Archive for April, 2010

April 22nd, 2010

The Rise of the CMO, Where M = Mobility

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By Emily Nagle Green,
Author of Anywhere: How Global Connectivity is Revolutionizing the Way We Do Business

Here’s one of my favorite topics: 2010 is the year that mobility as a business issue rises to the boardroom. My logic goes like this:

1. The commercialization of the Internet first hit businesses as an external, largely superficial change, in which they essentially stapled websites to their existing operations.

2. But the subsequent maturation of Internet computing compelled those same businesses to pull the net throughout their activities, affecting supply chains, marketing and sales, manufacturing, and virtually every other function in the company.

3. The mobile revolution has begun similarly. Most major enterprises at this stage have now begun to create mobile experiences for their customers (although, as Carl Howe’s reports on mobile web experiences establish, at widely varying levels of quality).

4. The diffusion of the impact of mobility will be no different than that of the Internet. Thus, corporate board members should begin considering how strategically their enterprises’ leadership is thinking about mobility. How else will governance insure that the business is pushing the leverage of connectivity into every nook and cranny of its operations?

John Bruggeman, CMO of Cadence, takes the thinking a couple of steps further: “The first automation of business in the 20th century happened with the advent of mainframe computing. The central information systems function arose then. The re-automation of business, driven by desktop computing, pushed IT further out into the business and, organizationally, led to the rise of the CIO.

“What you’re talking about — the rise of mobility as a strategic issue for businesses — will mean that we’ll see the rise of a Chief Mobility Officer.”

Fascinating idea, and one that we here at Yankee Group will pursue in a research report over the next few months with Josh Holbrook taking the lead. But beware: John followed his prediction of the emergence a new type of corporate CMO with this one: “Sadly, many businesses who take this step will put a networking guy in the job. What they’ll need will be an imaginative business person, someone who’s able to look at all the activities of the business and re-think them completely.”


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Join Emily for an evening event in NYC where she’ll be discussing her book, on April 27, 2010.

© 2010 Emily Nagle Green, author of  Anywhere: How Global Connectivity is Revolutionizing the Way We Do Business; reprinted with permission.
Emily Nagle Green is president and CEO of Yankee Group, a leading firm in researching global connectivity change. Yankee Group supports businesses worldwide that use, operate, or help build networks with powerful ideas, forecasts, conferences, and strategy consulting. Green is also vice-chair of MITX, the largest association for digital marketing and media technology in the United States. She lives in Boston, Massachusetts.

For more information please visit http://anywhere.yankeegroup.com

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CategoryMobile Marketing | CommentNo Comments »

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April 19th, 2010

Can You Combine Human Senses and Social Media Like 5 Gum?

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By Ann Pruitt


For a wild, multi-sensory, social media marketing experience, 5 Gum seems to have pushed the envelope. Their 5 React Gum campaign has some really fascinating sides to it.

At The 60 Second Marketer, we received a small slick black box with a package of 5 Gum, a website to visit, a 10 digit code, and a pair of 3-D glasses. Fearing not the ridicule of my co-workers in the office, I donned said 3-D glasses and clicked on through to the 5REACT.com website while trying the new 5 Gum Fruit.

The website opens with a very industrial-gray view of a man standing in the middle of a concrete room. After clicking into the site, I was instructed to log into my Facebook account, and then click the keys of my keyboard to create various patterns on the screen on the 5 React website. 5 Gum describes their site like this:

5REACT.com is a groundbreaking digital experience that uses 3D animation to explore the two newest 5® gum flavors, REACT™ Mint and REACT™ Fruit. Just like the new REACT™ flavors that offer chewers a mixture of flavors in every stick, 5REACT.com is a personalized sensory experience that uses Facebook Connect technology to pull in users’ photos, news feeds and wall posts creating a unique digital journey to be shared with fans’ social networks.

In other words, the idea behind the 5 React Experience campaign is to enjoy chewing the gum, and then translate that taste and smell experience into a visual, 3-D one by creating patterns and sounds that reflect it. You then save the visual patterns and sounds for others to view on the 5 React site. This also posts a link to your Facebook page, which, of course, now spreads your recommendation of the gum to your social networks.

A very cool box

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We ventured out of our regular format at the 60 Second Marketer to ask 5 Gum a few questions about this unique campaign:
Who was your target market on this campaign, and how many received the piece?
The exclusive offer was available to the first 100,000 5® Gum Facebook fans that opted in to gain access to this personalized sensory experience through an invitation posted on 5 Gum’s Facebook wall.

Was the response good?
The response has been great.  Fans have logged on to get their free sample of the newest 5® gum flavors, REACT™ Mint and REACT™ Fruit, and have been sharing their experiences through 5REACT.com, Facebook, and Twitter.

Why did you choose to incorporate social media into your campaign?
Today’s smart, tech-savvy consumer is seeking innovative experiences that they can believe in and enjoy enough to pass-along and share with their social networks.

In addition, the Facebook Connect technology helps create the personalized experience by allowing fans to imports photos, wall posts and news feeds and then incorporates these unique elements into each sensorial experience on 5REACT.com.

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60 Second Marketer Summary

So what makes this campaign unusual, and so tantalizing?

1. It’s a fascinating combination of 5 senses: 5 Gum is, after all, just chewing gum. But they’ve made it all about the senses – the taste and smell and the feel of the slick box it comes in- and then transposed those human senses into sight and sound through the 3-D website experience. I’m just fascinated with this idea of crossing senses.

2. It’s just so darned human: Not only do they incorporate the human senses into the campaign, but also the human social network fabric, with Facebook, Twitter, and their own website (which, by the way, was streaming a live concert last weekend). It’s interesting to say, hey, social network, go check out my visual representation of what this gum tastes like.

3. It creates a “furrowed brow”: When we first received the box, I thought how nice it was to get some free gum to try. (After all, my kid loves 5 Gum, so I don’t get to try it too often because he doesn’t like to share it.) But once I looked over all the materials, my brow was furrowed with unanswered questions, such as, “What the heck are these 3-D glasses for? I thought this was gum.” It begged for exploration.

