Spam-vertising

I have actually been sitting on this blog post for quite some time as I have been very busy with work but figured I would finally share with the world my thoughts on Spam/advertising, especially how it pertains to Social Media, as well as a little run in I had a few months back that inspired this post.

It all with a Tweet that read, “Check out our company on Facebook (with the link) for your Social Media needs.” Never before had I contacted this company nor had they tried to follow me or engage in any conversation I had been in. Naturally I decided to check out their stream and sure enough there were many other Tweets with the same wording. Having been on twitter for a while and suffered through this kind of spam, I will admit that I was more than a little frustrated. I shot a tweet back asking if spamming Twitter was successful for them and left it at that. They responded! Imagine that, an actual person behind the spam! Actually they were not pleased with the term “spam” that I used and said they would not answer the question. After an exchange of tweets of the next couple days (including the owner saying that sending out mass tweets unsolicited without consent was not spam) I did get out of him that it apparently had led to a little business.

After this altercation I began to wonder, is the minimal amount of time spamming the internet worth the 1-2% return (typical direct mail return)? Is there a better way to interact online for a brand that is not well known/service that is not constantly needed? It all goes back to what any number of social media experts stress, engaging the audience and monitoring the channels. My best example on monitoring comes from work I do with the credit union I work at. I have my Google Alerts set up for many different keywords and I check them at least once a day. One morning I came across someone asking about a product we offer. Sent him a tweet and we received a call a little while later form his friend. Unfortunately we were unable to help this specific person but we were there. It was a lead and all it took was a tweet.

I will admit that I am no expert. I love social media and am constantly learning and trying new things. In a field this young, there are few experts to speak of. Learn the best practices and apply them. Engage your followers and make following you worth their while. If you do this you will have a better chance at succeeding than using spam tactics for your online advertising. Stay away from Spam-vertising or you will likely be blocked from the very people you are trying to help. If I am going to hire a firm, I want to know that they are knowledgeable and understand what they are talking about, not one that is on social media only for themselves.

I have checked the company’s stream recently and there is no more spam. Unfortunately there are many posts from Twitterfeed, but that is a rant for another day.

What is your definition of spam?

Foursquare Needs to Up Their “Game”

Lately in the social media world there has been a lot of talk about the geolocation, and rightly so. For those of you unaware, geolocation uses the GPS in your phone to determine where you are. From there, and depending on the app, you can check-in to the place you are and tell your friends. This sphere is getting to be so popular that Facebook has even announced an entrance into the geolocation arena.

Currently there are quite a few players vying for supremacy with clear, current leader. Foursquare is leading the pack even though it was not the first entrant and this is attributed to the game aspect that has been included. In this game you earn badges for completing tasks or can become “Mayor” of your favorite spot by checking-in more than anyone else. The rest of the pack includes BrightKite, Loopt, Gowalla and Whrrl, among others.

While Foursquare does currently have the lead I recently found a new service with loads of potential, SCVNGR. Remember having scavenger hunts as a kid? This has the same premise. SCVNGR runs off of points, you get a point just for checking in and then the real game comes into play. This past week I checked-in at a local Mexican restaurant for a meeting. Upon checking in I was then given the tasks to gain more points; Social Check-in (check-in with friends), Take a picture, Fear Factor (where you take a picture of your food in such a way that it looks like it should be on Fear Factor) and Say Something (those are all I remember).

So what is so good about this new service? This makes the game all the more interactive and all your non-tech minded friends can help you complete the tasks. The creators have also been hard at work speaking with various companies to get a rewards program off the ground. If that does not start your creative wheels turning how about a partnership with the Minnesota Vikings? What does this new service have in store? Growth. I have been watching it for quite some time and only recently jumped in the game with the acquisition of a new phone.

This is currently the only thing slowing growth, availability. For those with an iPhone or Android device I recommend jumping in. The great thing is that you can create a trek and anyone with SMS capability can join in, just not for the check-in service.

My conclusion after playing around with SCVNGR for the last little bit is that Foursquare may need to update a few things to keep their spot on top. The potential for this relatively new entrant is immense and with geolocation on the rise, as well as GPS-enabled phones sales rising, SCVNGR is in a good spot to grow, quickly.

