As marketers, we are always conducting research to verify the perfect target audience for a product or service. We are experts at knowing the target audience – what they do and how they think. It is our knowledge of the demographics and psychographics of the target audience, that allow us to make strategic media placements in order to create the most effective, integrated campaigns. In a perfect world, all of these placements would fit like a glove and perform exactly as we expect them to, but of course we don’t live in a perfect world. There are no special formulas that tell us how a particular audience is going to respond to the campaign in each media and vehicle.

Until someone cracks that code (and makes millions of dollars) test campaigns are extremely important. Unless you are one of those companies who likes to toss your cash in the trash (yeah, that rhymes!), a test campaign is crucial in order to get that coveted ROI.

A properly tracked test marketing campaign will allow you to analyze the results and get a clear understanding of how your target audience responds to your campaign. Maybe Facebook ads don’t get through to your “social butterfly” target audience like you thought they were going to, but the placements on ad networks have created tons of leads. Instead of wasting money on Facebook advertising, after analyzing the results of your test campaign, you can now reapportion your budget to the vehicles that are giving you the biggest bang for your buck.

While it takes some investment (both in time and budget), test marketing will ensure a well optimized campaign, without wasting away your budget. Even if you don’t have the budget for formal test marketing, be ready and willing to change your original plans as the campaign results come in. The best research is taking your big ideas for a spin, while you still have time to tweak them and make them the best they can be.

This font. And it’s free.

TCA brought in the Holiday Season with our annual Holiday Decorating Party. Of course, there were tons of Holiday cookies, creative crafting, and broken ornaments but this year we decided to take our Cyphers decorating one step further.

We each brought a print out to the Holiday Bash of a project that we worked on this past year. There was everything from budget spreadsheets and creative briefs to website mocks and Facebook profiles. We each made our very own Holiday ornament but cutting up the projects and putting the pieces inside of the ornament ball to make our very own Holiday Decorations, TCA style.

Now all of our wonderful accomplishments are decorating the office and transforming it into a true Cyphers Wonderland.

What accomplishments are you proud of this year?

Oh the crazy things we say,

throughout our Cyphers work day.

You may think we are not okay.

But to us, this is just normal TCA.

Enjoy…

• Every time I laugh it’s so juicy.

• I want to tell you something disgusting now

• I’m going to ninja every bug in the universe

• Don’t come at me with your arms

• You don’t know where a hug has already been

• Excuse me, what are you doing over there…that sure is crinkly water

• I just rolled my eyes at twitter

• My neck balls really hurt right now

• Stop making me laugh because it hurts my sty

• I’m addicted to sexy font

• Everyone can be an artist if they drink

• I hiccuped in the middle of my yawn

• Sensei is sitting there

• “They” call it a pimp stick

Not sure if it’s the sunshine, warm weather, or the short-sleeve shirts but summer silliness is definitely in the air at The Cyphers Agency.  Just take a look at some of the QUOTES heard around the office lately, and you’ll know exactly what we mean. 

• My brain hurts so bad, it’s from being so smart.
• You just salted me!
• I love toaster ovens!  It’s sorta like an easy bake oven.
• Sorry if my hair is falling all over your stuff, it’s shedding season.
• I need to go, you’re creeping me out because you’re being so nice.
• I’m feeling expensive today.
• I don’t like people to have solutions to my problems.  I want them to be like, yeah that’s an impossible problem.  Good luck with that.
• What are you eating that comes from a carton!  I heard a carton!
• You can do whatever you want as long as it looks sexy.
• I’m like the sad mother right now.
• Your eyeballs are humongous right now.
• My shirt is made out of polar bear and insulation.
• I got all emotional because of the smell of the Target parking lot.
• That sounds like a fake cough.
• Can we just hire an intern to talk to? answer: It’s called a psychiatrist.
• Just thinking about going to bed early is making me smile.
• I wonder who was like, “let’s burn some bread and then eat it.”
• We need to have more plot than I can’t wait to get home and do it with my vampire boyfriend.
• Your whole face just looked like I pooped all over it.