How to Cross Promote: The Interactive Solution

Insider Profile: Stephen Strong, Global Director of Interactive, Alberto Culver

Stephen Strong, global director of Interactive, Alberto Culver, oversees interactive marketing strategies for brands such as TRESemme, Nexxus, VO5 and Noxzema. He has been with Alberto Culver for a year and a half.

Prior to that, Strong was the director of interactive for Draftfcb’s Chicago office for eight years. He has more than 15 years interactive marketing experience working with brands that include Kraft, Sears, SC Johnson and Motorola.

At the upcoming Digital Media Measurement & Pricing Summit, Strong will address developing a strategic approach for campaign success, identifying key performance indicators and delivering ROI.

DMB’s Barbara Gengler spoke to Strong about his interactive approach to ad campaigns.

How did you integrate Alberto Culver’s branded content from website to paid media and social media?
We talked about what to use as a spark to have an engaging experience with consumers to support our campaign. The struggle is what’s the big idea to do online? How to create original content to put online?

At Alberto Culver, there are similar challenges to do social media more than product banners on the Internet. There are also sweepstakes and sponsorships to put the message out there. We looked at the marketing pushes last year and started with them and where can we take that to the present marketing events to get that message out there.

We are a big sponsor of the Fall 2010 season of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, which took place from Feb. 11-18 in New York City, and for a little more money we had a video crew on stage capturing the video so we could put it in online.

Alongside the sponsorship, TRESemme launched TRESemme TRESpass, an exclusive group on Facebook that gives women instant, VIP access to the latest looks. The site features video on how to get the hair seen on the runway and tips on upcoming fall hair trends.

This year we are ramping up the media across distribution channels and testing out ways to push the content out and on to our Facebook page.

How did you expand its reach and effectiveness? What were the results?
For social media we aren’t so interested in the cost efficiency, since it is so low cost to maintain/upload our videos. But we are looking at consumer engagement (which videos get the most views, which gather the most fan comments/”likes”) to help determine what type of content they are most interested in. We would use this information to guide the type of video content we produce for the next program.

Paid media gets the best results and within paid media you get the most efficient views. We are testing out different ways to push it out there from a media standpoint.

On top of that, raising awareness and brand site/Facebook, people are coming there to look at that site on their own accord. We are providing content people are interested in and using the same content to re-establish with users how you serve it up.

Could you talk about identifying relevant Key Performance Indicators?
For online media/video distribution, we mainly look at cost efficiency, (cost per view), which will tell us which media channels are able to capture the most eyeballs at the lowest cost.

We would then pair that with message effectiveness (ComScore, Dynamic Logic, etc.) which tells us how consumers were affected after viewing the videos (association with TRESemme, increased purchase intent, etc.)

We would combine these learnings to identify the best sites/video networks to use for the next program. Also we did get a lot of comments about the content on the web pages and what brand advantages are connected.

How could they increase the effectiveness of digital ad spend?
From my point of view, I hate banner advertising, it’s a huge mistake with the focus on banner ads. I think I would challenge public relations agencies, media agencies to a no banner media campaign.

This should not be where the industry is going as banner advertising has always been terrible. Take that content elsewhere.

We want to put the content together and distribute it ourselves on Facebook, to the media sites, with some control over it. We’ve started looking at the media programs, most of them, and found this is what we want, and we ask them are you in or out?

We’re coming back with a better strategy and the media sites are open to this type of program. You have to get involved with the media content the agencies are creating.

Basically from my point of view, 80 percent of what I hear during a panel discussion is irrelevant. Most of the upcoming session will be from a strategic approach, a case study, examples of how to do it with no events. This is a type of approach you could use.

Greater Than One

• Location: New York, NY
• Notable clients: Genentech, Texas Children’s Hospital, Estroven
• Number of Employees: 70
• URL: www.greaterthanone.com

Headquartered in New York City, Greater Than One is an agency that specializes in all aspects of digital marketing.  While the company has clients in a number of industries, it has enjoyed the most success in the healthcare field. The agency has been awarded many prestigious honors since launching in 2000, including being named by Entrepreneur Magazine as one of the top 500 franchises.

DMB’a Contel Bradford recently caught up with Elizabeth Apelles, Greater Than One’s CEO, to get the inside scoop on one of the industry’s major players.

What qualities make Greater Than One stand out in the increasingly competitive digital marketing space?
Our partnership model, which has attracted a team of proven digital marketing professionals. Our structure, which teams up strategists and marketing experts with technology masterminds. Our digital experience, which is simply unsurpassed. And our ability to help businesses that have complex customer relationships to maximize their opportunities. These are the four differentiators that uniquely define us.

