Engagement Statistics That Suck In Even The Savviest Of Marketers

March 22nd, 2010 by Rory Partalis
Categories: Social Media, Trend Spotting | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments »

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Whether you realize it or not, I’m sure you’ve fallen victim to one of the most effective marketing tricks in the book – sucking people in by providing them with engagement statistics.  It’s a tough concept to wrap your head around initially, but once you understand it, you notice it everywhere – the endless feedback loop of engagement statistics.

The draw of this is most apparent in video game addicts. Do you know someone who is obsessed with improving their XBOX Gamer Score or getting enough XP to level up their character in WoW (that’s World of Warcraft for you n00bs)? Do you know a Facebook addict that is consumed with seemingly mindless apps like Farmville or Mafia Wars?  Why do they care so much about something that has little to no effect on their real life?  Because their stats are constantly shared with themselves and their peers and it becomes a status symbol or competition of sorts. It also taps into the OCD in us all – a desire to make progress and accomplish things.

However, this isn’t just limited to gamers.  Take marketers, like myself.  Too much of my time is consumed with checking email because I hate to have things on my to do list or unread email messages.  I also spend a lot of time on Google Reader making sure to keep up with my RSS feeds and to make sure I continue to share and read shared items with my peers.  Actually, when I think about it, much of my online life is trying to suck me in even further with engagement stats and feedback loops: Twitter followers, RTs, DMs, @ replies and lists; Facebook friends; Netflix Queue lists and rated movie counts; and Foursquare check-ins…

There is a debate to be had about whether this is a healthy trend or not, but I’m not going there because I feel like there is no turning back now.  People, like myself, enjoy being able to see statistics on our own behavior and being able to compare that behavior with friends’.  However, I do recommend moderation and reflection on our behavior.  Most people reading this blog consider themselves savvy marketers or advertisers, so we should be able to spot these techniques designed to encourage re-engagement. Feel free to get sucked into these binges of OCD behavior from time to time, but know when to say “enough is enough.”

On the other hand, from a marketer’s perspective, giving people access to statistics is a valuable tool to encourage re-engagement. Use it wisely.

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What do Red Cross, Harvard and Tasti D-Lite have in common?

January 14th, 2010 by Kristen Green
Categories: Cause Marketing, Digital Media, Social Media | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments »

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What do Red Cross, Harvard, and Tasti D-Lite have in common? They have all learned how to use existing social media and digital platforms to work overtime for their causes and brands. Let’s take a little walk through three highly effective and brilliant uses of this digital thinking.

Case Study No. 1: Red Cross
As the world watches the heart-breaking images of the devastating earthquake, our hearts are saddened. We want to provide help in whatever way that we can, but we live here. They are there. What role can we play? This is where Red Cross stepped in to provide a way. Everyone knows that Red Cross plays a huge role in responding to disasters around the world. They also accept donations that fund these very causes. Their mission didn’t change but their call-to-action did. Many people would never take the time to seek out a way to give to Red Cross, but our tech-savvy society had phones in hand when they heard of the Haiti disaster. Many of us, including myself, learned of the disaster on my phone. So, the idea of using that device as a quick and easy means of collecting money was perfect. With a simple text message, you can donate $10 to the Red Cross’ relief efforts in Haiti. The buzz about the 90999 SMS code spread like wildfire across Twitter and Facebook. Within 3 days they had raised over $3 million dollars in donations through text messaging alone. That is phenomenal! That is money that may have never been seen if this system wasn’t in place. It is such a simple technology, but it found a great use in this tragedy. Tony Aiello of mGive, the company that is handling the donations for Red Cross, said it best, “Today is a huge day for mobile giving. We are experiencing a tipping point.”

Case Study No. 2: Harvard
Remember the first day that you walked onto your college campus as a freshman? Can’t you feel your heart pounding as you try to discreetly glance at your campus map that is secretly tucked away inside of your shiny new binder? Well, Harvard is attempting to take the fear out of freshman life and encourage upper class-men to become more involved and active on campus. Enter Foursquare. For all of you Mayors out there, you already know that Foursquare is a game that lets you & your friends discover new things in the city, and you earn points and unlock badges when you discover something new. You can think of it as a location-based scavenger hunt with the goal being to connect with new places and ultimately new people. So, Harvard has partnered with Foursquare to create a game and badge specific to their locations. I think this is a great use of a previously existing social platform. Instead of reinventing the wheel, Harvard has harnessed the power of a very popular tool to encourage campus activity and help save fearful freshman.

