2011 Tech Predictions and Trends...

It’s the start of a new year and the start of plenty of new, competing ideas and speculation about which social media sites will prevail and how customers and businesses will continue to embrace them.

There’ve already been plenty of predictions about which social media sites will prevail this year, what Facebook is going to be pressured to do, and how businesses are busy working on ways to include social feedback.

In my opinion, one of the industries that need to reevaluate the way they do business online is the travel industry. Some leaders have begun to realize that they need to listen to customers, engage with them, offer exotic deals that no one else can and give customers a unique experience as well as find a way to create loyalty and relationships. All travel agents and travel groups should be embracing all social media channels and updating the way they do business, because people aren’t interested in paying someone to just plan their trip. They want more, and know they can find it if they really want to. They want personalized and interactive trips, and the best way to show them is through youtube channels, Facebook pages for the hotels they’re interested in and Twittering with the hotels they’re interested. Travel agencies need to change the way they’re doing business, before they become obsolete.

The next big prediction/game-changer has to do with Facebook. Since Facebook introduced their Location Based Services- do you think it’s going to be a Foursquare killer, or work in parallel with it? It’s hard to tell which will prevail, or if either would find a way to integrate further with companies such as Groupon and LivingSocial.

I think either Facebook or brands with Facebook designers that decide to take it upon themselves need to find a way to exchange more information and recommendations on Facebook. Obviously, there are plenty of successful brands on Facebook who allow fans to comment and like various posts, as well as post their own opinion. But this can be cluttered and doesn’t always allow other customers to gather an opinion about a product… There needs to be a better way to do this.

What are your thoughts on social media in 2011? What is going to be the game-changers or next big thing?

Still Searching For A Job? Try Tweeting About It...

Gradating from college during the past few years has been extremely scary lately, due to the lack of jobs available. Although it seems like jobs are starting to become more available depending on what field you're in, it's been a hard year for most of my friends who are recent graduates and most haven't been able to find much.

My suggestion to all of them has always been to use social media to find something, network with others and to make some great connections, but most of them look at me like I'm crazy...which I'm not. While we only learned about Facebook and the ramifications it could potentially have on us and our careers, no one ever talked about the plethora of other social media sites we should have known about or started looking into.

Linked In, MeetUp and even Twitter can result in some great leads to a job and show employers that you're actively searching for a job. I know that showing up to restaurants or events without knowing anyone can be terrifying, but I guarantee if you try hard enough you can walk away with a few new acquaintances who you can e-mail, keep in contact with and potentially get a job with. Try it and see what happens.

Seasons Greetings...

The other day I was browsing through my social media and technology news websites trying to stay on top of the latest trends and whatnot when I came across an interesting article on Mashable talking about using Social Media to plan your Thanksgiving, which completely intrigued me. The article lists multiple websites that were ready to help plan the perfect menu, send out e-vites, let guests check off what they'd like to bring, craft ideas, TV listings and more. Without this article, I probably would never have found any of the links, suggestions or tips because I don't have time to search for ways to make my life easier... that would be too easy!

This also got me thinking (and hoping) about what types of suggestions tech and social media sites are going to have for the holidays since Hanukkah and Christmas are right around the corner. I know I want to use websites like Groupon, LivingSocial and even Twitter to find suggestions and ideas, but do you think there's going to be a how-to guide for finding cheap but fantastic holiday gifts? I'm hoping so, and because of that am definitely going to try to find the best deals and suggestions via social media and I hope you do to. From one-day deals to social media exclusive discounts, I'm on the lookout this winter to find the best gifts with the help of all these social media outlets... Will it work out? Find out soon.

Just Because You're Doing It, Doesn't Mean You're Doing It Well...

I know that I'm a big believer that all companies need to start getting into the social media world and testing it out. Customers are searching for you on Facebook and Twitter, and if you aren't there, they'll find someone else who is. Also, who wouldn't want to know what's being said about their companies... just because a customer isn't willing to make a comment to you directly, doesn't mean they aren't making it at all and if you can't capture what they're saying quickly enough, the damage will be done.

Now, just because you jump in and start a Facebook Page or a Twitter, doesn't mean you're doing it right. If you aren't willing to try out different methods, experiment with a variety of ideas, or engage with your customers on both positive and negative feedback, you're going to have problems.

