by Nicole Ouellette | Feb 16, 2010 | Marketing Monday
Every Monday, I feature some cool marketing, be it something that a person, business, or organization is doing. Please tip me off if you have an idea of what the BE Blog could feature!
Except for listening to the rap/hip hop on occasion (usually while driving or on a treadmill), I hadn’t thought much about Lil Wayne until last week. The rapper was busted for having a concealed weapon, and while they had initially talked about him possibly going to jail for multiple years, it looks like he’s going there for a least one.
But this guy is no slacker. Here’s what Lil Wayne is doing right, post having done something wrong:
He recorded nine music videos in two days. According to a commenter on the NPR story, Elvis did the same thing before going into the Army.
He has twenty songs pre-recorded and ready to go. Yup, that’s an album’s worth. Sure, if some get leaked, he might have to think of more (the hype alone might be worth leaking a few on purpose) but all this groundwork is part of the plan. According to NPR:
“He has a label, Young Money Entertainment, that’s going to keep him front and center while he’s in jail. They are moving from their headquarters in New Orleans to New York, to be close to him while he’s at Rikers Island…His label has made every effort to make it seem like he isn’t gone while he’s actually gone. When he gets out, he may be bigger than he was when he left.”
by Nicole Ouellette | Feb 8, 2010 | Marketing Monday
Marketing Monday talks about an impressive internet marketing effort by a business, person, or non-profit. Have an idea for the series? Contact Nicole; she’s always looking for new features.
I had the pleasure this past weekend of getting the heck out of town and finally checking out Rabelais, which is a bookstore in downtown Portland with all books about food. Interesting concept.
What I found more interesting is their online presence, complete with website, blog, and Facebook page. And they are leveraging it all rather nicely. Here’s how:
Rabelais Bookstore comes up third on a Google search for ‘Rabelais’. Impressive.
by Nicole Ouellette | Feb 1, 2010 | Marketing Monday
Most of the time, I try not to use this blog to promote anything in particular but I do want to let people know about an event that’s coming up. (Full disclosure: I am on the board of this organization.) Domestic violence is an issue close to my heart and answering the phone line for a couple years only solidified this belief.
Next Step Domestic Violence Project is holding their annual Chocolate Festival and Silent Auction on February 13. It’s the organization’s biggest fundraiser and every year, Next Step looks to tweak it to make it better. This year is the first time they are using social media to promote the event. (Gee, I wonder which board member pushed that one…)
Here are a few things NS is doing to promote this event, both online and off.
All the board members are contacting businesses for donations, and I’ve noticed a much higher success rate via email.
If you have a lot of information to give someone, it feels like you completely and blindly attack them when it’s over the phone:
“Hi my name is Nicole Ouellette and I’m a board member of the Next Step Domestic Violence Project. We’re soliciting donations for our annual Chocolate Festival and Silent Auction fundraiser on Feb. 13. Is your business interested in making a donation?”
Could I make that any shorter? No. If you were listening to that on the other end, would you feel overwhelmed? I sure would!
In each email, I shared the Next Step’s website address and Facebook page so that those I would solicit would understand the legitimacy of the organization. So if you’re an organization that’s hesitating to get a website, there’s a compelling reason to finally do it.
The Next Step Facebook page has been very active, which has grown the fan base.
The Next Step Facebook page has recieved more fans since beginning its daily posting of a domestic violence fact. And building a lot of fans on your Facebook business page is not only a good way to make you feel popular but when you do have an event or idea, you suddenly have a much larger, more engaged group of people to share it with.
We created an event associated with the page, and invited our friends.
Nothing like using a little social media peer pressure. In creating an event and getting people to RSVP, as an organization we can have an idea of who is and isn’t coming
I made a web-sized ‘ad’ that people could share on their websites or Facebook pages.
If something is already created and formatted correctly, people are much more likely to share it. Events are no exception.
Creating a small text ad that is 450 pixels wide and putting it on my Facebook page made it easy for other board members and fans of the cause to share the event with their friends, on their Facebook page or on their blogs.
Since Facebook is such a visual interface, taking advantage of a ‘photo’ along with the event listing seemed like a good idea.
http://www.facebook.com/username
by Nicole Ouellette | Jan 26, 2010 | Marketing Monday
Marketing Monday is a weekly feature that showcases a cool company, individual, or application of internet marketing. Got an idea? Send it to me!
So a completely serendipidous and slightly odd opportunity came over my Facebook feed this week. A couple who happen to be my friends own Barkwheats, a Maine-based organic grain-free dog biscuit company. Their newest flavor treat involves blueberries so they had an opportunity to buy bulk organic Maine blueberries at $2/pound. The price, however, would be even lower if more boxes would be bought so he passed on the opportunity to his Facebook friends.
The catch? The berries came in 30 pound boxes. Mission still accomplished. We bought enough so the price ended up being $1.75/pound. But how?
by Nicole Ouellette | Jan 18, 2010 | Marketing Monday
Know of a company or individual marketing themselves well online? Let me know about it and they could be featured on Marketing Monday!
The human spirit is often most inspiring in the middle of terrible events. The earthquake in Haiti was certainly on everyone’s minds this past week. I was personally quite proud of the role that internet marketing and in particular social media played in not only raising awareness but fundraising around this tragedy. Here are a few ways that the internet moved efforts along:
Social media resulted in pressure to give.
I think we can all agree that sometimes, peer pressure can be good. In the case of the Haiti earthquake, on Friday afternoon, I felt like the only person on Twitter who hadn’t donated to the cause. And I felt guilty, which made me finally make my own donation.
In addition to regular media coverage, social media was able to bring up-to-date and user-generated information about the latest news in Haiti.
by Nicole Ouellette | Jan 12, 2010 | About Us, Blogging, Email Marketing, Good For You, Marketing Monday, Personal Finance Tips, Social Media, Tech, This Week In Business, Too Cute Tuesday, Uncategorized, Websites
Editor’s Note: Thank you all for your kind condolences about the death of my dog. I appreciate your compassion, and am happy to report that I am feeling much better this week. Many thanks.
Know an individual or business doing something cool to promote themselves online? Let me know about it and they might be featured as part of Marketing Monday!
I’d first of all like to keep this blog a positive one. There are so many people doing so many good things online, to promote their business or otherwise.
The only reason this website seems to work is because it belongs to Gwenyth Paltrow. I haven’t found anyone who ‘gets it’.
