Peppermint Source: unpretentious, effective marketing

Hat tip to Cerebra for inspiring this post.

Dear Santa

I have been a very, very good girl this year. No, wait. I have been an exceptional girl this year. It’s been a long, hard year for most and to top it all off, I work in social media. I’m a social media manager, Santa.

That means I’m paid to talk to people on behalf of brands. That’s hard work. I have smiled when most would have cried, I have sat quietly when I wanted to run screaming from the boardroom and I have spent hours behind my computer being ‘engaging’ when it was hot and sunny outside.

I’ve learned a lot this year, about things I like and things I don’t like so much. That’s why I’m writing to you. Last year, I asked for a GHD flat iron. This year I want to ask for something completely different. I want to ask you NOT to bring me the following:

• A brief for 30 engaging, interesting and shareable wall posts on teeth whitening.
• A client whose revert is simply: “Can you make it more engaging?”
• A client brief that includes: “Can you come up with a concept that will go viral?”
• Clients who take my beautifully crafted wall post and add their own, long (un-proofread) copy to it.
• Clients who don’t grasp the urgency of responding to escalated social media queries.
• Clients who forget that we’ve created a perfect social media voice/tone for their brand – and who write their own posts using txt spk.
• Clients who forget that the content strategy you painstakingly prepared for them actually contains guidelines for the thing they just cocked up.
• Trolls.
• Customers who overreact.
• Clients who think a great competition prize is an iPad.

No socks, no soaps, no stationery. No iPhone covers, percolators, books, fruit dainties or pedicure kits – I don’t want any of that stuff either.

But if you could manage to stack a few of these in your sleigh, I’d be most appreciative:

• Fabulous reactions to the social media content I generate. (Remember that Facebook post that got over 300 comments in half an hour? More of those, please.)
• More lovely commenters – there have been such funny and clever responses this year.
• Clients who really get how valuable it is for their brand to tell the truth – and who realise that they can get so much out of interacting with their customers rather than just broadcasting to them.
• Clients with big social media budgets.
• ‘Penny drop’ moments. I love the look on clients’ faces when they realise that the things that annoy them personally on Facebook are things that their brand should avoid doing too.
• Happy clients who are thrilled when we reach their objectives way before they expected it.
• More insights into human culture and behaviour. I’m learning so much about people from the way they interact with brands on social media.
• More compliments from customers on brand pages/Twitter. It’s lovely when we hear from people who honestly appreciate the brand and take the time to share good feedback on social media.
• Clients who will give me leeway to do something a little more fun, different and unexpected.
• Clients who value my strategic input on social media so much that they start involving me in other areas of their brands.
• Inspiration, so I can actually write 30 engaging, interesting and fun wall posts about teeth whitening.

I know I’m asking a lot, but I figured you’re used to greedy girls. After all, that woman used to ask you to bring her the deed to a platinum mine and decorations for her Christmas tree from Tiffany, of all places. In light of her wild requests, I think a couple of good briefs and some mildly mannered fans isn’t such a big ask.

Hugs

xx

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When brands get it ‘disastrously’ wrong, online users are quick to point fingers and bay for blood. And yes, there are some basic marketing rules, let alone social media principles, that companies just don’t seem to comprehend. All brands should have a strategy and understand social media best practice if they want to go social.

But when a brand that usually does a stellar job online makes a mistake, should we not retain some perspective and cut them a little slack? (And let’s reserve the word ‘disaster’ for tsunamis and earthquakes, shall we?)

Much as they (and customers) would like to think they are, social media managers are usually not in complete control of their little online empires. Often, it’s when a social media strategy has been signed off and the channels are launched that the social media managers’ battles begin.

In the last year, the Mints have developed at least 15 social media and/or Facebook strategies for high profile brands. And sound as these strategies are, internal battles can prevent them from being implemented properly.

What they’re up against

Even the best social media managers are often at the mercy of brand / product / marketing / other senior managers and directors. People who have their own agendas and want their material featured regardless of the editorial calendar and social media guidelines. Who think they know better – but who are removed from their customers.

