Up Your Conversion Rates For Cyber Monday And Beyond

Credit cards at the ready! This year Cyber Monday is coming back round again tomorrow (December 1st, 2014).

Last year, Cyber Monday sales reached a record high at $2.29 billion, 16% increase from the year before. (Source: USA Today) Online marketplaces such as eBay and Amazon have been regularly experiencing impressive sales numbers on Cyber Monday for the past number of years. Big retailers such as Wal-Mart tend to have the biggest online sales on Cyber Monday. There really is no surprise with these high online sales figures. Given the choice, most shoppers would rather avoid the chaos and hustle of holiday shopping in stores and opt to get the same deals in the comfort of their own homes.

If you are an E-commerce business owner, a few tips below could help you increase your conversion rates for Cyber Monday and the rest of this holiday season.

Simplify your check-out process

Do not put off customers with unnecessary lengthy check-out process. At this stage, these customers are ones with serious intent to purchase and the check-out process should be as smooth, quick, and easy as possible. Take a tip from Amazon with 1-Click Ordering. 1-Click allows you to skip the shopping cart and place orders automatically.

Eliminate signup to checkout

The highest shopping cart abandonment occurs when customers are asked to signup in order to checkout. Signing up lengthens the check-out process. Follow the lead of eBay and give customers an option to just type in an email address to check out as a guest without having to signup. There will be plenty of opportunities for you to follow up via email address after the check-out process.

Countdown the deals

Create a sense of urgency with your deals to give a little nudge to customers to make a swift purchase. You can count down the remaining stocks of your deals or the number of days left on the deals. Take a look at Priceline example below and use the countdown tactic for a chance to increase your conversion rates.

Use testimonials to your advantage

Customers value fellow customers' views and opinions. Testimonials from fellow customers help support the purchase of a product. As Zappos brilliantly demonstrates below, add an easy navigation access to testimonial page from the item details.

Speed is the key

Last and definitely not least, do not get hindered by slow page loading time and spoil customers' shopping experiences. Loading time is a major factor in page abandonment. According to a study by KISSmetrics, one second delay in page response time can lead to a  7% decrease in conversions. More drastically, if an e-commerce is making $100,000 per day, then one second page delay could potentially cost you $2.5 million in lost sales each year. Keep your website's speed in check and be sure it is fast enough to handle the traffic spikes during this holiday season.

Happy Cyber Monday!


May Mandy Han

Black Friday is over.... now what???

It is now noon (at my local time) which means Black Friday shopping is completed.  People have begun to return home, usually weary, but far from done with their holiday shopping.  Was your business' Black Friday less successful than you had hoped?  Do not fear, there are still ways to fix sluggish sales before the end of the holiday shopping season.

As surprising as it may be to most people, Black Friday is not the biggest shopping day of the year, nor is Cyber Monday.  In fact, the peak does not occur for several weeks, occurring on the weekend prior to Christmas.  This means there are still ample opportunities to capture attention, and sales.

The only fix that is really off of the table for this year is search engine optimization.  You should begin optimizing campaigns (according to Search Engine Journal) three to six months ahead of time, to secure the most coveted page rankings.  You should definitely consider a SEO strategy for next year, but there is one particular option that can produce similar results, with a quicker turnaround.

As gift-list-crazed consumers scour the internet bargains, well placed and intruiging pay-per-click ads can compel sales.  Consumers need to know your greatest deals, when and where to obtain your goods.  Pay-per-click ads do require some finesse, patience and experience to prevent disaster.  This is most definitely the time to consider seeking the direct help of an experienced internet marketer, with current experience in long-tail keyword research.  Be diligent about costs, to ensure that they are completely offset by the additional sales.

Email (or texting based) marketing is perhaps the most successful venue available to you for the remainder of the holiday season.  Overuse of email is largely forgiven during the buying frenzy, but do be judicious, as the unsubscribe button gets frequent use around the first of the year. 

Combat subscriber fatigue by segmenting your customer database (by preferences) and send target-specific emails.  This will amp up the relevance level, and give your customers a more satisfying experience, which can translate into higher sales and more loyal customers.  Using mop-up ("last chance to save") and VIP promotions garner good click through rates, and higher conversion rates as well.

