When our client Ecover celebrated their 30th anniversary in 2010, we at Creative Concepts helped them develop a related 30 Under 30 contest to celebrate the innovative ecological ideas from young people across the country. During their celebration, they asked everyone a question:
“Where do you think sustainability will be thirty years from now?”
After all, for a company who designs every aspect of their cleaning products with the environment in mind — from their ingredients to their facilities to their packaging — the future really is their business.
This question may have initially been asked of some of the country’s top eco-bloggers and entrepreneurs, but that’s was just the tip of the iceberg. Who Ecover really wants to hear from is you.
(Yes, you.)
They’ve opened the discussion to everyone, because they believe everyone has a stake in our planet’s future. And Ecover is listening — on Twitter, on Facebook, and on their blog. They want to know what you think about sustainability, and what concerns or suggestions you might have.
Because reaching a business milestone is certainly something to celebrate, but if there’s one lesson Ecover has learned in their thirty years of creating eco-minded cleaning products, it’s that tomorrow is what really counts.
Part of it is the vast number of tools we have at our disposal. Since most of them (Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Flickr, etc.) are free, it’s easy to start using each of them… but that makes maintaining your ever-growing web of communications more difficult.
Part of it is the conflict between personal (customers, individuals, community) and business (corporations, marketing, sales). Social media tools are designed to facilitate the exchange of information between consenting parties, but the limitless kinds of information being exchanged further complicate our conversations.
And then there’s the ongoing debate about which social media metrics matter most. Is it the size of your audience, or the quality of your engagement? Is it inciting action or increasing awareness?
Our advice?
Shrink your focus.
First, re-examine your goals and your needs. (Maybe you need a new social media strategy?)
Then, instead of aiming too wide, narrow your attention to a handful of channels — maybe even one — and maximize the impact you can create there (or the feedback you can obtain). Then, once you have a true understanding of how your brand is perceived within that channel, start applying those lessons to other channels, if it makes sense for you.
There’s a presumption that companies have to be involved in social media. And while we here at Creative Concepts are sure that social media can benefit almost any company, charity or brand, we’d never advise anyone to bite off more than they can chew.
So don’t waste an opportunity to connect with your customers by spreading yourself too thin, or your valuable feedback will be reduced to a stream of white noise.
Need some help simplifying your social media efforts? Check out these tips from Mashable.
As 2011 approaches, you already have some personal and business goals in mind that you’d like to work toward. But what about your social media goals? (You do have social media goals, right?)
First, identify the obvious problems that are hampering your social media efforts:
While recounting the top stories around the web can be instructive, inspirational or (oops) cautionary, don’t forget to look back through your own year of social media ups and downs. Ask yourself:
Where did we succeed at the individual and the campaign level?
Where did we exceed (or fall short of) expectations? Do we know why?
What did we learn?
Who did we meet?
What lessons can we apply to future endeavors?
Identifying the year’s high and low points, understanding what worked and what didn’t, and taking a wide view of your successes and failures can be critical in improving your results in the coming year. (Plus, in this era of nonstop media input, if you don’t occasionally take a moment to reflect on what just happened, you may not have another chance anytime soon!)
Here at Creative Concepts, 2010 has been an exciting and surprising year! In this year, we began working with the US division of Ecover, which has blossomed in ways the original RFP never foresaw. We continued our fruitful partnerships with longtime clients like Bigelow Tea and Ouidad, delved into the world of HD video, found several new and talented employees, and rebuilt our website — all while navigating new services like FourSquare and the ever-changing Facebook.
Thanks to our clients, our employees, our friends and families, and everyone who helped to make Creative Concepts successful in 2010. We couldn’t have done it without you! Here’s to a deep appreciation of everything we learned and had the pleasure of sharing during this past year, and an even more spectacular 2011.
When you’re the top specialty tea company in the United States, you reach a lot of tea lovers. Our client Bigelow Tea is using social media — from Bigelow Tea’s Facebook (and, yes, MySpace) pages to their YouTube channel, Bigelow loves to share their tea knowledge with the world. (After 65 years in busiess, they know a thing or two about tea.)
