Author: Robin J. Phillips

LaneTerralever hosts Arizona’s second annual Operation #SocialSanta

Posted on November 26, 2013 by - Events

Tempe based digital marketing agency, LaneTerralever teams up with Operation: Social Santa to do a little good with social media this holiday season.

This will be LaneTerralever‘s second year hosting the annual Operation: Social Santa happy hour and toy drive, which will be held Thursday, Dec. 5. at Handlebar and Grill in Tempe from 5 to 8 p.m. and will benefit the Arizona Toys for Tots Foundation

SocialSantaImageUsing the power of social media to generate awareness through Social Santa, LT will bring the public together to network and celebrate the holidays for a good cause.

Founded in 2010, by student and social entrepreneur Harrison Kratz, the toy drive was designed for social communities to join in a collaborative effort to make a difference while sharing their experience on social media.

Cost of entry to the Social Santa event is a new, unwrapped toy with a suggested value of $20. Each toy donation will be exchanged for a raffle ticket for a variety of prizes throughout the evening.

“Our goal is to donate 300 toys to Toys for Tots,” said Chris Johnson, president of LaneTerralever. “Giving back to our community is core to LaneTerralever and we are thrilled to be able to help brighten the holidays for local children in need.”

The U.S. Marines Toys for Tots program collected toys during the 2012 Operation Social Santa, also at the Handlebar.

The U.S. Marines Toys for Tots program collected donations during the 2012 Operation Social Santa. Photo: Adam Nollmeyer

LaneTerralever hosted Arizona’s first Operation: Social Santa in 2012 with the idea that social media can also be used for social good. Rallying members of the social media and digital community through posts and shares online, LaneTerralever raised more than $5,000 and donated more than 140 toys to Toys for Tots last year.

Guests are encouraged to use #SocialSanta on social platforms including Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to help spread the word, and to RSVP by joining the event on Facebook: Operation Social Santa 2013.

Originally called Tweet Drive and now formally Operation: Social Santa, the campaign is comprised of one-night holiday parties organized by volunteers where community members can celebrate the holidays and collect toys of local children.

New Rules for 2014 from Jonathan Salem Baskin

Posted on November 22, 2013 by - Events, Tips and strategy

Jonathan Salem Baskin

Jonathan Salem Baskin performed research for his Arizona audience.

Thanks to everyone who came out to meet Jonathan Salem Baskin at our November event.

Jonathan flew in to Arizona to talk about mobile devices and branding and to share recent research performed for the Phoenix area market.

Bottom line, Jonathan spoke about ‘Why the Mobile Singularity will be the effective model for marketing in 2014.

You can read more about that as Jonathan rolls out his thoughts in Advertising Age, Forbes and on his own platforms.  He gathers those posts here at BaskinBrand.

And I will leave you with his own final thoughts on Thursday night:

New Rules for 2014.

1) Contribute to the conversation, don’t try to own it.

2) Customer advocacy has never been more important.

3) Search is based on relationships, not technology.

4) You can’t outsmart a Smart Network, but it’s ultimately accountable to reality.

And PHOTOS from Thursday night.

Timing just may be everything in social media

Posted on November 18, 2013 by - Tips and strategy

Social media success isn’t just about what you say, but when you say it.

BestTimetoTweet

Let’s take this example:
In terms of specific days and times to post on Facebook, engagement rates are 18{2bbd478b6aadf2a9bb5e10dcf35d17c0d0772390afbaf5ac8145fb1096668903} higher on Thursdays and Fridays.  

Why?  Well, as this Buddymedia study put it, “the less people want to be at work, the more they are on Facebook!”   Makes perfect sense when you put it that way, but there is more to it. There’s a lot of data available to help you track the ROI of social.

Belle Beth Cooper, who calls herself a content crafter at Buffer, breaks down the science of timing in this post that originally ran on Buffer’s blog:

A Scientific Guide to Maximizing Your Impact on Twitter, Facebook, and other Digital Media 

Cooper’s piece made the rounds this weekend after it was resuscitated with a little Twitter love from Fast Company.


 

FastCompany.com has a knack for finding interesting blogs on smaller sites and giving them a little extra life by sharing them with their own massive audience. (Wanna see how big that is?  Take a look at Fast Company’s Media Kit. (PDF) )

So, thanks, Fast Company, a great resource for smart content.  

