Recent Marketing Articles and Marketing News - Last 7 Days | RICG

Retailers Taking the Tablet Marketing Pill

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:00:00 +0000

Tablet computers seem to be everywhere now. A report from Strategy Analytics measured the total number of global tablet shipments in Q4 2011. The 27 million units shipped represented a 150 percent rise over the same time period a year earlier, when 10.7 million tablets were shipped. For all of 2011, 66.9 million tablets were sold, a 260 percent growth from 2010.

With the devices starting to show up in more consumers' homes, backpacks, briefcases and purses, it's no wonder that marketers are starting to plan for how they can work mobile components into their digital marketing plans.

As Armando Roggio writes for Practical Ecommerce, the technology offers a wealth of opportunities for ecommerce retailers in particular. The challenge that merchants will have to meet as they strategize for tablets is finding a way to make the shopping experience different from what a consumer would have on a laptop or desktop computer, he says.

"Tablet computers are on the rise, and these popular devices may be facilitating changes in user behavior, ranging from what sort of content users consume to how those users interact with that content," he says.

When designing product descriptions or mobile-optimized websites, retailers should keep in mind that many tablet owners seek to read publications on their devices, Roggio says, pointing to a GfK MRI report. That study showed 71 percent of tablet owners chose to read the digital versions of magazines, books and newspapers, so consider delivering your own content in a similar, visual-heavy layout.

That said, retailers' content marketing and creative design could be more focused on articles, video and images to increase the level of engagement and interactions consumers have with the material, he notes. The smaller details will also require some attention, Roggio warns, so add bigger fonts and navigation buttons to make it easier for people using touch screens to scroll through the site.

The Decline and Fall of Blogging?

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 23:00:00 +0000

Blogs and podcasts may be falling by the wayside as more Inc. 500 companies add mobile and social media marketing to their advertising strategies.

A report from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth and the Society for New Communications Research reviewed the companies' adoption of social tools and technology, finding that blogging fell from a 50 percent adoption rate in its 2010 study to 37 percent.

Ad agencies and other marketing industry organizations were the biggest users of blogs, the researchers found, with the construction and government services sectors being the least likely to blog.

"As investments in social media increase and the role of social media becomes institutionalized in companies, the future is sure to be exciting and fast paced for these model small companies,” stated Nora Ganim, a senior fellow with the Society. "Older tools are being shed in favor of newer, more nimble tools. Creating networks with other professionals is seen to be as important as communicating with target markets via Facebook or Twitter."

Indeed, the social platforms have been rolling out a number of advertising and analytical tools to help brands and businesses engage customers and measure their responses. Nearly three-quarters of respondents use Facebook, and 73 percent use LinkedIn. Mobile applications and Foursquare are also starting to make their presence felt, with 13 to 15 percent of the group using the platforms. Corporations are still monitoring social media sites as well, but that tactic is also in decline, researchers found, falling from last year's peak of 70 percent to 68 percent this year.

In November 2011, Technorati released its annual State of the Blogosphere report. The majority of bloggers (60 percent) are still hobbyists that do not receive any income from their "personal musings." Corporate bloggers account for just 8 percent of the total blogosphere, discussing technology and business in their posts.

Social Meets Service

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 21:00:00 +0000

Companies will have to play catch up with their customers, reach out to "valuable brand advocates" and truly capitalize on all the functions and opportunities that social media offers, according to Justin Hunt, founder of ItsOpen. His comments come in response to his company's recent study on how consumers use social media to connect with companies for customer service.

"The days of holding for ages to talk to a call center adviser who can't make a decision are about to be left behind," said Hunt. He noted that the consumers expect brands to interact and collaborate with them online, adding that this seems to be the year customers will get social.

However, report author Dr. Andrew Currah also warned that businesses will have to take some steps before they start interacting with the "social customer" - including changing the corporate culture so that everyone from the entry-level employee to the CEO is fully involved in the program.

Integrated marketing and customer service through the networks will enable a social company to ensure its customers are getting the highest quality service and are also being offered "compelling products" that are in line with client-provided feedback and insight, Currah said.

"Simply leaving social media to the PR or marketing department will never allow a company to engage in online customer conversations, react to issues and eventually turn customer relations channels into revenue earners in the way that the pioneer social companies already do," he added.

The social customer is also creating a sense of urgency for brands to catch up to consumers. Already, many people are taking to the social networks to share positive and negative comments about brands and shopping experiences with their friends, family and followers. A September 2011 study from Maritz Research and evolve 24 found that out of responding frequent tweeters, almost half wanted companies to respond to their Twitter postings, yet only one-third said they had heard back from a business after tweeting a complaint.

Marketing in a Post-IPO Facebook World

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 19:00:00 +0000

Facebook has finally done what analysts have speculated upon for years. Wednesday, it filed for an initial public offering with a stock valuation between $75 billion and $100 billion.

Before the big announcement, Forrester Research's Nate Elliott wrote a column for Forbes speculating on what the move will mean for the marketing industry.

He noted that Facebook's current marketing platform has failed to increase user engagement rates for branded pages, "and most large marketers tell us they simply haven’t gotten much value from their Facebook investments." In order to drive meaningful growth in its marketing division, the company will need to develop marketing metrics that give ad agencies insight. It will also have to start mining the wealth of data is has to facilitate targeted advertising, Elliott comments.

On the subject of data, he points out that government regulators pose a major risk for Facebook as it strives to create innovative uses for its data. It will also work to strengthen its position in markets beyond North America, where it already dominates, to Asian countries and emerging economies that use other social media sites more, Elliott predicts.

