Atomic Ideas

Marketing to be Social and Selling

Had an interesting conversation yesterday with a social media evangelist, a believer in the 'let's hug and follow each other' online marketing approach.

If you've talked to one of these fervent devotees of social media you've probably heard the same mantra:

"Social media is about having conversations."     

"Social media is about engaging."

Right.

And TV commercials are about having fun, billboards are for giggles, and company events are for friendly chatting.

When people say those squishy things about social media, they don’t draw a line to the bottom line. 

Social media is about driving business. It’s about making money. Like, well, like your other marketing efforts.

One of our clients had a recent special event supported by a social media/traditional media strategy and campaign, and their sales numbers were great, topping expectations. 

If you’re not making money with social media then it’s just a hobby. And I don't know many companies today who have the luxury of playing at business. 

The end game is to sell more stuff. Create loyal customers. 

Social media is one (of many) way(s) to get there.

If you'd like some ideas on how social media can help draw business your way, how to be social and selling, feel free to contact us. We can 'engage' in a 'conversation' about helping you sell more stuff!

photo: drinksmachine

Cell Phone Coupons Might Just Appeal to Non-Coupon Users

 

It was only a matter of time. In fact, the technology has already been up and running for some time in several asian countries. Now Target is the first major US Retailer to deliver coupons to your cell phone  -- which can be scanned at the checkout. 

Now, normally I avoid coupons. The clipping, organizing, and the simple task of even remembering to bring and/or use them. But if someone wants to put coupons right in my hand while I'm at the checkout, who am I to turn down 50 cents here, or a couple of bucks there, on the stuff I'm already buying anyway?  Right now, with Target as the only store doing it, I might be tempted to shop Target a little more than its competitors.

But once everyone is doing it, I will be back to my old habit of not thinking about coupons. That is until I'm checking out and want to see if I can save a few cents on what I've already got in my basket. It really won't prompt me to change the brands I've already chosen. What might prompt me to do that is when manufacturers jump in with both feet.  That way, when I'm standing at a store shelve trying to decide between competing brands, I can just type in their codes and see which is offering the best deal.

Then I might be swayed to try a new brand, or buy more than I had planned. Of course, as the ultimate big brother conspiracy theorist, I will have to balance saving a few bucks with the knowledge that with cell phone coupons, people can track my purchases and purchase history. Maybe I'll just do like always and just forget about the coupons, altogether.

Giving The Blog A Little Breathing Room

 After reading Steve's, Gene's and Russ's blogs the last few days about how we often feel compelled to post a blog for a host of reasons other than creating a conversation with our best potential customers, I am going to hereby not add to the social media clutter. Instead, I am, like Steve's analogy to white space, going to use my minimalist blog today to provide a little breathing room around the more profound Atomic Ideas posts -- which will hopefully help readers to more easily recognize their worthwhile nature. 

I could use a little more white space.

  
A classic VW ad created by Doyle Dane Bernbach in the sixties with lots of white space.

I want to weigh in about an issue Russ brought up in his recent blog post - that all this engagement-talk with social media is killing him, and is it worth it? He’s slowly going out of his mind, though everything is all right on the outside. He’s lying in bed, wide-awake, thinking about everything in his life and asking himself,

Does More Engagement mean More Success?

Well, I really don’t know.

I think, that when you try to be all knowing and a super multi-tasker, everything else begins to suffer. Your product, your thinking, your strategies, are not as strong. It’s all spread too thin. It’s like that old saying, “Jack of all trades, and master of none.”

I like to equate this predicament to a design world axiom like “less is more” or the expression, “keep it simple, stupid”. By reducing the number of projects, tasks, and business contacts you’re involved with, a better-defined purpose can emerge. By reducing the quantity of these chores and messages, more time can be devoted to the remaining ones to make them stronger, more concise, and better understood. You get back to the basics. It’s as though you’re creating more white space to let the ideas breathe.

Also, delegating is another way of reducing. Like when the Atomic Ideas team spreads out the blogging responsibilities.

Another thing, some of these business tasks can be replaced with getting away from them. As corny as it sounds, non-business events like an occasional walk in a park, or watching a movie, or listening to music or getting together with non-business friends or family (I know, sometimes it doesn’t work with family) can restore logical thinking.

Basically, what I’m saying in my simpleton world is that we can’t do everything. And by reducing the bulk of business clutter one can better achieve a focus. A more true focus will allow projects and communications to shine. And what about Engagement? Don't worry... it’ll come naturally.

Yes, less is more.

Slicing the World of the Wide Web

I was at a marketing conference in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where many of the attendees left bemused and confused after listening to the well-intentioned panel talk about how you need to 'listen' with social media. Listen. Listen.

