Social Media Leader Erik Qualman Answers FAQs

Posted on December 9, 2009 by ksantry

Social media is still in the early stages of development, and with that comes many questions. I’ve picked some of the most often asked questions by companies and individuals and have responded with my thoughts.

Q: Are there things that should always or never be done in social media, things to consider or options to weigh when deciding which one to join (or stop using!)?

A: Fun and common sense — have plenty of both.

Q: Are marketers betting on social media marketing already? If they aren’t, what do you think they are afraid of?

A: Marketers are afraid of the unknown and also giving up control of their brand. They are also afraid of making mistakes. That is why it’s important to fail fast, fail forward, and fail better. You aren’t going to get it right the first time so be quick to listen, interact, react, and repeat.

Q: Why do you believe social media is so important?

A: As human beings, we have the dichotomous psychological need to be our own individual, yet we also want to feel like we belong to, and are accepted by, a much larger social set. People are willing to have an “open diary” as a means to stay connected — as their ultimate desire is to feel accepted.

Part of this lies in a yearning to have a clear understanding of what the majority is doing. It was much easier to know what the majority was doing when all one had to do was tune into Casey Kasem’s “American Top 40″ to find out the latest and greatest in music or to flip through “Vogue” magazine to quickly grasp every fashion trend. Social media help us make sense of information overload by quickly seeing what our friends find important, helpful, or interesting. It also helps eliminate people performing the same tasks — if three of your friends have already performed the task (finding a good hotel in Bermuda), why should you be redundant?

Q: Which is the best business model for social media? Is advertising the only way?

A: That is one revenue stream, but there are many more. Think about people exchanging gifts in social media, small businesses setting up their businesses and using PayPal-type functionality (mircopayments), and craigslist-type interplay. There is also search revenue to be had, as people care more about what people think about products and services than an algorithm.

Q: Who is going to lead this new marketing? Big agencies? Specialized agencies? Media agencies? Brands themselves?

A: It’s a people-driven economy, stupid — people will lead the charge. People that shepherd brands (e.g. Scott Monty, Morgan Johnston, Barry Judge) will also play leading roles. Technology development (application development, etc.) will continue to be outsourced to specialists/agencies.

Q: How will social media force the hyper-acceleration of better search results?

A: You’re already seeing this. Google recently launched four products that are social in nature: Google Sidewiki, Google Searchwiki, Google Hot Trends, and Google Wave. Google understands its main competition will come from social media. That is why in October we already started to see search deals being cut between Microsoft and Twitter/Facebook. This is only the beginning, but it’s happening much sooner than I thought.

Q: Who helps you stay informed?

A: Lee Odden (TopRankBlog) Jeremiah Owyang (Altimeter Group), Mashable, Charlene Li & Josh Bernoff (Groundswell), Chris Brogan & Julien Smith (Trust Agents), Shel Israel (Twitterville), Steve Levitt (Freakonomics), Dale Carnegie books, Laurie Sullivan (MediaPost), Mark Walsh (MediaPost), Dan and Chip Heath (“Made to Stick” and Fast Company), Silicon Alley Insider, David Meerman Scott (The New Rules of Marketing & PR), Abbey Klaassen (AdAdge), CNET “Buzz Out Loud” Podcast with Tom Merritt, Molly Wood, and Jason Howell, Buckhead Church Podcasts, ESPN Fantasy Football Today Podcasts, and of course anything Michigan State Hoops related.

Q: There are many social networks nowadays. Should advertisers try each one, or how should they choose the right ones?

A: Start with the placements that have the best chance for success and progressively grow from there — eventually you should be everywhere that is contributing to success (however you determine that). If you’re engaged and using the tools, it’s pretty easy to determine which social media tools your customers are on. If you can’t figure this out, Forrester has a good Social Technology Profile Tool that will help direct you to where your customers are.

Q: Do you know an agency that is doing it right in social media? Or a brand?

A: Zappos, Comcast, Ford, JetBlue, Skittles, Starbucks, Ben & Jerry’s, Best Buy, Dell, and Virgin are leaders in the space. Crispin Porter + Bogusky and Razorfish have been progressive in this area as well.

Q: What is the “next big thing” in social media marketing?

A: The merging of search and social.

Q: What about those who just want to say, “Enough of this online chatter, I just want to connect with people in the real world”?

A: Social media isn’t a zero sum game. Just because you can stay connected with your daughter in college via social media doesn’t mean that there isn’t a need anymore to meet face to face. Social media is great at keeping people connected when distance/time is a hurdle or limiter. Also, remember that sometimes the opposite can occur — meeting offline after first meeting online. Think about Mashable’s popular Tweet-ups or that one out of eight couples married in the U.S. met online.

