Marketing

At time of writing the new Jay Z album drops in fifteen hours and seventeen minutes.Unlike in years gone by fans will not be queuing up out the front of record stores to buy it.Nor will they be downloading it from a website.In actual fact he'll be giving it away. For free.Not one or two copies either. One million.The catch is you first need to download an app from the Google Play store.Then the first million people to download the album via the app get it for gratis.Sounds great. But wait there's more...This offer is exclusive to Samsung Galaxy phone owners.Yes you read that right. Galaxy users get their hands on a hot album way before the rest of us mere mortals.Jay Z is going way beyond the usual realms of brand alignment and corporate sponsorship with this one.It's the first deal of it's kind. I imagine it won't be the last.Get info on the album here.

What do you think makes someone's content relevant? Last night in New York City, the kind people at Google hosted a book launch for CTRL ALT Delete. Instead of making it the standard fare, I opted to invite Seth Godin to join me on stage to discuss some of the core concepts of the book. My initial thought was to get Seth's take on my theory of business purgatory and then dive a little deeper into the five movements that have changed business forever, along with the triggers that each one of us has to bring to the work that we do. Seth would have none of that. Seth was more interested in inspiring people to do the hard work of buying the book and - more importantly - reading it and doing something about it. As usual, Seth was right and it speaks volumes to how he thinks and gets people to think along with him. During the Q&A session, someone asked: How do you come up with the content for your blogs? Seth answered the question, as only Seth can. I'm paraphrasing here, but it went something like, "when people ask me what I do, I tell them that I notice things and ask questions about it." My answer was much more verbose. I'm an infovore. I can't read, watch or listen to enough content. There are simply not enough hours in the day. All of that media consumption creates a cauldron of ideas, some boil over and some percolate, but by the end of the day there is usually some topic that rises to the top. It something that comes out like an exhaust valve. It's a mental cleanse for the day. Two different lessons with the same theme. I was thinking about what Seth said and felt a pang of jealously. I wish I could "notice things" as creatively as he does. My process seems that much more complex. I'm weeding through a lot of content at the bottom of the digital sea to find some chum. Still, the answer that both Seth and I laid out to the audience last night is something that most content marketers don't understand. Most marketers who are creating content are worried about things like the type of content they're writing (text, images, audio, video)? Where that content should reside (Facebook, Twitter, blog, YouTube, Pinterest)? How frequently to post (hourly, daily, weekly)? Who is going to create it (an intern, the communications team, a freelance journalist, the CEO)? It turns out that Seth, myself and many other people who create content that seems to garner some semblance of an audience and attention are inspired to create the content. Pushing beyond that, we are inspired consistently. Oooff... that's a tough one. Seth doesn't blog because it's his job, he blogs because he has to. Same here (and the same thing for my podcast, business columns and business books). Brands can nail every facet of what it takes to create content, but they'll always miss the mark when there is no one behind the curtains who is creating content because they have to. Consistently and constantly. Because they are inspired. It's true, being inspired needs to intersect with skill (a unique voice, something that people want to connect with, etc...). but without the spark of being inspired consistently, it's going to be extremely challenging to get that proverbial rubber to meet the road. Finding your ability to be inspired consistently. Surround yourself. Surround yourself with elements of content that will inspire you. Try to avoid the American Pickers marathon on History Channel (I know it's hard) and always have something to read around you. My personal trick? I make sure to buy every interesting business magazine. Paying for content makes me feel guilty when I don't consume it. Letting magazines pile up is a much better reminder to do the work, than episodes of a TV show on your PVR (those you don't see). Step outside. Walking around and adding in smalls trips along the way will inspire. It can be as innocuous as a trip to your local bookstore or a few hours at a museum. Keep notes. It doesn't matter is it's

What does the Collaborative Economy mean to corporations? This 18min video explains threat & opportunity

