Twitter, Tweets, Twestival, Tweetheart... pt1

Everyone is using and talking about Twitter. From talk show host Ellen, to dictators in North Korea. Twitter is an amazing communication tool with endless possibilities, however brands are still unsure how to use Twitter effectively.

The next few posts will be all about how your company can use Twitter to build relationships with potential and existing customers.

*For a list of Twitter terms as seen in the title of this post visit the Twitterspeak page on Mashable.

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Definition of Tweetheart: that special tweeter who makes your heart skip a beat.
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Step 1: People don't enjoy talking or listening to robots.
Example: From the youngrepublicans.tv twitter account (I apologize for using a political website as an example, however it was the best example of how not to use twitter.)

"CIA Deputy Chief Visits Yemen for Talks on Fighting Terrorism: Steven Kappes made an unannounced visit to the co.. http://bit.ly/12TJh4"

If you visit the youngrepublicans twitter account you will notice every message includes a link to a website they want you to visit. There are no thoughts, emotions, or questions in any of the messages. There is no indication that there is a real person behind these messages. Even worse it seems the youngrepublicans have a serious problem interacting with other Twitter users.

How can the youngrepublicans use twitter more effectively?

Set-up twitter accounts as an actual human being representing the youngrepublicans brand.

Example:
Twitter name: John Doe
website: youngrepublicans.tv
Bio: Senior Director for youngrepublicans.tv...

Now John Doe can express how he feels about anything going on in regards to the youngrepublicans brand.

Posts can now read like this:

"Just read a great article on the CIA Deputy Chief's Visit to Yemen where he talks about fighting terrorism. http://bit.ly/12TJh4. Let me know what you think."

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Take away: When researching online marketing you will hear a lot of people using terms such as engagement, interaction, and transparency.

What do these words mean?

It means consumers want relationships and they can't have relationships with brands that act like robots.

Twitter robot characteristics.
-All talk and no listening
-Never engaging in conversations with other Twitter users
-Automated messages when you receive followers.
-No human attached to the Twitter account
-Generic posts with no opinion, or emotion

The next post will talk about how you can use tools such as Twitter Search and #tags to listen to your existing and potential customers.

Follow me on Twitter @ray kanani

Leverage Local

If you are visiting this site, chances are you found use through the local listings on Google. MarketR ranks high on many important and very expensive search terms such as online marketing and marketing agency.

Thanks to local listings we don't have to bid on these keywords using Google AdWords and in return save thousands of dollars a year.

We receive a lot of inquiries about search engine optimization and questions on how to increase a websites ranking on Google. The problem is SEO takes time and clients usually want immediate results.

What is the solution? - Dominate the local search.
You may have noticed when you search geographically targeted search term such as "Hair Salons in Vancouver" a local map shows up at the top of the Google page. This area is essential for any business serious about increasing it's online presence and growing the customer base. I am sure I do not have to convince you that people actually click on the local search area quite often, as you most likely clicked on it to get here.

Every client we have worked with has signed up for the local search package. And every client we have worked with has noticed a significant increase in web traffic and customers.

MarketR has put together a new search marketing package for small-medium sized businesses. We set you up with local listings and optimize for the most popular local search terms. We also integrate your website with tracking software so that you understand how your customers are finding you and where you can improve. Finally we set up Google AdWords so that you can bid on keyword that will drive potential customers to your website.

Inquire today about the search marketing package for small-medium sized business.

info@marketing-revoultion.com
or ask for Ray at 604 728 4979

YouTube Ad Competition

Some of us at the MarketR team recently entered the Young Lions YouTube Ad Competition.

Let us know what you think and check out some of the other entries. Young Lions 2009 - Ridiculous Vancouver

Why do we buy?

It has been a while since we updated the MarketR blog. It is ironic because the past 3 weeks we have been working with clients on developing strategies for keeping online content up to date.

Marketing 101: Consumers don't buy features, they buy benefits.

Why do we buy?

Why do we buy those $140 Nike shoes? Or that $1,000 Hugo Boss suit? Some may say because they are comfortable, or that the fit is better than anything else. That person does not understand why they buy.

Luxury good manufacturers don't sell shoes, suits, or even jewelery, they sell confidence, strength, and beauty. That is why we buy the $140 Nike shoes, or the $1,000 Hugo Boss suit. Not for the fit or for the comfort; instead, for the association of strength, confidence and beauty.

As the marketplace becomes increasingly more competitive, products become more and more generic. Take for example the bottled water industry. There are numerous companies selling bottled water, and they are all selling the exact same product. (Some may disagree, but when researchers did blind taste tests participants could not differentiate bottled water from tap water.) Bottled water companies can't promote their convenience because all there competitors are just as convenient. They can't promote their price because water is free. Because of this they have to create an association with an admirable human character trait. For example, Evian is perceived as being classy, and sophisticated. When consumers purchase Evian water they are not purchasing it for the convenience, or for the taste, they are purchasing it to be associated with class and sophistication. (There is a popular joke when talking about Evian water. Just read the word Evian backwards.)

What does this all mean?
It actually means a lot. It means that multi-million dollar corporations only have one thing that separates them from small-medium sized businesses, a multi-million dollar marketing budget. With this budget they are able to manipulate consumers into believing that purchasing overpriced shoes will result in admirable character traits such as confidence, strength and beauty.

Stop selling your product. Start selling your brand!
What does your company stand for? It isn't goods, or services. It is the desire to give back to the local community, it is your love for the environment, it is your dedication to volunteering. Consumers don't buy Nike shoes, they buy everything that Nike stands for.