Find out more from Erik at his Keynote during the January Market. More info here.

Holiday Must-Haves From Kurt S. Adler

Posted on November 23, 2009 by ksantry

Every holiday season brings new surprises. Since 1946, Kurt S. Adler has come up with ways to bring unique, interesting decorations to customers’ Christmas celebrations. For the coming season, here are some of our favorites that we think will be favorites of your customers too.

Hollywood Nutcrackers™- Hollywood Nutcrackers™ is a collection of whimsical nutcrackers that are designed by renowned artist Holly Adler. The Christmas Hollywood Nutcrackers™ are adorned with everything we love about the holiday. Red and white candies decorate their coats, mischievous snowmen peak out from their hats, and each nutcracker brings with him the feeling of Christmas cheer.

Steinbach- The name Steinbach is recognized all over the world for its unique design of hand-carved, wood masterpieces. Remaining a family company for many generations, the current manager of the Steinbach Company is Karla Steinbach. Under Karla, the Steinbach Company has continued the tradition of creating hand-carved Steinbach German nutcrackers that become highly treasured collectible pieces. In recent years, we’ve seen more young people attending Steinbach events, continuing the family tradition of collecting nutcrackers.

Gingerbread- Gingerbread has been a great category this year; both nutcrackers and ornaments are doing well.

Plaques- Assorted porcelain plaques featuring cute holiday sayings as well as a number of inspirational plaques offer a variety of gift options.

Mini trees- Mini trees in novelty colors and designs make great décor pieces. These trees differ from the traditional to add a creative twist to holiday decor.

Baby’s 1^st- This is always a great category, especially the personalization ornaments, since it creates a family memento.

Novelty Lights- Novelty lights are always a favorite, and this year we see an increase in grape lights and wine products overall. Wine has been a surprisingly well-selling category this year.

Pets- Dog and cat owners always love ornaments and gifts that represent the furry friends.

Snowfall Lights- No matter the weather, these lights are used both indoors and out to create the illusion of snow.

Guest Blogger Alison Ilg Talks Social Networking

Posted on October 30, 2009 by ksantry

I enjoyed speaking with buyers at the October Atlanta Apparel Market about how social media can help their businesses. Social Media tools like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube can help store owners engage and build relationships with customers. Good social media success stories include Zappos, Will it Blend and Fabrik Atlanta. Remember the rules you learned in kindergarten… listen first, be polite, be yourself and share. Well, the same apply to using social media tools.

Did you miss Alison’s seminar? That’s okay! The notes are right here.

Bethany Lowe Talks Halloween

Posted on October 29, 2009 by ksantry

Halloween was an especially magical time for my family and has been one of my favorite holidays since I was a child. In the small farming community where I grew up, children dressed in homemade Halloween costumes and went trick-or-treating door to door.
Every year our community hosted a Halloween party for the children where we carved pumpkins, bobbed for apples, played Halloween games, and had costume contests.

When my older brother and I went trick or treating as grade schoolers, we covered the entire town. Every house on the block had the welcome light on and was decorated to greet the greedy youngsters in search of goodies.

Carving pumpkins was something that our entire family did together. Not only did we carve a face, but my mother also taught us to use gumdrops, licorice and other candies to create accessories for our pumpkins, such as earrings,lips, eyebrows and so forth. Hats for pumpkins were constructed from old newspapers or wrapping paper. Our pumkpkins were not just pumpkins; they became magical Halloween characters to light up the night. Remembering back to the costumes I wore as a child, the silliest ones had to have been the Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head my brother and I were forced to wear. My mother thought the outfits were outstanding, but at age 6, I was totally horrified. I wore my favorite costume at age 9. I went as a one eyed purple people eater, which also happened to be the most popular Halloween song that year. My mother sewed the costume based on my original drawings. My creativity probably comes from my mother, who sewed all of these costumes.

My love for Halloween design stems from the possibility to capture this whimsical holiday with fresh and original ideas. More than any other holiday, Halloween encourages me to venture down many avenues of interpretation. Halloween is the one holiday that allows adults to become children again. It is the time of the year that we are all willing to dress up and make fools of ourselves.

Halloween themes are many and varied- from spooky and scary to whimsical or sweet. Halloween parties encourage friends and family to gather together for a good time, fun treats and lots of laughs. My vintage look is inspired by my passion for anything old with a story to tell.