Are you incorporating any of these techniques into your campaigns? Let us know what you are doing and how you are doing it.

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Thanks to Melody Snellgrove,  hunterpr.com, for her input and the gum.

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CategoryFacebook, General Marketing, Social Marketing, Social Media | CommentNo Comments »

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April 16th, 2010

Create a Victorious Email Campaign

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From BKV Interactive

Email marketing campaigns is a power horse of marketing techniques. Cheap, fast, and relatively time-efficient, email campaigns reach just the right audience at just the right time. But they need to be managed to be victorious.

BKV Interactive has a new white paper. Click 10 Easy Ways to Improve the Effectiveness of Your Next Email Campaign to download the whole paper, and get a preview of two of our favorites below.

  1. Ensure that your email addresses are opted-in – This will save you a lot of trouble. Why?
  • This improve your numbers such as click-through and open rates.
  • It will also keep you from getting the false impression that you have built a sufficient email list.
  • You want to be communicating with customers who wanted to receive your communications. It is up to you, the email marketer, to improve that relationship from there.
  1. Automate from the beginning of your campaign – Daily chores will take up an increasing amount of your time as your email campaign grows. You want to be prepared for your campaign’s success and growth, so invest some money in your campaign up front by automating it. You will have more time to grow other parts of your business or test new ideas and products.

Have any other email campaign tips? Let us hear from you.

CategoryEmail marketing | Comment4 Comments »

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April 15th, 2010

Five Mistakes to Avoid in a DIY Publicity Campaign

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By Drew Gerber, creator of PitchRate.com

Avoid the traps!

Mistakes will naturally be made in a do-it-yourself publicity or marketing campaign. There are pitfalls that entrepreneurs need to avoid when embarking on a do-it-yourself publicity or marketing campaign. But if you know some of the common ones before you start, then you’re one step ahead in the game.

Here are five mistakes to avoid in a DIY publicity campaign:

1. Pitching Off Topic: This is common sense, or so it would seem, but you’d be surprised how frequently it occurs. You have to know ­ inside and out ­ what you are pitching and who you are pitching it to. Don’t pitch your “law of attraction” approach to business performance to a button-down, conservative business journalist.

2. Attachments: Don’t send them! Create an online press kit instead. By embedding the link to it in your emailed pitch, you’ll be making it easier for the journalist to stay organized, giving them more time to focus on you and your pitch.

3. Waiting: If, after reviewing your online press kit, the journalist contacts you, do not wait a week or even a day to respond. Get on it! They’re on a deadline and so are you. Your publicity success depends on a fast response.

4. Your Cell Phone: When it’s time for your interview, make sure you call in on a landline. A dropped call or a bad connection can lead to confusion, wasted time, or worse, for you and the person interviewing you. Good crisp connections are key in achieving the publicity results you desire.

5. Self-Promotion: Take a promotional break. When you’re being interviewed, remember that the interview is your promotion, so let it do its stuff. There’s no need to say, “In my book…” 15 times. Take a backseat to the interview’s power of promotion and enjoy the publicity results.

Remember, you have to sell yourself to the media. Every mistake you avoid will raise your value higher, allowing you to gain the media attention and the publicity results you deserve. If you can avoid the five basic mistakes mentioned above, you’ll be on the road to publicity success.

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About the Author: L. Drew Gerber is CEO of www.PublicityResults.com and creator of www.PitchRate.com, a free media tool that connects journalists and the highest rated experts. His companies handle international PR campaigns and his staff develops online press kits for authors, speakers and companies with Online PressKit 24/7, a technology he developed (www.PressKit247.com). Contact L. Drew Gerber at: AskDrew@PublicityResults.com or call him at 828-749-3182.
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CategoryPublic Relations | Comment2 Comments »

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April 14th, 2010

Don’t Throw Away Those Old Newspapers!

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By Harold Becker, Founder, Emerging Business Solutions

You heard me – “Don’t throw away those old newspapers”.

Newspapers are one of the oldest and trusted media types. We have confidence in their news, sports, business, weather, entertainment information and more.

But wait — if it’s in the paper then it’s “old” news, isn’t it?  The internet will carry the same story in real or close to real time, so who cares about old news?

But then if that’s the case, why do most cities with a population of over 30,000 print a daily paper?

The answer is simple – people who read the paper typically fit a demographic that is educated, takes time to enjoy the printed word, and doesn’t like to be rushed. They make informed decisions and are primarily 45+ years old.  They enjoy reading about their local community on a daily basis.  We find they are very loyal consumers who aren’t making the switch from conventional ink and paper to digital media quickly.

So, who buys ads in a newspaper? The static medium of a traditional newspaper lends itself well to creative advertisers who are looking to drive traffic to a specific event. Here’s what’s working for our clients:

1. Use large (full page) full color ads: These ads that describe the event clearly, provide relevant information, and the right offer can generate quite a crowd. Doesn’t that describe any media type?

For the past 2 years we’ve been using newspaper to help clients in the Gold, Coin and Jewelry buying business drive consumers to hotels, convention centers and businesses.  Our clients have purchased more than $50 million in merchandise during that time.

2. Negotiate: Like with anything, if you understand the medium and know how to negotiate prices for full page ads, many papers will discount prices by 60, 70 and even 80 percent below rate card.

3. Ask for More: Because newspapers are considered a dying media form and they’re trying to attract lost ad dollars, many are willing to throw in free ads, provide further frequency discounts, and even help with the creative work for free.

The more we buy newspaper, the more we’re convinced it’s a great medium for the right clients.

So, while you are optimizing your DRTV ad media, Twittering a friend, adding pages to your Facebook page or just surfing the web, consider newspaper ads to help drive traffic for clients.  It’s working for us.

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Harold Becker is founder of Emerging Business Solutions, a direct response marketing specialist.  Emerging Business Solutions provides direct response marketing consulting, management services and strategic guidance for local, regional and national clients.  Services include low cost yet efficient DRTV production, call center, fulfillment, customer service, manufacturing, merchant accounts, Integrated direct response web sites, all forms of media buying, analytics, optimization and more.

