Future Implications

The social media landscape is constantly evolving which means our social media strategies should be too. As we roll into 2019, marketers will be looking back at the past year to see how effective their social media campaigns have been and where they have failed. While strategies for 2019 have already been in the works for months, it is continuous work to monitor and identify upcoming trends especially with social media marketing.

Here are three predictions of how social media marketing will look in the future:

1. Dark Social

Dark social is web traffic that cannot be tracked with Web analytics programs. It refers to traffic that comes from private social media channels like secure browsing and instant messaging (WhatsApp). When users privately share links to content through these messaging apps, it cannot be tracked. This makes tracking sharing activity online for companies very difficult. According to RadiumOne in 2016, 84% of the content shared online came from dark social. This implication is a result of both human behavior and technology. Encrypted and private channels will continue to challenge marketers when it comes to tracking the origins of traffic and engagement. However, tools, like Google Analytics, AddThis, bit.ly and more will help marketers. Also, adding your own highly visible sharing buttons can encourage your audience to share your content in a way that is more trackable.

2. Content Overload

Content shock is something Mark Schaefer refers to often. It is the overabundance of content that a consumer is exposed too. Content shock is impacting every social media channel, including Facebook where brands are seeing less traffic and fewer comments. Consumers are overwhelmed with content from all channels and content isn’t enough anymore. Buffer, who specializes in social sharing, reported that despite consistent efforts at producing unique and useful content, their social referral traffic dropped by 50 % in just 12 months. They determined that content shock had something to do with it. In the future, marketers will need to consider tactics and tools that can be utilized to combat content shock such as ways to make content significantly more shareable.

Here is a video of Mark Schaefer, Chad Pollitt, and Steve Rayson discussing content shock.

 

3. Government Regulations

Is social media as bad for us as cigarettes? Many strongly believe that social media should be regulated just like cigarettes. There has been increasing concerns over the monopolistic tendencies brands online have and the power they have to manipulate our behaviors. In addition, the concern about privacy breaches following the Cambridge Analytica scandal with Facebook and the impact on democracy with fake news as some lawmakers considering new regulations on social media. Recently, the Turkish government imposed regulations that effected more than 200 accounts that were affiliated with terrorist activities. However, at this time, the United States government’s support varies since it is unclear on how and what to regulate specifically. Although, the strongest argument for regulations is in relation to social media’s addictive nature and concerns for young teens online. While it is still mostly all talk, marketers should be on the lookout of regulations in the coming years.

Overall, these implications are results of human behavior, technology, or both. Marketers should be mindful of these potential implications and the effects they may have on social media campaigns. They pose both new challenges and benefits, and will certainly change how social media content is handled, seen, and tracked.

Viral Marketing Initiatives

Viral marketing is a powerful tool. Creating a great marketing campaign that goes viral can create brand awareness by using social media. However, not everything a brand creates goes viral… Marketers and their team can take months and months of planning to create a viral campaign only to have it flop at launch. But do not get discouraged, there are many tips and tricks that can be used to help assist your marketing campaign go viral.

There are many elements required to create viral content, such as knowing and understanding your target audience. Ensuring that you truly understanding your audience will make it easier when creating viral content that entices your people’s attention. It is also important to select the best social media platform for your content that will reach your target audience and showcase your content best. When trying to achieve something going viral on social media you need to focus on creating content that is timely and engaging. The overall goal is to create content that will generate high engagement and be re-shared on social media.

Five characteristics of a viral campaign:

Emotion

Growing up I remember waiting for the new Budweiser Clydesdale commercial at every Superbowl even though it typically ended with a room full of watery eyes in our household. Viral content that appeals to our emotions is very successful, emotions like surprise, sadness, hope, and excitement. The Budweiser Clydesdale commercials always seem to evoke sadness followed by hope or happiness in their videos. Not only is their content appealing and pull at viewers heart-strings, but they also incorporate storytelling in every viral commercial.

Storytelling

A good way to get your content to go viral is to present it in story form. A story has the ability to add humanity and personality to any brand. It can help your target audience identify your brands interests and beliefs. In 2013, Dove released a film called Real Beauty Sketches. It explored that gap between how we see ourselves and how others see us. Each woman in the video has two portraits draw: one based on her own description and another using a stranger’s observations. The results were shocking and conveyed a beautiful message to its viewers.