In recent years, Halloween has become one of the most celebrated holidays – with consumers expected to spend more than $6 billion in 2009. I began creating Halloween collectibles for our company Bethany Lowe, because there were no high quality Halloween designs in the market with a vintage feel (www.bethanylowe.com) Collectors were limited to buying authentic vintage pieces- which are expensive and fragile. I wanted to decorate my own home with unique folk art-style Halloween decor, and I knew other people felt the same way. I decided to create them myself. Paper mache buckets, candy containers, and tin lanterns were some of my earliest vintage designs.

Today, whether you plan to host a houseful of guests, or just welcome trick-or-treaters, you can easily convert your home into a stylish haunt that will bring out the spirits of the season. And the best way to set the mood is to decorate so an air of mystery pervades the gathering place. Use ghostly luminaries or candles along with jack-o-lanterns, goblins, spiders, witches and bats to help you set the party atmosphere. When the party begins… read horoscopes, tell ghost stories or have a monster mash. Fantasy and fun are the essence of every Halloween celebration, so for one mystical evening, anything goes.

What Women Want – For Spring 2010

Posted on October 2, 2009 by ksantry

Olsen Europe

When you hit the Atlanta Apparel Market in October, there are several key items you should look for to ensure your customers look great for Spring 2010. Ethnic pieces featuring natural fabrics, snake and animal prints with Indian and African inspirations are still hot. Green – the concept, not just the color – are still popular. Look for dip-dyed effects, organic cottons and crushed fabrics. And look out Madonna, ’80s inspired pieces are back with everything from preppy looks to skinny denim and oversized tops.

Olsen Europe

All the concepts feature some neutrals – primarily white – but also look for navy, cloud blues, aqua, butter, cerise, mushroom, green and lilac.

Your customers will be looking for these pieces to fill in their spring wardrobes, so make sure they’re on your shopping list at Market: Boyfriend jacket cardigans

Babette

Voluminous, wide-leg pants
Ankle-grazing pants
Draped tops
Embellished tops
Fun dresses
Lizard “animal” prints
Mad for plaid
Walking shorts
Colored denim
Art-inspired prints
Day-to-evening looks
Cropped jackets

An Inside Look at The 2009 Atlanta Gourmet Market

Posted on September 30, 2009 by ksantry

I was privileged to serve as one of the judges for the 2009 Atlanta Gourmet Market’s Best of Atlanta competition. For those unfamiliar, The Atlanta Gourmet Market is an annual trade show that highlights a range of wholesale and retail food items from around the country at AmericasMart in downtown Atlanta. In the “Best of Atlanta” awards, 10 gourmet categories are evaluated by an independent panel of judges,. It’s a great, fun-filled and educational event that would definitely be on the radar of Atlanta’s foodies if they could attend.

The cooking demonstration alone would be worth the price of admission. This year, local star chef Shaun Doty ( SHAUN’S) conducted a one and a half hour, interactive session set in the intimate , contemporary studio located in the middle of an entire floor dedicated to the culinary arts. Think Iron Chef without the drama.

The culinary arts floor also includes upscale cookware displays, gourmet teas and coffees, wines and cocktail purveyors as well as prepared specialty food items, all set in slick display rooms. The setting reminded me of a giant food festival with free samples being offered almost at every turn.

As one of the judges for this year’s event, I was limited to sampling the wares of the contest participants, who represented a very small percentage of the vendors in attendance. But I can say that that if the other vendors’ offerings were just half as good as the contestants’, they had some very good stuff! The tomato pickles and the 7 seas sea salts were just two of the great products that were featured.

And that’s why I hope the event will have a public component in the future. Because as an educational and entertainment event, the Atlanta Gourmet Market is a hidden jewel on Atlanta’s dining scene. There were so many products on display that it would take hours to do them all justice, but exploring them and interacting with the vendors who sell them would make a great adventure for families and foodies alike.

Social Media 101: Facebook, Twitter & and How They Will Help Your Bottom Line

Posted on September 18, 2009 by ksantry

We had an amazing turn out for my Social Media 101 seminar at last week’s show. As promised, here is the slide deck and some useful links from the presentation.

http://static.slidesharecdn.com/swf/ssplayer2.swf?doc=americasmart-socialmedia-090918124418-phpapp02&rel=0&stripped_title=americasmart-atlanta-social-media-101-presentation

For those of you that weren’t able to attend, here are a few key points and some notes to keep in mind when deciding if social media is the right thing for your business:

The content you put out there is much more important than the platform (Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc.) that you put it on
Even though brands and big companies are involved in social media, you’re really dealing with people — speak accordingly
Ask yourself the important questions before jumping in headfirst:

1. Are my customers using social media? If so, how?
2. What are they talking about and what’s important to them?
3. Is social media an important marketing channel for my business?
4. What are my marketing and sales goals?

