Since we have clients that are consumer-focused, I love his example of Walmart.  In this instance when the “Big Box” store made its shopping carts bigger, sales of microwave ovens jumped 50%! A small thing, but they were making an investment in letting the customer think “BIG”! For the consumer today with dollars to stretch, mouths to feed, and time an extravagance, it only makes sense that retailers should look for the small things that show care for the customers and that retailers are intuitively thinking of them.

Tom Peters has over 163 ways to pursue excellence in this book—from having candy in a dish at the reception desk to making sure the restrooms are clean and tidy. Sometimes it takes a step backward out of the office comfort zone to see the office as the client does. I also believe the “gatekeeper” at the reception desk is a very important part of a company’s success. She/he can set the tone and temperature of the atmosphere and also make the caller or visitor believe they are important and affirmed. When you’re premium, you’ve got to meet or surpass expectactions at every brand interaction. Look for those moments when your customer could interact with your brand, and seize that opportunity to make each of those interactions a premium experience.

I believe this new invention—although it’s basically a larger iPod Touch—could revolutionize print advertising as we know it today. Truth be told, when I’m reading news online in a traditional web-browser format, ads are too often easy to ignore. Online, I don’t get the same level of marketing impact as I do when I’m flipping through the pages of the printed form of a magazine, looking at full-page ad after full-page ad. That printed form, however, makes the metrics of my intake of that marketing message tough to measure. How long did I stare at the ad? Did the pages stick together, making me miss it altogether? Did this ad’s call-to-action (visit www.companywebsite.com) prompt me to do something? Wouldn’t marketers like to know!

The middle ground the iPad could occupy between the PDA and the laptop could be just the remedy that publishers and marketers have been waiting for, especially if the technology will allow users to earn their subscriptions by agreeing to view the ads measurably. People want free content. Publishers want to sell ads AND charge for the content. Looks to me like the paradigm could soon shift to an online format where consumers could choose: view ads and let us measure your interaction for free content, or just look at everything at your leisure and pay for all the content. Either way, advertising still drives the financial model. That’s good for ad agencies, and that’s good for the publishers.

Boy, I’d hate to be Kindle right now.

No … I’m tired of marketers’ and researchers’ ploys to convince me and my clients that Social Media only applies to white female moms with HHI of $75K+. This may sound like a ridiculous thing to be fed up with, but hear me out.

1. While the fact that here 300 million users on Facebook and there are more females (55%) using the site than males is consistently parroted,  the thing that is often overlooked is that 45% of those users are going to be male. When I made a mock Facebook ad targetting males in the U.S. 25-54, 24,722,340 users came up as eligible to receive my Facebook ad. 24,722,340! How it the world is this an insignificant number to other marketers? Having just a fraction of that number for fans creates an opportunity for some of the most targeted and meaningful advertising in the world today!
2. According to a recent study by Liberty Mutual, two very interesting facts about men’s online behavior include the following:
   • With the exception of Facebook, men are generally more likely than women to use their other social media accounts at least a few times a week, particularly Twitter:
     • MySpace: 35 percent of men vs. 26 percent of women, LinkedIn: 25 percent of men vs. 16 percent of women, and Twitter: 53 percent of men vs. 38 percent of women
   • Dads are more likely than moms to have a MySpace account or a Twitter account, 43 percent vs. 29 percent and 50 percent vs. 32 percent, respectively.
3. And, lastly, simply perusing the LinkedIn site, I came across their demographic breakdown of users—51% male, HHI 100K+, 35–50+. Don’t know about your marketing experience, but the mere fact that there is a single place where this demographic comes to talk about all things corporate and business-related, where I don’t have to do any schmoozing, is the greatest gift I’ve been given in a long time. One could equate it to finding the Holy Grail.

Moral of the story: Men are on social networking sites. They have different objectives, different patterns, but are on there nonetheless. So, please, stop assuming that every online tactic has to be centered around shopping moms. Because the truth is, the great success of those campaigns is only because coupons are the big rage in the “economy today.” It’s the only reason I joined half the Fan Pages I did, and I’ve not visited again … NOT ONCE.