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CategoryAdvertising, Social Media | Comment4 Comments »

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April 13th, 2010

How to Launch a Mobile Marketing Campaign

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By Jamie Turner, Chief Content Officer, 60 Second Marketer

I’m doing a little research for a chapter in the book I’m writing with Dr. Reshma Shah about social media. I’m writing about mobile media which, in my opinion, is a social media tool. (There may be those who argue with that point-of-view, buy that’s my story and I’m sticking with it.)

Mobile Marketing Best Practices

Click here for more articles on mobile media (and other marketing tools).

In doing my research, I jotted down some notes. I thought I’d share them with you because a) they might be helpful, and b) perhaps you can make comments about my findings.

Special thanks go out to the Mobile Marketing Association and MarketingProfs, both of which have a ton of great research on this topic.

Here’s what I found:

How do people use Mobile Media? According to the Mobile Marketing Association, there are 12 different ways people use mobile media:

  • Click to call: Users place an outgoing call to the content provider or advertiser
  • Click to locate: Users find the closest business enabled by location-based services
  • Click to order brochure: Users receive marketing materials by supplying their postal addresses
  • Click to enter competition: Users enter text or sweepstakes to win prizes
  • Click to receive email: Users receive an email and a link to online site by supplying their email addresses
  • Click to receive mobile coupon: Users receive an electronic coupon on their mobile phone that can be redeemed immediately at a participating merchant
  • Click to buy: Users make a purchase paid for with a credit card, added to their monthly mobile bill or using some other form of mobile payment
  • Click to download content: Users download content, including logos, wallpapers or ring tones, onto their mobile phones
  • Click to enter branded Mobile web site: Users click a banner to get connected to standing or campaign-specific Mobile website
  • Click to forward content: Users forward relevant content to friends, creating a viral campaign effect
  • Click to video: Users click a banner to view an advertiser’s commercial for a product or service
  • Click to vote: Users reply message ballot or poll from their mobile phone and provide marketers and brands with valuable research insights

What are the primary mobile marketing tools? MarketingProfs broke them down into several different categories.

  • SMS (Short Message Service): Neilsen estimates that SMS is the most common phone-based activity among U.S. cell phone users of all ages. That said, in the 60 Second Marketer’s humble opinion, SMS is the equivalent of MobileMedia 1.0. I mean, really. When was the last time you actually participated in an SMS marketing message. About 2005?
  • Mobile Websites: The most sophisticated marketers have a sub-domain set up specifically for mobile phones. So, for example, when you type www.ESPN.com into your smart phone, the ESPN site actually figures out that you’re visiting the site from a mobile device and re-directs you to a sub-domain (e.g., www.m.ESPN.com). That way, your experience from a mobile phone is different from your experience at your computer. The trick here is to be sure you create a mobile site that a) loads quickly, and b) provides a streamlined experience.
  • Mobile Ads: Research from InsightExpress indicates that mobile ads perform about five times better than internet ad placements. The most common mobile ads are simple text links and graphical banner and display ads. Banner and display ads are sold on both a CPC and CPM basis. Remember, there are about 5,000 different types of mobile handsets available, so no one banner size is optimal for all.
  • Bluetooth Marketing: This is a form of on-demand mobile marketing that targets users based on precise geographical location. So, for example, if you’re standing in front of Joe’s Pizza, you might receive a free coupon, wallpaper, ringtone, video or audio file if you’re standing within 100 feet of their store. Many vendors allow companies to track responses in real time, too. All that sounds pretty cool to us.
  • Smartphone Apps: The primary smartphone platforms include iPhone, Andriod, Palm and Blackberry. The best way to use apps for marketing is to create something that’s either functional (e.g., a calculator), entertaining (e.g., a game) or provides some sort of social connectedness (e.g., an app just for your community). Apple keeps 30% of all revenues associated with selling downloads through iTunes, so keep that in mind during development. Android’s open source model is a little easier to implement, but is slightly more difficult to market and deliver. BlackBerry is becoming more competitive, especially with the launch of its App World store.

The Bottom Line:

There’s a marketing revolution going on and it revolves around media. For the next several years, technology will continue to provide new and fascinating media channels for brands to connect with customers and prospects.

Over time, the revolution will move away from new media channels and towards the creativity behind the message. In other words, as smartphone apps lose the “aha” factor, marketers will be pressed to find new and innovative ways to use these channels in an engaging fashion.

What are your thoughts about all this? Did we miss any important platforms? What about the whole “media revolution vs. creative revolution” thing at the end? What are your thoughts on that?

CategoryMobile Marketing | Comment9 Comments »

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April 13th, 2010

Don’t Miss MarketingProfs

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By Jamie Turner

There’s a terrific new report out from one of our favorite marketing blogs, MarketingProfs. For those of you who haven’t been to their site yet, you ought to take a look at the huge collection of marketing research, blogs, videos, seminars, and other resources available for marketing professionals.

One of their best sellers is The State of Social Media Marketing, “an original research report that gives you the inside scoop on how 5,140 marketing and business professionals are using social media to create winning campaigns, measure ROI, and reach audiences in new and exciting ways.”

Here are a few highlights from the report:

  • In their survey of over 5,000 marketers, nearly half reported their company maintains a corporate profile on one or more social networks. In order, they are Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
  • Most companies do not have a corporate policy regarding the usage of blogging or social media websites.
  • Only 15% of social media marketers have blogging, posting, or networking responsibilities included in their job descriptions, yet more than 50% use social media for work purposes.
  • The most used tactic among marketers using Twitter is to broadcast links in the hopes of driving traffic, yet the most successful use of Twitter for marketing is monitoring for real-time PR issues.

Be sure to visit MarketingProfs and see what other information you can find.

