Architects and students show their talent on cocktail napkins. Architect, Truc Dang Manh Nguyen from Piedmont, California wins first annual Cocktail Napkin Sketch Contest.  Impressive drawings!

According to the Architectural Record, the jury picked as “the best in show” a drawing of a gate from a Japanese garden by Truc Dang Manh Nguyen. The winner has practiced for 27 years and recently opened his own office.

ARCHITECTURAL RECORD said they were deluged with 1,322 cocktail napkins bearing sketches from 352 architects and architecture students. Read the rest of the story and see more sketches here: http://bit.ly/9Mx8qs

This just goes to show you how much you can accomplish on a small cocktail napkin. It forces you to focus and get super clear about your goals or project.

Well, Pepsi decided for the 1st time in 23 years Not to advertise on Super Bowl TV and instead, put $20million into a social media marketing campaign called Pepsi Refresh Project, which pledges to donate $1 million in February and $20 million through the end of the year to social causes chosen and voted upon by fans.. What do you think of that bold move? Considering there were over 90million viewers setting a TV record, I’m not convinced they made the best choice, but time will tell. They saved a little money since they spent $33 million last year on Super Bowl Advertising. The publicity about this bold move alone may help their cause.

I’m not a huge Super Bowl fan, however, I love to watch the ads and halftime. This year, the Who was terrific and brought back so many great memories. And for the ads– my personal favorites were E-Trade and the Audi “Green Police” for something different. Comment on your favorite ads below.

View the videos of the best and worst Super Bowl Ads for 2010 per Forbes. Push play on the video player below.

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Don’t forget to tell us your comments below or share this post on Twitter @robynlevin or Facebook, ‘Like’ Cocktail Napkin Marketing Plan on facebook.

Inc’s Blog - the Start-Up ToolKit for Entrepreneurs featured the Cocktail Napkin Marketing Plan™ as a tool to help you get clear and focused when it comes to your marketing strategy. In today’s environment with diminished attention spans – brief is better.

A movie magnate was once quoted as saying “If you can’t fit your idea on the back of a business card, you don’t have a clear idea.” Brevity is popular these days – try Twitter. And then there’s the somewhat timeless metaphor – entrepreneur writes out her ideas during a meeting on the back of a cocktail napkin – and success soon follows. There’s entrepreneurial wisdom in brevity.

As a marketing and PR veteran for over 20 years, Robyn Levin found the Entrepreneurs and startup marketing teams she was coaching were missing a simple way and brief way to create a focused marketing strategy. Read the rest of Howard Greenstein’s article on Inc’s Blog to learn more.

I was invited back to teach at Wharton  this week and the topic was Integrated Marketing Strategies and Media opportunities for small to medium sized businesses. It’s imperative to choose a variety of ways to promote your brand and be consistent with your marketing message. Exercise #3 in my e-Book, Cocktail Napkin Marketing Plan™ covers Marketing Strategy in depth and I stress the importance of media selection and marketing integration. Using FREE communication tools like Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube can quickly get you leads, qualified referrals and even sales. Like author, Steven Covey says, “Begin with the end 1st.” What’s your ultimate goal and desired outcome? Put yourself in your customers’ shoes and think about how and where they consume their information. Then, get your marketing message in front of them using a variety of social media and traditional marketing efforts. If you want to learn more and create your own custom marketing plan of action in a few hours, buy the Cocktail Napkin Marketing Plan e-Book and Interactive Template. You’ll be on a profitable path in hours.

According to a recent article by Michelle McGiboney, Nielsen Online, “Twitter.com continues to grow in popularity and importance in both the consumer and corporate worlds. No longer just a platform for friends to stay connected in real time, it has evolved into an important component of brand marketing.” You can read the article here,

Fastest Growing Member Community Destinations in February 2009

Follow me on Twitter, to get marketing tips and updates.

Upload Your Videos to Your Blog Automatically

For example, did you know you can automatically link your blog to your YouTube channel (account) for instant video sharing. Anytime you upload a new video you want to share on your blog, or you find another video to share, you simply click the “share” icon and post to your blog. This is in addition to all the other sharing functions, like MySpace, Facebook, e-mail etc. Below, you’ll see my latest video interview and how I instantly shared it on my blog, without going to my blog to make a new post A real time-saver.
Learn more social networking tips and techniques at my “GET SMART Marketing Boot Camp” in San Francisco, 5/15th, 2009.

How to Convert IRA Real Estate to a Roth

Robyn Levin interviewed Tom Anderson, CEO of PENSCO Trust about how to convert Real Estate inside Your IRA to a Roth IRA and take advantage of lower values now.

Are Baby Boomers into Social Networking?  I get asked this question frequently when I’m speaking on how to get more leads & extend your reach using YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter and other social networking sites.

YES– Baby Boomers are climbing on board fast. According to eMarketer, “56.7 million baby boomers make up the largest group of users in the US Internet population.” You can view Baby Boomer Social Media Statistics here: http://www.emarketer.com/Report.aspx?code=emarketer_2000546

Think about your own behavior when you’re conducting research or browsing the Internet. Are you going to YouTube or LinkedIn more frequently? Nowadays, it’s pretty easy and FREE to test various methods of communication and that’s what social networking is all about. Follow me on Twitter to get some tips and ideas to improve your marketing using social networking.   http://twitter.com/robynlevin

As a year-end bonus, I’ve bundled my top 7 marketing tips from 2008 right here, with links to articles and resources on social networking, online PR and top search engine optimization tips.

Sign-up in the yellow box to grab your copy. Happy Holidays from R. Levin Markeing Group.

Disappointed with your marketing results and seeking innovative ideas for 2009?

Attend my GET SMART Marketing Boot Camp and walk away with your smart action plan for 2009. Seating is limited to 8 people only. Sample topics:

• Discover social media tools to expand your market using YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter and more (Look how Obama changed policital campaigning)
• Learn PR secrets & how my clients got featured in Money Magazine, NY Times, Wall Street Journal etc.
• Walk away with your own Cocktail Napkin Marketing Plan™ for ’09 w/quarterly strategies

Attract more ideal clients, improve your online visibility and network with other smart professionals.

Date:
December 10th, 2008 – Sold Out
January 30th, 2008 -

Register Now, Seating is Very Limited. Guaranteed you’ll learn a lot of proven techniques to improve your results quickly & cost-effectively! Your registration includes your copy of the Cocktail Napkin Marketing Plan™ e-Book and Free marketing template ($99 value) plus you’ll be entered to win a Free FLIP Ultra video camera.                 

Temple / Wharton Marketing Professor, Dr. Michael F. Smith invited Robyn Levin to co-teach Marketing Strategy to his MBA class at Wharton last week. View video clip discussing marketing strategy and Internet Marketing Trends. Students gain insight into the power of new media such as blogs, webinars, podcasting, twitter, PR and social networking to brand and grow a business. Robyn shows class her Cocktail Napkin Marketing Plan™ e-Book for small business owners & shares integrated techniques to build brand awareness and increase sales and visibility. Exercise #3 is on “Building Your Strategy”.

Follow Michael Smith and Robyn Levin on Twitter.com.