Storytelling at its Best!

Marketing and advertising of brands are aiming to create emotional connections.  Brands are learning that incorporating storytelling into their messaging creates heart and loyalty around their identity through these connections.

Who hasn’t fallen in love with the Budweiser’s Puppy Love story?!

Or, the #MISSADVENTURES of Anna Kendrick and Kate Spade?!

These are two completely different brands with completely different offerings but they have one thing in common.  They get it!  What do they get?  Well…. the importance of storytelling and how to incorporate that into their messaging. With all the marketing clutter, storytelling can truly break through!

Budweiser pulls at the heart strings of every viewer while Kate Spade makes an upscale brand seem fun, quirky and down to earth with Anna Kendrick’s shenanigans.

Will Budweiser’s Puppy Love commercial make you run out and buy a six-pack of beer? Maybe not, but they have hit the nail on the head with finding a way to get the Budweiser brand into the hearts on the American public.

Kate Spade on the other hand….and me personally….the #MISSADVENTURE episodes do make me want to run out and buy everything Anna Kendrick is wearing! She makes their clothing and accessories seem fun and accessible.  I would love to be a part of one of their miss adventures! Kate Spade also does something smart through their videos. As you are watching the film, if you see something you like, you can click on the item and it will take to directly to that item on the Kate Spade website.  Brilliant, right?

Do you have a favorite brand that excels in strategic storytelling?  What are your favorite parts of storytelling through big brands?

 

 

 

 

Real-Time Outlets to Stream Away

Steaming of videos is nothing new.  I am personally addicted to binge steaming through Netflix and Amazon Prime.  I will never understand how someone can stop watching a show after one or two episodes when they have the ability to watch a full season! Who is with me?

Streaming video content is not a new thing, but live streaming and the world of live broadcast seems is an evolving trend!  Twitter purchased the periscope brand in February of this year. This is an impressive avenue for live streaming and broadcast with a fan base of more than 10 million users.  Through this program users are able to listen to broadcasts and view videos live or within 24 hours of its launch.  They are able to like the content through the site.

Facebook is also catching onto the trend.  They have created an application called Facebook Live which allows live broadcasts and video streaming.  Currently, only big brands, media outlets and celebrities are able to upload content, but they announced this month that select Facebook users will be chosen to test this service.

Once this testing is enabled they will post their videos and be able to see who is viewing the broadcast and also receive comments and feedback in real-time from their viewers and listeners.

If you were chosen as one of the select users to test Facebook Live what would you use this platform to promote? Yourself personally or your corporate brand?

 

 

Living Through Photos

It is amazing how social media is affecting our lives everyday.  Between Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, and Instagram, we are able to connect in real time with people all over the world.

Have you joined the Instagram movement? I have to say it is my favorite social media platform.  Currently there are more than 300 million monthly active users and of those users 75 million post photos everyday. Just think of the reach they have!

Instagram users range from all demographics and psychographics sharing more than 20 billion posts.

Instagram started out as a platform for users to post their personal daily activities, such as creating envy from their friends with their afternoon trip to Starbucks!

From there, small boutiques and consignment shops created accounts in order to sell items. These shops found that this was an ideal way to market their wears.

And the next step was that Instagram allowed key companies to create Instagram advertisements.  These ads are made up of artistic photos of their products and services.

What do you think of Instagram being another social platform for brands to use to build consumer engagement and brand loyalty?  Is it an organic move?

 

Are We TOO Connected?!

The Internet of Things is changing the way we live our lives from the way we protect our homes to tracking our fitness through wearable technology to automating the agricultural industry to creating smart homes and even smart cities.

You ask, “What is the internet of things??  This refers to things that are connected to the internet. These things collect data about the way you use them and help you make lifestyle changes along the way.

This includes items such as smart fridges, vacuums, locks and security systems that were formerly dumb.  They are now connecting all aspects of your life to a smart phone or computer allowing for better security and more efficient usage and lifestyle or brand changes.

