Voucher Sites

Hey,

Soo recently I have been sllllightly addicted to Groupon....
If you're not aware Groupon is a site which users can register in order to receive discounts on products and services in their local area. You receive an email every day (I think) with offers and can purchase the vouchers straight from the email. I get three- one each for Portsmouth, Bristol and Manchester!

They have ridiculous discounts off days out, beauty and hair treatments, gifts and holidays. Obviously the site is great for consumers as they can get vouchers for up to 80% of the recommended retail value. In order for the coupon to be “active” a minimum number of people must purchase the coupon, which means that if enough people don't sign up to buy it- no one gets the offer.

Retailers, restaurants and beauty salons set up the offer with groupon, whilst they provide the marketing, client base and sales. Clearly this provides them with exposure, awareness from their target audience and new customers.

But how beneficial is the use of groupon for businesses??

Groupon splits each voucher sale 50/50 with the provider of the service, so for a haircut which might have a retail value of £40, sold on groupon for £15- the retailer receives £7.50. I doubt this covers their costs, so it is a risk to take in order to market yourself.

I would be interested to discover how many of the groupon voucher buyers actually return to the retailers and pay full price at a later date for the same service they received at an 80% discount....
To be honest I doubt that the kind of consumer that Groupon attracts is the type to want to pay full price.Often, the vouchers offered are similar week-in week-out from highlights and a hair cut to super car experiences, therefore when I'm using Groupon I would rather wait a few weeks for the voucher I want to be posted rather than pay full price at a salon I may have visited previously.

I suspect many consumers or 'bargain hunters' may use the same tactic, therefore I question whether groupon can provide a positive return on investment for companies. However, it could suit companies that have low variable costs of goods sold e.g. events, museums, spas, etc – where adding one additional customer does not add a high cost for the business.

I would be interested to see the ROI from companies which have used Groupon and other similar voucher sites in order to promote their services. I might be pleasantly surprised......

Just my thoughts,
Steph

Fashion retailers

Ok just had a bit of a brainstorm moment which as a marketer I automatically want to turn in to a concept haha. So, I was in ibiza this week and was borrowing my friends skirt for a night out, whilst we were out I got loads of compliments and I really liked it. So I asked my friends where it was from and then when I got home I went to h&m and bought it in 3 colours as well as a bag and a top which caught my eye whilst I was in there. 

Now we all know that friend's recommendation is a huge influence on a purchase decision, yet what I did wasn't just a recommendation, it was a try before you buy which was then complimented by others which then led to my own purchase... 

What I am trying to say is that whilst usually compliments from others and feeling good about a purchase usually comes POST-purchase- the effects of which are a confidence boost/ reinforce purchase intentions/ positive attitudes to the product/brand... But my opinion is that marketers, more specifically in the fashion retail industry should try and create these attitudes and positive self image boosters PRE-purchase in order to convince consumers that their purchase intentions are just.

Obviously try before you buy on fashion items, especially fast paced high street stores is not only impractical but not cost-effective: but what about an app where customers can tweet outfits which their friends can rate or compliment or even give suggestions on the clothing. Only an idea! 

Personal shoppers are a great way of enforcing this, yet I rarely see them advertised other than wedding facilities, may be not for girls who are very sure of their own style but for girls like me who might need a bit of help, when friends aren't there to help I would love the help of a professional stylist! How special would that make a girl feel! Great confidence boost!! And not that difficulty to implement in retail stores either. I know for a fact more personal shoppers would lead to more and bigger sales!

Fashion retailers need to boost our confidence!!

Steph 

Dispatches: social media fooling and celebrity endorsements

Hello,

So last night i watched dispatches on channel 4 which often highlights unlawful/unethical treatment whether that be of consumers, staff, general public or animals. The programme is always worth a watch but last night was particularly interesting, especially if you have an interest in marketing/advertising or celebrities. The show was titled 'celebs, brands and fake fans' and explained how companies can sometimes hype their own products by paying for Facebook likes, twitter followers or YouTube hits. This false popularity can often lead consumers to purchase products they believe are popular when as a matter of fact this following has been created by an IT hacker in Bangladesh.

The programme also had a focus on celebrity endorsements on twitter and that celebs have been promoting products without revealing to fans they have been paid to do so and breaking the asa code. The sad reality is that whilst these marketing agencies or departments have been putting all the best efforts to create a buzz around their products has actually back fired with the revelations on the show. The only way to create a natural, genuine hype or buzz about a product is to sell a product which is of good quality, provide a good service or to create something interesting and then word of mouth will be your best friend! Companies should have learnt by now that consumers DON'T LIKE BEING LIED TO!!

However I do believe that giving products to celebrities free gifts and asking them to review or recommend them is an excellent form of marketing and isn't unethical if the celebs actually give their own opinion of their own free will.

A lot of companies have started to use this method not only with celebrities but with bloggers- a lot of which I read. Recently I was reading a fashion blog which recommended the website sheinside.com and featured some clothing items off there which the blogger loved..... Paid? I don't know...

So I decided to go ahead and buy the top as it did look lovely on the blog. My top arrived about a month later.... And it was faulty! When I tried to contact the website I realised they are based in china and provide terrible customer service and most of the responses to my numerous emails have been worded in terrible English! Not good and now I am let with faulty clothes and no refund! 

My point is, bloggers and other endorsers may recommend products even when they aren't great! Do t trust everything you read.

And you will be happy to know everything in my blog is my own opinion!!

