Outdoor Advertising in Dallas, Texas

Well, well, well…it’s the second post of 2018! And it’s not even Halloween yet!

I sincerely appreciate all of you that have checked in every day* looking for a new post. I knew that I would not be a very productive blogger this year but the creative juices started flowing during a recent trip to Dallas, Texas.

I’ve written about outdoor advertising before and it has remained a topic of interest. But after spending time in downtown Dallas, I realized a few things about this medium that I hadn’t previously considered.

I saw the following things in Dallas that I wouldn’t see as much in a city like Birmingham:

• Full bus wraps (mostly occupied by Dallas attorneys) 
• Street corner kiosks – see photos below 
• Building banners (and lots of ‘em) 

These observations prompted many thoughts, which I’ll share now.

WHY DO THESE OPTIONS WORK WELL IN DALLAS?

A city the size of Dallas has a lot to offer advertisers, including multiple cultures, as reflected in the brands claiming ad space there.

The volume of people in a city the size of Dallas all but guarantees impressions will easily reach the millions, no matter the format. That’s a nice feature to mention when selling ad space.

Downtown Dallas has many tall buildings and, whether or not a building is vacant, many of them feature windowless sides. Advertisers smartly made the most of these enormous canvases – I saw banners promoting everything from trucks to colleges to video games.

The audience and inventory make outdoor advertising work so well in Dallas.

WHAT IS FACEBOOK DOING??

These window overlays from Facebook really caught my attention.

A few questions here…

1. Are these ads intended for the 7 people out there that don’t already use Facebook? 
2. Or are these ads more about rehabbing Facebook’s image after questions about their data security practices? 

WHY WAS I IN DALLAS?

I was in Dallas to attend the State of Search conference. Each year, digital advertisers attend this event to hear from the industry’s leading thinkers.

State of Search is orchestrated very well by DFWSEM, a group of like-minded people with a desire help businesses and fellow advertisers in North Texas perfect the art of digital advertising.

I was really impressed with this conference – from the location (Gilleys!) to the speakers to the food! 

FINAL THOUGHTS ON DALLAS

• Dallas, there are portions of your downtown that could serve as a film location for a Black Hawk Down remake. 
• You are a leading-edge city in terms of transportation options (trolleys, buses, Uber) but there still seems to be A LOT of civilian traffic moving through your downtown streets. 
• Some users of the pay-to-ride scooters offer humorous moments on your rougher streets and sidewalks while other users exhibit extreme bravery by riding WITH fast-moving traffic. 

Post #2 of 2018 is in the books! Should I take it up to 3? Please comment below or let me know at @Nick_Baggett.

*These people don’t exist.

One Unique Vlogger

In the world of content, bloggers are still important providers of information (hi!) but the rise of vloggers cannot be discounted. It makes sense to see more vloggers coming onto the scene given our shorter attention spans and preferences to watching over reading. What intrigues me is the way toy manufacturers have pounced on this medium – and smartly so.

There are vloggers for just about every subject matter: food, video games, lumberjacks and more. In addition to being a great creative outlet, #YouTubeMoney is also a big influence behind the increase of vloggers. The following video does a great job of explaining the confusion about the amount of money YouTubers can make. You can watch the full video here but I really want you to drink in these stats about a particular vlogger that’s popular in my home:


There are a lot of highly-viewed YouTubers with which I am totally unfamiliar but thanks to my son, I’ve been aware of the Ryan ToysReview channel since his channel was created in March of 2015. As a matter of fact, I believe my son is responsible for 25% of those views mentioned in the video above!

Graham has been keeping @RyanToysReview in business for a long time now! He's probably the source of about 25% of all of those channel views!

A photo posted by Nick Baggett (@nick_baggett) on Oct 27, 2016 at 7:09pm PDT

Here’s the gist: Ryan’s videos aren’t really product reviews. They’re really just videos of him playing with all kinds of great toys. The footage is presented along with cheerful music and respectable (but not flashy) video effects that appeal to children. I’ve always gotten the sense that this channel grew from videos of Ryan enjoying his toys, recorded by his mom as all moms do. Once the number of views started piling up, Ryan’s mom upped her editing skills.