We at Second Chance solutions wish your business a very happy holiday shopping season!

Thankful Marketing

 

Thanksgiving is a time to take a minute out of our busy lives and reflect on what were thankful for in our lives. We should each take time out of each day to stop and appreciate what we are thankful for however we get caught up with our day to day tasks and often fail to do so. So in the spirit of giving thanks Second Chance Solutions wanted to share some ideas on how your brand can give thanks. We realize different companies are at different levels in what they can provide so we have offered ideas for each.

1. Your Consumers

You would likely not be in existence if it weren't for consumers using your products and services. In most cases people have a choice on what they choose to purchase. It is important that consumers feel appreciated by companies, this seems to be a fading fad, so not only will this lead to customer loyalty, but it will also set your brand apart.

During this holiday season here are a few ideas how you can thank your consumers.

• Tell them- the most inexpensive and personal way to show your appreciation. Saying thank you face to face, in a newsletter, or in a personalized hand written card which shows you care.

• Loyalty Reward- this may cost you more than a stack of cards, but will likely pay for itself. This can often be mixed in as a promotional sales offer. Offer a free service or product, a discounted service or product, or to be part of a customer loyalty club.

Recognize that they have a choice and they're choosing your company.

2.  Your Team

Many people will first think of family, friends, and health as what they're thankful for, but what about the people that spend 40 plus hours a week working for you. What would your duties, business, brand look like without them?  Successful companies that succeed often have an amazing team working behind them. Employees who feel happy and appreciated are said to work much harder than those who feel unhappy and unappreciated. 

During this holiday season here are a few ideas how you can thank your  team.

• Tell them- the most inexpensive and personal way to show your appreciation. Saying thank you face to face or in a personalized hand written card shows your care

• Award Recognition- this singles people out  for their achievements, it allows the entire staff to give recognition for their duties, and the love is spread across the staff. It also provides for motivation tool to help push them to keep achieving.

• Gifting- this may cost you more than printing an award or buying a stack of cards but if you're company has had enormous success this year due to your team, reward them! This can be a variety of things an early day out of work, a paid day off, work from home day, group lunch on you, small gifts, or if your company offers a product provide that to  them for free or at a discount.

There are countless ways to show your staff how thankful you are for their work,  and their dedication to your company. Take the time to show your appreciation...you will get it back in more ways than you can imagine.

3. Partners/Mentors

Your company likely works with others this may be suppliers, store fronts, restaurants, or it could be a business mentor you have had. Its important to remember not only your employees but the other companies or individuals you are working with.

• Tell them- the most inexpensive and personal way to show your appreciation. Saying thank you face to face or in a personalized hand written card it shows that you realize this relationship is important to the success of your  company.

• Gifting- Similar to those of consumers and your team send your partners or mentors gift baskets, discounted or free products,  or sponsored lunch in. Remember that these partners and their employees can also become consumers by generous acts such as these.

4. Community

Its important for companies to have community involvement, this provides brand awareness in a positive manner. The idea is to have the community support your brand and company so it is important for you to support your community. This can be done in a variety of events.

• Give back- for this your company may not even have to come out of pocket for. You can sponsor food drives, toy drives, or you can volunteer your time or services to give back to an organization.  
  

Your company can spread this out throughout the year it doesn't have to be holiday time, in fact it may mean that much more if it was done once a year it can break it up however it would like, but its important to give thanks because  "GIVE AND YOU SHALL RECEIVE".

Happy THANKSgiving!

Brieanna Roper

Pinterest for Success

If you do not know what "Pins" mean, you could be missing out on one of the hottest social media platforms of late.    

Pinterest's popularity is skyrocketing and it has now firmly taken its place as the fourth most popular social media site ahead of Tumblr and Instagram.

So what is Pinterest? And how can it help to complete your social media strategy?

"Pinterest is a visual bookmarking tool that helps you discover and save creative ideas."

Pinterest allows you to pin or link to photos of interest. It uses image boards called pin boards to share photos in collection. The whole concept is based on the idea that many people used to have clippings of their dream vacations, life goals, recipes, etc. on boards. Pinterest is very much like a virtual pin board where you can discover ideas and  inspirations and share them with others. Each photo has a click-through link that leads you back to the website where it was discovered. Users can check out other people's pin boards, like, comment or repin as they wish.

