Using Biometric Research to Measure Customer Reactions
Biometric research can help measure and evoke responses from customers. See how a market research company helps you understand customers with biometrics. Biometrics refers to measurements and calculations of human features and behaviors. Most people still associate commercial biometrics with security, like thumbprint and facial recognition readers. Yet marketers already use this technology not only to measure reactions in labs but even to evoke them at home or out on the street. Find out how a market research agency might suggest incorporating biometric research into the data that can help drive successful, data-driven marketing. How businesses use biometric research for marketing To demonstrate how a quantitative and qualitative market research agency might use biometrics to improve marketing, Bloomberg highlighted the example of Expedia. Their market research company invites actual customers into their lab with the enticement of a gift card and a chance to help improve their experience with a service they already use. Inside the lab, a young woman checked flights and hotels for a trip she had already planned with her family. While she used the website as she normally would at home, a researcher watched her through a two-way mirror, eye-trackers tracked where she looked, and sensors monitored facial muscles that would detect any trace of a smile or frown. After the experience, the subject also filled out a survey to help enhance the researcher’s understanding of the experience. Expedia stored this information along with data from other research subjects, so they could use it to better understand users and, in turn, keep improving the customer experience. As a travel company, they understand that emotion drives vacation planning. They also know they need to discover the feelings of trip planners better in order to design an experience that can compete with online rivals. Note that Expedia has not just survived but remained competitive since 1996. Unlike so many rivals, they survived the tech bubble in the early 2000s. While they haven’t always executed every business move perfectly, the company credits at least some of their success to a constant drive to understand the motivations of their customers. Their leadership in biometrics offers one good example. Using biometric tech to test products and designs Besides facial recognition, some technology can also measure galvanic skin response, often called GSR, or simply “sweat response”. GSR measures the state of arousal and requires sensors applied to the skin, so it’s usually done in a lab. According to the National University of Singapore, marketers employ GSR in several research applications for product or website design. Even though this tech can measure arousal, it can’t say if the reaction comes from a positive or negative response, so it’s best combined with other methods, such as surveys or facial recognition. How biometrics research can assist customer-facing marketing For a different take on using biometrics for marketing, Trend Hunter descended into a subway to report on the example of Coca-Cola’s Coke-Moji displays. The marketing research agency for Coca-Cola was not so much interested in gathering quantitative data from biometrics, but in using it as a tool to engage consumers. Just as on the internet, subway users can develop ad-blindness because of the daily barrage of consumer marketing they see in the station and on the trains. The display showed people who passed by an emoji shaped like a bottle cap. Sensors read facial expressions, and then the emoji playfully duplicated them. The device worked to engage people and, perhaps, even brighten their mood a bit. Walmart is also using facial recognition technology in a more subtle way to help improve customer experiences. They’re developing a system that will use sensors at the checkout counter to detect dissatisfaction and then alert employees to offer assistance. They also plan to keep this information to correlate mood with purchasing behavior. Walmart hopes this data can help them find and resolve pain points in order to improve revenues. Why work with a market research agency to employ biometrics? The world’s largest and most successful companies know they need to understand their customers better in order to engage and serve them. Combining data from biometrics sensors with subjective experiences from consumers can help them achieve this understanding. A quantitative and qualitative marketing research agency can work to help their clients employ the right combination of research tools to help their customers achieve this goal.
Why Market Research Online Communities Make Sense
For qualitative research companies, market research online communities provide an efficient, flexible, and robust tool for generating consumer insights. These days, people connect online with each other and with the companies that they patronize. That’s one reason why a qualitative marketing research agency may suggest using online communities to gain a deep understanding of customers. Market research online communities only came into being about a decade ago, pioneered by the UK’s Further, which describes itself as a Human Insights company. Further’s team saw the potential of emergent Web 2.0 technology to conduct qualitative research online. Despite the relative newness of using these online research groups, they’ve rapidly gained importance as a way to help data-driven companies better understand their market. What are market research online communities? Sometimes called “MROCs” or “insight communities”, marketers might compare market research online communities to traditional focus groups. Instead of gathering the group together in a room, qualitative research companies gather their groups entirely online. Group organizers pick participants that fit some criteria, like demographics that fit a buyer persona, general interests, or specific experiences. But unlike a traditional focus group, where all participants are physically present at the same time, MROCs enable participants to log in and out of the community whenever it is convenient for them to do so. The asynchronous nature of MROCs enables participants from different parts of the country – or different parts of the world – to engage in qualitative research studies. When they join the community, these participants may perform various tasks. Some examples include surveys, discussions, brainstorms, and even games. Each of these activities helps the researchers gather the information that marketers can use to improve test theories, answer questions, or further define their market. While this article mostly discusses these online groups for insight-driven qualitative marketing research, scholars also use them to gather information for studies. Three common kinds of MROCs This list briefly explains the three common kinds of MROCs: Short-term: These communities only last from a few days to a few months and can yield quick insights with a modest budget. Typically, researchers have tightly focused goals and engage with up to 60 participants. Pop-up: Sometimes also called “on-off communities”, researchers will summon these groups as the need arises. They generally use from 50 to 250 participants. A qualitative marketing research agency may suggest a pop-up community when they have a limited budget and few questions but want to keep options open for more research in the future. Continuous: Researchers keep a long-term or even permanent community open when they see a consistent need for answers and have the budget to support it. These may require up to 5,000 participants and a dedicated team of staff to manage and moderate. Benefits of MROCs for qualitative user research Successful advertising, marketing, and even product development depend upon high-quality