TrendKite just released a fantastic article with tips to secure your PR budget for the new year.

While Garden Media Group handles this on a different end, we know some of our readers need to fight for every dollar in their company's marketing budget so we wanted to share tips on being the most effective you can be.

Companies often take the money that is budgeted for PR and put it into a different area of marketing. It is up to PR professionals to fight for their budget - and hopefully an increase.

Continue reading for tips on how to secure your PR budget for next year.

Everyone gets old, if we're lucky. But getting old doesn’t mean you stop caring about your well-being, looks and insecurities, so why do businesses assume as much?

In a recent Atlantic article, “Why Businesses Misunderstand Old People,” Joseph Coughlin touches on this intriguing thought.

According to the article, 80 percent of Americans who could benefit from hearing aids aren't seeking them out. 

Is it poor marketing channels? Maybe. But according to Coughlin, traditional hearing aids make people feel old, and no one wants that. 

As influencers in the garden industry, we need to take this into account.The scale of the gardener demographics is largely tilted to an older audience, and if you are missing the mark on what they want, your message will fall flat.

Continue reading to see what businesses are doing to accommodate the older generation.

What do an abacus, a calculator and an iPhone have in common? They all represent a decline in learning everyday practices.

Less real world learning opportunities are offered in school today while more Googling anything continues to rise. The latest internet meme revolves around knowing what mitochondria are, but not how to file taxes – or even how to care for houseplants.

Generations Y and Z are all about YouTube and will look up just about anything from how to boil an egg, change a flat tire or French braid hair. In fact, no feat is too small for YouTube. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that America’s Retailers Have a New Target Customer: The 26-Year-Old Millennial. This age bracket, bigger than any other, is pushing companies to revamp marketing and products, including a lot of remedial education.

Being able to follow step-by-step instruction offers more to its user than assuming they know what to do with the product. Companies that offer how-to content are quickly climbing the ladder to the most influential brands.

REI’s loyal customer base is the leading example; they have over 500 in-depth articles and videos. In addition, they also have a LIVE chat feature and Q&A on their website.

Continue Reading to see how your brand can utilize How-To content.

At a recent Hubspot conference, creative director Katie Dubow learned the importance of getting different perspectives for your idea, brainstorm session or project.

"You can't think in new ways if there isn't diversity of perspective and experience," said Elaine Welteroth, editor-in-chief, Teen Vogue.

The new collaboration between Vogue and Vice is a perfect example of this because as the new Project Vs tagline says, "opposites attract.”

Learn more about Project Vs, set to launch in 2018, and how going outside the box can attract new audiences and strengthen your brand.

Creative director Katie Dubow recently attended Hubspot's INBOUND 2017 inbound marketing conference in Boston.

The conference was filled with lessons on the future of inbound marketing, the new features of HubSpot and better ways to reach customers with data-driven, unique content.

Energy was high. From the speakers (Michelle Obama, John Cena, Issa Rae, Billie Jean King, just to name a few) to the session topics (Courageous Creativity, The Quest for True Belonging, Content for the FOMO Generation and more) it is one of the most inspiring marketing conferences to attend.

Here are the big themes marketing professionals are talking about world-wide.

October 2017 - (Philadelphia) IMPACT Marketing & PR, Inc. was recognized in the Philadelphia Book of Lists as a Top Woman-Owned business and Top PR firm for 2017. Suzi McCoy founded IMPACT Marketing 30 years ago.

Garden Media Group, a subsidiary of IMPACT, was founded 20 years ago to serve the horticulture, gardening and outdoor living industries. Our boutique public relations firm gets results fast because we have our finger on the pulse of the industry and the ear of influencers from top outlets – from Better Homes & Gardens and Magnolia Journal to the sweeping social media outlets. Our clients are both national and international and come to us to make them popular with their target market. We also publish an annual garden trends report, one of the most widely read reports in the industry.

Continue Reading to learn about our Queen Bee and how GMG was born.

Pinterest is known for inspiration in all aspects of life. It makes it easy for users to simply scroll through to find ideas for anything they are looking for. And with more than 150 million monthly users globally, you must know Pinterest is an important piece of your brand’s quest for social media domination.

All of us have pondered the question “How can I become successful?” But what is the answer? In researching professional growth topics, I came across several blogs about the keys to success.  Everything from how much sleep you get to how you spend your free time and who you associate with.

Growing up I was always told the keys to success were hard work, never stop learning and spend time with successful people in the area you want to be successful in. Turns out that was really good advice.

While exploring articles about habits of successful people including what they do on their off time, I found some really basic habits that can make a huge impact.  I asked a few individuals to read some articles and highlight the habits that resonated with them the most. My sample audience included members of The Silent Generation, Generation X (Gen-X), Generation Y (Gen-Y, Millennials), and Generation Z (Gen-Z). I enjoyed seeing what each generation perceived as the most important habits and why.

Read more to find out the habits of successful people.

As technology continues to advance, artificial intelligence (AI) is taking the spotlight. AI can be incredibly expensive to introduce in everyday life, but with chatbots, that’s no longer an issue.

Chatbots are computer programs that typically use text based live chat interface to carry out tasks for customers on behalf of the business instead of using real humans, such as Alexa and Siri.

Chatbots have been successful in customer service for years, but now is when more and more companies are jumping on board. Instead of having someone to answer all of their customer’s questions, bots are able to take on the easy questions to not inconvenience workers. They are saving industries huge amounts of money.

Social media and banking apps have adopted chatbots in the biggest way. Both have the ability to answer frequently asked questions easily. They are also personalized to each customer’s account for added personalization and not to mention, privacy.

Continue reading about how to utilize chatbots for your business.

It’s the perfect time of the year. The sun is still shining, but fall is swooping in with cooler days and even cooler nights. Summer is officially over, which means it’s time to refocus on staying productive at work.

We spent so much time over the summer dreaming of being anywhere but our desk — enjoying the beach, the sun, the warmth. Fall brings weekend festivals, apple picking, and pumpkin everything! Staying productive during the work week will free up time and energy to go and enjoy fun filled weekends.

Continue reading for tips on organizing office space.