Digital marketing trends part II - Online video broadcasting

Internet video postings are also an emerging trend in digital marketing. Companies start to promote their product through You Tube and other social media websites. This has been far more economical for the companies because the cost of posting a video in You Tube is far lesser than the cost of television advertisement. The reach through this internet video is also huge in this social media era.

Individuals have used this video broadcasting media very effectively to solve their problem or come to limelight but most of the effective brands have not used them successfully. For example the united break guitar was a hugely successful You Tube campaign. A musicial created a YouTube campaign on being upset at United Airlines for breaking his instruments. The campaign reached nearly 3 million views in just a few days, and made the airline to settle the individual’s demand. Not all companies have neglected You tube as a channel for promotion.Tipp-Ex, old spice are few companies that has used You tube effectively. “A Hunter Shoots A Bear”, this interactive YouTube takeover campaign from Tipp-Ex, a correction fluid manufacturing company, has racked up over 2.5 million views on the initial start video and over 3.5 million channel views in the over a period of few weeks. The video depicts a hunter's dilemma when confronted with the decision of whether or not to shoot a bear that wanders into a campsite. The video has been hailed by internet analysts as a novel, creative and entertaining form of advertising.

The essential part of these viral campaigns is that the content should resonate with the end customers. Understanding the customers and providing information what the customer want would definitely improve business results. IT not only helps to improve business results but also build a loyal customer base around the video content - communities of enthusiastic viewers that they can engage and mobilize over the long term. The success of reach of the You tube campaign depends on how many user click the Subscribe button and the users pass it on to their connections.

Hence it is advisable that digital marketers start using this channel effectively to promite their products and build a loyal customer base.

Digital marketing trends part I - Mobile Applications

Digital media, which is much cheaper than the traditional media has changed the way the enterprise reaches out to the customers. The boom of social media, internet videos and mobile applications has made companies rethink their promotional strategies.

Increasing use of Mobile applications

Mobile applications usage in smart phones is increasing at a tremendous rate. Consumers receive product information faster and download promotional coupons. Shopkick is one such mobile application that has helped the way retailers give promotional offerings to the customers. Shopkick is an application that runs on iPhones; Shopkick pays consumers “kickbucks” — reward coupons — just for checking in when they enter Best Buy, American Eagle, Macy’s, or other participating retailers. The kickbucks can be redeemed for gift cards. Consumers have also begun to use the quick response code tags frequently to scan and download the information into their smart phones. Companies make these QR codes available in the printed advertisements so that customers can scan and read the information about that particular brand or promotions on that product.

An article from Strategy business magazine states that mobile commerce is expanding rapidly and supports that with a recent Booz & Company survey of U.S. consumer usage and attitude towards mobile commerce. It has found that between 15 and 20 percent of consumers currently use their cell phones and personal digital assistants for price discovery and product comparison, and 25 percent expect to do so in the future. Ten to 15 percent of the revenues from retail are expected to be influenced by mobile applications this year, or as much as US$340 billion in total retail sales across the U.S. and the “E.U. 3” (France, Germany, and the U.K.).

Hence companies must design its promotional strategy through mobile phones. In order to attract customer base through mobile interface, the companies must have rich user interface with good content about the product. The companies can use metrics such as click through rate and interaction rate to monitor the success of their mobile campaigns. The companies should also ensure that their websites are accessible through mobile browsers. The convergence of mobile technology would also demand companies to have consistent message across several devices. The content should be universal and should adapt to whatever devices the customer uses. With these considerations in mind, I believe that retailers will be able to increase their customers' base.