marketing research. Marketers find that running online communities lets them make efficient use of their research budget because they’re: Cost- and time-effective: Online research platforms can provide the tools to affordably and easily manage all kinds of groups, engaging with participants in multiple timezones, and including feedback from people who find it difficult or impossible to travel to attend a traditional, in-person focus group. Flexible: Researchers can determine how long to run the group, how many participants to include, and the kinds of activities to use for information gathering. While some businesses benefit from running continuous online communities, others can meet their goals rapidly. Robust: Platforms for conducting MROCs have a lot of the same features that online forums and social networks offer. In fact, some businesses even use groups in existing social networks, though purpose-designed platforms can provide tools that make tracking and managing participants easier. In either case, it’s possible to host discussions, conduct polls, and even post pictures and videos. Profitable: Having a way to gather high-quality information also helps businesses maximize returns from other marketing activities. For instance, they can learn how to target ads or which features to include in their product design. Market researchers can trust the overall quality of the information they receive from these online groups. It’s easy to segment participants in real-time, based on their comments or demographics, and to tag verbatim quotes for qualitative analysis. Some people may perfectly fit the target but feel reticent about expressing their opinion in a room full of others. In-person focus groups generally have to stick to a tight schedule; however, online communities can allow more flexibility. With the relatively anonymous nature of sitting behind a keyboard, participants often feel more relaxed about speaking up. Because they can log in online, respondents also have the luxury of chiming in when the existing discussion has helped them frame their thoughts. Sometimes, researchers even add an element of gamification or social engagement to the mix to help encourage participation. Why online communities make sense These days, consumers compare, shop, and even socialize online. It only makes sense to include marketing research online communities in every toolbox of marketing research techniques. When compared to more traditional forms of surveying the target audience, they also provide a robust solution that can help spare budgets and improve bottom lines. BONUS: Listen to Stephen Cribbett and Terri Sorenson from Further discuss the benefits of qualitative marketing research online communities with Bigeye’s VP of Insights on our podcast, IN CLEAR FOCUS.
Why Digital Marketers Should Prepare for the End of IE
Microsoft withdraws support for Internet Explorer. Do you know which browser your customers are using and what that tells you? At about 25 years of age, or about an eon in internet years, Microsoft recently announced the upcoming retirement of Internet Explorer. While the news should not entirely surprise most internet users, especially since Microsoft rolled out Microsoft Edge about five years ago, some people have concerns about Explorer web apps that businesses may still rely upon. Take a moment to learn about the solutions Microsoft has introduced to bridge the gap left by IE and the concerns a digital marketing agency may have about losing this old and established browser for good. Most of all, understand why marketers should keep track of the browsers their customers prefer in order to glean some useful data. How businesses can run IE legacy apps without IE support from Microsoft Microsoft announced their upcoming withdrawal of technical support for Internet Explorer. This also includes having Microsoft apps, like Windows 365 supporting the aged browser. Some businesses made sizable investments in developing their own web apps for IE, and Microsoft acknowledged that. Also, Internet Explorer has been around for decades, and many people have even used the latest version for a few years, so this announcement has caused some concern over having to change. In particular, businesses didn’t want to have to rely upon different browsers for access to various apps. Microsoft has a plan to bridge the gap and reassure users in two ways: Even though Microsoft won’t support IE, they said they had no plans to remove it from Windows at this time. Microsoft Edge, the company’s more modern browser, can run in “Explorer Mode.” Legacy apps should still work fine. Prudent businesses should probably not wait until the last minute to test that theory on their own custom apps. Why a digital marketing agency cares about retired browsers According to ZDNet, no third-party has successfully gathered precise or reliable information about the total share of internet traffic for each browser. Because of this, they trusted the official numbers for U.S. government websites as a fair sample. These are the ranks they came up with: Chrome ranked first with almost 50 percent of the federal traffic. Even so, it still didn’t rank as well as IE did 20 years earlier. Safari ranked second with about 30 percent of the government traffic, indicating that a good share probably originated from phones. IE ranked in third place, even just ahead of Edge. Surprisingly, Firefox came in fifth on this list with only 3.6 percent. Except for those who rely on apps developed for IE, marketers might not have thought to base digital media targeting by web browsers. Personal preferences or exceptional requirements aside, they all do just about the same thing for average users. Still, Marketing Experiments presented a case study that demonstrated the possibility of gleaning marketing data from browser choices. As an example, users of their desktop app tended to prefer different browsers than their cloud app users. After looking at the analytics, the market researcher noticed over half of the traditional software users favored IE; however, IE only accounted for about one-third of the web app users. How can the end of IE disrupt businesses? Even with the end of IE looming, lots of people still use it. Digital target marketing should include checking browser preferences and preparing for some disruption. The researcher did speculate that the people who tended to favor both traditional software and IE may have been older than the web app users. After all, Baby Boomers and older Millennials have matured right along with the internet, and for many, they also grew up with IE and installed software. Companies with a lot of IE traffic might want to test that theory with a survey of their own audience. In particular, businesses that target older or more traditional customers should anticipate the change. Reaching out to customers about the end of IE can even provide a good opportunity to provide some useful customer engagement. For instance, customers might appreciate having a business contact them with helpful suggestions about transitioning to a different browser or better yet, the company’s app. The king is (almost) dead; long live the king Once the declining IE user base evaporates, no clear browser winner may emerge. As an example, many people prefer one browser on their phone and another on their laptop. While Safari powers a lot of Apple phone searchers, it’s not so dominant with Apple laptop owners. The Samsung browser for phones ranked right behind Firefox, and that’s obviously from mobile users. Anyway, marketers probably won’t care so much about which browser gets the most overall traffic; instead, they will focus upon trends among their own site visitors and customers. Most of all, businesses can use this information to ensure customers keep enjoying a good experience and to understand them better.
