A Deliverable Email Address Does Not a Relationship Make
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Does anyone else lament the commoditization of "friend" amid our socially connected, digital lives? I can like you on Facebook, follow you on Twitter, subscribe to your email program and join your community.
But that doesn't mean I want a relationship.
And that is a problem for marketing and sales people. There are lots of ways for people to connect with brands, but there are not many actual connections. Consider these stats from a national e-commerce retailer with a social forum on its website:
Back to (Email) School Tips and Tricks
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As I dropped off my oldest child at his first day of kindergarten, I realized before we know it, he will be working on homework, learning some new and amazing things, and asking me questions I have no idea what the answer is. Make sure that new school energy rubs off, as it's common for any marketer to coast as summer fades and fall surfaces.
Why B-to-B Merchants Should Engage in Social Media
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Business-to-business merchants are investing in social media: According to Forrester Research, 77% of b-to-b decision makers are active in social media. But it’s a reality that many b-to-b sellers are not yet equipped to handle social media.
To help determine capabilities and resources, you need to ask several questions and be prepared to take action. Here are a few things to consider:
Long Live the King?
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According to new research from The Nielsen Company, though Email has long been the king on home computers, it's shifting quickly to social networking and online gaming. Americans spend 36% of their online time communicating and networking across social networks, blogs, personal email and instant messaging, up from15.8% just a year ago (43% increase)...
Click here to read the full article and see the charts.
Twitter: Dumbing Down the Highway
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What if I were to tell you that I’ve invented a new communications technology? Well, not really “new,” per se; more of a modified version of an existing medium. My brainchild doesn’t make money, at all, though it is AWFULLY popular with a specific demographic: annoying and self-obsessed people with too much time on their hands. Oh, and it doesn’t work properly for much of the time (sorry).
IKEA Turns Consumer Behavior into Viral Marketing
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Have you ever played hide-and-seek at IKEA? I have, though not intentionally. The stores are set up in these funky little mazes that make it very easy to lose a husband or a child while shopping, so it’s no wonder that people have taken to playing the game there on purpose. This week, the idea rose to new heights when a person in Australia set up a Facebook event announcing a “massive” game at their local store. Since then, almost 4,000 people have signed up and the news has gone viral.
Social Media: It's Time To Drive The ROI
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Today, through social media, it is possible for businesses to connect with hundreds of millions of customers and prospects around the world. Many businesses have already launched Facebook sites and Twitter accounts, and are actively engaging with their fans and followers. However, the majority of online marketers have no idea what impact these activities have on their brand or sales.
B2B Emails, Meet Twitter
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Most direct-to-consumer marketers haven't quite figured out what to do with Twitter yet. Is it just a customer service channel? Or is it a place to dump offers? Are customers even listening?
Score one for business-to-business (B2B) marketers. The channel fits in well with the kind of news distribution and networking that businesses already do. It's a smart way for you to share articles and information, because it shows off just how knowledgeable you are about your industry. And of course, it's a great way to add content to your marketing emails.
Sentiment Analysis: Believe Hype, Not Myths
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From focus groups to phone polls to man-on-the-street surveys, companies and organizations have been trying to understand consumer opinions for decades. And with social media producing a steady stream of updates and opinions from the masses every second, businesses have discovered yet another way to attain this valuable data. But distilling actionable information from social media often requires a deeper analysis, and this is where sentiment analysis comes in.
Facebook, Apple's 'Walled Gardens' Make Analytics That Much Harder for Brands
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Tracking the effectiveness of advertising on the web was hard enough. Tracking it in the era of "walled gardens" could become that much tougher.
The rapid shift of web audiences and marketer attention toward closely controlled properties such as Facebook or Apple's iAd platform is presenting a growing challenge for web analytics. Nearly a quarter of online time at the PC is now spent with social media, the lion's share of that on Facebook, according to Nielsen Co.
Marketers Struggle to Stay Ahead of Social Media Curve
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While it should come as no surprise that the rapid fire pace of social media change can be dizzying, it doesn’t make it any easier for marketers to stay ahead of the game.
emarketer reports on a study conducted with marketing executives asking just how tough it is to stay ahead of the social media wave. The study was conducted by The Creative Group and found that the majority of executives surveyed are being challenged by the pace of change in social media.
National Geographic Society Deploys Email Campaign Encouraging Facebook 'Likes'
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The National Geographic Society will launch an email marketing campaign this month, incorporating a Facebook “like” button, to support its feature documentary Restrepo. The nonprofit worked with marketing firm Epsilon on the campaign, which will launch by next week.
The group's goal is to encourage consumers to discuss the film on the social networking platform and to urge them to see it when it hits theaters in their markets.
Marketers 'Check in' for Social Sales
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A “check-in” through social media sends up a sort of social-status fl are alerting your friends and any hangers-on to not only your whereabouts but also your preferred locales, whether that's the Barneys Co-Op sale or the corner Starbucks. Marketers hope that consumers will check in for another reason: discounts and preferred treatment.
Mystery Email Promotes Patriots Social Media Campaign
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The big mystery is finally revealed.
After a teaser email campaign and clever PR tactics fueled tremendous hype in the last couple of days, the New England Patriots unveiled the cloak from its new social media campaign, which encourages fans to play an interactive game on their smartphones to help all-pro defensive lineman Vince Wilfork find his lost 2004 Super Bowl ring.
Marketers Working Toward Social, Search Integration
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While the majority of b2b marketers are now using social media as part of their marketing efforts, they are still exploring how to integrate social with search and measure the results, according to an exclusive study by BtoB and Business.com.
