Mediaboss Marketing

OPINION: Its fair to say the game has changed. As we emerge from lockdown, businesses at all levels are reeling from the economic shockwaves, with many industries still deep in the tunnel, where they may not see light for some time.

So what does marketing in a post-Covid world look like?

Due to the forced digitalisation, innovation and adaptation of many businesses and brands, we arent going back to normal as we know it. This shift in consumer attention has been coming for quite some time, but has been rapidly sped up by the pandemic.

Digital and social media are now in a position that parallels the importance of traditional advertising. As Kiwis are demanding more transparency, honesty and authenticity than ever before, businesses and brands need to step up to the mark. Were now entering an era of community-driven focus, that extends into an always-on approach to communication and content.

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An example of an extremely successful purpose-led business, that has capitalised on the growth of social media, is the UK-based retail brand Gymshark growing to a $500 million business in just seven years. Their strong, community-driven approach enables not just a business-to-consumer model of communication, but consumer-to-business as well. Over time, this has developed into an open two-way conservation with the brand engaging everyone from famous fitness influencers to casual joggers.

SUPPLIED

Geoff Holmes is head of strategy at UNCO.

Social and digital media should be at the top of the marketing hierarchy.

Connection is king. The businesses and brands that can build an authentic relationship with their consumers will win the day. In a post-Covid world, Kiwis want to feel appreciated, respected and supported. Social media is the only place that offers this intimate space, where consumers can interact and feel part of a community social-first thinking should be front of mind.

At UNCO, wed implore all business owners and marketing managers to ask themselves this question: If you were your target consumer, would you follow and share your own social media content? And if so, why? This line of thinking is a great starting point to determine whether your strategy is ready for this new era of marketing. These three principals should remain at the core of your strategy: Value, authenticity, and community.

Once these principles are nailed, you will ensure a reliable source of revenue and conversions with your content and community initiatives.

Simply put, connection equals conversion.

Obviously this line of thinking impacts all aspects of marketing, from branding to customer service, but even more so how social media and content should be approached.

Over the last six months the social media landscape has changed so much. Facebook has just launched in-app shopping, rocketing the platform back to relevance when it was drifting towards mediocrity. Weve also recently seen a dethroning of the culture-defining Instagram platform, as users move on to the increasingly popular TikTok app now boasting more than 800 million users worldwide.

While all platforms are valuable to both businesses and brands to some degree. The decision to prioritise a certain direction over another, ultimately comes down to your consumer base.

Although TikTok is still relatively new and untested, it offers a real opportunity for those willing to innovate and think outside-of-the-box. It provides an opportunity to access popular culture and youth, ideal for those brands that desire to be iconic and future-proof themselves for the next few years as youd be right on the cutting edge of innovative marketing.

For retail, e-commerce and fast-moving consumer goods brands, utilising TikTok at this early stage could prove hugely beneficial given the rates of organic reach, brand awareness and cross-platform engagement. Consumer-facing export brands such as tourism would also be right at home, given its ability to market to both the eastern and western worlds whilst also taking advantage of our post-lockdown desire to get out and explore New Zealand, rather than heading to the islands for the 16th time.

Its fair to say there is an abundance of opportunity out there for those businesses and brands willing to be brave and try something new.

Geoff Holmes is head of strategy at UNCO, a market-leading social media agency that specialises in building loyal and profitable communities online. If you found this of some value, drop him a line.

More:
Businesses and brands will need to step up their social media strategy after Covid-19 - Stuff.co.nz

(PRESS RELEASE) Safilo Group announces the closing of the acquisition of the 70% stake in the equity of the California company Blenders Eyewear LLC (the Company).

Founded in San Diego in 2012 by Chase Fisher, Blenders Eyewear has built an advanced e-commerce platform, with unique digital and social media skills, achieving fast and profitable growth. The Company generates approximately 95% of its current business through its proprietary direct-to-consumer e-commerce platform.

Blenders Eyewears value for money products are inspired by the California active and progressive lifestyle, particularly appealing to a broad range of consumers with a focus on Millennials and Generation Z, both female and male.

The brand, profitable since its inception, has fuelled its rapid growth through highly effective social marketing strategies, partnering with influencers, athletes, lifestyle enthusiasts, and product collaborations which have driven sales and brand awareness.

Blenders Eyewear closed 2019 with net sales of USD 40.7 million, up 38% compared to the previous year and with a 3-year CAGR of 174%.