Defining Luxury Shoppers in the eCommerce Marketing World
eCommerce marketing is growing, but it takes a different skill to target audience demographics for online luxury goods buyers. A McKinsey report upon the luxury goods sector this year expressed both cautions and reasons for optimism. Because the pandemic has slowed in-person sales worldwide, they emphasized the importance of focusing upon online growth. Not only can eCommerce marketing fuel online sales, it can help propel more potential customers to visit stores later. Of course, to make the best use of digital marketing dollars, it’s important to carefully target audience demographics. How targeting eCommerce marketing to luxury buyers differs from other niches For many niches, a consumer marketing agency will suggest targeting the right buyers through content marketing. After all, posting relevant content can cast a wide net. In most cases, it’s fair to assume that people with an interest in the content will also want to buy associated products and services. Yet, this kind of strategy may not prove as effective for an audience analysis agency that hopes to target their market for luxury buyers. MediaPost mentioned a good example of some pitfalls luxury brands have encountered when they tried to define and target audience demographics with posts about multi-million dollar homes, imported purses, or other big-ticket luxuries. They may attract some potential buyers; however, they’re also likely to engage a more aspirational market. Who hasn’t looked at their social media pages to see a friend posting a picture of a dream home by the beach or high-powered sports car? That’s more about sharing a daydream about a luxury item than serious thinking about buying one. After that social media friend has shared or commented on one of these posts, they will suddenly find themselves targeted or retargeted for similar ads. Daydreaming friends may find the situation amusing; however, for the brands paying for clicks or displays, they’re wasting money. Consider location targeting Property development companies put a lot of thought into where they will build their next gated community or luxury condos. Likewise, high-end jewelers and other kinds of luxury retailers carefully consider which shopping districts to choose for new stores. Even though eCommerce customers can compare, shop, and buy from almost anywhere, it stands to reason that businesses will still find them mostly in the same kinds of areas that would help a physical outlet prosper. With that in mind, consider a few ways to gather information for location targeting: Past behavior: Of course, targeting people who have actually taken the time to visit the physical location of a luxury brand may work the best of all. Even if the consumer did not buy from the business, perhaps they have shopped and purchased from other luxury brands. Geo-locations of homes: The location and value of a current home or rental can help suggest the price range and quality that a consumer might feel comfortable with. Just as physical outlets for high-end goods will target high-income communities, so should luxury eCommerce sellers. Try focusing on millennials The Shopify blog published some optimistic predictions about the future of online luxury goods sales. They expected a growth rate for eCommerce of over twice that of other sales channels. In particular, millennial adults have arrived at their peak time for spending and are especially prone to buy high-end goods for such lifecycle milestones as weddings and other events. When compared to older groups, millennial also generally favor comparing and buying online, so this age group looks like a great place to start. In the past, luxury brands focused upon differentiating their goods by emphasizing quality and exclusivity. These benefits can lure Millennials, but they also appear inclined to support companies with a clearly design purpose. As an example, Gucci says that these younger adults drive just about half of all of their sales. They succeeded with this market by introducing a site called Gucci Equilibrium that highlights their efforts to promote sustainability, diversity, and inclusion. As with other sectors, luxury marketing must adapt The pandemic has impacted just about every kind of business in one way or another. Sales of luxury brands online suggest that high-end businesses can look forward to a bright future if they carefully target their marketing and promote the right message.
