Vital Elements of Marketing Orientation
“Who is the customer,” and “what do they want?” Boil all the jargon and these are the two most vital questions every marketer needs to answer. The process of finding the answers to these questions is called marketing orientation. The point of this process is to develop a strategy that places the brand in a better position to find the right customers, connect with those customers, and meet their needs. Four vital elements of this process are identification, explanation, assimilation, and direction. Identification This is the step during which stakeholders within the business or brand identify and clearly define the challenge the brand is facing. Examples might include, shifting consumer tastes, changing trends, new competition, market confusion, growth problems, disconnection,…
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Social Media Marketing Keeps Climbing
The popularity of social media for marketing continues to soar. It’s still important, nonetheless, to monitor it because some of the favorites keeps changing. Video Is Big As mentioned in earlier articles, video is a key choice these days. Not only does it help tell a story but it’s also useful in teaching and explaining things. YouTube was one of the first to recognize the power of video in 2008. Facebook jumped in in 2016 and Instagram was one of the most recent platforms to do so. According to the Pew Research Center, 73% of Americans currently use YouTube and 68% Facebook. A study by Brandlive, a video platform training company, reported that 95% of marketers surveyed will be…
Read MoreGetting The Most out of Influencer Marketing Campaigns
Influencer marketing continues to grow in popularity as its effectiveness is proven, time and time again. The number of personalities working as influencers continues to increase, offering smart marketers real-life and real-time examples of what to do and what not to do when attempting to employ influencers in marketing campaigns. Here are some of the best practices marketers and brand managers should use to get the most out of their influencer marketing campaigns. Consider Clout, Not Just Numbers The key to success with most influencers is finding the right niche. Going off the number of followers or scope of influence alone does not necessarily guarantee results. The most important metric for influencers is, indeed, influence. How well and how often…
Read MoreStarbucks Agrees to Pay Restitution
Starbucks has an up and down relationship with the media and consumers on social media. From positive interactions to overstepping baristas to Christmas cups, the brand seems to find a way into the headlines, good or bad, with some frequency. Occasionally, though, the news is more serious than a red cup or a hapless employee. This is one of those crisis cases. Various media reports announced recently that Starbucks Corp has agreed to “pay restitution and accept greater oversight” as part of a settlement in response to allegations that the company “illegally required New York City employees to find substitutes when they needed to use sick leave.” Starbucks has since changed its sick leave policy, but that doesn’t mean the…
Read MoreNFL Taking Hits Over Officiating
Since the disastrous Saints-Rams NFC Championship no-call last year, NFL officiating has been under intense scrutiny. With new technology allowing fans at home and in the stands to clearly and easily see where refs make mistakes, the pressure was on. And the officials are not making it any better on themselves with more than a few high-profile blown calls throughout this season. Some legitimately could be said to have changed the outcomes of games. The league says it may look into a “rules adjustment,” but they already did that. After the NFC Championship debacle, the league gave coaches the chance to challenge pass interference calls, or the lack thereof. This change hasn’t had much effect on the perceived issues that…
Read MoreCan GameStop Survive a Shifting Market?
Streaming media has slowly transformed multiple different industries. It began with music. As the iPod sliced away at market share, retailers and production companies tried to ignore the interloper. Apple didn’t stop, and, in the space of a decade, the entire industry was transformed. The example was plain to see, as were the trends, but many booksellers did not pay much attention. When the Kindle came out, they scoffed. Then, stores started closing, as Amazon book sales and digital book sales exploded. People still buy and love “real” books, there are still big box booksellers and independent bookshops, but the market potential shrank considerably. It was only a matter of time before the video game market followed suit. Like movies,…
Read MoreGM Hoping to Make a Big Splash with First Electric Pickup
When Tesla announced it was working on a fully-electric pickup, many people laughed. Too soon, they said. Unfeasible, others agreed. Tesla, of course, soldiered on in their efforts, which do not have a scheduled release date. One company, though, has jumped ahead of the competition, announcing plans to release the first American fully electric truck by the fall of 2021. That company is General Motors. The announcement was met with some skepticism among the auto crowd. Could a fully electric pickup really meet the demands of the tough truck market? GM’s CEO Mary Barra tried to quell fears and misgivings by banking on GM’s reputation for making strong, capable pickups: “General Motors understands truck buyers and … people who are…
Read MoreElon Musk in Court Over ‘Pedo Guy’ Tweets
In July of 2018, British diver Vernon Unsworth took part in a daring, life-threatening rescue of 12 boys and their soccer coach, all of whom had been trapped inside a quickly flooding cave system. It could have been one of the purest and best “good news” stories of 2018; for most people, it certainly was. But there was one aspect of the round-the-clock news about the story that went off the rails, thanks to comments made by Unsworth, and the response from billionaire Elon Musk, who famously offered to assist with rescue efforts. That offer of assistance included the use of a mini-submersible. While some involved in the rescue expressed appreciation and politely said “no, that won’t work for this…
Read MoreSprint Trying to Survive as T-Mobile Pulls Away
For some time now, the mobile telecom market in the United States has been a four-horse race. Verizon maintained a strong lead, AT&T managed to keep pace, and two companies – T-Mobile and Sprint – fought for third place using a revolving combination of pricing incentives and cool consumer PR. Now, though, it appears a clear, consistent third-place brand has emerged, one that will essentially erase one of these brands, but make the company an instant contender to challenge the perennial top two. How’s that? T-Mobile and Sprint are trying to merge. And, if the $26 billion merger is approved, things in mobile telecom will change immediately. No one needs this more than Sprint. The company has tried, and failed,…
Read MoreHasbro Needs Well-Executed Consumer PR to Avoid Another Seasonal Slump
The toy business has been a real roller coaster in the past few years, especially for large manufacturers such as Hasbro. With the shuttering of major retailers such as Toys R Us and the falling off of mall shopping across the country, brands have been forced to find other ways to merchandise and move their products. One of those ways is brand-connected consumer PR. There’s no doubt that connecting a toy to something that already occupies a kid’s imagination is a great way to churn up interest and make more sales. Toy companies have been doing exactly that forever. But, in this age of consumer-first marketing, where nearly all shoppers are looking for specific brands and specific toys, rather than…
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