Burberry uses Social Media to help launch new fragrance for women – Burberry Body

Posted on September 16, 2011 by Jackie Ewing

It was one of those days of sifting through databases and listening to some fun music on Pandora. Taking a break from the monotony, I was browsing my Facebook feed and saw a post from someone who liked an ad for a new perfume from Burberry. I clicked on the photo to see what it was all about. It was an offer for a free sample of the new fragrance for women – Burberry Body – so I clicked on the Facebook link and went to their Facebook page.

Burberry Body Sample

Burberry Body Facebook Landing Page

I was directed to a very nice landing page that offered me a sample if I became a fan.  So I clicked on the Like button and became a Burberry fan on Facebook. Looks like more than a few thousand folks did the same thing – at the time of writing this there are more than 8.3 million fans!

After clicking the like button, I was taken to another landing page – very nice use of different landing pages for fans versus non-fans. This page offered me the

Burberry Body Facebook Page

Burberry Body Facebook Landing Page

choice of shopping the new line or requesting the sample. At this point, I am more than willing to trade my mailing address and email address for the free sample!

I was curious to see if this campaign was being run by a US office or a UK office as I had to input which country I wanted the sample shipped to.

While I was on their page I had a look to see what else Burberry were doing to engage fans on their Facebook page and was pleasantly surprised.  Lots of behind the scenes information with pictures and video of things like photo shoots for the Burberry Body campaign featuring a British actress unknown to me – Rosie Huntington-Whitely.

Since checking the page again for this post, they have posted links to various videos and photo shoots for an upcoming Fall Fashion release.  Also, the Burberry Store at The Mall at Millenia is advertising a sneak preview of the new Fall collection to Facebook Fans on September 16th, between 6.30pm and 8.30pm.

To me, it seems like great engagement and sharing rather than selling. Perfect use of Facebook, in my humble opinion!

So about a week after trading my contact details for the perfume sample, I got a postcard in the mail confirming that they had received my sample request and that it would be processed shortly. Good use of direct mail to support the campaign started on social media.

Box mailed by Burberry

Royal Mail Delivery

Then a couple of weeks after that, there was a nice surprise in my mailbox. A little white box delivered by Royal Mail, no less!

I’m sure some of the folks here in the US were quite thrilled to receive something via Royal Mail.  Being Irish, I’ve had the pleasure of that experience already so it was no big deal for me. But at least I got my earlier question answered – the UK office are handling the campaign!

Instead of the expected tiny vial of perfume, there was a very nice size bottle with a card inside the box. Very well presented and very well received by me!

Burberry Body, card and sample

Fragrance sample

So would you have traded your contact details as easily as I did?  Burberry just might have me as a lifetime fan after this campaign. How about you?

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Why Nurse Jackie didn’t become the GKIC Marketer of the Year 2011

Posted on June 7, 2011 by Jackie Ewing

I was an Attendee at the recent GKIC Super Conference in Chicago.  Had never been to the windy city before and even though I know I was there, I still have NOT been to the windy city! Didn’t get to go anywhere outside of the hotel, conference center, local restaurants and the airport.  Sadly, a pretty typical situation for one of these intense, information-packed events.

Anywhoo, I had to make the decision back in early December whether or not to go to this conference. Flight, hotel and conference price due almost immediately, with assorted costs to follow. I decided to look at it again as an investment of my time and money into ways to improve and grow my marketing skills, my business, my client base and my network of marketing folks and resources.

After registering, I also decided that my social media assistant, Nurse Jackie, would compete for the Marketer of the Year award. All I had to do was knuckle down and implement all the things that were floating around my desk and my head that were designed to increase my clients, referrals and income!  So, in true procrastinator style, I began the year not implementing, as I should have done, but by list writing and prioritizing what had to be done, when.

