Posts Tagged ‘brand digital marketing’

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!

Are you Missing out on Potential Customers?

Unlike a retail setting where you know customers have found you the minute they walk in the door, online customers can be searching for the products you offer 24/7 without you even knowing.

Every day consumers turn to the internet to research products and services.  As customers search online, businesses often miss out on the chance to engage potential customers because of missing elements on their company website. Read the rest of this entry »

B2B or B2C - 7 Reasons to Consider Social Media

Having a social media presence is no longer an option for most businesses. In today’s online environment, having a social media presence is as important as having a website. Savvy customers will look your business up not just on a general internet search but also on Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook to see how often you update your pages and how responsive you are to customer comments and questions.

Although, social media is generally thought to be a business-to-consumer marketing channel, there is growing evidence that social media benefits B2B. A Hubspot 2010 State of Inbound Marketing Lead Generation Report states that B2B companies that blog generate 67% more leads per month than those who do not. In a BtoB 2012 B2B Social Media Marketing Report, B2B marketers were asked to choose the most important method used for their social media efforts. LinkedIn was chosen by 30% of respondents, followed by   Facebook (20%), blogging (19%), Twitter (16%) and YouTube (8%). Read the rest of this entry »

7 Elements of Viral Videos

In the last post, we focused on how online video advertisements enhance brand awareness, increase customer engagement and ad performance.  Whether you want your next ad to be like the Kia Soul Hamster or the T-Mobile Angry Birds Live, the power of viral videos is undisputed.

By definition, viral videos are videos that become popular through sharing on the internet through social media sites, video sharing sites and e-mail.  The appeal of creating a viral video is the possibility of having thousands of people talking about and sharing a video about your brand.

By the end of 2011, the Visible Measures 2011 Social Advertising report stated consumers had chosen to watch video ads over 5.6 billion times.  The same report stats 1 in 12 campaigns drove over one million views in 2011, 40 campaigns totaled over 10 million views and the average campaign generated 765,000 views. In 2009, the average view for a video ad campaign was approximately 460,000.   Read the rest of this entry »

Enhance Your Brand with Video Ads

The world of digital marketing continues to evolve and the internet has become just as important as print and television to advertisers. According to Nielsen, in 2011 over 274 million Americans have internet access, doubling the number of Americans with access in 2000. That number will keep growing as record sales of tablets and smartphones are on tap for 2012.

Once the star of online advertising, banner ads are losing their allure to more entertaining and engaging video ads.  Early on, static banners gave advertisers the chance to reach new customers and provided the ability to easily track web visits back to the ad source.  Banner ads were the staple and trusted choice for online advertising.   Things have changed. Read the rest of this entry »

Creating Cohesive Traditional & Digital Marketing Campaigns

A recent study by the CMO Council revealed that only 9% of senior-level marketers believe traditional ad agencies are excelling at extending digital services to their clients. Although some may find this study discouraging, the study reveals an incredible opportunity for ad agencies to improve communication with their clients on the services offered.

The survey also revealed aggravations marketers have with their ad agencies. The number one grievance cited by marketers in the study was that ad agencies often lack knowledge or understanding of their business.  Understanding a client’s business is an area that Posner Advertising excels in. Since 1959, we have provided creative solutions for healthcare, hospitality, real estate, retail and luxury markets. As mentioned in a previous blog post, Peter Posner stated “We take pride in serving these markets and continue to find and implement new ways to assist and educate our clients.”

As an ad agency we marry together digital and traditional marketing efforts to save  Read the rest of this entry »

Site Rankings Now Impacted By Ad Placement

Site speed, keyword use and incoming links all impact a website’s ranking on Google and other search engines.  Now you can also add page layout to the list.

Google recently added a new page layout algorithm which can negatively impact your page rank.  In an effort to enhance customer experiences, Google plans to penalize sites with ads placed primarily at the top of a website.

The Right Ad Mix

According to Google, the new algorithm impacts less than 1% of searches.  Pop-ups, pop-unders and overlay ads are not considered in the new algorithm. Google stresses the change impacts only the sites that have a large number of ads above the fold (the area that users do not have to scroll down in order to read).

SearchMetrics regularly charts the page ranking losers impacted by Google algorithm changes. A few of the top sites recently dropping down in page rank include IMDB, Facebook, Rotten Tomatoes,   Read the rest of this entry »

Tips for Providing Exceptional Customer Care Online

Providing customers with an exceptional customer experience is essential for luxury brands.  From the way staff greets customers to all of the efforts made to ensure every customer experience is outstanding, luxury brands have mastered delivering customer care that goes above and beyond. To date, only a handful of brands have figured out how to deliver this same level of care online.

A few of the ways your brand can deliver outstanding care online are highlighted below:

Listen to Online Conversations
Brands that have yet to fully embrace social media and digital marketing should at a very minimum start monitoring online brand conversations. Regularly search your brand online and use Google alerts to monitor conversations.  Use Twitter search or free tools such as Twendz to monitor how people are responding to your brand. You should also monitor blogs discussing your brand. Both Technorati and Google Blog search tools are good tools to use for monitoring any brand discussions happening in the blogosphere.

Create Memorable Customer Experiences Online
Most businesses have a strategy in place for providing exceptional customer experiences. This same focus needs to be delivered online. Brands can enhance customer experiences by providing interesting lifestyle content, sharing employee stories, inviting customers to share their own stories and sharing videos and photos that cater to the unique interests of your customers. Read the rest of this entry »

Luxury Trends to Watch in 2012

In the age of social media and mobile technology, luxury brands have a plethora of ways to reach and engage affluent consumers. Consumers are savvier and making more informed decisions by tapping into the opinions of not only their friends and family members but those found on review and social networking sites.

To help you continue to navigate the constantly-changing luxury environment, we’ve highlighted a few of the trends expected to impact luxury marketing below.

Deliver Outstanding Customer Experiences – Everywhere

Affluent consumers have always celebrated brands and services that continuously strive to exceed their expectations. We expect this trend to continue in 2012 on a much broader scale. Whether staying at a hotel, visiting a website or accessing information on a mobile device, consumers expect brands to deliver an exceptional experience on all platforms.

Luxury brands can no longer get away with slow-loading websites or stale content. Instead, brands need to embrace the power of storytelling to create online content that’s fresh, entertaining and engaging. Websites should load quickly, cater to the affluent consumer and be easy to navigate. Social media should engage customers on a more personal level.

Read the rest of this entry »

10 Ways Ad Agencies Can Help With Social Media

By now, most businesses understand the steps involved in creating a social media campaign. They probably know how to create a blog, how to post on Facebook and how to Tweet. Some businesses might even know how to design their own online banner ads.

But with all these self-publishing tools, do businesses really know what to do after the creation process? That’s the concern with many of our clients.

Read the rest of this entry »