Social commerce growing on Facebook

 This week in New Media Age, Nicola Smith highlights the rise in social commerce by reporting that both French Connection and Dove are to launch Facebook stores at the end of the month. This will be in addition to others such as ASOS who are already selling directly to Facebook users.

Superdrug “Dares” to be different

Superdrug is breaking new ground with Dare their in-store customer magazine by using watermark technology to allow customers shop from the magazine with their smartphones.

Ouch – Supermarket Price War Heats Up

Hot on the back of my Asda post last week, Marketing Week has today reported that the supermarket has had some of its Asda Price Guarantee ads banned by the ASA, this follows complaints from Morrisons and Tesco.

You can read the feature here:

http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/3022949.article?cmpid=MWE01&cmptype=newsletter&email=true

We know times are tough, however I can only stress how important it is for retailers to place a value on their own  integrity, and the need to be honest and transparent with their customers - especially when it comes to price.

This is why I particularly like JLP for staying true to being “Never Knowingly Undersold” you just can’t argue with its honesty and it certainly makes it easy for customers to trust them.

Price will continue to be central to supermarket marketing strategy.However the supermarkets have to understand that as customers become more price sensitive their pricing strategies will come under increasing scrutiny from customers and competitors, making it even more important to ensure that all price led offers and promotions are genuine and fully transparent.

Facebook Deals – This will be interesting.

With the Facebook Deals platform launching today I’m looking forward to seeing how this develops and how well it is received and used by Facebook users.

The following link gives a brief explanation of Facebook Deals; http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/3022875.article?cmpid=MWE01&cmptype=newsletter&email=true 

If popular this could prove to be a highly cost-effective way to win customers, and has the potential to develop into a powerful new marketing tool.

Comparing the Comparison Websites

In preparing this post I’ve not gone out of my way to research the marketing activity of the comparison sites, instead it has been based on how and when their messages have made it through to me during my natural use of media, the internet and general everyday life.

 This is important to stress because in this day and age marketers are faced with a huge raft media choices for their campaigns, and one of their critical success factors will depend on identifying the right combination of media to ensure that their messages reach the appropriate volume of potential customers.

 The other part of the equation that also plays a crucial role in the success of the campaigns is the creative executions they use, and this post is focuses on these ATL campaigns.

 As it is by no means a definitive post please do feel free to comment and add your views to my comparison of the comparisons.

I know there are more than 4 comparison websites however the four that I know of, due to their marketing activity are:

Is the price right?

With the VAT increase, increased fuel costs and even the cost of wheat going up, consumers are no doubt noticing their weekly supermarket bills are going up. Which of course creates a bit of a problem when it comes to the marketing tactics of the supermarkets, of course there are the deals and offers all aiming to grab attention and win sales.

However, I’m noticing some pricing “adjustments” that – whilst technically fine, still seem to fly against the messages of trying to help customers save money.

2010 – A very productive year

Phew well time really does fly by and having a busy 2010 has kept me from my blog for a wee while. However, I was delighted back in October to win the CIPR Pride award for the Best Use of Digital PR for the Womenspire I devised and executed with Working Word PR.

So with that highlight behind me for 2011 I’ll be keeping my eye on the world of marketing and look forward to sharing with you my thoughts on our favourite discipline over the coming months. As always if you have any comments feel free to send them through.

App keeps going from strength to strength

I am so happy with the response the Womenspire app is having, already getting women across the world downloading and due to its innovative nature has generated significant press coverage in Wales.

In fact I’ve got a feeling it is the first Welsh app developed for Google’s Android phone, and its always good to have a first!

Womenspire comes to life

I’m delighted that the Womenspire campaign is gathering a head of steam on Twitter, Facebook and Linkedin. Even better its iApp went live today and grabbed some great media coverage at:

www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/2010/02/11/charity-delivers-working-women-in-wales-inspiration-via-iphone-91466-25809627/

It’s always great to see a campaign come to life and I’m really looking forward to seeing this one grow – it’s always good to stay busy!

BMW Brings Joy to the World.

It’s easy to be cynical about BMW’s Joy campaign, especially for those of us in the marketing industry. However in many respects it is a bit of masterstroke in asking people to reconsider the brand and what it represents, and in the current social and economic climate arguably this is a very cleaver thing for BMW to have done.