So, I’m begging, stop all this bleating about mom, and take a look at half the world your advertising is missing out on by making assumptions rather than looking at the facts—men use social media. Get used to it.

The other day, Mr. Bossy Boss told me a tale about this Facebook friend calling him and reiterating an interesting conversation he had with “Mr. Boss Man” on Facebook chat. Evidently, “Mr. Boss” had told this friend that he needed money for his cousin but he had been mugged while in the UK. FBfriend replies, “Are you a Nigerian Prince?” The profile hijacker immediately shuts down the chat and unfriends the witty little guy.

Needless to say, Bossy changes his password, and his status to tell everyone about the potential scammer on the loose. Later that night, his wife goes to check his Fbook, and lo and behold … he is not there.

No friends. No profile. No Farmville Animals. Mr. Bossy Boss was Facebook murdered.

Shocking tales like these are occurring more and more within the Facebook realm. Due to its international popularity, Fbook has become the #1 target for spreading viruses, hijacking information and all-around chaotic malarkey! It is an alarming powerhouse in our world today—it has the ability to connect you to anything, but also disconnect you from the world, your fans, and even worse, your consumers—all in the blink of an eye.

Premium brands that don’t engage with newer types of interactive media are like Mr. Bossy Boss and his imposter—someone out there is representing their brand, whether they like or not, and they are taking control. However, if you play the game right, those imposters won’t matter, because, like real-life friends, once you build your relationships, brand advocates will know that you’re not a “Nigerian Prince.” They’ll recognize your brand’s true voice and learn to trust it.

The bottom line to consider is this: Life is scary. And social media is just life happening online. So, learn how to interact effectively with the real world, and you’ll see that being a “victim” online isn’t as easy as it first sounded. Your brand will be able to handle it. Your brand will be better for it.

These fond memories, however, are just that this year—memories. Because the 2009 holiday season is rife with new and larger opportunities to get the latest on Black Friday deals with minimal effort through my favorite information-sharing platform—Social Media.

From Facebook to Twitter to specialized web sites and splash pages, this thing we lovingly call the “inter-web” has revolutionized even the biggest in-store selling opportunity of the year. Some of my favorite, yet not necessarily new, uses of SM to promote Black Friday sales are below:

• Toys ‘R Us Fan Page – These geniuses have become the fastest-growing brand on Fbook simply by developing a custom Black Friday Preview application which lets Facebook fans find out what deals are available before the rest of the masses.
• Blackfriday.info – This site compiles and organizes all those pesky inserts and mini-catalogs into one place. You can also add items to a customizable list as well as check store open and closing times.
• @blackfriday on Twitter – This user lists deals, stories and tips to get the most out of your Black Friday. My favorite tip is a link to a page where JCPenney-sponsored Cindy Crawford will send you a wake-up call to get up and get shopping!
• BF Deals App – While not technically social media, and not free, this app lets you see a map of other users at stores so you can find a less crowded one, and it sends your deals to your Twitter account – there really is “an app for that,” too.

So, while these developments, and the many others like them, don’t necessarily mean greater sales or margin growth for retailers, they do provide further evidence of the power of real-time and easily accessible information, even when it comes to advertising. Because, let’s face it, Black Friday is the one day a year when people are actually CLAMORING to hear what retailers have to say and now there are a plethora of options and avenues for them to reach that information. And, in a world where the marketing dollar doesn’t quite go as far as we’d like, what could possibly be wrong with that?

Macy’s brilliantly capitalized on its status as a pop-culture icon last year as it celebrated its 150th anniversary. The TV spot is a montage of classic U.S. films and TV shows that all mention shopping at Macy’s with obvious pride in their voices. Some shots are black and white, while others are in color, but they vividly show how deeply woven Macy’s is into the fabric of America.

Macy’s is now leveraging social media to carry the warm-hearted and personable brand even further. It has its own Facebook page and this week is really promoting it’s Thanksgiving sales. Becoming a Macy’s fan gives you exclusive access to preview all the great “Black Friday” specials—it’s for “Special VIPs Only.” Unlike many brands on Facebook who never participate in the discussion, Macy’s stays actively engaged, responding to fan posts several times a day.