CategoryGeneral Marketing | CommentNo Comments »

April 13th, 2010

That Sounds Like a Good Deal: Consumers Associate Sounds with Value

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From ScienceDaily.com

Here’s an interesting article from ScienceDaily.com  (Jan. 21, 2010). Read the whole article here, or get the 60 second version below:

Consumers remember the sounds of numbers in prices and associate certain sounds with value, according to a new study in the Journal of Consumer Research.

Authors Keith S. Coulter (Clark University) and Robin A. Coulter (University of Connecticut) studied the ability of number-sounds to convey meaning and influence price perceptions.

Research has already demonstrated that a long English a, e, or i and sounds like f, s, or z convey smallness. Vowel sounds like “goose” or “foot” indicate largeness.

The authors write, “Consumers encode what a price looks like and sounds like along with a relative numeric value that the price represents (such as, “It is inexpensive”). Thus, sounds associated with the auditory representation can impact the numeric value associated with the analog representation — that is, small sounds can create the impression of big deals,” the authors write.

The authors found that number-sound effects were more likely to occur when a frame of reference (a regular price) was provided. And sometimes, the sounds of numbers created false impressions of value. For example, participants perceived a $10 item marked down to $7.66 to be a greater discount than a $10 item discounted to $7.22.

“Number sounds impact price magnitude perceptions only when consumers mentally rehearse a sale price, as they might do when comparing items on a shopping trip,” the authors write. “Further, mental rehearsal of the same sale prices vary from one language to another.”

Our 60 Second Marketer Conclusions:

1. Use sounds that include f, s, or z when you want to convey a good deal. Seventy-five or forty-four might work well.

2. Encourage consumers to compare your prices, forcing them to mentally retain your big deal.

CategoryMarketing Techniques | CommentNo Comments »

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April 12th, 2010

Mobile Marketing Devices: What You Need to Know for Your Future Success

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By Emily Nagle Green,
Author of Anywhere: How Global Connectivity is Revolutionizing the Way We Do Business

Editor’s Note: Is your company considering using mobile marketing? You should be. Here’s a 60 second look at the current situation in mobile marketing devices, so you can plan ahead with a clear vision of where the industry is headed.

I recently chatted with John Bruggeman, CMO of Cadence, the electronic design automation firm. Just back from Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, I was talking about the battles in the mobile revolution.

John says there are three significant battles still underway in that sector that have do-or-die stakes for the businesses in the actual battle:

1. The mobile operating system: There are three runners — Nokia, Google, and Microsoft – and the latter is making another run at it with a rethought Windows Mobile.

2. The mobile device platform: These include the usual handset suspects — Apple, and possibly some daring consumer electronics players.

3. The prevailing semiconductor architecture: He sees this boiled down to a question of whether high-performance Intel processors make inroads against the widely used low-power ARM architecture.

“Who’ll win that third battle?” I asked. The ARM platform has a massive lead in the mobile space, its core IP going into the processor for virtually every handset sold in the world. “Intel is smart, has loads of cash, and knows this is a long-term game,” said John. “Over the next 5 years, they will co-exist. Beyond that, these two worlds — low-power handsets and high-performance portable computing — bleed together.

“The devices following that time period won’t be about fast web page refreshes; they’ll be about transactions, making fast hits on cloud-based data. When that happens, our mobile devices will want both low power and performance.”

Given the time parameters involved, he doesn’t count out Intel’s push to take its desktop/laptop dominance into the smaller more diffused computing domain.

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© 2010 Emily Nagle Green, author of  Anywhere: How Global Connectivity is Revolutionizing the Way We Do Business; reprinted with permission.
Emily Nagle Green is president and CEO of Yankee Group, a leading firm in researching global connectivity change. Yankee Group supports businesses worldwide that use, operate, or help build networks with powerful ideas, forecasts, conferences, and strategy consulting. Green is also vice-chair of MITX, the largest association for digital marketing and media technology in the United States. She lives in Boston, Massachusetts.

For more information please visit http://anywhere.yankeegroup.com .

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CategoryMobile Marketing | Comment2 Comments »

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April 9th, 2010

Top 52 Social Media Platforms Every Marketer Should Know

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In my book, Go Mobile, written with Jeanne Hopkins from HubSpot, we point out that the vast majority of social media platforms can be accessed via mobile devices. That should come as no surprise since, by 2013, the number one way people will access the internet will be via their smart phones.

Whether you’re accessing your social media platform from a desktop or a smartphone, it’s important to be familiar with all of them. With that in mind, below is a list of the top 52 social media platforms. They’re broken into 3 categories — social media platforms that help you network (like LinkedIn, Facebook, etc.); social media platforms that help you promote (like YouTube, blogs, etc.); and social media platforms that help you share (like Digg, Delicious, etc.).

Ready? Here goes.

Social Media Platforms that help you Network:

Classmates: An easy, simple-to-use site that can help you track down former classmates. Great for high school and college reunions. Strengths: Simple, uncluttered user-interface. Ease-of-use. Weaknesses: Since it’s a site set-up to connect former classmates, it would be wise to be cautious about using it for business purposes.

Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg started Facebook out of his dorm room for his fellow students at Harvard. Today, toddlers to grandmothers can be found on Facebook. Strengths: Widely-adopted by large segments of the population. Weaknesses: Will the younger generation stay on Facebook once Grandma has “friended” them?

Google+: This is the new kid on the block, but poses a serious threat to Facebook and other platforms. Why? Because it’s just so darn easy to use — the clean, simple interface makes connecting with friends, family and business associates a piece of cake. Google+ was the fastest-growing social network in history and looks as though it’s here for the long-run. Strengths: Ease-of-use and uncluttered environment. Weaknesses: Competition from other well-established social media platforms.

Friendster: A way to stay connected with everything that’s important to you — hobbies, interests, causes, business, etc. Strengths: A simple web-interface makes this easy-to-use. Weaknesses: Not as widely adopted as some other platform-runs. Might have peaked.

hi5: This is a social networking platform that skews a little younger than LinkedIn. Members can play games, watch videos, flirt, give gifts or just hang out. Strengths: It’s a great alternative to MySpace and/or Facebook for the younger crowd. Weaknesses: It may not be the best social networking platform for business.

