Archive for the ‘Digital Markteing’ Category

Brands Want To Be Like Mike (and Ike)

For anybody unfamiliar with the Mike and Ike story, for over a year now the popular candy has been engaged in an extensive marketing campaign aimed at re-branding their product. Since April of 2012 Just Born (the owners of the Mike and Ike brand) has been running a social campaign- posting stories about Mike and Ike’s breakup on Facebook, Twitter and various blogging sites.

The reason for the duo’s split was down to ‘creative differences’ after the pair couldn’t agree on new flavours and packaging for the candy. Mike was leaving to focus on his music career (his debut single entitled “Strawberry or Die”) while Ike now had the time to focus on his art. The somewhat controversial twist of the pair also filing for gay divorce made the break up even more intriguing and the story was picked up by various media outlets like the John Stewart show- which only added to the story’s popularity. Viral videos (that continue to upload) on YouTube, as well as the Mike and Ike movie added to the hype surrounding the candy duo’s comeback and made the product re-launch a massive success.

Traffic to the Just Born social media sites (and website) has more than tripled since last year and the brand now has over 1 million fans on Facebook. Just Born has also reported a 7.2% increase in sales- the largest in the brand’s history.

The pillars of the campaign were set primarily in:

  1. The Packaging (or the Physical)- This let people know the campaign was for real. The physical aspect of Mike sometimes being scribbled out on boxes of the candy and other times Ike being so reinforced the story being told and made people question if this was for real.

  2. The Digital-  the ability for the brand’s audience to engage with the story in the form of a the two-way dialogue between the brand and it’s audience was crucial to the campaigns success. Leveraging the power of Social media not only built a following, it kept the audience engaged and turned customers into fans.

For me this campaign not only highlights vital considerations for re-inventing brands, it also offers a blueprint on how to do it. Firstly, it shows just how important social media is- to the re-branding process and to an organisation’s digital strategy. It also shows how important it is to the customer (i.e. the brand’s audience).

Let’s take a closer look at this story and while doing so you might consider how you could apply these steps to your re-branding process:

  • Create an engaging brand narrative that is captivating or humorous (or both) to your target audience.

  • Identify the best ways to engage that audience with the narrative. Between Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and various blogging sites it is likely that the market for Mike and Ike candy engaged with this campaign at some point in time.

  • Decide on the story, decide on the media AND STICK TO IT! The Mike and Ike story has been running for over a year now. Sometimes businesses expect social media to work miracles instantly- and sometimes it can- but more often than not it requires work. This doesn’t mean you can’t eventually become as successful as some of the bigger brands out there (case in point here) and build a sizeable following that actually engages with your product. After all it’s not just likes and shares we are looking for, but rather potential clients and fans.

  • Find out who is popular in your target audience’s circles. Make use of endorsements from celebrities, symbols or figures who can reach a wider audience. In this case, rapper/producer Nelly along with NBA basketball player Lamar Odom were included in the campaign to identify with a specific type of audience. This attached meaning to the story and again added to its intrigue and its humour.

  • REWARD LOYALTY. As a way of ensuring that Mike and Ike’s new found popularity lasted and translated into increased sales, the brand introduced a new flavour- “strawberry reunion”. They are also rewarding customers for their engagement over the past year with numerous special offers, promotions and interactive games on their website and Facebook page. This is an important note that is sometimes overlooked; just because a campaign  is “over” it should never really end (especially one as successful as this). Now that you have done all this hard work and increased your traffic (and hopefully your sales), sustain it’s success as long as possible and use it to get started on the next big thing! Just like products, campaigns also have a life cycle.


The Mike and Ike campaign is not the only successful re-branding story that utilized the power of an integrated digital and social  strategy. If you have any others we would love to hear them!

Email Marketing- If it Ain’t Broke…

Email marketing is still one of the best forms of online marketing out there, but it is fast becoming an overlooked tool by many marketers. Around 25% of lead generation, for example, still comes from email marketing campaigns which represents a greater ROI than that of leads generated through social media.

One of the reasons it is still such an effective tool is because email marketing has the ability to reach a specific client and speak to them in a personable way. Email marketing also has the ability to drive customers to your website or a landing page- all the while engaging them with your brand.

While the concept of email marketing is still sound, the problem today is that some marketers are not adapting to the changes brought about by the ever-evolving mobile market. According to a survey by Marketing Land over 58% of 1,100 email marketers said they were not designing their emails to render with the mobile market. Given the fact that mobile usage is increasing dramatically and is set to overtake desktop by the end of 2013 there is a massive opportunity being lost here.

