Using my unwavering passion for travel and desire to discover all the world has to offer to make an impact in the marketing world.
"Not all those who wander are lost" - J.R.R. Tolkien
Alright its time to write an engaging
and compelling blog post...
Starring at a blank document as that
little black line flashes at you, “Come on, are you going to write
anything?!” How can a white piece of paper cause so much anxiety? I
mean there are a million thoughts racing through my head, moving
faster then my fingers could possibly type, and yet I can't seem to
get that first word on the page. This moment ring a bell to anyone?
Creating content for a blog that is
engaging and compelling to your reader is harder then it appears.
Whether your just drawing a blank or have too many thoughts running
through your head at once to get them down on a page, the first thing
you should be thinking is, what is your purpose? What is the moral of
your story? Got your happily ever after in your head now? Now tell
its story.
Yes it's the same story anyone in
marketing has heard before, you have to tell a compelling story in
order to engage your reader. Well its more then just that. If I just
posted this without any pictures or video content would it stand out
to you right away? Probably not. Visuals are one of the key aspects
in storytelling that will help engage your reader while adding to
your story. An image will catch the readers attention, it can help
explain what your saying or add emphasis to a specific point.
Another key aspect to writing an
engaging and compelling blog is getting your reader to act. This is
ultimately the reason most people write blogs. We want the reader to
like, comment or share our blog with others. We want to create a
reaction in our reader, get them to think, question and talk about
what we have written. Or maybe we have a larger goal of selling
something to our reader or directing them somewhere where they are
more likely to make a purchase. Whatever it is we want them to do,
the point is we want them to do it (and maybe more then once!).
Now that you have a better idea of how
to write an engaging and compelling blog, have a look at these blogs.
Based on Ann Handley's
“Content Rules”, outlined in chapter 11, I've rated these 3
bloggers based on her guidelines and whether their blog posts
inspired me to act (share, comment or like their content).
Anyone in marketing must realize now
it is all about the story. To be able to successfully tell your
brand's story you must have compelling content. Most companies today
are understanding this and trying to tell their story through various
media campaigns, some better then others. I'll be examining and
comparing two hugely successful brands, and their campaigns that
helped get them to where they are now. Both of these companies have
done an excellent job at telling their brand's story through
compelling content, but I'll be trying to determine which one did it
better!
The first company I'll be examining is
Contiki Holidays. Contiki
specializes in pre-packaged holiday tours for 18-35 year olds. They
have a clear understanding of who their target audience is, which is
even stated in their logo. Their current campaign, which has been
running for just over a year now, is centred around the concept and
now their signature hashtag, #NOREGRETS. Their video
about the campaign, which originally ran on television and is still
being watched on YouTube, is about breaking away from your everyday
mundane activities to experience the adventure of a lifetime. It is
about living your life to the fullest and with #NOREGRETS.
To understand how Contiki is
successfully telling their brand's story through compelling content
I'll be comparing it to several theories. Jonah Sachs from The
Huffington Post discusses 4
Steps To Build Brand Awareness Through Storytelling. First a
brand must craft their myth. “While stories may seem like simple
fun, they are actually deeply important. Stories act like cultural
DNA -- tiny packets of information that build tribes and societies.
The stories we love most tell us what people like us value, what they
don't, and what they want for the future. These core stories are
known as myths, and every society uses them to forge a shared
identity. We're programmed by evolution to look for these stories and
share them.”
Contiki uses the key ingredients to
craft their myth by starting their video off by giving us numbers of
hours spent doing our daily mundane activities (showing us how the
world works), then it breaks to beautiful images of young 20 year
olds experiencing the wonders of the world, reminding us to “Start
living” because you only have “One Life, One Shot, so Make it
Count. #NOREGRETS” (meaning). Contiki shows you through their
compelling imagery what you will get with them (story), and that
experiencing life to its fullest and sharing that experience with
others is to live without regrets (ritual).
Secondly a brand must know their hero.
Brands used to be the hero, stepping in to save the day with their
products or services. Today brands have to talk about how great their
audience could be, that is “what excites people into sharing
content these days”. Contiki shows you that you can be the hero by
experiencing all the world has to offer, without directly telling you
that this is all possible because of their services. Thirdly they
live their story by standing for larger truths (there is more to this
life then your everyday activities) and empowering their audience
(showing you what else is out there to discover). “Another
advantage [to calling for a deeper authenticity] is that stories
guide us into a deeper sense of our values, transforming our brands
as we work to live up to our stories.”