LinkedIn: This is the Grand Pooh Bah of them all. They’ve been around since 2003, which, in social media terms is also known as “since the beginning of time.” Strengths: Everybody’s on LinkedIn. Weaknesses: Most people have trouble knowing what to do with LinkedIn after they upload their business information.

MyLife: A clean, simple site that helps people connect with family, friends and other relationships. Over 750 million profiles. Strengths: The easy-to-use interface is one of the site’s great strengths. Perfect if you’re looking for an engaging, simple way to connect with old friends. Weaknesses: Not as widely adopted as some other sites.

Ning: This site connects groups of people who are passionate about particular interests, topics or hobbies. Co-Founded by Marc Andreessen, who helped launch Netscape. Strengths: Great for connecting with others who are interested in your area of expertise. Weaknesses: The user interface is so simple and uncluttered that getting started can be confusing. But once you’ve figured it out, it can be a good tool.

Plaxo: Currently hosts address books for more than 40 million people. Helps people stay in touch with “Pulse,” which is a dashboard that lets you see what the people you know are sharing all over the web. Strengths: Graphical user interface makes it easy-to-use. Weaknesses: It’s not as widely-adopted as some other platforms such as LinkedIn.

Twitter: A surprisingly-successful tool that is widely-adopted and used for everything from business to fun and games. Strengths: Used by large segments of the population. Weaknesses: Can be a distraction, especially if you have Attention Deficit Disor … wow, look at that bird outside my window!

XING: XING has more than 8 million subscribers worldwide. It has over 34,000 specialized groups and over 150,000 live networking events each year. Strengths: XING adds new developments to their platform on a regular basis. Weaknesses: Not as widely-adopted as some other platforms such as LinkedIn.

Social Media Platforms that help you Promote:

Bing: Bing, Google and Yahoo aren’t technically social media platforms, but they are tools that can be used to promote your product or service, so we’re including all three in this overview. The technique for using any search engine to promote your product or service is the same so you’ll want to optimize your website so that the search engines see it. By doing so, you’ll drive traffic to your website from the people doing searches on specific topics. Strengths: Bing uses “intelligent search” to make searches even more relevant for the user. Weaknesses: It’s fighting against Google, which is a tough battle.

Blogging Platforms: These are tools that are used to create blogs. Some of them, like Blogger, Tumblr, Vox or Xanga are straightforward platforms that are great for people who want to do a simple blog about their vacation, their company or their family reunion. If you’re ready to create a more robust blog that adds a lot of SEO value for your website, you’ll want to use Joomla, Drupal, Typepad or WordPress. These are the blogging platforms used by serious bloggers.

Discussion Boards and Forums: Are you interested in creating an online forum where members of your community can engage with each other and offer each other advice? Then a discussion board or forum is for you. The best-known platforms for forums include Lefora, Zoho, Drupal, PhpBB, Simple Machines, Vanila, JavaBB and vBulletin. Strengths: Forums are a great way to build a relationship with customers and prospects. Weaknesses: They require regular, ongoing time and energy to keep them running properly.

Google: Google is technically not a social media platform, but can be used as a social tool to drive visits to your well-optimized website. Strengths: Ease-of-use and pervasiveness. Weaknesses: Are they spreading their brand across too many channels? Does this confuse people? (Answer: Probably not, but we’re struggling to come up with any weakness for Google. They’re just so darn nice, it’s hard to figure out what they’re not good at. They’re even good at not being evil, you know?)

Email Marketing Platforms: Email can often get overlooked in the world of social media, but if you define social media as tools that help you have a dialogue with your customers and prospects, then email falls into the social media category. Popular email marketing tools include AWeber (affiliate link), Constant Contact, iContact, ExactTarget and others. Strengths: Email is a highly measurable way to connect with customers and prospects. Weaknesses: Email marketing requires a concerted, ongoing effort if you’re going to do it right.

Flickr: This is a photo-sharing site that can be used to build awareness and drive traffic to your product pages. If you’re selling hunting rifles or tennis rackets or widgets, you’ll want to use Flickr to a) build awareness for your product and b) drive people from Flickr to your website. Strengths: Flickr is easy-to-use and has a clean user-interface. Weaknesses: Photo-sharing sites are important, but they’re not the very first thing you’ll want to work on in your social media campaign.

Howcast: Wouldn’t it be cool if there was a website where you could watch “How To” videos on the topic of your choice? Well, there is and it’s called Howcast. It’s an extremely worthy-competitor to YouTube. Strengths: A great place to upload high-quality content. Weaknesses: The default is still YouTube. Most people are conditioned to automatically type “YouTube” into their browser.

iLike: If you’re a musician, you’ll want to upload your work to iLike. It’s the dominant music application on Facebook, Orkut and hi5. Strengths: Over 50 million music lovers use iLike via Facebook, Orkut, iGoogle and other platforms. Weaknesses: iLike is a crowded venue, which makes it difficult for musicians to break through.

iTunes: This is not the only podcasting site, but it’s the best-known and most popular. If you’re doing interviews with industry experts or if you’re creating mini-radio shows, iTunes is the place to be. Strengths: It’s a well-known, well-respected platform. Weaknesses: If you don’t create scintillating content, people won’t come back for more.

MySpace: Ahhhhh, MySpace. They arguably started this whole social media thing to begin with. Today, MySpace is primarily used as a congregation point for younger people interested in pop culture. They’re evolving and seem to be finding a niche. Strengths: A well-known social media platform that most everybody has visited at one time or another. Weaknesses: They’re not the ubiquitous social media platform they once were.

More and more people are accessing their social media platforms via smartphone. To learn how to dive into mobile marketing quickly and easily, check out my book, "Go Mobile."

Picasa: This is a photo organizing, editing and sharing site that’s owned by Google. You can tag photos to enable quick searches by users. Strengths: As with most Google services, Picasa is easy-to-use and loads very quickly. Weaknesses: Photo sharing is important, but it’s not the very first thing you’d want to work on in your social media campaign.