MarketR allows you to promote what your company stands for without the multi-million dollar marketing budget.

PR 2.0 - Crazy Haired Eggs and the Power of Twitter

MarketR and Toni&Guy Vancouver teamed up to deliver one of the most exciting egg hunts Vancouver has seen.
Toni&Guy Vancouver is one of MarketR's largest clients. This means almost all marketing, events, promotions, and PR is handled by the MarketR team.

After the success of the Toni&Guy Declares W.A.R. event, we were very excited to come up with another affair that was going to attract a lot of buzz.

After taking a look at the Calendar we immediately saw an opportunity during Easter. Egg hunts have been around for many years, but over time have become dull and are mostly geared towards young children.

The MarketR team came up with a way Toni&Guy could rejuvenate the Easter egg hunt in a way that was unique to Toni&Guy.

The 1st Annual Crazy Hair Toni&Guy Egg Hunt.

The Objective
Raising brand awareness while building upon the existing branding that Toni&Guy is a fun, and creative salon that is constantly thinking outside the box.

The Campaign
Over 40 plastic eggs were decorated with crazy hair by the Toni&Guy team and placed around the city. Inside each egg was chocolate and a Toni&Guy gift card valued at up to $100. (Values ranged from $5-$100).

Samples of the eggs:



Visit the Toni&Guy Egg Hunt FlickR page for pictures of all the eggs.


Results:
The Toni&Guy Crazy Hair Egg Hunt created large amounts of buzz for the salon.

People were talking about the egg hunt over Twitter.

(Twitter Screenshot)

The egg hunt was featured on multiple local blogs.

MartiniBoys.com

TinyBites.ca

"This was the coolest egg hunt I’ve heard about this year! 40 coiffed Easter eggs will be hidden all over Kitsilano and downtown Vancouver. Each contains the requisite chocolate plus a T&G gift card ranging in value from $5 - $100.

To join in on the scavenger hunt, follow the clues that will be tossed out Friday afternoon and Saturday morning on the Tony & Guy blog and their Twitter account."

FashionMagazine.com
Miss604.com
TheStyleSpy.com
People who found the eggs started posting pictures online.


The Toni&Guy Vancouver website doubled in traffic and the Toni&Guy Twitter account acquired 70 new followers. Because of the websites dynamic content, traffic continues to grow everyday.

(The first spike in traffic was when the campaign launched. Twitter, and Facebook messages drove traffic to the site. The second spike was organic traffic from referring sites talking about the campaign. The third spike was when the egg hunt actually happened. Community involvement such as conversations on twitter and users posting pictures of their egg finds drove traffic to the website.)

Take Aways:
-If you want your brand to be perceived as fun and creative, make sure your events and promotions are fun and creative. (Sounds simple, but so many companies don't follow this rule)

-Utilize your staff: We were able to harness the talent of the Toni&Guy team to decorate the eggs. Instead of paying a street team to promote the event on Robson St, we used the Toni&Guy staff who were already enthusiastic about the event and loved showing off the eggs they decorated.

-Do not underestimate the power of Twitter: All communications to local bloggers was done through Twitter. Once the event was covered by one popular blog the event was quickly covered by many others. By engaging Twitter users, conversations about the event grew organically both before and after the event.

Pushing VS Pulling

In marketing there are two common techniques, pushing and pulling.


Pushing means your marketing material is geared towards pushing your product onto the customer. This means offering incentives for employees or sales representatives to push your product or placing your product in areas were customers impulsively buy. Promotions are a form of push marketing, or advertisments that end with "buy now."

For example: Energy drinks love to use push marketing. You will see numerous street teams handing out products and promotions to potential customers. A lot of perks are given to retail stores to carry specific energy drinks, such as free tickets to events, price breaks, and merchandising material.



Pull, means your marketing strategy inspires consumers to demand your product. This technique requires you to use your head rather than your wallet. You need to come up with ways to relate with and engage your target market. Tools often used are sponsorship, product placement, PR stunts, and word of mouth.

For example: Apple Computers very rarely pushes. Instead they use product placement, PR and innovative advertisements to create consumer demand for their products. If you look at Apple computer advertising you'll notice that they never end with quotes such as "buy now" or "available at the following locations." The ads are never trying to push the product, instead the message is "this is who we are, this is our product, and this is what it does."

An energy drink company that focuses on pull marketing is Red Bull. By sponsoring events such as the soap box derby, concerts and Formula 1, Red Bull has created an image that is relatable to its target market.

Both Apple and Red Bull offer no price breaks to retail stores, and almost no perks for selling their product. However thanks to their powerful pull marketing strategies they offer something that other brands can't, guaranteed consumer demand. Stores like London Drugs know that although Apple and Red Bull products are priced higher and have smaller margins, the product is demanded by their customers. Because of this stores are forced to stock these brands.

So why don't all companies use pull marketing?
-It takes time to see results
-Consistency is key
-Coming up with creative ideas takes too much time and energy

These are the three biggest reasons small-medium sized companies don't use pull marketing.

Contact MarketR to learn how we can help you develop cost effective pull marketing strategies.

Did You Know - The Online Revolution

MarketR was formed because the Internet is in the process of revolutionizing the marketing industry. The Internet allows you to communicate with your target customers quickly, and cost effectively. Unfortunately many marketing agencies in Vancouver are struggling to understand how to use the internet effectively. Even worse is when agencies feel they should charge clients the same ridiculous fees as offline marketing.


Visit the MarketR - Main Page to learn how you can use the Internet to grow your business.

The Internet is growing at an incredibly rate. If your company is not harnessing the power of the Internet you will get left behind.