But how often do their customers have a chance to share what they know with each other? Normally, it’s not easy. Fortunately, we at Creative Concepts are helping Bigelow Tea bridge that gap.
Last month, the Bigelow Tea Twitter account asked its followers if they had any tea tips worth sharing. The results were instructive, and they formed the basis of a helpful blog post that allowed Bigelow’s fans to learn from one another.
This isn’t Bigelow’s first foray into customer connectivity. Earlier this year, they hosted their first Bigelow Tea Social in New York City, where bloggers and foodies alike came together to talk tea (and get their fill of free samples). How was that live event conceived of and managed? Why, on Bigelow’s blog and Twitter account, of course!
And while tea is obviously a communal drink to begin with, Bigelow Tea isn’t the only company finding new ways to bring their customers together. Our client Ecover celebrated their 30th anniversary of creating ecological cleaning products with a live event that united green bloggers, media-makers and innovators, all of whom swapped stories and tips until the party ended. How did we at Creative Concepts help Ecover organize this event? With a Facebook contest hosted on Ecover’s blog!
Social media: bringing companies and customers together — with the emphasis on together.
As usual, the top videos are a mixture of humor, spectacle and quality (OK Go, Antoine Dodson, “Double Rainbow”). But perhaps most surprising among the Top 10 is the inclusion of the original Old Spice Super Bowl ad that spawned the company’s ongoing TV and web campaign.
Why is that surprising?
Because, simply put, there’s no reason that anyone online ever needs to watch an ad.
Yes, you may have to watch an ad in order to get to the video you actually want or need to watch, but when you have complete control of your online time, there aren’t many cases when you’ll consciously choose to spend it being marketed to.
At best, a good web video ad is one that doesn’t aggravate us while we’re waiting for our chosen video to load.
Humor, spectacle and quality. Those traits were commonly seen in this year’s (and, really, every year‘s) most-watched videos. Old Spice happened to combine them all into one video, and did so in a way that surprised the media at large — which, as a result, couldn’t stop sharing these videos.
Because no one expected Old Spice to reinvent themselves in this manner, doing so created a series of talking points that pushed these videos to the forefront of everyone’s infostream.
Can your brand do that? Doubtful. Catching lightning in a bottle is an annual rarity. Not every ad campaign will be “the new Old Spice.” In fact, almost all of them won’t.
And that’s actually good news.
Trying to be the most popular video on the web is going to be an exercise in frustration that distracts from your company’s actual goal: to be profitable. Is Old Spice happy that they greenlit a popular ad? Sure. Are they happier that Old Spice sales skyrocketed as a result? Undoubtedly.
So instead of trying to produce the most-watched video of 2011, focus on producing videos that increase your brand’s audience awareness and drive sales. (Or, if you’re a non-profit, create videos that drive awareness and donations, as these popular videos for Toronto-based charities have done.)
And if you have a sense of humor about it, so much the better.
One basic cornerstone of business growth is the need to cultivate new audiences for existing products.
As we’ve mentioned before, our client Ouidad is quite adept at creating hair care products that work wonders for those who otherwise struggle to tame their curls. And while her core customer base is adult women, Ouidad long ago realized that most of these women were also mothers whose children’s curly hair needed just as much TLC.
But what happens when those kids become teens? Does their attitude toward Ouidad as a brand begin to change?
To help navigate these waters, Ouidad highlighted yet another upside of her products: they don’t just provide a service; they solve problems.
Parents love Ouidad because her products allow them to style their childrens’ hair with no tears. But teens love Ouidad because her products allow them to style themselves — with confidence!
Teens are a tricky demographic. Marketing to teens is often like trying to hit a moving target that hasn’t yet made up its own mind about where it wants to go next. But Ouidad removes some of that uncertainty by solving a key problem: her products grant teens the power to feel better about themselves. Rather than viewing Ouidad as a trend or an option, they’re invited to embrace Ouidad as a solution.
Does your brand solve problems? If so, your customers want to view you as more than just a line item on their shopping list; they want to consider you their ally against life’s uncertainties. That’s a bond that even teens will remember well into adulthood — and it’s the kind of brand equity you can’t invent simply by positioning your products as a trend.