Good CTA

A Call to Action is commonly found in a large majority of viral content on social media. It allows people to share your content and show their support. This is a great way to increase engagement and encourages viewers to interact with the campaign. When I think of a good CTA viral campaign, I immediately think of the Ice Bucket challenge for ALS in 2014. Over $115 million was donated during an 8-week period during the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge that year. The challenge was a game-changer for ALS awareness, it greatly increased awareness about this terrible disease and hugely impacted research donations.

Memorable

GoPro’s video of raw footage showing a California firefighter, Cory Kalanick rescuing an unconscious kitten from smoke inhalation. The firefighter was wearing GoPro’s HD Hero3 camera at the time. Afterwards the video was posted to YouTube where it gained the attention of millions including GoPro. In the following weeks, GoPro obtained the footage, added their logo and shared it on their own YouTube channel where they received over 5 million views in the first week. The video was heartbreaking, in addition to the kitten later passing away from the smoke inhalation, and demonstrating GoPro’s camera in action and its ability to capture memorable moments.

Stance on Social Issues

While it can be considered risky we have seen brands take a social stance on current issues in their viral content. Nike’s recently launched campaign, Dream Crazy with Colin Kaepernick instantly went viral. It immediately sparked outraging from some who went on to burn their shoes on social media in disagreement, while others applauded Nike for their boldness. At the center of the campaign was Kaepernick who has been in the spotlight over becoming the first NFL player to protest over racial injustice during the national anthem at games by taking a knee. In the future, I expect to see more brands come forward and take a social stance on current issues our society is facing. Following the campaign’s launch, 42.7% of consumers said it improved their perception of the brand.

Differentiation

Most outdoorsy New Englanders know the importance of quality apparel and sports gear. With the ever-changing seasons, adventurers have a strong appreciation for outdoor brands that fit their needs and can withstand the extreme temperatures and elements New England weather brings to the region. However, it goes beyond the quality of the fabric and the price tag on the jacket. Consumers are looking for a lasting relationship with brands that share the same priorities and insights on social and environmental issues. In addition, it is about providing an omnichannel experience for the customer and standing out of the crowd in a saturated industry. Many companies look to social media as another avenue to strictly advertise new products and push sales. However, Patagonia and Orvis are two brands that break the mold with social media and differentiate themselves digitally.

Patagonia

Patagonia is a well-known designer of outdoor clothing and gear. Avid climbers, surfers, skiers, snowboarders, runners, and more are familiar with the brand and what Patagonia represents. Patagonia’s mission is to produce quality products that cause no unnecessary harm and to inspire solutions to improve the environmental crisis we are all experiencing today. Patagonia has taken an adventurous approach to their social media. Instead of sharing content about their outdoor wear, they choose to highlight their customer’s travels and stunning landscapes. The common theme of all their content and imagery revolves around nature.

Orvis

Orvis is a family-owned retail business; they specialize in high-end sporting goods, apparel, and more. The brand was founded in 1856 in Manchester, Vermont by Charles F. Orvis. Similar to Patagonia, Orvis values nature and respecting the environment. Their mission has been to help customers live more fulfilling lives and appreciate nature and the adventures it brings. After being in business for 160+ years Orvis had to recently make a few changes to the brand to help revitalize it into the current market. Orvis’ social media strategy has truly incorporated the omnichannel experience. Previously, as a mail-order catalog company, Orvis was much more in control of their customers. Today, their marketing team works to create a seamless experience for their customer online, in stores, and via the printed catalog.

Differentiation

Patagonia and Orvis share many similarities in terms of their social media strategies and the ways in which they use social media to differentiate their brand. Both brands have stepped away from sharing content that is directly related to their product line. Instead, both Patagonia and Orvis share relevant content that their audiences are interested in — extreme sports like fly-fishing, skiing, and running! A lot of the imagery and content being posted on their social media accounts are also user-generated content. Both take the time to engage with followers and respond to questions and posts online.

In addition, by taking an environmental stance both companies have differentiated themselves as being socially conscious brands that keep nature in their best interest. This is seen in both Patagonia and Orvis’ social media styles and in their digital campaigns. For example, Patagonia launched Patagonia Action Works earlier this year that aimed to connect people with environmental nonprofits in their area. Patagonia utilized their social media community to help connect nonprofit groups with volunteers able to provide help with certain tasks. Actions Works uses the power of social media to bring people together for the greater good.