One of the most frustrating things to deal with just may be customer feedback and how a company chooses to interact with them. I recently had a horrible experience with a hotel, where they EVENTUALLY responded to my complaint via twitter after I had made one to the hostess, but neither made a difference in my outcome and no one actually helped me. My angry tweets may have done more damage than they realized, as I conversed with my followers about what was going on, where I was, and why I was upset. All their tweet managed to do was confirm they didn't actually care about what was said online, or know what they were doing.

So, when you decide to move your company online, remember that customer service is just as important there as it is in your store or hotel. Customer service is everything.

Is Your Company As Social As They Should Be?

                          

 All brands know the importance of marketing and advertising, which is why they pour MILLIONS upon MILLIONS into their advertisements, strategies, and methods needed to analyze the effectiveness. What they don’t seem to quite grasp yet is the importance of not only incorporating social media into their plans, but that they need to be paying more attention to it.

In a recent Advertising Age article, it discussed the fact that brands FACEBOOKS alone drive more activity and engagement than the website they had previously created. It’s not only driving more page views, but Facebook likes, comments, and more click-throughs to the articles, blogs and photos posted on those websites.

Marketing and advertising strategies need to be able to shift as quickly as possible, especially when all of their consumers are embracing social media via Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare and more. Just because these sites don’t offer the types of analytics a company may be searching for, it is much more worthy of the time and money flowing through these departments to get in the social media game even if they can’t measure it as effectively as some other engagements.

Consumers of all sorts are on social media… that’s a fact. Most likely, they are the consumers that you’ve been targeting all along. Most consumers seem to be more heavily influenced by peers and followers on Facebook and Twitter when asking an opinion about a product, which is why it should concern companies who aren’t effectively monitoring the answers. 

Why not invest as much time and money into a medium where you’re consumers already exist, and see what possibilities could arise?  

Traveling Just Got Easier... And Trickier At The Same Time?

Have you gone on a vacation recently? Was it to a new, exotic location or was it the same cottage on a coast you’ve been visiting since you were young? Nowadays there is a plethora of methods to help decide on where you vacation should be, how much it could cost, what you should pack… but is it helpful?

With the increasing use of technology and social media in particular to advertise a vacation, what resources should you embrace and which should you forget about while planning for vacations?

One of the best ways to avoid vacation information overload is to pick a destination with friends or family and decide what kind of vacation you’re looking for before you head out there to search for a deal. Next, pick a few favorite travel agent/company twitters and facebooks and research what they are currently offering, what they’ve offered in the past, and if any of it is relevant to you and your family.

Try interacting with relevant facebooks, twitters, and websites to create a relationship with these agents, companies and hotels. You never know what type of deal you may score due to your social media participation, and interacting with your future vacation destinations will keep you informed about all upcoming events and other information you may need to know.

"Advertising is based on one thing... Happiness." - Don Draper

Don Draper had it right when he said "Advertising is based on one thing... Happiness." He might have lost some of us when he continued explaining what happiness means to him, but he's right about the fact that advertising is largely based on one thing- emotions.

Behavioral Economics… it sounds like it has nothing to do with the business world, but instead seems to be some crazy mixture between psychology and math, right? Not exactly… Behavioral Economics is becoming more and more relevant every day, thanks to smarter consumers who have an infinite number of choices to make every day. Not only do consumers have more choices than ever, but with the popularity of social media sites such as Twitter and Facebook, they have thousands of opinions they can search through and listen to as well.

Market research today is studying purchase intent and what consumers want – but they don’t study the reason someone DOESN’T buy something or suddenly changes their mind. Emotions, opinions and peer pressure greatly influence modern-day consumers, and it’s time to start researching how and why this happens. Agencies and marketers need to start thinking more outside of the box to solve this problem, because although you may be working for a Fortune 500 brand, your brand is not as powerful as it was 10 years ago.

A great example comes from a recent Advertising Age article, who discusses marketing focuses for gym memberships. Traditional focus groups have found more people say they would go to the gym if it were closer, if there was free babysitting, or less expensive… But gyms have catered to these needs and don’t see any changes. What agencies need to do is think more outside of the box. One great new idea Advertising Age brought up was charging people for NOT coming to the gym- how revolutionary is that?! Think about it, how much worse would you feel about not going to the gym that is near free as long as you attend as many days as you say you will? Now, this idea may not be the most profitable, but it really gets the juices flowing and makes you wonder what else is possible.

Thus, advertising agencies may hire the best and the brightest in their classes, but if you don’t truly understand who your consumers are and why they purchase the way they do- aren’t you missing the point?