5 Reasons Pumpkin Spice Became a Cultural Phenom
Pumpkin spice marketing and the success it’s seen over the years can be explained by nostalgia, broad cultural appeal, and even the way human brains work. Anybody can visit a local grocery store to buy a jar of pumpkin spice for a few dollars. Generally, the blend contains a mix of cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon, and sometimes, ginger and allspice. Stores have sold these traditional spice mixes for generations. For most of that time, shoppers would pick up a jar as a convenient way to season pumpkin pie, a traditional autumn treat. How did pumpkin spice become incredibly popular as a fancy coffee flavor? Obviously, anybody could have added a pinch of this blend, milk, and sweetener to their coffee mug for a few cents a serving. Until about a decade ago, few people thought of it. According to a recent estimate from Forbes, Starbucks has managed to turn this common mix of seasonal spices into a popular phenom that helps them sell about 20 million cups of pumpkin spice latte each year. Even more, they reserve their pumpkin spice for the holiday season, so it’s not even available all year. Later, plenty of other businesses caught on and flavored or scented their products in an effort to profit from the trend. Obviously, lots of marketers would like to understand how Starbucks managed to turn a seasonal drink into extra revenue and even a cultural phenomenon. Consider the popularity of pumpkin spice from the perspective of consumer insight marketing to understand why it grew so wildly popular and how to apply these lessons to other marketing efforts. Five pumpkin spice consumer insights marketing perspectives To spark some ideas for other potential products, start by understanding what makes pumpkin spice latte so great. 1. Pumpkin spice smells like nostalgia People may actually derive more satisfaction from the fragrance of a pumpkin spice latte than the flavor. According to Scientific American, the brain processes olfactory information differently from other senses. Scents travel more directly to centers of the brain associated with memory and emotion. Thus, people may actually remember scent-associated memories faster than they can even recall the name of the scent. If somebody says that pumpkin spice smells like Christmas, they’re probably describing their first reaction to the smell pretty well. Very often, people lend weight to this idea by saying they enjoy pumpkin spice because it reminds them of holiday gatherings and other pleasant memories. Anyway, a hot brew provides the perfect carrier for the scent of a fragrant blend of spices. If some people talk about needing their pumpkin spice fix, they’re offering clues to the appeal of this holiday drink. For a little while, just letting the scent waft into the air can help evoke the holiday spirit 2. People connect with others around their love of pumpkin spice Of course, plenty of competitors and other companies have jumped onto the pumpkin spice bandwagon. Besides coffee, consumers can find everything from recipes for pumpkin spice granola to spice-scented soap. Lots of these products generate social groups and energetic follower bases. As an example, Starbucks has a Facebook page dedicated to its pumpkin spice latte and thousands of followers. Yes, people join a Facebook group to show their support for this drink and ensure they stay updated with news about the coffee drink. On a related note, the Facebook Pumpkin Spice Festival group also has thousands of followers. That’s dedicated to all things pumpkin spiced and not just coffee. By picking up on a popular trend, plenty of marketers can find a thirsty market. 3. Pumpkin spice stirs up light-hearted controversy Brands generally like to minimize controversy; however, measured differences of opinion can also attract attention. Reddit, for example, has multiple threads devoted to discussions of the relative merits or demerits of pumpkin spice. Judging by some of these Reddit threads: Some contributors admitted they loved the Starbucks latte but considered it a guilty pleasure. Others argued that the flavor had grown so pervasive that the whole uproar ruined their enjoyment of a seasonal treat. Of course, the purists objected to the fact that it tasted nothing like pumpkins. Pumpkin spice products only contain the spices used to flavor pumpkin pie and sweetener but not pumpkins. Most posters just appeared to be having fun discussing a fairly harmless topic, and the thing is, nobody really said they disliked the flavor. In any case, lively discussions like that engage viewers. It’s fair to assume that more than a few readers stumbled on the discussion and decided they needed to try the drink to form their own opinion. The idea of pumpkin spice has even generated memes. Funny, supportive, or even mildly disparaging, they get shared on social media and bring more attention. 4. Seasonality can generate a sense of scarcity Some businesses only want to invest in products they can sell 12 months a year. At the same time, marketers should recognize the value of having seasonal items. According to Unamo, a provider of SEO and market research services, the seasonality of pumpkin spice products provides two powerful benefits: A sense of scarcity: With some products, scarcity creates extra value value. Anybody can buy the spice blend in a grocery store 12 months a year. However, Starbucks and other companies tend to reserve their products for the holiday season, so customers have to wait to buy them. Association with seasonal marketing: The product’s seasonality also makes it easy to incorporate pumpkin spice marketing with seasonal marketing. People tend to spend more during holidays, so they’re likely to indulge in fancy coffee when they’re out shopping, meeting friends, traveling, or even commuting. 5. Pumpkin spices span most U.S. cultures A pumpkin spice latte serves as a new twist on something traditional for many people. Today, Thanksgiving feasts from Maine to California often include this traditional dessert. Similar scents emanated from George and Martha Washington’s kitchen hundreds of years ago. At the same time, such ethnic cuisines as Chinese, Middle Eastern,
How Health and Wellness Brands Bring Self-Care Home
