Joseph is a business analyst intern at Next-Mark. In his role, he analyzes our clients’ business models and goals, creating strategies to maximize their marketing outreach, particularly in digital media. In his first blog for Next-Mark, Joseph looks at what it takes to reach the young adult market today.

This fall, more than 17 million college students will go back to school – taking their $117 billion in discretionary spending with them. Once there, their minds will be focused, of course, on grades and paying for the increasing costs of tuition (said the intern who works for his father).

Obviously, these young people make up a lucrative potential market, but how do you engage them long enough to convince them of the value of your particular goods or services?

As a college student myself, I have first-hand experience as a consumer, of course, but I also can look at it as a marketer. While majoring in finance and marketing at Indianapolis’s Butler University, I’ve learned to look at potential markets in every way they can be diced, employing different techniques to promote brands to each.

In a recent article, Elizabeth’s Harz’s states that “old school” marketing doesn’t work for younger consumers. Here is what, according to Harz, marketers should do:

1. Diversify: Take a 360-degree approach.

–       Regarding college students, developing a 360-degree approach means targeting all aspects of where they are viewing; for example, not only advertising in a digital way, but also focusing in on the physical college campuses themselves.

2. Be real.

–       With a busy schedule, college students are eliminating the “fake,” that is, anything with language even faintly reminiscent of scams and get-rich-quick schemes, and looking for facts and real reasons to buy.

3. Listen and adapt.

–       Demographics are seldom static, and this age group is one of the more volatile. Use social media to listen to your market and quickly change your tactics and strategies if you find that something doesn’t work.

Contact Next-Mark today to learn more about effective approaches to marketing to a college demographic (and the rest of the world as well).

Engage Today. Transform Tomorrow.

 

 

As the social media world continues to grow and evolve, organizations are beginning to look at social media as more than just an inexpensive outlet for getting their marketing messages heard. As we move into the latter half of 2014, there are 7 trends beginning to take shape according to PR Daily and Media Mosaic. As you read through the trends, take note of the ones your organization does or does not participate in.

1. Social Listening Taking a Prominent Role
Polls show that more brands are beginning to listen more actively to their consumers. 24% of marketers said they plan on using more effective listening techniques, a 2% increase from 2013. This offers brands an opportunity to interact on a more personal level with their consumers.

2. Social Advertising
The lure of social advertising is becoming increasingly enticing to social media marketers. 57% of marketers used social ads in 2013, and this is expected to increase by 23% in 2014. Social Ads give you the opportunity to reach the audience in which you’ve invested a lot of money and time into nurturing, which is why social media ad revenues are expected to grow by $11 billion by 2017.

3. Images as Marketing Tools
The use of images in social media marketing has grown exponentially over the years and is continuing to grow in 2014. Images allow marketers to share a lot of information in a short amount of time in space. Infographics are becoming an increasingly popular promotion tool for brands.

4. Data-based Marketing
Prior to the rise of social media, database marketing has been the conventional go-to solution to increase sales. With the seemingly boundless rise of social media however, companies are presented with an opportunity to reach customers immediately and efficiently. It gives marketers great insight into consumer culture through customer activity such as comments and likes on company products.

5. Social Media Integration with Business
2014 will see the further integration of social media with the rest of the business. Polls found that 57% respondents have a dedicated social media team to strategize, and implement planned social media initiatives. However, most only have the budget to have a team of 3 or fewer.

6. Social Data Guiding the Future of Relationship Intelligence
Information from social sites is being used more and more to effectively gage and monitor audiences. This will push brands to place much more emphasis on formulating increasingly creative campaigns.

7. Online Meets Offline for Customer Engagement
Despite the ongoing momentum for everything digital, organizations still have to find the best recipe for effective marketing tactics. This means finding ways to bring online content into the real world in order to engage consumers. Thus, in 2014 we are seeing companies take a much more hands on approach to finding that their consumers care about in order to find those winning practices.

At Next-Mark we work with major brands in managing their social media content and strategy. Let us know if we can help.