Vimeo: Think of Vimeo as a high-end YouTube. It’s perfect for people interested in sharing their videos with a community of positive, encouraging creative professionals. Strengths: You gotta love a site that oozes upbeat, optimistic, life-affirming energy that Vimeo does. Weaknesses: It’s not a default site the way YouTube is, but that may change in the near future.

Yahoo: Like Google and Bing, this is not technically a social media platform. But it is a tool that ultimately can drive traffic to your website. Be sure to optimize your website so that search engines like Yahoo can see it. Strengths: Yahoo is one of the work horses of the search engine world, so it’s always a good idea to keep it on your radar screen. Weaknesses: Is Yahoo a search engine? An online portal? A web magazine? Perhaps it’s all of these things. And perhaps that’s not a weakness after all.

YouTube: Of course, YouTube is one of the better-known platforms used to promote businesses. The key to YouTube is to keep the videos short and sweet. Make sure they solve the “what’s in it for me” equation. YouTube is perfect for “How To” videos, but it’s not a good place to upload the CEOs annual speech to shareholders. Strengths: YouTube is ubiquitous. Weaknesses: It’s a cluttered environment that can sometimes have some pretty racy videos on it. (Or so we’ve heard.)

Social Media Platforms that help you Share:

Buffer: This social media management tool allows you to schedule Tweets and Facebook updates quickly and easily from your web browser. It’s perfect for people not interested in using TweetDeck or HootSuite. Just sign up, install on your browser and the next time you’re at a web page you want to share, hit the Buffer button and schedule it for sometime in the future. Strengths: An easy way to schedule updates on Twitter and Facebook. Weaknesses: Other platforms offer the same functionality.

Crowdstorm: If you want to get the inside scoop on digital cameras, DVD players, televisions or other products, Crowdstorm is for you. The Crowdstorm community is built around the idea that when people share information about products, everybody benefits. Strengths: An easy-to-use website that leverages the power of ratings and reviews for the benefit of users. Weaknesses: Since the site crowdsources reviews, it’s not necessarily an effective tool for marketers. But it’s always good to check with sites like these to see how your product is being perceived in the marketplace.

Delicious: This is a social bookmarking service owned by Yahoo. When someone tags your article, video or blog post with a Delicious bookmark, it’s the equivalent of a “vote.” The more votes you get, the more visibility your content has on the Delicious website. Strengths: It’s everywhere. Weaknesses: You have to have a lot of traffic and a lot of votes to show up on the radar screen.

Digg: Similar to Delicious in that people vote for articles, videos and blog posts they like. If your content receives enough Diggs, it’s promoted to the front page for millions of visitors to see. Strengths: Like Delicious, Digg is everywhere. Weaknesses: You have to have a lot of traffic and a lot of votes to show up on the radar screen.

Feedback: This is a social media platform that allows people to provide feedback to companies as diverse as Starbucks and Chipotle. Members of the Feedback community can read reviews and make additional comments. Strengths: An innovative use of “crowd-sourcing” for information. Weaknesses: Since the site crowdsources reviews, it’s not necessarily an effective tool for marketers. But it’s always good to check with sites like these to see how your product is being perceived in the marketplace.

HootSuite: This is a tool that allows you to manage multiple social media channels through one dashboard. If you have a company with more than one contributor to your social media program, HootSuite is a good solution. Strengths: A very easy-to-use interface. Simple set-up, yet still powerful. Weaknesses: If your social media program is no more extensive than updating a Twitter account, then HootSuite would be over-kill.

Instagram: A surprisingly fun photography app that’s sweeping the globe. Install Instagram on your smartphone and, next time you take a photo, use it to enhance, stylize and share the photo with others in your network. Strengths: A fun, easy-to-use app. Weaknesses: Other apps provide a similar experience.

MarketMeSuite: This is a social media dashboard that’s similar to HootSuite and TweetDeck. It’s perfect for people who are interested in drilling down a little deeper than either HootSuite or TweetDeck allow you to do. You wouldn’t want to use MarketMeSuite in addition to the others, but instead of. If you need a more in-depth experience, MarketMeSuite may be just what you need.

Path: A location-based social sharing app that allows you to share photos, memories, music, thoughts and other moments with friends in your social media circle. Strengths: A fun way to share your life journey with friends. Weaknesses: Heavy competition from intrenched competitors like Facebook, Google+ and others.

Pinterest: We live in a visual world and Pinterest leverages that. Tired of reading long blog posts (like this one) but still enjoy skimming through images that are worth 1,000 words? If so, then Pinterest is for you. Just visit the site, sign up and start sharing images by re-pinning them to your profile. Strengths: A visually-appealing way to share information with followers. Weaknesses: Competition from a wide variety of other social media platforms.

Quora: This is the perfect place to go if you’re interested in asking a question that requires an expert answer. Just type in a question you have about any topic and Quora will provide answers from other users. Quora is frequented by smart, well-educated users, so the answers tend to be very helpful and well-thought-out. Strengths: A simple, easy-to-use platform. Weaknesses: A simple Google search can sometimes offer the same quality of answers.

Reddit: Similar to Digg and Delicious. Reddit is a source for what’s new and popular on the web. Users can vote articles up or down on the site, so readers can check out the hot, trending topics from blogs, newspapers and other sources around the globe. Strengths: Like Digg and Delicious, Reddit is everywhere. Weaknesses: You have to have a lot of traffic and a lot of votes to show up on the radar screen.

Scribd: This is the largest social publishing and reading site in the world. You simply upload your speech, ebook or PowerPoint presentation to the site so that others can be awed by your wisdom and expertise. Strengths: A great way to potentially get your content in front of thousands of readers. Weaknesses: There are a lot of other people competing for the same eyeballs.

SlideShare: One of the better-known places to upload your content for sharing with others. Take your PowerPoint, your ebook, your Podcast or just about any other content and share it with the SlideShare community.  Strengths: Like Scribd, SlideShare is a great way to get in front of a large number of visitors. Weaknesses: There are a lot of other people competing for the same eyeballs.