Lastly, Contiki completes the fours
steps with practice makes perfect. “The best way to learn how to
craft your unique story is to immerse yourself in the learning
experience through an interactive medium. Storytelling is a group
experience, so the creation of the story should be too.” Contiki is
continually crafting this story through their website, Facebook,
Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and various blogs. They not only have
hired people that are out their experiencing these holidays
first-hand through Contiki and blogging about it, but they use
content created by their target audience that have taken their own
holidays with Contiki. They are telling their story through the eyes,
ears and mouths of the audience they are directly trying to target.
Contiki's #NOREGRETS campaign is still
successfully running, while continually gaining audience interactions
on their various social media platforms. Looking at Contiki's
campaign through Joe Pulizzi and Robert Rose's CM
(content marketing) Brand Hero's Journey, they can be found at
step 7, the “Final Challenge” stage. “This is the culmination
of your brand story. In the larger sense, you may never want your
brand’s (your hero’s) story to end. And this content marketing
campaign may be but one episode in your story. But this final
challenge is what you have to overcome to get to the possibility of
the “what if?”…”.
While this campaign is still going
strong, Contiki is already hinting at their next campaign with this
teasing image to the right. They are continuing to tell their story
while keeping their key theme and now very recognizable hashtag
#NOREGRETS. This hashtag has become so symbolic with Contiki and what
they represent, it has the potential to become as powerful and as the
well-known as the Nike line, “Just Do It”.
Now its time to look at the
competition, TOMS. While TOMS is not in the same industry as Contiki
it is still telling its brand's story through compelling content and
trying to attract the attention of the same target audience as them.
TOMS is a shoe company guided by
one simple mission, “With every product you purchase, TOMS will
help a person in need. One for One.” TOMS promises that with every
purchase you make, they will in turn make and donate a pair of shoes
to a child in need. While TOMS are made for anyone at any age (they
even have TOMS for kids), their campaign is targeting millennials who
want a stylish pair of shoes at a reasonable price, with the added
bonus of feeling good about their purchase by helping a child in
need.
Referring back to the CM
Brand Hero's Journey, TOMS can currently be found at Step 6: “Map
the Road of Challenges”. This step is used to determine how you can
gather friends, take a strong point of view and possibly create some
naysayers. It is this naysayers and challenges that has kept their
brand's story at this step. While TOMS is telling an incredibly
inspiring story, people are still questioning whether TOMS really
donates a pair of shoes for every shoe purchased. How will TOMS lead
their audience into this idea of being able to help a child in need
every time they purchase a pair of shoes from TOMS? By providing
proof through various media channels. This video
update from TOMS headquarters (found on their website as well as
YouTube) demonstrates through compelling content proof that
TOMS stands by their logo, “One for One”.
Michael Margolis in his article Brand
Storytelling 101 looks at the five steps to create a successful
brand story. Step 1
is about naming, “When we name something, our relationship with it
transforms”. TOMS has named their campaign with their logo, “One
for One”. “A brand represents the complex emotional relationship
between the storyteller – the one who is sharing something about
that brand – and the audience. Put in a more traditional context, a
brand represents the emotional relationship between a consumer and a
product.” TOMS has created this emotional relationship by
representing a product that makes you feel good about purchasing it.
Their video pulls on your heartstrings by creating an emotional bond
with the children who have been helped by TOMS. The audience is meant
to be moved and want to participate in the cause and therefore feel
the affects donating has on the heart. They want to help, to be
involved, to be part of the story.
The
next step is about the meaning behind the brand. “Nearly anything
can be branded. It’s a natural human impulse to want to put a name
to the images, energy, and patterns that are a part of a shared
experience, event, or relationship...Building successful
relationships for your brand or your business comes down to the
stories you tell as well as the stories other people tell about you.”
TOMS is telling a great story, except that people are still
questioning whether its true or not. Through video updates (as seen
above) as well as through their Stories
section on their website, you can see how TOMS is allowing viewers to
help tell the story, while continually providing proof that TOMS is
keeping their promise.
“Every
storyteller has a brand and every brand has a story.” Step 3 asks
you to think carefully about the value of your brand story by looking
at its relevance, hero of the story, its origin and whether its
authentic. TOMS clearly outlines its brand's story by representing a
relevant societal cause while making the audience the hero through
their purchase. On their website they clearly define the origins of
TOMS campaign by telling the biography of Blake
Mycoskie, founder and chief shoe giver of TOMS. They are also
proving their authenticity through the video updates and shared
content of others.