Angelo Trocchia, Safilos chief executive officer, said:

The closing of the Blenders acquisition represents a big leap forward for us on the 360 digital transformation strategy we presented in December last year and which we are now accelerating in all its three key components, from the launch of the latest technologies in the B2B and CRM fields to the strengthening of digital and social marketing capabilities, to the Direct to Consumer distribution. Blenders Eyewear is a compelling price-to-value eyewear proposition, a digitally native business model and a strong e-commerce pure player which goes to enrich our proprietary brands portfolio in a crucial moment for our Groups business development and for our industrys evolution. We are working in difficult times, turning around our business in a challenging and fast-evolving marketplace and I am firmly convinced that a focused execution of our strategies will put our Company in a stronger position, better equipped to meet our challenges head-on and to be frontrunners in some of the new business opportunities that lie ahead.

Chase Fisher, founder and CEO of Blenders Eyewear, commented:

We are super excited to have finalized our union with Safilo, ready to progress faster than ever on our growth and development projects. The global pandemics lockdowns that we have been all suffering have undoubtedly elevated the importance of e-commerce and digital channels, also pushing new consumers to shop online for the very first time. We, at Blenders Eyewear, have seen and are experiencing this digital escalation. Our results were very solid in the first quarter of the year, with sales up more than 30%, and further accelerating in April and May. Together with Safilo, we aim to continue scaling up our digital capabilities, constantly improving the customer journey and experience, alongside pioneering new ways of engaging with ever more demanding consumers, building profitable traffic and conversion.

The overall consideration for the 70% controlling interest in the Company is USD 63.9 million (corresponding to Euro 57.5 million).

Chase Fisher will retain full ownership of 30% of the equity interests and, pursuant to the contractual terms, these remaining equity interests are subject to customary reciprocal put and call options which can be exercised starting from 2023. Chase Fisher will remain CEO of Blenders Eyewear which will continue to run out of its San Diego home.

The acquisition has been entirely financed through the utilization of the Euro 60 million second tranche of the Euro 90 million subordinated loan provided by Safilos reference shareholder, Multibrands Italy B.V., controlled by HAL Holding N.V., as communicated to the market on February 10th, 2020.

Go here to read the rest:
Safilo Completes Acquisition of the 70% Stake in Blenders Eyewear - InvisionMag

Josh Brown, CEO and co-founder, Ritholtz Wealth Management (Photo: Bloomberg)

New RIAs should focus their marketing efforts on their local areas instead of looking to go national and, when it comes to social networks and the Internet, they should focus their efforts on LinkedIn and search engine optimization, according to Ritholtz Wealth Management CEO Josh Brown.

Start locally and forget about building a national brand, he said Thursday during the BNY Mellon | Pershing webcast Faster Growth as a RIA: How Freedom, Flexibility, and Creativity are Used to Fuel Advisor Growth.

It is, after all, hard to compete against established players who had a huge head start, he said. Besides, if you are an RIA in Omaha, you dont need somebody in Hawaii reading your content because theyre not going to become your client, he told viewers.

If you are in Omaha and have a great blog and podcast providing relevant financial information and combine it with information specific to your market, such as bands you saw at a local bar or golf courses you like playing at, you are much better off, he suggested. Most people search for local things to do, so your name will come up when they search online if you do that, he noted.

Therefore, become a star in your pond first and then broaden if you want to after you find huge success locally, he suggested.

Usually, he explained: The only time a financial advisor gets a new client is when theres a catalyst in their life that makes them say I need a financial advisor. You cant make somebody want to be your client. Those main catalysts tend to include the birth of a child, the need to save for college or retire and the sale of a business, he pointed out.

No content you create will make people become your client if they feel they dont need an advisor yet, he told viewers. You have to be the person thats in the back of their head so that when some life event of theirs happens, they want to call your firm, he pointed out, adding: Thats how it happens for us nine times out of 10.

Dynasty Financial Partners, meanwhile, was an early mover on search optimization, Shirl Penney, CEO and president of that firm, said during the webcast. I think anyone listening now would agree that if youre not on the first page or first two pages, but probably first page, of Google Search, youre really not relevant, he warned advisors. If you are based in San Francisco, the name of your firm should come up near the top of a Google search for independent financial advisor San Francisco, for example, he noted.

LinkedIn has worked for Dynasty and does not cost a lot of money, Penney said. Brown agreed with him on the significance of SEO and LinkedIn. SEO is super important, Brown said, adding: I know it seems like its so attractive to be somebody with a million Twitter followers. [but] Twitter is not a big channel for us to find new clients.

On the other hand, I think LinkedIn should be the primary platform that advisors spend time on if they had to pick one social network because everyone on LinkedIn is career-oriented people are not on LinkedIn to stir up trouble, Brown said, noting his company has made key hires after meeting on LinkedIn discussing topics of interest.