How Toy Manufacturers Come Into Play

If you haven’t taken a trip to Toys”R”Us lately, let me tell you that the toys featured in Ryan’s videos are EXPENSIVE. It’s not likely or feasible that all of these toys are purchased. I imagine that toy manufacturers are taking note of Ryan’s high number of video views and identifying his YouTube channel as an additional marketing avenue. With this in mind, they supply complimentary toys to be featured in his videos. Ryan probably gets to keep the toys, his mom gets #YouTubeMoney and the manufacturer’s products are seen by children from around the world.

In order to continue receiving free toys to review, it would make sense for Ryan’s mom to boost the number of channel views as much as possible, right? That’s why I think it’s even more interesting to take a look at how Ryan’s channel is promoted. Look in the description of Ryan’s latest video and you’ll find a long list of links to his other videos. Not his Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. Branding be damned, that’s a smart way to add quick views.

More evidence that Ryan’s video views take precedence over branding:

• The weird phrasing of his YouTube channel’s name. Be sure to note that it is Ryan ToysReview and not Ryan’s Toy Reviews. When researching Ryan’s channel for this post, my instincts steered me to input the latter into my search query. Ryan’s website URL (which features the same weird phrasing) isn’t the first listing on results page - - his videos receive top ranking. That’s either a convenient coincidence or a very cunning approach to the Google search algorithm. (Also, at the time of this post, the website URL redirects to the YouTube channel's URL.)
• His Twitter Feed. Each tweet is just a link to the latest video on the YouTube channel. The Twitter account seems to serve no other purpose. 

OOZING PUMPKIN Halloween Fun and Easy Science Experiments For Kids to do at Home Elephant Toothpaste https://t.co/scAZpwXVFk

— Ryan ToysReview (@RyanToysReview) October 26, 2016

• His Instagram Feed. Only one photo that’s almost a year old. 
• His Facebook Feed. Very sporadic links to videos with little-to-no responses to the numerous comments each post garners. 

Ryan is unique vlogger in that his video views soar to new heights without much promotion from other social media channels. Such support may not be needed since his primary audience does not use social media. 

Ryan’s videos inform viewers like my son about the latest toy trends. Because of Ryan and his “reviews”, my son has knowledge of toys without ever seeing said toys in a store or TV commercial. Toy manufacturers know this all too well - - and so do vloggers. I am impressed with the way the two sides work hand-in-hand, knowing their success depends on each other.

As impressed as I am with the manufacturer/vlogger relationship, I’m equally disappointed for Ryan on special days. Can you imagine how much of a letdown his birthday and Christmas must be if he gets to play with new toys almost every other day of the year?

Thank you for reading!

Great Uses of Social Media By Late-Night Shows

These days, it’s not enough for a popular TV show to be entertaining while episodes are actually airing. Nope – that entertainment has to endure between episodes. I recently wrote about the creative ways certain shows are relying on Twitter to stay top-of-mind. Now I want to take a closer look at the social media tactics used by a specific type of programming: Late-Night shows.

Before diving in, let me clarify that the following examples of excellent social media usage aren’t intended to shine a spotlight on the show hosts. Even though some of them are great follows on a personal level, this post highlights the unique social media maneuvers performed for the betterment of the actual show. Let’s begin with a host that built his Late-Night credibility one social media post at a time.

JIMMY FALLON | Hashtags and Games

Fallon gets it. He’s perfected the craft of using social media to interact with fans off-air. He invites his Twitter followers to play along in creative hashtag games that range from sharing weird personal stories to creating funny alternative lyrics to popular songs.

Hashtag game! Tweet out the worst gift you or someone you know ever gave or received and tag with #WorstGiftEver. Could be on our show!

— jimmy fallon (@jimmyfallon) December 2, 2015

JIMMY KIMMEL | Halloween and Viral Twerking

Kimmel and his staff know the power of video. Each year, Kimmel fans are invited to participate in an always-funny Halloween stunt. Parents are challenged to film the reactions of their children when told their Halloween candy is all gone. The submissions get better every year!


But that’s not the only YouTube success the Kimmel show has enjoyed. You may remember this viral video…


…that turned out to be staged by Kimmel all along!



JAMES CORDEN | Car Karaoke

Corden took the helm of the Late Late Show in late 2014 and quickly educated American on what his British fans already knew: he’s really into music. That’s easily noticed in his wildly popular Car Karaoke skits, which are smartly posted on the CBS website and the show's Facebook page before it reaches viral proportions on YouTube.