TOMS
campaign highlights the 4th
step perfectly, for “We all need something to believe in”. TOMS
clearly defines what they stand for and asks their audience to fight
for the same cause. “You want your story to become their story. As
your audience sees their own values, hopes, and dreams in the story
you create, they will deepen their emotional connection to your
brand.” Lastly, step 5 is about brand stories that help shape
culture, “How do you hope to change and improve people’s lives?”
TOMS is trying to help shape our culture by asking us to be a part of
something bigger then us. They are asking us to help donate to their
cause and share in the joy it brings to help a child in need.
“As
storytellers, we have a responsibility to tell better stories, the
kind of stories that speak to our rapidly evolving world and
re-establish our connection to the people and cultures around us.”
Contiki and TOMS are both doing this through their compelling content
as seen in the theories above, Contiki is just doing it slightly
better. Contiki has their target audience fully engaged and part of
their movement. Their hashtag #NOREGRETS is becoming so synonymous
with Contiki that they don't even need the name Contiki in their ads
anymore for people to recognize who they are. They have people
telling their own Contiki stories and sharing their content over many
social platforms. Contiki is successfully telling their brand story
and isn't even finished yet! #NOREGRETS DAYS coming soon...
I love shoes!!! But my bank account does not. So what is one way I justify getting another pair of those too cute, must have wedges? Buying from a company that is making a difference. Not only am I getting a great pair of shoes, but by purchasing my own pair I am in turn donating a pair to a child in need.
In 2006, American traveler Blake Mycoskie befriended children in a village in Argentina and found they had no shoes to protect their feet. Wanting to help, he created TOMS, a company that would match every pair of shoes purchased with a pair of new shoes given to a child in need. One for One.®
TOMS One for One campaign has been incredibly successful because of how they are telling their story. Rather then focusing on the product they are trying to sell you, they are focusing on the message behind the product. TOMS have shown the consumer they care. They care about the quality of the shows they are creating, their customers, their employees and most importantly children in need. TOMS help show you the difference you can make in the world by buying their product. They pull on your hearts strings and make you want to contribute and help change the world with them.
In this video you will see how TOMS demonstrates not only what they do for the children in need, but how this experience has even affected the employees of TOMS. You will also notice that at no point here are they directly trying to sell you the product, they aren't saying this is all possible if you go buy a pair of shoes right now, they are simply telling a story.
How do you feel after watching this video? Were you moved by what they were doing? Did you want to participate in their cause?
Not only is TOMS creating great stories with their content but they are also sharing other people's stories while asking you to share your own. TOMS Stories has created a community where people can participate in the TOMS movement, and ask you to socialize with them on their various social media sites. You can be involved in their community by sharing and/or commenting on their stories on their website, or share your own on their social sites. By being so engaged with the brand your purchase decisions are more likely to be influenced. After hearing their stories and participating in their content you create a connection with a brand, leading you to make a purchase from the company.
A mobile application (or mobile app) is a software application designed to run on smartphones, tablet computers and other mobile devices. They are usually available through application distribution platforms, which are typically operated by the owner of the mobile operating system, such as the Apple App Store, Google Play, Windows Phone Store, and BlackBerry App World. Some apps are free, while others must be bought. Usually, they are downloaded from the platform to a target device, such as an iPhone, BlackBerry,Android phone or Windows Phone, but sometimes they can be downloaded to laptops or desktops. For apps with a price, generally a percentage, 20-30%, goes to the distribution provider (such as iTunes), and the rest goes to the producer of the app. (Wikipedia)
There's an App for that! In fact, there is literally a million apps in the iOS store alone! As depicted in the image by Flurry Analytics, 80% of our time spent on a mobile device is on an app, compared to the 20% we spend on a browser. Apps are a quick and easy way for us to connect on our favourite social media sites, catch up on today's latest news and play games when were bored. Apps are trendy to have, they keep us in the loop about the things we want to know about, they inspire us to create, they expose us to new music, they allow us to pay bills quickly, and they help keep our days organized. Mobile Apps are the future for online marketing. As seen in the infographic by DrivingSales.com there are many benefits for a business to have an app rather then just a mobile website. Smoother platform, faster loading, a more fluid interaction, and easier access to other applications on your phone (such as your GPS). They are also providing a platform that is focused solely on your company and allows you complete control over its content.
