What’s New and Hot
Social Media and Technology
Another area of spectacular growth is the use of Social Media. Although it could be argued that IM’ing and texting have been providing ways for people to stay in touch for years, the phenomenal acceptance of social sites and applications such as Facebook, YouTube and Twitter have opened the doors for marketers to develop a true two-way communications channel with consumers, and a way for those same consumers to interact with friends and other like-minded individuals.
We have developed promotions that connect with consumers, raise awareness and, above all, engage. The viral nature of these campaigns speaks directly to a need to share experiences, develop relationships and stay involved—and it could be with your brand!
Technology has also brought some new and exciting opportunities for marketers to consider. Apps, widgets, 2-D barcodes, and augmented reality (AR) are ways to further engage consumers with your brand while at home, at work, and at play. Call us at (212) 302-8277 to find out more about these developments and how they can benefit your marketing plans.
User Generated Content and Texting
Text messaging or short message service (SMS), promotions continue to attract large numbers of users, especially among the younger crowd, allowing sweepstakes entries or voting for a favorite song, artist or television episode. It’s even possible to provide nearly instantaneous results for the sponsor, who can share the results with its audience. With mobile phones reaching record numbers, marketers face a lower barrier for entry into this particular two-way communication channel.
One of the most recent trends in promotion has been the use of User Generated Content (UGC) to generate interest in and heightened awareness of a product or service. By asking consumers to provide photos, videos, music and copy to express themselves, marketers are able to tap into a virtually unlimited creative resource for potential future advertising, PR and marketing campaigns. However, that creativity also carries certain challenges, especially in the area of copyright protection and Intellectual Property issues. We help by carefully guiding clients through the process of designing the campaign, identifying potential winners and obtaining appropriate releases, thus mitigating the risks associated with this type of promotion.
Promotion Research Services
Ventura Associates has developed a new offering that will help marketers get the most effective use out of their sales promotion campaigns. PromotionOptimizer includes the following menu of promotion and research services:
- Competitive promotion and situation analyses
- Promotion planning
- Concept/creative testing
- Promotion optimization
- Online promotion tracking and measurement
PromotionOptimizer was specifically developed to help marketers ask the right questions about their planned campaigns, use appropriate research techniques to determine best approaches, and develop processes to appropriately measure the effectiveness against established benchmarks.
Speak with a Ventura Account Representative today to learn more about this dynamic new service, and get the most mileage out of your promotional campaign.
rE-Contactsm
Ask your Ventura Account Representative about our new follow-up marketing service, rE-Contactsm. We will work with you to develop a touch-centric strategy, based on your specific business objectives and the situation at hand, and handle from creative through execution. Our program can also include premium or offer fulfillment and database maintenance. Call today!
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