Our #CarpoolKaraoke with One Direction is finally here and totally worth the wait.
Posted by The Late Late Show with James Corden on Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Our decreasing attention spans and endless info cravings are two big factors as to why social media is becoming a required promotional tool in the entertainment industry. For these Late-Night shows, social media provides another access points to fans in a time when the viewing or original airings is not guaranteed. If you know of other examples that you would like to share, send them my way on Twitter. Thanks for reading!


Top Photo {Courtesy}

My Top 3 Social Media Wishes

Social media isn't going away - and that's great for individuals seeking entertainment as well as for advertisers seeking proven opportunities to get messages seen by said individuals. Twitter, YouTube and all other social media seem to be continuously refined. I'm not sure if that tweaking is intended to improve user experience or just keep users on their toes (similar to the way graphics on Coke cans are frequently changed).

When it comes to changing social media, I have three tiny wishes that, if granted, would help me enjoy social media even more.

#3 - Resurrect the original GetGlue

After Twitter, GetGlue was one of the first social media apps I added to my phone. In a nutshell, GetGlue allowed users to check in to television shows, songs, movies, video games and books. I am a little wary of interacting online with others but I had no such reservations when it came to sharing reviews and seeking suggestions within GetGlue. Naturally, GetGlue faded at my peak enjoyment level and was purchased by tvtag. It promised to maintain (and improve on) the great features of GetGlue. But that promise was never close to being kept. Eventually, tvtag also bit the dust. I've seen recent reports about another company (Voice of TV) purchasing GetGlue but I'm not holding my breath. I just want the original to come back!

Click here to watch a great review video of the original GetGlue app.

Voice of TV revives #GetGlue @getglue @voiceoftv @TelfieApp http://t.co/1PBNd4JSso pic.twitter.com/yRoO4mzD9K

— VOICE OF TV (@voiceoftv) July 23, 2015

#2 - Adjust my News Feed on the Facebook app

I'm very aware that operator error may be at play here but I can't figure out how to set my News Feed to "Most Recent" in my phone's Facebook app. It seems to default to "Top Stories" which, for me, consists of photos and posts that I've already viewed - days ago. Being able to scroll through my feed in real-time would be much more enjoyable. Please leave any tips that may help in the comments below!

via GIPHY
#1 - A "Back Up" button for Twitter

I get why users are shown the most recent tweet upon opening the Twitter app. After all, Twitter is becoming the go-to news source for a lot of people so the most recent updates need to be shown ASAP. Even though Twitter is the #1 social media outlet in my book, I don't constantly check my timeline. So when I go a few hours between viewings, I feel like I've missed out when someone's tweet from a few seconds ago is the first tweet in my timeline. More often than not, I scroll my timeline back an hour or so just to make sure I haven't missed the beginning of a funny exchange between my favorite athletes or earlier posts about a late-breaking event. Having a button that would automatically back your timeline up an hour would be all kinds of awesome, don't you think?

A button that "rewinds" your Twitter feed an hour would be nice. I like to see what I've missed. #firstworldproblems

— Nick Baggett (@Nick_Baggett) April 24, 2015

{Top Image: Courtesy}

My Return to Facebook

Unlike a lot of people, Facebook was not my introduction to social media. I actually used Twitter first and it wasn't until I created a fan page for my employer that I started dabbling with Facebook on a personal level. Twitter quickly became my favorite outlet and, just as quickly, I came to see Facebook as a collection of photos of other people’s babies and cats. Lots of cats.

One of the purposes for my blog is to give readers an opportunity to learn more about me by providing access to my social media pages via the widget in sidebar. Until recently, I didn't include my Facebook profile on that widget because...well, there wasn't much to share. Not only have I not posted much to my Facebook timeline over the past few years, I rarely even look at it. Facebook was so unappealing to me that I turned off all notifications and didn't have the app on my phone.

“OH WOW” MOMENT

I was content with continuing this approach to Facebook until a recent reminder that lots of people (especially Boston Red Sox fans) use Facebook. There’s no denying the fact that Facebook is still the top dog and if I want to be known as someone worth his social media marketing salt, it’s would behoove me to get active on Facebook again - and fast.

WHERE TO START? 

I decided that my first step would be to boost my Facebook activity with a combination of manual posts and cross-posting from other social media apps like Instagram. Automating posts using IFTTT recipes has also helped.

Side note: it's been interesting to see how the cross-posting has helped me gain Instagram followers. Many are already Facebook friends.

STAY ACTIVE

Earlier in my career, I worked in a marketing role for a financial institution in south Alabama. Each week, the local newspaper featured interviews with citizens having fun at the Escambia County Senior Center. The questions were always the same, including one about the secret to a long life. So many of the responses explained that the key was remaining physically active.