60% of Pinterest users are women. Thus, quite tellingly, the most popular subjects on Pinterest are Recipes, Fashion, Fitness, Beauty, and Decor. 

Here are a few influential Pinterest accounts:

Martha Stewart Living

Refinery29

Birchbox

                        

The Knot

But why should you add Pinterest to your social media strategy for your business?

Here is why..

(Source: Entrepreneur.com)

Pinterest is an excellent media channel for you to better market your content. It inspires users and it has a striking visual impact. It is a great tool for you to build your brand image.

Each pin serves a purpose and it must be visually interesting and appealing. There are a few things to bear in mind when managing a successful Pinterest account:

• Keep pin boards fresh, relevant, and fun.
• Focus on a handful of topics or themes.
• Know your brand and what you want to market.
• Ensure your images are top notch quality and pin-worthy.
• Strategically time your subjects to current happenings and news.

So now you have a Pinterest account. But how do you measure its success?

Clicks back to your website, conversions, and the number of followers are good indicators to measure your Pinterest activities and engagement. Click-throughs from pins could seriously drive traffic to your website. Having an exceptional landing page to greet users  and providing positive experience once they land on your website from a pin will increase your chance of converting click-through to qualified leads.

Now that you know everything there is to know about Pinterest, start today and pin your way to success!

May Mandy Han

Creating Mastery

Creating Mastery

First, you need to define what it truly means to be a master.  The challenge is learning from near wins, figuring out how to overcome the challenges of coming so close to something but never quite grasping the brass ring.

Sarah Lewis, a featured TED Talks speaker, tells us that "Mastery is in the reaching, not the arriving.  It is in constantly wanting to close the gap between where you are and where you want to be."

When you learn how to cherish the journey, perhaps missing the mark, but always keeping your eye on your target, you are one step closer to mastery of your goal.  Think of it as a journey to the top of a mountain. You see the mountain, you can visualize it, even if you have never been there.  You have ideas of what it takes to reach the summit and start your preparations.  It is all up to you where this journey takes you.  To master the climb, to achieve your goal of reaching the summit, you have to take the necessary steps.

The longest journey begins with the first step.  This is true whether you are trying to climb that mountain or climb the corporate ladder.  If you do not start somewhere, you will never reach the next rung, much less the summit.

In order to correct past mistakes, it is necessary to begin again, to start all over or at least from where you perceive you made your mistake.  That is the goal of Second Chance Solutions, to teach you that you are not stuck with anything if you have the drive and tenacity to make the necessary changes, always striving for that which is just out of your grasp, or as Ms. Lewis says, "pursuing a kind of excellence in obscurity."

If you find success in hitting your target, is that the only time you can achieve that?  Mastery is being able to achieve it over and over, again and again.  Master your first impression by always striving to make it the best you can.  Never settle for second best.

by Karen L. Boggs

Social Media as a 'Hole'

We have learned that marketing in social media has become a crucial part in today’s competitive market.  With 73 percent of individuals are consuming some form of social content on a regular basis, this leads to powerful branding and growth opportunities.  Many companies have already taken on the challenge of joining social media marketing and many have had excellent results. However, for all the successes there are just as many who have fallen into the social media “hole”.   

There is no discrimination when it comes to joining the hole from small startup companies to larger well known corporations such as KFC or Kmart.  One example is JP Morgan who launched an #AskJPM aimed largely at students interested in investment banking. However, what they received was a tremendous amount of negative feedback which led them no other choice but to cancel the campaign. Twitter then created hashtags,  jokes, or loaded questions about the companies business practices. Needless to say JP Morgan entered the hole of social media, what started out as an enthusiastic idea  quicklybecame a negative campaign for the company.

 Here are some common trends to avoid when using social media to avoid entering the 'hole'.

1. Do NOT ignore LinkedIN

Many companies have utilized Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, but often leave LinkedIn as forgotten. LinkedIN allows users to create company pages for branding and creates a presence for high level income earners on a social media network. LinkedIn allows you to target the exact people you are hoping to do business with.  The common idea is to keep a private profile, however if it is not private you are allowing more exposure to your products and services.

