Author Archives: Alysha Li

Zoella and the case of sponsored videos

Zoella’s Youtube channel.

Meet Zoella. She’s Zoe Sugg, a British beauty vlogger. She has over 6 million subscribers on Youtube, making her a very attractive place for companies to advertise. A few posts back, I discussed why companies should use bloggers to write sponsored posts from WebBizIdea’s article. Continuing on with the second half of that article, we’ll look at how Zoella utilizes some of the top 10 examples of successful sponsored posts on her Youtube channel.

1) Tutorials.
These are especially great for demonstration purposes. Using a brand’s product in a tutorial shows consumers that the product actually works. This video on a Katniss Everdeen inspired braid was sponsored by All Things Hair.

2) Videos (hauls).
This particular haul was sponsored by BooHoo and involved a giveaway. When it comes to clothing, it’s helpful for brands if customers can see what their items look like on an actual moving person. Also, giveaways drive traffic – both to the Youtuber’s channel and the company’s website.

3) Partnerhips.
Here Zoe has partnered directly with Simple Skincare. She uses some of their products and also promotes their Skin Social Tumblr page. While this is a form of more outright advertising, Zoe remains true to her brand and her fans. Ultimately, she says that skincare isn’t her area of expertise, but Simple knows plenty about it and she is leveraging their knowledge to help her viewers.

These are just a few ways Zoe has been successfully building her Youtube brand with the help of companies. Through sponsored videos and partnerships, she’s been able to turn making videos from a hobby into a career and brands have been able to reach the teen girls segment.

Taking advantage of internet obsessions in marketing

Virgin Mobile’s take on the marketing meme. // Image Credit: HubSpot

After reading “Meme Marketing: The Right and Wrong Way to Leverage Internet Obsessions” from Business News Daily, I’ve realized memes can be effective in marketing. In class we talked about how some campaigns and social messages have potential for to go viral, and memes are a great example of this.

According to the article, there are three steps to “memejack“, or use a meme, the correct way. Here is my take on them.

1) Understand the meme, first.
Used correctly, memes can add to a brand’s authenticity. They show that you’re keeping up with what’s trending online and in society. You get consumers and you can talk on the same level as them. Understandably, if you use a meme incorrectly, it can backfire and make your brand look out of touch.

2) Don’t waste time.
While some memes just never die, others don’t stay popular for long. It’s best to memejack as soon as possible. Take advantage of the meme’s momentum and use it while it’s still being shared virally. There’s no point in using a meme if it’s outdated, since that will reflect poorly on your brand.

3) Make sure it’s appropriate.
Not all brands should take advantage of memes. Companies like Tiffany & Co. that have a prestigious reputation would hardly benefit from a playful meme. Even worse, their audience could become offended. Memes work best on brands like Denny’s, which seek to build a like-minded community and engage with its consumers.

While memes are a much less polished form of advertising, they do hold a certain appeal for brands looking to show consumers that they too have a sense of humour.

TV Ads will no longer dominate?

According to Business Insider, 2016 will be the year that US advertisers spend more on digital advertising than TV ads. Researchers at Forrester believe that email marketing, social media, display advertising and search marketing combined will grow at an annual growth rate of 30% by then (compared to 24% in 2014). By 2019, interactive spend will reach $100 billion, while TV advertising will be at a little over $90 billion.

This doesn’t necessarily mean that TV networks and broadcasters are useless. But it does show us the overarching trend of markets increasingly moving away from a 30-second commercial spot. So rather than this being TV’s demise, it’s the end of an era dominated by TV.

It’s like what happened to newspapers and radios all those years ago. They became a second-rate medium as TV grew in popularity. This is essentially what the Internet is now doing to TV.

While this might seem like it’s moving quickly, it’s hardly a surprise. Consumers are spending more time on their desktops, mobiles and tablets than they are watching live TV. Looking at this graph, we can see that the money spent on ads in particular mediums is becoming more equal to the time consumers spend on that medium.

Image Credit: Business Insider

Digital formats are also becoming increasingly attractive. Brands can run beautiful campaigns like on TV, but they’re no longer restricted by scheduling. They can use more sophisticated targeting techniques. This helps them to better reach the markets that actually benefit and find value from the advertisements.

While it’s unclear if this trend will last for many years to come, we do know digital advertising is on the rise for the next two years.