Health and wellness brands know self-care matters more today than ever. Learn how to understand the current landscape and connect with customers at home. No doubt, the coronavirus pandemic delivered a tough blow to many parts of the beauty and wellness industries. As an example, concerns over hygiene and social distancing measures hurt the incomes of professionals who need to touch people to perform their jobs. Locally, these kinds of professions could range from hair stylists to massage therapists. The problem also spread to these professionals’ support staff, landlords, and suppliers. Of course, the coronavirus has also impacted companies that sell health and beauty products in stores. On the other hand, both the beauty and wellness industries have proven themselves adaptable and resilient during past downturns. People might consider beauty even more of a luxury than wellness. Yet, according to McKinsey, the beauty industry grew seven percent during the worst years of the Great Recession. During the current crisis, growth may have slowed in some sectors. During the Great Recession, businesses did not need to contend with social distancing and shutdowns. Even so, from the vantage point of a beauty and wellness marketing agency, many of the strongest brands have pivoted rapidly during this downturn as well. One way they’ve adapted includes helping their patrons attend to self-care at home. Why is self-care a perfect marketing niche during the pandemic? Even the Mayo Clinic and other health experts have emphasized the importance of self-care during these times. People need to take care of themselves to strengthen their immunity and to deal with the sometimes overwhelming nature of additional social isolation and abrupt change. So, creating a wellness brand can tie into measures that average folks already know they need to take. For examples of areas that beauty and wellness brands could help people with, consider some of the steps that the Mayo Clinic suggests for self-care: Maintaining physical health: The Mayo Clinic suggests getting plenty of sleep, enjoying physical activity, eating well, staying hydrated, and taking the time to relax. Maintaining mental health: The Mayo Clinic urges people to maintain social relationships through phones and computers, focus upon things they can control, and look for ways to help other people. Examples of pivoting health and wellness marketing to self-care If customers can’t or won’t visit a salon or store, businesses have cleverly found ways to deliver at least some of the benefits of their services at home: At-home dye kits: When one colorist couldn’t serve his clients in the salon, he began taking orders for at-home delivery of dye kits that he customized for each client from professional products. Virtual massages: The Motley Fool published a story about a massage therapy clinic that successfully offered virtual therapy and coaching sessions to replace in-person massages. Hand sanitizer production: It’s tough to find a wellness or health marketing agency that didn’t advise clients to start marketing high-demand items during the coronavirus outbreak, like hand sanitizer or face masks. Glossy brought up the example of digitally-native Nécessaire. The brand noticed that not only had engagement risen on social media posts about self-care topics, sales of these products had also increased during the pandemic. To their credit, they didn’t just ride the wave of increased online sales.They also worked to focus their social media posts on having conversations about self-care at home. Social topics include self-care tips and quizzes. They also included mentions of their own self-care products and even those of other companies. Their strategy has paid off with an engagement spike of 200 percent. To maintain momentum, the brand intends to expand its presence to YouTube and email marketing. Plus, they want to engage additional features on Instagram and Facebook. According to Randi Christiansen, the CEO of Nécessaire, businesses like hers can’t just talk about the benefits of their products. They also have to engage in some creative storytelling and conversations. This way, they can let customers know why taking care of themselves matters so much and that it matters to the brand, too. They’ve focused upon branding themselves as more of a self-care and wellness brand than they even viewed themselves as before. Creating a wellness brand during coronavirus Any beauty or wellness agency should consider the times and the state of mind of the people they’re trying to connect with. The pandemic has created a situation where self-care really matters, but it’s hard for many customers to visit the businesses that delivered their products and services in the past. That means smart businesses have striven to understand the situation and helped customers bring self-care home.
How eCommerce Marketing Can Cope With Delivery Slowdowns
Learn how eCommerce marketing can battle the slowdowns USPS and other delivery companies are facing, which are impacting companies both large and small. For years, the rise in electronic document delivery and digital marketing have reduced the volume of some kinds of mail. Neither people nor businesses send as many letters or ads through the post office as they used to. At the same time, an increase in eCommerce marketing has spurred the growth of package deliveries, so that somewhat offset the decline in USPS first-class mail and postcards. Even so, the COVID-19 pandemic has made delivery times longer and more uncertain. Along with extra hygiene and social delivery measures, the recent removal of sorting machines and reduction in overtime hours may have exacerbated the problem. Meanwhile, some online retailers have struggled to keep customers satisfied. Find out how a product marketing agency might adjust their eCommerce marketing to help maintain customer loyalty and good will. How postal slowdowns have impacted eCommerce marketing According to MarketWatch, even the largest online retailers have struggled with postal problems. Naturally, these problems have also impacted smaller businesses. For a couple of examples: Netflix: Netflix still mails out DVDs to customers who request them. According to a spokesman, they have suffered some shipping, which hurts their reputation for quick ordering, processing, and mailing. Amazon: Amazon delivery times have become unpredictable, even for the same delivery areas. The CEO of Products on the Go, an Amazon seller, said that her business has suffered because customers have canceled orders and filed complaints over packages that did not get delivered on time. Besides slowdowns impacting deliveries to customers, many companies also have to struggle with another issue. CNBC reported that some companies have had sourcing problems, as they also need inventory, supplies, and equipment shipped to them. They said the combination of problems could even threaten to put some online sellers out of business. How direct to consumer advertising can help businesses cope with slowdowns As quoted in the MarketWatch article cited above, the CEO of Products on the Go, Sharon Buchalter, said that they relied upon the Amazon network of delivery vans and postal contracts to ship orders. Because she could not control delivery times, she felt there was nothing she could do to solve the problem. From the perspective of a consumer marketing agency, businesses might not have the power to speed up the mail. On the other hand, good direct to consumer advertising and marketing can help manage expectations and improve the customer experience. Consider taking these two steps to help maintain good will with customers. Increase social media presence Consumers get online to share experiences and contact businesses. Smart eCommerce marketing should include