However, while both brands have similarities in their social media efforts, the largest difference between Patagonia and Orvis revolves around their audiences. Orvis mostly targets 35 years old + while Patagonia is more commonly recognized by 20 to 30-year-old men and women. As previously mentioned, Orvis has been working on a large revitalization project to stay current with the industry; it is believed that Orvis is trying to target to younger demographic. With Orvis’ social media success, engaging with a younger crowd will have its positives and negatives as they move forward. Overall, I believe both Patagonia and Orvis have well-established themselves as brands with depth and understanding. They are both strong customer-centric companies that put the interest of their customers first.

Do you agree that Patagonia and Orvis have successfully differentiated themselves using social media?

Out with the Old, In with the New

Fourteen years ago a new social networking site, Orkut, was launched. It was named after and developed by a Google employee, Orkut Buyukkokten. In the 10 years of the social network site’s creation, it had grown to a community of over 300 million users.  This was Google’s first attempt at a social networking site. The idea behind Orkut was to provide an online community where users find others through keyword searches like titles and descriptions. Majority of Orkut’s users were from Brazil. In a country where outdoor advertising is ban, consumers are saturated with digital marketing campaigns. Orkut’s overwhelming success was due to its ability to connect consumers, marketers, and more into one networking site — users were able to connect and share with each while marketers were able to reach consumers. Sadly, it 2014 Google announced that it would be shutting down the site for several reasons. However, with large competitors, like Facebook, on the horizon, Orkut could no longer compete. The site began to experience functionality issues and became too selective in its users. Orkut wasn’t able to make the changes and requests users were looking for which caused a large and fast decrease in users. Users began migrating to other sites.

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Facebook vs. Orkut

Features provided by Orkut:
-Add friends
-Send scraps to people (Scrapbook) – These messages are visible to all.
-Send personal messages to each other
-Post videos
-Integrate G talk
-Restricted and unrestricted community polls
-Customizing themes
-Becoming a fan of each other
-Rating your friends

Features provided by Facebook:
-Have a personal profile
-Add friends
-Send personal messages
-Status updates
-Posting videos and photos
-Sharing Life Events
-Create business pages

Over the years, Facebook has improved and implemented new features and capabilities including, Facebook Messenger, Facebook Analytics/Insights, and live streaming. Orkut originally attracted different users compared to Facebook; Orkut attracted users that were looking for both technology and culture. Facebook originally started off with a social networking site specifically for college students, it was originally limited to only giving memberships to Harvard students, then expanded to colleges in the Boston area, then gradually spread to all universities, and eventually, everyone with a valid email address and who met the age requirement of 13 years old could create a Facebook account.

Failure of Orkut

Majority of people accuse Facebook for being the main reason Orkut failed. However, I believe even if Facebook didn’t exist Orkut would have had a hard time continuing the momentum. Orkut started as a clean, simple, and easy to use the site for users to navigate and user, although users claim that over time, it became more complicated and the website’s speed began to slow. In addition, when Google Plus was launched in 2011, it signaled the beginning of the end for Orkut. Google created its own competition for Orkut with Google Plus.  Who is to blame, Facebook or Google?

“I’m not so good at goodbyes, so I’m calling it hello. hello is the next generation of Orkut.”

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What’s next?

After the shut down of Orkut, Orkut Buyukkokten decided to open another door after watching one close… or in this case create another social networking site Orkut has been working on a new social network called, hello. The intent is to show users important posts from friends in light of regular interests or side interests.  Currently, hello has thousands of communities waiting for users to join and interact in! Similiar to Orkut, users can join or create communities to connect with others related to specific interests.  It helps bring people together around their common interests!

“hello is the first social network built on loves, no likes.”

 

 

 

Censorship or Harmony?

What is censorship? By definition, it is the suppression or prohibition of any parts of books, films, news, etc. that are considered obscene, offensive, politically unacceptable or a threat to security.

As someone living in the United States, censorship is not something I typically encounter on a daily basis, especially when accessing the internet. I can freely access a large amount of information, articles, journals, blogs, social media platforms, etc… These all sit right at my fingertips on my iPhone, iPad, MacBook Air waiting for me to browse.

Imagine waking up one day and suddenly Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Uber, Pinterest… are all gone. In 2009, the Chinese government blocked Facebook and later blocked Twitter and YouTube. It was believed that there were several riots that had taken place around this time, and the Chinese government believed that they were being organized on Facebook and other social media platforms. Instead, you find one single application on your device — Weixin.

