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4 Ways Brands Can Use Big Data to Optimize Marketing Results

Big data is the big thing these days, and companies are actively looking for ways to make sense of large scale information assets in order to affordably process that data, gain insights from it, and use it for effective decision-making. Considering that 5 exabytes of data is generated online every two days, harnessing the power of big data is a big task.

Taking a closer look, it’s clear that big data is growing at an increasingly fast rate:

  • 100 terabytes of data are uploaded daily.
  • 294 billion emails are sent every day.
  • 234 million tweets are published on Twitter every day.
  • 4.8 trillion online ad impressions were served during 2011.
  • 2.7 zettabytes of data exist in the digital universe.
  • 60% growth occurs in structured and unstructured data annually.
  • 35 zettabytes of data will be generated annually by 2020.

Companies can view this astounding growth in one of two ways — as a big problem or as a big opportunity. IBM is just one of the companies that sees big data as a big opportunity. IBM offers enterprise technology and support to help companies use big data to optimize brand marketing performance and their bottom-lines.

According to IBM, there are four specific ways that big data can be used:

1. Audience Optimization

Big data can be used to identify high potential audiences and accurately target them. For example, Epsilon increased retention and revenues by 20% using the IBM Netezza data warehouse appliance to simplify advanced analytics on massive data volumes.

2. Content Optimization

Big data can be used to enable the right message at the right time via the right content targeting. For example, Kelley Blue Book improved conversion rates and reduced model processing time from three days to one day (a reduction of 48 hours) using IBM’s Netezza data warehouse appliance to personalize content.

3. Yield Optimization

Big data can be used to maximize ad inventory by identifying high-value audiences across publisher properties. For example, MediaMath increased its delivery output by 10-times while cutting necessary manpower in half and displayed 13 million ad impressions per day using the IBM Netezza data warehouse appliance.

4. Channel Optimization

Big data can be used to optimize ad media purchase by understanding the value of channels higher up in the funnel. For example, Merkle reduced end-to-end run time for marketing campaign execution using IBM Netezza advanced analytics software.

IBM shares many these statistics about big data and more in its The Big Data Flood infographic, which you can see below. Click the image to view it at full size.

big data infographic

Is your company leveraging big data to improve brand marketing performance yet? Leave a comment and share your thoughts.

Pinterest Business Pages Debut for Brands

pinterest business pagesWhen Pinterest debuted, the terms of service made it clear that marketing content was not allowed. Today, the rules have changed with the debut of Pinterest business pages, which must adhere to a separate set of terms than individual users must follow.

That means Pinterest is now a more viable social media marketing tool for brands, businesses, publications, bloggers, retailers, online merchants, non-profit organizations, and institutions. In a post on the Pinterest blog today, all of the aforementioned organizations and people were invited to create new Pinterest business pages or to convert their individual Pinterest profiles to business pages.

When you sign your brand up for a Pinterest business page, you’ll have an opportunity to verify your website and get a verification badge to display on your page. Just like verified badges add credibility to Twitter accounts, the Pinterest verification badge will identify high-quality sources of content. The badges will also help Pinterest users find business, brands, and so on in search results.

Pinterest Product Manager Cat Lee explains, “We want to help more businesses provide great content on Pinterest and make it easy to pin from their websites.” In other words, Pinterest is committed to making business pages a success in order to open the door for future growth and revenue-generating opportunities.

To that end, the company set up the business page creation process so it’s easy to add Pinterest buttons and widgets to a business’ website, including the Pin It button, Follow button, Profile widget, and Board widget. Each tool is designed to help businesses drive engagement with the business’ audience.

Furthemore, Pinterest is offering help through case studies, a set of best practices for businesses, and guides and documentation that explain how to use the Pinterest brand in marketing materials to align with the Pinterest brand identity guidelines.

The introduction of Pinterest business pages isn’t surprising. Now, marketers and business analysts are speculating about what will come next for Pinterest. Advertising and paid products are getting the most buzz right now. What do you think?

And if you haven’t secured your Pinterest business page with your business or brand name, you might want to go secure it before someone else snatches it up.

Image: Bunches and Bits

Exploring Corporate Stewardship

Patagonia: corporate stewardship

Patagonia, Inc. sells high-end outdoor clothes. That’s their bread and butter. But they don’t just do clothes like any normal company. No, Patagonia is a clothes retailer with an explorer’s impulse, an environmentalist’s conscience, a traveller’s spirit and a web designer’s digital nous.

That last trait is very important – Patagonia has a cutting edge website. It’s through Patagonia’s website that we have come to understand that it’s a trendy, up-to-date corporate that has a story, a personality, character, beliefs and fundamental convictions. Yes, through their website we get a company that has managed to humanise itself.

Their website has a load of standout qualities. The opening page is wonderful; first impressions are great and the feeling of open expanse that the interactive background gives you really draws the browser in. As you start to move around the site the ease of navigation and accessibility really boosts the online experience.

By having such a lively and interactive website – one that tells a story and projects a distinct personality – Patagonia connects on a personal level with browsers and customers. And by projecting personal values Patagonia can expect to draw out brand admiration, brand affinity, loyalty, a sense of rapport and therefore, fingers crossed, extended business relations.

On the dashboard Patagonia does all the usual stuff very well: it has a fantastic blog (it’s fresh, topical, very user friendly and customer-centric); they have a great interactive video section; a sports specific section; a tab for all the clothing and finally a tab dedicated to its social and environmental activism.

