Nowadays, consumers are able to get information for the products which they are interested in from a variety of sources and platforms, so it is necessary for companies to use integrated approaches to launch new products, which may include traditional, social and on-line marketing tools.

   Even though it is seemed that new media has getting all over, traditional media such as television, print media (newspaper, magazine) and radio media remains an effective way to expose a never-before-seen product to the masses. Traditional media is still the most familiar tool to people in different age groups to reach a new product. Be sure to clearly spell out the elements of the product that make it newsworthy. How is it different from your existing products? How is it different from other similar products? What benefits does it provide to the consumer?

   Moreover, before putting efforts to market a new product, a company must have a home plate which ideally is a search-friendly website. Web developers of the company need to make this page appropriately coded for search, complete with keyword, title tags, header text, a unique URL and information that succinctly describes your new product. And this page should also be visible and easily accessible from the home page.   

   Also, collective buying sites such as Groupon and Living social continue to grow in popularity and offer the opportunity to introduce and incentivize the purchase of the product to an opt-in audience. These sites give  the ability to customize the product offer by market and expand the product’s reach beyond those who are already familiar with your company.

    When the product is ready to go, inform your current customers and brand enthusiasts by updating your existing social networks. These networks are filled with potential for people to share your information. Try different mediums such as videos, podcasts, photos and live chats for discussing the new product. Many people are now getting their topics of interest from social networks, so this is a place to get the product information in front of an audience that has already been sold on your business.

   Yesterday I had dinner with three friends at Milestone in downtown Vancouver; you can say it was a Thanksgiving dinner in advance since we are all going to study for the overwhelming midterms during the long weekend.

   When we wandered through Robson Street, we found out that it was undoubted to see most stores have Thanksgiving discount sales, and most restaurants have Thanksgiving special offers/combos. Merchants always know the fact that people consider birthdays, anniversaries and holidays to be special occasions worthy of a little extra spending.

    Let’s take restaurants as an example. There are always timeless ways for those restaurants to convince customers that their meals should be the recipient of those dollars. The simplest way is sending holiday greetings in advance via e-mail. In the e-mail, they may give a very warm greeting to people for the coming special holiday/occasion as well as introduce their promotion in a simple and enticing way; sometimes they are glad to add coupons in the e-mail too. However, the e-mail should seem like a greeting rather than a promotional message.

   A relatively practical way to attract more customers is using seasonal decorating while putting on a special holiday promotion. For example, on Valentine’s Day, put roses and candles on the table will be a good idea to build a romantic atmosphere. Also the restaurant may offer a special meal menu for two on that Day. On New Year’s Eve, decorate the restaurant with sparkly garlands and clocks for the countdown while provide the crowd of people with free glasses of champagne. Changing the decorations in the restaurant occasionally will keep the design up-to-date with the season and add a fresh quality to the dining experience of the most loyal customers. For the holidays, people are willing to spend, so instead of a discount, offer extra service or a free item.

   Happy Thanksgiving! 🙂