In 2011, Weixin was launched, and by 2014, it had nearly 300 million users. It was created by Tencent, known for its instant messaging services and popular online games. The rate in which the application attracted users was impressive, however, when you consider that all Chinese citizens were living almost 2 years without any social networking capability, it’s no surprise there was a strong interest and that Weixin took off! With Weixin, users have the ability to get news, send photos and messages to friends, request a cab, and transfer money! But imagine over time, you begin to notice that there are certain restricted words you can not use in the app and you can no longer access certain articles and websites…

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The Citizen Lab at the University of Toronto conducted a study called Politics, Rumors, and Ambiguity – Tracking Censorship on WeChat’s Public Accounts Platform. The study is pretty self-explanatory, thanks to the title. They examined 36,000 posts that had been shared publicly on third-party websites over nine months between 2014 and 2015. The posts were selected based on what the Chinese typically deemed sensitive content. The study found that about 4% of those looked at were censored. The posts included topics about the safety of drinking water in China, the death of several celebrities, and medical treatment. One specific user even mentioned how she was prevented from sharing an article about tips to avoid getting cancer!

She said, “At some point, you have to ask, Why is this sensitive information?”

On the other hand, Weixin has almost revolutionized the way social networking and social media applications work. The ability to order a taxi within the application is a game changer for users. It mimics similar functions to what Uber offers us. You can request a taxi and pay within the app. Weixin has also given companies and their marketers new possibilities when marketing their products. Even small local businesses are able to advertise and promote their businesses on Weixin! What has made Weixin so successful has to do with their ability to clearly identify their target audience. Tencent saw a need in the Chinese market that united all the traditional social media platforms that the Chinese were familiar using in the past but still allowed the government to monitor and control what was being shared with users. Lastly, it has been said that Weixin is in line with the traditional Chinese way of thinking — they focus on harmony and the idea of everyone and everything all together.

Is this censorship at its finest or social harmony built within Weixin?

 

 

 

Raising Awareness isn’t a Game

Just like clockwork, every Fall my Facebook inbox starts to fill up with messages like this:

“Last year we have to write the color of our bra’s on our status. Men were wondering for days what was going on with random colors on statuses. This year we make reference to our love life status as a flavor…”

I cannot be the only who cannot stand this. As someone whose family has been directly affected by cancer, breast cancer included, I will not take part in any of this amusement for others. Therefore, when I begin to receive these messages in my inbox, its almost expected that my reaction is something along the lines of “OMFG”.

The three questions I continue to ask myself are:

How does posting about a random fruit or the color of my bra help raise awareness for breast cancer?

Well, the short answer, in my opinion, is, it does not help.  However, it all starts with cyberactivism. Cyberactivism is a way of creating activism on an Internet-based platform. It allows organizations to use social networks to reach and gather followers in order to share messages about a cause or movement. Majority of the time when a user participates in the act of cyberactivism they are actually trying to improve their own image in hopes that others will see and believe the user is a caring, compassionate person who truly cares about the cause. This is now referred to as slacktivism. It takes the word “slacker” and “activism” to refer to efforts made by a user to make it appear like they are helping a cause when in fact there is virtually no effort on the end of the user to help. Now, we could argue until the cows come home about cyberactivism and slacktivism, and if cyberactivism is proven to increase cause awareness, however, when talking about this annual breast cancer meme, I have to say no, which leads to my second question.

How are we raising awareness for breast cancer, if we are still excluding men from this movement?

The kicker about this whole thing is that men are not included in the Facebook statuses. Within the message to women, it actually states, “DON’T TELL ANY GUYS”! So my answer to this question as well is, it doesn’t raise awareness. So, just humor me…while breast cancer in men is still considered rare, it’s hard to deny that the numbers are still shocking when the majority of men do not believe they can develop breast cancer.

The American Cancer Society predicts about 2,500 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed in men and about 480 men will die from breast cancer this year. Click here for more information about male breast cancer.

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Now when these numbers are compared to the numbers associated with breast cancer in women, it’s almost incomparable. However, if one is going to use cyberactivism to raise cause awareness about breast cancer, why are we not including males when they too can develop breast cancer? Why are we not including males when they too could have a loved one who has been affected by breast cancer?

Breast cancer doesn’t discriminate so why do we?

While this method of cyberactivism goes viral annually and has proven its success at discussing a message and getting individuals to participate, are there any hard facts and evidence that these campaigns are helping raise awareness? Or money? According to the Susan G. Komen Foundation, there was an increase in interest and contributions around the time of these popular Facebook memes but there is no evidence that can link the cause of donations received.