Then life intervened in a rather dramatic way – my husband was admitted to the emergency room with chest pains. This particular weekend, we had visitors staying over and that Saturday evening, he had escorted our daughter to the Elementary School Father Daughter Dance. At about 3am he woke me up complaining of chest pain that wouldn’t go away.  Having been through this before (that’s a whole other story!) I knew what to do and called the paramedics. They hauled him away to the emergency room while I prepared my guests for our abrupt departure so they could take care of the kids while I followed Jeff to the hospital.

Our Super Bowl Sunday was spent between the Emergency Room and the Cardiac Ward before the cardiologist finally decided to send him to another hospital to prepare for open-heart surgery. The Black Eyed Peas had just begun their dismal show when the medivac team (yes, they were transporting him by helicopter!) arrived and prepared him for a flight to downtown Orlando.

To cut a really, really long story, really short – I ended up spending the next 10 days commuting between home and downtown Orlando after Jeff had surgery early Tuesday. Not a recommended situation for anyone, but his surgery went well and he came out of it pretty good with some new arteries.

My entire attention was taken up between taking care of Jeff at the hospital, taking care of the kids at home and communicating with family and friends on his condition. My business suffered and Nurse Jackie was all but forgotten. Sad to say that the medical profession was there in front of me the whole time but I wasn’t really paying attention. The entire episode seemed unreal and I appeared to be experiencing it from another dimension. I now believe that to be a defense mechanism for the psyche!

Many of my clients were great and offered all kinds of support and I believe the extra TLC they received when I returned my full attention to them, has paid off in Spades. Some areas of my businesses suffered tremendously and I just let them go. I didn’t have the mental stamina to cope with it at the time.We Love our Customers

So, when things were back to normal – which to everyone else, meant that Jeff was at home – life took on yet another surreal patina. It was difficult to concentrate on my business with him in the next room – my office is in my home. During one of his routine (which meant daily) visits to the Doctors office for blood testing on his new medications, he was sent directly to the Emergency Room again. Four more days dealing with a different set of medical folk in a different setting. I believe it was on day three that I had my meltdown! That is also a story for another day.

But, back to the main story which involves Nurse Jackie – I, unfortunately, took the easy way out of the Marketer of the Year competition and did not submit an entry. I wasn’t ready, there wasn’t enough time to launch all the stuff, and so on, and so on.  Yes, I had a more valid excuse than most, but it was still, at the end of the day, an excuse. I had choices and I made the easy one.

As I watched the contestants do their spiel on stage, I felt the most frustrated because my choice had me in the audience again instead of on stage with them. Instead of following my own advice about “definiteness of purpose“, I procrastinated again. Not only did I not get a chance to win some marketing dollars or expose my business to many potential new clients, I also lost the chance to be laser-focused on my business enough to put it into a presentation worthy enough to be in front of so many successful entrepreneurs and marketers.

But, no use crying over spilled milk. I just had to get this out in the open and commit myself publicly to getting it done this year and having my entry ready for next years GKIC Marketer of the Year.

Posted in advertising, business, communication, constant education, Ewing Enterprises, growth, Jackie T. Ewing, marketing, networking, reaching goals, social media | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Where will the Force take you?

Posted on May 24, 2011 by Jackie Ewing

 

Star Tours 3D Ride

I was at a networking event last week at Disney where we were given a sneak peek at the new 3D Star Tours ride… and the marketing thereof!  In true Disney style, they have outdone themselves in updating this ride and taking the customer experience to an absolutely new level!

Instead of one ride which takes the same route all the time, this new ride has six (yes, SIX!) different possibilities on where you can go, and the ride to and through each of these places can be different in so many ways – from the characters that ride with you, to the storyline that you are in!

It got me thinking about how similar our own marketing journeys can be each and every day.  With all of the marketing tools available to us these days – both offline and online – our choices and possible combinations of those choices are endless!  While that may sound fantastic, it also poses a bit of dilemma.  How to choose which tools will work best for us and not get caught up in the act of trying each new shiny toy that happens along?