Maybe what they should focus on is making an app available to those without smartphones to get them enthralled with the service so when they finally do go to the smartphones they are already engaged in SCVNGR and will not want to try the other services. Could this be the key to dominance for geolocation to really take off? Only time will tell.

Be formulating new strategy to incorporate these services, I know I am.

Let me know what you think. Have you tried SCVNGR or any of the other apps mentioned and if so what is your take? Or is geolocation more of a fad?

Time to get Organized

So I have finally decided to prioritize my days. I always think more clearly when I go for a nice long drive so last night I decided to do just that. I figured I needed to find out when I felt I was the most successful and happy in my life and see what was going on at that point. I finally came to the conclusion and decided I needed to add more simplicity in my life.

While organizing my days may not seem simplistic it really can be. I came to the conclusion that I needed to better myself as well. What really came to mind was the fact that I currently am fluent in Spanish and I have always wanted to learn another language. I have now planned time in my day to work out and learn Italian. Today was my first day and it has been a great morning.

I started thinking about how this pertains to Marketing. Well the market is ever-changing and if you do not stay on top of the changing landscapes you will never progress. The great Ogilvy said that “Encourage innovation. Change is our lifeblood, stagnation our death knell.” This is true in anything we do but even more so in business and marketing. Think of the companies that have been slow to embrace change and how long they were on top when the changes came.

In Marketing we have a new platform in front of us, Social Media. While many companies are embracing certain aspects of this new media they do not embrace it well enough. Many marketers understand the need to be there but do not understand how to use it. Worse yet is they do not innovate while there. They are not organized and are not trying to better themselves and their company. It is time to change that.

What do you think can be done to show these companies how to better themselves and get organized in the Social Media realm? Shouldn’t they be studying these technologies for their personal benefit or is it just a passing fad?

Socrates of Marketing

I love Marketing. Any kind really. Advertising, strategy, social media, guerrilla, viral, you name it I like it and have either experimented in it or actually worked on it. I figure I would talk a little about what has worked for me as well as my general philosophy on marketing itself.

When I take a look at Marketing I really like to see how I can dive into the consumers mind. I take a look at the typical consumer (I know, research!) to see how they think and feel. Sometimes this is already done for me but most times this will include people watching in heavily crowded areas (This is a very necessary skill in Marketing in my opinion).

After I get a feel for who I am aiming at (I never take more than a few hours as time is money), I begin to formulate the channels that will be used. I have experience in a variety of different Marketing backgrounds so my campaigns tend to include a variety of ideas (and I personally prefer ideas that are considered Guerrilla in nature).

Best advice is to go with what you are comfortable with and what fits with your demographic. If you do not understand Social Media, do not go there. You will lose out on business but by not executing a social media campaign well you will be exiling those potential clients for quite some time.

Need help? Let me know in the comments what specific advice you need and I will be more than happy to help you out.

Blockbuster idea or too little too late?

So it is no surprise that Netflix and Redbox are taking over how we rent videos. Less overhead to deal with then the brick and mortar counterparts. What is surprising is the deal they both signed with Warner Bros studios making it so the WB movies arrive in stock a full month after being released. Smart move on WB’s part as it (hopefully) will boost DVD and Blu-Ray sales, although unlikely to make a big difference. This blog post is not directly about this deal or even the two previously mentioned rental companies. It is about Lackluster….er Blockbuster.

I had read this article today on CNNMoney.com about the fact that Blockbuster is in danger. They have way too much debt and, well let’s face it, an antiquated business model. I am impressed with the flexibility Blockbuster has had in trying to change the way they have done business and using the brick and mortar stores to their advantage but is it too little too late?

Well the aforementioned article mentioned a possible competitive advantage that Blockbuster may now have up its sleeve. Blockbuster also recently signed a deal with Warner Bros but this deal lets Blockbuster have the movies when they come out for a sharply discounted price, allowing WB to receive more of the rental royalties. What does this mean for Blockbuster? More cash up front to pay down its debt. Also it gives it the chance to run store and print ads like this:

Now this is aggressive advertising. This is arguably one of the biggest movies of the last year and look you has it first! I applaud you Blockbuster and wish you well. I hope this works for you as you now deserve a little more street cred.