You also should head to the source and take a look at Buffer’s blog.  It’s full of tips and strategy for making the most of social media and keeping customers happy.

 

Thanksgiving takes a bite out of Christmas shopping

Posted on November 11, 2013 by - Local News

guy on phone in mall

Sometimes the best Black Friday deals are found outside of the store. Photo: Steve Rhodes

Thanksgiving is late this year and make sure you’re ready, because Christmas is about to follow it really quickly.

The stars and calendar have aligned to force the main shopping days this holiday season into a smaller -than-usual window.

Thanksgiving is, as usual, on the fourth Thursday of the month. But since November began on a Friday in 2013, the holiday feels pretty late.

That means there will be only 25 shopping days this year between Black Friday, Nov. 29, and Christmas day — that’s compared to 31 days in 2012.

And unlike last year, there are only four, not five, weekends between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

So, all-in-all, retailers have a reduced window of time to capture peak holiday spending. And shoppers are about to feel the full-on push of marketers trying to make the most of that smaller window of opportunity.TargetBlackFriday

Nevertheless, several retail research firms are predicting that this year will see double-digit grown in U.S. online sales. Websites and Facebook pages are already giving fans a sneak peek at Black Friday deals. Target has created a Facebook-based interactive memory game  which reveals deals as a user plays. And Macy’s has created games related to the Thanksgiving Day Parade… and shopping after the parade.

And in-person sales are set to begin before Black Friday this season, with 35 million shoppers expected to head out on Thanksgiving Day itself. According to the National Retail Federation, shoppers have convinced many retailers that they would rather shop at night after dinner and football than set an early alarm and brave the cold morning deals on Friday.

And according to a survey of 212 marketing executives by Experian Marketing Services, 70{2bbd478b6aadf2a9bb5e10dcf35d17c0d0772390afbaf5ac8145fb1096668903} of retailers plan promotional offers this season including:

  • 39{2bbd478b6aadf2a9bb5e10dcf35d17c0d0772390afbaf5ac8145fb1096668903} will offer free shipping,
  • 28{2bbd478b6aadf2a9bb5e10dcf35d17c0d0772390afbaf5ac8145fb1096668903} will offer a deal of the day,
  • 21{2bbd478b6aadf2a9bb5e10dcf35d17c0d0772390afbaf5ac8145fb1096668903} will offer online coupons and
  • 3{2bbd478b6aadf2a9bb5e10dcf35d17c0d0772390afbaf5ac8145fb1096668903} will offer layaway.

More studies and stories on what is expected this holiday season:

More on the Experian Marketing Services study.
Top holiday email predictions for 2013.
Deloitte Christmas Retailer’s Survey 2013.
The Washington Post: Short holiday season could cost retailers $1.5 billion
The National Retail Federation: Thanksgiving turkey with a side of shopping
TheBlackFriday.com Black Friday ads leaked or published all in one place.

 

 

Getting jazzed about November’s event speaker Jonathan Salem Baskin

Posted on November 1, 2013 by - Events

JonathanSalemBaskinWhat do Forbes, Advertising Age, Apple’s iMac, Nissan …  and now AZIMA … have in common?

Answer:  November’s speaker Jonathan Salem Baskin, president of marketing consultants Baskin Associates and a global brand strategist.  Baskin has 30 years of professional experience helping clients large and small deliver better, sustainable, and more reliable marketing and brand value.

Baskin is scheduled to speak on Nov. 21 at the Hilton Scottsdale Resort & Villas. More details about that and to purchase tickets here: The Mobile Singularity: New Rules for Marketing to Smart Networks?

His credentials alone should convince you to be there. Yet there’s another treat in store for Baskin’s Arizona audience.  Baskin will focus on the impact of digital and the changing role of branding, while sharing  new ideas based on research conducted for this visit.

Baskin talks in this video about how excited he, too, is about coming to Arizona.

You can find a lot of Baskin’s thoughts on marketing and branding here:  Answers: Branding.    He also writes daily (well, sometimes hourly) on Twitter: @JonathanSalem.

Here’s a short video from earlier this year. Speaking at JUMP New York, he stressed the importance of daring to stand for something, daring to have a point of view.

“The world needs more people with strong substantiated points of view not just opinions,” Baskin said. We’re ready to hear Baskin’s point of view … and opinions … on Nov. 21.