2.  Keep Channels Separate....NO!

You want to avoid figuring out just one or two social media platforms, but  rather combining all social media channels and monitoring their activity as a whole on a regular basis. Often times companies will only focus on one platform for example Facebook which is a great marketing platform but it is also the most completive. You want to create a presence on as many platforms as possible while still tracking and interacting on a regular basis.  

3. Everyone and Everything

The common idea is to talk to everyone; about everything after all they could all be consumers…right?  WRONG! Be selective with your audience, and beware of your content. Good rule of thumb is if you’re questioning it, you should probably hold back. Companies often dig themselves a hole when creating unnecessary conversations on social media.  Your company should have specific usage areas  in place such as customer service or a chat system which is much more effective than social media to address certain issues or concerns.   

4. News, News, News....UNFOLLOW!

The only exception is if you're a news agency but for all others your followers aren't coming to your page for the local or national news! Often times companies will post latest news as part of their posts to social media, but followers don't care what your political views are, or who you're rooting for to win the Super Bowl. In fact this can get you more negative feedback than positive relations. Always keep in mind what people were trying to fin when looking for your brand or what it is they liked about your brand or services these are much better things to focus on. High impact with low volume messaging this is the key.

 

 Your audience is expecting you to provide a certain type of content, so give it to them! The minute you stop giving it to them you are no longer effective, meaning you have fallen into the social media hole.

Brieanna

Let Them Find You: Inbound Marketing

Gone are the days of cold calls, email spams, direct mails, and ads.

200 million Americans have registered on FTC's "Do Not Call" list.

44% of direct mail is never opened.

86% of people now skip through TV commercials.(Source: Mashable)

People are now tuning out and immune to traditional marketing tactics. Consumers nowadays know exactly what they want and are more in control of what information they want to receive. This massive shift in consumer behavior explains the decline of traditional outbound marketing and the rise of inbound marketing.

"Inbound marketing is the process of helping potential customers find your company– often before they are even looking to make a purchase – and then turning that early awareness into brand preference and ultimately, into leads and revenue." (Source:The CMO Guide to Inbound Marketing)

Marketers used outbound marketing to seek customers via print ads, TV and radio commercials, and cold calls. Whereas with inbound marketing, you let customers come to you. This is where having the right content in the right place at the right time could do wonders for your marketing campaigns. Inbound marketing is organic, honest, and more personal. When done properly, your inbound marketing strategies can turn site visitors to customers and customers to brand ambassadors.

1. Get Found/Attract

In order to attract genuine traffic to your site from search engines, blogs, social media, and other published articles, you need to have the most relevant, personalized content that make people keep coming back for more. The right content speaks to prospective customers, address their concerns and issues, and answers their questions. Optimize your search engine keywords, produce quality blog content, leverage social media sites to increase your chance to get found by your potential customers.

2. Convert

Collect site visitors' information and convert them into qualified leads. You can use lead nurturing tactics such as calls-to-action buttons or links that connect visitors to your landing pages. Once visitors fill out information forms on landing pages, they become leads that allow you to advance with more interactions.

3. Close

Now all you have to do is to convert leads into customers. Here, you can optimize CRM (Customer Relationship Management) practices to deliver quality customer service whether providing the right information for queries or dealing with issues and complaints. You may use email marketing to respond to any customer's  specific interests with related email newsletters. Keep track of your social media followers' activities and conversations and follow up with useful information and tips. Build customer loyalty and trust to help make the conversion process smoother.

4. Delight

In this stage, you are looking to convert customers into brand ambassadors/advocates. Provide smart, valuable contents that can hold the interest of customers. Always find out customers' feedback and suggestions through surveys or social media conversations. Pay close attention to their likes and dislikes and reach out with the most relevant information. Make them fall in love with your brand and services. Then, you can count on them to share their positive experiences and spread the good word, all on your behalf.

So, do not get stuck behind with outbound marketing. 

Move forward with inbound marketing and get a second chance to make the first impression.

May Mandy Han

Help your Customers to Choose

Although Thanksgiving is not yet upon us, the holidays are officially here.  Stores have decked their halls, and shelves overflow.  There are so many things to choose from, how do we even start?

