Posts Tagged ‘Marketing’
This Season’s Jewelry Retailer Holiday Campaigns: Toying with Emotions
Thursday, December 11th, 2008
This holiday season, economic analysts have watched spending on luxury goods decline, deeming such behavior as one telltale sign of an ongoing recession. Meanwhile, many jewelry retailers are having previously unforeseen difficulties in selling to consumers shopping conservatively.
By the end of November, Blue Nile, De Beers, and Tiffany’s – some of the industry’s Goliaths – had all reported sales declines with the economic downturn to blame. As a result, while most other retailers reduced their yearly forecasts, others have experimented with new marketing campaigns that play with customers’ heartstrings:
Stuller
Along with its Red Box Diamond brand, this Louisiana-based manufacturer and distributor is also supplying its own marketing campaign that reminds the customer of Diamond Moments – a birthday, an anniversary, a milestone – in which its jewelry would serve as a meaningful gift.
“We want to create demand,” said Stanley Zale, vice president of diamonds, to National Jeweler. “We want to create markets. We’re not waiting for someone to do it.”
Until December 31, Stuller is also encouraging customers to submit their own Diamond Moments story, for a chance to win a pair of diamond stud earrings. Claudia Evans Stuller, the company’s business development director, has also appeared on home makeover show Designing Spaces to promote the campaign and contest.
JCPenney
“Diamonds have always been a girl’s best friend, but men don’t always remember how much women enjoy receiving diamond jewelry for the holidays,” said Beryl Raff, executive vice president of fine jewelry, in a statement. As a hard-hitting reminder, the retailer launched BewareoftheDoghouse.com.
Its main feature is a four-minute video, telling the story of a man banished from his home after he gave his wife a dual-bag vacuum cleaner as a gift. He ends up in the "doghouse," where men like himself repent after such thoughtless gift-giving. In its cliffhanger ending, the camera pans in on a diamond necklace.
With such sentiment in mind, women visiting the Web site can also warn their significant others that they deserve a “Doghouse” lesson. Luckily for such men, women can also note through these e-mail notifications a way out: one of six JCPenney diamond gifts they’d prefer to receive.
Bailey’s Fine Jewelry
Since August, Bailey’s Fine Jewelry have scattered its trademark black-and-white striped gift boxes with red bows in the North Carolina towns of its three stores: Raleigh, Greenville, and Rocky Mount. As an attached note indicates, anyone who stumbles across them gets “finders keepers” on the jewelry gift tucked inside.
Trey Bailey, director of operations, thought that such gifts – with values ranging from $20 to $100 – would help generate more business. If anything else, the campaign has proven to generate buzz quickly. Cecilia Upchurch, the first to find a Bailey’s gift, told the story of how she found a box to her friends, church members, and family through its Web site, according to The News and Observer.
Tags: Bailey's Fine Jewelry, christina lee, JCPenney, jewelry retailers, Marketing, online advertising, Stuller
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Keeping the Green Movement Going: How to Avoid Eco-Fatigue
Monday, September 22nd, 2008
Unless you’ve been hiding under a non-carbon based rock for the last five years, you are probably aware that there is a massive environmental movement under way. This movement is centered around the dangers posed to the planet by global warming, as caused by the actions of human beings.
Governments, businesses, and individuals are all on the green train, but there is a new worry on the horizon: will people eventually tire of being told what to do in order to save the planet?
There is a curve when it comes to marketing of any product or idea. First, the idea starts small, then gains momentum. Eventually the idea has the support of thousands of people, but then a funny thing happens: all of a sudden, everyone gets tired of hearing the same old message.
It Ain’t Easy Being Green
This has happened time and again in marketing, but the problem with consumers and so- called eco-fatigue is that the very life of the planet depends on people continuing to live greener - and supporting businesses that conduct business in a greener manner.
In other words, no one can become eco-fatigued enough that they actually fall asleep, or the result may be a permanent coma.
So how does a business go about helping others, and the business itself, to avoid eco- fatigue? Well, first of all businesses need to be leaders in the area of green living. Businesses need to show people, through example, that their impact on the environment is important to them.
They can do so by using recycled and recyclable packaging with the recycle symbol on it. Refusing to use too many supplies - and making sure those supplies are eco-friendly - will also send the message that your business cares about the environment.
Use A Light Touch
And that is really what avoiding eco-fatigue is about; staying away from the point where people begin to feel as though they are being bullied into inconvenient behaviors in order to circumvent a catastrophe at some point in the distant future.
