marketing

analytics
 by Mitchell Cameron

Analytics, Predictive or Prescriptive? Why not Both?

Analytics and data are essential to running any business today and firms have established systems that track and monitor everything that we do. In order to have a more effective marketing strategy it is important to understand the different types of data and how to properly use them. The three basic types are descriptive, predictive and perceptive analytics. We discuss each in more detail below.

Descriptive Analytics

This type is raw data in summarized form. Examples include social engagement counts, sales numbers, customer statistics and other metrics that show you what’s going on in your business in an easy-to-understand way.

Predictive Analytics

Predictive analytics forecast what will happen in the future. Examples include consumer trends, forecasting and opportunity analysis that will help determine the actions of a business.

 Perceptive Analytics

This type of analytics builds on predictive analytics. It involves informing key decision makers about different decision choices with their anticipated impact on key performance indicators (KPIs). This type helps you develop specific recommendations. An example of this would be a GPS system which first predicts a route using a multitude of different inputs and “advises” a person to take the shortest route with a predicted ETA.

Using both Predictive and Perceptive Analytics

Both of these types of analytics must be used in order to maximize your company’s marketing efforts. One without the other does not bridge the gap between raw data collected and what actions your company will take. “Prescriptive analytics can help companies alter the future,” stated Immanuel Lee, Web analytics engineer at MetroStar Systems. “They’re both necessary to improve decision-making and business outcomes.”

Perceptive analytics ultimately clarifiy predictive data and can help a company improve their marketing strategy to increase sales. Simply knowing information about a consumer or industry offers some information to a company about the market in which it operates but this is the first step. The next step is to actually determine what this information means and the impact that it has on key areas of the business.

Tips for your Analytics Program

1) Start Small

When dealing with analytics there are many various types of data that get recorded. Therefore it is important to start small and work smart in order to gather the right types of data. Within your business there are many different activities that go on day-to-day and sometimes a more focused strategy is better.

2) Create Specified Data Sets

By separating data into specific groups, it is easier to use when needed within your marketing strategy. Data can be separated into segments like gender, income level and location. This in turn makes it easier to specifically predict and make recommendations through a perceptive program.

3) Understand Why Data is Collected

Predictive and perceptive analytics ultimately depend on humans that design systems and collect data. It is important to understand why certain types of data are being collected and what the purpose of this information is. Understanding why this information is collected and what its use will be will help when trying to determine the best marketing strategy for a company.

4) Keep Your Systems up to Date

As your business grows and advances, it is critical to develop and keep your systems up to date. Technology makes it easier and more efficient to gather information about customers within your market. When your analytical systems are up to date, your company will be more adaptive at responding to current trends or consumer wants.

At Mirza International, we have the know-how when it comes to analytical marketing, which will save you both time and money. We can offer you marketing services that drive success and help convert data into a focused marketing strategy. The benefits for you? Less wasted effort and a greater return – which will help your business grow and keep you happy!

Click here to book your complimentary consultation.

 

 

 

 

 

 

in Business / Marketing / Tech 0 comments
leadership qualities, leadership
 by Mitchell Cameron

Leadership Qualities and Thought Leadership Strategy

Leadership qualities are very important to achieving success in the business world today. Thought Leadership is a style of leadership where a firm or individual is recognized as the foremost authority in a select area within their industry. This results in the individual or firm becoming the go-to for expertise in that specialized area. Developing this style of leadership can be a huge advantage to a firm. Being recognized as a thought leader will ultimately establish you as a credible expert within the industry – which will of course lead to greater profits! Digital marketing and content creation play a huge role in thought leadership today – and yet, it’s sometimes overlooked by major individuals and firms.

Thought Leadership is One of the Best Leadership Qualities

Steve Jobs and Apple are great examples of thought leadership. This example of thought leadership proves that a company or an individual can hugely profit by being one of the first places a consumer will turn to for products or services. Apple is a leading company when it comes to innovation and expertise, and has managed to differentiate itself from its competitors. There are 5 strategies to follow in order to develop yourself or your firm as thought leaders so that you can profit significantly from the market. These 5 essential strategies are outlined below:

1) Confidence is Key

There are traditional ways of forming credibility among your audience like publishing content or conducting an interview through credible sources. However, acting confidently will automatically increase your credibility among your audience, this according to a study conducted by the American Psychological Association. Simply believing that you are the foremost authority and expert within your field and then conveying this confidence to others will increase your credibility. There is a famous saying that goes “confidence is key.” This outlines the fact that confidence will help strengthen relationships, communicate a message and gain credibility with your target audience. Confidence is something that we see among top performers with great leadership qualities.

2) Involve Your Audience

Why not involve your audience? Ask them questions or give them the chance to ask you questions. This will engage their curiosity. Author Adam Bryant interviewed 700 CEOs and asked, “What qualities do you see most often in those who succeed?” The answer was curiosity. It’s no surprise that Apple is one of the greatest companies at listening and engaging their audiences.  They are always trying to figure out what their customers want – simply by asking them.