What is your most popular marketing solution and why?
Our solutions have evolved over the past 10 years, so there is no real one most popular. I would say that our most popular offering is clarity of thought, purpose and results. We are in the business of using all available digital tactics and strategies both those available today, and at the same time prepare for those that we know are on the  horizon —  to build our clients businesses and to enable them to make long lasting and mutually rewarding connections with all of their stakeholders.

That’s for our clients. If you ask the children who’ve we’ve worked with through Greater Good, they’ll tell you our most popular offering is giving them the ability to be self sufficient.

Please explain to our audience why today’s businesses should consider integrating analytics with their marketing strategy.
When it comes to strengthening relationships between brands and customers, the past can often help define the future. We know smart analytics — based upon a review of important data points-can provide real guidance in the development of smart marketing strategies. But not just run of the mill analytics. At Greater Than One we strive to understand how people think as well as how they behave.  So, our Measurement and Analytics practice combines the art of consumer insight with the science of statistical analysis. The result is smarter solutions and better measurement that leads to more effective investment.

Our process integrates consumer and customer insights, media and site performance analytics, database behavioral analytics and ROI analysis and design. Through a deep understand of each of these disciplines, we offer our clients a truly integrated, fact-based strategies and initiatives.

The sky appears to be the limit for mobile marketing?  What is your outlook on this fast growing segment of the industry?
Some have dubbed 2010 as ‘the year of mobile marketing.’ This is not the first year to be tagged with that moniker. Unlocking the potential of mobile marketing in the US has been more difficult than any industry analysts have predicted. There are two factors responsible for the slow growth (compared to other geographies around the world) of US mobile marketing.

The first is the overwhelming successes in the online digital space. Online search, display, and social media have become staples of Fortune 500 company marketing budgets, often at the expense of traditional media like TV and print. Many senior marketers are just now adjusting to the online digital sea change, and are wary of reducing traditional media budgets further to test a new ‘emerging’ platform. The same agency execs who grabbed off 10-30 percent of the company ad budget for online media are looking for more digital dollars for mobile, and never suggesting it could be funded from existing digital budgets.

The second limiting factor is penetration of 3G service. In recent years, despite significant hype around the mobile Web and 3G capabilities, as of the end of 2009 only 40 percent of mobile users had access to 3G mobile web services.  The cost of service is the reason most often quoted for the limitation of 3G penetration.

There has been one recent development, though, that could accelerate the growth of 3G and 4G. That is the Apple vs. Google battle that is brewing as the Android operating system takes on the dominance of the iPhone in the 3G space. With the launch of the ‘Google phone,’ the Nexus One, Google made its boldest foray to date into the mobile marketplace. The real game changer is that the service providers are no longer supporting one or the other platform exclusively; Verizon will soon have a version of the iPhone (previously exclusive to AT&T) and AT&T is already selling Android phones.

There are other concerns, including the form factor (really small ads), privacy and security. However for direct response marketers, the nature of the device (it’s a phone, after all) means it’s made for interactivity, and therefore holds tremendous promise for one to one marketing.

In your opinion, what is the single most important thing Greater Than One has learned during its 10 years in the digital marketing business?
Over the past 10 years we have learned that our initial thinking — focusing on what is best for our clients — is the right thinking.  It has never been about doing the easiest or most profitable or “coolest” thing, it has always been about doing the right thing.

By keeping our clients’ business needs at the forefront, we have the right focus and the right priority.  And, ultimately, what is best for our clients is best for us.  Over the past 10 years we have developed successful, long-term  relationships and business successes of which  both we and our clients are justifiably proud.

R2integrated

• Location: Baltimore, MD
• Number of Employees: 62
• Notable Clients: Black and Decker, Forbes, Time Warner
• website: www.r2integrated.com

R2integrated is a leading internet marketing firm that specializes in solutions that enables its clients to engage and effectively communicate with their customers online. The company helps brands and audiences connect through the implementation of rich media applications, social media and networking, and powerful, comprehensive analytics that allows businesses to better understand their market and fine-tune their marketing strategy accordingly. R2i’s diverse technology platforms and award-winning creative design have helped some of the largest corporations in the world enhance customer communications, cut costs, and maximize the return on their marketing investment.

DMB’s Contel Bradford recently spoke with Matt Goddard, R2integrated CEO, to get the inside scoop on this dynamic internet marketing agency.

