Info-Currents February Issue Now Online: How to Rise Above Email and Social Media Clutter

Emerging trend:  Google seeps into the oldest mobile technology: cars.

Implication: New models from Kia and Hyundai featuring Google maps and places gives the search giant additional advertising space and eliminates competition for eyeballs and clicks.

Action: Note additional revenue streams: Small business owners (e.g., restaurants, specialty shops) can increase foot traffic by making sure they increase their web presence and get listed in Google services.

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Emerging trend: E-mail consolidation services such as unroll.me helps consumers gain control of their inboxes and reduces spam.

Implication: E-mail marketing has to be an outcome, rather than the starting point of customer-brand relations. When consumers sift through their list of promotional emails consolidated by services like unroll.me, they will only allow Very Important Emails (VIE) to filter into their inboxes. Brand love will need to weigh more than discount offers.

Action: Re-evaluate the ROI from vast email lists. Test run an email campaign among fans and return customers, as well as a random sample of non-fans. Compare open-rates and follow-up actions from both groups. Consider focusing email invitations only on fans.

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Emerging trend: To break through social media clutter and gain visibility, thought leaders and enterprises alike will rely on automated content management systems such as Meddle.

Implication: Building social media presence takes significant effort and continuous updates. Smart content management systems can shrink time to fame and broaden industry experts’ and academics’ audiences.

Action: Instead of investing in static online presence (e.g., web sites), build a social base and propel your news to audiences searching for niche content.

 

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Google as the Next Car Accessory: Upcoming Info-Currents

The February issue of futurist newsletter Info-Currents will hit the inboxes on February 11th. Topics will include

• Google as a car accessory
• Clutter consolidation services -- a threat to email marketing
• Personal brand builders (automated, of course) -- opportunities for thought leaders and content marketers

To sign up for Info-Currents, please click here. 

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Smart calculator measures potential impact of word of mouth

I was honored when the Useful Ideas team invited me to provide input for a 'smart calculator' they wanted to create to help marketers gauge word of mouth activity. Our goal was to get end users to think through the fundamentals of getting a message cascade online and offline vs. claim to have a crystal ball for viral outcomes. The calculator algorithm is based on four elements:

1- Number of customers

2- Percentage of customers who would share a message

3- Average number of recommendations/customer

4- Impact of recommendations (i.e., % of recommendations that turn into purchases)

The site is full of fun, 'useful' calculators that help you figure out how addicted you are to Facebook, how you rank in work overtime, your income before and after taxes, etc. Below is the word of mouth impact calculator.

 

<div style="margin-bottom: 5px">WOMM (Kulaktan Kulağa Pazarlama) Etkisini Hesaplama, diğer tüm hesaplama araçları için hesaplabakalim.com</div>

 

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Info-Currents January Trends: Smart Online Calculators and Social TV Guides

I shared the following trends earlier in the month with my Info-Currents subscribers. Enjoy!

Emerging trend:  Smart online calculators will coach increasing number of users to estimate outcomes of their life events or work-related decisions. 

Implication: Immediacy in access to online information has increased our expectations to find answers to complicated questions such as ‘How much should I pay for a mortgage?’ or ‘How many people can I reach with this message?’ While providing estimates only, calculator apps can shorten time to insight.

Action: Creating customized calculators for your web site can take considerable resources. Increase site stickiness and sharing by white labeling calculators created by utility marketing shops such as Useful Ideas.  

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Emerging trend: As indicated by Instagram’s change of privacy policy, social businesses’ need to monetize will reduce consumers’ content ownership rights. 

Implication: Consumers will need to gain an understanding that what’s posted – in private or public accounts – can be up for grabs by Facebook and other mega platforms. Upon news of changing privacy policies, people will curb sharing habits briefly. Most will continue to socialize online, perceiving the benefits of social connections as more than the risk of being publicized.

Action: Be transparent in communicating how your business intends to use ‘consumer data.’ Make this information accessible and understandable, to earn trust and grow business.

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Emerging trend: Twitter-based social TV guides will give consumers more ways to find out about new shows and choose programs.