On the other hand, only 22% of U.S. adults are on Twitter and 50% of those on that social network only check it once a month, he said.

Its just not where people spend their time. What do I get from it besides death threats? he said, drawing laughs from Penney and the moderators.

Remote working during the pandemic has worked out fine for Ritholtz so far, Brown also said during the webcast. Noting that it started as a cloud-based remote firm in 2013, he said it was second nature to shift to entirely remote work due to COVID-19 and there wasnt really a huge adjustment needed. All of its staff have been working remotely during the pandemic and he wasnt sure when they would be returning to the firms office in New York City, he said.

I know that the work is getting done by his firms staff even though theyre not in the office, he said, noting: So far so good.

However, he added with a laugh: I dont know about another year of this. He noted that, at times, he was getting under his wifes skin by being home all the time.

Related on ThinkAdvisor:

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Josh Browns Advice to New Advisors: Start Locally, Pick LinkedIn Over Twitter - ThinkAdvisor

Some influencers have been able to expand their reach and grow the audience as people have spent ... [+] more time staring at their screens.

As the world settles into the new normal the issue of social media influencers and social media marketing is being explored. Despite the fact that the country is opening up, social distancing will remain for weeks, possibly months to come. At the same time, bars and restaurants likely won't be the hot spots they once were.

In part one of this three-part series on post-pandemic social media marketing, experts in the field discussed the role influencers could play in the coming weeks, now in part two the question turns to how influencers and brands will need to adapt to the changing world.

One way this could occur is by increasing the creativity.

"Creators are finding new ways to be creative and continue to connect with their audiences on social while in quarantine," saidMahzad Babayan, vice president of talent management and partnerships at Fullscreen, which offers tools, services, and consultation to social media content creators and brands.

"This includes leaning into 'educational' learning opportunities for their fans, encouraging them to spend their time inside creating their own content, making a new dish, learning a new craft, learning a new dance on TikTok, etc.," added Babayan.

"Creators are also connecting with brands that are relevant in our current climate," Babayan noted. "For example, we recently worked with Houseparty and it was a really seamless and organic way to promote this social networking service that creators and audiences alike are using to stay connected to their friends and family during quarantine."

Consider The Partnerships

Even in normal times the role of an influencer and power of the brand go hand-in-hand, and that hasn't really changed during the quarantine period. Some influencers have been able to expand their reach and grow the audience as people have spent more time staring at their screens.

"We've seen reports that audiences are still very much in tune with influencers while on lockdown, so much so that we might even be entering a 'golden age' of influencer marketing," said Jared Augustine, co-founder & CEO of social marketing platform Julius.

"While on lockdown, influencers have been able to maintain active building their communities," added Augustine. "However, as lockdown continues, it will be up to influencers to be very strategic with what partnership opportunities they take from brands, and not jump into less-than-perfects deals that, in the past, might have been an option in order to keep income flowing."

Just like any other time, influencers need to understand their worth, and not get pushed into deals that only benefit a brand.

"Influencers should be ready to say 'no' to partnerships that don't elevate experiences for their audience who are still confined to their homes," explained Augustine.

Loosening The Restrictions

Just because some restrictions are being loosened doesn't mean life will be completely back to how it was just three months ago.

"As cities and states move at their own pace to end the lockdowns, it's important for influencers to remember that the challenges their readers have will vary, too," said Laurie Buckle, founder of CookIt Media, an influencer marketing agency that specializes in food and lifestyle content creation.

Influencers will need to stay focused on this "new normal" rather than taking what might have been the normal course of hyping summer getaways, concerts, sporting events and other outdoor activities. Instead, as we transition to a post-pandemic world it might be a world of debt, unemployment and very likely a lot of uncertainty for many people.

"Like every brand in the world, influencers too must prioritize their audience's needs above all else in order to stay relevant for the long-haul," said Augustine.

"(Influencers) should focus on helping solve problems that all readers share, like cutting food waste,keep their families healthy, and balancing days that include cooking, home-schooling, and cleaning," added Buckle. "Key to getting this messaging right is empathy for the reader."

The Good Space

Influencers can also be a force for good in these uncertain times, sharing not only useful tips, but also using their power in other meaningful ways.

"They can focus efforts on social good driving charitable donations, for example," said Marshall Sandman, host of the Instagram Live series @SpillingtheQuarantea and influencer marketing expert.

