Understanding the Digital Uniform

Brand Marketing Magic: Examples of Integrating online and offline experience

Do you ever wonder what Facebook would be like if you experienced it offline?  Wonder no longer.

I'm really getting excited about where marketing is heading.  I have started to see some really great marketing experiences recently that are breaking down the barriers imposed by multiple marketing channels by seamlessly integrating online and offline experience for customers.  The two best examples involve integrating Facebook social experiences into real world settings for an effect that can only be described as "Marketing Magic".

The first example was sent to me by a friend and top brand marketer, Rob Sorgini and recently included in a blog post from experiential marketing thought leader Max Lenderman.  It comes from an agency in Isreal called ProMarket.  They setup an experience for Coca-Cola that integrated the Facebook "Like" concept into activities, food choices and other offline activities in Coca Cola Village with a real-time integration through RFID wrist bands to actual facebook accounts online.  See the powerful video embedded below.

The second example is a concept from DDB Paris.  They promoted the launch of Bouygues Telecom's Facebook presence by creating 1,000 physical books made from people's own Facebook pages.  This is a brilliant idea and I could actually see it being a successful independent business.  The marketing value of this integration is huge and it really delivers a powerful cross-channel experience.  See the video below.

When Facebook becomes a book from Siavosh Zabeti on Vimeo.

 

What do these campaigns deliver for the brands involved?

- Strong brand equity

- Tons of "earned" media online

- Customer Loyalty and Affinity

 

Why does it work?

There are unique opportunities now to create multi-channel experiences for consumers.  Because we have been conditioned to believe that marketing and by extention our experience with brands are restricted to individual media channels, the effect of creating an experience that crosses over those channels works similar to an magician's optical illusions.

We sit and watch magicians like David Blaine and rack our brains to understand how he can make cards appear in beer bottles or on the other side of the glass.  Our brains are conditioned to think in a particular way and despite our best efforts, we are not able to understand the illusion as anything other than "magic".  This has a similar effect in marketing.  We are so conditioned to expect a disjointed brand experience that when we move from our online facebook account to an offline interaction we almost don't believe it is possible to merge the experience.  When done successfully, brands can generate excitement and loyalty that would take years to cultivate using traditional strategies and at a fraction of the cost.

 

What is the bottom line?

Be creative, take chances and try to create better experiences for your customers.  It is more cost-effective than ever to test new ideas.  Don't be affraid to try something new, the rules of marketing are changing and you might get left behind.

Congrats to ProMarket and DDB Paris for creating inspiring campaigns that are pushing brands to think differently about marketing.

 

Do you have any other examples of great customer experience in marketing?  Feel free to add a comment or let me know your thoughts.

Wal-Mart CrowdSaver Social Networking Strategy: More than Meets the Eye?

 

 

Earlier this week, Wal-Mart released a new social networking strategy called CrowdSaver.  Similar to the social buying / group coupon concept recently popularized by super start-up Groupon, Wal-Mart is using social networking as a way to help consumers save money.  The basic premise is that Wal-Mart posts certain deals on their Facebook page.  Consumers are then prompted to "Like" the deal in Facebook and, if a certain number of "likes" are acheived, then this deal will be unlocked and available on online.

This sounds like a no-brainer for Wal-Mart, but there might even be more benefits to this strategy than you might initially think.  Let's quickly break down why it works and review of the obvious and less obvious benefits.

 

 

 

Why it works...

There is actually a strategy - This might sound basic and almost insulting to some, but the main reason why this will work is that there is a solid strategy behind this social networking program.  Too many times, I see brands rush into creating Facebook pages, Twitter accounts, YouTube channels and mobile apps without a sound strategy, ultimately driving little to no results.  Let's be honest, Wal-Mart is copying the strategy of proven smaller players like Groupon for this campaign, but regardless of orginality, the strategy is sound and well thought-out prior to launching this campaign.

Psychology of social sharing - Seth Godin wrote a great blog post earlier this week entitled "I spread your idea because...", where he describes 20 reasons why people are compelled to spread ideas online.  One of the reasons he notes is "because both my friend and I will benefit if I share the idea (Groupon)."  That is the brilliance of the model, it is a win-win-win model.  You win as a consumer because you get the deal, your friends win because they also get the deal and Wal-Mart wins because they get the volume of guarenteed purchases and the increased brand awareness and engagement.

"While Supplies Last" - This is one major difference between Groupon and Wal-Mart.  Liking a deal, does NOT guarentee that you will get the deal.  It only helps to unlock the deal.  This allows Wal-Mart to fix the inventory level for any deal.  The value here to Wal-Mart is in minimizing any risk of these promotions.  If inventory is fixed and the deal is only available online in a centralized and controlled e-commerce environment, the risk profile for this type of initiative is significantly reduced.