What factors have attributed to R2integrated’s explosive growth over the last two years?
There are two main factors that attributed to R2i’s explosive growth: the exponential increase in peer-to-peer networks and changes in customer buying behavior, combined with the technology and complexities that have entered the marketing realm. For marketers, peer-to-peer communications are driving customer engagement and interaction and they need to find ways to reach and understand their audiences. At their disposal are all of these new and different technologies. Pulling all of this together is where R2i excels. We continue to grow the company by helping marketers reach their customers in ever-changing, ever-evolving networks; we help them understand the changes and nuances in their customers’ buying behavior; and, most importantly, we’re able to develop, integrate, and manage all of the technology requirements that marketers need to execute and measure their strategies.

Many new businesses struggle finding their customers online. How can your solutions connect them with their target audience?
We recognize that finding customers online is one of the most difficult and important tasks for businesses, and is getting harder because the Internet is such a fragmented landscape. People digest content via thousands of different places. There are new sites popping up every day. People are sitting inside of social networks and social spaces, and the way that they behave and the way they do things are changing. Plus, analytics and understanding of customer behavior are still maturing. What’s critical to finding customers online is recognizing that the Internet is a buying engine, or one big database of intentions. People go to the Web for a specific purpose and/or need. R2i has a number of solutions that help businesses identify their customers’ buying behavior. These solutions help businesses identify and connect analytics to how individuals are searching and looking for specific products. And our solutions help businesses locate the communities where their customers operate and spend their time-and money.

Can you tell us about your involvement with the DotNetNuke project?
R2i is one of the first DotNetNuke Gold Fusion Partners, and our firm has been involved with DNN since version 1.x - more than six years ago. Several members of the DNN core development team are sitting inside of our walls. We’ve contributed code to the DNN platform, and were a major contributor to the DNN Map Module Project Lead. We of course provide a slew of DotNetNuke services including Web site design, skin design, SEO marketing programs, module development and integration, DNN support, consulting, and development. Recently, we re-launched the R2i DotNetNuke microsite, which was created to educate, assist, and enrich the DNN community and its clients. We will continue to be very active in the DNN community.

How does this open-source CMS compare to proprietary solutions in terms of support for enterprise needs?
The open source platforms that are out there are building rapidly in terms of their support. DotNetNuke, for example, has a very low license cost that includes support. We’re seeing increases every month in the amount of support that open source projects are providing. The flexibility that enterprises get by using these platforms, the amount of people who know how to use these platforms, the ability to pick and choose, and the ability not to be stuck with any one vendor are all making open source CMS platforms the best choices. CTOs, CMOs, and others decision makers from some very large corporations - including R2i clients - are reaching out and seeking out these open source platforms - DNN, Joomla, Drupal - and the support is going to continue to grow.

Please give us your philosophy on integrating marketing with technology and why this combination has become a must in today’s digital space.
In the past, marketing departments often rented technology. If they wanted to do a television commercial, for example, they would have to rent the television platform and all of the technology that went with it. Same with radio, same with running direct mail pieces. Today, the diverse set of technologies available-CMS technologies, sales force automation, widgets, FaceBook applications, Android, iPhone, BlackBerry, and so on-are now owned by marketing departments so the integration is a must. Owning these technologies means managing them, too. Marketers have to deal with technology issues, challenges, updates, and upgrades, all while making sure it runs efficiently, all the time. This is the mission control that allows content distribution to take place every day. Without technology integration, marketers can drown in opportunity, cannot effectively leverage assets, and will constantly wait on IT to help them out.

Ad Networks Tap Into Twitter

By Dave Fidlin

Since its inception in 2006, Twitter has been used to efficiently spread the word about everything from breaking news to what a particular tweeter had for lunch. But up until now, advertising has been largely absent from the microblogging service.

That is about to change.

With a projected 18 million people currently using some aspect of Twitter - based on projections from social media guide Mashable - it is only inevitable ads become a part of the Twitter ecosystem.

A new start-up company, 140 Proof, is looking to help fill the advertising gap by offering companies an opportunity to share their message - in 140 characters or less - with users tapped into Twitter.

Co-founders Jon Elvekrog and Erik Michaels-Ober founded 140 Proof in July 2009. They are operating independently of Twitter, which itself is looking to establish an internal advertising system. The executives say they use Twitter’s application programming interface (API) the same way any other microblogger does.

“For now, there is no charge to use it, and we’re accessing it for free just like everybody else,” Michaels-Ober says. Twitter does not receive any of 140 Proof’s proceeds.

Elvekrog and Michaels-Ober say their service provides a value to advertisers because of their targeted approach to getting a message across to users. The company bypasses Twitter’s site completely and sends tweets to third-party Twitter clients, who in turn distribute the message through a variety of Twitter platforms: via the Internet, mobile devices, desktop clients and anywhere else tweeting takes place.