The campaign surrounding green living has traditionally centered around fear and guilt, and people just can’t take that kind of treatment for long (just look at how effective it is on your teenager!).
Sooner or later they rebel, and it usually happens in a big way; while they may have done little things before to help out, now they do nothing because they are just tired of being pushed into it.
The way to avoid this problem lies in the way we state what green living is all about. It is surprising how little of the ‘living green’ campaign focuses on how smart green living actually is; it is not just about the environment, it is about the bottom line.
Turning off lights, using less water and driving less means a far less outlay of cash. It is just more convenient to do paperless paper work; much easier to send messages wirelessly, and much easier to keep records.
In order to avoid eco-fatigue, then, it is important both to lead and to emphasize the positive. Doing so will be good for your business - and good for the planet.
Tags: consumers, eco friendly, eco-fatigue, environment, environmental movement, going green, Green, green business, green movement, how to, Leeia Ladipoh, Marketing
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Reach Out and Touch - Selling Clothing Online
Friday, September 19th, 2008
"There will never be a significant clothing market online," I was once told by a leading Scottish fashion journalist. "People don’t want to buy clothes unless they can reach out and touch them."
In fact, tens of thousands of items of clothing, both new and used, are traded on eBay every week. Though there are other specialist clothing auction sites available, none of them can guarantee anything like as many potential customers. Whether you represent a clothing company or are a private individual wanting to make some money out of old garments which no longer fit, eBay will often be your best bet. Along with all those customers, however, comes all that competition. How can you make your item stand out? How can you make a potential customer feel as if he or she can reach out and touch it?
I am continually amazed to see items of clothing advertised on eBay without accompanying pictures. Such items hardly ever sell. Why would they? Unless you’re selling a designer piece which everybody in your market niche is familiar with (in which case you should be promoting it as much as possible in order to encourage high bidding), people will be buying blind. Customers need to be able to imagine how they or their loved ones will look in the clothes they buy. The clothes must be presented clearly, in a good light. If an item has unusual features at the front and back, it may be wise to include several pictures. You can compound your pictures into a single image if you want to avoid paying extra fees. Consider whether the item looks best in a static pose or when moving - for instance, a full skirt should be drawn outward so that the customer can see how much fabric it contains, and giving the impression that it’s swinging outward helps the customer to imagine how it will look when she’s walking around in it.
It’s important to portray items of clothing in the right setting. Designer wear often looks best in a plain studio photograph, because that’s how it is intended to be seen. Fashionable urban wear can look good shot against the backdrop of a busy street or a window view of a city. Practical outdoor wear might be best photographed in your garden. This helps customers to think about the image which the clothing can give them, even if they don’t intend it to be worn in those environments.
Finally, when you have described the color and style of your garment, don’t forget about the texture. Texture is an important factor in many people’s purchasing choices. Make sure you identify the fabric accurately and any special features (such as whether it is crushed or pleated). Close-up photos can be used to highlight attractive details.
Properly packaged, your eBay item can seem every bit as appealing as a beautiful piece of clothing on the catwalk or in a high street store.
Tags: E-Commerce and E-Business, Marketing, Web Design, wholesale clothing
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Advertising Do’s and Don’ts
Tuesday, August 12th, 2008
If you’re looking to create an advertising campaign for your business, you need to make sure you approach it correctly if you want it to make an impact. This is regardless of what form your advertising will take - online, print, television or radio. After all, you’re probably spending quite a bit on the advertising costs, so you need to make sure you’re getting your money’s worth.
Here’s a list of do’s and don’ts when developing your campaign:
Keeping it Clean
Do use simple ideas: Focus your campaign on one image, slogan, or concept.
Don’t have 4-5 images vying for attention: your ad will likely confuse readers into just turning the page.
Do keep it short: Give them 2-3 benefits and enough interest to make them want to find out more.
Don’t clutter the page with too much information: Again, don’t confuse people with information overload. Save all the extraneous information for your brochure, catalog, or advertorial piece.
Do keep it relevant: Think of your target audience and give them only the offers or benefits relevant to them. You’ll get a much better response rate.
Don’t just throw everything you have out there: If you have several different product lines, you don’t want to talk about all of them in one ad. Relevance is key!
It’s All in the Headline
Do make your headline short and impactful: a website has less than 10 seconds to grab your attention when you land on it. An advertisement has even less, so you need to grab your intended audience from the word “Go!” This means that your headline needs to be snappy, sharp and effective.
Don’t have a long-winded headline: The more your audience has to read, the more bored they’ll become. Get to the point!