One of the guys after the conference said to me later, "Right. Listen. "Social media's like a cocktail party." So how do I sell my generators"? There comes a point where you need to stop listening, take what you learn, and engage. But where to start?

Marketing in a world without borders - the world wide web. What's happening more and more is that companies aren't trying to appeal to everyone on Facebook/Twitter/LinkedIn, but to those groups most receptive to what they have to offer.

Ford is breaking it down to go after local customers, targeting 16 regional markets.

And a point can be made that the 'Big Four' of social media - Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube - are not necessarily the best road to find where your specific customers hang out. They are the most well-known, but not necessarily where people who buy generators, for example, are looking for information. Finding niche sites that align with your product narrows your focus, many times in a good way.

Instead of trying to conquer the overly heated, entire web world, try targeting the small worlds your customers live in.

Could Social Media Kill The Economy?

I haven't been sleeping well lately. Every night I wake up in a cold sweat thinking about what the hell I'm going to post tomorrow on the Atomic Ideas Blog, on Facebook on Twitter, on You Tube. The panic is palpable. If we're not participating we're losing out... on ratings, on rankings on relevance! Trying to keep up is excruciating.

For an old school guy like me, engagement used to be nothing more than finding a nice girl, convincing her I was the best thing since sliced bread, and then spending a large chunk of my salary on a rock to put on her finger. Elegant. Simple.

Now, everyone and their brother is telling me that engagement is the very future of my business. If my company doesn't take the time to do it, WE WILL DIE. Holy s%$t! No wonder I can't sleep.

After all, I fire up TweetDeck and I see my peers Tweeting merrily away - ALL DAY LONG.

I fire up Facebook and watch my "friends" doing the same thing. Updating, commenting, liking and, I guess, ENGAGING... ALL DAY LONG.

You can see why I can't sleep. I've got so many other things to do, I just can't keep up. I obviously don't have what it takes... a complete loser.

Truth is, I have not been able to figure out how to get all the real work I need to get done... well, done... and spend the amount of time the gurus tell me I need to spend ENGAGING to ensure the future of Atomic Ideas. The world is apparently full of supermen and woman who are able to get everything they need to get done, done AND make a living, whilst constantly informing me of their latest meal, or the 250 revolutionary articles they read today they think I might be interested in. Very helpful indeed, but where the hell do they find the time?

Frankly, I think I'm pretty productive. But that productivity is almost always focused on getting things done for our clients and our company... and that pesky secondary distraction, my wife and kids

I understand and embrace the importance of social media, but finding the time to do it right is a real struggle. I have to think that a lot of people are trading real productivity for pablum because they are addicted to building their "reputation" on Twitter, or just plain addicted to Facebook and all the other shiny new engagement tools out there.

On the other hand, I wonder that If trends continue, maybe everyone (me too, with your help) will spend all their time engaging and none of their time doing. When that happens, the economy will collapse and we'll go back to the dark ages. One bright light, we'll still have social media... smoke signals and cave art.

The bottom line here... I want the keys to the car, I want to climb aboard the train... I need help! I implore some of you folks who claim to have legitimate businesses, yet apparently spend every hour of your waking days online, to share your secrets! You'll help me sleep better. You may even save my life!

What do you think. Will social media lead to the Apocalypse? Weigh in. Save the world!

Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/purplemattfish/ / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Anti-Social Media -- The dark side of the force.

Social Media presents us all with a great power -- the power to disseminate information around the globe with a touch of a button. But with great power comes great responsibility.  Of course, there will always be those among us who decide to use their powers not for good, but for evil.  Witness the video below, which sounds like it was put together by a high school student. How long can society hold up when the even the youngest among us has the power to instruct thousands (even millions) of their peers in one of the dark arts?  The real shame is that this is just one of dozens of videos on YouTube featuring lock picking and other potentially illegal activities. I strongly urge anyone who views this video NOT to try breaking and entering -- because on the other side of any given door, there could be an angry homeowner who is armed and ready to protect their property. Maybe with a weapon they fashioned after watching a YouTube video!!

Internet...Schminternet. (Nearly a third of Americans can't be reached online)

From a recent article that appeared on AOL, It would appear that almost one in three of us cannot be reached via the information superhighway.  Or even through any of the social media by-ways. (Of course, that means that 60% of us can be reached online!) All the more reason to first determine who your best potential customers are, and where they will be when you choose to deliver your brand's marketable truths.

Feb 17th 2010 By Jeremy Taylor

30 Percent of Americans Don't Use the Internet

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Our happy hour fact to amaze your drinking buddies with.

Almost one in three Americans don't use the Internet at work or home.

New census bureau data, collected from 54,000 households, finds that seniors, the poor, underrepresented minorities and folks who live in rural areas lag behind the rest of the country, technologically speaking.

