We are entering the holiday season, arguably one of the most competitive times of year for brands. Consumers are bombarded on social media, television, radio and magazines with everything from “must have gifts” to “surviving the in-laws.” Therefore, we love this week’s reads because of the inspiration and outta-the-box tactics brands are using to stand out from the crowd. What will you try before the year ends?
ClickZ: Facebook Puts Ban on “Like-Gating”
Trading Facebook Likes for content or contest entries is officially a thing of the past. Facebook ended the practice to make sure that people “like pages because they want to connect and hear from the businesses, not because of artificial incentives.” In the long run, this is a good thing. Quick fixes for growing your audience hurt engagement and devalue your followers.
The Guardian: Twitter: Why #SoggyFries Make For A Tasty Future In Big-data Revenue
Approximately one billion tweets are sent every two days. Once you let that sink it, think about the potential for harnessing the big data that comes from the Twitter fire hose for business analytics and global trends. Twitter, in partnership with companies from IBM to a fryer manufacturer tracking #soggyfries to generate equipment sales leads, has just begun to scratch the surface on what this means for data and monetization.
Data Visualization and Video
MarketingDaily: Subway’s Original Gifs Spread The Love On National Sandwich Day
Subway combined creativity combined with immense planning and activation of sponsored influencers for National Sandwich Day. The brand used GIFs and Vine videos throughout the day to respond to sandwich lovers in real-time.
Forbes: Spooky Stats: The Trulia Housing Scare Report
The real estate website Trulia blended social, data visualization and PR around Halloween to create a fun spin on the holiday trends. A national survey yielded an eye-catching infographic with stats about how home owners would deal with a haunted house. Great inspiration as we head into the holidays and brands clamor for attention amidst the clutter.
AdWeek: Lowe’s Rolls Out 8 More Charming and Useful ‘Fix in Six’ Vines
We couldn’t love these Vine vignettes with simple DIY hacks any more! While Lowes has a sizeable budget for such tactics, smaller brands shouldn’t be discouraged from trying their hand at short Vine or Instagram to bring to life a timely tip or new use for a product.
Activation
AdWeek: iHeart Radio’s Vending Machine Turns Instagram Photos Into Swag
A fun, out of the box approach by iHeart radio to connect with college students while amassing 5.7 million impressions in just a week!
New Stories on the GFM blog this week:
2015 Planning Tips: Updating Press Kits and Online Media Rooms
Tips to Live By to Become a Stronger Writer
Red Cross Faces Reputational Disaster