I try to apply this mantra to a lot of areas of my life - including blogging. It makes sense to keep my writing muscles in shape. Even though I don’t really know Carson V. Heady, his recent tweet reaffirms this notion.

Keeping your mind alert provides longevity.
— Carson V. Heady (@cvheady007) April 1, 2015

I have enjoyed my return to Facebook, even though I'm still seeing a lot of cat photos. That's OK - I look forward to catching up on some of the features that millions of other people have already discovered.

A Missed Target in the Soda Wars

I'm a bit of a challenge for my fellow advertisers when it comes to casting marketing messages my way by traditional methods. I'm a proud cord-cutter and don't do appointment television so it's almost impossible to catch my attention with TV ads. In the car, I switch stations so fast during commercial breaks that it's almost like an instinct. Forget newspaper and magazine ads too.

My recent post about the relationship between Santa Claus and the Coca-Cola Company made me consider the ways such a huge company (and Coke's competitors) could reach people like me. So I made a quick list of the main ways advertisements reach me in my personal life:

• Web ads based on browser activity.
• Preroll advertisements on YouTube and Hulu Plus.
• Ad breaks on my free Pandora account.
• Sponsored posts on Twitter and Facebook.
• Email subscriptions. 

I'm sure I'm missing a few but the list isn't very long - and these are all channels that are clearly not traditional methods. 

So back to Coke. They cover the globe with advertising and, to keep up, Pepsi does too. Their behemoth brands are instantly recognizable and the Soda Wars require each company to keep pushing. But as I thought more about how these companies reach people like me, I realized that it's been a while since I've seen any type of ad from Coke or Pepsi. I really racked my brain and came up empty. So, starting with a clean slate, I kept track of any exposure I had to these brands for 2 weeks. Here are the results:

First, Coke:

• I went to a movie in a theater that serves Coke products. After an seemingly endless run of ads, trivia and etiquette reminders, a Coke ad appeared just before the movie began. You know the one - ice cubes fall from the top of the frame, clinking along until they fill up the entire screen. Audio of a beverage being opened follows this image, which is then covered by a poured soda. 
• I happen to follow Coke on Tumblr, which I forgot because their posts get lost in the mix. But, a few weeks after the movie theater ad, I scrolled past the Coke Tumblr in my feed and a bright, red image that featured the white silhouette of the Coke logo definitely caught my eye.

That's all! Two instances in two weeks! 

Pepsi didn't perform much better:

• I spend a lot of time watching videos on YouTube and lately I've come to really appreciate the perspective given by drone videos. During my 2-week experiment, I happened to come across this video that featured drone footage of New York City's five boroughs. Here's a screen cap of something in that video that stood out: 

• I also find myself watching a lot of viral videos on YouTube, like this one that featured some cool, slo-mo footage of a room full of mouse traps being set off by ping pong balls. Turns out that this viral hit was made possible by it's sponsor, Pepsi Max. I know...it's not Pepsi, but it's in the family.

That's all for Pepsi. It's a tie. For the most part, I was a missed target during this observation of the Soda Wars. I'm not sure what to make of this. My only conclusion is that I'm not a very "visible" target by traditional means and, because I don't search for or visit the websites of these brands, I don't appear in new media cross hairs either. 

I know I'm not the only person that is exposed to ads exclusively by way of the methods I mentioned at the beginning of this post. Time will tell if big brands make adjustments and the Soda Wars impact my life once again.  

Best Practices for Hashtags in Marketing Campaigns

Hashtags have always been synonymous with Twitter and smart brands make sure to incorporate them into their marketing campaigns. As we've seen in the world of sports, hashtags help embody an experience and marketers are wise to tap into that feature. As Google+ (and now Facebook) has embraced the use of hashtags, these tools aren't going away anytime soon. Here are five best practices for hashtags to consider for your next marketing campaign.

KEEP IT SHORT

Twitter, Google+ and Facebook allow different character amounts. Since hashtags are mostly associated with Twitter, it's important to be considerate of Twitter's 140-character limit when creating your hashtag. You don't want your hashtag to be so long that it impedes on the length of Tweets. Your campaign’s hashtag should also be short enough for today’s short memory spans.