While a good chunk of the nation remains offline, high-speed broadband has made significant inroads with those who are surfing the Web. By late 2009, 63 percent of overall households had opted for the faster service, which is up from 40 percent in early 2007.

Still, we can't help but be baffled, and slightly insulted, by those who continue to shun the information superhighway, which we call home.

His-Tweets....Major Events in Human History in 140 Characters or Less.

Twitter can be such a powerful marketing tool, it got me wondering. Could some of the most profound events in human history be winnowed down so as to be tweetable?  Sure!   

If Moses had to tweet the ten commandments: God says "Stop that!"

If the colonists had sent the Declaration of Independence as a tweet: "This relationships isn't working. You'll find your tea in the harbor."

If the Magna Charta had been sent as a tweet: "Who died and made you king? Oh right, your Dad. But still. That doesn't give you the right to treat us badly."

If Abraham Lincoln's assassination had been tweeted:  "Lincoln killed in Ford"

If the Hindenberg tragedy had been tweeted: "Sell Zepplin stock...now!"

A passenger tweet from the Titanic: "The icebergs are so close I could almost reach out and touch them!"

Hitler's Mein Kampf as a tweet: "Aryans rule, sub-species drool."

A tweet from the final day of the Jurassic period; "Look, a shooting star. Make a wish!" 

A tweet from the Roswell crash site, "They tried to probe me, that's when all hell broke loose."

Lindberg tweet after landing in Paris: " I made it! I flew the Atlantic. Now I'm just waiting for my luggage."

After the Lindberg baby kidnapping: " He was just here a minute ago!"

Madame Curie after taking first X-ray: "New photo technique makes me look as thin as a skeleton!"

Buzz Aldrin after setting foot on the moon: "I'm number two! I'm number two!"

Isaac Newton just before discovering gravity: "Ow, an apple just hit me on the head....hey...."

Tweet immediately after the final spike of the TransContinental Railroad was driven: "Experienced rail layer looking for work."

Orville Wright: I can see our house from here!

To the followers of the Knight's Templar site: "Anyone seen the Holy Grail? Seems someone --who shall remain nameless -- has misplaced it!"

Socrates after drinking the hemlock: "The pois jxw apjem lqwe zgrrrrrrrrrr....."

You could say a few of these are an example of anti-social media. Hope you enjoyed them. Have a great weekend

Surprise. People on Facebook Actually Like a Good Sale!

Is conventional wisdom about how marketers (particularly retailers) should sell their products and services with social media all wrong?

Most expert advice suggests that retailers shouldn't push their products or services too hard on platforms like Facebook. It should all be about conversation, engagement, influence... you know the drill. 

Now, nobody's saying that's all wrong. But a new study from ForeSee Results in Ann Arbor, MI presents some interesting, and rather surprising findings. It shows that Facebook is actually, "By far the most effective way to woo would be shoppers."

Whoda thunk it?

Retailers like Victoria's Secret are leading the charge by showcasing and promoting new products and sales on their Facebook pages. According to the article about the study at MediaPost's Marketing Daily, Victoria's Secret has 2.8 million Facebook fans, and its teen brand Pink, has 1.8 million fans.

Kevin Ertell, VP/retail strategy for ForeSee Results, tells Marketing Daily. "If you look at those pages, they are giving Facebook users exactly what they tell us they want -- information about new products, and special prices and promotions."

Contrary to what we might all think, this study indicates that online shoppers might actually want less fluff and more stuff.

Here is a recap of some of the findings:

• Of 69% of online shoppers who are social media users, 56% have chosen to "friend," "follow" or "subscribe to" at least one store.
• 61% of this group is connected to fewer than five companies. Another 21% is made up of more serious shoppers who follow between 6 and 10 stores, while just 18% is hardcore enough to have friended more than 10.
• Facebook is by far the dominant player: Among online shoppers who engage in social media, more than 80% are using Facebook. YouTube comes in second at 31%, followed by MySpace with 22%, Twitter with 16%, and LinkedIn at 12%.
• Yet 25% of the top 100 online retailers have no formal presence on Facebook and 25% have fewer than 10,000 fans. 
• 49% of those who follow companies through social media want to hear about deals, and 45% want to see products. Only 5% use social media primarily for customer support.

In the Marketing daily article Ertell says,  "The most satisfied and loyal customers are seeking out their favorite stores' pages, and then if those experiences are rewarding, they become even more loyal."

Interesting stuff! However caution is probably justified. As we all know, too much of a good thing is a bad thing. Until all the evidence suggest otherwise, engagement and conversation is still a wise strategy. And so, apparently, is the occasional, "And if you act now, you'll also get...!"

The more things change, the more they stay the same.