Marketing asks a consumer to make choices, often a difficult task for people.  We employ a host of techniques: research, feedback, analysis of competition products as well as our own product line.  Does this work make it easier for the consumer to choose?

Sheena Iyengar, a psycho-economist, has fascinating insight into the process of consumer choice.  Wattime well spent in avoiding the mistake of over-complicating the process, and stressing the consumer.

Enjoy!
Laura

Marketing Video Mistakes ~how to avoid them

Make a marketing video....

I know this sounds silly, as that is the whole point, right?  Too many businesses make videos with:

~no purpose

~no objective

~no strategy

Don't make a video purely to jump on a marketing bandwagon.

but not a movie...

Less is more.  According to the marketing video producer, Michael Mogill, the 60-90 second range is best.

focused...

Since you will have limited time to engage your audience, so

~stick to a single priority sales or branding point

~get that message out first, then support with specific facts

~and be clear on what action viewers should take next.

 on business...

Remember the purpose of any marketing endeavor: to clearly define the benefits your business  can provide to the target audience for this video.  Prominently display your logo, website URL and other branding identifiers.

and quality.

An amateurish video will only degrade the quality of your work within the minds of your prospective customers.  Attention to details and good planning (throughout the process) will result in a video that will help, not hinder, your marketing endeavor.

(Don't forget.... you will need to market the video itself, it will not simply jump onto screens!)

Brand Loyalty

Creating Brand Loyalty

Have you even wondered what makes you return again and again to the same product or service provider?  I am sure you have heard the term "Brand Loyalty."  But, what is it?

Brand loyalty is defined as the faithfulness of customers to specific brands.  This is demonstrated by their purchasing the same products over and over, regardless of marketing pressure from competing brands. Brand loyalty is more than a consumer's choice to return to the same brand, it is also the perceived value, trust, satisfaction and commitment that influence their decisions.

Benefits of brand loyalty are a longer relationship with customers with less expense of constantly trying to convert customers to your service or product and a lower sensitivity to price.  If customers have a good experiences with your product or service, they will demonstrate their appreciation by coming back for more as well as encouraging others to join them in support of your product or service.

There are four patterns of behavior associated with brand loyalty:

1. Hardcore loyalty, people that will not change, no matter what incentives are offered to sway their decisions.  These are the easiest to market to.  You can keep them happy and returning to your product by adding just a little additional incentive.
2. Split loyalty, where people have two or three brands that they prefer over all others and those are the ones they make their decisions between.  This is a little easier to market to than shifting loyalty and switchers as they are committed to fewer brands. You still need to keep them engaged in your brand though.
3. Shifting loyalty includes people that move from one brand to another, depending on what is available at the time, the price incentives or other marketing enticements.  This type of consumer is difficult to market to and increases your marketing costs because your marketing always needs to be fresh and in front of your competitors.  These people are generally price driven.  It is not about the value of the product or service.
4. Switchers, those that have no loyalty whatsoever.  These are the most costly and hardest to market to as they are not prone to stick with a brand.  They are constantly searching, usually for the best deals to be found in the market or they like to try new and different products

Read on and watch the attached video for answers to this and how to create brand loyalty for your own product or service.

Branding is a unique set of values that induce confidence, create passion and a sense of belonging and security that brings consumers to buy your product or request your services.  The idea originated in ownership, for instance, branding cattle, so others know what belongs to you and you have proof of ownership.

Then, the practice of putting business or personal names on items was initiated.

The brand name for Coca-Cola was worth an estimated $70.4 Billion dollars in 2010. Beginning in 1886, Cocoa-Cola began working on building their brand.  From 9 bottles sold in 1886 to over 1.6 Billion in the year of 2010, they are one company that demonstrates their success in and the value of branding. Yes, they have had a few failures along the way, but they learn from their mistakes and keep on going.

Today, Coca-Cola is a global company with their product placement in over 200 countries where they market over 3,500 products.  Perhaps it is easier to list the countries where Coca-Cola does not have a presence.  In 2012, that would include Myanmar and North Korea as well as Cuba where they liquidated 1960 after the Cuban Revolution.

Some companies get upset when their brand name is used as a verb, for instance Xerox.  It would seem that would be a complement and appreciated with open arms because it is on everyone's lips, an almost constant reminder of your product.

