How to Leverage Conversational Marketing for Better Customer Experience

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Let's say you have a question for a brand that you're interested in, then you have to email them and wait for days just to get the template-based answer. Would you still be interested? Most likely not.

In today's face-paced digital world, customers want so much more than quick responses. They also demand more personal and engaging interactions with brands. That said, a study conducted by PwC found that over 64% of U.S. consumers and 59% of all consumers feel that brands have lost touch with the human element of customer experience.

This is where conversational marketing comes in handy. With this type of marketing, it would be much easier for you to create a more authentic and meaningful interaction by providing real-time feedback.

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by Steve Hall    Jan- 5-22    
Topic: Word of Mouth



We Get Email*

"Hi Steve,

Wanted to see if you were planning any holiday shopping stories focused on major retailers' interactive marketing plans for boosting this season's sales."

No.

............................................................................

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by Bill Green    Nov-12-09    
Topic: Announcements, Promotions, Viral, Word of Mouth



Nike Supports Local Community With 'Back Your Block'

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Getting all power of the human spirit on us, Nike is out with Back Your Block, a $650,000 grant program developed to support local communities and schools and to "unlock the potential of young people through programs that focus on sport."

Social marketing (formerly youth marketing..but, ya know, they jumped on the bus just like everyone else) agency Mr. Youth, created the campaign website, a promotional video, blog outreach and activated an army of 250 Task Force influencers to pimp the effort buzz marketing-style.

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by Steve Hall    Jul- 1-09    
Topic: Brands, Cause, Social, Video, Word of Mouth



The Art of the PR Release, aka, Try a Strap ... on.

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This is an advertising public service, trust me. After saying yes to Steve that I'd help out, it became clear right away that the big difference between my blog and Adrants is the amount of email submissions he and Angela get. Holy 10-Page Wiki Entry Batman. Hardest part? Reading it all to find the good stuff. Easiest part? The keepers, rare as they are, because they just stand out. I'm sure Steve looks for the same things in a PR release that I do too: Short and sweet, addressed to me by name, and a full url of creative that has actually run or just launched. Stories about future partnerships? Means nothing. Show me the money. The absolute killer though is mass emailings starting with FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE or HELLO or that say "If you wish to know more, please contact us" without including, uh, anything. DELETE.

Cutting through the clutter is important-short and sweet and cool is what I got today.

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by Bill Green    Nov- 4-08    
Topic: Online, Video, Viral, Word of Mouth



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Eight Minutes Is Worth 38 Cents Profit Says BzzAgent

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AdFreak's David Gianatasio craps on the efficacy of the results highlighted in a new study from Bzzagent which claims the profit from an eight minute brand conversation is 38 cents. Apart from David's rant on the ridiculous eight minute length, we'll chime in on the 38 cents as in that's all? We're actually getting excited about making 38 cents for eight minutes of a person's time? Like David admits, perhaps we're not getting the point of the study either.

Or maybe we are and we're now supposed to hate BzzAgent even more for reducing the value of people's time to a mere 38 cents for eight minutes of their life.

by Steve Hall    Oct-13-08    
Topic: Research, Word of Mouth



CAPTCHA Talks Smack, Robot House Tweets, Conservatives Critique Palin Pick

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- Blogger Meggie Poo unsubscribes to a random retail e-newsletter ... and its CAPTCHA calls her a whore. O_o

- Some members of the maverick Mad Men twitterati are affiliated with We Are Sterling Cooper, which "[catalogues] the conversation around AMC's Mad Men and its fanbase across the social web." Thanks @AmandaMooney.

- Speaking of fake Twitter characters, meet @S.A.R.A.H., an artificially intelligent house from the Sci Fi Channel's Eureka. Created by Fallon.

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by Angela Natividad    Sep- 3-08    
Topic: Brands, Online, Social, Trends and Culture, Word of Mouth



Seminar to Teach Word of Mouth Marketing Skills

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Andy Sernovitz, a big advocate of word of mouth marketing and host of the Gas Pedal dinner series is hosting a "Learn Word of Mouth Marketing" crash course in Chicago July 30 and September 4. The course will cover the five steps of word of mouth marketing, how to insure ROI and how to create an actionable word of mouth marketing program for your company.

There's more details here and if you use the code "weloveadrants", you'll get a nice $250 discount. I've been to his events and they are very informative. If you have any interest in WOM, it would be worth checking out these seminars.

by Steve Hall    Jul-22-08    
Topic: Industry Events, Word of Mouth



Viral Marketing: What Works, What Doesn't and Why

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Fletcher Martin VP PR & Social Media Strategy and author of SpeakMediaBlog Jennifer Jones has written a contributing article on the topic of viral marketing in which she takes a look at four viral marketing campaigns and tells us what's right and what's wrong with them.

These days one cannot go two clicks without reading about viral marketing. Some say it's the greatest notion since the four P's (product, pricing, promotion and placement). Others say it's an over-hyped waste of time that will burn itself out.

The bottom line is viral marketing can only be as good or bad as the campaign around it. Many would-be viral marketers seem to think calling something viral automatically makes it so. They fail to understand that viral marketing requires strategic planning at the start and ongoing promotion throughout the campaign. With this in mind, I have compiled a short list of what I feel are some of the best and worst viral marketing campaigns so far this year.

Viral Video With a Soft Touch: Stride Chewing Gum's Dancing Video
One of the greatest challenges with viral videos is deciding when and how to incorporate the brand. If the brand name is too present, your overt marketing will upset the viewer. If you don't include it enough, you risk being called out for deceptive practices.

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by Steve Hall    Jul-21-08    
Topic: Opinion, Viral, Word of Mouth



BzzAgent to Guarantee Word of Mouth Works

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In either a desperate move to build buzz for a medium no one's talking about any more or a confidant move in support of its belief in word of mouth marketing, BzzAgent is offering advertisers a refund if their campaign with BzzAgent outperforms other media by 20 percent. To participate, brands must spend $300,000 across WOM and other media.

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by Steve Hall    Jul-14-08    
Topic: Promotions, Tools, Word of Mouth



Clothing Retailer Misses Word of Mouth Opportunity

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This weekend I took @mariagarcia to Soho to show her one of my favorite shops in the neighborhood. I had discovered it a week ago and wanted to go back with her to capture a few photos I could use in a blog post proclaiming my love for the brand. While we shopped, I snapped a few photos of elements of the in-store experience that stood out to me... until I was interrupted by a store clerk who informed me that "it is against store policy to allow customers to take photos in our store." Although I assured her that I was not some kind of spy sent from a competitor but was a blogger taking photos to show readers (who might not otherwise get to see a store that's only located at the moment in NY, TX and CA and has a rather limited online shopping experience) why I loved it, she told me that I'd need to contact the corporate office and get clearance to do so.

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by Amanda Mooney    Jul- 7-08    
Topic: Bad, Brands, Word of Mouth