Social Media Buzz Begets Higher TV Ratings?

On the heels of last week’s post reminding us that social media hasn’t killed email marketing, turns out the social media hordes haven’t devoured TV, either.

The twitterati may even be boosting TV ratings, from the Grammys to the Super Bowl and now the Olympics.

It’s just a theory at this point, but it makes sense from a “rising tide lifts all boats” perspective. Or maybe from a “no such thing as bad publicity” mindset?

The point is that all media are increasingly interconnected, so a win in one channel can easily be leveraged for a win in another. Just keep that snowball rolling along the same strategic path, and watch it grow bigger and bigger.

Email marketing lives!

Well, whaddya know: social media isn’t killing email, according to a new survey.

Actually, it seems, people who are active in social media check their email more often.

That’s not entirely surprising when you think about it. People who are active in one online realm are likely to be active in another. Plus, notifications about social media goings-on come through personal email—another reason to check your inbox regularly.

So, what’s it mean for marketers? Greater bang for the buck, basically.

Because social media and email and blogs are all interconnected, and increasingly so, the opportunities are more bountiful than ever to share your message and expand your reach. A morsel of good news coverage can become an upbeat tweet, an article in your email newsletter, and so on.

It’s yet another reason why a cohesive online strategy is essential. Figure out what you’re trying to accomplish and whom you’re trying to reach, and take advantage of every way possible on the web to do so.

The Ferment over Milwaukee’s Brand Identity

One word: Beer.

That was the extent of my knowledge of Milwaukee when I moved here six years ago. So yeah, I could certainly identify with all the ignorant out-of-towners cited recently as evidence of the need for a Milwaukee brand-identity task force.

Some are skeptical. There are lots of groups already working very hard to promote Milwaukee. What’s another task force gonna do? But if the new panel can get these organizations aligned and speaking with one voice, it could make a difference.

As they try to do that, here’s something to consider: Don’t underestimate the power of beer. I understand that some want to get past the traditional concept of Brew Town. But, um, beer with me here. For me, at least, beer was reason enough to give this town a chance. And when I did, I was pleased to find so many more reasons to stay.

Sure, outside of “flyover country,” people like my former self have little to no awareness of Milwaukee. But sometimes, such low expectations can work to your advantage. Because when people do find their way to this city, they’re always pleasantly surprised.

If only we could get them to visit … So the challenge for the task force isn't only to create a cohesive brand identity, but also to craft one that gives people a consistent call to action—a warm invitation, sprinkled with Midwestern humility and hospitality.

Milwaukee: Join us for a beer?

Quad's Quest: Company at a Crossroads

Big shakeup this week in commercial printing: While the iPad was introducing yet another threat to the industry, Quad/Graphics was making a bold move for its future.

Quad is buying a Canadian firm called World Color Press to create the second largest printer in North America.

The deal is interesting not just because of our work with a number of commercial printers, but more so because of the communications challenges involved.

CEO Joel Quadracci rightly called the takeover “a transformational event.” Poised to go public at a time of great upheaval in the industry, Quad is at quite a crossroads. At stake are relationships with customers, employees and now a whole new audience—shareholders.

It’s a big moment of truth for the company. And, as our work with a number of clients during such critical events has shown, Quad will need to provide clear, consistent, strategic communications.

What Quad leaders say and do over the next few months will affect:

n Customer loyalty

n Employee retention

n Brand equity

n Strategic success

In other words, it will have a huge impact on the future success of the company and the industry.

Who Cares If Domino’s Pizza Is Any Good?

I wouldn’t normally put “Domino’s Pizza” and “bold” in the same sentence.

But now there’s this ad campaign hyping the pizza chain’s supposedly bold new taste.

Haven’t tried the overhauled pie yet, so I can’t comment on that. But the ads? Most certainly bold and unorthodox.

Instead of focusing on the company’s reformulated pizza, the spots surprise by dwelling on blunt customer criticisms of the previous product—“cardboard” crust, “ketchup” sauce, etc.