In the era of social media and ‘conversation’ , ‘storytelling’ and ‘engagement,’ just how many brands really make a difference in people’s lives? According to research by Havas Media, the answer is only 20%. The Havas Media survey revealed that only 20% of brands have a positive impact on well-being and quality of life. Furthermore, the majority of respondents would not care if 70% of brands ceased to exist. The study, titled ‘ Meaningful Brands ‘, includes a metric called “The Meaningful Brand Index (MBI) ”, which uses consumer perception to measure the importance of brands in their lives. The research evaluated the brand contribution to: Individual Well-being (self esteem, happiness, satisfaction, connectivity etc.) and Collective Well-being (transparency, recycling, responsive, ethics, labelling etc.) Based on the opinion of 50,000 people from 14 countries, Havas created a ranking of the top 20 global brands. Surprisingly, only 1 auto-maker is on the list, and financial brands do not feature. The post Havas Worldwide | Meaningful Brands Report Infographic appeared first on MarketingEasy | Digital trends from around the world. Related posts: Alarming report: Brands leaving themselves exposed through social media mismanagement Twitter’s New Page Design Targets Brands Facebook Infographic | How Long Do You Think You Will Actively Use Facebook?

Inside Pocket: how a startup beat its rivals to build the 'DVR for everything' via @verge

How SBS is reporting the Socceroos’ victory SBS1 had one of its biggest TV audiences in recent years on Tuesday night with a metro audience of 1.117m tuning in for Australia’s match with Iran which saw the Socceroos qualify for the World Cup. The game brought SBS a 14 per cent share of the free to air audience – putting it ahead of ABC1′s 10.3 per cent share and within touching distance of Ten’s 14.5 per cent. Meanwhile, the loss of the halo effect of The Voice has had an immediate impact on Nine. For the first time since launch, Seven’s renovation House Rules beat The Block by 1.159m to 1.131m. Nine’s Celebrity Apprentice continued to lose ground, with the boardroom showdown rating 596,000, putting it 20th for the night. The challenge part of the show did not make it into the top 20 at all. Masterchef, on Ten, was 15th for the night, with just 643,000 viewers. It was just ahead of ABC1′s 7.30, which rated 643,000 according to the preliminary overnight data from OzTAM. Seven won the night with a 21.4 per cent share. Nine was on 18.4 per cent. Among the key advertising demographic of 25-54, fortunes changes slightly. The Block beat House Rules and Masterchef moved up to tenth. More follows later The post Socceroos deliver big night for SBS while House Rules overtakes The Block appeared first on mUmBRELLA.

Paid search mistake: Assuming you've hit a wall Many practitioners see their paid search efforts plateau and assume they can go no further. They're wrong. Josh Dreller, director of marketing research at Kenshoo, explains why you can always increase CTRs, quality scores, and optimization with paid search. Don't be fooled into thinking you can't do better. view full article | Add a comment

The banner ad is dying. Or is it? Online ad revenues remain on a hockey stick trajectory, clocking in at a record $9.6 billion in the first quarter of this year (yes, a bunch of this is search and video, but still). Yet the demise of the banner ad has long been predicted, and some say the deathwatch is imminent -- possibly before the end of the year. That banners aren't working very well is common knowledge. You've seen the stories: You're more likely to survive a plane crash/become a Navy Seal/summit Everest/be the next Beatle or Elvis than to click on a banner ad. That consumers don't interact with banners is no secret. In fact, it's entirely possible that most clicks are robot and/or click farm generated. Then there's the banner experiment Ted McConnell cooked up, a totally blank ad (no copy, no image, no nothing) that saw interaction rates that in many cases exceed those of "real" campaigns. The result of all this inefficiency, unsurprisingly, is severe downward price pressure on banners, much to the chagrin of online publishers. As one publisher put it in a recent conversation, "It's more expensive to get readers, and then when we do we can sell them for less." Yet at the same time, publishers speak of a "voracious appetite" for display ads and banners. "As publishers we'd tell advertisers that we're unique and special, but really we're not," one publisher confided just this morning, "When demand for banners was too high, we'd just rent an audience. We'd rent from Google, from telemarketers, or rent email lists. The performance isn't that different, and the advertisers don't really care." So let's get this straight: Display advertising doesn't work, it yields ever-diminishing revenues, and advertisers can't get enough of it? Houston, we've got a problem. We are witnessing a meteoric rise in marketing solutions such as native advertising and content marketing, often at the expense of display advertising (and research indicates this is the budget being raided to pay for content creation). Is it possible that digital ad solutions have become too automated? Too "set-and-forget?" And by automated, I'm not just referring to technological automation, but also to monodirectional campaign thinking; "throw a banner at it" being the de facto solution -- the box that needs to be ticked off on the marketing plan. Automated buying, automated optimization, automatic personalization, customization, targeting, retargeting. All seem to be working less effectively for all parties involved: the buyers, sellers, and intermediaries in the display advertising value chain. The inevitable reaction to all-automated, all-the-time display is the more labor intensive content and social channels. The question isn't whether or not the banner will die. It won't. The question is whether it can lead a more meaningful, rewarding life in the future. To do so it must become less commoditized, productized, and automated, and more integrated with its more labor-intensive marketing brethren. Rebecca Lieb is an analyst in digital advertising/media for Altimeter Group. On Twitter? Follow iMedia Connection at @iMediaTweet.view full article | Add a comment