So, what happens if you make an error in marketing to your hardcore, or even split loyalty customers?  Do as Coca-Cola and other top marketeers have shown us.  Stop, look at what happened and take a step or two back.  Go back to what works and don't let your ego get in the way.  Consumers know what they like and want.  You have to follow their lead sometimes. This isn't about you, it is about successfully creating and retaining your customers. This can be true whether you are branding your company or yourself as an individual.  Yes, that is important too.  Think about it.

by Karen Boggs

CRM Turns Social

Did you know that Americans will spend 9% more with companies that provide excellent customer service?

Most companies are aware that great customer service is at the heart of their business success. Yet, many fail to implement customer service initiatives that optimize customer engagement and interactions.

Online consumer behavior is rapidly changing. With the explosion of social media and the ability to fast forward TV commercials, companies now face a mammoth task of keeping up with ever changing trends to connect with customers and build long-lasting relationships. Customers nowadays want quick and efficient responses to their problems. You, as a business, need to join in the conversations on social media and build up customer loyalty and trust.

And that is where Social CRM comes in. Social CRM is the new frontier in Customer Relationship Management (CRM). Social CRM is not the replacement of CRM. It is in fact an extension of your current CRM with the ability of engaging in customer conversations on social media.

(Source: sCRM evolution)

Traditional CRM is based around customer data and information collected. It is a company-centric process where companies use collected data to better target and service customers. Social CRM, on the other hand, regards customers as a focal point and all marketing activities revolve around them. Social CRM allows you to engage and collaborate with customers to solve problems and turn fans and followers into advocates. When executed properly, Social CRM increases trust and makes companies more personable. And happier customers mean better bottom lines.

Here are a few excellent examples of how some big name companies use Twitter to engage with their customers, address any issues, and deliver great customer services:

You can enlist the help of Social CRM tools such as Salesforce or Nimble to get access to a comprehensive database of customers or prospective customers and start engaging in conversations. These Social CRM tools can automatically pull together all contacts, any activities, and any mentions from all your social media accounts: Facebook, Twitter, Gmail, LinkedIn, etc. and store them all into a single company record. When you pull up a customer's record, you have access to a vast array of information about this particular customer across all social media platforms.

Here are some helpful tips for you to implement Social CRM initiatives at your company:

• Locate your customers on social media: Some customers may be more active on one social media site than others. Find out which social media sites your target customers frequent and engage with them.
• Gather feedback and adjust strategies: Suss out what customers are talking about your products or services. You have full access to customer reviews and complaints, so you can provide swift responses to any concerns and issues. Follow conversations and gain better insights to customers' online behavior.
• Identify new opportunities and gain fresh ideas: Join in conversations with customers on social media channels and listen to their ideas and suggestions. You might just pick up new, fresh ideas that can massively improve your products or services.

So there you have it. Get a start on your Social CRM campaign today and you will be on your way to gain tons of happy customers!

May Mandy Han

Trust and Reputation

The whole purpose of correcting (or better yet, avoiding) internet marketing mistakes is to increase your credibility and reputation online, thereby increasing your consumer's willingness to trust in your company, your product or service.  Without trust, there is no sale.  That trust must be established before the consumer is willing to part with their hard-earned money, their precious time, or their personal data, depending upon what you are asking the consumer to do. 

There is no magic formula to create an atmosphere of trust between your firm and the general public.  There are a myriad of techniques and theories surrounding the subject.  One of the best descriptions of how trust works online is from a presentation by Rachel Botsman, entitled "The currency of the new economy is trust."

A very worthwhile view, enjoy!

E-Marketing Communication

Crowdsource Your Way to the Top

Think crowdsourcing is just another marketing fad at your peril. Especially with the incredible rise of social media, crowdsourcing is now made easier than ever.

So what is crowdsourcing?

 Crowdsourcing is a combination of two words: crowd and outsourcing. It is a process of canvassing a large crowd of people for ideas, skills, or participation.(Source:Daily Crowdsource)



Wikipedia is the perfect example of a crowdsourcing success. Instead of having writers and developers to create an online encyclopedia, Wikipedia enlists the help of people like you and me to build a comprehensive encyclopedia on the Internet.

