Brand Strategy Key Findings: February 2013
Pin Marketers Pin!
Some 60% of CEOs say strengthening social media will be a top marketing priority for the next several years, according to a recent survey of 117 leading companies by Booz & Company and Buddy Media. And as other studies have shown, more companies are tapping the power of Pinterest to tell brand stories with photos and images. With some 11 million “pinners” now perusing the third-most popular social media network, businesses can no longer ignore Pinterest’s potential to reach and engage customers. Besides, Pinterest is fun, addictive and for the most part, the time investment is moderate. Marketers can create boards (collections of selected pins, grouped by topic) by uploading images and photos (infographics are also popular) used elsewhere in marketing and public relations activities. Pins always link back to the original web source, so Pinterest can be a strong driver of traffic to your web site. Another strategy is to find relevant and interesting content from another user and re-pin it to your boards so your followers associate it with your brand. Identifying and tracking the popularity of boards and pins can also help marketers track trends, tweak existing offerings and develop ideas for future products or services. Also, don’t forget to optimize each pin with the same keywords used in your company’s SEO program — keywords can be used in board titles, in the description of each pin and then, as a hashtag. www.strategy-business.com
Bullets
- Approximately 110 million roses, mostly red, will be sold and delivered within the three-day Valentine’s Day time period, 73% purchased by men and 27% purchased by women. On average, men shell out $130 each on candy, cards, jewelry, flowers and dates, which is more than double what women commit to spending. However, 15% of U.S. women send themselves flowers on Valentine’s Day and about 3% of pet owners will give a Valentine’s Day gift to their pets. (sheknows.org, itthing.com)
- Some 4 percent of moms say their dream app would remind their husbands to bring flowers. (Meredith Corp.’s Parents Network; 212-315-3710)
- Over 800 million unique users visit YouTube each month; Over 4 billion hours of video are watched each month on YouTube and 72 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute. (youtube.com)
- 70 percent of mobile users utilize their device for searches once a week or more. Sixty-four percent use social media for searches once a week or more. Both platforms outperformed search engines (61 percent) and local-search sites (49 percent). Print [directory] users are the least engaged with the medium; only 27 percent use it once a week or more. (incytemarketing.com)
- Dining out at restaurants (59 percent) and going out for entertainment (49 percent) are the expenses most commonly cut by U.S. consumers. (GfK Roper Reports; 908-875-9844)