The executives are touting 140 Proof as a mechanism for advertisers to reach a smaller, but captive audience - a strategy in contrast to the blanketed approach of commercials delivered through more traditional, mainstream systems such as television and radio.

“We feel this is a much more natural way of reaching people,” Elvekrog says.

The company is working on an algorithm system to maximize the targeted advertising. Twitter users’ information on their public profile is among the data used to determine what type of ad should be delivered to a particular tweeter. A patent is pending on Proof 140’s algorithm system.

“This is a part of an advertising solution for social media,” Elvekrog says. “[Twitter] is a big network, and it’s growing everyday. We feel there’s a huge pent-up demand, and this is a way to get [advertising] across in a meaningful way.”

Elvekrog and Michaels-Ober have been focusing on building technology and the algorithm system for their 6-month-old company, which has been running in beta. In mid-December, they began working with advertisers.

At the moment, 140 Proof has “more than a dozen” clients, Elvekrog says, and they range from small, start-up companies to larger, established firms.

More than $2 million in venture capital funding has been used to help get 140 Proof off the ground. BlueRun Ventures and Founders Fund are providing the cash infusions.

While 140 Proof is getting aggressive about using Twitter’s platform to relay advertising to tweeters, the company is not alone. In recent months, a smattering of other start ups have been announced. Among them: Ad.ly and Magpie.

Dave Fidlin is a Milwaukee-based freelance journalist and feature writer. He can be reached at dave.fidlin@thinkpost.net.

Twitter Goes Local

By: websitemagazine.com

Twitter has added a new trending topic functionality, this time with a local tilt. On the right side of your Twitter home page, you will see a notification of trending topics that you can change (at right).

[Read More and Discuss]

Autonomy Interwoven

• Location: San Francisco, CA & Cambridge, England
• Number of Employees: 1,800
• Clients: Avis, Delta, Ford
• URL: www.interwoven.com

Headquartered in San Francisco and Cambridge, England, Autonomy Interwoven is a global leading provider of infrastructure software.  The company has a diverse portfolio with offerings that range from content management and website optimization to social media analysis and search engine marketing.  Its innovative approach to IT has changed the way a strong global base of clients and partners interact with their information systems.   Across the healthcare field to the government sector, entities in various industries are currently benefiting from Autonomy Interwoven’s cutting edge solutions.

Contel Bradford of DMB recently caught up with Annie Weinberger, VP of Marketing at Autonomy Interwoven, to find out more about one of the world’s most successful software companies.

Can you give us a brief glimpse of Autonomy Interwoven’s journey in the infrastructure software business?
Since its founding, Interwoven has provided application software solutions that help marketing professionals manage their Web sites.  Last year, Autonomy acquired Interwoven and merged its IDOL (Intelligent Data Operating Layer) Platform into Interwoven’s offerings. IDOL provides the unique ability to understand unstructured or human friendly content and makes intelligent decisions about what to do with that information.  Now that Interwoven’s applications are powered by IDOL we give marketers the ability to better understand their customers and optimize their marketing materials accordingly.

Please fill in our readers on “Meaning Based Marketing” and some of the solutions that fall under this umbrella.
IDOL is the platform that powers all of our Meaning Based Computing offerings, including Meaning Based Marketing (MBM). Using advanced mathematical techniques and statistical analysis, MBM extracts meaning from all forms of customer interactions, including unstructured information such as social media content, videos, phone call recordings, emails and Web interactions. Marketers can use this information to better understand their customers and strategies for marketing to them.

What are some of the most pressing challenges your clients are facing and how do you go about helping resolve them?
One of the biggest challenges a marketer faces is trying to understand who their customer is with very limited and dated data, such as purchase history, their zip code or what information they fill out on a customer form. We know that this information doesn’t give marketers a complete view of who their customer is or what they want. Marketers no longer own the data about their customers — instead it’s in their behavior, social networks and their interactions. Marketers need a system that watches and reacts automatically to what how their customer behaves and the trends that exist in the real world.

Autonomy Interwoven takes a different approach to solve this problem and builds a bigger, more complete view of the customer through their interactions with the Web site, conversations and trends in social media, and the sentiment of interactions in the contact center. Our solution helps marketers merge insights and understand the meaning of customers across all these different areas so a more complete customer profile can be drawn.

What makes content management with Autonomy Interwoven different from other enterprise CMS solutions on the market?
Unlike other companies, we understand the meaning behind all interactions and act automatically on it. We recognize patterns and uncover trends and automatically act.

How does Autonomy Interwoven plan to maintain an edge in the increasingly competitive software industry?  What should we expect in the future?
While others are focused on building applications or different ways to gather information, we’re focused on being able to access, leverage and understand information so we can keep up with the agile Web.

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