Taco Bell in black and successful

Image Credit: Marketing Land

On October 28, Taco Bell made the bold and unusual move of going “dark” on its various social media accounts. This was in an effort to push people to download its new mobile app for ordering food.

In class we talked about how an ad needs to be unique in order to be have any impact on consumers, especially when we are constantly bombarded with messages.

So rather than frantically advertising the app on social media, the digitally savvy brand took a different route. It blacked out and went silent across all of its social channels. For a brand that has over 10 million likes on Facebook, this was a risky move. But, according to Marketing Land‘s article, it was worth it. In the Food & Drink Category for Apple iOS, the app moved from its usual spot from around 60 to become number one in the United States.

What made this so successful? Taco Bell has a huge and dedicated following on social media. So when the blackout reached news feeds, it caught the attention of fans. While those most loyal to the brand found out first, news about the blackout quickly spread – in large part due to their sharing.

Taco Bell’s goal was for its message to break through, without incurring high costs. As an innovative brand, it consistently does things that no brand has done before. This campaign fits perfectly with its image and also caters to its target demographic.

The win-win situation of sponsored posts

Being an avid reader of blogs, I have noticed a trend in recent years toward sponsored posts. In class we talked about how brands are using influencers for marketing. This trend can be seen as companies are increasingly turning to bloggers to promote their products. They give these people free products to review and give away on their blogs. But why? WebBizIdeas gives three main reasons and I’ll explore them below.

1) Reviews and giveaways inexpensively increase market exposure.
According to the article, some popular bloggers can charge $500 for each paid post. While it’s a nice amount of money for a blogger, it’s cheaper than a celebrity campaign. Beauty bloggers like essiebutton have over 103,000 followers on bloglovin’ that cosmetic brands can reach.

Essiebutton’s blog that focuses mainly on beauty posts.

2) They get people talking about a product socially.
Posts on blogs give consumers the chance to leave comments. If the product is particularly expensive or new, it’s helpful for consumers to hear about others’ experiences with the products, whether it be the blogger or other commenters.

3) They increase mentions of their company name and product name online for SEO purposes.
Back to my essiebutton example. At the beginning of the year, she reviewed the Tarte Amazonian Clay Airbrush Foundation on her blog. Google the product name and you’ll see her blog post on the first page of results. The best part for Tarte? People know it’s a raving review without even having to click through.

Google “Tarte Clay Amazonian Airbrush Foundation”.

Bloggers are certainly a great medium through which to more subtly advertise products. Companies get access to that blogger’s influence and audience, while bloggers get to enjoy free products and share great content. Win-win!

When is social media automation good?

In Class 9 and on Twitter, we discussed how automating messages on social media can harm your brand. Having thoroughly gone over the bad parts, let’s take some time to consider the good.

On Hootsuite’s blog, the article “The DOs and DON’Ts of Social Media Automation” gives a well-rounded picture of the issue. They’ve raised interesting points on how to effectively use social media automation, and I’ll discuss some of them.

1. Do schedule your posts before you go on vacation
Whether it be because we’re 2,100 metres in the air or lost at sea sunbathing, we can hardly expect to be able to dedicate an enormous amount of time and attention to our social media accounts. But while we’re away from our computers and smartphones, the rest of the world is still online. Automation ensures that people still think you’re present, even if you’re not.

2. Do use social media automation tools to find out the best time to post
You can have excellent content from a great source but if you share it at an inopportune time, no one will pay attention. Figure out when your audience is most active online, and aim to post at those times. That way you’ll be certain that your messages are being seen live, rather than hours later.

3. Do add a personal touch to your scheduled messages
One of the biggest downfalls of scheduled messages is them coming off as inauthentic. Social media is meant to give brands a honest, real-time way to engage and connect with their audience in a two-way conversation. So what’s the solution to inauthenticity? Make even your scheduled posts personal.

There is nothing inherently wrong with automation. It depends entirely on how you use it. With the DOs above, you can deliver personalized engagement that will improve a brand’s reputation.

Gone Girl and Pinterest: A perfect match?

David Fincher’s Gone Girl will be released in Vancouver on October 3. With that date comes the end of what has been a tremendously exciting online marketing campaign. Like all of Fincher’s other films, Gone Girl has been marketed in unique and ingenious ways. Here we’ll focus on Amy Dunne’s Pinterest.