Case Study No. 3: Tasti D-Lite
If you peek inside your wallet, do you find a stack of unused loyalty reward cards? Or do you have a myriad of grocery store fobs that adorn your key ring? Even though the rewards of using loyalty cards can be beneficial to our bottom line, many people simply forget to use them. But would you reconsider if your incentives were increased? Tasti D-Lite has taken a new approach to customer loyalty by combining digital platforms that their patrons already use. If you connect your Tasti D-Lite loyalty card, known as the TreatCard, to your Twitter and/or Foursquare account, you can earn additional points for spreading your Tasti D-Lite love. When you swipe your card, you will earn points for an automated tweet that will go out, and when you check in on Foursquare more points will be added to your account. Again, it’s such a simple idea that will most definitely have an effect on their patrons. Tasti D-Lite may be one of the first to attach loyalty rewards to social media engagement, but they won’t be last. Others will soon see the benefits and follow suit.

Brands are always looking for ways to further their cause, engage their consumers, and increase their awareness. Red Cross, Harvard, and Tasti D-Lite, although drastically different in their missions, have all found a shared success harnessing the power of existing digital addictions. These case studies are great examples of how to implement easy and highly successful programs for your brand. So, what digital power will your brand harness?

Sources:
NY Times Blog
Mashable: Harvard
Mashable: Tasti D-Lite

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The masses are mingling. Is your brand at the party?

January 6th, 2010 by Kristen Green
Categories: Digital Media, Social Media | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments »

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image by chrisjohnbeckett

2010 is upon us, and many of us are surveying the triumphs and failures of the last decade in an attempt to make this one better than the last. Many top ten lists have surfaced for the latest and greatest predictions of the coming year and decade, and I have been especially drawn to the “10 Crucial Consumer Trends for 2010″ that was published by trendwatching.com. One of particular interest to me is the idea of Mass Mingling. As trendwatching.com puts it, “Ironically the same technology that was once seen to be—and condemned for—turning entire generations into homebound gaming zombies and avatars, is now deployed to get people out of their homes.” As more people are utilizing location based social services, such as Foursquare, Loopt, and Google Latitude, more people of similar interests are gravitating together for common causes and fun. The digital walls have fallen.  We are now entering what I believe to be a world that has a digital layer that lives on the real streets, rather than a computer world full of 3-D avatars. People no longer desire to hide behind the anonymity of their computer screen, but they are seeking to connect and share in real-time and in real-life with those who they have discovered via the interwebs.  So, what does this mass of mingling mean for your brand? I view it as the golden opportunity for 2010.

In decades gone by brands had to hunt down their target and attempt to assimilate a mix of media that would hopefully hit a large percentage of those eyeballs. In today’s world, people are clustering themselves willfully. The upside for brands? Go find your group and follow them. I mean this both figuratively and literally. If you keep a constant finger on the pulse of your brand’s society, you can become a part of that culture. You can learn how to add value to conversation,  provide reward for brand enthusiasm, and make yourself a lovemark to those who your brand values most. Hear about a flash mob that is going to assemble? Make sure that you are there to be a part of the action. Learn of a tweet-up or tumblr meetup that has the attention of your brand’s target?  Be there! Make your face a common presence among your in-crowd. Now, you don’t want to be a salesman at the party. You want to be the cool kid who is laid back that other people seek out. If you wear your brand well, then you won’t have to shout from the rooftops. Also, if this is truly your right target, they will welcome your presence and not shun you from the fun.

How is your brand going to mingle in 2010? Step outside of your comfort zone and get out there! No one ever made new friends by staying home on Saturday nights.

Source: www.trendwatching.com. One of the world’s leading trend firms, trendwatching.com sends out its free, monthly Trend Briefings to more than 160,000 subscribers worldwide.

Image by chrisjohnbeckett

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