Many businesses fail to recognize the potential of crowdsourcing. Each year, millions of dollars are spent on hiring industry experts, market analysts, and management consultants for new product/service ideas. Perhaps those businesses could reach out to people who actually care about products or services: customers. Getting to know your customers and listening to their ideas and suggestions may be what you need to take your business to the next level of success. Gone are the days of hoarding information and knowledge. Now, a collective insight of a large number of individuals provide diversity with people from different skills and backgrounds offering varied perspectives.

Starbucks does crowdsourcing so well with My Starbucks Idea. Starbucks turn to their own customers and encourage them to share ideas and join the discussion about other people's ideas. Starbucks believes that their customers know best about what they want from the company and works diligently to turn customers' ideas into action.

Dell is another company that utilizes crowdsourcing for new ideas with IdeaStorm campaign. Dell actively engage with customers and fish for inspiring fresh ideas in order for the company to offer consistently solid products and services. So far, Dell has seen through over 500 of these ideas successfully implemented.

Not every idea is a good idea. People's creative inputs need to be reviewed extensively before they can be implemented.

Here are a few tips for you to perfectly execute your crowdsourcing campaign...

• Identify your goals: Know exactly what you want out of crowdsourcing. Are you looking for new product ideas or are you gathering feedback on your marketing campaign? 
• Be specific: Be very clear in your brief and provide specific guidelines. Asking the right question is the key to the success of crowdsourcing. For example, instead of asking "What is your new idea to improve our moisturizer?", you could ask " What is considered most important to you: a moisturizer that fights acne or one that corrects dark spots?".
• Do not get overwhelmed: Be prepared to be bombarded by ideas and develop strategies to be able to cut through clutter to pick the best entry out of a sea of best entries.
• Leverage your media platforms: Utilize various social media platforms: Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube to reach as many people as possible to tap into their brains.

According to the founder of the term "Crowdsourcing", Jeff Howe,

" Crowdsourcing is the process by which the power of the many can be leveraged to accomplish feats that were once the province of a specialized few."

And you know as they say,

"It is a fact that in the right formation, the lifting power of many wings can achieve twice the distance of any bird flying alone".

 Use the wisdom of the crowd to see your business flourish.

May Mandy Han 

How to Win an Insta-Grammy

Instagram is an online mobile way for people to share their lives with friends and family, through pictures and videos. This social networking site allows these pictures and videos to be shared on other social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, and Flickr. The app which was originally founded by two Stanford Graduates, is now owned by Facebook. Since its inception, Instagram has more than 150 million monthly active users which include celebrity users, brand users, and consumer users.

Are you using Instagram? If so are you using it to its full capacity? What message do your pictures and videos convey to the consumer ? What does it say about your brand?

How to Win an Insta-Grammy

Second Chance Solutions goal is to assist companies in reaching their marketing objectives in all social media categories, this is no different when discussing Instagram.  Instagram provides a unique opportunity to capture consumers through imagery.

1. Be True to Your Brand

Clearly define your brand personality and voice without overly serious content. Use Trends from the Instagram to reflect your companies creativity.  @tacobell captured the Christmas trend on Instagram, while reflecting on their famous taco sauce.

2. Share Experiences

Allow your followers access to the lifestyle that your brand creates through consumers who use your products and or services. Take @nikontop for example, their images and videos shared prompt followers to speculate what moments they could capture with this product.

 

3. Find Beauty in All Things

Demonstrate how your company views the world, and make it meaningful to your audience. @intel is demonstrating the advancements and studies their computing hardware is making to advance air travel for the convenience of the consumer.

4.  Inspire Action

Begin a movement around your brand, this could be inspiring people to become active with your brand, or  celebrating something with your brand. @nike does a spectacular job for inspiring action for example their #runfree, #justdoit, #findgreatness, #nikewomen, or many other campaigns they are inspiring a variety of movements.

 

5. Know your Audience

Possibly the most important, learn what consumers enjoy about your brand. What gravitates them to it, and discover how you can capture new consumers.
@starbucks takes the social trend of Starbucks coffee and emphasizes on continuing the trend amongst new consumers.



 

 

 

 

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Brieanna