It is estimated that by 2020 there will be more than 200 billion devices connecting more than 4 billion people through more than 25 million apps. This can truly influence and change the way we live our lives.

With these advances being made in our daily lives, society is finding ease of implementation with this smart products which in turn creates easier day to day activities.  Having ease of home and life activities through smart products creates a tighter bond than ever before between consumers and brands creating true brand loyalty.

The Internet of Things may be creating an ease of lifestyle, but what are they doing to our privacy?  Do we have privacy?  Since the Internet of Things is creating solutions to our daily activities, is everything we do under examination? Are hackers also going to find an easier way into our networks?

What are your thoughts?

 

Communicating in a Mobile World

Communication is constantly evolving in our technologically savvy world. We used to meet face to face for coffee dates, but these days we spend most of our time communicating through Facebook Messenger, Twitter, and text messages.

 

This change in communication is not only evident in our personal lives but also in our professional lives.  Marketers are taking full advantage of this boom in mobile communications.

They are now able to understand and track consumer behavior in real time. This helps them to understand true consumer needs and wants and take much of the guessing out of the game.

They are able to create this mobile interactions through shorter, crisper experiences during well-timed moments that can ensure greater engagement and brand loyalty.

For example, a restaurant reservations app can deliver a series of personalized push notifications when a user books a table at a new restaurant. A week before the reservation, the app should send a link to the latest restaurant reviews. Then, a few hours before the reservation, the app can send a notification with the restaurant’s address and directions; two days after, it can re-engage the user and give them a reminder to write a review.

Have you experienced mobile marketing and communications in similar experiences?  Has it created a greater link for brand engagement and loyalty to you?

 

Customer Service in a Media Savvy World

Customer service has traditionally been centered around telephone communication skills and customer care, but that is quickly changing.

As a key example, JetBlue Airways; a low-cost American airline serving 92 destinations in the U.S., Caribbean, South America, and Latin America; has led the way in introducing social media into corporate business plans.

JetBlue begin its journey in social media through crisis communications in February of 2007 when their infamous Valentine’s Day crisis occurred. On this day, bad weather grounded and cancelled 1,000 flights stranding passengers in the northeast for days. It made national headlines, and the brand, which marketed itself as bringing humanity to air travel, took a big hit.

At this point in time, companies rarely managed brand awareness or crises with social media, but JetBlue decided to post a video on YouTube with a heartfelt apology from their CEO regarding the service failures and how they planned to improve their processes going  forward.

By posting this apology within five days of the crisis beginning, JetBlue was able to maintain loyalty from their customer base and ensure their faith in JetBlue as their airline of choice. There was still negative press and comments, but they were able to respond to customer moods and attitudes in real time.

Through this experience, JetBlue saw the importance of social media and being able to respond to their publics in a timely manner.

JetBlue prides themselves on using Twitter as a customer service channel and not just a social media tool.   On average, they respond to 2,500 to 2,600 tweets per day, and respond to those messages within ten minutes of a customer commenting. Three departments consisting of marketing, customer service, and customer commitment, collaborate with one another to manage JetBlue’s Twitter account. These departments are able to work as a cohesive team throughout wins or crises.

JetBlue Airways is very smart in their approach to building and maintaining their brand. They have a robust Twitter approach that could be used as inspiration to other brands. They have committed the time, energy and resources to have it truly impact the success of their business and impact the lives and experiences of their customer base. JetBlue maintains a customer complaint rate of 0.79 out of every 1,000 passengers. That puts them at the top of their industry.

Their 25-person team works around the clock to ensure their customers receive the care and attention they deserve. They are setting standard high but it is an approach that could easily be used by similar brands within the industry.

Brands and publics alike are seeing the importance of social  media in business practices.  It is a true benefit to both.

What are your thoughts on social media as a medium for customer service and customer commitment?  Do you use it in your daily professional lives?  What benefits or negatives have you experienced?

 

 

 

Thank You for Risking your Lives to Protect Our Freedom!

