Sitting at my local watering hole the other night, I struck up a conversation with a person in town on business. Our conversation took a turn when they asked me what I do. When I told them I work remote with a DC-based strategic branding and marketing agency, they went off on a tangent about how successful their employees are that work remote and the benefits of such an arrangement.

I enjoy writing blogs like this, and sending out tweets when I run across a great article that I think will be of value to colleagues. However, I must admit that I have stopped tuning on my TweetDeck on a daily basis. Why? Because I see more and more tweets that simply prattle on about subjects that I don’t have the time or interest in reading. Perhaps I need to go in a clean out my followers and create more robust lists. But this is not my point.

A couple of weeks ago, a friend a mine asked me if he could pick my brain about developing his website. After talking for a while, I realized the questions he was asking were probably common for many professional service marketers as well. While he understood the basics of developing a website, his questions were more about the big picture and what makes an effective website.

On January 28 I moderated an innovative virtual panel discussion examining three of the first efforts at law firms to implement integrated social media campaigns. Kelly Hoey from 85Broads, Russell Lawson from Sands Anderson Marks & Miller, PC, Andrea K. Stimmel from Curtis, Mallet-Prevost, Colt & Mosle LLP and I explored our social networks in real time while participants connected, shared their thoughts and posed questions on twitter using the hastag #ISMC.

As marketing professionals, we are continually searching for ways to extend our brand and touch our clients and prospects in a cost effective way, but how do you know your tactics are effective? Now more than ever, we should be building tools into our marketing strategy to track and analyze the results.

As law firms continue to struggle under the weight of the economic downturn, online positioning and advertising opportunities have emerged as an inexpensive way to elevate their brand and raise name awareness. Increasing your online visibility can draw more visitors to your website, position you as a thought leader and attract new customers.

Last week a couple friends and I played a friendly round of golf. As we walked the 18 holes, we chatted about our jobs, our personal lives and, of all things, pop culture. I was quickly reminded that while we all communicate and interact with each other over social media platforms, the in-person interaction is essential in sustaining and building upon our already strong relationships.

A new Verizon DSL modem, new Airport Time Capsule router, new OS X server software and we're LinkedIn! Or should I say, new router—$499, 4 hours of tech support and a day of installing server software—$499, and being able to access LinkedIn—priceless? Not!

We’re Moiré Marketing Partners. So glad to see you. Welcome to our new blog!

Moiré Marketing Partners is a strategic branding and communications agency specializing in the success of professional service firms. We’ve set up this blog to give you a resource for information on the latest developments in marketing, professional services, and social media as well as guidance as to what it all means.