reactions

Can retailers generate more sales by utilizing mobile devices and social media? In a recent interview with Footwear Insight I was asked my opinion of how footwear retailers can and should be putting these tools to work. The truth is many  brands see e-commerce and social media tools as a way of growing their business online. However, we see it as more than that. As the article states customers are surfing the internet on their mobile devices more than ever. Optimizing your website and social tools to capture users who are on mobile devices can also draw more customers into your brick and mortar locations as well.

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Yesterday afternoon, MSLK broadcasted our third webinar for marketing professionals, Customer-Centric Social Media for Fashion + Beauty. If you’re struggling to create relevant content for social media platforms and are wondering how to connect with your customers while increasing your brand reach and equity, this is the webinar for you. In case you missed the presentation or wanted to return to a specific portion, the recording is presented here for your convenience.

Every fashion and beauty business is keenly interested in expanding their marketing into social media platforms. The natural inclination as a marketer is to approach these platforms as yet another media for traditional messaging and campaigns. However, this is not the most successful approach. Although brands should maintain a brand image on these platforms that is consistent with other traditional media, the conversation on social media platforms should not be a one-sided ad campaign. Social media should be regarded forums for customers, customer communication, and customer service.
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If you’re like us, you probably cannot live without your smart phone. People are spending more time than ever in the mobile space, which presents new challenges and opportunities for marketers. Why not allow consumers to spend their time effectively by interacting with your brand while on their devices?

The app market has exploded in the past year, and MSLK has capitalized on this trend with our release of OTO, a fun photo-app. An app, like print, packaging, or the web, is simply another piece in the brand puzzle that can serve needs not previously met by any of these more traditional media.

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Everything is better with friends. If 2010 was the year of activating your fans on social media platforms, 2011 is shaping up to be the year of leveraging that social activity by bringing social interaction onto your company’s own website.
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MSLK’s Sheri L Koetting was mentioned in Happi‘s coverage of the HBA session, “Social Media: Marketing for the 21st Century.” The article highlights MSLKs experience in reinvigorating fashion and beauty brands and helping them embrace social media platforms.

“Social Media: Marketing for the 21st Century”
Happi, Magazine
2010

Have you ever worked on bringing a product to market that was based on a formulation, product, or system that is already successful in the market? Almost everyone has. Market demand forces supply,  and before you know it,  your sales reps are begging for a product just like “X.”

We at MSLK believe it’s how you handle this situation that is the critical difference. Will you saddle right up to your competition with another “Me Too” product?  Or will you learn the essence of what consumers find so appealing, and offer them an alternative that is uniquely yours?

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What does it take to launch a fashion line these days? During New York’s Fashion Week, Nolcha’s Beyond the Runway competition has emerged as a solid platform and a reputable outlet for launching top-tier designers from around the globe.

As MSLK digs deeper into the world of social media campaigns, it seems that time and time again we are discovering our clients have the same challenges. Small companies see social media as an exciting opportunity, yet quickly become overwhelmed by the variety of media platforms. It may seem like one needs a bottomless pit of time commitment to enter the arena. On the other hand, larger companies who have ample resources to maintain these platforms struggle to let go of their carefully crafted brand image and to open up to the more relaxed format. Larger companies need to learn how to have a casual voice. By doing so, they will invite the maximum customer engagement.

In both cases, the majority of our clients are already convinced that they need a social media platform and marketing arm. They see the benefits, they’ve been worn down by the hype, but they are still struggling with the what, where, and how.

To some degree, their concerns are valid. In social media, content is king. It’s one thing to set up these platforms, but the true cost and commitment is in maintaining them. There are two levels to this effort, the active daily maintenance and the overall strategic planning for this content to ensure your efforts remain on track. MSLK helps our clients do both.

In creating a comprehensive social media program, we look at your goals.  We determine the features that need to be included in your social media platforms and the content that will populate it.

For features, this may include things such as polling software, platforms for fans to upload personal photos, or mailing list captures. We then ensure you have content strategies to activate those techniques. What kinds of polls will you run throughout the year? What photos will fans be uploading? Perhaps we will create a contest like the recent Matrix Mannequin Mania to encourage uploading. These are the tactics that engage fans and that engagement builds virally to their friends and contacts as well.

We’ll also look at the types of articles, tidbits about your brand, and special offers you post throughout the year. What aggregate message will be established? What are you training your customers to think of and associate with your brand?

Because blogs, and now Facebook and Twitter feeds, are index-able, this messaging becomes equally important from a search engine optimization standpoint. Especially if you are a small company, these regular bits of content you are posting and control become important tools for establishing threads for how you can be found online.

As your company grows, we also listen. What key phrases are consumers using most often when they talk about your brand? These phrases should be incorporated into your strategies as well, online and off.

In my upcoming panel discussion at the HBA Global Expo this September 28th at 2:30 pm, I will be exploring the topic of  social media marketing plans further. My presentation, Social Media: Marketing For the 21st Century, will focus on the unique challenges and opportunities within this process.  I’ll then explore five strategies you can use to kick-start your own social media presence.

If you’d like to join me, please register here and use priority code: GPSZ  to save 30% off any HBA Conference Pass and to get a FREE Exhibits Pass to HBA Global Expo and the Spa & Resort/Medical Aesthetics Expo.

If you’re a marketer, you’ve probably thrown around those ubiquitous terms, push and pull marketing. The marketplace has seen a major paradigm shift from pushing products onto consumers, to pulling them in, inviting them to engage with the brand in novel and unique ways. At MSLK, we think this is especially important to consider when creating sophisticated branding campaigns in the beauty industry. How can you stop consumers dead in their tracks, invite an interaction or ignite a conversation? Burt’s Bees skincare installations do just that. In a series of three installations that have traveled to public spaces across Canada, the pieces educate women about the harmful effects of most allegedly natural skincare products on the market.

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