 

The term Brand Ambassador means different things to different people. In some usages, it’s a corporate position; in others, it’s college kids handing out swag. Often, it means empowering employees to go forth and spread the word. And, increasingly, it means building a power base with a product’s or service’s fans.

In that regard, following are a few ideas to fuel the buzz you need from customers to create excitement for your brand.

1. Know the customers most passionate about your product. Look at the base you have and build from there. Google your company or product and see what’s being said. Then start brainstorming about how to turn comments into       commitment.

2. Create an aura of exclusivity. Not long ago, we talked about Maker’s Mark, a bourbon with an official Ambassador Program. What makes it cool is that it isn’t advertised (at least we haven’t seen it); it’s a word-of-mouth sort of thing that makes Ambassadors feel unique. (Trust me, if you know one, they never shut up about the product and look for it everywhere they go.)

3. Let your employees know what you’re doing and why. Get them excited, as well. You can even provide incentives for bring true Ambassadors on board.

4. Go social. Set up forums for your fans and get conversations started on social media or on your own web site.

5. Encourage your active Ambassadors to invite kindred souls. Remember that you’re not searching so much for quantity as quality when it comes to people who represent your brand.

6. Reward your Ambassadors. Whether with the occasional lagniappe, or insiders’ emails or special status at events or notifications specific to them.

7. Listen! Along the same lines, don’t forget to listen to what your Ambassadors say, acknowledge it and, if appropriate, act on it. There’s no better reward than knowing you’re being heard.

There’s more, of course, but these are some of the basics.

A good place to start is the next time someone says, “I use your product/service all the time.” Instead of thanking them, ask questions as to why. You may find out you already have Ambassadors. You just have to reach out to them to make the most of their enthusiasm.

Need help getting started? You know where we live.

Here at Next-Mark, we work in the social media space all the time—just like your company probably does, and 99.9% of the world’s big brands—so we’re in a great position to see one of the fundamental disconnects between marketing and social media.

Social media has taken marketing by storm and changed forever the way brands interact with their customers. Simply, social media has taken a traditionally one-way monologue, where marketers talk at their customers and prospects, and turned it into a two-way conversation, with customers talking among themselves and to the brand itself.

The result has been an intoxicating brew of information and dialogue that marketers have a hard time resisting. After all, what marketer could resist interacting directly with customers and prospects?

But as Jorge Aguilar and Abhishek Mehta argue in Branding Magazine, it’s easy to go too far down the social media rabbit hole. Why? Because social media engagement is not necessarily connected to sales—and the marketer’s job is to build the brand and drive sales goals. As they say, “Love is not enough.” Simply knowing that someone likes a brand is less meaningful than understanding the behaviors that stem from that like.

So what’s a marketer to do? The key is to align your marketing with your sales goals, and then take advantage of all the tools out there that can help you bring social media into line with sales goals. It’s not enough to simply know that a person “liked” your Facebook page, for example. You need to know more: Is that person a current customer? How did they get to your Facebook page?

To be a truly effective, social media engagement needs to combined with marketing data that can uncover actionable data and potential sales. Something as simple identifying the purchasing habits of your own Facebook fans, including who “liked” your page but hasn’t bought anything by looking at transactional data, can turn a bland metric into a powerful sales driver.

It’s OK to be loved—but it’s better to be loved while you’re increasing sales!

Occasionally, companies looking for marketing, advertising or public relations support will ask the invited agencies or those responding to a proposal to provide “comps,” that is, samples of specifically what they would do for the company.  We never do.

It’s not because we can’t compete but because it isn’t fair – either to our agency, which is being asked to work for free; our existing clients, who deserve all our time; or the prospect, who would not see a true reflection of what a truly strategic approach would accomplish.

And that’s the key:  No one can know what an organization needs without knowing the organization. On the surface, it may look as though a few bells and whistles will suffice, while, deeper down, more relevant content may be needed. The point is that comps are shots in the dark – very unlikely to hit the target.

So how do you gauge what an agency can do for you?
 
A good place to start is their web site, particularly any case studies. Do they work with clients in businesses such as yours or have they addressed issues similar to those you face? Did their efforts bring measurable results? Do you like their design aesthetic?

