Confectionery marketing a new game in the digital world, says IRI

It claims confectioners must explore geo-targeting to ensure money is well spent.

In an interview with ConfectioneryNews, IRI talked up its new Digital Active service that allows confectioners to isolate and measure the impact of a single digital media campaign at a particular retail store. It says traditional methods have archaically tried to measure the impact of multiple digital marketing campaigns and normally at national level.

Explosion of channels

Carl Carter, head of Digital Europe – Solutions & Innovation at IRI, said this traditional marketing mix modeling had been the standard for measuring the success of media spend, but claimed it was tailored for TV.

“Digital media has completely exploded the path to purchase. You’ve gone from having a few channels to having hundreds and you don’t know where to spend your money.”

He said existing measurement models failed to cope with a proliferation of new marketing channels such as Twitter, Facebook, video services and Google ads.

Carter said a confectioner could for example be running a campaign on TV in combination with messages on Facebook and Twitter and Google ads. That company could enjoy a sales uplift, but it would be unsure which channel had the greatest impact. It’s difficult to isolate the driving force when measuring at national or regional level, said Carter.

Store level geo-targeting

IRI’s Digital Active is alternative modeling system that uses geo-targeting to measure how a single campaign is translating into sales at a particular store.

It’s intended to allow companies to account for every dollar spent in digital media advertising from Facebook, and Twitter to Google ads and video on demand.

For example, a company could run a geo-targeted Facebook campaign aimed at people living around a large supermarket in New York. Digital Active could help the company compare sales data from that store compared to a control store that had a Twitter campaign or no campaign at all

The service also allows confectioners to review demographics on the target store to ensure the message is aimed at the right age group.

A few food companies are using the service, but there no confectionery firms on board yet. IRI Digital Active launched late last year, but was updated in the last month.

Confectionery marketing a new game in the digital world, says IRI

Cross-device trend 'disrupts online' marketing industry, says Facebook exec

Amit Chaubey, head of marketing science for Southeast Asia at Facebook, told a seminar of consumer insights hosted by Nation Broadcasting Corporation yesterday that more than 23 million people in Thailand accessed Facebook via their mobile devices every day. Facebook’s monthly usage has been shifting towards mobile.

This phenomenon means prime time is all the time.

Multi-screening is the new normal. Time spent per day simultaneously watching TV and using a second device in Thailand is 56 minutes on a smartphone, 45 minutes on a laptop, and 40 minutes on a tablet.

Mobile creates unique challenges for marketers because it is app-driven.

Also, there is phenomenon called FOBO, the “fear of being offline”, as people feel that being disconnected is to be left out.

Another trend is “personalisation to scale”, Chaubey said.

He said cookie-based and click-based marketing did not work any more. People-based marketing is the new standard.

“Marketing is a science that can be measured,” he said.

Last but not least, real business-outcome measurement is winning over “mumbo jumbo”, Chaubey said. Currently, the path to purchase is complex. Thus click attribution may only capture a fraction of true life. The customer journey is cross-device, between mobile phone and computer, and click-based measurement misses cross-device conversion paths.

Mobile applications are taking centre stage. Currently, around 80 per cent of the time spent on mobile is spent in apps.

Click-based measurement obscures the truth, so marketers should measure the impact of their media with experimental life tests, Chaubey said.

Facebook is a powerful platform for online marketing that can help businesses take advantage of the trends of online marketing disruption, he concluded.

Cross-device trend "disrupts online" marketing industry, says Facebook exec

Facebook Inc Says Rainbow Filter Was Not A Marketing Or Data Gathering Stunt

Facebook Inc.’s (NASDAQ:FB) recent move, to allow users to apply a rainbow filter on their profile pictures, has garnered sharp criticism. The new option followed the nationwide legalization of same-sex marriages in the US, and was aimed to show solidarity with the movement.

The social media giant clarified that the new filter has been adopted to show support for the Supreme Court’s decision, and is not an advertising stunt, or a way to gather key information about its users.

In an official media statement, a Facebook spokesperson claimed that the tool was “something that enables people to show their support of the LGBTQ community on Facebook.”