 

What are the obvious benefits...

Ability to clear out old inventory - This is a great vehicle for Wal-Mart to clear out invetory last-minute with little work or expense.

Strong brand builder - Wal-Mart is already a global giant and well-known brand, but these types of campaigns help to reinforce the core value proposition to consumers, which is that Wal-Mart gives you more for less.

More Fans on Facebook - In order to "like" the deal, you first have to "like" Wal-Mart.  This allows Wal-Mart to quickly build a strong community on Facebook, which can be leveraged in any number of ways in the future.  As of the time of this post, Wal-Mart already had almost 2 million likes on their Facebook page.

 

What are the less-obvious benefits...

Stronger connection to active Facebook users - Facebook has over 500 million active users (users that have visited Facebook in the last 30 days).  If Wal-Mart can get Facebook users to habitually check the CrowdSaver page when they log-in, that is a huge un-tapped market for them.

Lower advertising costs - Social networking strategies like CrowdSaver help to reduce traditional advertising costs by instead harvesting the power of social sharing.  This has a double positive effect for Wal-Mart.  One, they can get value for their advertising dollars and two, they can use some of the savings to offer better deals to consumers (which has a compounding effect on number 1).

Better Customer Intelligence - Potentially the largest benefit of this program is the customer intelligence gained from running these campaigns.  Wal-Mart can start to understand valuable information on the type of consumers attracted to various deals, the key pricing strategies to drive viral adoption and the best inventory to drive volume of purchase.

Consumer loyalty and engagement - using Facebook connect, Wal-Mart has the ability to integrate the experience across brand-controlled and Facebook-controlled web pages in order to better understand and target the key segements of their community.  This will only expand as consumers take more control over their profile and preferences, driving up the demand for more relevant and targeted communications and offers.

 

Conclusion...

There are great opportunities for brands to use social networking strategies to really drive brand awareness, engagement, loyalty and increased purchase behaviour.  However, it is important to stay focused on the consumer when developing these strategies - ie. what drives them to take action, what are they looking for, why would they spread your idea.  Too often, we get wrapped up in the technology or the new online destination and we forgot that it is the same consumer on the other end.

 

I'd love to hear your thoughts.... is Wal-Mart on the right track or is this just another case of benefiting from the smart idea of others (in this case Groupon)?

Is this finally the year of mobile? Google and Apple think so

Do you think 2010 is finally the year of mobile?

There has been much hype and speculation over the potential for mobile advertising to break out in recent years.  Analysts have been predicting "the year of mobile" since at least 2007, yet despite consistent growth in mobile messaging, smart phone device sales and mobile app downloads we have not seen mobile advertising take off.  However, there is reason to believe that 2010 might be different.  Here are a couple of reasons why:

1. The big guys are taking their positions:  It appears as though the two big players in mobile are going to be Google and Apple.  Both companies have made strategic acquisitions in Q4 2009 to position arm themselves for a mobile advertising battle in 2010.  Google acquired mobile advertising firm Ad Mob for $750 million and Apple replied by acquiring Quattro Wireless $275 million.  It is also interesting to note that Apple was also rumored to have made a bid for Ad Mob and that Google reportedly paid approximately 17 times Ad Mob's revenues to complete the transaction. Google is also in the process of testing its own smart phone that they will sell directly to consumers to compete with Apple's iphone in 2010.  Yahoo! and Microsoft have also bolstered their mobile offerings in anticipation of a big 2010.

2. Social Networks driving mobile web into mainstream: comScore reports that social networks have seen a 196.7% year-over-year growth in mobile internet usage.  Mobile users spend approximately 24 minutes on Facebook and average 3.3 visits per day, which is now equal if not better than PC users who spend 27.5 mnutes per day and average 2.3 visits.  Mobile application downloads surpassed 3 billion in 2009 and it is expected to continue to grow rapidly in 2010 as smart phone penetration increases.

3. Text Messaging (SMS) surpasses 50% of users: In 2009 comScore reports that over 131.9 million users sent a text message to another phone, which represents 57.3% of total mobile phone users (a year-over-year growth of over 25%).  This is a major inflection point, as it surpasses 50% of users for the first time.  Text messaging services also saw a big jump in 2009 with over 32 million people receiving news or info via SMS, which represents 14.1% of users (a remarkable 114.9% year-over-year increase).

The exciting part is that smart phone, such as the iphone, blackberry and android phones still only account for 12% of the market.  As we see that number increase over the coming years, we will see rapid growth in mobile advertising, mobile application downloads and mobile web usage.

A few things to look out for in 2010:

Local: Look for more apps and mobile web experiences that focus on local markets and include local advertising.

Location-based: Location-based services and apps really took off in 2009.  look for that trend to continue in 2010 as apps incorporate more GPS-driven features.