Do compare where necessary: consumers want to know why they should buy from you and not your competitors - give them benefits.
Don’t go on too much about your company: you’ll just put your audience off altogether. Offer them something instead - anything that shows what’s in it for them.
Stand Out Visually
Do grab attention with your logo or a graphic: Think about the slogan for clothes designer FCUK - at first glance, you have to look twice to make sure you haven’t misread. This is the kind of attention you want - a catchy slogan and one that stays in your mind after you’ve seen it. If you can afford to, have a professional designer come up with some examples for you.
Don’t be too clever: The last thing you want is for your ad to be so clever that your audience has to think too long to get it. Remember, 10 seconds…
Tags: advertising, advice, danny brown, Marketing, marketing campaign, Marketing Your Business, tips
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Humanizing Your Website
Wednesday, July 9th, 2008
One of the biggest problems online marketers face is grabbing the attention of surfers. The second is building instant trust between the surfer and the website. The latter sounds practically impossible but new technology has once again prevailed and brought us one step closer to the goal.
Perhaps you’ve seen it and perhaps you haven’t. Regardless, it’s making a splash in the online advertising/marketing community. What is it? (drum roll please…)
Moving media.
The principle is to place a "live host" on your website that will greet your customers and personally introduce your site and company. The humanized video makes for a far more personalized feel to your site and establishes a sense of trust worthiness and credibility. Many large companies are jumping on the bandwagon and from everything I’ve heard, people seem to think it’s a pretty cool thing.
Two companies appear to have the market cornered on creating and delivering this service. Rovion and Webouts offer the same things essentially however, Webouts appears to be different in that their video person can enter from any direction on your website while Rovion’s are apparently stationary.
The companies allow you to produce your own creative but also have their own teams that can work with you to produce the desired result. The clips can be up to 30 seconds long and Rovion’s starting price for a small campaign is $2,500.
Check out Rovion and Webouts for examples and more information.
Tags: advertising, E-Commerce and E-Business, Marketing, Marketing Your Business, moving media, online marketing, Rebecca Button, websites
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Viral Marketing Gone Right…on accident…sort of.
Monday, July 7th, 2008
This video has had 3.5 million+ hits in the past month.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4SqJz0NgnnE
The ad was designed to be a part of a viral marketing campaign for Gatorade. The ad was pulled however when Gatorade decided it wanted to pursue a different direction with it’s marketing campaign but somehow the video still leaked out and to Gatorade’s great fortune, they got to see just how successful the campaign might have been.
Granted, Gatorade has millions of dollars it can spend on stunt girls and fancy video editing but no amount of money can buy the phenomenal reach their video has had online. It goes to show that if your video is worth watching, people will watch it and spread it around whether they know what it’s for or not. This is the "word of mouth " marketer’s dream come true. I bet the folks at Gatorade are kicking themselves now for not attaching a bigger logo to the end of the clip!
Tags: E-Commerce and E-Business, Marketing, Marketing Your Business, online marketing, Rebecca Button, viral marketing, viral video, word of mouth, word of mouth marketing
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Avoid these 7 mistakes when rebranding your company
Tuesday, July 1st, 2008
The one thing that enduring companies have in common is that they change. Not only can their products vary but also the image they project as well. Rebranding is common in the business world and quite often vital in order to succeed. Take McDonalds for example. You wouldn’t have thought that this global company would have to work too hard to sell any hamburgers but take a look at this commercial from 1985:
Now check out this one from 2003:
So as you can see, McDonalds has changed their approach from a more childlike appeal in the first commercial to actually trying to appeal to many different types of people and lifestyles. This certainly reflects the size of the company at each moment in time as well as the different markets they are trying to reach.
If you are considering rebranding here are the top mistakes marketers make according to Jessica Seid of CNNMoney.com :
1. Clinging to history. Successful rebranding means staying relevant. Remember that assumptions made when the brand was established may no longer hold true. Explore various opportunities for brand expansion, such as online advertising.
2. Thinking the brand is limited to the logo, stationery and corporate colors. Brands encompass everything from customer perception and experience to quality, look and feel, customer care, retail and web environments, the tone and voice of communications, and more.
3. Navigating without a plan. Effective rebrands rely on a creative brief to keep everyone focused as the project progresses. Include sections for an analysis, objectives, target markets, budget, timeframe, point person and methods for assessing results.
4. Not leveraging existing brand equity and goodwill. Dismissing brand equity when rebranding alienates established customers, while unnecessary overhauls can irreparably damage a brand’s perception. Consider the needs and mindset of the target market carefully before diving into the process.