In the meantime, how can marketers working on brand development derive value from their social media marketing efforts on Facebook?

According to Nishad Ramachandran, writing for FirstPost, "Facebook is the ultimate loyalty engine," meaning it's still very important to the majority of its more than 840 million users. This drives up the engagement opportunities for brands, allowing them to reach a wide audience of consumers who spend up to 20 percent of their online time viewing social networking sites.

Ramachandran says that analysts and marketers watching Facebook should not be concerned about the slower growth of the ad business - consumers may end up being more loyal because they know the company is not just in it for the money, he cites founder Mark Zuckerberg as saying.

Nonprofits' Newest Benefactor: Data

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:00:00 +0000

Nonprofit organizations have always relied on the kindness of strangers to support their causes and spread their missions, but many groups have struggled in recent years as donations from cash-strapped supporters dried up.

The likes of the Red Cross and other groups could build their coffers back up to pre-recession levels with the use of data analysis to inform digital marketing campaigns and outreach efforts, according to Knowledge@Wharton, the online business journal for the University of Pennsylvania business school.

Donations typically come pouring in after a natural disaster or some other devastating event moves consumers to give to those in need, the source notes. Yet many of these benefactors become one-time donors, and the Red Cross is working to figure out a way to make people long-term supporters.

The nonprofit has partnered with Wharton and data scientists from around the country to assess engagement and response rates, donation patterns and other metrics that could provide insight for more effective targeted advertising.

Eric Bradlow, Wharton marketing professor and co-director of the Wharton Customer Analytics Initiative, told Knowledge@Wharton that efficiency and donor conversion are vital to the nonprofit sector, since those groups are usually working with limited budgets. A secret could be in mining individual donor data for tips on how to distribute the message as far as possible and connect with the greatest number of potential donors.

Kurt Kendall, a leader in the Consumer Marketing Analytics Center at McKinsey, told the news outlet that companies have a vast number of consumer touchpoints to work with - social media, websites, mobile devices and more.

"The amount of data these channels create has expanded significantly, too. The technology has developed to combine all this data so that you have a 360-degree view of that customer," he said. "That includes not only when customers interact with you, but also when they interact with someone else." He added that if managed correctly, the data can be a "tremendous asset."

Kia, Coca-Cola Kick Off Super Bowl Advertising

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:00:00 +0000

The much-anticipated kickoff between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants is still a few days away, but that's not stopping the major brands from building up their own kind of hype with behemoth campaigns that pull out all the stops.

Kia was one of the companies to start drumming up buzz around its Sunday slot, distributing a 16-second teaser video online that features model Adriana Lima sporting a checkered flag, a pair of high heels … and not much else. On Thursday, the carmaker unveiled the full-length commercial, mixing gender stereotypes, humor and heavy metal as it promotes the Optima.

Media Bistro observes that the spot portrays "the kind of 'manly' everyman story that beer brands somehow continue to fail at telling with each new ad campaign."

Forbes notes that the automobile company is not alone in its early release of Super Bowl ads. Honda has also been airing its material in advance of the Big Game, H&M is trying to make its photos of a shirtless David Beckham go viral and Coca-Cola, Doritos and Priceline are working to whet consumers' appetites with teasers.

Social media marketing will also get some time away from the advertising bench, according to Forbes. The channel is facilitating video sharing, consumer feedback and YouTube distribution that comes at a much smaller price than the $3.5 million pricetag for 30 seconds of Super Bowl airtime: $0.00.

Marketers are redirecting their attention away from the big screen televisions in consumers' homes and at sports bars, focusing instead on the LCDs in their pockets, backpacks and handbags.

As The Associated Press reports, a major target for ad agencies this Super Bowl season has been the "second screen" - consumers' smartphones and tablets. Smartphone applications are one tactic. The AP notes that Coca-Cola has developed a website and corresponding Facebook page with animated polar bears that will respond in real time to what happens on the field at Indianpolis' Lucas Oil Stadium.

A Campaign, Divided, Cannot Stand

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 19:00:00 +0000

When a company is starting a marketing campaign, it may feel tempting to put every aspect of the advertising blitz in its own little box (or silo), keeping the traditional components completely separate from the digital marketing materials and tacking on social media as an afterthought.

However, that will do nothing for creating customer engagement, according to MarketingProfs contributor Ron Person. The secret to designing a campaign that truly resonates with your target audiences is cross-channel marketing, he says.

"Many marketing departments transformed their online marketing processes the same way: With each new online marketing technology, they added a new marketing manager, tactic, skill set and channel-specific metrics," Person explains. "That has created marketing departments with strategies, tactics and metrics that aren't aligned."

He lists some of the most common themes - brand development, customer connection, innovation and cost effectiveness.

In order to establish unity across marketing departments, it's necessary to "align your forces" by fostering collaboration between teams and planning out how each channel can strengthen and complement the others.

Condense integration to a single point, Person advises. A well-chosen platform will allow the campaign managers to coordinate every channel from a main point of command and gather the analytics of each branch's performance. The website can fulfill this roll, he says, if the company links "all online marketing conversions" - email, social, marketing automation and webinars - back to that space.

It's also a good idea to settle on a metric that can apply to every channel in the campaign. Measuring attraction (through page views or downloads) is a surface-level metric, and it doesn't provide any insight as to whether the campaign has impacted the consumer. Engagement measures communication - viewers interact with and respond to the content by offering their own information. Trust and commitment will build from there.