5 Marketing Technology stories you might have missed 12-3-11


Marketing Technology 5

Marketing Technology Stories you might have missed

MT5 – #15

Stories this week: Email myth busting, web 2.o same as web 1.0, opt-in vs opt-out, pencil technology and mobile email campaigns

B2B Social Media Myths Busted: Is Email Dead?

[link] This is Part Five of a Five Part Series with Tyler Pyburn, Host at The Pulse Network, and Stephen Saber, Chief Executive Officer at The Pulse Network, in which they aim to make plain some of the biggest business to business social media myths.

My Take: I agree with Stephen, email marketing isn’t going away, it’s just adapting.

Social 2012 is Web 2000

[link] In this AdAge article, Forrester analyst Josh Bernoff compares the current hype and hysteria surrounding social media to the fervor that came with the web in 2000.

My Take: You’ve likely heard this headline before, but Bernoff’s examples do a great job of pressing the point.

Click to Open rates Opt-in vs Opt-out

Click to Open rates Opt-in vs Opt-out

Do Opt-In Lists Really Perform Better Than Opt-Out?

[link] Although Opt-in email open rates are higher, the difference in click to open rates are much less dramatic.  In this study of over 300 million emails delivered, it appeared that once the email was opened, recipients of opt-in and opt-out campaigns responded to the offer in the same manner.

My take: Considering it’s easier to get opt-out addresses than get potential customers to opt-in, it may be worth starting with an opt-out program.

The Right Technology May Be a Pencil

[link] The author reminds us not to become overly enamored with our wiz-bang gadgets. Keeping it simple (pencil and paper) keeps you from being restricted by application constructs.

My Take: I like this out of the blue thinking. Just today I had a meeting in the community where we run a big annual project. The organizer had a huge, organized 3 ring binder that was really easy to follow. All of the information was created digitally, but the 3-ring binder layout was the best construct for communicating the plans. Use the right tool for the right job – even if it isn’t the flashiest.

Share of Emails Opened on Mobiles Jumps in H1 ‘11

Email open rates on mobile

Email open rates on mobile

[link] The share of all email opens occurring on mobile devices reached 20.24% in the first half of 2011, representing 51% growth from 13.36% in Q4 2010, according to a report released in November 2011 by Knotice.

My Take: Another finding in the article was the relatively poor click to open rate (CTOR). This requires additional thinking about how your construct your marketing email offers. Increasingly marketers need to simplify their email templates and have one clear offer.

Blog Technology: Does it matter?

Blog Technology

Blog Technology

Blog Technology: Does it Matter?

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So I’m Marketing Technology guy. My take is form follows function. First you decide what you want to do and then you decide how you want to do it.

On blogs we know that content (and context) are king, but does the technology matter only as an afterthought?  To put a fine point on it, I’m doing a simple Yes/No poll. Does the blog technology matter?


 

Photo credit: Travelin’ Librarian

December: Focusing on Blog Technology

Blog Technology

Blog Technology

December: Focusing on Blog Technology

Exhausted and exhilarated from Movember chaos (there’s still time to donate! http://mobro.co/iamreff), I’m back in the Marketing Technology saddle.

This December I’m focusing on Blog Technology. I have a ton of ideas for topics, enough to do a post each day of the month, but since each post takes research, there’s no way I can dedicate enough time to cover all the topics in depth.

The one thing I’ve been dying to do is to create a decision tree that helps people decide which blog platform is right for them.

If you have any burning technology questions about blogging, let me know and I’ll find a way to cover that topic. Also, I welcome the opportunity to have posts from guest bloggers so if you’re interested in participating please let me know.

Photo credit: Travelin’ Librarian

5 Marketing Technology stories you might have missed 11-26-11


Marketing Technology 5

Marketing Technology Stories you might have missed

MT5 – #14

Stories this week: Facebook phone, Winning with Animated GIFs, Cyber Monday, Comments 4x more valuable than Likes and Pintrest growth

1. The Facebook Phone: It’s Finally Real and Its Name Is Buffy

[link] After years of denying that Facebook was building a phone. Yeap, you guessed it, Facebook is partnering with HTC to build a phone.

My Take: It’s hard to see what a Facebook phone would do that other phones do not. Nonetheless, it’s an interesting move by Facebook.

2. Animated GIFs FTW!

[link] This was just too good not to share, Helzberg Diamonds boosted online sales 288% with an email that featured a personalized and animated image.

My Take: Interesting tactic…combining personalization with animation. Still I think that it will often be foiled by email clients that dont render pictures. Not to mention mobile email clients.

Reasons for participating in Cyber Monday

3. Cyber Monday Deals

[link] The top reasons for holiday shopping online: take advantage of sale prices and free shipping deals.

My Take: Watching  some of the CrAzY Black Friday mob scene videos of crowded stores with throngs of people fighting for the same few sales further entrenched me in the “Cyber Monday” camp. Cyber Monday has actually become Cyber Week as people start hitting the online stores earlier and earlier.

4. Comments 4x as valuable as likes

[link] From the data…

  • Avg Clicks Per Like: 3.103
  • Avg Clicks Per Comment: 14.678
  • Avg Clicks Per Impression: 0.005

My Take: A major tenet of inbound marketing is: people are more likely to trust recommendations from a friend than a brand.  This study shows the importance of creating content that your audience will interact with – not just “Like” since these comments drive clicks.

pinterest vs etsy chart

pinterest vs etsy chart

5. Pinterest Is Now Pulling In More Pageviews Than Etsy

[link] Pinterest page views grew 2,000% since June.

My Take: The power of social at work again. I don’t use Pinterest, but it seems the power of social sharing of cool stuff is beating out having to weed through an online catalog where you have to find the cool stuff yourself.



Is A Brand Your Friend?

Is a brand your friend?

Overheard this week:

“Social Media is where brands act like people and people act like brands.

People acting like brands 

Is a Brand Your Friend?

Friends can buy you a drink right?

As individuals, social media is used by many as a personal branding platform. Once you become adept at twitter, Google+ or the social network flavor of the day, you’ll see people using social as a stage — a way to tell you about themselves. Those that do it well attract large audiences by providing interesting information, curated content, expert advice and use social networks to have a dialogue. Those that do it poorly are insufferable bores that share trite advice, link to stuff that you’ve already seen and only want to talk about themselves. Etiquette, content and style matter.

Brands acting like people

Brands come at social from a different angle. They realize that they just can’t focus on themselves and their products. In order to attract an audience, they must create and curate content that serves their customers.  Brands can’t broadcast on social networks the way they advertise on TV or radio. It’s a different medium with different expectations. They have to adapt their techniques to act more “human”. A great example of this is the Chase Community Giving social campaign. By focusing on philanthropy (not products), Chase has garnered an audience of over 3 million on Facebook. I imagine Chase was already quite generous and by turning their philanthropic efforts into a social campaign they are able to generate a positive affinity for their brand. Tthat they can then work to convert those “likes” into customers.

Yeah, but does it work?

Studies (A, B, C) show that people don’t want to “like” a brand. The idea puts people off. Brands are not my friends, my friends are my friends. However, people who follow brands tend to be strong brand advocates that will promote and defend a brand on social networks.

 

Photo credit Glenn Harper

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