But what about the negatives of an app? Apps require separate versions for different operating systems (iOS and Android being the top two), requiring more time and money in development. There is also more investment and time required in maintenance, and it requires the user to update their app for the current version. Therefor if your app is experiencing difficulties and you've made bug improvements in your update, you have to hope your consumers will still have their apps to get the update, and that they haven't already deleted it out of frustration. An article fromsearchenginewatch.com looks at why users delete mobile apps. "The number one cause: freezes. Sixty-two percent of the people who were surveyed said they would delete an app if it froze up." Have you had problems with a mobile app within the last 6 months? The majority of users have, with 56% saying they have experience some kind of problem.
"Another survey from uSamp revealed that 71 percent of users said they would delete an app that crashed, 59 percent for slow responsiveness, 55 percent for heavy battery usage, and 53 percent for too many ads. That's a lot of pressure for developers and marketers!" With so many apps available now, just getting your app noticed is a challenge, let alone keeping it up to date and user friendly. There are many reasons consumers delete mobile apps, from a too complex or bad registration process to too many bugs and errors. "To figure out how to prevent users from deleting your app, you need to understand why they're leaving in the first place." If you can create a user friendly app that doesn't crash, is easy to set up, has minimal to no errors and is providing the experience the user wants, then you will have a successful app, and hopefully escape being deleted.
So with all these negatives to mobile apps, is it really worth it for your business to have a mobile app? It is going to convert your site visitors into consumers? Overall the answer is yes! Apps are now so popular that it is the best way to reach possible consumers, and not only create a one time buy, but possibly a brand evangelist. If consumers are liking your app, then they are more likely to continue using it as well as sharing it with friends.
While this video is made by a company that creates mobile apps and is therefor promoting themselves, you still can't deny the facts. Mobile apps are here to stay, and are the wave of the future for online marketing.
We all know the
saying, “Same story, different day”. This is exactly what
marketers are up against when trying to develop good content. We live
in a content saturated world, and it is up to today's marketers to
develop new, interesting and engaging content that isn't telling
consumers the same old story they have heard a thousand times.
Today's content is more then just catching the consumers attention,
it is about engaging the consumer and getting them involved in the
conversation.
So how do you get
a consumer involved? While first of all you need to spark their
attention with content that is so new and so relevant that it is like
a meteor hitting Earth, no one will want to miss hearing about it!
Carl Friesen refers to “meteor” content in his article, The 5 Types of Content That Grab Attention for the Best Content Marketing.
He believes for good “meteor” content, “you’ll need to keep
your eye on the sky, so to speak, and watch for news of sudden
changes that will affect people in your market.” It is when a
“meteor” hits that marketers need to be ready to act fast and
create content that is engaging. “If you can write engaging
“meteor” content, you can probably position it in several
different media – and it will get pickup from others, as well as
plenty of retweets. A “meteor” piece positions you as someone
with a finger on the pulse of things that affect your market”. By
creating a “meteor” piece you are STARTING the storytelling
process.
So now we have
this “meteor” piece we need to get people talking about it. We
need people to feel like this is about them, and how it affects them
in order for them to engage with it. “One of the biggest challenges
in content marketing is to put the needs of our customers ahead of
our own and to tell stories that connect with people.” (Michael Brenner)
Let's be honest.
As a consumer I don't care about the details of the
product/company/brand, I care about myself. How is this going to
affect me? What is this going to do for me? I don't want to read
about all the details, I just want to know if it is going to benefit
me and I want to be entertained while learning if it will. Joe Pulizzi has recognized this fact and believes that "the more we educate them or entertain them, the more they don't mind being sold to". In other words, I won't mind watching an advertisement if
it interest me to the point I don't think about the fact I'm being
sold to. The less today's content actually looks and feels like a
sales pitch the more successful it tends to be. I don't want to feel
like I'm reading/watching/listening to an advertisement, I want to
experience it, I want to be PART of the story being told.
So what is better
then content that is so engaging I forget I'm being sold to? Content
that I helped create. “Weave the results of your social
conversations with customers into your content, across media
channels. Good conversations seed good content, and vice versa. Write
about things that people will want to talk about and share on their
social networks” (Gail Goodman). Consumers more then ever are
having the last word. With Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest
and blog posts to name a few, consumers are becoming more then just
observers of content, but creators.
“Your audience
is far from passive; they are their own publishers on social media,
storytellers in their own right, and they can amplify your brand’s
story or they can disrupt it, hijack it and drown it out. The point
is, storytelling is a two-way street. It works best, and really only,
when it’s responsive, flexible and interactive. The audience is
part of the process, and that’s good news for publishers of all
kinds because it accomplishes the goal of the enterprise: to reach
people, to make them more engaged, more informed, more active and
more thoughtful.” (Michael Howerton)
If your consumers
are getting involved with your brand and creating content for it,
don't fight it, but work with it. Adapt their story into yours to
create a story that will not only capture your audience but make them
feel like they were involved in the process of creating it. Todays'
companies have to become more then just the storytellers, but rather
the narrators as they tell their story, while working in the story of
their consumers as well. It is an ever-evolving and continuously
growing process.