What changes need to be made? How did this breast cancer meme fall short of user mobilization?

As a marketer, I continue to try and look at this campaign from all angles. What is the takeaway? What can be improved upon?

But first, what is social media mobilization? Mobilization is the process by which parties, activists, etc. include other people to participate. It incites behavioral changes through a social media message. In this case, user mobilization was used to gather participants to raise awareness about breast cancer. By not including men in this, I believe that the meme fell short of user mobilization because it neglected to include a group of possible participants that can be affected by this disease. As well as the way in which they try to promote and raise awareness. I continue to ask, like others, how can awareness be raised about cause if the message is so vague? Another version of this campaign was having women post statuses like, “‘I’m 6 weeks and craving pickles!” Can you imagine what hysteria this caused? Family members were congratulating women on their “pregnancy” and men were left in the dark!

Before I would ever consider participating in this cyberactivism there are changes that need to be made such as, using a hyperlink to connect people to a direct fundraising source for breast cancer, or an informational landing page with facts about breast cancer and how terrible this disease is. If the campaign provided educational information or a link to a fundraising/donation page, I would be more inclined to share on my Facebook page, but until then you will not see me jumping on this Facebook meme bandwagon.

 

 

 

 

In Focus – Ordering Eyewear Online

The days of having to drive to the eye doctor, sit in a stuffy waiting room, and endure a less than pleasant eye exam followed by blindly trying to select a pair of overpriced eyeglasses are long gone. By now, the name Warby Parker might be a company you are familiar with. Perhaps a friend has ordered a pair of glasses and constantly raved about his new specs at the bar on Friday night. But you are skeptical of four-eyed Johnny; could he be right? Are you wasting time and money by still driving to the eye doctor? The short answer to that question is yes and here’s why.

Warby Parker’s Home Try-On Program

Warby Parker not only offers customers the ability to shop and buy eyewear online but they also offer a unique home try-on program unlike any other company out there. It’s quite simple…

Pick out 5 frames – You can even take a quick quiz to have narrow your options based on the size and shape of your face, eyewear style, shapes, colors, etc. Warby Parker will mail the frames you have selected to you for free. Once they arrive at your doorstep you have five days to try them out and select the ones you love!

Buy at any time – Once you have selected your new specs, you can easily purchase the pair online and Warby Parker will send you a new pair with your prescription lenses!

Return the rejects – A prepaid return label is provided so you can simply box up the frames and send them back.

“But I still need a prescription before I can order…”

While Warby Parker does not completely eliminate the need for having an eye exam, they do offer other options to help you with the process. Warby Parker offers three ways to get a prescription.

1. Download their prescription check app
2. In-store prescription check
3. Comprehensive eye exam

Warby Parker also offers select retail locations in the United States and you can narrow the list down to stores that offer an eye exam.

One of the most common issues customers have when ordering eyeglasses online is needing their pupillary distance (PD). Other websites will tell you to grab a ruler and a friend and have them inaccurately measure the distance between your pupils. Now before you run to grab that ruler, Warby Park has you covered – they offer a PD tool that determines your pupillary distance. You can easily take a picture of your face with their software and it will measure your PD for you.

In addition, Warby’s return policy is more than generous in case any mistakes occurred during the ordering process. They have a 30-day, no-questions-asked return or exchange policy for all their eyewear and offer a one-year, no-scratch guarantee for their lenses.

Why choose Warby Parker over its competitors?

Overall, Warby Parker’s culture, mission, and beliefs help the company stand out in the crowd. Their dedication to providing customers with high quality yet affordable eyewear while taking into consideration its customers, community, and environment are key. In addition, Warby Parker’s genuine interest in its customers is not something customers often encounter in retail anymore.

“Our customers, employees, community, and environment are our stakeholders. We consider them in every decision that we make.”

Warby Parker encourages its customers to post and share photos of them in their new eyewear on social media. Every couple of days, I feel as though I am seeing Warby Parker posts on Facebook or Snapchats from friends asking which pair their followers like best! In return, Warby Parker interacts with their customers online by reposting and sharing customers posts. They are heavily focused on putting engagement first and providing quality customer service across all platforms. Warby Parker can easily credit their success on their engagement on social media, it has been reported that 70% of questions from Facebook fans have been ignored. Warby Parker is part of the 30% who make the effort to connect and respond to their customers and in the process are making connections and building lasting relationships.

@warbyparker

@warbyparker

@warbyparker