What do you do when you see one of our very own in uniform at the grocery store or at the airport? Do you stop and think of their sacrifices and their family’s sacrifices to ensure your freedoms? Do you thank them for all they do to enable you to live a life that is free? Let’s all try to remember what they do for each and everyone of us this Veteran’s Day!

It’s amazing to think of how emerging media is affecting the average consumer.  What is even more amazing is to think of how it is impacting our military and their families.  It is connecting service members with their families and giving their families back home online communities to serve as support systems.

In April 0f 2014, LinkedIn co-founder Konstantin Guericke was approached by veterans Aaron Klitzing and Yinon Weiss about taking social networking one step further for our armed forces.  As veterans themselves, they understood the need for professional resources for both our retired and active military.  Klitzing and Weiss had created a site very similar to LinkedIn that was targeted solely to our Armed Forces, both active and retired.  They had created RallyPoint,a professional military network, that has become an online community, sounding board, and professional guide for more than 500,000 active and retired military service members with the support of LinkedIn Co-Founder.

This emerging media platform currently has 10% of the entire military community signed up as members, which includes 25% of our active forces. I think this is powerful and more efforts need to be made within social media in an effort to support our armed forces.

What do you think are the next steps for this platform?

What do you think we could be doing within the constantly evolving world of emerging media to continue to engage our military?

Do you know of companies that make great efforts to recruit veterans?

As an ending note, I want to once again thank our service men and women for all they do!

We have all seen what hackers have done to large organizations such as Target and Home Depot.  They have made us as consumers wonder if these organizations are trustworthy.  Has this ruined their reputations forever?

We are also becoming more and more afraid of personally being targeted online and especially through social media. The Huffington Post in 2009 asked their viewers whether government leaders and their direct family members should be allowed to have personal Facebook pages.

Ask yourself, should the director of the United States Central Intelligence Agency, which is responsible for providing national security intelligence to senior U.S. policymakers, including the President, and who manages the operations, personnel, and budget of the CIA, have a Facebook page? Should his wife? Sir John Sawers is the incoming head of MI6, essentially the British equivalent of the CIA. His wife posted sensitive personal information to her Facebook page, including the address of the couple’s London apartment and the locations of their children and Sir John’s parents. She also posted family photos that included her half-brother, who was an associate and researcher for a historian who has been convicted of Holocaust denial. Her Facebook profile was left open to anyone in the London network.

What do you think about this scenario? It’s pretty eye opening, isn’t it?!

So much can happen in such a short time on the internet.  In one minute there are:

1. 20 new victims of identity theft
2. 6 million Facebook views
3. 204 million emails sent
4. 2+ million google search queries

So you may ask yourself, what can you do to protect yourself?

1. Before you post anything on the internet – make sure to ask yourself what a hacker, stalker or potential employer could do with that data? Remember once it is out there, it is out there!
2. Don’t post specifics. Do not post things like your address, date of birth or any account numbers.
3. Do not post that you are going on vacation or even leaving the house to go get dinner.  People are always watching.
4. If you allow your kids on social media, monitor EVERYTHING that they do.
5. Ensure that all privacy setting on social media are enabled at all times.
6. Pick different user names and passwords for different accounts.  Do not use passwords such as birthdates or pet names.

Are there any other tips you can think of that ensure your protection online?

Let me know!

Blog Roll

• WVU IMC Graduate Program
• Emerging Media Takes Flight
• Grimm Wisdom
• Exploration Media
• Emerging Media with Elizabeth Ferrari
• Media Bee
• Affinity Media 2015
• The Emerging Media Examiner
• Digital 3000 – Digital Media Strategies & Solutions
• GenerationWired – Branding in a Hyper Connected World
• CS ALLACCESS
• KROBIMC
• OTERO SKY
• MARKETINGSENSE
• Marketing At The Speed of Light
• MarCom Blogger
• SOCIAL BUTTERFLY
• Mercurial Media Musings