by Belinda Lui | Dec 12, 2013 | Latest, Social Media
I’ve written several posts before on what to post, when to post, and how to post – but in this article, I want to discuss where to post. Which, admittedly, is just as important to identify as the other Ws of Social Engagement. Like most marketing efforts, there isn’t just one formula that works across all social platforms.
Noting this, here is an outline of some of the more popular platforms and the type of social engagement content that best suits their demographics:
Facebook:
This is probably the most liberal social platform for businesses in that you can post pictures, video, links, polls, etc. to engage users. Still, the most dominant demographic for this tool are women between the ages of 18-29.
Twitter:
For more detailed tips on increasing Twitter engagement, read my post here. Twitter actually has a more mature community, so the information (or the tone) in which you communicate should be tailored as such. The fastest growing demographic for Twitter are urban residents between the ages of 55-64.
Instagram:
This application wasn’t meant for hefty, wordy content. Instead of uploading a conspicuous sales pitch with a lengthy description, consider posting a well-positioned product in a picturesque setting for optimal impressions. The top demographic for Instagram are women between the ages of 18-29.
Snapchat:
With a younger demographic (13-23 years old) and a shorter attention span (pictures automatically delete after a timed option), businesses have the opportunity to tap into a new, uncharted territory with fast, impressionable images.
Pinterest:
With women in the lead, making up 80% of the demographic on Pinterest and between the ages of 25-34, this is probably one of the most gender-skewed platforms for businesses to consider when advertising a product or service. The same applies to this platform as Instagram: use a captivating image with a strong message and attach a link for interested users.
Having some clarity about the leading demographics and functions of these leading social platforms may help when deciding what, when, how, and where to post for optimal social engagement.
What are some of the creative campaigns you’ve noted that increases social engagement?
by Belinda Lui | Dec 5, 2013 | Latest, Management
Ever wonder what makes Google the holy grail of productivity and creativity? There’s no magic in the drinking water at the Mountain View, CA company. The tech giant draws from what Google’s chief social evangelist, Gopi Kallayil, calls the nine core principles of innovation.
Kallayil shared his insights at this week’s San Francisco Dreamforce summit.
Here are the nine rules that any enterprise, large or small, can adopt to steal Google’s culture on innovation.
1. INNOVATION COMES FROM ANYWHERE
A medical doctor on Google’s staff argued persuasively that Google had a moral obligation to extend help to those typing searches under the phrase “how to commit suicide.” He ignited the charge to adjust the search engine’s response so that the top of the screen reveals the toll free phone number for the National Suicide Prevention Hotline. The call volume went up by nine percent soon thereafter. The same change has been adopted in many other countries.
2. FOCUS ON THE USER.
Worry about the money later, when you focus on the user, all else will follow. Google improved the speed of its search capabilities with predictive analysis so search suggestions come up after the user types a few keystrokes. This Instant Search feature saves the user a few microseconds with each entry. Google sales reps were concerned that this shortened the time customers would view ads, but the company went ahead and believed that it was worth the risk.
End result? Thanks to Instant Search, Google estimates the time saved is equivalent to giving back mankind 5,000 years after a year of collective use. “Create a great user experience and the revenue will take care of itself,” says Kallayil. In addition, more customers will be attracted to your product’s increased benefits.
3. AIM TO BE TEN TIMES BETTER
If you come into work thinking that you will improve things by ten percent, you will only see incremental change. If you want radical and revolutionary innovation, think 10 times improvement, and that will force you to think outside the box.
4. BET ON TECHNICAL INSIGHTS
Every organization has unique insights, and if you bet on it, it leads to major innovation. Google engineers, not the auto industry, came up with the idea of driverless cars after seeing that millions of traffic deaths come from human error. Working with an artificial intelligence team at Stanford University, Google engineers have produced experimental cars that now have travelled to Lake Tahoe and back to the Bay Area and have given the blind more independence by driving them to shop and carry out errands.
