"Happiness is only real, when shared"

Often  Hollywood Movies  are dismissed as entertainment and their messages are lost upon the audience. Recent box office hits show the complex dynamic between the increasing solitude or isolation brought on by technology dependence. Though completely different, Into the wild and The Social Network  share an underlying theme of solitude and isolation brought on by an increase of industrialization and most specifically, technology. 

The Social Network more directly relates to technology, as the film depicts the startup of Facebook. The beautiful irony in the film is that MarkZuckerberg and his friends started the social networking website as a means of curing their own loneliness. Despite the widespread success of the application, the increased isolation and solitude forced on Zuckerberg throughout the film helps to balance the “good and evil” of technological advancements. Social media and technology has made us forget and miss out the basics of human interaction.  We have replaced human contact for technological replacements. Often we have used social media as a replacement for real connections, and we have convinced ourselves that those are the connections that matter.

Into the wild is a little more ambiguous when connecting it with technology. The meaning of solitude and technology needs to be applied to the film analysis in order to obtain the deeper meaning. After having it all, Christopher decides to leave everything behind and starts a journey to find himself. He got tired of everything, and realized he didn’t know who he was and what he wanted.  In a way, our society has used technology as an escape, the same way  as Christopher used nature. More and more we forget what is around us and technology dominates our lives, isolating us from our surroundings. But no matter how much we try to isolate ourselves there is a point in which  we understand that  "Happiness is onlyreal, when shared" When Christopher decides to return and to go back to his loved ones, he realizes is not that easy. This is a metaphor of what could happen with us: the  more we get  dependent on technology,  when we desire to return we will find a river as wide as the one Christopher found.   

The message of both films is clear. As the industrialized world continues to make advancements in technology, it will be important for users to distance their dependence. Though forms of technology have an incredible ability to facilitate daily tasks and operations, as with anything in life it must be used and applied in moderation. "Happiness is only real, when shared" 

2014 Recap: Best Digital Marketing Cases

2014  is almost over, and is that  time of the year in which we  look back and  make a recap of the best  campaigns and activations. This year we have seen some great work in  digital , social media, and mobile campaigns worth of remembering.  Here are for me the top 3 campaigns of this year.  

• Website on Instagram

Did you ever though finding a complete website on Instagram? Well, Ikea did it. Looking to promote a specific collection for a younger target, Ikea Russia decided to use Instagram to promote its collection in a different way. Through Posts and tags, Ikea organized a website on Instagram so its consumer could find everything they were looking for in the social media platform they use the most.  As Beta 21 mentions “While companies across the world are still trying to figure out ways in which they can use Instagram to engage with their consumers, Ikea has gone ahead “

• Chipotle Scarecrow

This campaign made marketing that doesn't feel like marketing. They created an entertainment world around a TVC spot, being gaming in the core  of it. This campaign was awarded in multiple festivals , including the Grand Prix Cyber lions.  As mobiforge.com mentions: “The Scarecrow franchise created a conversation about food in popular culture generating over 614,000,000 PR impressions.” Some amazing statistics:

•  In its first month it generated over 18.4 million conversations across 17 social platforms
•  Achieved a  92.7 social sentiment score.,
• The Video has reached over 12,500,000 YouTube views.
• Over 650,000 people downloaded  the game, playing for an average of 5 minutes.
• The song debuted #32 on Billboard's Streaming Songs chart and reached over 13,000 purchases on iTunes

Urban Hilton Weiner

For me this is one of the most clever campaignsin 2014. Selfies  have become the new way of taking pictures and a very common practice among millennials. Realizing that for their customers taking selfies is natural, Urban Hilton Weiner decided to turn selfies into  coupon codes. If you took a selfie wearing one of their clothes and posted it using the hashtag #urbanselfie you received a 10 USD coupon.  As Jeff Bullas highlights  “This ingenious marketing technique accomplishes everything that any retailer would want from a social media campaign – it exposes people to specific items of clothing, encourages social sharing, and most importantly, gets people in stores and buying clothes they wouldn’t have otherwise purchased”

Any other case you think was succesful during 2014?

Customer Experience Management

Having a good product is no longer a guarantee for success. In a continuously evolving environment, consumers have more options and information. This has allowed consumers to raise the bar for companies.  Consumers are no longer expecting a good customer experience, they are demanding it.  Brands are now facing the challenge of finding ways to create a successful customer experience. A Mckinsey research  featured in HBR found out that “that organizations able to skillfully manage the entire customer journey reap enormous benefits: enhanced customer satisfaction, reduced churn, increased revenue, and greater employee satisfaction”

 Customer experience management is a concept that has been around in marketing books for decades  but in the last decade , it has become an integral part of the brand’s marketing strategy .  Companies have realized that they need to define, implement, and manage the customer experience.  Digital technologies and social media has allowed brands to enhance this consumer experience and connect more with consumers in the way they want. 

