Latest News from Marketingservicestalk - Issue 9
Web 2.0 is not just another piece of meaningless jargon. Consumer-generated web content is having a big impact on the way companies and brands are talked about - and the way they talk about themselves.
Public relations activity - in terms of both generation and measurement - has had to change enormously to take account of this. For a start, a pile of press clippings is no longer a good indication of what has been said about you. Brands need to keep a close eye on what is being said online - and they also have a chance to answer queries and respond to criticism. This allows them to engage in conversations with customers as never before.
Mail-order clothing retailer Boden, for example, is introducing a ratings and reviews section on its UK website, after a successful launch in the USA. It intends to use customer opinions to enhance trust in the brand, add to its community feel and provide shoppers with valuable product insights that help them make a purchase decision. Social commerce technology provider Bazaarvoice hopes to roll out the service to the UK in the spring.
Review and social networking sites also offer a whole new advertising medium. As these become more niche, so do the advertising opportunities on offer. While Facebook may not be the best place to advertise holidays to pensioners, it presents great opportunities to target the generation of young people who no longer watch much television. And networking sites covering special interests can be used for tightly targeted advertising or sponsorship.
Mobile and online flirting service Flirtomatic, for example, ran a campaign last week to offer female members the chance to follow tradition this leap year and propose - on mobile - to the man of their dreams. Its limited-edition 'leap year proposal' rings are part of the site's 'value-added services' (VAS), which include a range of virtual gifts - from flowers and chocolates to Champagne bottles and 'Supersnogs' - that users can purchase to send to the objects of their attention. Flirtomatic CEO Mark Curtis said: "The continuing popularity of VAS has demonstrated a clear appetite for users to pay for additional features relevant to the Flirtomatic experience. "VAS opens up an extremely powerful advertising medium to brands, with sponsorship of relevant gifts and features enabling intimate engagement with consumers as they communicate with each other".
Top Products featured this issue
[1] BODEN ADDS REVIEWS ONLINE TO ENHANCE BRAND TRUST
(Bazaarvoice, 29 Feb 2008)
Mail-order brand Boden will look to add ratings and reviews to its UK website later this year, following success in the US. It hopes customer opinions will enhance trust in the brand, add to its community feel and provide shoppers with valuable product insights that help them make a purchase decision.
[2] VIRTUAL-WORLD IDENTITIES BRING REAL-WORLD INSIGHT
(SPSS, 21 Feb 2008)
Companies risk lacking valuable customer insight by failing to collect feedback in online communities, warns predictive analytics software provider SPSS. Surveying consumers' avatars in virtual worlds can provide companies with information on current opinion as well as insights on future industry trends.
[3] FLIRTOMATIC RINGS THE CHANGES
(Flirtomatic, 29 Feb 2008)
Mobile and online flirting service Flirtomatic is offering its female members the chance to follow tradition this leap year and propose - on mobile - to the man of their dreams.
[4] A VIRTUALLY REAL WORLD?
(reviewcentre.com, 29 Feb 2008)
With people in the UK spending more than a month each year online, according to uSwitch, the line between the virtual and the real world seems blurred. Visitors to reviewcentre.com, the online consumer champion, are using the power of the internet to voice their opinion on consumer issues.
[5] CHEAPFLIGHTS SITES ACHIEVE RECORD JANUARY TRAFFIC
(Cheapflights (with Howzat media and dohop.com), 20 Feb 2008)
Internet media travel company Cheapflights has achieved record monthly traffic in the key month of January this year, with the UK site attracting 4.7 million visits, up 19.5 per cent on the previous January.
[6] ONLINE REVIEWERS SHAPE CONSUMER MARKET IN BRITAIN
(RMS PR, 14 Feb 2008)
Online reviewers are changing the shopping habits of British consumers, according to the founder of the UK's largest consumer review site, reviewcentre.com.
[7] TIPPED.CO.UK EXPANDS SERVICE INTO NEW SECTORS
(Tipped.co.uk, 18 Feb 2008)
In the busy local search/review arena, traffic to www.tipped.co.uk is growing by 40 per cent per month, and new functionality is making the site more fun and more useful than ever before.
[8] FREE BUSINESS PLAN GUIDE LAUNCHES
(ContractStore.com, 26 Feb 2008)
ContractStore.com has launched a fully downloadable free business plan guide - which can be used as a planning tool to help you manage the growth of your company.
[9] SERVICE IMPROVES DIRECT MAIL EFFECTIVENESS
(Howse Jackson Marketing, 08 Feb 2008)
The scourge of unwanted, unopened direct mail could be a thing of the past with the launch of Chooseyourmail.co.uk, a new online service.
[10] TAKE COVER - THE ECO UMBRELLA IS LAUNCHING
(Eco Incentives, 15 Feb 2008)
The latest product to make a major splash in the green promotions sector will be the Eco Umbrella, according to the UK's leading environmental promotions company Eco Incentives.
This week's industry news
EUROCONTACTPOOL EXPANDS EUROPEAN DATABASE
(EuroContactPool, 06 Feb 2008)
EuroContactPool, the pan-European business-to-business data specialist, has increased the number of companies on its online database to 21.3 million.
EMEDIA MARKETING TARGETS AFFLUENT PROFESSIONALS
(emedia, 18 Feb 2008)
Emedia is pushing the boundaries of business to business marketing by creating what, in fact, could be called business to 'business consumer' marketing.
EVENTS AGENCY ENGAGES IN FRUITFUL ECO-PROJECT
(The MotivAction Group, 27 Feb 2008)
Tim Waygood, managing director of MotivAction, is planting an orchard on the event company's 170-acre site.
COMPANIES SHOULD STICK WITH PAPER STATEMENTS
(Royal Mail, 13 Feb 2008)
Consumer Media Database companies could lose one third of their customers to rivals if they stopped sending them one simple thing - their monthly paper statement, research has revealed.
IMEX 2008 REINFORCES STRONG LEAD ON GREEN ISSUES
(IMEX, 26 Feb 2008)
IMEX will reinforce the strong lead it has taken on environmental best practice in the international meetings industry with a series of new 'green' initiatives at this year's show.
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Lyndon White
Marketingservicestalk editor
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