"Another way is to focus on products and services that align with quarantine life, such as kitchen and baking products, at-home beauty treatments, home furnishings, educational and entertainment apps and shows, etc.," added Sandman. "Instagram Live is another great platform to share at-home workouts, recipes, DIY demonstrations, interviews, and more. Influencers can subtly promote brands and products on Instagram Live while offering useful and interactive content that their followers can participate in or tune into."

Read the original here:
Social Media Influencers In The Post Pandemic World Part 2: Continued Social Distancing - Forbes

Social media is a form of online marketing that many self-storage operators cast to the wayside. While most understand they should be using it, they dont always understand why; and because its daunting to them, it often gets ignored. When done properly, however, social media management doesnt take long.

Its understandable if you question why being active on social media is important, what platforms are best for the industry and what types of content will engage followers. You just need to grasp a few essentials, and then youll be able to expertly implement your social plans and amplify your branding efforts. Ill help you out with that below and also share few common mistakes to avoid.

Being active on social media is important because it helps you build brand awareness, increase your customer base, and connect with prospects and tenants. It can also boost leads and sales. Just having a presence isnt enough, though. You must post, share and reply on your social pages to keep the audience engaged. This also helps you stay relevant in each followers social feed.

There are dozens of social media platforms, and its impossible to be active on all of them. Further, not all of them are worthwhile for self-storage. At the very least, create profiles on Facebook and Google Posts. Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter and YouTube are also good places to build a presence. Lets explore the two main ones I mentioned.

Facebook. Its the largest social media platform in the world, with more than 2.4 billion users. To get started, you must first create a business page for your self-storage facility, which gives you the option to run ads and access Facebook Analytics. This is very different from your personal Facebook page.

To stay active, its recommended that you post once per day, but never more than twice per day. At the very least, post three times per week. Posting too little or too often will drop engagement rates and decrease brand awareness.

Google Posts. This is a feature on Google My Business (GMB). If you havent set up your business page, thats the first step. GMB is an important part of search engine optimization and online marketing. Its the profile that comes up when people search for your kind of business online. It includes information such as your facility address, phone number, hours of operation and a map.

Once youve created your GMB page, you can post text, links and images to this profile. The catch to Google Posts is each one only stays live for up to seven days, and only the first two are visible without scrolling. Because of this, its vital to post oftenat least once weeklyto ensure you always have visible content.

The core of each social media page is your profile. Before you start to work on content, put some effort into those. While each platform has different requirements, make sure youre filling in bios and adding information about your website, hours, address and more. Use your facilitys logo, and have a sharp, clean profile picture as well as a cover photo. Your information should be uniform across all platforms, so customers can easily recognize you.

After your profiles are optimized, then you can start posting. Creating content is where most self-storage operators struggle and fall behind. Still, its the way to build lasting connections with current and potential customers, drive people to your facility, and share your business value. To develop engaging posts, focus on these great categories:

When generating quality content, figure out the best plan for your business. Some people like to dedicate a short time every day to gather and post. Others prefer to devote a whole day once per month. Consider using a social media posting tool such as Hootsuite to schedule your posts and save time.

As with any new thing, theres a learning curve when you start on social media. Mistakes will be made; but the more you use the platforms, the better youll understand them.

One of the biggest slipups made by business operators who are new to social media is posting the same information at once across all platforms. Its important to stagger your posts, so you arent giving followers the same content everywhere simultaneously. This way, if they follow you on multiple sites, theyll see different content when they switch between them.

Another mistake is ignoring comments and posts on your pages. Its important to respond to everything. Whether its negative, positive, a question or a statement, reply in a way that makes the person feel his input is valued. This increases engagement with your fans and leaves a positive lasting impression.

To recap: Build your profiles. Post often but not too much. Be consistent with your brand messaging. Stagger your posts. Respond to all posts and comments. By following these simple guidelines, youll avoid any major blunders and have an active, engaging social media presence.

Now that you have a better understanding of which platforms to use and what to post, youre well on your way to becoming a social media pro! This is a process that takes time to unfold, but in the long run, it can generate more digital traffic, create new business and add value to your branding. Its an area of digital marketing that cant be forgotten.

Kyla Kane is a content writer for Easy Storage Solutions, a provider of Web-based management software for small- to mid-sized self-storage operations. Shes been writing articles and blogs for more than five years, and specializes in content on outdoor recreation, self-storage and tourism. She graduated from North Dakota State University where she earned a bachelors degree in hospitality and tourism management, with a focus in marketing. For more information, call 888.958.5967; visit http://www.easystoragesolutions.com.

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Becoming a Social Pro: What, Where and When to Post on Behalf of Your Self-Storage Brand - Inside Self-Storage