To Tweet or not to Tweet: That is the (Latest) Question

Twitter has the hearts of marketers aflutter. It is the new must-do medium as it grows its number of users and elevates in status as a “cool” social networking platform. According to ComScore, Twitter had about 10 million site visitors in February 2009. Now, the curiosities of businesses kick in – “How can Twitter help our business?” “Should we be using Twitter to reach customers?” “Do we use Twitter the same way we use e-mail or our web site?”

Twitter is a channel for reaching an audience, just like mail, telephone, Internet, radio, and so forth. The 140-character maximum for a Tweet (a Twitter message) obviously limits how much information can be delivered. Add to that limitation the question “What would people want to hear from our company when we Tweet?” Is it sales information only? Conversations between employees and users that serve to personalize the customer service experience?

Check out B.L. Ochman’s list of 10 reasons your company probably shouldn’t use Twitter in the link below. Her list is on-target. As a social networking platform, Twitter is a medium for conversation. It is all about interaction. Marketers that treat it like more traditional one-way communication mediums (e.g., advertising) will likely find their Twitter experience unsuccessful. On the other hand, Twitter seems to hold much promise for companies that actually want to hear from their customers and are willing to open a channel for that dialogue.

Link: Ad Age Digital – “Top 10 Reasons Your Company Probably Shouldn’t Tweet”

Consumers Still Interested in Green

As economic conditions worsened over the past year, one trend that appeared likely to slow was consumers’ interest in green products. The pullback was expected because green products often carry a higher price tag than less-green options. The expectation was that consumers would revert back to purchasing lower priced alternatives, even if they were not as environmentally friendly as other products on the market.

According to the BBMG Conscious Consumer Report, a weak economy has not eliminated green sentiment among consumers. One interesting finding was 67% of persons surveyed said it was important to purchase products with social or environmental benefits, even in these difficult economic times. Furthermore, 51% indicated they would pay more for such products. Consumers surveyed also expressed an inclination to tell others about companies’ social responsibility practices, both bad and good. A majority of consumers (71%) indicated they were more likely to tell others about a company’s practices of which they disapproved. Also, 48% of respondents said they would encourage others to not purchase products from a company because of that company’s social responsibility practices.

Findings from the BBMG Conscious Consumer Report should serve as a call to marketers to examine the current state of their green practices. Any notion that consumers would chuck environmental concern because of a recession is dispelled based on this study’s findings. The bottom line is that a large percentage of consumers care about the impact businesses have on the environment as well the impact of their own consumption. Are there ways to exhibit social responsibility that are not currently being undertaken? Are there social responsibility practices that should be communicated to customers and the public? A fine line exists between impacting a target market with green marketing strategies and self-congratulatory communications. But, the stakes are too high, both for the environment and for customer relationships, to not be proactive in the area of social responsibility.

Link: Center for Media Research – “Consumers Want Proof It’s Green”

Taking Comfort in the Past: Nostalgia in Advertising

Tough times can trigger a longing for simpler, happier times. Why not? Replacing anxieties about job security and the future with positive feelings from days gone by provide an assurance that many people need today. Those sentiments have found their way into recent marketing campaigns. Whether it be something subtle like Pepsico rolling out limited edition retro packaging for Pepsi and Mtn Dew, or a stronger connection to the past through use of an old ad slogan such as Diet Coke’s “Just for the taste of it,” many ad campaigns today are trying to reach consumers through familiar messages of bygone days.

Is the trend toward nostalgic advertising a gimmick that shows little imagination by advertisers, or is it just what the country needs at this time? Probably neither, but eliciting nostalgic feelings in consumers is a way to engage us comfortably. It is a time in which marketers are unsure exactly what to say. Instilling confidence through familiar, well liked messages is a strategy for maintaining a strong brand presence with consumers. Riding out tough times with customers now could lead to payoffs when better economic conditions return.

Link: The New York Times – “Warm and Fuzzy Makes a Comeback”

Learning from the Pain of Others

Don Tapscott, author of Wikinomics, wonders whether the demise of print newspapers could be the foreshadowing of the demise of another American institution: higher education. In a recent post on his Wikinomics blog, Tapscott says some private colleges and regional public universities may be as vulnerable in coming years as the city newspaper is today. Integrating technology, innovative teaching methods, and a commitment to containing costs are keys to transformation in higher education, according to Tapscott.