Just as frustrating are the people who promise to supply content or answers, but don’t. One of the most useful skills a social media manager can have is the ability to pull rabbits out of very empty hats.

To add to their joy, social media managers are often working their bits off trying to field abuse and compensate for ops, management and customer service shortcomings in other parts of the organisation. It’s a pretty thankless task. And unfortunately, those who do a good job simply find themselves overloaded with even more queries to resolve. Customers are quick to complain and will swarm to a channel that finally gets them results.

Cut them some slack

Woolworths’ customers hauled the brand over the coals on Facebook recently for using images of very, very thin models in a campaign. While some people were not satisfied with the company’s response, the brand did address customer concerns quickly, repeatedly and professionally:
 
Chances are that Woolies’ social media managers’ hands were tied over the ‘skinny models’ campaign. Knowing how customer complaints are usually handled on the Woolworths Facebook page, their response above is a little colder and more corporate than usual. I’d not be surprised if the social media managers were advising the product manager to pull the material immediately – but were meeting resistance. (This is all pure speculation – my company is in no way involved with Woolworths’ online marketing.)

We’ll likely never know what the situation was. But I’m pretty sure that the Woolworths social media team had a really bad week and were handling it as best they could. Some customers realised this:

So social media’s not all glamorous, then?

No, it’s not glamorous, and often it’s not much fun either. Social media managers spend a lot of time handling complaints and fielding abuse – often after hours (Facebook page moderation at 4.30pm on New Year’s Eve, anyone?). But this is part of the territory of putting your brand out there and it’s important for brands to know what they’re in for.

Unsurprisingly, clients need to be better educated about social media. Not just their social media teams, but everyone who will be contributing content, and those up the chain who make overriding decisions. Their agencies and consultants must make them aware  of the pros, cons, dangers and opportunities of being so in touch with their customers. Be clear on what resources are needed to do a proper job (budget, training and headcount). Communicate what could happen if the brand drops the ball and how important the brand’s ‘character’ is in bad times. Make sure there’s a solid content strategy and moderation policy in place – which includes crisis management.

Then, because managing a Facebook page or Twitter account well takes sensitivity and finesse, if your social media managers are doing a great job, give them more respect. They are the ones who are actively engaging with the audience on a daily basis – so listen to their advice. Trust their expertise.
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What are your thoughts? Should we adopt a zero tolerance approach for social media faux pas, regardless of a brand track record online? Or should we acknowledge that these things often get blown out of proportion? Do weight in with your feedback in the comments below.

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By Jo Duxbury 

Have you ever tasted a chocolate cake made from an Ina Paarman bake mix? Perhaps one has even saved the day for you. They’re pretty good – and they’re idiot-proof. So they should be, because it took 121 iterations of that cake mix for Ina and her team to be completely satisfied that they’d found the perfect recipe.

Persistence in pursuit of excellent quality is a trademark of Ina’s business. She advocates ‘constructive discontent’: keep refining until you get it right. In the 20+ years that have seen her garage-based cooking classes evolve into a wildly successful foods business, Ina’s focus on quality and care has served her well.

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How brands should be better than people on social media. 

Article by Emily Shaw

Shiny, happy people

There’s rather a pithy saying going round at the moment, ‘you’re never as ugly as your passport photo or as good looking as your profile picture.’ It’s funny because it’s true. Most profile pictures are chosen very carefully. They’re the most flattering, they don’t ‘try too hard’, they show us looking relaxed, healthy, wealthy and most importantly, happy.

If you think about it, a lot of the content people generate (and consume) on social media is staged to some extent. Think about status updates. While you do get a couple of friends who seem not to have got the social dynamic of what is acceptable and what isn’t, the majority of people post carefully. If they’re normally pleasant, they’re saccharine in their updates, the foulest mouthed in reality will asterisk out cuss words and if someone is quite excited about going to a concert, they’ll tell you where they’re sitting, with whom and how much the tickets cost. In upper case.

They’re faking a bit, aren’t they? And in turn, so are you and so am I when we say the show was ‘enjoyable’ when it was boring, the party ‘awesome’ when it was passable and when we upload photos that hide our double chins. Yet no one ever calls people on their fakery on social media.