participating and even controlling this conversation. These days, everybody knows the pandemic has caused problems for many companies, so businesses that communicate well can help reassure their customers. Taking a couple of simple steps on social media can help build and maintain good relationships: Promptly and cheerfully respond to social media messages of comments. Monitor social media for brand or business mentions. A couple of popular examples include HootSuite and Sprout Social. As much as possible, inform customers about any unusual disruptions that might impact their experience. Even more, talk about positive steps that the business has taken to protect customers and employees during this time. Make sure to promote the social media page on other internet properties, such as the business website and sales pages on other eCommerce sites. Let individual customers know about delays and try to make up for them Of course, all businesses and customers would prefer to have orders delivered when originally promised. If that can’t always happen, sellers can use their tracking information to anticipate delays before customers raise concerns. These simple suggestions should help: Taking the proactive step of sending an email to let customers know their shipment might not arrive on time should keep reasonable people from getting upset. Some companies might also consider sending along a discount code for the next order as a sign that they appreciate the customer’s patience, even if the seller did not cause and could not control the delay. Of course, prudent businesses might also add a note to their sales pages to let customers know that they might experience some delays because of the coronavirus. Keep anticipating slowdowns and looking for solutions Delivery problems might not impact all online sellers the same. For instance, a Florida advertising agency may not have clients with exactly the same issues as a New York agency. In other cases, the selling platform, the type of product, or even the size or kind of packages may make a difference. That’s part of the reason that companies may find delivery times so unpredictable these days. Also, just as the pandemic hasn’t completely resolved itself, it may take time for the USPS and other delivery companies to return to normal. Businesses may search for alternative shipping, sourcing, and delivery methods to help cope. Mostly, eCommerce marketing needs to prioritize keeping customers in the loop. They may have concerns when a shipment doesn’t arrive on time; however, good customers will typically understand the situation if they feel valued and communicated with.
How a Motion Graphics Company Can Bring Your Brand to Life
Learn how a motion graphics company can help your business improve brand recognition, engage a target audience, and attract more customers. Motion graphics refers to the synergistic application of concepts from both graphic design and animation. This kind of content gives businesses a great way to simplify concepts, enforce their brand identity, and engage audiences. Find out how working with a motion graphics company can help any business tell its story better. Why do motion graphics work? Most people refer to motion design as a type of animation. In today’s competitive marketing environment, people get bombarded by so much information that companies can have a tough time engaging and communicating with their audience with just text, static images, or even more traditional video. As a kind of animation, motion graphics can incorporate moving or still graphics, sound, and text. Most of all, they can rapidly generate a submersive storyline, which can take on the feel of a documentary, lesson, comedy, or even a video game. They can entertain, explain, and educate — and sometimes do all three. According to OpenGeeksLab, working with a video animation services company can provide a business with many marketing benefits: Audience recall: Motion graphics make it easier to recall statistics, complex ideas, and even emotions. Studies have demonstrated that people can remember 95 percent of the information presented in a video but only about 10 percent of what they read in text. Engagement: People spend more time on pages with videos than pages with only text and/or graphics. Again, motion graphics aren’t just good marketing — they’re actually good. Brand enhancement: Good motion graphic design will incorporate both visual and textual elements of a company’s brand image. For instance, the content might incorporate the brand’s logo, mission, and personality. Viral potential: Social media users have proven more inclined to share videos than only graphics or text. They’re also more likely to comment or hit the like button. Motion graphics give businesses a chance to expand their reach. SEO value: Web pages with video and text have a greater chance to hit the first page in Google and other search engines. This can attract more organic traffic and improve brand recognition. Good ROI: Animation drives traffic three times better than other kinds of content. For the benefits they can enjoy, most businesses find working with a corporate video production company cost effective. A motion graphics company can also provide a good ROI because they’re generally open to repurposing. For instance, animation production companies may produce one longer video for a website. After that, they can also cut parts of the product into quick, 30-second promos for social media or pull out static images for infographics. This kind of content stacking can help make efficient use of marketing budgets. Examples of good motion graphics design As with most visual mediums, people generally have an easier time understanding high-quality work by seeing examples than by reading explanations. Look at a couple of effective motion graphics videos that can help illustrate the potential of this medium. Anatomy of a Computer Virus: A dangerous virus threatened public services and society at large. Created for a TV show, this motion graphics video explained a very complex topic in a very digestible and interesting way. It distilled the work of a team of experts into an engaging presentation that average people can understand. Varpet: Varpet used motion graphics to create an explainer video that also served as marketing content. In just about one minute, the good-humored motion graphics explained exactly why somebody would need the company’s mobile app, its benefits over other solutions, and the couple of simple steps required to use it. How to find the right motion graphics company As with any other type of content producers, good animation production companies should post examples of their video animation services. Find out if their style looks like a fit for the company culture. Just as important, make certain they want to devote the time to learn about your business, brand image, and goals. While the best motion graphics can stand on their own merits as good content, they also need to reflect your company’s mission and overall message.