Integrated: Look out for more integrated experiences, with mobile being used as a bridge media between offline and PC online experiences.  As an example: mobile coupons, SMS alerts and location-based mobile driving consumers in-store or to events.

Are you investing in mobile advertising or marketing in 2010?  Do you think 2010 will be the year of mobile?

Social has changed the rules for retail: consumer groups will rule in 2010

I'm planning on dedicating more time to this topic in the coming weeks, but I thought I would put up a quick post to discuss a major change going on in retail.  Social media has made it very easy for people to congregate and form groups of interest (or as Seth Godin would say "tribes").  Currently, those groups are focused more on communication, digital media sharing and product reviews.  However, there is a logical next step that is going to change the face of retail, consumer group buying, and recently that movement took a BIG step forward.

Groupon, a high-profile start-up from Chicago, just closed a $30 million round from Accel Partners is now valued at close to $300 million.  The company is working with local businesses to provide deep discounts for groups of consumers.  The way the web site works, is that you get a deal of the day for the city you live in.  The deal of the day will be a significant discount on a product or service (ie. a $100 product for $50).  You then have the ability to visit the site and sign up for the deal.  However, the deal only goes through if you get the minimum number of people to participate.  This volume guarantee ensures that the local business can offer the discount promoted.  This is where social media comes in.  You now have the ability to tell your friends on social networks about the deal to ensure that it goes through, which in turn also promotes the site to a new audience.

The reviews and press coverage to date has been huge and I think you will see it continue to grow in 2010.  Look out for big things in this space in the New Year.  This concept of group buying is the future of retail and a perfect example of the power of social.  Congrats to the team at Groupon for getting on it early.  I'm excited to see where it goes from here.  I think you will see this trend show up consistently across all industries - remember, consumers own the relationship in a digital social society.

What do you think about Groupon and the movement towards consumer-group buying?

Free eBook from Seth Godin: What Matters Now

What do you think the big trend will be in 2010?

Seth Godin just released a new FREE ebook called What Matters Now, where Seth got a collection of more than 70 thought leaders (see word cloud on the side) to give a 1-page essay on topics to think about in the new year.

Have a read through some of the ebook and get some ideas for 2010.  Would you give this ebook away for free?

Download FREE ebook here

TiVo and Google partner to measure TV ads - but are they missing the point?

 It was announced yesterday that TiVo, the creator of and a leader in television services and advertising solutions for digital video recorders (DVRs) and Google, the preeminent player in online search and analytics, are teaming up to track TV ads.

The way this will work is that Google will integrate TiVo television viewing data into its measurement of audiences for advertisements sold through Google TV Ads platform.  This once again expands Google's reach into traditional media tracking and distribution.  On the surface this move seems like a very big step, to be able to track the effectiveness of TV ads across viewers is a very exciting proposition for marketers.  However, I wonder if TiVo and Google might be missing the real opportunity here.

As with most partnerships, the devil is always in the details.  In this deal, Google TV Ads will be able to draw on anonymous, second-by-second DVR viewing data from TiVo's stand-alone subscribers to substantially enhance the measurement and accountability of ad impressions for inventory sold using the Google TV Ads auction-based system. 

Did you catch it?   There was one word in the previous paragraph that makes all the difference.  Re-read the paragraph above and see if you can spot the missing piece of the puzzle.

It's not the second-by-second DVR viewing, that is very powerful.  It's certainly not the fact that you can now measure ad impressions in a more definitive way, which marketers have been asking for for years.  So what is it?  One simple word that takes this from a monumental announcement, to another interesting partnership.  And that one word is ANONYMOUS.

Marketing is changing from a one-to-many mass advertising approach to a one-to-one and many-to-many relationship-focused social approach.  This new marketing paradigm relies on marketers building deep one-to-one relationships with consumers and allowing those consumers to interact with each other in an open and dynamic environment.  The concept of tapping into TV viewing habits of TiVo is extremely exciting, but the real opportunity is to track those viewers on an individual basis, not anonymously.

Let me give you an example:  How excited would you be as a marketer if I could integrate TV viewing habits into your existing database of consumers, allowing you to understand what TV show or ad a consumer saw before going online to purchase your product or sign-up for your contest?

On the flip side, as a consumer, if you could be rewarded for taking action on a particular ad and have your web experience personalized based on your viewing preferences would that be cool?

We are living in a very exciting time where technology advances are forever changing the way we interact with brands, friends, colleagues and family.  We have been given control by social networks such as Facebook and LinkedIn to create a unique profile, to select our social connections and to determine our own privacy settings.  However, we are still limited in our control over more traditional media.  There will be a day in the near future where all of our different channels are connected, but we are not quite there yet.