5. SHIP AND ITERATE
Ship your products often and early, and do not wait for perfection. Let users help you to “iterate” it. When Chrome was launched in 2008, every six weeks Google pushed out an improved version. “Today, using that approach, Chrome is the Number One browser in many countries,” says Kallayil, “You may not have perfection in your product, but trust that your users will get back to you.”
6. GIVE EMPLOYEES 20 PERCENT TIME
Give employees 20 percent of their work time to pursue projects they are passionate about, even if it is outside the core job or core mission of the company. “They will delight you with their creative thinking,” Kallayil promises.
7. DEFAULT TO OPEN PROCESSES
Make your processes open to all users. When Google created the Android platform, it knew it could not hire all the best developers on the planet. For that reason, it “defaulted to open,” and encouraged developers outside of Google to create apps for the one billion people using Android devices daily. “That is how an ecosystem is formed,” says Kallayil. In marketing, Google asked users how they would market its voice search app, and children sent clever videos that rivaled the campaigns of the big ad agencies.
8. FAIL WELL
There should be no stigma attached to failure. If you do not fail often, you are not trying hard enough. At Google, once a product fails to reach its potential, it is axed, but the company pulls from the best of the features. “Failure is actually a badge of honor,” he says. “Failure is the way to be innovative and successful. You can fail with pride.”
9. HAVE A MISSION THAT MATTERS
“This is the most important principle,” Kallayil says. “Everyone at Google has a strong sense of mission and purpose. We believe the work we do has impact on millions of people in a positive way.” Each person should have his or her own story.
(Information taken from: Fast Company)
by Belinda Lui | Dec 4, 2013 | Latest, Social Media
Designing a Facebook marketing campaign can be tricky: you need to start with research and analysis, implement riveting creative, and post engaging content. It may seem overwhelming, but there is a way to kick-start your Facebook strategy: knowing these 7 important statistics will help you increase your following and engagement.
For optimized engagement: more than knowing when to post, it’s important to know what to post:
1. Photo posts get 39% more interaction
Posting photos are more engaging than posting videos, links, and text-based updates: so much so, that it accounts for 93% of the most engaging posts on Facebook.
2. Shorter posts get 23% more interaction
Writing shorter posts isn’t just handy on Twitter. Keeping your posts below 250 characters can get you 60% more engagement than you might otherwise see. You can even get up to 66% more engagement if you cut it down to less than 80 characters.
3. Using emoticons increases comments by 33%
If you thought emoticons were only for teens, you might want to rethink that idea. According to AMEX OPEN Forum infographic, emoticons can make a big difference to your engagement rates. Not only do posts with emoticons get 33% more comments, they also get shared 33% more often. Even better: they get liked 57% more often than posts without emoticons.
4. Engagement rates on Thursday and Friday are 18% higher
This is generally speaking – depending on the demographic of your following, the days with the most activity may vary. Fortunately, Facebook provides the information on which days get the most activity from your followers, so be sure to establish that before you create your Facebook marketing calendar.
5. Question posts get 100% more comments
If comments are the kind of interaction you’re after, questions might be the way to go. According to an infographic by Kissmetrics, they get 100% more comments than standard text-based posts. HubSpot shares a similar finding, although this data points out that question posts often get fewer likes and shares than other types of posts.
6. 35% of Facebook fans like a page so they can participate in contests
If you’re chasing down new fans, a contest seems like a fairly good way to encourage likes. A report from earlier this year showed that 35% of Facebook fans liked Facebook pages specifically to compete in contests. Contests obviously solicit interaction by asking for people to enter. It turns out this can work, as “caption this photo”-style contests actually bring in 5.5 times more comments than regular posts.
7. 42% of fans like a page to get a coupon or discount
According to Socially Stacked, 42% of Facebook fans like a page in order to get a discount or coupon. A study by Wildfire Interactive showed that coupon-based campaigns received the highest engagement rates. Giveaways and sweepstakes came in just behind coupons as highly engaging post types.