By breaking the unwritten “don’t admit you stink” rule, the campaign is getting a lot of attention. It may or may not surprise you that creator of this saucy campaign is Crispin, Porter & Bogusky, an agency famous/infamous for jarring and at times annoying advertising.

So, certainly, the spots have some stopping power. And they’ve got some integrated online goodness, too. Pizza Turnaround does a nice job reinforcing the company’s earnestness toward improving their product by posting tweats about the new pizza—and not filtering out the critics. It’s all very effective and memorable.

But wait a second here. Quick: What do you think of when you think Domino’s?

If you’re like me, you think “quick delivery.” That, after all, has long been the strength of the brand. And Domino’s seemed to be doing pretty well with that reputation, regardless of what people thought about the taste.

So why mess with a good brand? That shift in focus, not the admission of past failures, may be the real risk of an otherwise impressive campaign.

Txt to ‘Haiti’ to 90999: In Tragedy, a Fundraising Triumph

By now, you’ve probably heard that you can quickly, easily donate $10 to Haiti earthquake relief efforts by texting “Haiti” to 90999.

Just days after the disaster, the program already is an unprecedented success, with millions of people donating a total of more than $8 million (and rising) to the Red Cross.

Without the text-to-donate opportunity—and the phenomenal publicity it’s received via social media, blogs and traditional media—would the relief effort be so flush with funding, so immediately? Not likely. Text donors account for at least one-fifth of the Red Cross’ earthquake relief fundraising so far.

It’s a breakthrough—a timely, convenient, impactful way to participate and help people in such dire need. And, as MediaPost points out, the $10 texting effort has reached a younger generation of donors who might not otherwise take the time or feel like they have the money to contribute.

For so many nonprofit organizations, at a time when money is tight and the need to find new people to support and sustain their missions is greater than ever, the rise in mobile marketing represents an excellent opportunity to engage with younger audiences.

For example, mPower, a Milwaukee-based under-21 drug and alcohol crisis hotline, is reaching its target audience with a combination of text messaging, social media and traditional channels. A campaign encouraging teens to text mPower and sign up for mobile alerts—for a chance to win a Nintendo Wii—has been a great success.

It’s good to see charitable organizations putting these new technologies to effective use, and the Haiti “text to give” success bodes well for future initiatives.

Oh, and if you haven’t already done so, please consider taking a moment to give to the relief effort. If texting isn’t your thing, here are some other ways to donate.

Getting Smart about Smartphones and Mobile Marketing

Let me start with a WARNING: This post may go a little heavier than usual on tech gadget talk. But I figure we’d all be wise to familiarize ourselves with the latest lingo. Here’s why.

As 2010 gets rolling, mobile advertising—the digital kind, not the billboards-on-trucks kind—is shaping up to be one of the few growth areas for marketing spending.

What’s driving the growth? The burgeoning 3G smartphone market, as evidenced by the battle heating up between Apple and Google. You’ve got your iPhones and your Droids and your Google Nexus Ones. And then there are the “tablets” everyone was hyping at CES 2010.

These new devices—faster loading, with higher-resolution screens and advanced capabilities—are quickly transforming and expanding the applications of mobile advertising. People who need their Internet now can have constant access to the web in its full glory like never before.

And more importantly for this blog, marketers have more opportunities to reach adopters of smartphone technology in ever more targeted ways. Location-based advertising that syncs with new phones’ GPS capabilities holds particularly strong potential.

However, the need is still there to accommodate the limited capabilities of earlier generations of web phones (such as the older Blackberry products that proliferate in many corporate environments). Witness the growth of Mobile Facebook, a typical mobile site that strips nearly all graphic content in the name of faster loads for mobile phones. It also remains critical to cater to some extent to these phones’ limitations in email campaigns.

But with the far-more-capable iPhones and Android-based devices making strong inroads in the market, we may soon reach a point where designing down to lowest-common-denominator mobile phones is no longer necessary.

In any case, marketing and advertising aimed at mobile devices is a dynamic realm definitely worth keeping an eye on in 2010.