#MarketingTitbits – Facebook’s Dislike Button, Marketing Campaigns, Google’s Q2 Report

dislike-lightbulb-google 21. Why Facebook’s ‘dislike’ button will be both a challenge and opportunity for brands

Facebook features such as ‘like’, ‘share’ and ‘comment’ have been very popular with their users, and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg has now confirmed that a ‘dislike’ button is finally joining the Facebook family. However, brands fear that the new feature could easily create brand embarrassment.

CMO at the Post Office, Peter Markey, believes the ‘dislike’ button could overtake the amount of likes for a brand, causing an uncomfortable situation that needs to be managed carefully. In contrast,  Telefonica’s UK head of strategy, Jonathan Earle, believes the new feature will help engage a new audience and will provide valuable information.

If you ‘like’ the sound of the new feature, click here to read more.

2. 5 of the cleverest marketing campaigns in recent times

In the last few years we have seen some of the memorable marketing campaigns from brands but have they stuck in your mind?

Remember the ‘Dress’ that sparked a lot of attention earlier this year? Dunkin’ Donuts didn’t hesitate to seize the social media moment. They posted a photo of two different donuts – one blue and black, the other white and gold – with the caption, “Doesn’t matter if its blue/black or white/gold, they still taste delicious”.

To see these 5 clever marketing campaigns and draw inspiration, click here.

3. Do your search results stack up against Google’s Q2 report?

Earlier this year, Google published very strong Q2 results, leveraging in particular the continued success of YouTube on mobile devices. However, at the same time they reported a significant decrease in average cost-per-click (CPC).

As many industry observers have already highlighted, the average CPCs are gradually decreasing due to new geographies; however, major markets, such as the UK, are seeing an increase of CPCs on desktops. One major UK retailer reported a 30% increase in their CPCs over the last two years, but will this continue?

Click here for more information.

/0 Comments/by

#MarketingTitbits – Edible Adverts, Queen Flakes, Design Mistakes

nakd-queen-email1. Nakd erects an edible advert to get customers trying its goodies
This ‘delightfully different’ snack brand created by Natural Balance Foods, set up shop outside London’s Shepherd’s Bush Westfield shopping centre this week with an edible billboard made up of their fruit and nut bars – what a tasty idea!

The main objective for the campaign was to showcase Nakd’s wide range of products available, but to also promote how healthy and convenient they are. The range of snack bars formed the words “Find Your Fave” – encouraging consumers to find and taste their favourite flavour.

Click here to read more about their ‘nutty’ campaign.

2. Queen Flakes, gingerbread loyalty and more as brands celebrate Queen Elizabeth

Queen Elizabeth II became Britain’s longest-reigning monarch last week, surpassing the previous 63 years and 7 months record held by Queen Victoria. Her Majesty spent the day in Scotland away from the limelight; however that didn’t stop brands from getting involved.

Kellogg’s caught our attention last week with the creation of special ‘Queen Flakes’, which went on sale at Manchester’s Black Milk Cereal Café. Meanwhile, Billingtons have been baking gingerbread men, supposedly the Queen’s favourite biscuit.

To see how more brands have been celebrating, click here.

3. 7 email newsletter design mistakes to avoid

Sublime-looking emails can be easily created with the help of popular email marketing services; however, even small design errors can have a massive impact on the success of the marketing campaign.

Marketing on mobile devices has been proven to be very successful; however, it can also be very tricky to get right. Email marketing templates are now accessible for brands to use for their campaigns, ensuring that the email looks great on small devices, regardless of the dimensions.

Click here to discover 7 email design mistakes.

/0 Comments/by

#MarketingTitbits – Favourite TV Ads, Flash Ads, Visual Evolution

tvads-google-social media1. #60YearsTVAds: vote for your favourite TV ad of all time
The 60th anniversary of the first TV ad shown in the UK is approaching us, and over the past few weeks Marketing Magazine has asked for nominations for the best TV ads of all time. Their social media followers have been suggesting a long list of their favourite ads for weeks, and now it’s been whittled down to just 25.

Iconic adverts from Cadburys, John Lewis and Compare the Market have all been nominated by the public, but what are your thoughts?

To vote for your favourite TV ad of all time, click here.

2. Brands ‘caught by surprise’ as Google turns off Flash ads

Google surprised many brands last week as they decided to turn off Flash ads. This change means interactive digital ads that use Adobe’s Flash technology will no longer play automatically. Google’s alternative to this now features an empty grey box with a “play” button that has to be clicked for the advert to start.

It’s believed that this decision had been made to help speed up web browsing and save battery life. But could the move be linked to security problems? It’s well known that hackers have previously used Flash to create malicious ads to steal data and harm devices, and also follows on from Firefox’s decision to block Flash earlier in the year.

Click here for more information.

3. How the visual evolution of social media has affected brands

With images and videos being posted more and more on social media, brands are trying to find ways to keep up with their visual media. Social media involves a lot of time and money, but with visual content on the rise, brands simply can’t stand out without being creative.

The visual nature of social media has affected brands in many ways. Econsultancy has put together 5 ways brands can improve their awareness through photography, digital technology and creativity, but will this stay the same for the new generation of social media savvy youth?

Click here to see how social media has affected brands.

/0 Comments/by

#MarketingTitbits – Rugby World Cup, Snapchat Campaigns, Logo Colour Swap

rugby-snapchat-colour 21. A marketer’s essential guide to the Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup, taking place in England and Wales this year, is regarded as one of the biggest sporting spectacles on the planet. This year, the tournament is predicted to have 20,000 hours of broadcast coverage, making it potentially the most commercially lucrative to date.

So what does this mean for marketers? Newspaper group Trinity Mirror believes the Rugby World Cup presents vast opportunities for advertisers to reach the UK population. Research shows that 66% of us plan to follow the tournament this year, providing a massive opportunity for marketers to showcase their brand!

The tournament is fast approaching, so click here to find out more about making the most of the marketing opportunities it will generate.

2. Five seriously creative Snapchat campaigns and their results

Social media has proven to be an effective marketing platform; however many marketers still aren’t using it to its full potential. Snapchat may not seem like an obvious choice for some marketers, but some of the most successful brands are using the platform to run intriguing and effective campaigns.

Brands such as McDonald’s and Calvin Klein have excelled with their targeted campaigns, all with the help of Snapchat. Calvin Klein developed a campaign whereby celebrities were asked to produce selfies and share on Snapchat. The impact was considerable, with Calvin Klein experiencing 140,000 content views and a 15% increase in Snapchat engagement.

Click here to find out more about 5 effective Snapchat campaigns.

3. Here’s what 22 famous logos would look like if they swapped colours

We already know that simplicity is often key to a successful logo. Likewise, if you’ve spent hours agonising over colour combinations, you’ll appreciate the importance of getting the balance right? A Brazilian graphic designer, Paúla Rupolo, recently experimented with swapping brand logo colours with one of their competitors, and the results have been brought to us by AdWeek.

Click here to see what the impact is of switching the brand colours of Sprite and 7UP, Real Madrid and Barcelona, UPS and Fedex, Amazon and Ebay and more.

/0 Comments/by