Know Your F-words:

Friends — People you’re connected to on Facebook

Followers – People and companies who track your Twitter updates

Following – People and companies who’s Twitter updates are tracked by you

Fans – People on Facebook who become a fan of your brand’s page

Tips for Measuring Social Media

Use tracking codes and promotional coupons specific to the platform
Tag your links with tracking that can be picked up by your analytics tool
Test different content around your offers
Monitor how many mentions you have and how engaged people are with your brand
Track your fans and followers to understand your audience

Know Your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Cost per Lead (CPL) = Campaign Cost / # new leads
This gives us a single number that tells us how much each new sales lead cost based on the total cost of your campaign
Cost per Sale (CPS) = Campaign Cost / # sales Based on the campaign, this tells you how much each sale cost. This number should always be greater than or equal to your CPL.
Estimated Revenue per Site Visit (ERSV) = Avg. Sale Volume / # visits
This KPI is important to know when you’re determining how much to invest in your online channel. If it decreases, you may have an issue with your sales values dropping or too many visits not producing enough sales. If it increases without an increase in Sales Value, watch out… you may be losing visitors!

Links and Resources

Major Platforms:

Facebook – www.facebook.com

Twitter – http://twitter.com

Cross-platform Twitter Applications:

Tweetdeck – www.tweetdeck.com

Seesmic – www.seesmic.com

Twitter Resources:

Basic Twitter Backgrounds – www.twitterbacks.com

WeFollow Twitter Directory – www.wefollow.com

Web Analytics Packages:

Google Analytics – www.google.com/analytics

CrazyEgg – www.crazyegg.com

Mint Analytics – www.haveamint.com

Yahoo! Web Analytics – http://web.analytics.yahoo.com

Omniture – www.omniture.com

WebTrends – www.webtrends.com

Social Media Monitoring:

HowSociable – www.howsociable.com

SocialMention – www.socialmention.com

Twitter Search – http://search.twitter.com

Google Trends – www.google.com/trends

URL Shortening:

This is a post by AmericasMart guest blogger, Greg Asman. Greg is Director of Digital Analytics and Social Media at Aspen Marketing Services (www.aspenms.com), the largest privately-held marketing services firm in the US. He has more than 18 years of Internet strategy and development experience and holds International Business and MIS degrees from The University of Georgia as well as an MBA from Emory’s Goizuetta Business School.

Guest Blogger Lynn Rogers Dishes About ‘Packaging for Profit’

Posted on August 27, 2009 by ksantry

gifttower1 I know it’s hard to believe but the holiday season is just around the corner. That means gearing up for those all important holiday sales dollars. With consumer confidence still on shaky ground; what can gift professionals do to stay ahead of the competition? I offer one crucial word: packaging.

Raising the perceived value of your holiday gifts is much easier when you offer creative and affordable packaging for all of the fabulous new gift and gourmet items you’ll pick up at the September show. Here are a few tips:

Create Gift Bundles – this is an excellent way to move slow to sell merchandise while giving customers a new and exciting way to appreciate your product offering.
Offer Creative Gift Packaging – gift stacks, gable, gift and candy boxes are all easy ways to offer upscale packaging at budget friendly pricing.
Add Value Services – free gift wrapping, hand delivery and custom ribbons are all great additions to service that can be an affordable incentive to purchase from you.

Want to learn more? Join me September 12 and 13 at Gift Basket University and learn more tricks and tips on packaging for profit. We’ll also discuss how creating a specialty (niche) business can mean a boost in sales!

Lynn Rogers, the Gift Diva, is owner of Atlanta based Mini Masterpieces. Her company specializes in custom gift packaging for small and mid sized corporations, entrepreneurs and individuals. She can be reached at 1-800-399-3175 or on the web at www.minimasterpieces.net

Guest blogger Emilie Whitaker talks about “fitting every size”

Posted on August 20, 2009 by ksantry

shapeevent When I tell women that I own a designer jeans company, countless women respond with the same statement. ”I bet you don’t have jeans that will fit me!” And I love to respond with, “Oh yes we do.” I am always confident in responding this way because I have fit so many women in our jeans and I know that our jeans are designed for real women. But I am also always somewhat troubled by the fact that so many women consider their bodies “unable to fit.”

