, it is in your best interest to consider a few requirements.

Are your consumers on‐line?
Is your company open to negative feedback, and are you willing to engage with it?
Can you afford to incorporate social media marketing into employee’s daily jobs?
Are you capable of measuring results?
Are you willing to take risks and experiment?
Does the social web relate to the marketing principals, tactics, tools and best practices of your brand?

Now let’s say you meet these requirements and pursue the implementation of a social media strategy. Before you get too far, decide where you are going and how you are going to get there. Then, establish a benchmark for  understanding when you have arrived.

Stellar strategies begin with thoughtful questions:
Who’s your audience? What types of social networks do they use and how do they communicate with one another?

What are the objectives and goals for your brand? Potential goals include: customer acquisition, lead generation, driving sales, building awareness, establishing thought leadership, customer education and reaching new channels of customers.

Now it’s time to think about your strategic plan. What approach will you take to meet the needs and interests of your audience in order to meet your own? Will you engage influencers? Will you energize brand advocates? How will you create demand? Are there non‐branded resources you could offer?

What tactics will you use to implement your plan? What tools and technologies will you use to effectively monitor your plan? How will you measure success according to the objectives you have identified?

Common social media tools:
FaceBook, MySpace, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and Plaxo.

Common social media tactics:
Blogging, micro blogging, social networks, videos and forums.

The best combination for a successful social media strategy depends on your goals. The key is to plan ahead. A solid social media strategy includes the right mix of social media tools, tactics and technologies that allow for measured results. Take time to create a detailed roadmap with your goals in mind. At the end of the day, success breeds from a well thought out plan.

—–
Written by Sandra Wright, one of RocketDog’s “Officers of New Frontiers”.
Originally published in Media, Inc. June 2009

Every Friday the RocketDog Peeps hang out and rock out from 4PM on! We play Rock Band and have a few cocktails! Here at RocketDog, we think that there is no better way to celebrate the end of a productive week than Rockin’ out with our cocktails out!

Today Microsoft Silverlight Program announces Seattle-based RocketDog Communications as a certified partner.

RocketDog Communications, a certified vendor with Microsoft, is excited to announce that the agency has added to its array of services by being selected as a certified Partner in the Microsoft Silverlight program. Silverlight is a cross-browser, cross-platform plug-in released by Microsoft as a part of Windows Vista. It provides programmers the ability to use browser-based rich Internet applications, animation, vector graphics and video playback. Understanding Silverlight sets RocketDog’s designers and developers apart from the rest.
“ We are very excited about this new initiative from Microsoft , and plan to embrace tool with future projects. We feel that by becoming a certified partner for Microsoft Silverlight we can provide highly interactive solutions for both Microsoft and our clients.”-Michael Elliott VP RocketDog Communications

RocketDog Communications is a full-service marketing and design agency in Seattle who has been developing award-winning solutions for clients across the nation for over ten years. RocketDog heads up the design for everything from product service launches, to comprehensive branding, and interactive web solutions. In addition to Microsoft , their list of clients include : GE Healthcare, Girl Scouts of the USA, Partners International, Revel Consulting, fashion designer Luly Yang.