Steph

Tokyo, royal baby newsjacking, digital media infographic

Helloooo,

Tokyo is often named the 'advertising capital of the world' and when referring to clutter in advertising- the
bombardment of messages delivered in the city is often used as a prime example.
In marketing- overcoming noise is one of the hardest things to do. Consumers see over 1000 marketing messages every single day in the UK. In major cities such as Tokyo we are exposed to almost 4 times as many! So in an ad saturated city- marketers have to be innovative to break through the clutter.

A new method that one PR agency have adopted is advertising on women's thighs.....

Women are being paid to apply temporary tattoos to their thighs and in effect become a walking billboard, they are encouraged to wear mini skirts and stockings in order to draw attention to the adverts. Personally, I think it's a fantastic idea which has attracted lots of media attention worldwide already! The women are happy, the agency is happy and the men have a reason to look at women's thighs!! Win-win situation! 

Anyone who thinks this is over sexualisation of women should stop complaining as I am going to suggest they should do the same thing on hunky men's chests..... just saying.

Next, as you may know if you have read my previous posts- I am a huge fan of newsjacking.
The big news this week was of course the royal baby and here are a few of my favourites!

most valuable brand in the world....marketing geniuses

one of my favourite companys for marketing!! Oreo...

My personal fave!!!

Finally- this is a great read reinforcing everything I blog about in terms of ROI... worth a read
Infographic


Steph

New placement & Fitness First

Helloo!!

Ok so I am a few weeks into my placement at IBM! So far I have been settling in and getting to know the organisation, learning tools & procedures etc. I am working in C-suite which means my team directly targets CEO’s, CFO’s, CIO’s, CHRO’s etc. so basically all the top companies with boards of directors!! Which means I am going to meet some amazing people this year!

My team mainly use events, digital & telemarketing and social media marketing so I am going to get to use lots of different channels this year which is exactly what I wanted to do so very happy with my position!

Last week I went up to the London office in South Bank which was such a cool experience as I got to sit in on a meeting between IBM and a B2B marketing agency to discuss a campaign we are executing with them. I found it really interesting and it was probably the best bit of the placement so far! The London office is where all IBM’s sales are made so the office is really swish and some really important people sit up there!

I’m going to get to help run events and run through from organisation to execution which is very exciting!!

So overall enjoying it! Will keep you posted on what else I get up to!

So as I’ve just moved to Portsmouth, I had to find a new gym to join which meant going on a gym hunt! I did want to join David Lloyd but I would have to drive there and I don’t have a car so I did some research and went to view a few!

I had had a negative perception of Fitness First in the past as when I had wanted to join the Preston club a few years ago they did nothing but bombard me with calls and emails which really put me off as I don’t like a hard sell.

But there is a Fitness First really near to where I’m living at the moment so I decided to check it out.

The staff were friendly and we had a tour of the gym and I noticed there were soooo many men and barely any women! This really put me off as I can find really hench men working out to be a bit intimidating, especially when I’m sweating on the cross trainer or struggling to do kettlebell squats!

Whilst making my decision on the gym I had a look at the class list as I was told by the gym instructor/receptionist/salesman that there was “over 50 classes a week” yet I couldn’t see my favourites on there like kettlebells, aerobics or total toning (basically the girlie classes) yet there was body pump, boxercise and circuits… all of which I enjoy but I felt the gym was very male orientated and they weren’t really trying to attract women like me.

This almost put me off as despite the fact I was being heavily sold to, I felt as though I didn’t fit in at the gym and as though I wasn’t welcomed. I explained the fact I felt slightly intimidated to the salesman and he explained “I had come at the wrong time and there wasn’t usually this many men at one time” and he proceeded to offer me 2 months free, personal training sessions and a sunbed course if I signed up “that day and that day only” which I knew was a total lie as I could guarantee he would offer me the same deal if I had gone in the next day.

Obviously in a service organisation i.e. a gym, the people (staff, instructors etc.) play a huge contributing factor and I found the staff to be very friendly and that they would be supportive within my gym experience and if I had any problems. I also found the ‘Physical Evidence’ aspect of the 7 P’s (the equipment and premises) really nice so I decided to have a think about it and ultimately decided to join.

I do really enjoy going to the gym now I have been going for a few weeks and am even enjoying the more ‘masculine’ classes. However, what I am trying to get across is that, by not providing a wide range of classes/experiences targeted towards females (I know I am being slightly stereotypical), especially women who may be far less confident than me or that haven’t really been to the gym before, I could see this really putting them off.

I think that Fitness First should take a more open approach to their marketing and realise they may be missing an entire market in people who aren’t categorically ‘gym freaks’ and that they have the services & product available, they just need to change their unifying themes & messages amongst their marketing to capture the rest of us……

Maybe they don’t want to? What are your thoughts?

Opinions are entirely my own- Steph

Interesting read...

Promise new blog post soon!!!
In the meantime this is a good read, especially if you're interested in working in marketing ;-)
http://mashable.com/2013/07/09/marketing-from-home/

Shock tactics

Sorry I haven't written in such a long time!! I've been so busy with exams, moving out of Bristol and then I went on holiday to Spain! Finally starting at IBM next week so lots of new posts coming up regarding my placement!!

I recently saw this post by The Sun newspaper: http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/4964319/pregnant-boys-teen-adverts-chicago.html
I have to say, I'm not usually over interested in marketing in the non-profit world, but social marketing does provide some of the most effective and memorable campaigns in the marketing world.
I think this campaign is absolutely brilliant, and clearly the press coverage that has come with it has made the images stick in consumers' minds (hopefully the target audience).

Just a quick one as I thought it was a very interesting piece of marketing!

Steph