Nose around a little more, looking, for instance, at their blogs. Are these people you want to work with and know? Check out their credentials. Are these the quality of people you would want on your team? If you’re still interested, ask for a meeting. Any professional agency would be happy to chat with you about your needs at no charge.

At Next-Mark, we stand on our competencies and ground all we do in strategy. We don’t create materials in a vacuum and work to sincerely understand our clients and their goals. We also showcase our client work on the portfolio section of our website.

 
If that sounds good to you, we may be good for you, as well.

We are very proud to be partnering with the Sarasota Film Festival for the third consecutive year. In collaboration with artist Vince Fraser, we have created some of our most dynamic work to date. We are grateful for the opportunity to showcase our capabilities in our local market and internationally. Special recognition goes to Steve Wroczynski, our Director of Creative Strategy for leading this project.

Whether you are strolling down Main Street or reading local publications, you can’t miss Next-Mark’s influence on the festival this year. Our favorites are the building wrap at the Hollywood 20 theater downtown, the large-scale mobile billboard, and the traditional (not so mobile) billboards alongside Route 41.

The festival emphasizes the best in cinema alongside exciting programs and events, with more than 180 films screened each year including features, documentaries, shorts, and kid – friendly picks. SFF brings the best new and veteran independent filmmakers to our community each year.

Take a look around the city this week, pick up a couple of local publications and check out the films and events at the film festival. It’s well worth your time.

The Next-Mark leadership team often shares stories of brands and companies that have influenced our perception of the marketing industry and shaped the way we do business. Our focus tends to center around the start-ups that beat to different drums, color outside the lines and embrace the unconventional. These companies create the inspiration – the “AHA!”

Deep in the heart of Kentucky’s bourbon country – in the tiny town of Loretto – the small-batch bourbon distiller Maker’s Mark has been providing its premium bourbon whisky (note the lack of an “e” there) since the 1950s. The creation of the Samuels family, Maker’s Mark is all about tradition and (at least according to the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms) “whisky” is the official spelling … not to mention that Whisky Creek runs smack through the Loretto distillery property.

Maker’s Mark works hard to maintain its fiercely loyal following, both within the distilling process and beyond it – from its trademark black rick houses (barrel warehouses) with red shutters to its iconic square-shaped, long-necked bottles, each individually hand-dipped in red sealing wax.  Unsurprisingly, this extends to the marketing world as well.  And that’s where the Ambassador program comes in.

By recruiting its customers to become good-will ambassadors, Maker’s Mark turns them loose to spread the good word far and wide – globally, in fact.  (The distiller was recently acquired by Suntory Holdings Ltd., a privately-owned Japanese company.)  Now, this isn’t the only such program out there, but Maker’s Mark diligently massages these avid followers to maintain interest and loyalty.

A visit to the distillery will get an ambassador the white-glove treatment, a special nametag and repeated hearty greetings from distillery employees throughout the visit.  But, that’s only the beginning. Ambassadors also can have their names added to a barrel of bourbon and – since Maker’s Mark is one of the few remaining distillers to rotate its barrels – are regularly notified of its progress through the six-year aging process when the barrel is periodically moved around the rick house to absorb the environmental differences in temperature.

When their barrel matures and the bourbon is ready to be bottled, ambassadors can come by the distillery for the opportunity to buy a couple of personalized bottles and hand-dip them in that red wax. (Ambassadors are known to make that trip without hesitation.)  Periodic emails and a password-accessed area on the distiller’s website keeps ambassadors in the know about events such as its annual Thoroughbreds & Redheads horse racing weekend coinciding with the Kentucky Derby.

Other premiums, such as DVD’s, etc., occasionally pop up in ambassadors’ mailboxes just to keep them up to date on news, bourbon and distilling in general.  Every Christmas, a special ambassador gift arrives as well – Maker’s Mark wrapping paper, bottle cozies, ice cube molds and glassware are recent examples.  All this attention helps market the product, but also makes customers feel not only valued, but part of the family. And that’s what it’s all about.

The Next-Mark leadership team often shares stories of brands and companies that have influenced our perception of the marketing industry and shaped the way we do business. Our focus tends to center around the start-ups that beat to different drums, color outside the lines and embrace the unconventional.