We at Posner know the value email marketing can add to your business from the results we get for our clients on a daily basis. There is an enormous opportunity out there today for businesses to gain a competitive advantage by adopting an email strategy that is designed for both the mobile AND desktop market. While some people may question the relevancy of email marketing today, we highly recommend that it be incorporated into your online strategy.

A report by eMarketer in 2012, for instance, showed that email marketing was still a very effective tool for marketers because the click through rates were still above a level that is considered ‘good’- according to Google Adwords, a click-through rate of around 3% is considered to be effective. The example given below represents the click through rates for the Financial Services Industry, who boasted a click-through rate of around 5.4% at that time (over Q1 in 2012).

What is even more interesting from this report is that it highlights where these emails are being opened. The graphic below shows that in 2011 over 70% of emails were opened on Desktops with mobile around the 21%. mark. In 2013 around 50% of emails are opened on Desktops while 41% are now being opened on mobile devices.

With mobile trends set to overtake desktop by the end of 2013, businesses that adopt an ‘early worm’ policy by recognising the importance of the mobile market could a greater ROI.

Unfortunately what we are seeing for now is a correlation between the increase in the amount of people using mobile devices to open emails, and the lack of marketers who are designing their email campaigns with this in mind. How many times have you tried to open an email on your iPhone or Android and found that you can’t see it properly?

Another reason why email marketing is effective is because it is trusted and because people who open and click through your emails expect that you are trying to sell them something. We have found that clients respond very favourably in this regard to email campaigns. Adding links to your emails is also a great way to increase your SEO and drive your clients to a landing page or website, all the while increasing the length of time they are spending with your brand.

What the future holds for email marketing
The future of email marketing is bright. However, marketers need to realise the importance of mobile and the different rules that apply to the mobile market. The Interactive Service Team at Posner has helped many businesses optimize their marketing and advertising campaigns through a multitude of options for both mobile and desktop. We have found that if your email marketing strategy is not compatible with both mobile and desktop, the fact is that your click-through rates will take a massive drop. Aside from not reaching your audience, it also becomes difficult to evaluate a campaign’s true performance.

Designing an email marketing campaign
While there is no standalone tactic that ensures success with email marketing, our experience at Posner has found that it is important to look at each individual campaign and understand the purpose of the campaign. Instead of sending out a bunch of emails to your entire contact list hoping for success, you should ask yourself:

  • Are you targeting the right demographic?
  • What is it that you want people to do with the information you are sending them?
  • How are they likely to respond to the information?
  • And how are you encouraging a positive interaction with your brand through these emails?

The next thing to consider is whether the information can be accessed on all devices.
While it is important to constantly add new tools to your businesses marketing kit, it is just as important not to forget the ones that still work.

Posner Advertising Ramps Up Digital Services Capabilities

Established Industry Leader in Lifestyle Focused Marketing Increases Capabilities & Solutions for Impressive Client Roster

Posner Advertising, a full-service agency with the credentials, creativity and a passion for building and branding businesses, has been implementing an expansion of their digital marketing offerings. Known for marketing at the speed of change, the well-established agency takes on additional hires to drive a broad spectrum of integrated interactive offerings for their prestigious clients, including;

  • Web Design & Development
  • Branded Social Media Promotions & Pages
  • Video Marketing
  • Content Marketing
  • Inbound Blog Marketing
  • Social Media & Community Management
  • Behavioral Marketing
  • Mobile Application Development & Marketing
  • Email Marketing
  • Content Management Systems
  • Interactive Displays & Kiosks
  • SEM – Search Engine Marketing
  • SEO – Search Engine Optimization
  • Digital Media Planning
  • Custom Reporting and Analytics

What the future holds…

With the unfolding of this new wave of offerings comes an exciting evolutionary step forward for Posner Advertising.  The agency will be continuing to cultivate their suite of digital services, and plans to make other strategic hires in the coming months.  Stay tuned, the agency will be releasing more news regularly as well as posting updates on their blog.

Posner Advertising, Inc., established in 1959, is a full-service agency headquartered in the Flatiron District of New York. They offer their clients the unique blend of extensive traditional experience and sophisticated digital marketing skills that has facilitated a long history of marketing success stories.  For sales and further inquiries, contact Bob Posner at 212-867-3900 or visit www.posneradv.com