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By Louis Nel 

The lava lamp shines blue against the short arms of T-rex. What a lovely card. I was spoiled on my birthday. My mouse pad bears the proud Facebook moniker and my office looks out onto a fountain where birds come for their daily bath and I sometimes sit and eat spaghetti bolognaise. Life’s good.

That’s called free writing. The very first lesson learned at Tiffany Markman’s Cape Town Copywriting Course on 16 November 2011. It’s an exercise designed to clear your mind and beat writer’s block. The aim is to write for 3 minutes. About anything. It doesn’t matter. Just write. I had to cut my piece short, as it would have filled an entire page. Three minutes is longer than you think.

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The Mints just last week put the finishing touches on a Twitter strategy for an electronics/tech brand.

Article by Jo Duxbury

What was interesting was the lack of basic ‘how Twitter works’ knowledge amongst both the client and their creative agency.

There are lots of Twitter-for-beginners articles out there so we’re not going to churn out another one here. But the section of our strategy that was best received was the part about followers and who to follow.

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A quick Twitter 101 in case you’re a newbie to the platform:

Twitter’s a social medium that lets you post updates for all the world to see. (You can also protect your tweets if you don’t want them to be public, but few people do this.) People subscribe to your updates (these are your followers) and you can subscribe to other peoples’ (you become one of their followers). On all public Twitter accounts, anyone can see who you are following, and who follows you. How people – and brands – use Twitter varies tremendously, from Tweeting what’s for lunch and sharing content to product news and customer service updates. We work with brands who want to use Twitter to supplement their marketing – to build awareness, interact with (and learn from) customers, and promote their products.

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Please don’t make me feel like I’ve just asked you to climb Mount Everest… barefoot. 

Article by Louis Nel

Having to deal with suppliers and other service providers on a daily basis can sometimes be bad for your health. Some get it right and others… well, you wonder how they’re even doing business. Customer service can make or break any company. Big or small. It’s really not rocket science. Here’s what keeps me going back for more:

Friendliness

Have you ever wondered why some businesses employ customer service people who absolutely refuse to smile? It blows my mind. You’re practically the face of the company. Do you really want your business to be known as grumpy central? Friendly staff relaxes your mood and just makes the entire experience a pleasant one.

Remember these tips the next time you take a telephone call from a client: smile before you pick it up and sound pleased or excited to hear from him/her.

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Article source: The social break-up report #8 from Exact Target.
Download ‘The social break-up report #8′ here (PDF – 10,34KB).

A consumer’s decision to “unlike” a company has surprisingly little impact on the perceived likelihood that they will buy from that company in the future. In total, 63% of consumers said they were as likely or more likely to purchase something from a company after ending their Facebook relationship. Another 18% said they only “unlike” a company if they never bought anything in the first place.

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Article by Emily Veitch

A lot of people believe that having some form of social media channel for their brand is better than having none at all. Which is pretty much the same as saying it’s better to have a blank print ad with your logo on it in a magazine than not having a print ad at all. If you’re not going to manage your page or account properly, there’s no point in taking up the space.

But what we have noticed recently is that brands are confusing the idea of keeping their social media channels active and chatty with getting everyone from their team to upload content. There’s nothing wrong with having a core group of (trained) brand ambassadors working together on populating the channels. It’s when the platforms become a ‘free for all’ in the work place that problems start creeping in:

Inconsistency of language

Using words and terminology that are typical of the brand is very important. The brand might not say ‘awesome’, but Shelley from Events does. If she is uploading content for that day, she may well use the word. Educating your staff or colleagues about your brand’s unique tone and manner, including the kind of words it would and wouldn’t use, is vital.

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By Louis Nel

There has been a lot of speculation since Google launched its social media network, Google+, in June. Will it be the next Myspace? A Facebook killer? You might find it rather annoying: yet another social network to maintain. But about 26 million people think it’s the bee’s knees.

Many brands have been contemplating the future value of Facebook and the impact Google+ might have on their brand pages. I’ve done a bit of reading and am of the opinion that brands on Facebook have nothing to worry about. Here’s why…

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