Tag: Marketing

Whole Foods Jumps In On Pro-Social Marketing

Posted on by Lab Team

Read original story on: NYTimes

On Monday, Whole Foods introduced its first national brand marketing campaign, proclaiming that the national grocer provides value to shoppers through the eco-friendly standards it follows in deciding how to stock shelves.

This new campaign is the newest example of a popular trend on Madison Avenue known by terms such as “conscious capitalism,” “purpose marketing” and “pro-social marketing.” The idea is to appeal to prospective customers — especially the socially conscious millennials — by persuading them that a company operates in a socially responsible manner. It is a marketing approach that brands such as Chipotle, Kiehl’s and Panera Bread all have been experimenting with for a while now.

 

What Is A CMTO, And Why Is It Important?

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With today’s ever-shifting technology landscape, a new breed of marketing executives—the ones that are equally adept at marketing and technology—are finally getting the recognition it deserves. Sometimes labeled chief marketing technology officers (CMTO), these are the individuals who educate agencies on emerging marketing technology and equip them with the tools needed to engage today’s always-on customers. As crucial players in the future of marketing in our increasingly digital world, CMTOs are quickly becoming invaluable assets to any agency.

Mobile And Social See Digital Ad Spending Increases

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Marketers are running with the excitement around mobile, social, and video with more advertising dollars. 65% of major US brands surveyed by the Association of National Advertisers in March said that they were increasing their investments in mobile, with only 10% reporting that they were decreasing spending in mobile. 55% of respondents said they were putting more dollars into social, and no respondents said they were decreasing this category of spending. Video reported the third largest increase, with two out of every five marketers reporting an increase in investments in video.  

Oreo Blackout Ad Was Only the Beginning

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Oreo’s marketing touchdown during the Super Bowl has managed to rock more than just Twitter, and has foreshadowed what may be the future of marketing in general: brands reacting via social media to breaking news to compliment more traditional methods.  Every marketing agency in the world that let a collective sigh after the perfect Oreo ad went viral and became a news sensation as much as the blackout that triggered it watched and learned from the example, and examples of the new wave of social advertising are already cropping up.  After winter storm Nemo struck the east coast, Starbucks generated targeted posts in areas where local Starbucks stores had been forced to close by weather, offering free coffee.  As part of a multi-pronged approach, this sort of reactive marketing is seen as the way of the future, and during major media events of the next year, it is certain brands will be watching and waiting for their Oreo-Blackout moment.

Still think social media is a fad?

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Still think social media is a fad? (Socialnomics)When clients visit the Lab, they always want to know:  But what does social media mean to me? And ultimately, they want what Cuba Gooding Jr.’s character asks of Jerry Maguire.

Brands want to know they can prove their investment on social media platforms is a worthy one. They want to know it will reach wide and far–and will be as effective as television and print campaigns used to be. They want ROI, which means somehow, social media will have to prove it can not only connect people, but draw the dotted line to the cash register. They want to know it won’t backfire (we do our best to show how social media can save the day in a PR nightmare, but we also tell them that all content is viral content, for better or worse).

As new media advocates, it’s hard to know that brands MUST play in this space without being able to give them a pile of case studies and years of hard data to go on that show a direct connection to the purchase funnel. Continue reading “Still think social media is a fad?”

Recession marketing gets obnoxious

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iStockThings are taking a turn for the worse.  No, I’m not talking about the economy; I’m talking about the marketing about the economy.

As is often the case, it starts with a good thing.  In this case, it was the brilliant Hyundai Assurance program (kudos to IPG’s Initative folks for that one).  A great idea, the program really spoke to the concerns that the country was having at the time.  It decreased the risk in buying one of the key big ticket items.  Many other car companies followed suit.  And until now, this was all a good thing.

Now Virgin Mobile is bringing the concept to wireless companies with their “Pink Slip Protection” offering.  Continue reading “Recession marketing gets obnoxious”

Six hot media trends in 2009

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IPG Emerging Media Lab's 2009 Digital TrendsEach year the IPG Emerging Media Lab issues its picks for the top trends in emerging media. Particularly for marketers, its an easy, painless way to get a finger on the pulse of a constantly changing landscape.

How we come to these trends is a journey in and of itself. There are endless brainstorms, weeks of handwringing, then drafts and more drafts. Ultimately, what emerges is a brain trust of sorts–one that comes out of spending a lot of time with new media, and an eye to the future…but not too-distant future, or we couldn’t call them 2009 trends.

You can download a copy of the IPG Emerging Media Lab’s 2009 Digital Trends, or check out this abridged rundown…cause this is where we’re placing our bets and putting our energy this year:

Continue reading “Six hot media trends in 2009”

Kindle illuminates Amazon

Posted on by Lab Team

Kindle (Amazon.com)When the Kindle first came out, there were many of us that wondered if yet another device would capture the public’s eye in a year or so full of “gadgets.”  In our 2009 Digital Trends, we’ve talked about the the fact that many consumers are clamoring for simplicity and the devices that are really winning, have one basic feature to highlight. Certainly the iPhone and the host of applications it’s opened the door for challenge that theory, but you could argue that the iPhone’s  most popular feature and function is as a “application house.”

More obvious is  the success of the Flip camera and surprise, surprise, the Amazon Kindle. Continue reading “Kindle illuminates Amazon”