As someone who teaches at a large public university, Tapscott’s prediction is both unsettling and energizing. The parallel between what has happened to newspapers and trends impacting higher education has a great deal of validity. Businesses in any industry should take note of what has happened to financial services (quest for profits hurt financial positions), auto manufacturers (inability to make quick changes to customers’ needs), and airlines (unwieldy cost structures) and learn from their mistakes. Economic challenges, changes in how people consume information, and new technologies that enable community formation online are forces higher education institutions cannot dismiss. Change occurs in all industries, although the magnitude of change varies across industries. Taking note of good and bad responses to change by others can be applied to managing change in one’s own organization.

Link: “Colleges Should Learn from Newspapers’ Plight”

Altruism Marketing: The New Green?

The recession and its effects on consumers in the form of job losses is creating a new approach to marketing. Michael Silverstein of Boston Consulting Group calls it “altruism marketing.” Companies are reaching out to consumers by offering guarantees, fee waivers, or in some cases free services. Examples include GM, Ford, and Hyundai all have some form of payment relief for car buyers who lose their jobs and cannot make payments. Jet Blue is waiving $100 flight cancellation fees for those who lose their jobs. Walgreens pledged to provide free basic services for the rest of 2009 at its Take Care Clinics for any Take Care customers who lose their jobs and are uninsured.

Altruism marketing is an example of what marketing is at its core: responding to the needs of the market. Tough times have hurt many consumers; any company insensitive to their plight looks… well, like AIG. Marketers that meet customers where they are now will have the opportunity to remain connected with them when economic times get better. Someone helped when in need tends to remember who helped… and who did not.

Link: USA Today – “GM, Ford Are Latest Offering Help to Those Hit by Job Loss”

Free Speech Parameters for User Generated Content

The growth of interactive and user-generated content tools on the Web gives the ordinary person a voice unlike never before. We have moved from spectators to participants in sharing thoughts about the world around us. From a marketing perspective, one of the greatest impacts of this trend is the stronger voice consumers now have in sharing their experiences with brands and companies. Frustrated or unhappy consumers can vent to anyone who cares to click and read.

The capability to speak and be heard comes with a responsibility to stick to the facts and not engage in libelous communication. This caveat is at the heart of recent lawsuits filed by professional services providers against consumers who posted negative reviews of their service encounters on the online review site Yelp. In one case, a San Francisco dentist filed suit against a couple who posted negative review about the quality of treatment their 4-year-old son received. This suit follows another one filed by a San Francisco chiropractor over a Yelp posting by a patient critical of billing problems encountered. The parties eventually settled in the latter case after what the defendant said was “a misunderstanding between both parties led us to act out of hand.”

Online customer reviews have resulted in greater transparency in a business’ dealings with customers. User-generated reviews should force companies to be held to a higher level of accountability in taking care of service and product failures. Review writers must take care to temper dissatisfaction by focusing on objective, factual matters in their posts. Name calling and reputation bashing, while possibly relieving some stress at the moment a review is written, could create even greater angst if the target of a review is libeled or injured in some way.

Link: Online Media Daily – “Court Allows Dentist to Sue Writer of Bad Yelp Review”

KFC’s Re-Freshing Approach to Brand Exposure

KFC has broken new ground in finding new communication channels. Actually, it is not breaking ground but rather filling in broken ground, potholes to be exact. The Louisville, KY based company offered the city $3,000 to fill 350 potholes. The potholes are covered with a white stencil bearing the KFC logo and the statement “Re-Freshed by KFC.” The stencil will last approximately 10 days before fading.

While some people may roll their eyes at an unorthodox way to promote a brand, KFC deserves credit for not only being creative, but it also is doing something beneficial for the community. It is possible that other types of “re-freshment” could be for sale in cities across the country as local governments’ budgets are pinched by the recession. In addition to the unique way to generate brand exposure, KFC has been the recipient of extensive media coverage throughout the country for its pothole re-freshment program. This type of tactic would not be effective for all brands, but in the world of quick service restaurants, any edge in the consumers’ mind that can be gained is important.