So how can companies come up with a memorable customer experience? Different studies have shown that every detail counts. From the way the product is presented, the online experience, the salesperson or the “contact us” call center, every interaction counts.  Every contact point that the customer has with the brand must be memorable in a positive way. @entrepenueur identified six key points that help improve

1. ·         Recognition:  Make the costumer feel valued.
2. ·         Personalization:  Costumers like to feel  that companies know them and that the product or service has been tailored to their specific needs.
3. ·         Attentiveness:  Since every detail counts, make sure all the consumer journey goes smoothly for the consumer
4. ·         Consideration: Make every step easier for your consumer
5. ·         Appreciation  show the customers who choose you that you value and appreciate their business
6. ·         Delight: Surprise your clients when they least expect it.  

Here are some examples that show how some brands have been able to create amazing customer experiences.

SAP: Sap created a different experience for its consumers and found a way to personalize and surprise its consumer.  When you clicked  a Sap banner you were taken  to a business innovation  blog. The content you saw in the blog was completely different from what other people saw. The content you received was  related with the websites you've visited.  This was a very clever way to personalize the experience for the consumer. While all other brands were directing to its  website , SAP was showing consumers that he knew them and that he was giving them what they were looking for.

Zappos is a footwear online retailer that has used great costumer service to build a loyal base of costumer and become one of the most successful online retailers. Zappos secret is putting always customer needs first and working under the premise of always delighting the customer. Watch this video to see some other great things they do .

What other good experiences have you had? 

Content Marketing: Content is King

We have all heard and read about it: Content is king. According to @EntMagazine “Some 329 million people read blogs each month, and 27 million pieces of content are shared each day. That's why "content marketing" – a catch-all phrase that refers to how a brand might delivering custom content though its website and social channels – is key to building relationships and loyal customers”. Brands have realized this  opportunity and are now focusing on creating content that leverages their marketing strategies and connect with their consumers. Many are trying but many are failing.

Nowadays consumers don’t care where or who is providing the content as long as it’s relevant. IT may be a blog, a post on Facebook, a video on YouTube or a tweet. It may come from a brand, from a celebrity or even an influencer. What they are looking for is content that is appealing and relevant. Therefore, What should advertisers take in consideration when developing content for their audience?

1.   Listen

When brands are creating content the first thing they should do is listening to itsconsumers. They need to identify what are their consumers looking for and how they can connect with the brands strategy without being intrusive. Nike is the perfect example of a brand that listens. For its 2014 world cup campaign they found a clever way to connect with what their audience was looking for. They identified a clear insight: is not only about the superstar players, as a Fan I want to be part of it.   As  @danielnewmanUV mentions in his Forbes article Risk Everything: Nike Does For World Cup 2014, And Wins!: “It is the perfect blend of product placement, provocative storytelling and real-time marketing. Welcome to the future of marketing where brands, media and content meet seamlessly to create the ultimate level of customer engagement.” Compare  the 2010 and 2014 videos and see how they changed

2010

2014

 2. Tell The Story, Make It Compelling
 
Storytelling is a concept that has been around for centuries. Brands that have been successful developing content marketing strategies have mastered the art of storytelling. They've understood that it is not  all about what the brand wants to tell but telling a story that is compelling to the audience. Remember is not telling the story in the brand’s language; the key is to create content that connects with the audience in the language they understand best.  RedBull is a clear example on how a brand uses storytelling to create content. As explained by masterinbound in his post Content Marketing Case Study - Red Bull “In addition to filming documentaries, hosting extreme events, and generally pushing the boundaries of human ability, Red Bull promotes their messaging and content through a robust social media strategy anchored around embracing the language and practices of their core audience”

3.   Right story at the correct moment

“Content relevance is that sweet spot of delivering the right piece of content at the right moment through the right channel”.  Its not only about having   content that the consumers wants to see and that  is useful to them, is delivering it in the right time and context. . Beats by Dre created a video called “the game before the game”, which showcases exactly how to have the right story and deliver it in the right moment. Beats had to find a way to connect their brands with the consumer and the world cup, with the extra challenge that they were not an official sponsor. How did they do it? They created a compelling story around the game before the game. They showed the players in a moment that wasn't showed by anyone before and that fans wanted to see: The pre-game rituals.  Not only did sales increased, but actually they had higher recall than Sony , an official sponsor.