MAKE IT UNIQUE

If your campaign's hashtag is similar to a hashtag that used in another campaign or in another context, you run the risk of your hashtag not being used for its intended purpose. Even worse, your hashtag could get lost in the mix. Be unique and your hashtag will have a better chance of reaching a trending status.

Along these lines, do you know who really excels at coming up with unique hashtags?  Jimmy Fallon, that’s who.

CONSIDER PARODIES

Can the letters used in your hashtag be rearranged to spell out a vulgar or unintended phrase? If you’re not sure, you better believe that social media trolls will be happy to make this determination for you. Having someone play on your hashtag could negatively overshadow all the other great elements of your campaign. 

USE IT OFTEN (AND EVERYWHERE) 

If you want your hashtag to catch on, it’s got to be seen often…and not just in Tweet form. Include your hashtag on all of your campaign’s printed materials, on your website, on promotional items, on business cards, in your email signature…the opportunities are endless.

AVOID NUMBERS, IF POSSIBLE

Some may consider this last practice to be a little nitpicky. I only suggest it because numbers can be easily transposed by Tweeters sharing your hashtag, which would point follwers in the wrong direction. If your hashtag is associated with an annual event, the use of numbers would be acceptable when indicated the year of the event in your hashtag.

I hope these practices help your hashtags or at least give you something to ponder. Please feel free to tweet some of your hashtag tips to me - @nick_baggett. Thanks for reading!

The Best Features of Google+

It's time to wrap up this series in which I point out the best features of Twitter, Facebook and Google+ from a personal and business standpoint. Of course, these are just my opinions and you can always set me straight by leaving a comment below. In case you missed the first two parts of this series, there’s plenty of time to ready my thoughts about Twitter and Facebook.

All the "experts" are quick to tell a snide joke about it being a ghost town but Google+ is actually the fast-growing social media outlet. Some studies even show that more users will be sharing on Google+ than Facebook by 2016. For now, Google+ remains more like Twitter than Facebook – at least it’s that way for me.

Best Features || Personal Standpoint

• Best Combo – Google+ features the best online/mobile version combo. Period. They really are well made. Your online feed is filled with beautiful photos and interesting videos from other users and the mobile version is so different, but the same. Both are super easy to use too.
• Forever Photos – You only have so much room on your phone, right? With the Google+ app, a copy of every last one of your photos and videos can be uploaded to your Google+ profile. The settings to make this happen are adjustable (mine only upload when the app is connected via WiFi) and your phone’s photos are instantly available to use in your Blogger posts.
• Easy Sharing – There are times when you want to share photos or notes with a select group of people. Yes, it’s possible to do this with your Facebook friends but Google+ makes this task so much easier and gives you the ability to customize your “circles” as specific as you like.

Best Features || Business Standpoint

• All Together Now – Google has recently combined Google Places with features of Google+ to make Google Local. You can’t deny that Google Search is #1. Putting your best efforts towards your company’s  Google+ page is in your best interests.
• Popularity Surge – I've already mentioned Google+’s amazing growth trend. If marketing all boils down to getting your message to where people can see it, it’s good to see today’s marketers getting familiar with Google+.
• Face to Face – Google+ Hangouts help companies take that sense of connection to the next level. Hangouts are online meetings that use webcams to capture the sights and sounds of participants. Smart brands are using Hangouts to invite customers or fans to receive an all-access pass to meetings of the minds. Hangouts are very cool customer experience enhancements.

I hope that this blog series has been helpful in answering any questions you had about Twitter, Facebook or Google+. Please feel free to add me to your Google+ circles and send me an email with any of your questions – I’ll be glad to help!

The Best Features of Facebook

Welcome to the second part of the blog series in which I share what I feel are the best features of Twitter, Facebook and Google+. You can read my thoughts about Twitter here.

Let’s move on to Facebook. Since I’m only discussing positive features of Facebook, this will not be a very long post. Facebook is the most widely-used social media outlet used on the planet and this achievement directly influences my following thoughts.

Best Features || Personal Standpoint

• Widely Used – Everyone uses Facebook, even that kid you haven’t seen since he left your school after third grade. If you want to be in the loop, Facebook is the place to be.
• Family Matters – Facebook is everything we love about family reunions, just without the travel time and awkward conversations with Aunt Sue’s son*. Keep up with relatives from across the country via their status updates. (* - that would be me)

Best Features || Business Standpoint

• Widely Used – Facebook’s popularity plays right into the first rule of marketing: get your message where the people are.
• Fan Familiarity – Your company’s Facebook Fans are very familiar with contest tabs and rarely hesitate to share your page if it increases their chances to win. Facebook contests are surefire ways to build on established loyalty while showing potential to gain new fans.

