February 2012

Weird Facebook ad? Alert? Scam?

by Cinda Baxter on February 27, 2012

in Facebook, internet, Real World

Anyone seeing this on their Facebook pages? A couple of people have emailed to ask me if I know whether or not it’s legit, but to be completely honest, I don’t have a clue. I’m not seeing it.

Who knows what this is about?

(Definitive answers only, please—we don’t want to send someone down the wrong path if it turns out to be fraudulent.)

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This lights me UP, folks. If one man can have this kind of impact, imagine what thousands of independent brick and mortar businesses could accomplish working together. I say we find a way for Supporters of The 3/50 Project to get behind this, in a big, big way. Ideas, anyone…?

If the video window doesn’t appear for you, please try a different browser (especially if you’re using Chrome, which is particularly twitchy).

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Email marketing is a two way street

by Cinda Baxter on February 9, 2012

in internet, Marketing

Remember the relationship that was so one-sided, you finally woke up and bailed? (Nearly each of us had one, so don’t feel bad.)

Now ask yourself: Is that how I’m treating my customers? Do I communicate when I need something, but otherwise…not so much?

Last evening, I received an email blast from a local retailer, asking me to vote for them in a bridal magazine’s annual “Best of” competition, in two categories: Invitations and “Top of the Tiera” (which one assumes means “overall winner”).

My first thought was “Why? I’m not a bride, nor have I ordered invitations from you.”

My next (immediate) thought was “Besides…what have you done for me lately?”

(Yeah, there’s a song in there, I know.)

[click here to continue…]

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A rose is a rose…is not.

by Cinda Baxter on February 6, 2012

in Independent Retailers, The 3/50 Project

The following is a reprise of my 2.7.11 blog post, at the (very repeated) request of brick and mortar florists. Happy Valentine’s, everyone!—Cinda

Yes, the Super Bowl ad featuring Faith Hill and the guy sending flowers was clever (and yes, his girlfriend probably broke up with him over what he wrote on the card). But have you ever wondered just how much of your money actually ends up in the vase when ordering through an online floral site?

Probably not…but then, you probably didn’t see the finished product either.

To understand what’s going on behind the curtain, you first need to know the players: [click here to continue…]

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Marketing gaffe #526: BYO skis…and snow

by Cinda Baxter on February 3, 2012

in Marketing

Looks like someone was a little hung over from their wild nights at Sundance. Check out this Oyster.com email advertising Park City, Utah ski outings. Seems something is missing in the photo like…oh, I dunno…snow…?

My favorite lines:

…it’s the best time of year to come and hit the slopes with the family.
(Provided, of course, there’s snow—unlike what we’re showing you here.)

We snapped hundreds of photos, and we think they’ll be more than enough to get you started.
(Or not, since we kinda mixed up our camera rolls with last summer’s camping trip.)

Proofread, proofread, proofread, people. :::sigh:::

Click to see larger image

 

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Wow. In under 24 hours, one company elevated their brand…and another shattered their reputation.

A picture says a thousand words. Take a gander at three bays of Crane & Co. greeting cards…at Walmart. Note the clearly branded displays emblazoned with the manufacturer’s logo:   [click here to continue…]

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We all screw up. I have. You have. And we’ll do it again…and again…and again. It happens.

What we do with a screw up, however, determines whether or not we walk alone moving forward.

I’m a big fan of MyEmma email marketing. Truth be told, I’m a big fan of them all the way around, having rarely found a company with such high standards for customer service. Well, on Monday, they bobbled…and they bobbled massively.

And, given the way they handled it, I’m an even bigger fan today.  [click here to continue…]

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