How Fintech Marketing Turns the Unbanked into Bank Customers
Banks have an opportunity to grow by serving millions of unbanked and underbanked people. Get fintech marketing insights to the unbanked and learn how to attract them. In 2017, the FDIC ran their last survey of unbanked and underbanked Americans. Unbanked refers to the 8.4 million American households that do not rely upon banks or credit unions at all. This population doesn’t have bank accounts, credit cards, and other kinds of bank loans or investments. In contrast, almost 50 million U.S. adults had a bank account but still relied on non-bank services for many financial needs. Banks can do more to understand why these people don’t access banks. In turn, banks can use these insights to work with a financial services marketing agency to develop and promote services to more people. Helping these people benefit from banking services will give the banks a chance to grow. Insights on the un- and under-banked from a financial services marketing agency American Banker recently explored available research on people who rely upon non-bank, alternative financial services. With their research, they also offered some suggestions that banks could use for product and fintech marketing. People who don’t use banks still spend plenty of money on financial services According to the FDIC, alternative financial services can include payday loans, prepaid debit cards, onsite financing for cars, rent-to-own deals, check cashing or money order counters, P2P loans, and more. They say that more than 13,000 of these alternative financial businesses operate in the United States. For some examples, the FDIC provided these estimates about common bank alternatives: They charge fees to cash at least $58 billion in checks each year. They sell at least $17.6 billion in money orders. They process over 58 million bill-pay transactions. They also sell hundreds of billions worth of pre-paid debit cards. As just one example, people who got checks cashed at a check cashing service had an average check value of about $400 and typically paid over three percent of that to get their money. In other words, they had to pay about $12 to get their modest checks cashed. They also pay for such other services as money orders, paying bills, and funding prepaid debit cards. The un- and under-banked have various reasons to use alternative financial services People who rely upon banks a lot, use them a little, or avoid them entirely have many of the same financial requirements. They need a way to save and access money, pay bills, and sometimes, get loans. People who understand and use banking services frequently would probably say that their bank provides them with the best solution. So, why do so many other people avoid banks entirely? According to American Banker, over half of the unbanked don’t believe they have enough money to use a bank. A smaller percentage say that banks don’t keep convenient hours or lack services that they need. Others don’t believe that banks can serve them because they have a lower income and perhaps, credit challenges. Also, almost 30 percent of the people who used to have a bank said that they closed the account because they lost their source of income. As an example, some banks waive fees when customers have paychecks deposited directly from an employer or maintain a minimum balance. When their direct deposit ended or funds got low, the unemployed people didn’t want to incur extra fees. As a note, American Banker also found that these populations tended to have greater percentages of unbanked and underbanked households: Low income or unemployed people Young families Some ethnic groups How to Improve digital marketing for financial services A basic checking account at a bank already includes many of the services that the unbanked pay for from alternative financial services. A bank account can also provide a more convenient option. For some fintech marketing examples: Many banks even have apps that let people deposit their checks by phone and pay bills. They have ATMs, debit cards, and often, offer credit cards to customers. Typically, banks will also provide money orders to account holders without an extra charge. They also offer the ability to write checks or use debit cards and even with modest credit, apply for credit cards and loans. People who understand and frequently use banks would probably say that their financial institution offers them lower costs and more convenience than many alternatives. In general, even people who don’t use banks have mobile phones that they could use to take advantage of mobile and phone banking services. A bank marketing agency might suggest some tactics to help banks reach the unbanked by capitalizing upon the resources they already offer. Some examples include: Look for ways to maintain ties with people who have had changes in economic status: As an example, some bankers have suggested waiving fees for people who use their accounts to pay bills, even if they don’t have direct deposit or a specified minimum balance. In other cases, banks might encourage the use of the most efficient methods to get services, like ATM, phone, or electronic banking by limiting the number of more expensive services each month for basic accounts. Promote mobile banking: Banks should engage in some fintech marketing to show how such mobile features as text alerts, balance checks, scanned check deposits, and even bill paying can help save time and manage accounts better. Promote banking services as better solutions than bank alternatives: As an example, compare spending $12 to cash a check to simply depositing the check in a bank ATM and getting cash without having to pay. Perhaps, banks could also consider offering small loans at reasonable interest rates, even for customers with some credit challenges, that can serve as a better choice than payday loans. Mostly, people with bank accounts generally enjoy more convenience and lower fees than the unbanked do. Banks can work with a financial services marketing agency to find the unbanked and underbanked and clearly demonstrate that the obstacles to dealing with banks are
10 Top Influencer Marketing Campaigns from a CPG Agency