I’m sure I’m overlooking most of Facebook’s other great features. Let me know what I've missed by leaving a comment below. Thanks for visiting and please come back next week for the series finale. We’ll talk about Google+ and it will be a longer post, if you catch my drift!

The Best Features of Twitter

I'll admit to being hooked on social media. From a personal and business aspect, it plays a big role in my day-to-day activities. For the next few weeks, I'm going to highlight my favorite features about Twitter, Facebook and Google+. No negative comments here – just my thoughts about these three outlets. I'll kick off this series by taking a look at Twitter. 

My experience with Twitter predates my use of Facebook and Google+. I've always heard Twitter described as a microblogging service and I think the limits applied to length of Tweets is actually Twitter’s strength in today’s fast-paced world.

Best Features || Personal Standpoint

• Inside Access – Twitter allows you to connect with celebrities and athletes that you probably will never meet.
• Mood of the Crowd – As the modern day watercooler, Twitter users can see real-time thoughts from other users about particular events, TV shows, sports and other things that are going on this very instance.
• Need it Now – Tweets are limited to 140 characters for a reason. We want our news, jokes, sports scores, movie clips and more now. Right now. Twitter is perfect for the mass consumption of media.

Best Features || Business Standpoint

• Branding 101 – Twitter provides a great connection portal for loyal (and to-be-swayed) consumers. Others getting in on the act include authors, musicians, politicians and many more.
• Another Point of Contact – Some businesses utilize a variety of Twitter accounts to serve different purposes. Example: Time Warner Cable. @TWC provides information and updates about their services. @TWC_Help interacts with customers to resolve service issues. (Read some of these interactions out loud if you would like to see the paint peel from your walls.) This probably isn't the best approach to providing customer service but the ability to use multiple accounts is a great feature of Twitter.

So that’s my thoughts on Twitter. Did I miss anything? If so, please let me know in the comments below. You can follow me on Twitter at @Nick_Baggett. Next week, I’ll share my opinions about the best features of Facebook.

Ramco is a Real Company and So Are Their Products

You know about pre-roll videos, right? For consumers, pre-roll videos are the annoying online commercials that play before news clips or music videos. For advertisers, they’re great marketing tools that force numerous impressions on target audiences.

While recently scanning the depths of YouTube for interesting and relevant videos to share on my employer’s social media outlets, the first glorious seconds of the following Ramco sales video pre-rolled one of the videos I selected to watch:

Like most pre-roll videos on YouTube, I had the opportunity to skip this ad after the first five seconds passed. But I couldn't turn away. Here are the thoughts that ran through my mind as I watched this video:

• Yes! A new parody video featuring grainy film from the 90’s!
• Wait…what’s the joke here?
• This is running really long to be a viral video.
• I’m going to give it a few more minutes – this reveal is going to be AWESOME!
• This is totally a trailer for the next Terminator movie.  Arnold Schwarzenegger will be on screen in 3…2…1…
• Hmm…Maybe I should search “Ramco” just to see if this is a real company.

Yup!  Ramco is indeed a real company and they make arguably the finest parts washers in the business. I say ‘arguably’ because I don’t want to unjustly overlook any other parts washer manufacturers that may exist. I didn't know Ramco existed before seeing this video. But if Ramco is flexing this much marketing muscle, I take that as a good indication that the parts washing industry is much bigger than I ever fathomed. Like…it exists.

Let’s not look past this video’s finer features. It’s a well-produced video and it is certainly very informative. But the video quality makes you wonder if Ramco just converted one of their decades-old promotional videos from VHS to a digital format and uploaded it to YouTube. I mean, even the clothing worn by Ramco employees in some of the still shots says “1993 Ramco Company Picnic”.

Knowing that pre-roll videos are tied to cookies and search history (and other elements that a real marketing guru could explain), I wondered why this particular video pre-rolled for me. My only guess is that this video was selected for me because I searched for and viewed a video that featured massive tire-shredding equipment a few days earlier. At the time, I didn’t remember that video and the Ramco video really caught me off guard.

I've poked a lot of fun at the good people at Ramco in this post but I want to close by tipping my hat to their marketing people.  Ramco has all the bases covered: website, Twitter, Facebook,YouTube and even LinkedIn. Ladies and gentlemen, it is your own fault if you find your knowledge of parts washers to be lacking.