Patagonia’s environmental activism is something that really sets Patagonia apart from other businesses. Naturally Patagonia dedicates a lot of web time and space to explaining the work that it does to preserve and restore the natural environment for future generations. The company has been involved in a great number of initiatives since its inception and one of its central environmental efforts has been its commitment, since 1985, to donate 1% of all company sales to preserve the environment.

Then in 2002 Patagonia started a programme called “1% For The Planet” which encouraged other companies to do the same; to donate a percentage of sales towards the preservation of the earth for posterity. Since then Patagonia has been at the vanguard of an alliance of businesses that have been working actively to promote the earth’s natural habitat.

By doing this Patagonia has not only set out its stall as an admirable company among consumers and commentators but in a competitive business environment Patagonia has consistently pushed the envelope of corporate best practice. And by committing itself unreservedly to the betterment of the environment Patagonia has earmarked itself as a steward for the industry.

Shining transparency into CSR websites


Think of elves … what do you get?

Happy chappies I’ll bet, full of light and song and laughter.  That’s the legacy of Victorian Romantics for you.

In reality their folklore tradition is more complicated.  Often seen as the root of minor ailments, elves were sometimes portrayed as having more malign intentions.

Even in modern literature, the great elf-lord of them all J.R.R Tolkien (not Timothy McGee) made sure there was at least one pure-evil elf in his Middle Earth cycle, Maeglin.

The reason for this odd intro is because this illusion/reality concept reminds me of Canada.

Canada?  Yes, Canada.

[Read more…] about Shining transparency into CSR websites

Licensing BMW Brand Equity Brings the High-Performance Promise to Baby Products

When there is equity in a brand, there is a risky temptation to over-extend the brand and ultimately, devalue it in consumers’ minds. Will that happen to BMW as it pursues a wide range of brand licensing opportunities? It can be hoped that as long as the brand is licensed consistently and the BMW licensing team exercises restraint, the BMW brand promise won’t be tarnished. In other words, the brand that promises high performance must be licensed to products that deliver on that promise.

This month, a licensing deal between BMW and Maclaren has been discussed among retail and branding experts across the web with everyone speculating on how the BMW brand will be perceived when it is seen on Maclaren baby strollers. Of course, BMW isn’t the first automotive brand to license its name and logo for baby strollers. If you walk into a baby gear store in the United States, you’ll find a number of JEEP strollers. It’s a great match, particularly for fathers who prefer a more gender-neutral stroller to push their babies.

Furthermore, Maclaren strollers are priced significantly higher than many other strollers, so the high-end BMW brand is likely to match the Maclaren target audience, too. The hope, of course, is that BMW customers who need strollers will choose the BMW Buggy from Maclaren and that Maclaren stroller customers will become more interested in the BMW brand and consider it for their future automotive purchases. The licensing agreement seems like a win-win for both brands.

bmw buggy maclaren stroller

So far, BMW appears to be exercising the necessary restraint in its licensing deals. Brand Channel reports that the BMW team will not license its brand to cigarette or food products and video games that would feature BMW vehicles exploding or being destroyed in any way won’t debut anytime soon. Licensing deals that have been signed to date include:

  • Aspex eyewear featuring, “distinct contouring of the frames as reflective of BMW’s dynamic automotive artistry.”
  • Group III luggage featuring, “exceptional quality and superior performance – two hallmarks of the BMW brand. Created to compliment the enterprising lifestyle of BMW owners, the branded luggage will be manufactured with stylish and distinctive hardware.”
  • Ball Watch featuring expert craftsmanship that, “incorporates various technical feats.”

What do you think of the BMW brand licensing strategy?

Image: BMW and Maclaren

54% of the World’s Top Brands Are on Instagram

More than half of the world’s top brands are now active on Instagram according to a new report from SimplyMeasured. Those brands are active and attracting followers, too. 20% of brands on Instagram have more than 10,000 followers, and 18% have more than 20,000 followers. However, just eight brands on Instagram have more than 100,000 followers. Those eight brands are responsible for 92% of the audience engagement.

Instagram launched as a simple photo-sharing app just two years ago in October 2010. At the beginning of 2012, 15 million people used Instagram. Fast forward nine months and Instagram had grown to 100 million users and shows no signs of slowing down.

Suffice it to say, Instagram is very alluring to brands that want to connect with those 100 million users. It’s not surprising that between August 1, 2012 and November 1, 2012, the Instagram adoption rate among the world’s top brands jumped by 35%. That’s higher than the Pinterest adoption rate during the same time period of 24%, and significantly higher than the 5% increase Google+ experienced.

The eight brands leading the way on Instagram are MTV, Starbucks, Burberry, Nike, Gucci, Tiffany & Co., Audi, and GE. The most active category on Instagram is apparel, and business-to-consumer brands are more active than business-to-business brands overall. You can see some statistics in the image below about these eight brands and their Instagram account details recorded during the 3-month period of August, September, and October 2012.

Click the image to view it at full size.

instagram top brand account details

One of the most interesting things learned from the SimplyMeasured report is how significantly Facebook drives engagement for Instagram photos. Of course, since Facebook purchased Instagram, this is a relationship that will only grow. According to the report, out of 2,533 photos that brands shared on Instagram during the 3-month study period, 60% were shared to Twitter and 93% were shared to Facebook.

Nike stands out as a brand that has had great success with Instagram. A mixture of compelling photos has led to great engagement rates, including:

  • 57.3 tweets per photo
  • 612.3 Facebook likes per photo
  • 1.5 Facebook comments per photo
  • 0.9 Facebook shares per photo

You can read the full Instagram Brand Adoption Study report from SimplyMeasured below, which tracked the performance of the brands on Instagram from Interbrand’s list of the top 100 brands.