See and understand ten examples of great influencer marketing campaigns for a variety of CPG companies, from Diet Coke to underwear. According to Martech Advisor, almost 90 percent of CPG marketers include influencer marketing in their promotional campaigns. To gain some inspiration about successful campaigns for a variety of CPG products and brands, look at brief summaries for a variety of examples. CPG Marketing Agency Picks for Examples of Successful Influencer Ad Campaigns To understand how a CPG marketing agency might plan to maximize the ROI from influencer marketing for a specific type of product, it should help to consider these diverse examples. 1. Fiji Water This bottled water company sponsored workout videos on Instagram with Danielle Bernstein. They hoped to emphasize the company’s focus upon keeping fitness buffs well hydrated, while they’re working to look as good as Ms. Bernstein. View this post on Instagram Feelin’ fit, lookin’ fancy. #FIJIFit. ? @weworewhat #bodyworewhat A post shared by FIJI Water (@fijiwater) on Aug 29, 2017 at 9:46am PDT 2. Diageo whiskey As the parent company, Diageo produces Lagavulin and Oban whiskey brands. This campaign featured Nick Offerman of Parks and Recreation, mostly just sitting by the fire with his glass of whiskey. It even won an award as the best influencer marketing campaign in the celebrity category. 3. Stride gum Lots of people recognize DJ Khaled as a hip hop artist and producer. He’s fairly famous on Snapchat and partnered with Stride for some fun channel takeovers. In many cases, influencers post on their own channels; however, in this case, Khaled performed on Stride’s network to provide CPG advertising. In this way, he could engage both his and Stride’s existing audience. Stride Gum – DJ Khaled Snapchat Day from Mark and Paddy on Vimeo. 4. Naked Juice bottled smoothies Naked Juice wanted to position themselves in the sphere of beauty, health, and fashion. To that end, they engaged Kate La Vie, a lifestyle blogger. She basically shared posts of her daily essentials. Of course, these included sunglasses, a makeup kit, and a bottled smoothie from Naked Juice. View this post on Instagram Post gym fuel + today’s outfit details! @nakedjuiceuk #ad A post shared by Kate Spiers (@kate.lavie) on Feb 20, 2017 at 8:54am PST 5. Glossier beauty products Instead of relying upon a social media star or celebrity, Glossier ran a campaign called Regular Women. The company motivated women to share images of their beauty products by offering them the chance to offer product discounts to their own social circles. This example might particularly interest a consumer package goods agency with a tight budget. View this post on Instagram ? A post shared by Glossier (@glossier) on Sep 13, 2017 at 5:10am PDT 6. Kraft food products Most people probably associate Kraft with at least some types of common food products. According to Tap Influencer, 98 percent of North American households have at least one Kraft product in their pantry or fridge right now. Still, the company wanted to better connect with a customer base that increasingly turns online for information about products. They “crafted” their influencer marketing around high-quality content, such as recipes and cooking demos that incorporated Kraft products, and earned a considerable amount of exposure in the process. 7. Persona vitamins Persona markets Vitamin Packs to consumers. They first developed software called the “Vitamin Advisory System” nearly two decades ago. They began to perform much better when Dr. Andrew Weil and Drugstore.com used this software on their own websites. Dr. Weil has a popular health and nutrition site, and Drugstore.com is a big eCommerce site. In both cases, the vitamin maker offered something of value in exchange for exposure. Since then, their model has been used by other vitamin companies. 8. Diet Coke soda Apparently, the color scheme of a Coke can is so familiar that Diet Coke ran their campaign without using labels. Actually, the purpose of the campaign was to start discussions about labels, and they even tagged it #unlabeled. They partnered with a diverse set of influencers, who all talked about obstacles they needed to overcome because they believed they had been stereotyped. In this case, Coca-Cola did a good job of connecting with their audience over values. View this post on Instagram we’re removing our labels, to start a conversation about yours. see how we’re celebrating individuals and their stories at dietcoke.com/unlabeled. #unlabeled A post shared by Diet Coke (@dietcoke) on Jul 17, 2019 at 9:13am PDT 9. Stance underwear and socks Stance wanted to establish an identity for their brand as comfortable, carefree, and active. Known as a sock company, they are also branching into underwear. They had the idea to engage influencers to perform a wild activity in their underwear in order to encourage their audience to do the same — and have a chance to win cash prizes. They hoped to highlight high-quality, engaging content in order to visually connect with customers. View this post on Instagram | By far, these are my favorite pair of @stancesocks ?| . . . . #stancesocks #socks #photo #photooftheday #photography #photographyeveryday #travel #traveler #traveling #travelersnotebook #travelogue #travelphotography #travelbug #traveljunkie #traveladdict #travelstories #traveldiaries #traveljournal #ootd #instadaily A post shared by Stance Socks (@iwearstance) on Aug 5, 2019 at 7:05pm PDT 10. Sperry shoes Sperry noted that some influencers already wore their shoe brands on social media, so they worked with them to create more engaging content to attract an audience. Sperry looked for micro-influencers and not major social stars, offered them assistance, and hoped to reap the benefits while the influencers also grew their audience. View this post on Instagram Soar to new heights and set sail on new adventures. #odysseysawait @slavatheshrimp A post shared by Sperry (@sperry) on Feb 15, 2016 at 3:33pm PST Obstacles an influencer marketing agency can help CPG businesses overcome Done right, using influencers for CPG marketing can produce great results. At the same time, HubSpot pointed out that many businesses struggle with at least a few