Study Shows Online Marketing Good For Business
November 9, 2009
“The survey clearly reveals that the use of low-cost Web-based marketing tools is playing a strategic role in helping businesses succeed. Making a few changes to incorporate more online tools into the marketing mix seems to be a key ingredient to small business success.“
The previous quote was in comment to a study entitled “Small Business Marketing Health Check,” the results of which were reported today over at E-Marketer.com. The statement was made by Laurie McCabe, a partner with Hurwitz & Associates, the company that conducted the survey of small business owners.
The study found that 65% of respondents that expected an increase in revenue in 2009 had raised or planned to raise marketing spending this year. The report also notes that these small businesses were shifting marketing initiatives toward more affordable online media and away from traditional channels. The three most-utilized tools were social media, e-mail newsletters and search marketing.
These results appear to support the assertion that the businesses who embrace internet marketing, either in addition to or in substitution of traditional marketing venues, will emerge from the recession stronger, healthier and more profitable than their competition. Check out our recent case study- [Download not found] to see how online marketing can add significantly to your restaurant’s bottom line.
Social Media Trends – What’s Ahead in 2010
November 4, 2009
There’s a great post by David Armano over at the Harvard Business School blog that aims to identify six trends that will emerge in social media in 2010. It’s worth a read for anyone who currently manages a social media program or is considering launching one in the near future.
While Armano’s predictions are generalized for all businesses, I believe there are a few trends in addition to those he has identified that are specific to the foodservice industry:
- Integration – While 2009 has been the year of social media adoption in the restaurant world, 2010 will be the year of integration. We’ll likely see restaurant marketers morphing what currently exist as distinct initiatives into global strategies that seamlessly incorporate both online and offline fronts. Right now it seems the majority of us are focusing upon either Facebook or Twitter as distinct channels and while that’s certainly been a viable approach, I do believe that an integrative plan that unites social networks, corporate websites, blogs and, as Armano points out, mobile technology, will be the inevitable evolution.
- Conversation – Many of us in the hospitality trade have utilized social networks strictly to broadcast to our audience, essentially creating a one-to-many communication stream akin to using a megaphone. I believe we’ll see an emergence of give-and-take, a conversation of sorts between restaurant brands and their followers/fans. Listening, in addition to broadcasting, will be critical in 2010. Utilizing the core fan base for new product development or testing could see more action next year; this type of crowdsourcing has been very effective when employed in other industries, particularly in the tech realm.
- Advertising – As social networks seek to monetize their platforms, the ability for marketers to employ their ads to supplement their social campaigns will become more common. Right now Facebook offers some cool cpc and cpm opportunities to brands; I expect that technology to grow in Facebook and be developed in some form on other networks.
What do you see on the social media horizon?
The Bloggess, Fantasy Football & Restaurant Marketing
November 3, 2009
Three things that have nothing in common, no? Well, you may be right about The Bloggess, although I’d love to hear her definition of fantasy football. The Bloggess is who Bette Midler would be today if she were a Gen Xer (or Yer, how old are they now, anyway?) and sported a Texas accent. I stumbled upon her ramblings yesterday (The Bloggess’, not Bette’s) and found them quite entertaining. Be duly warned that she may a bit bawdy and profane for some tastes, however she is solely to blame if I’m a bit sassier than usual in my writing today.
Now that we’ve got that bit out of the way, what I really want to talk about is fantasy football as it relates to internet marketing for restaurants. Yes, really. While on ESPN.com this morning, it dawned on me that there are many similarities between running a successful fantasy football team and executing a profitable restaurant website marketing campaign. Yes, really, and no, Matt, it was not simply to justify my time spent on football rather than work. Yes, really.
For those of you unfamiliar with fantasy football, it is a hobby in which nearly 25 million people, such as Matt and myself, are “owners” of a football team comprised of NFL players. Each week, the players earn a score based upon their performance and the total of each player’s score determines the team score. The object of the game is to garner the highest point total from your roster on any given week.
In fantasy football (FFB), you hear a lot about the “must-start” player, which refers to a player who is so reliable and necessary, you simply must have him in your lineup every week, regardless of opponent or challenging circumstance. If you have Peyton Manning on your roster, he is your starting quarterback every week, period. The restaurant marketing equivalent of the must-start? An effective website. A restaurant simply must have a user-friendly website that is designed to convert human visitors to restaurant guests and to rank well in search engine queries. Period.
The term “sleeper” is used quite often in fantasy football. A sleeper is a player who is not well known at the start of the season, yet he has the potential to perform very well and may just become this year’s gridiron superstar. Twitter appears to be the current sleeper in restaurant marketing. Twitter certainly isn’t the most popular social network in the country (Facebook has a firm grip on that spot with more than 30 times the number of unique visitors as Twitter), however it is the fastest growing network, boasting an increase of 867% in unique visitors when compared to November 2008. From the Kogi truck in L.A. to the Naked Pizza outlets, there seem to be no shortage of case studies touting the many possibilities a Twitter campaign offers to a restaurant’s marketing mix. The results have been so positive that by this time next year we may be placing both Twitter and Facebook in the “must-start” category for restaurants located in larger DMAs.
Just as most every football season has a sleeper, every season has a bust. As you might guess, this is essentially the opposite of the sleeper; a player who is expected to perform very well who doesn’t live up to the hype. MySpace, anyone? In 2007, MySpace was the elite of social networking. Even as recently as October 2008, MySpace usage outpaced Facebook by nearly nine million unique visitors. 14 short months later, MySpace’s relevance in the social media marketing conversation is nearly extinct. The site not only has lost nearly 10% of the 40 million visitors it enjoyed last October, it has seen it’s usage drop 7% year-over-year while both Facebook and Twitter have realized increases of 208% and 867%, respectively, in that same time frame. Ouch. To use fantasy football parlance, if you haven’t already done so, feel free to cut MySpace at any time from your roster. Clearly your time is better invested elsewhere.
Both the FFB team owner and the restaurant marketing professional must do thorough research to realize maximum reward for their effort. In FFB, there are league rules dictating how many players at each position a team can have on the roster at any given time and from there, the team owner must decide which lineup will earn the maximum number of points in each game. Likewise, an online marketer must decide which internet channels and marketing initiatives will bring the highest returns for the time and money invested. Neither arena offers guarantees of success, however; this year’s sleeper could very well be next year’s bust. The internet marketer and the FFB owner alike must assess what, if any, risks they are willing to take to reap the possible rewards while giving careful consideration to mitigate the risks where they present themselves.
Both also have to remain focused on the big picture. It’s fairly common as an owner to become fixated on one position or player, inevitably leading to a miscue in another area. Similarly, even the most experienced of us can get caught up in the latest marketing trend (see Twitter, above) while losing sight of the other components that are necessary for a successful campaign. SEO, local search, quality copywriting, pay-per-click campaigns and reputation management may not be the latest shiny object, however an online marketing strategy that ignores these elements puts the entire program at risk of failure.
Finally, in both FFB and restaurant marketing, the winner has to have reliable data from which to draw sound conclusions. Trying to lead a profitable website marketing campaign without strong analytics is akin to making roster decisions based solely upon last week’s performance. Both attempts are shortsighted and unlikely to result in a trip to the Super Bowl.
There you have it; fantasy football and internet marketing success together in slightly less than 1000 words. See, Matt, I really was working today!