Winners in Social Media Marketing
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Two Tarts Bakery (TTB)
What they didFacebook: TTB created a Facebook page and linked their blog entries and twitter conversation to the content updater. Events and PR: TTB used Upcoming.com, Google Calendar, and PR to spread the word about new cookies, classes and partners they are working with.Yelp: TTB has used Yelp announcements for new recipes
Lesson - AwarenessStarting small, TTB has been able to create a cult following and increase sales by over 800% in 10 months. Classes sell out quickly, retail traffic has grown and online chatter has been overwhelming. Online chatter has led to 2 major magazine articles and 3 local newspaper write-ups. (Keep in mind, this is a tiny bakery with a limited budget and they made an effective campaign)
Two Tarts Bakery Examples
Blendtec
What they didYouTube: Created by George Write, the marketing director of Blendtec, the campaign was low cost and instantly became a hit. In the video, Tom Dickson the CEO of Blendtec, attempts to blend objects in their blender. This simple idea led to a “five-fold increase in sales”.
Blendtec leveraged YouTube’s subscriber base and tried something fun and original. The campaign was a success and continues to entertain and sell.
Lesson – Demo & FollowingSocial media marketing doesn’t always need to cost a lot of money. Creating funny, original video and leveraging an already large user base can be used to increase sales.
-Check out the numbers by the yellow starts on the next page – Big Big Numbers
Blendtec YouTube
Threadless
What they didThreadless.com is a tee-shirt social network that is completely directed by it’s members. Members submit designs, users vote on them and highest rankings go to print.
Threadless uses Twitter and Facebook to give away codes for discounts. Leading to viral sharing of a call to action. Fans have grown from 0 to 37k in 4 months (Facebook) and over 7k followers in 3 weeks (Twitter)
Lesson – Cheap TargetingThreadless is using all available tools online to reach their target base effectively. Online users want to be a part of something and they also want a benefit from participating. Threadless has accomplished both and have seen record sales in a down economy to prove it.
They also use videos on YouTube to promote new ideas and product when it is posted online. Using different channels such as this allows for higher reach.
Threadless Examples
The O Campaign for Cancer Prevention
What they didThe O Campaign Started a free donation center on the Causes Application in Facebook. Causes allows non-profits solicit donations, tracks high contributors, builds discussion boards, has Q & A, updated media board and virally spreads activity to users.The O Campaign has over 4.4 million members that have donated over $80,000
Lesson – Causes are effectiveCauses have been very successful on platforms such as Facebook. Other platforms are beginning to develop applications such as Causes. The advantage is reach and the ease of electronic monetary donations. Non-Profits are big winners in social media marketing
The O Campaign Examples
Burger King and the Sacrifice Facebook
ApplicationWhat they did
Burger King created an app for Facebook that asked users to ditch 10 friends for a free Whopper. The campaign quickly went viral and was adopted by over 20,000 users, sacrificing 200,000 friends for free whoppers. Sadly, the application was shut down as quickly as it started by Facebook, citing privacy concerns. Regardless, the application was beautifully built and the idea was perfect. Burger King built in the ability to share it, the incentive to use it, and added just enough humor to make the campaign a hit.
Lesson – Free PRSuccessful and viral campaigns don’t just test out social media, they jump in it. Pushing the envelope can create the buzz that makes your campaign memorable.
Burger King may have had the application pulled from Facebook, but they say they have received over $50 million worth of free press due to the effort.
Starbucks Wants to Connect
What they didSocial media isn’t only about using existing websites, but sometimes creating your own. To get a better handle on consumer feedback, Starbucks did just that with “My Starbucks Idea”The site allows users to submit suggestions to be voted on by Starbucks consumers, and the most popular suggestions are highlighted and reviewed. By empowering their exceptionally web savvy consumer, Starbucks strengthens their campaign to add a personal touch to coffee.
Lesson – Better ProductThinking of ways to build your company are great, but directly asking your consumers what they want, is better. Acting on that information and doing it publicly is key to the success of this campaign.
Starbucks has also embraced Twitter and will more than likely expand even further in the future. (42k + followers)
Starbucks Examples
Zappos on Twitter
What they didThe reason why Zappos stands out on Twitter is because of their ability to bring the company to life. The Zappos CEO has lent his personality to the company brand, a personality that is friendly, helpful, funny, and trustworthy. They use Twitter to highlight interesting facts, and to talk to their consumers. Talking to Zappos is like talking to a friend that happens to sell shoes.
Lesson – PersonalityTake a CEO that twitters, add in a great personality and you have a recipe for social success. Ingraining social media into the culture of a corporation means that every consumer interaction is personal.
Zappos also uses their blog and Facebook to engage and energize their avid fanbase
Zappos Examples
Comcast on Twitter
What they didComcast has found a way to offer exceptional customer service to their consumers, but the thing that really makes them stand out is how well they monitor discontent. Complain about Comcast and you can bet you’ll hear from @comcastcares to see if they can help.
Lesson – Customer ServiceBeing active on Twitter is great but tracking and seeing who’s mentioning you, is the next step. Social media allows for the possibility of great customer service, and with it, better brand loyalty.
In addition, Comcast is not known for it’s customer service, and the Comcast Cares account has generated countless articles about the effort to improve
Comcast Cares
Graco Pictures on Flickr
What they didFlickr isn’t the center of their campaign, but they promote it heavily with the Graco blog which also creates an incentive for others to submit pictures. The photographs help highlight the people behind Graco and the consumers using their products. Graco takes their strategy one step further by introducing offline marketing in the form of community gatherings. The pictures from these meet-ups are posted to the Flickr page.
Lesson – EmpowermentSocial media doesn’t have to exist wholly online. Blending offline marketing with online efforts can build a community around a brand.
Graco is also active on Twitter and has a company blog with an in house moderator.
Graco Flickr
Dell On Twitter
What they didEmbracing Social Media is not easy and involves a lot of work. Dell attacked things head on by developing multiple twitter handles, a cross platform community, a network of blogs and large activity on Facebook.
Dell is also one of the few companies to publicly state that they created a ROI from Twitter liquidating merchandise. They earned over $1 Million over the 2008 holidays
Lesson – Going Big Can PaySocial media isn’t all about ROI, but it is possible. Creating cross-platform strategies can lead to the most success, especially when your demographic is already Internet and technologically savvy.
Dell Twitter
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