StumbleUpon: Very similar to Digg, Delicious and Reddit. When you rate a website that you like using StumbleUpon, it’s automatically shared with like-minded people. And it helps you find great sites your friends recommend. Strengths: StumbleUpon helps spread your content to people not regularly exposed to your products and/or services. Weaknesses: Competes with several other well-established tools, like Digg, Delicious and Reddit.

TweetDeck: Like HootSuite, TweetDeck provides a way to track many of your social media channels on one dashboard. It can be a time-saver and a productivity-enhancer, assuming you’re not easily distracted. Strengths: It’s very easy to set-up and get started. Weaknesses: Like all dashboard tools, it can lead to distractions for employees who are easily … Whoa! Is that a fly on the ceiling or just a speck of dust?

Wikipedia: It still amazes us that this user-generated encyclopedia is run by just a few dozen employees (along with hundreds of thousands of contributors around the globe). It’s a great tool for legitimate entries. Don’t try to game the system by adding overly-promotional posts. But if your entry will be helpful to the Wikipedia community at large, have at it. Strengths: It’s a great tool for uploading legitimate, helpful content about your product, service or company. Weaknesses: If your target market is over the age of 40, they might struggle with Wikipedia’s miniscule type.

Yelp: This platform offers user-generated reviews on cool places to eat, shop, drink, relax and play. Yelp has an augmented reality Smart Phone application that makes using it on the run a blast. Strengths: User-generated reviews are a great way for customers and prospects to find out about your business. Weaknesses: Some people try to game the system with faux reviews, but Yelp does a pretty good job of keeping those faux reviews at bay.

Again, the list we’ve created  is for our book, How to Make Money with Social Media, which is available just about everywhere. It’s not intended to be exhaustive, but it is intended to be helpful. So, given that, let us know your feedback.

Do we accurately describe the platforms? Are there any important platforms that we’re missing? Are there any that should be deleted from the list?

Do tell.

Thanks!


Posted by Jamie Turner, Founder of the 60 Second Marketer and co-author of “How to Make Money with Social Media” and “Go Mobile.” He is also a popular marketing speaker at events, trade shows and corporations around the globe.

CategorySocial Media | Comment66 Comments »

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April 9th, 2010

Don’t Let Marketing Fall Victim to the Economy!

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by Ann Pruitt

We keep hearing that the economy is turning around. We keep struggling, however. One way we can fight back: Don’t let your potential clients slip through your fingers.

Our friends at The Sales Lead Management Association have a blog all about managing your sales leads. Here’s an excerpt from a recent post, or read the whole post here.

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We are going through some very tough economic times, but not everyone is a victim. Many elements of the economy are still thriving.

Unfortunately, individuals and companies feel that, with all of the negatives of the economy, this is not the time to spend money on marketing and sales. Actually, business analysts will tell you that at times like this it is imperative to invest in aggressive marketing, and fine-tune the sales process to find out what programs are working and which ones aren’t. This is when you must have a system in place to make sure you get the best bang for your buck.

From 1979 to 2009 several figures remain constants in business annals:

  • More than 50% of qualified leads are never worked by sales
  • Less than 50% of a salesperson’s time is spent selling
  • 80% of trade show leads are never followed up

You need tools that will ensure:

  • Your valuable sales leads do not fall through the cracks
  • Inquiries are quickly routed to the correct sales person for quick action
  • Marketing investments are analyzed to optimize budgets
  • The entire organization is linked to the sales pipeline

This is not the time to sit back and wait for things to improve. Take control, and implement a sales lead management solution to make sure your precious sales leads are not falling through the cracks.

You can’t blame the economy if:

  • Your reps spend the majority of their time in non-sales activities
  • More than half of your costly qualified leads are never worked by sales
  • 80% of your trade show leads are never followed up.

Take action, now.  Don’t be a victim.

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The Sales Lead Management Association has the mission of helping companies become more successful in the critical business process of managing sales leads. Register for free to gain access to the extensive library of articles, reports, and  information about inquiry management, sales leads, lead nurturing, lead qualification, ROI reporting, and lead distribution.

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CategoryGeneral Marketing, Marketing Best Practices | Comment1 Comment »

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April 8th, 2010

Using Digital Marketing to Promote Loyalty Programs

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From the CMO Council

A study by The Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council surveyed over 600 marketers  to see how they promote their businesses through loyalty and rewards programs. Here is a summary of some of the results:

Digital marketing channels are definitely taking precedence in ways marketers promote their loyalty and rewards programs.

  • Nearly 60 percent rely on web sites
  • nearly 60 percent on email
  • 47 percent on word-of-mouth
  • 46 percent on point-of-sale information
  • 42 percent on direct mail
  • 39 percent on a sales or service representative.

Most member communication is monthly (30 percent), while 20 percent interact with members on a daily, weekly or bi-weekly basis.

The preferred mechanism for member communication is:

  • email is among 84 percent of marketers,
  • printed mailings and statements (51 percent)
  • corporate web sites (45 percent)
  • dedicated club sites (32 percent)
  • SMS text messaging (24 percent)
  • and social networks (16 percent)

“Targeting has taken on a very different meaning in today’s marketing mix,” stated Sandra Zoratti, VP of Global Solutions Marketing for InfoPrint Solutions Company. “Before, targeted messages relied on basic data to engage in rudimentary segmentation and single channel communication delivery. Today’s loyalty leaders are better leveraging customer insights to deliver highly personalized, multi-channel communications that are more relevant to the individual customer and provide for ongoing interaction and attachment.”

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The Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council is dedicated to high-level knowledge exchange, thought leadership and personal relationship building among senior corporate marketing leaders and brand decision-makers across a wide-range of global industries. The Leaders in Loyalty: Feeling the Love from the Loyalty Clubs is the latest research from the CMO Council, tapping into the insights of over 600 marketers, and gaining first hand perspective from the recipients of these programs in an audit of over 700 consumers. Visit www.cmocouncil.org and www.infoprint.com for more information.