Every time I go to Macy’s it’s clean and bright. The associates are always knowledgeable, polite and helpful. If being treated like a human being weren’t enough to keep me coming back—sadly, these days it usually is—Macy’s sends me great discount cards regularly because I’m a Macy’s card holder. I’m happy to spend money with Macy’s because they make me feel valuable. As I always suspected, it’s a special place.

And does Macy’s really bring the magic? Oh, yeah, it does—premium magic!

I’m definitely not getting a holiday season job at a Microsoft store …

http://bubble-cast.com

To read more about why brands should be themselves and not fail at pretending to be others, read this blog blast from the past.

Just from reviewing and trying to get the social search features activated on my personal Google and Bing searches, it seems to be a lot more complicated than most are letting on. Not only do you have to have an account for each respective engine, but on Google, you also have to submit profile information, links to your social networks, and then be logged in at the time of search. After doing all that, even searching a familiar term like “facebook” yielded no results from my networks. And before you ask, yes, the account was signed up in the Google Lab, the testing section for the feature. For a more detailed look at what Google is offering and what it is really made of, watch the video below.

http://bubble-cast.com

As explained above, these searches only pull up information from the user’s “circle of friends.” So, the doom and gloom of getting any and every negative comment about a brand seems highly unlikely. And although it can be said that a negative comment made within a customer’s social network may be more damaging than one outside, the likelihood of its occurrence diminishes quite a bit when all the filters are in place.

So, brand managers, take heart. The only thing this social search means for your brand is you had better pay attention to what’s being said about your brand online. And I know you’ve heard that one before.

In this day and age where consumers are barraged with messaging assuring them that every brand they try is, in fact, superior, it can be hard for the consumer to trust advertising anymore. It reminds one of the classic 50s commercials about some product X, which were easily and readily believed. These days, it is much harder to break through the gimmick.

This brings us to the new trend in marketing for premium brands—transparency. Seems pretty simple, yet few brands engage in it because it is deceptively hard to come up with an actual tried and true reason why one brand is better than another. But the glorious truth is, if your brand truly does fit the definition of premium, there will be a pertinent message that makes sense and builds trust with the consumer.

Take one of Warren Douglas’s clients, Briannas Fine Salad Dressings. After years of being number one in the specialty salad dressing category, Briannas decided to hire us to share with more people what they and their loyal following love about the product. After going through our Premium Brand Process, we determined something very simple, yet true—Briannas is just plain good. Though there is more to the marketing plan than just this revelation, it is a succinct statement that rings true with everyone who tries it. Briannas doesn’t try to be anything they aren’t, but simply adhere to the new golden rule of advertising—when you tell the truth, people love you for it.

So, if you truly want to be perceived as a premium brand, make sure you aren’t peddling that gimmick, but really taking the time to get to know what it is that sets your brand apart. More importantly, have the courage to put your brand out there exactly as it is, with complete and utter transparency. Trust us, you’ll get the results you want and the credibility you need to be called “premium.”

In the land called “reality,” a recent study published by Engagementdb.com found that brands with a strong presence online had an average revenue growth of 18% while those with limited interaction online actually lost an average of 6%. This same study revealed that these same premium brands also utilized the largest number of social channels, pushing out huge amounts of relevant content to the masses. This begs to plead the case that if you’re going to go swimming in the big pool of the social media world, you had better be prepared to jump in head first. And, just as any good marketing campaign, this growth is the result of a well-rounded effort.

From a premium brand manager’s point of view, this is a call to action. In a world where all brands—again, ALL brands—are online in some manner, usually controlled by the consuming masses in the form of blogs, comments and reviews, why wouldn’t a premium brand take the opportunity to brag about itself in as many channels as possible? And why would a brand go in expecting anyone to notice them while just sitting dormant?

The tendency of any campaign to go in half-baked, whether via traditional or “new” media, is against what we at Warren Douglas know to be true about good marketing and advertising. The key to social media isn’t going to be accomplished in one small tactic, but rather by being relevant, smart and available for consumption in a well thought out and strategic approach across multiple channels. So, what a brand should really be afraid of when it comes to social media, is that their fear of engaging fully will keep them from real success.

Question: Do you know of any premium brands whose image has actually been damaged by being too reserved in social media?