What are some of the ways that you have increased engagement in your Facebook strategy?
(Information taken from: Fast Company)
by Belinda Lui | Dec 3, 2013 | Advertising, Latest
I was watching a TED talk from Rory Sutherland, the Vice Chairman of Ogilvy Group, and his lesson was on the power of perception as it pertains to real value and perceived value. We’re all probably aware of the fact that Advertising is an influential force behind consumerism, but what I want to explore in this post is the root of that behaviour: perception, and how the real-value of things is less significant than the perceived value of things.
The power of perception can change almost everything; from what we eat to how we drive:
1. The Potato
Frederic the Great was very keen on the potato being adopted into the diets of Germans. He tried to make it compulsory and people were executed for refusing to grow potatoes. So he changed his strategy and made it so that potatoes could only be grown by Royalty (and would be guarded as such). The reaction was that if something was good enough to be guarded, it’s good enough to be stolen. He changed the perception of Potatoes.
2. Shreddies
Canadian intern, Hunter Summerville, thought of a way to re-launch Shreddies: he thought of a way to add intangible value to a product without actually changing the product itself. Changing it from a square to a diamond. It was a refresh in how Shreddies were perceived, even though it was only tilted slightly to become a diamond.
3. Speeding
Instead of showing your speed, the sign would flash either a smiley face or a sad face. These signs cost about 10% of a speeding-camera but prevent twice the amount of speeding collisions. It goes without saying, knowing your speed might deter some people from speeding, but when speeding was associated with a sad face, people were more likely to slow down.
What I’m trying to illustrate here, is that perhaps like most things in life, it is our perception of things that make them valuable – and less about what the actual value is.
What are some of your examples of real-value versus perceived value?
by Belinda Lui | Nov 28, 2013 | Branding, Latest
I briefly wrote about the Hudson’s Bay in my article, “Retail Marketing: Be Seen and Heard”, but I wanted to elaborate on the genius that is behind the mass retailer. Bonnie Brooks didn’t only make The Hudson’s Bay a trendier shopping destination but her business strategy re-positioned the entire brand perception. Reinventing brands is something Bonnie Brooks is familiar with: she formerly worked as an executive officer at Lane Crawford as well as Holt Renfrew.
Reinventing your brand when it has reached a plateau can give it the fresh, sales-driven push that it needs:
1. Advertising:
Hudson’s Bay launched several radio spots to reinforce their brand using Bonnie Brooks’ voice as the spokesperson. This created a more personalized feel, given that it came directly from the President herself.
2. In-store Re-design:
Hudson’s Bay spent millions of dollars renovating the department stores’ interior layout for several locations. A lot of businesses may not immediately see the importance of dishing out obscene amounts of money for a refresh in storefront appearance, but Brooks did – and it’s paying off.
3. Demographic:
Carrying brands that would appeal to the younger demographic, like Top Shop, was a very strategic move on Brooks’ part. Expanding the target demographic would mean more traffic and consequently, more sales.
4. Partnerships:
Hudson’s Bay now carries what they call the “Canadian Olympic Team Heritage Collection” – being one of the oldest Canadian retail brands, making partnership with the Canadian Olympics Team is a great way to sell product nationally. The 2010 Olympic mittens made it on “Oprah’s Favorite Things” list.
5. Heritage:
Brooks didn’t only make Hudson’s Bay a must-go shopping destination for some of the best designer brands but she also brought back the appeal of Hudson’s Bay’s brand too. From couch throws to the classic teddy bear, it’s the Hudson’s Bay as a brand that she’s selling.
6. Logo:
There’s a new strategy in place so why not a new logo to identify with the refresh? Logos can be tricky – you want it to be eye-catching but you also want it to “speak to the heritage of the brand” – and that’s exactly what Hudson’s Bay has done.
Can you name another company that has gone through major reinventing that is worth mentioning?