The benefits of e-commerce personalization are well known -- increased conversion rates, larger order values, and more engaged customers. But as with most e-commerce strategies that offer rewards, personalization comes with inherent risks. Understanding these risks and their causes --also known as personalization sins -- is an integral step in making sure your company develops and executes a successful personalization strategy. To avoid these risks, let's explore seven of the most common personalization sins committed by e-commerce companies both large and small. Collecting personally identifiable information (PII) without permission One of the fastest ways to alienate customers is to collect PII without permission. Luckily, with advances in big data, machine learning, and real-time analytics, PII is not needed to provide a personalized e-commerce experience to individual customers. However, if a customer is willing to offer select PII by filling out a profile, you must use the data in an appropriate way. Using customer data without permission If a customer willingly provides you with PII, do not take it as an invitation to monetize and use that data in any way you see fit. Don't personalize an experience using unauthorized consumer data without permission. For example, it would be creepy if someone who I had never met came up to me on the street and started talking to me about my time in the Peace Corps. This same creepiness applies online. When determining where to draw the line, put yourself in the customer's shoes and ask yourself, "Would I provide my PII in order to receive a product or service?" If the answer is no, don't do it. Relying on profile data and past purchase history Many retailers limit their ability to give consumers relevant shopping experiences by their over reliance on profile data and past purchase history. While this data is helpful, they provide a stagnant picture of the past, not the future. If you purchased a mattress last week, it's unlikely that you will purchase another one this week. Once you start showing interest in something else, this information can be of limited value. Limiting the power of big data Building off of the prior sin, retailers should leverage the power of big data and machine learning to identify contextual cues -- search terms, dwell time, and click path -- to determine what consumers want today. These signals occur across all consumer touch points. Advanced analytics tools are available to capture this type of data and turn it into actionable business intelligence. Focusing on conversion at the expense of shopper engagement Omni-channel is about delivering the best possible consumer experience regardless of channel or device. It's about extending your brand across all touch points and building a relationship with your customer that sticks. Any consumer experience that rushes the buyer to convert also runs the risk of alienating or detracting from the long term relationship. It isn't about a one-time conversion. It's about getting shoppers to return to your site again and again for repeat purchases. Not leveraging online data to empower employees Sales associates are at the front line of your company. If you do not invest in the digital enablement of these employees, you are doing your customers a disservice. Sales associates need access to the data necessary to provide customers with an in-person omni-channel experience --e-commerce catalogs, in-store and online product availability, and technology that leverages online data to create a better in-store experience. One size fits none Unfortunately, no single personalization strategy will solve your needs for relevant content across all of your interactions. If you are searching for that one silver bullet, stop. To consistently deliver relevant content or products, you need a breadth of personalization approaches and algorithms. These range from using search terms on landing pages for onsite search

That’s the example Google used today in announcing the formal rollout of its local carousel search results. I’m not opted in to this yet, but when I look at the screenshot there … I don’t have a clue where to focus. I’m dying to know how the average searcher looks at it, aren’t you? This is a post from Matt McGee's blog, Small Business Search Marketing. I Want to See an Eye-Tracking & Click-Thru Heat Map for ThisAdvertisement: Local Presence for National Brands Local Market Launch delivers business listings management and local presence solutions for national brands, multi-location businesses, franchises, and local SMBs through a growing network of channel partners, including directory publishers, newspaper publishers, broadcast media companies, digital media agencies and certified marketing representatives (CMRs). http://localmarketlaunch.com