Since we started Beija-Flor we’ve probably fit thousands of women in our jeans, each with their own story, which has been invaluable in helping us develop and design our collection. I’ve done Beija-Flor events at boutiques, in women’s homes, in salons, and even at workplaces. Women are always very honest with us on their feedback about the jeans and their issues with fashion in general. I used to tell people that in these scenarios women spoke with me almost as if I was their doctor, open and honest, which made for some very funny conversations, but also made me realize how many women out there struggle with their body image, and natural shape.

This realization inspired us to sponsor the Shape Event at the Atlanta Apaprel. And the first person we thought of to speak at the event was Mary Ann Sudnick, one of our retailers, and a truly inspirational woman who specializes in image consulting and proportional profiling. Mary Ann has seen the fashion industry from all angles, as a buyer for Macys in New York, a successful retailer, and a certified image consultant. She has a gift in fitting and styling women of all body shapes and personal styles.

We are so excited to share her knowledge and expertise with the Atlanta Apparel buyers, and hope that they can spread this new mentality to their customers across the Southeast. As former retailers ourselves, we know how important store owners can be to their customers and how wearing the right clothes can make a huge difference in how we all feel. We hope to reshape how we look at body type, fashion, and retail.

Stop by The Shape Event: Reshaping how we look at body type, fashion and retail, taking place on Saturday at 3 p.m. on Floor 9, NE Quadrant.

Guest Blogger Sal Macaluso asks: Should a Full Service Specialty Boutique Have a Website?

Posted on August 19, 2009 by ksantry

There is no question that the Internet is a place where you can find great prices if you are willing to give up personalized customer service. So why does a Full Service Specialty Boutique need a website?

Many would argue that having a website works against the whole concept of “Full Service.” Why is that? Is it the Internet or is it the attitude of most retailers that are on the Internet that has perpetuated this perception?

Why can’t a website be used to enhance customer service rather then work against it?
Let me give you an example; my family and I enjoyed a wonderful mini-vacation in Savannah, GA this summer. My wife, Carrie, always makes sure to visit “Jezebel,” a boutique on Riverwalk. When we walked into the shop we were greeted like old friends, even though it had been over a year since we last visited. As usual Carrie purchased a fabulous skirt from some obscure designer that I had never heard of. As I was leaving the store I asked the owner if she had a website. “Oh no,” she said, as if having a website for her type of boutique would be ridiculous. She said that they are constantly getting in new merchandise and it turns very quickly. “It would be impossible for us to keep a website updated.”

As I left the store I thought, “What a shame. My wife loves this boutique, yet she can only purchase from this store when we come to visit.

How might a store like this use a website and the power of the Internet to extend their incredible customer service on their website?
Is it really “impossible” to keep a website updated with new merchandise? Of course it’s not! It is simply a matter of integrating a procedure into your normal day to day routine.

A box arrives, you unpack it, remove the plastic bag, attach the proper hanger, perhaps a quick steaming, then you put it on a rack for later integration into your inventory. Decisions are made; should this go on a mannequin? Didn’t I unpack a top yesterday that will go with this skirt? Oh my goodness, Mary Smith would love this jacket, let’s put it aside and give her a call!

If Jezebel had a website, another decision would be considered. “Should we put a picture of this on our website?”
If the answer is “Yes,” a picture is quickly snapped with a digital camera. At some point in the day, or even the next day, the pictures are downloaded to a computer and uploaded to the website.

Now let’s face reality; some of those items may be sold by the time the pictures can be uploaded to the website. So what! When you are uploading the pictures simply don’t upload the ones that have sold already! Think of it; why would you not upload the pictures of 50 items that didn’t get sold just because there are five pictures on the camera of items that did get sold? Wouldn’t that be silly?!

So how does this tie into enhanced customer service?
Simple; I know Carrie would LOVE to receive an email from Jezebel whenever they have updated their website with new images. I can assure you that this is an e-mail she would NOT delete! I would even go so far as to say that it would result in a guaranteed sale!

This is just one example of how someone with a “Full Service” mentality can use a website and the Internet to enhance customer service and increase sales!
Let me leave you with this thought. If you are the owner of a Full Service Specialty Boutique, you will implement your ‘Full Service” attitude into how you use your website.

Did you miss Sal’s presentation at Market?
Don’t worry. You can now watch it and see what you missed. Click here to view the presentation.

Sal Macaluso is the creator of the eFashionCentral.com program-a complete website and Internet marketing tool designed exclusively for Full Service Specialty Boutiques.
www.eFashionCentral.com
800-729-8233

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