On September 10, Gone Girl‘s Twitter account tweeted the following:

Going through recipes and DIY’s pinned by a fictional woman who has been potentially murdered by her husband is slightly silly. But keep exploring her boards, and you’ll see the clever marketing. Many of the Pins contain excerpts from the diary entries in the original book by Gillian Flynn. Like in the book, audiences are able to construct a picture of Amy’s life.

The Pinterest paints Amy Dunne as a personality-puzzle-obsessed woman who loves New York but is getting used to life in Missouri. She is in love with her husband and takes an interest in his business, a bar.

What makes Pinterest a perfect marketing tool for Gone Girl?

It fits with the narrative and style of the story. Flynn’s writing alternates between Amy’s diary entries and her husband’s accounts of events surrounding her disappearance. This Pinterest serves as evidence in a murder thriller, meant to portray Amy’s seemingly perfect life of marital bliss.
It’s easy to believe that Amy could actually have a Pinterest account. According to Ignite Social Media, Pinterest user demographics include women, ages 25-54, and Amy fits right in. It’s not forced advertising. Rather, it serves to bring various elements of the movie to life.
Through Pinterest, Gone Girl has greater Owned Media. But through Repins and followers, it will also gain more Earned media.

“Denny’s, u okay?”

In Class 4, we discussed the blogging platforms that companies can use. Denny’s uses Tumblr and it has a fandom on the micr0-blogging site. With much of Tumblr crazed about Superwholock, how has a 61-year-old American diner inspired a legion of fans online?

First, Denny’s speaks Tumblr’s quirky language. It has memes (e.g., “dennys, u okay?”), and posts ranging from bacon gifs to haikus. Its Tumblr mimics the conversations that happen in Denny’s booths (the kind where we have nothing to do but don’t want to go home). Going on their blog feels like walking into one of their restaurants.

One of Denny’s eloquently written haikus.

Unlike other corporate Tumblrs, Denny’s doesn’t focus on coupons and specials. The diner chooses to talk to customers as an actual person by using Tumblr’s interactive functions, including its “ask” feature. Its replies to questions don’t have perfect grammar, but they’re funny and representative of how Tumblr speaks.

Denny’s tongue-in-cheek answers.

Finally, Denny’s creates conversations with their customers. Other companies invite people to share their images and experiences with the brand, thereby increasing engagement. But Denny’s takes it a step beyond passively reblogging photos and text posts by adding comments. This turns their blogging into genuine connecting.

Denny’s witty comments.

What ultimately separates Denny’s from other corporate blogs is its authenticity. The brand blogs just like the typical Tumblr user. Be honest – you had a hard time believing this is really Denny’s Tumblr.

We really wouldn’t know the difference!

Daniel Wellington on Instagram

In Class 3 we discussed why bloggers are valuable advocates for brands. Daniel Wellington, a Swedish brand of watches, is a recent example of how a brand has effectively used social media influencers to market their products. Most notably, Daniel Wellington watches have been featured on various popular Instagram profiles. They also featured promotion codes for a 15% discount. Very smart thinking, Daniel Wellington.

Why is Instagram a great place to market Daniel Wellington watches?

Unlike YouTube beauty gurus who frequently review and rave about sponsored products, Instagram isn’t polluted with advertisements and brands. Without any verified accounts, there is hardly a corporate feel to it. People post pictures of their food, outfits and pets. It still feels authentic and very personal.
Instagram is home to thousands of #ootd posts, in which people feature the items they wore on a particular day. Accessories are an important part of an outfit, and Daniel Wellington has managed to leverage the type of sharing Instagram does best.
Daniel Wellington has identified and selected a number of popular Instagram users. docaitlin, insain, cece_wong and hellosylviaa are just a few who are doing marketing for the brand. With follower counts ranging from nearly 15,000 to over 34,000, they are certainly influential advocates.

Clockwise: docaitlin, insain, cece_wong, hellosylviaa

Another great benefit to marketing on Instagram? The lower costs. In an interview with The Black Renaissance, Filip Tysander, the founder of the company, said:

“We have [focused] marketing the brand through social media, which has been very cost efficient.”

Will you be purchasing one of their watches?