Star Tours Journeys

How about we define what our own Six destinations are, and then systematically add elements to each as we go forward? Then with trying, testing, tracking and adjusting we can come up with the best scenarios for our particular business.

Destination 1:  Email Marketing

An integral part of any marketing campaign, email is still one of the most powerful mediums we can use. The elements you choose to get to this destination are many and varied – Constant Contact, Infusionsoft, Vertical Response, AWeber – to name but a few of the available options.  I would recommend using one of these or a similar service so that you get the most out of your email marketing.  Keeping a track of who receives which email when; who opens; who clicks on links; who forwards to friends – all of this information is invaluable in getting to know your customers.

The look and feel of your emails should match those on your website, in your storefront, on your delivery vans – wherever you have a presence. Keeping your “brand” intact in your emails just makes sense. With this in mind, the choices to make here should be pretty easy!

Destination 2:  Facebook Marketing

Having a Facebook page for your business is choice that should be made. Not only because it is free to create and maintain such a page that can engage with your customers, if used correctly it can also boost your SEO strategies and brand awareness.

The choices within the Facebook environment are many – from Facebook Ads, to contests, to comments on relevant pages for other businesses. Knowing what you want to get from your Facebook page will help you decide which options to try and track their effectiveness for your business.

Destination 3:  Twitter Marketing

Although Facebook receives by far the most attention in the social media marketing world, Twitter is also a fantastic place to engage with people and build a community. Any community that shares common likes or dislikes can be hugely beneficial to a business.

Like Facebook, you have to try things in the Twitterverse to see what works for you. Look at what others are doing, and not specifically in your industry. Often looking outside your own environment introduces you to things you many never have applied to your business. Twitter is a great platform for this.

Destination 4:  Direct Marketing

In times of recession, marketing is usually (and incorrectly!) the first thing to suffer.  Business owners see immediate cost benefit by cutting marketing but oftentimes do not see the longterm negatives associated with this.  Direct mail, for example, is ripe for strong returns right now because not many people are continuing to invest in it.  Think about your own mailbox and how few marketing pieces you get anymore.

Adding a simple postcard mailing to an existing marketing campaign could boost your marketing efforts enormously. Do something a little different to most and you will stand out and be seen. Your choices here are huge. Investigate, choose and implement something in direct marketing.

Destination 5:  Referrals

You have already spent a considerable amount of time and money on getting customers to your business. Most of those customers are happy, satisfied or content with their purchase. Use these positive emotions to get your customers to refer you to their circle. Do not be afraid to ask for a referral, most customers are happy to do it.  In this age of “social”, a friend’s recommendation can go a LONG way!

Destination 6:  Newsletters

As mentioned above, a lot of time and money is expended in getting customers in the first place. Once you have them, you should consider them as life-long friends and communicate with them as such. A monthly newsletter, whether in email or print form, is an absolute must and an extremely easy way to do this. Make it interesting and fun, with subliminal marketing messages and perhaps one offer, and it will get read.

Stay in the forefront of your customers’ minds by sending them some form of marketing message or communication at least monthly. Depending on your customers, you could make it weekly. Again, the choice is yours.

The Journey

There is one major difference between the Star Tours ride and our marketing journeys – no matter which scenario the ride takes you on, you’re bound to enjoy it and have some fun, so you don’t really care which one you experience – if we don’t track the results of our marketing choices, we’ll never know for sure if we have enjoyed the ultimate benefit of the ride – profit!

So, as you journey through the myriad marketing landscapes that are possible, ask yourself how you can be the Force that can be with you as you make that journey each and every day.  Where will the Force take you?

Where will the Force take you?

Posted in advertising, business, communication, customer service, email newsletters, Ewing Enterprises, facebook, facebook fan page, Flickr, Fun Events, Jackie T. Ewing, marketing, newsletters, social media, Twitter, YouTube | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment