Archive for the 'Uncategorized' Category

Marketers Look Beyond Social Media Experimentation

Published on January 10, 2012 in Social Media, Uncategorized and Website Online Marketing. 0 Comments

As budgets increase, marketers hope to understand more about social media

Marketers are becoming more mature when it comes to their social media marketing, and many in the US say they hope to move beyond the experimentation phase in the coming years.

In October 2011, at the second annual Pivot Conference, a survey found that 37.1% of marketers said their company will move beyond experimentation in social media marketing in 2012. An additional 14.6% expect to do so in 2014 and 5.6% by 2015. Nearly 8% said it would be later than 2015 and more than a third (34.8%) said they did not know when they would move past the experimentation phase.

There were many factors that marketers cited as influential in their drive for more mature social media marketing. Among the respondents who said their company would move beyond social media experimentation in 2012, 68.5% said an increased understanding on the benefits of social media was a factor that encouraged this maturation. Additionally, 60.9% cited a development of clear social strategy, 54.3% pointed to clearly defined outcomes and 51.1% mentioned metrics as having an influence.

While only 26.1% of respondents said budget increases would influence the move beyond experimentation, marketers also told the Pivot Conference that social media marketing would make up a higher percentage of their marketing budget in 2012 and beyond. While 37% of respondents said social media would be less than 5% of the marketing budget in 2011, only 27.1% expected that same low percentage in 2012 and just 18.8% predicted it would remain that low in 2013.

The combination of bigger budgets and increased sophistication will likely spur companies to go further toward reaching maturity in their social media marketing efforts and foster new examples of successful social media campaigns in the coming years.

 

Who Uses Tablets Most?

Published on January 4, 2012 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

Asian-Americans join Hispanics in early adoption of emerging devices

Asian-Americans are avid users of new devices and are among the first to buy tablets and ereaders. They join US Hispanics on the top rungs of the technology early-adoption ladder.

eMarketer’s estimate of US tablet users shows that 14.4% of Asians have used tablets monthly this year, vs. 12.6% of Hispanics and just over 10% of blacks and whites. The gap will narrow as the years pass, but it will take until 2014 for whites in the US to reach the same tablets penetration level as Asian-Americans.

Another study, by the Center for Hispanic Marketing Communication at Florida State University, also found that Asian-Americans have among the highest penetration for both tablets and ereaders. With 14% ereader penetration rate, Asians are about even with Spanish-speaking Hispanics (15%), and a few points behind Hispanics who are primarily English-speaking (20%).

But Asians are on par with Hispanics in possession of tablets, with 17% of both groups reporting ownership.

“US Hispanics and Asian-Americans are very eager to bridge the technological gap and they are proportionately more likely to adopt these devices than non-Hispanic whites,” said Felipe Korzenny, Ph.D., who led the Florida University study.

Asians’ aspirational intentions for these devices are also high, with 35% saying they plan to have tablets within the next year. Spanish-speaking Hispanics have the highest intention to purchase tablets, at 41%. Non-Hispanic whites have the lowest intention to acquire tablets (22%).

Referring to Asians’ high intention to purchase, Korzenny said Asians should be “more interesting targets to marketers because they are much more interested in these products.”

Reasons for early adoption among Asian-Americans, who comprise about 6% of the US population, include that they are more educated than average and have higher annual incomes than other minorities. “And those two factors make them more technologically innovative types of people,” said Korzenny.

And while it’s true this demographic skews young, when Korzenny broke down the data by age, he found out that age makes no difference in emerging-device adoption among Asian-Americans.

 

US Digital Media Usage: A Snapshot of 2012

Published on December 31, 2011 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments

There’s no question that the internet has reached mass media status in the US. eMarketer estimates more than three-quarters of the total population will be online by 2012, and the majority of that group is doing much more than just email or search.

About two-thirds of web users, for example, will use social networks next year, and more than 90% of that group can be found on Facebook. As social networking overall and Facebook usage in particular begin to plateau, smaller sites—including Twitter—are experiencing faster growth. Whether they can build up user bases to the hundreds of millions will help determine their value for marketers.

Audience size is also growing more quickly for professional online video content, such as TV shows and movies, as web users turn to over-the-top solutions to watch online content on TV sets in addition to their desktops, laptops, tablets and, increasingly, mobile phones.



Smartphone uptake and, in turn, mobile internet uptake, have facilitated more advanced mobile activities beyond video as well, including mobile shopping and buying, mobile gaming and more. As audiences consume more content on more devices and platforms, the chances for marketer interaction likewise increase as brands facilitate new experiences and activities for a mass digital population.

 

Source: www.emarketers.com

One in Three Online Consumers to Use a Tablet by 2014

Published on December 15, 2011 in Internet, Technology and Uncategorized. 0 Comments

90 million Americans will use a tablet device in 2014

Tablet devices, in their current incarnation, have only been available for a couple years, but the iPad has propelled them to rapid increases in ownership and usage. eMarketer estimates that by the end of 2011, 33.7 million Americans will use a tablet device at least monthly—a rise of 158.6% over last year, the year the iPad was released.

Growth will slow to double digits beginning in 2012, but the number of users will rise to nearly 90 million, or 35.6% of all internet users, by 2014.

US Tablet Users and Penetration, 2010-2014

eMarketer’s previous tablet-related forecasts have focused on unit sales and the total installed base of devices. These current estimates deal instead with usage, and account for device sharing. eMarketer believes that as tablet adoption continues, less growth will come from sharing and more from replacing older devices with new ones. Eventually, tablets may become more like smartphones, which typically have a single user and less sharing.

The iPad, which has clearly led the tablet market since 2010, will continue to do so throughout the forecast period, though its share will be slowly chipped away by competititors. The number of US iPad users will more than double between this year and 2014, from 28 million to 60.8 million. By 2014 iPad users will still account for 68% of the overall US tablet audience.

US iPad Users and Penetration, 2010-2014

The tablet audience is changing, though. Women currently account for slightly less than half of tablet users, but the disparity in tablet usage between sexes will continue to shrink. eMarketer estimates that this year, 31.5% of tablet users are ages 18 to 34, while 55.5% are 35 or older. By 2014, 18- to 34-year-olds will acount for 34.8% of tablet users, while those ages 35 and up will comprise 49.3% of the total. Usage of tablets wil also increase faster among whites than those of other races and ethnicities, growing from 60.6% of total users this year to 65.8% by 2014.

eMarketer bases its forecast of tablet and iPad users on a meta-analysis of survey data and other research on device penetration.

 

How to Turn Your Instagram Photos Into Wall Art

Published on November 29, 2011 in Blogging, Internet and Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: .

Instagram photos aren’t just for sharing online anymore.

You can turn them into photo books, frame them in four-inch bamboo shadowbox frames, create a collage with them oniPhone cases, turn them into iPad screensavers and now, print them on canvas for your wall.

Earlier this week, CanvasPop launched a service that allows you to print your Instagram photos on two large-format canvas sizes: 12″ x 12″ (for $29.95) and 20″ x 20″ (for $59.95). The company sent over a 12″ x 12″ sample developed with an Instagram shot I took at Kate Spade’s Spring 2012 presentation in October.

The original:

 

 

 

 

The print (taken with a less-than-great point-and-shoot):

 

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A closeup:

 

 

 

 

I was impressed with the quality, particularly given the original image is 612 x 612 pixels at a resolution of 72 dpi. CanvasPop Co-Founder Adrian Salamunovic says the company uses “special filters,” among other methods, to improve the photo quality when enlarged. “Plus, canvas is a medium that is naturally forgiving to low resolution images because it is textured and porous, as opposed to a high-gloss photo paper,” he added.

The prints are 1.5″ deep and can be made with either a white or black border. The canvas appears to be stapled to the back by hand — as the staples aren’t perfectly lined up — and comes with a mount for hanging the print from the wall. Given the width of the prints, you can get away without framing them. And as you can see above, they look great in rows.

What do you do with your Instagram photos after you’ve shared them? Would you create print versions on canvas? Let us know in the comments below.

 

How Krispy Kreme sees the social conversation

Published on November 16, 2011 in Social Media, Uncategorized and Word of Mouth Marketing. 0 Comments

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Iconic doughnut chain Krispy Kreme has been making use of word-of-mouth marketing since it began 75 years ago, says CMO Dwayne Chambers. Social media platforms are the modern day equivalent of word-of-mouth, reinforcing customers’ ownership of the brand, says Chambers, who shares his take on how social media has changed how restaurants market. Click here to read more

What Do Facebook Users Expect from Brands?

Published on November 9, 2011 in Branding, facebook, Social Media and Uncategorized. 4 Comments

Facebook users have both + and – expectations when “liking” a brand! Many Companies are very often on the hunt for more “likes” for their Facebook pages with  hopes that people will soon recognize its brand or sometimes it’s just for increasing number of exposures on social media. However only 42% of US Facebook users think marketers should interpret a “like” in that way.

Study from ExactTarget on June 2011 study from, “Subscribers, Fans and Followers: The Meaning of Like,” which found that 25% of US Facebook users disagree that marketers should interpret “like” to mean they are a fan or advocate of the company”.

Facebook users themselves have some preconceived notions about what to expect when they “like” a company on the site, and among those who do not become brand fans, many are negative. More than half of users expect to be bombarded with messages or ads (54%), while 45% do not want to give companies access to profile information and 31% do not want to push content from a company into friends’ newsfeeds. These possibilities have prevented users from making brand connections on the social networking giant.

 

Reasons US Facebook Users Have Not "Liked" a Company on Facebook, June 2011 (% of respondents)

 

On the flip side, many US Facebook users also have certain expectations of perks they should get after following a company’s Facebook page.

Study from The ExactTarget study found that “58% of US Facebook users expect to gain access to exclusive content, events or sales after “liking” a company, while 58% also expect to receive discounts or promotions. Additionally 47% expect to see updates about the company, person or organization they “liked” in their newsfeed, which bodes well for brands as they work to have their content always show up for their followers.”

 

Expectations US Facebook Users Have After "Liking" a Company on Facebook, June 2011 (% of respondents)

 

Additionally, younger consumers, ExactTarget found, have fewer expectations and generally “like” brands as a form of expression, not to get certain perks. Meanwhile, older consumers want something of value for “liking” a brand. By listening to what their target fanbase wants out of the Facebook relationship, marketers can get more interaction on their page and encourage more people to “like” rather than avoid brands on Facebook.

Source: http://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1008630

Well, hello there Google+

Published on July 13, 2011 in Miscellaneous, News, Social Media, Technology and Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , .

“What? Another social networking site?”

No joke, that was exactly what I was thinking when I heard the news about Google+ a few weeks ago. While in truth, there are probably numbers of other social networking sites that have been popping in and out of the internet universe, few actually make it to be quite as big as, say Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn.

Only a few weeks ago, Google released a trailer announcing its new project called “The Google+ project”. From the trailer, Google described its project to have the ability present a different sharing experience to its users. The project is currently open through invitations only as it’s still in its beta stage. Nonetheless, I’m quite impressed. I wasn’t looking forward to completely shifting over to Google+ as I’m now comfortable with Facebook, but Google+ definitely well, has its plus.

A new feature that Google+ introduces that is different to Facebook is the option of categorizing people into “Circles”. While Facebook has its groups, Google+’s circles allow users more options in selecting the people you want the information to be shared with.

Another feature that Google+ has is the “Hangout” feature. Google+ describes “Hangout” to be a place where “the unplanned meet-up comes to the web for the first time”. Although face-to-face chat is a quite old idea, with “Hangout”, Google has integrated both social networking and face-to-face chat.

Overall, I’m not disappointed, though I can’t say I’m that impressed with Google+. Then again, the project is still in its trial status so who knows what other cool knick knacks are going to be added to Google+. I do feel that Google+ is much more personal and homey than Facebook, so it should be interesting to see how, or even if, Google+ can be utilized in the interests of marketing.

 

 

Facebook To Overthrow Yahoo! in Display Ad-Selling

Published on June 22, 2011 in facebook, Miscellaneous, News, Social Media, Statistic Data and Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , .

Through the blog post that I wrote back in April, I expressed the growing development of Facebook Ads in the marketing world. So, I wasn’t all that surprise to see a headline from Mashable.com a few days ago that said, “Facebook To Take Number 1 Spot in Display Ad Market This Year [REPORT]”

Although much speculation had prophesized the success of Facebook in Advertising, the report seems to display that the prophecy is on its way to be fulfilled. The article by Todd Wasserman of Mashable.com was based on a research done by eMarketer. In the report, researchers predict that Facebook will grow its net US display revenues in 2011 by another 80.9% and reaching an estimate of $2.19 billion. With this growth, Facebook will be overthrowing Yahoo! as the country’s no.1 display ad-selling company.

David Hallerman, a principal analyst of eMarketer commented on the revelation, “Facebook’s supreme popularity—both in terms of numbers of people and amount of time they spend there—creates a plethora of display ad impressions, mainly for its unique form of banners…And that popularity is also boosting what advertisers will pay for its display ads.”

Aside from Facebook, eMarketer also report that Google is also showing a solid growth this year with double the revenues in display ad compared to 2010.

 

For Small Businesses: Learning from the “Big” Guys

Published on June 8, 2011 in Miscellaneous, Motivation, Social Media and Uncategorized. 2 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , .

A recent article by Erica Swallow in Mashable.com with the self-explanatory title, 6 New & Innovative Social Media Campaigns to Learn From, listed six companies’ social media campaign that the site found both innovative and new. Considering that we are a capitalistic-based economy, competition is what drives the market and because of that, any new or innovative advancement that a company makes, no matter how small, can be very crucial to the marketing strategy as a whole.

The article listed six companies and the innovative idea that the company embodied:

  1. Intel : Targeting a Digitally Savvy Audience
  2. The Century Council: Using YouTube Ads for a Good Cause
  3. Johnson’s Baby Canada: Offering Low-Value Prizes for High Return
  4. Ford Fiesta: Behind-the-Scenes Product Placement
  5. Samsung: Driving Engagement and Sharing
  6. Mello Yello: Relaunching with an Existing Fan Base

From this list, small businesses should definitely take note of what these companies in particular did to stand out from the market. While their strategy may not be able to apply the strategy in the same exact method, small companies should be able to take the idea behind it. From Intel, for example, small businesses can apply the direct target approach to its audience that Intel utilizes in the marketing campaign. In the case of the Century Council being applied to more general terms, small businesses can follow the similar method by advocating an issue that it’s closely related to, either by blog or by YouTube ads. The interpretation of the ideas can go on forever, but ultimately there’s always something to learn, especially from those who are advancing quickly in the social media marketing race.

For a longer explanation of the list in the original article, click here,