Seriously – GREAT JOB RAMCO! Your marketing got my attention for sure!

Hashtags in Sports

Courtesy Athelon Sports

Sports franchises are like businesses in that they benefit from engaging with their customers – or fans. This engagement can come in many different forms and serve many different purposes. One emerging tool for generating engagement from sports fans is the hashtag. I really like this move as I see more and more teams putting it into play (no pun intended).

Before we go any further, let’s define a hashtag.

From Dictionary.com:  A word or phrase preceded by a hash mark (#), used within a message to identify a keyword or topic of interest and facilitate a search for it.

HASHTAG TRENDS  Many people associate hashtags with Twitter but other social media outlets are adopting them, including Google+ and Facebook. We've seen hashtags used in visual ads (billboards, print, TV, etc.) for a few years. Now we’re seeing franchises and schools feature hashtags all over their stadiums to tap into the realm of fandom.

WHY DO TEAMS USE HASHTAGS? I admire the way the Washington Nationals have embraced hashtags and used #Natitude to connect with their fans. As a Chicago Cubs fan, I don’t know much...er... anything about on-field success. However, I like to think that a team begins trending towards success when fans become more engaged. And in today’s world, engaging with fans – or customers – requires the use of social media.

Courtesy GeoffLivingston.com

WHAT’S NEXT FOR HASHTAGS IN SPORTS? I look for teams and schools to continue the use of hashtags and even incorporate them more into the beginning of their annual campaigns. It could be that teams adopt a new hashtag each season to reflect a theme, goal or persona. I’m no guru but as long as social media stays relevant, I feel that the use of hashtags in sports will only grow.

If you like to check out stats associated with hashtags, be sure to visit hashtags.org.

Which professional or collegiate teams are doing a great job with hashtags? Let me know your opinion by leaving a comment below.  Thanks!

Social Media Pet Peeves: The Big One

Sure, I have my preferences when it comes to social media. But I don’t hold one social media tool above any of its peers. I think they all have their own niche and each help companies cast their messages in different ways. We all seem to learn the ropes of social media through the use of our personal Facebook pages and when some of us become responsible for a company’s social media presence, Facebook is relied on as the main building block. This approach leads to companies Tweeting from Facebook, my biggest social media pet peeve.

Linking a company’s Facebook Fan Page to company’s Twitter Page happens much more frequently than the opposite of that arrangement – or it seems that way to me. I’ve posted some examples of what a company’s Facebook status update looks like when it’s piped through their Twitter accounts.

(DISCLAIMER: Use of these examples does not indicate that I dislike the products or service provided by these fine companies. To be fair, I will include their commercials at the end of this post.)

Click "Like" if you have signed up for Jack's Red Dot Deal! If not no worries click the link below and sign up... http://t.co/3GNmsRQkCu
— Jack's (@eatatjacks) April 16, 2013

I posted a new photo to Facebook http://t.co/7YtgqqzXe9
— Jack's (@eatatjacks) April 20, 2013

http://t.co/AmC2AQKkjW
— Moe's Original BBQ (@MoesBBQBham) April 23, 2013

SO WHAT’S WRONG WITH THIS METHOD? Nothing, technically. It gets the job done. But consider this:

• Clicking on these links when using a smartphone will display the photo or message through a separate viewing page powered by Facebook, adding precious seconds to the viewing experience. And we all know that a few seconds means a lot in this age of instant gratification.
• As seen in the middle example, this method portrays the action of an individual. This may or may not work for your company image.
• Relying on this method puts all of your eggs in the same Facebook basket, if you will. The good people at Jack’s understand the value of marketing, as clearly seen in their well-done campaign to celebrate their 50th anniversary in 2011. That’s why the corner-cutting done by Jack’s seems very odd to me.

WHAT WOULD I SUGGEST? Rather than sending your messages through one social media platform, I would suggest using a social media dashboard like Hootsuite to simultaneously post messages to all (or just a few) of your social media pages. There are many more features of Hootsuite that I enjoy for personal and business use – but I’ll save that post for later. Hootsuite is a great management tool and helps users overcome the issues that may come about from linking other social media accounts to Facebook.

Here are the videos I promised for these companies. I really do enjoy their food!

MOES ORIGINAL BBQ –

JACK’S –

Am I overreacting? Is this social media pet peeve too picky? Let me know in the comments and share your social media pet peeves too!