As consumers are
adding to your story by creating their own content through various
social media sites, it is important to keep track of the conversation
and get involved to keep it going. “Be sure that once you start a
discussion, you're present to monitor and participate in it. When a
topic catches fire and gets people gabbing, jump in and fan the
flames to keep the chatter going.” (Gail Goodman)
So, the “meteor”
has hit and you've started telling your story. Your creating such
rich and entertaining content that the consumer forgets you are in
fact marketing to them. You have made your consumers feel like they
are involved and part of the conversation by involving them in your
story. Now you have to KEEP them involved and engaged until they take
the most crucial step of taking action.
“Lead your
reader to take action. Give them a taste but don't give up the story.
After reading your content, they should be emotionally invested and
ready to act.” (Sue Duris)
The key here is
don't be afraid to take your time getting to the final desired point,
making the sale. Joe Pulizzi takes Corporate Storytelling Lessons from Kevin Spacey when it comes to the distribution of a story.
Consumers are desperate for stories, and as Spacey outlines in the
video, “some of the best stories in the world take time to play
out. They simply cannot be told in one blog post, or one video, or
one tweet.”
In the video,
Spacey himself speaks to the potential benefits of this innovative
distribution strategy, proclaiming, “Give them [the audience] what
they want, when the want it, in the form they want it in…”
While there is so much content to sort through in today's world, if your content is worth it, consumers will take the time absorb it. We may want the content NOW, but it doesn't mean it has to be short and sweet.
Farm Girl offers gourmet locally
sourced comfort food from a mobile truck. Serving everyone from
families to students to professionals in Kingston and the surrounding
area. The goal of this campaign is to increase catering sales.
This campaign budget is $5/day. This campaign will be centred around
the goal of increasing awareness that Farm Food Food offers catering,
with the desired end result of increasing sales in this field. When
creating a campaign, three main themes emerged that focused on what
Farm Girl represents. Mobility, custom catering, and fresh local
ingredients. Three ad groups could be created from this, and
represented on Google when searched for:
Campaign Idea: In order to start
spreading awareness, Farm Girl Food could cater an event in Kingston
that the public can attend. As people are at the event encourage them
to tweet/post/blog about it and they receive a discount off catering
services. Continue the campaign by increasing the discount each time
a tweet/post/blog is shared by others. Have an ultimate Share Goal
(500 people reached from one person) to give one lucky person a
free catered event*! During this campaign payperclick (PPC) ads should appear on sites like Google search and the Facebook newsfeed.
(*limit the free catered event to 25 people
maximum).
Social media sites are being used more and more to purchase goods online. Traditionally when going online to purchase something we, the consumer, would go directly to the companies site or a retailers site. For example lets say I'm interested in buying a new camera. Traditionally I would go look on such sites as BestBuy or Black's Photography to do research about the camera and eventually buy. While now I may still buy directly from one of those sites, how I get to these sites and what prompts my decision to buy has changed. While looking through my Facebook news feed, read a tweet on Twitter or boards on Pinterest I may see a camera I'm interested in, or a comment someone has made about a camera. I also may find a photograph that I find inspiring and through that learn what type of camera was used to take it. It is through the interaction with other consumers that I'm influenced.
Now, of all the social media sites being used today, what site is more likely to influence or cause me to make a purchase? Before doing any research my educated guess would have been between Facebook and Pinterest. So, which site does have more influence over the consumer?
According to an article from Hubspot "Pinterest buyers spend more money, more often, and on more items then users from any of the other top five social media sites". Pinterest drives referrals to a businesses site. As we look through Pinterest boards and like, comment or repin something that interest us we are in turn sharing this information with others by saying we endorse what we are seeing/reading. Going back to my camera example, if I see a beautiful photo on Pinterest I may click on that image in order to learn what camera was used to take this photo. This may then lead me to say, Canon's site where I will see the type of camera used. I then may make a purchase and in turn like and repin the original photo from Pinterest, possibly leading another consumer to do the same as I have.
The Social Shopping Experience
Food for Thought
Where have your most recent online purchases come from?
Do you click on Ads on Facebook? If yes, does that lead you to make a purchase ever?
Have you ever made a purchase from something you have found on Pinterest?