The “celebrate pride” tool was launched by two company interns before the New York pride parade. It caught on like wild fire once the new profile picture color scheme was adopted by the White House. The White House changed its Facebook page’s profile picture to depict President Obama’s support for the latest constitutional law.

In a Facebook post, President Obama claimed: “Today is a big step in our march toward equality. Gay and lesbian couples now have the right to marry, just like anyone else.”

The rainbow filter gained immense popularity on the social networking site, and was immediately adopted by numerous Facebook users and popular celebrities, including Leonardo DiCaprio and Anne Hathaway.

Facebook also received criticism for using the new profile picture filter trend as a tool to gather information, and user details, to boost advertising on the platform.

According to Mashable’s reports, Facebook claimed: “We aren’t going to use this as a way to target ads and the point of this tool is not to get information about people.”

The company clarified that contradictory to accusations made by MIT scientist Cesar Hidalgo, who claimed that the filter’s introduction had been more of an “experiment,” compared to just a social cause, its motives had nothing to do with advertising.

CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote: “I’m so happy for all of my friends and everyone in our community who can finally celebrate their love and be recognized as equal couples under the law.”

Almost 26 million Facebook users changed their profile picture to celebrate the same-sex marriage ruling.

Facebook Inc Says Rainbow Filter Was Not A Marketing Or Data Gathering Stunt

C. STINNETT: There's still a role for email in marketing, consultant says

HENDERSON, Ky. – Don’t tell Dana M. Nelson that email is extinct.

“A lot of times you hear email is dead,” the Evansville marketing and social media consultant said.

Nelson disagrees. “At the core of the relationship you’re building with your customers or your donors or your volunteers is email,” she told Kyndle Brown Bag audience recently. “It still has the highest delivery response.”

Email, she noted, can be used to deliver newsletters, announcements, special offers, product and event promotions, surveys, event registrations and for gaining feedback.

Nelson is a Constant Contact Authorized Local Expert. Constant Contact is an online marketing service used by organizations such as Kyndle, the Downtown Henderson Project, Henderson Community College and the United Way of Henderson County.

Others use services such as Mail Chimp or Boomerang, among others. What they have in common is that they make it easy to send colorful messages with logos, photos and other graphics — a sort of portable Web page as opposed to plain-text email.

But that’s just the tool. What’s key to online marketing, she said, is strategy,

“At its core, marketing is about eliciting a physical and measurable response,” Nelson said.

In email marketing, she recommends asking the customer or recipient to take some kind of action that can be measured — to click on a link, download a document, call or come into the office, schedule an appointment or donate.

“Don’t just push information: ‘25 percent off,’ ” she advised. “Say, ‘25 percent off, come in today!’ “

The key, Nelson said, is to provide “information and offers relevant to those customers,” Nelson said. “If you do it right, they will bring their friends with them.”

“Your new best friends are ‘forward’ and ‘share,"” she said. “If you use an email marketing service, you’re going to have a ‘share’ button or a ‘like on Facebook’ ” link that can be part of every message.

Getting customers, donors or volunteers to interact with your organization on social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest can increase their level of engagement.

“Word-of-mouth is now (happening) on those social media platforms,” she said.

“You need to make it easy to share your content” by incorporating links to such platforms in email messages.

“You want to be sure to give an opportunity (for people) to share with others,” such as after an event: “It was awesome, you should go to the next one!”

Nelson believes online marketing can be at its best when it reflects the personality of the business owner or the mission of the organization.

“You can be your authentic self,” she said. “You could have someone else do it, but they don’t have your passion.”

“You want it to seem like a genuine relationship, not a gimmick,” Nelson said.

A marketing campaign should have goals.

It can have general goals, such as to reach new customers or donors; drive repeat business; nurture leads and relationships; and engage members or volunteers.

But Nelson said it’s valuable to set specific goals, such as to drive donations up a certain amount this month or fill 90 percent of the seats in your church this Sunday.

“Put a specific measure on it,” she said.

Business Editor Chuck Stinnett can be reached at 270-831-8343 or cstinnett@thegleaner.com.

C. STINNETT: There"s still a role for email in marketing, consultant says