Implication: Online chatter about new shows, premiers and plot twists will increase, giving content providers more ways to tap into audience excitement with social engagement tactics.

Action: When evaluating branded programming, product placement or traditional TV advertisement plans, review social activity around the show. You may discover additional value from hyper social TV users who are likely to influence their peers’ purchasing decisions.

 

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Info-Currents December Trends: Unlikely Financial Service Players, App Games and Social TV

Emerging trend:  Digital giants are getting into financial services. Google credit card is an example.

Implication: Connecting search and payment data will make Google even a stronger advertising platform.  

Action: Consumers will need to be even more cognizant of privacy issues. As a business, look for more creative and targeted search ad products from Google that are based on consumers’ spending habits. 

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Emerging trend: App-based games are making parents think twice about game consoles as gifts.

Implication: Game developers will weigh on content and experience differentiators to justify price.

Action: Ask for demographic and usage information when planning for immersive, branded gaming experiences. Popular downloads may not be as targeted as n established console players.

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Emerging trend: The old fashioned TV relation, where the viewer has a solo connection to characters in a plot, is changing as Twitter networks become default TV companions.  

Implication: Social TV audiences dish a wealth of information about shows, advertisements and brands as they chat about their likes and dislikes.

Action: Offer branded experiences and purchase incentives to Twitter-engaged TV audiences. Gather clues about what make audiences tick and use these insights to create content that resonates.

 

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Retro and Counter Trends in Social Media

The following is the September issue of Info-Currents. To sign up for monthly social media and trend updates and action items, click here. 

 

Re-Emerging trend:  The value of singular, physical experience over multiple, virtual experiences is being emphasized through documentaries, experiments on life without Facebook, online dating services organizing offline events and research-based books such as The Face to Face Book.

Implication: For every trend such as the social media rush, there is a counter trend such as the one that underscores the value of face-to-face relationships. Some cohorts may seek lifestyles balanced between the emotional gratification of in-person relationships and the efficiencies of virtual ones. 

Action: When creating experiences as marketers and entrepreneurs, use social media as a lever to spread news fast and reach new frontiers. Rely on in-person connections to cement the concept in people’s minds and to give them something to talk about.

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Re-Emerging trend: Subscription services such as App.net get back in the spotlight as an alternative to free but ad-cluttered services such as Twitter.

Implication: Tech-savvy early adopters will sign up for services where they will pay to have ad-free content. Majority of Internet users will continue with ad-centric, free services and continue to ignore ads. 

Action: If you are running an information business, diversity your offerings by adding a subscription service. The select few who sign up for it are likely to be your most dedicated readers and followers.

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 Re-Emerging trend: Bartering old but gently used goods is becoming a new source of satisfaction for e-commerce aficionados. Sites such as swaptreasures.com and barterquest.com give people the simple joy of acquisition in an environmentally conscientious way.

Implication: Millennials have different perceptions of value than older generations. Their interest in all things retro (retropia – a phrase coined by futurist firm Weiner, Edrich and Brown) is also spilling into trade.

Action: Turn this retro trend into a business advantage by creating second-hand markets online. It can bring longevity to your brand and help increase the value of limited edition products as collectors’ items.

 

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Key Questions to Ask When Reviewing Social Media Listening Tools

If you are in a position to review and compare several social media listening tools, be critical. Ask tough questions on data quality and probe into black-box algorithms. Here is a short list of questions to direct to social media research partners:

1- How do you collect your data? How do you address spam issues?

2-Do you own your data or do you provide a sub-set of sites from a third-party?

3-What kind of support do you provide, if my team is not trained in research or analytics?

4-What solutions do you offer beyond baseline KPIs (volume, sentiment, etc.)?

5-How do you define influencers? Do you have a recommended approach?

You would never commission a survey without knowing where the sample is coming from or how the questions are phrased. Social research should also be held to high standards. Be ruthless about  getting quality data and methodologically sound solutions. Quick and dirty is not good enough in a world where social insights drive business decisions.

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