Link: Creativity Online – “KFC: Pothole Repair”

MLB Network: Why”All Baseball, All the Time” Will Work


The fourth U.S. professional sports league that has launched its own television network is Major League Baseball. MLB Network, launched January 1, joins the NFL, NBA, and NHL as leagues with their own cable TV channel. In some ways, launching a network focusing on a single sport is ill advised at a time when competition is abundant and advertisers’ budgets are shrinking. Nevertheless, MLB Network appears to be poised to succeed.

What does MLB Network have going for it? First and foremost, it has distribution. Lack of distribution dooms more new products to failure than any other factor. MLB Network launched with an audience of more than 50 million households, larger than the other three leagues’ audiences at their launches. Second, MLB Network brings brand equity on several fronts. The MLB brand itself is strong, as is the equity brought by its 30 clubs. Moreover, MLB Network personalities like Bob Costas and Harold Reynolds will be familiar faces to baseball fans. Finally, MLB Network will benefit from an abundance of content it can carry. Activity among Major League teams is constant from mid-February through October. Any gaps in programming can be filled relatively easily with classic games, features on old timers, and coverage of minor leagues, to name three possibilities.

I am looking forward to my first season having MLB Network as a resource to help with my fantasy baseball efforts… and I can use all the help I can get!

Link: Media Planner Buyer: “MLB Network Appeals to Media Buyers”

Making Pricing Decisions in a Weak Economy

It is a great time to be a consumer, if you have money to spend. Businesses of all types are responding to weak demand and bloated inventories with deeply discounted prices. As a marketing professor, I think about how I have urged my students to think about how to deliver great customer value without using low price as an easy out. Many brands built their success on being able to charge price premiums because of exceptional benefits offered. Does the approach of building value through benefits still work in today’s price conscious marketplace? I would say “no”… and “yes.”

A benefits-oriented value proposition is more difficult to leverage today if a product is one that is a discretionary purchase for consumers. For example, a person being more cautious with personal expenditures may conclude that life can go on without Starbucks lattes. Although the consumer appreciates Starbucks’ offerings and perceives value in them, he or she might simply opt to cut back on this non-essential purchase. A second variable that makes a benefits-driven value proposition challenging to leverage is if the product sold is perceived to have many available substitutes. The more a product is viewed as a commodity, the more difficult it is to command price premiums.

There is also a “yes” answer to the question of whether price premiums can still be garnered. If a product is truly exceptional in terms of benefits delivered, a company might sell less of it but still be able to sell at a price premium. Also, if there are few perceived alternatives, there is a greater chance of being able to charge higher prices for a product.

Even companies that still have the ability to charge price premiums must be sensitive to the plight of their customers. If your buyers are hurting, what can you do to add value by making product acquisition easier? Price freeze for extended time periods? Price reduction? More flexible payment options? Being responsive to customers’ needs now could pay dividends later when they are more prosperous.

What Ads Should Say in Time of Crisis… If Advertising at All

Two sectors that have been sent reeling in the wake of the current recession are financial services and automobiles. Not only is profitability an issue, but the brand images of companies in these industries have taken a hit. The damage to the financial services sector is evident as some firms in the industry are seen as contributors to the mess. Automobile manufacturers, especially the U.S. brands, have suffered as consumers have pulled back on spending. Even when people want to buy, they often have challenges securing credit to make a car purchase. The result is that GM and Chrysler are on the brink of death.

The dire circumstances faced by companies in these industries beg the question: Should we be advertising? If yes, what should we say? Many GM dealers are calling for the company to do something… anything, in terms of trying to stimulate sales with ads. It is a fine line to walk as the “good old days” of ad spending are over, but at the same time consumers need some assurance that auto makers are strong and stable. The argument GM and its dealers make is people are hesitant to buy cars from a company they are unsure will be in business two years from now.

Communication from auto brands to the market is needed. The “buy now” messages that historically have dominated this industry must be balanced with reinforcing quality and trust perceptions. Of course, customer-friendly pricing and incentives would not hurt, either. Consumer confidence is shaky; marketers in all industries cannot pretend otherwise. Addressing it head-on through advertising is the right thing to do to restore confidence.

Link: TV Week – “Advertising Can Boost Consumer Confidence, Study Reports”