While the world debates the meaning and the merits of Julian Assange, Wikileaks and our expected right to privacy, we at Creative Concepts can’t help but wonder… how interested would Assange be in sifting through your emails?
One of the basic tenets of social media is the call for transparency. As the theory goes, the more openly you engage with your customers, the less ambiguity there is in your actions and the less “dirt” there is for others to dig up, should they choose to do so. (For a deeper examination of the business approach to transparency, check out the book Tactical Transparency by our friends Shel Holtz and John C. Havens.)
But despite the public push toward openness, that doesn’t mean companies and brands don’t still have their secrets. Tactical transparency doesn’t preclude tactical advantages. And, as Christopher Penn reminds us, some companies are built on secrets.
The question, therefore, is this:
Are your public actions drastically different from your private motives?
People tend to be most vocally concerned about privacy when they’re worried that the image they’ve publicly projected would be somehow damaged or destroyed “if certain information got out.” In the case of military positions or diplomatic strategy, that concern can be understandable. But in the case of brand management?
Perhaps the Assange affair is a timely opportunity for you to reconsider your brand’s public image and its private intentions, and to make sure that they’re harmoniously reconciled.
The world has enough secrets. Does your company have too many to hide?
This is about more than lulling potential customers into a false state of security so you can take financial advantage of them later (although that’s obviously reprehensible). This is about making sure that what you want and how you’re getting there isn’t in conflict with who you are.
And just who are we? Connect with us on Twitter or Facebook to learn more!
Mathematically, business is all about profit. And, subconsciously, we all understand this. But when the holidays roll around, people get so inundated with sales messages that they become desperate for an emotional life raft that can reconnect them with their own greater humanity.
Could that life raft be your brand?
Here at Creative Concepts, we’re huge proponents of humanizing your brand. We believe that people want to do business with (surprise!) other humans, and that any effort you can make to remind your customers that your company is still a group of people who are just like them will help them feel better about doing business with you.
So why not consider the holidays to be your opportunity to say “thank you”?
Whether you’re a small business or an international conglomerate, you’re still people. So instead of focusing on coupons, sweepstakes or clearance sales as your way of rewarding your team, why not send a holiday message that’s focused less on dollars and more on sense?
What if your company’s blog hosted a Thanksgiving message from your customers, detailing what they’re thankful for?
What if you asked your vendors for their New Year’s resolutions, and used them as a springboard for a larger conversation about goals and dreams on Facebook or Twitter?
What if your company’s Christmas or Hanukkah cards were hand-signed by all of your employees?
By incorporating the voices of the people who aren’t usually front-and-center in your messaging, you’ll remind your customers, your vendors and your employees just how much you respect, honor and value them — as people.
Our client, Ouidad, has been helping women take control of their curls for over 25 years. After one mind-blowing appointment, when they finally see how great their hair can look, many of these women say “I wish I’d known all about this when I was younger!”
So, naturally, we helped Ouidad find a way to scale their hair care tips down for kids! (Or, in this case, for moms, who sometimes feel like a straightening iron or a ponytail is their only recourse for getting the kids to school on time.)
Wondering whether your content might scale to kids and parents? Ask yourself these questions:
What are your brand’s core beliefs / offerings / products?
Do the problems your brand solves also occur for kids?
How would your products’ implementation change in the hands of kids (or parents)?
How could your packaging or marketing change to appeal to kids (or parents)?
Are kids (or parents) reachable via your current messaging channels? If not, where are they reachable — and how would your message need to be adapted?
In Ouidad’s case, their core products solve a universal problem: “How do I look good without taking forever?” Their products improve their customers’ self-esteem and self-awareness. And these same needs and impacts are just as valuable (and maybe moreso) to kids and parents.
It helps that Ouidad has a line of KRLY Kids products specifically designed for kids’ hair. But even if that weren’t the case, the same basic principles of content scaling apply. Once you’ve identified your brand’s core values, adapting them for kids and parents is a great way to expand your customer base while simultaneously endearing your brand to a whole new generation.
And if your content (and your products) could be useful to children and parents, who else should you be reaching?