We think you’ll like reading about one of our favorite companies that makes us say, “AHA!”

A minimalist stainless steel toilet paper holder from Portland, Oreg. Combat boots from Italy. A cushion appliqued with a shaggy cow from the UK. These are just some of things you can find on Etsy, the online marketplace that connects small-scale artisans and artists with millions of buyers from around the world.

In the past several years, Etsy has become my go-to place for artwork, jewelry and Christmas presents for my design-loving sister-in-law. Actually, my sister-in-law and I exchanged gifts from Etsy this year.

Apparently, we’re not alone. Last year, Etsy sellers, known as Etsians, sold nearly $1 billion in handmade items, according to a recent Economist article. While Etsy only receives about 20 cents per item posted and 3.5% of every sale, the company is said to be worth $1 billion, and there are rumors that it will go public in 2014.

Etsy may be tapping into a movement away from big box stores and feeding people’s desire to make a personal connection with the producers of the things they buy (I usually get a handwritten note in my Etsy packages).

Through training, online and offline meetings, and their Seller Handbook blog, they also do a very good job of helping part-time crafters and hobbyists become business people and marketers. For examples, see the “Building Your Brand” video below, or check out their other YouTube videos on branding product packaging  and photography using models.

Now, off to buy that toilet paper roll.

The Next-Mark leadership team often shares stories of brands and companies that have influenced our perception of the marketing industry and shaped the way we do business. Our focus tends to center around the start-ups that beat to different drums, color outside the lines and embrace the unconventional.

In 2007, two buddies were sitting around drinking beer when they decided to go into business together. (Admittedly, it was not the perfect environment for cogent thought, although I’m fairly sure I once “invented” pet insurance under similar conditions.) Anyway, their idea manifested into a retail craft beer store that built so much camaraderie among enthusiasts that it quickly evolved into a Tampa tavern named World of Beer (WOB).

Today, the company has more than 25 outlets in Florida alone, each offering a revolving selection of 500 craft beers. That said, however, WOB’s biggest seller is its sense of community, and behind it is a ploy that would make any marketing person’s heart sing.

Here’s how it works:

When you (pay to) join the WOB Loyalty Club, you get a T-shirt making you an official member. From there, you’re encouraged to drink as many different beers as possible to pile up points and make yourself eligible for more shirts, weekly free beer, glassware, Koozies, special events and your name on the wall.

It’s “Cheers” on steroids because everyone is Norm. And you get to choose your own nickname.

And, while the concept draws people of all ages, it’s absolutely perfect for my generation. Think about it: At WOB, all you have to do in your quest for glory is show up and buy something. No skill required. There’s even an app that keeps track of your beers and your points for you.

It’s genius. I mean, where else would someone go and sport a golf shirt that proudly announces he’d spent thousands of dollars on beer for the privilege of wearing it?

WOB came in early in the craft beer craze, which probably helped, and the corporate office now is making tweaks that include the addition of food and other beverages, so it will be interesting to see what the future will hold. But for right now, it seems to have hit the market – and its target market – just right. Kudos.

The Next-Mark leadership team often shares stories of brands and companies that have influenced our perception of the marketing industry and shaped the way we do business. Our focus tends to center around the start-ups that beat to different drums, color outside the lines and embrace the unconventional.

Vineyard Vines provides a whale of a story that continues to inspire us.

According to www.vineyardvines.com, brothers Ian and Shep Murray founded the retail company in 1998 to escape miserable Manhattan desk jobs. They traded their business suits for bathing suits by selling ties so they wouldn’t have to wear them.

With no business plan or exit strategy, these brothers simply wanted to have a good time, make awesome products and share them with everyone.

Since selling their first 800 ties in less than a week in 1998, the brothers have opened several retail stores across the country and expanded the Vineyard Vines brand to include clothing accessories for men, women and children.

The pink whale trademark is a feel-good, welcoming symbol that encapsulates the young, energetic, fun and colorful company that is Vineyard Vines.

Check out their amazing story below and learn why “Every day should feel this good.”