5. Not walking in your customer’s shoes. Simply calling your own 800-number or receptionist may reveal challenges customers face and inform your rebranding strategy. Take the time to navigate your own website, buy your products and return something. Better yet, ask a friend or family member to do so and learn from their experiences.
6. Believing rebranding costs too much. Good thinking doesn’t have to come with a multi-million dollar payout. You can get good thinking and solid strategy from small and talented branding agencies, consultants and in-house talent. Consider university students or small firms for cost-effective results.
7. Bypassing the basics. The value of perfecting your physical environment, marketing materials, website, etc., is decreased if your customers languish on hold for inordinate amounts of time. If your invoices and contracts are written in seven-point legal jargon, the brand experience declines. Keep all customer touchpoints in mind when rebranding.
Tags: advertising, branding, logo, Marketing, Marketing Your Business, Rebecca Button, rebranding, trademark
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Be a Marketing Rock Star
Monday, June 16th, 2008
When was the last time you read a business book? Last month? Last week? Yesterday? Now? (Wow, if you’re reading a book now AND reading this blog I’m personally inviting you to my house for tea and crumpets so you can teach me how to simultaneously read two things at once!) Here’s a better question. When was the last time you read a business book that was as easy as reading the latest Harry Potter? Probably can’t even remember huh?
Well my friends, I present to you one of the easiest and rewarding books out there today. It is called "Word of Mouth Marketing: How Smart Companies Get People Talking" and it’s written by one of marketing’s biggest rock stars, Andy Sernovitz .
It’s written in an incredibly conversational tone and offers seemingly "no brainer" advice on how to build your company through the sheer power of word of mouth marketing . I think the biggest word I ran into was "obfuscation" (it means to confuse, FYI). Andy combines his 18 years of experience with changes that are happening currently with the internet to paint an astonishingly simple picture of the right way to market your business.
The book is a mere 184 pages including a foreword by fellow marketing/internet compatriots Seth Godin and an afterward by Guy Kawasaki. If you don’t want to miss out on lots of free marketing for your business, be sure to check it out .
Tags: books, Marketing, Marketing Your Business, online marketing, Rebecca Button, Reviews, word of mouth marketing
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Build Your Brand the Right Way
Thursday, June 12th, 2008
I’m sure you’ve seen those cheesy commercials that crowd your late night television viewing. You know the ones promising extraordinary results and benefits that basically scream in your ear to BUY IT! Well, I suppose those work to some degree because otherwise they would have fizzled out long ago. But the average business owner needs a different approach. A very different approach.
Be conscientious of what your copy sounds like. If it sounds like one of those late night "razzle-dazzle" quick-sell commercials, you’re on the wrong track. Here are some ways to figure out if it falls into that category (from Marketingprofs.com ):
Exclamation points. Use them judiciously—if at all—and only when a statement truly merits the added excitement.
Numbers. Headlines like "10 Powerful Secrets for [Fill in the Blank]" will undoubtedly pique a potential customer’s interest; but they also sound like copy that will lead to an impulse buy, not a long-term business relationship.
Hyperbolic claims. Does an image-conscious company really offer something extra for acting now, or suggest that the big secret will be revealed for the low, low price of $199.99?
The idea is not only to sell your product but to form a lasting relationship with the customer so they will keep coming back time and time again. Read more about how to build your brand here .
Tags: advertising, advice, branding, copywriting, Generating More Sales, Marketing, Marketing Your Business, Rebecca Button, tips, writing copy
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Using the Web to Draw in Customers
Monday, June 2nd, 2008
Many brick and mortar stores have learned by now that they need to have a website in order to compete in today’s internet driven consumer marketplace. What many of them haven’t figured out yet is that there is much more to using the internet to draw in customers than simply having a website with store hours and information on it.
It is becoming increasingly important for businesses to make themselves available for customer reviews. Sites such as Amazon.com use the customer review system to sell products. Yelp.com uses the same concept but allows consumers to review actual businesses. This type of instant feedback is valuable to the business as well as potential customers. Studies show that consumers trust peer reviews 83% of the time while experts are trusted only 63% of the time.
If you put your business out there for customer reviews expect both good and bad. Take the time to contact all reviewers if you can. This will likely improve your overall rating and bring in a considerable amount of extra business from people who check these sites frequently and write reviews themselves.
Tags: customer service, Generating More Sales, Growing Your Business, Marketing, Marketing Your Business, peer reviews, Rebecca Button, yelp
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