So congrats to TiVo and Google for pushing us forward and recognizing the value of measurement.  Hopefully this will be the first of many advances to make traditional media more accountable.  However, I think they might be missing the big opportunity.

As always, I welcome your feedback.  What do you think of this partnership?

You can view a full news release here

How do you spot the marketing diamond in the rough?

I recently watched a great TED talk from Rory Sutherland about perceived value.  I would highly recommend that you check it out after reading this posting.  The point of his talk is that most value associated with products and services is intangible value as oppose to intrinsic value.  Meaning that perceived value is actually much more important to us as consumers, than actual value.

Rory sites a few great examples of early marketing being done by Kings and Rulers to create perceived value with their followers, but a more recent example is the ad campaign for Shreddies in Canada. 

A concept was created to change the perception of Shreddies by offering two varieties - the original square shaped Shreddies and a new diamond shaped Shreddies (see campaign web site below).

Now we all know that it is the exact same product, however it is a smart way to add some perceived value to an old product and turn a plain old square into a bright new diamond.  Well done.

As way of another quick example, Rory discusses a research report that suggests that aside from the top 5-10% of wine drinkers that have an exceptional pallet for wine, most wine drinkers are directly influenced by the cost of the wine.  This perceived value effect is so strong that a large number of wine drinkers thought the same cheap wine tasted better when they were told it was more expensive.

So the moral of the story for Rory, is don't overlook simple ways to increase the perceived value of your products/services.  However, I have a slightly different take on these examples.  I think they carry-over very well to the world of relationship marketing.

Consumers have long been interrupted and shouted at by brands through mass media channels such as TV, print and radio.  However, there is an opportunity with digital marketing to re-build those relationships without adding to your budget.  Using new 1:1 marketing platforms, you have the ability to increase the perceived value of the marketing experience and the relationship with the brand.  Ultimately, this will result in much higher return on investment and customer satisfaction and loyalty.  This might just be your diamond in the rough?

As always, I'd love to hear your feedback.  Have you seen any great marketing campaigns recently?

Canada's New Electronic Commerce Protection Act (ECPA)

For those followers of my blog that are operating in Canada, please take note that there is a new Electronic Commerce Protection Act (ECPA), Bill C-27, that has recently been introduced by the Canadian government.  For all intents and purposes, this is Canada's version of an "anti-spam" act.  I have included a summary from the new bill below for reference.

You can also check out this quick article on the bill from Canada.com

"This enactment establishes a regulatory framework to promote the efficiency
and adaptability of the Canadian economy by regulating certain activities that
discourage reliance on electronic means of carrying out commercial activities.

It enacts the Electronic Commerce Protection Act, which prohibits the
sending of commercial electronic messages without the prior consent of the
recipient an

d provides rules governing the sending of those types of messages,
including a mechanism for the withdrawal of consent. It also prohibits other
practices that discourage reliance on electronic means of carrying out
commercial activities, such as those relating to the alteration of data
transmissions and the unauthorized installation of computer programs. In
addition, that Act provides for the imposition of administrative monetary
penalties by the

Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commis-
sion, after taking into account specified factors. It also provides for a private
right of action that enables a person affected by an act or omission that
constitutes a contravention under that Act to obtain an amount equal to the
actual amount of the loss or damage suffered, or expenses incurred, and
statutory damages for the contravention.

 This enactment amends the Competition Act to prohibit false or misleading
commercial representations made electronically.
It also amends the Personal Information Protection and Electronic
Documents Act to prohibit the collection of personal information by means
of unauthorized access to computer systems, and the unauthorized compiling of
lists of electronic addresses.

Finally, it makes related amendments to the Competition Act, the Personal
Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, the Canadian Radio-
television and Telecommunications Commission Act and the Telecommunications Act."

Also see this summary from the guys at emailkarma.net about how it can impact you as a marketer in Canada.

The complete bill can be downloaded by clicking this link

 

Digital Body Language

Digital Body Language is a brilliant term to describe the importance of gaining insight from consumer's digital behaviour, rather than relying solely on what they will tell you in a form or profile page.  Unfortunately I cannot take credit for the term, that belongs to Steven Woods, who is the co-founder and CTO of Eloqua.  I have since fallen in love with the term and what it represents.  We all know that 95% of communication is non-verbal, but few of us understand that this concepts holds true in the digital world.  The best insight can always be gained from watching what people do, instead of just listening to what they say they do.

I was having breakfast with Steve last week and we started to talk about the importance of monitoring and properly evaluating online behaviour. We had a great chat sharing war stories about the broader marketing automation and Software-as-a-Service market, the neuances between B2B marketing and B2C marketing (which I'll be covering in an upcoming post) and the state of emerging technology.  He has a very interesting take on how to interpret people's digital body language in a B2B marketing environment and I would highly recommend any B2B marketers check out his blog and new book.