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CategoryConsumer Behavior, Social Media | CommentNo Comments »

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April 7th, 2010

The New Way to Use News Releases and Announcements to Promote Your Business

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by Mark Shapiro, SRS Tech PR
Press releases are no longer just for the press. They are for SEO, for customers, for the world….

Press releases and news announcements serve many different functions in addition to being source material for journalists to write about. Yes, it is good to have BIG news that will motivate a writer, editor or journalist to write about your company, product or service, but that is no longer the only reason to create a press release. You don’t need big news, just a good hook.

Whether or not you use a Public Relations Agency or do it yourself, here are three good reasons why you should try to write and distribute a press release every month.

1. Good SEO (Search Engine Optimization) - One of the most important components to getting top Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc., search page results – appearing high up or number one when someone searches for your product or services – is the number of external web sites that link to your web site.

Post on External Sites. Your news release appearing on an online or industry news site, at a social networking site, on a newswire such as BusinessWire or PR NewsWire, or even at a directory of press releases, helps improve your site’s overall SEO. Many other sites and blogs may pick up that release and print it on their pages as well, further increasing the Search Engine results for your web site and business.

Post Often. You need to post new releases on a regular (monthly) basis. As most major news sites only keep their press releases online for about a month or so, you need to keep posting new press releases and news announcements every month to maintain your SEO rating and web page search results positions.

Post on Your Own Site. You should also make sure your press release gets posted on your own web site. You will be amazed by how many businesses neglect this obvious step. This will increase the amount and quality of content on your site. Most search engines heavily weigh the amount of quality links pointing to your web site and the amount of quality content you have on your site. News announcements can fulfill both.

2. Good Marketing. Your news announcements and press releases can inform potential customers about your company, its products, services and areas of expertise. No longer targeted to just the press and media, good press releases and news releases also function as marketing documents for your organization.

Most people and businesses now rely on a web search as an integral part of their search for products and services. Seeing your news announcements all over the web – at the magazines they read, at various blogs, and as a result of web searches, can greatly help boost your company’s brand and product awareness in their mind. It is also useful to have news announcements that inform current and past customers of what is new and that you are still successfully in business.

3. Good Contacts. Press may be interested in your “small” news and may want to include it as a standalone announcement or as part of a trend article or column for an industry overview or product round up. Also, it is also useful to inform the press that you are an expert in your industry area and are available for comment as needed. If they don’t see press releases from you or your company on a regular basis, you will drop off their radar screen. You need to show ongoing, consistent news and growth or the press will forget about you.

Press releases don’t have to be big news. Small news is fine. A new hire, updated web site, and upgrade to your software, new partnership, maybe speaking at a conference or industry event – any of these will serve as press releases that will improve your SEO, your marketing, and your contacts within the press.

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Mark Shapiro is a public relations expert with  SRS Tech PR, which has over 17 years of experience in high tech media relations and public relations. They know how to get big results with tight budgets. ”Media Relations for the Connected World.” mshapiro@srs-techpr.com,  1 619 249 7742.

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CategoryPublic Relations, SEO | Comment1 Comment »

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April 5th, 2010

Customer Service Is Key Strategy

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By Joseph Jaffe, author of Flip the Funnel

Forget about advertising, forget about new media, forget about social media. The real action is going to be in customer service.

Customer service? You mean those exotic sounding people in our outsourced call center in India? Or the FAQ’s buried somewhere deep on our Web site? Or the automated voice-prompted instructions on our telephone? Surely you jest?

Actually, I’m dead serious.

My belief is that “customer service” (or “servicing customers” — it’s the same thing) is the new marketing, the new PR, even the new crisis communication. During increasingly confusing, cluttered and complex times, what is it that really separates — or differentiates — one company, product, service or brand from another?

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1. Have Conversations: Until recently, I might have told you to “join the conversation” and instead of expecting your consumers to fit into your brand’s space, flip that on its head and attempt to find context, relevance and purpose by fitting into theirs. Today, I need to evolve that call to action to be a little more focused and relevant. With whom should we be having these conversations? The answer is obvious: your customers.

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2. Know Thy Customers: Customers are our lifeblood. They’re the reason why we’re in business at all. In fact, it is almost solely because of them that we have these fancy marketing budgets in the first place. Why then do we neglect them directly (apathy, indifference, lack of respect, non-response) or indirectly (relatively overspending on “perfect strangers,” aka acquisition)?

Do you even know what percentage of your revenue comes from returning customers versus first-time ones? And if you are aware of this number, what are you spending on — or perhaps I should say investing in — them? Or is there a gaping chasm that lies in between?

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3. Invest In Your Customers: What would happen if you changed it all up? What would happen if you flipped it all on its head and invested in your customers commensurately with their investment in you? Perhaps then, instead of a funnel that keeps on getting smaller and smaller, you’d end up with one that only expands over time — expanding your customer base, word-of-mouth platform and revenues in the process.

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4. Elevate Your Customer Service Role: It all begins with the elevation of customer service from an outsourced “department” to a key — if not the key — component of the marketing pecking order, a critical part of the strategic planning process, perhaps even at the head of the table.

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But don’t take my word for it. Just asked Zappos, USAA, Best Buy, Method, Virgin America, Kayak, Umpqua Bank and the list goes on.

Thank you. Come again.

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Published in whole at Adweek, reprinted with permission.

Joseph Jaffe is the author of FLIP THE FUNNEL: How to Use Your Current Customers to Gain New Ones. He is also Chief Interrupter of Powered, a full-service social media agency that plans, builds and activates measurable and enduring experiences between brands, their customers and their online communities. Jaffe blogs and podcasts at “Jaffe Juice” (www.jaffejuice.com) and has his own video show called “Jaffe Juice TV” (www.youtube.com/jaffejuice).  Visit www.flipthefunnelnow.com to join the conversation.

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Categorycustomer service | CommentNo Comments »

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