3) Reciprocity and Word of Mouth

When a company or individual can win the hearts and trust of the people, the masses will follow. In fact, 88% of consumers trusted online reviews as much as personal recommendations in 2014. This means that a company relies on the people’s belief to drive sales and increase its revenue. This is a key to developing a thought leadership strategy in your firm. It will distinguish you as the right choice to buy from. People’s opinions and beliefs often rub off on the people in society that are around them. Hence, a company’s reciprocity and Word of Mouth must be strengthened in order to increase credibility.

4) Honesty and Integrity

A company must always be honest and more importantly, it must be perceived to be honest in its actions. Through quality content creation you can prove that you are credible by actually offering the customer some value exchange. This valuable content will drive customer sales to your firm because they will see you as the experts who have already given them something. This again elaborates on the concept of reciprocity and when a customer feels valued, she will turn to your company over your competitors.

5) Controversy and Change are good

When you challenge the norm and conventional ways of thinking, it will encourage an alternative point of view for your target market. If this point of view and ideas are credible then you will start a movement of consumers towards your product. As mentioned above, Apple had done a fantastic job of this when they took a huge share of the cell phone market. When the iPhone took control over Blackberry, the social focus shifted away from Blackberry’s guarantee of privacy, towards the iPhone’s innovation and advanced features.

Thought leadership through digital marketing and content creation is the key to driving sales today. Many leadership qualities are outlined above and contribute to the effectiveness of your campaigns.  We have the know-how when it comes to credible content creation and digital marketing which can save you both time and money. At Mirza Intl, we offer marketing services that drive success and thought leadership within your firm. Your marketing will be done faster, with less wasted effort and a greater return – which will help your business grow and keep you happy! Click here to book a consultation with us today.

 

in Marketing 0 comments
 by Emma Cameron

How the Advertising Feature on Instagram Works

Have you ever scrolled through your Instagram feed, and were surprised to see an advertisement from your favourite brand? Have you ever wondered how these advertisements matched your interest or hobbies so well? Well in 2014, Instagram introduced the advertisement feature that allows brands to sponsor ads to their target consumer(s). These ads pop up on the targeted users feed, regardless of if the user is following the brand or not. Brands can pick from three ad formats – photo, video, and carousel ads.

Instagram uses Facebook’s demographic data to present the correct ads to the appropriate demographic. For an example, you would never want a 40 year old male who is interested in sports seeing an ad for beauty products targeted at teens. This is important to ensure that relevant content is being shared with the right audience.

Instagram first tested the advertising feature by selecting specific brands – Taco Bell, Mercedes-Benz, and Chobani were some of the earliest adopters! After a successful run over the course of a few months, the ad feature is now available to businesses big or small! Though the advertising feature appeared to be working successfully, Instagram did fine that they needed to give users the opportunity to mute these sponsored ads. Advertisements are always labeled as sponsored and users have the ability to hide ads if they are not pleased with the disruption on their feed – giving the user control over what they see. Instagram has found this to be successful, and consumers are responding well to this control.

Many brands who have used the advertising feature on Instagram have been more than pleased with the return they have gotten on these ads. Ben & Jerry’s Ice Cream ad campaign reached an estimated 9.8 million people just in the United States in only eight days – impressive! Mercedes-Benz used Instagram to launch its compact SUV called the “GLA” in collaboration with Facebook last fall and saw an increase of 580 percent to their site! Happn has been using the advertising feature for a month now, and has reached an estimated 3 million users in London, Paris, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and San Paulo. The app has seen a conversion rate of 84 percent in terms of app downloads as well as registered users – incredible!

There are over 400 million Instagram users worldwide, and over 70 million photos and videos uploaded everyday – making Instagram the perfect untapped app for advertising and branding! If executed properly, Instagram advertisements can open up a new market and even a new target consumer to businesses!

in Business / Lifestyle / Marketing / Social Media / Tech 0 comments
facebook, news, advertising
 by Mitchell Cameron

Facebook -People Use Social Media for News

In the past people always relied on news broadcasters, radio stations and the newspaper to stay informed about current events. Today, there are approximately 1.23 BILLION users on Facebook! So while people are browsing, they are tuning into news updates almost instantly as they happen. Facebook has features like Top Trending news – hence, it’s no surprise that companies like CNN and BBC are recognizing the massive benefits of using this platform. In the past people searched for news and tuned into their favourite newscaster or broadcaster. Now the tables have turned. People want the news to come to them.

Facebook constantly looks for new ways to engage its users and increase the frequency and duration of time people spend on the platform. To do this they have created instant news articles with credible high quality content to engage people as they are browsing the site. Over the past couple of years this feature has been introduced and statistics show that the average person would rather turn to social media for the latest news rather than watching it on TV or reading the paper.

In fact 63% of Americans reported getting news on Facebook and Twitter in 2015 versus approximately 50% in 2013. Some statistics show that people spend an average of at least 20 minutes on social media whereas other stats show that people spend at least an hour or more. Regardless of which of these are true, this is a huge percentage of the population using social media daily and specifically for news purposes outlining the drastic shift in the public’s habits.

The Threat to Publishers and News Stations

With this shift in the public’s perception of the News they receive, publishers and news stations must realign their business strategies to adapt to the people’s habits. Therefore companies like CNN and BBC have used avenues online to target their viewers. However they can also fall into a trap of relying too heavily on one media source because they will give up control of their audience to that source. On social media there are many different News companies that broadcast their content in one location. If a company relies too heavily on social media for its viewers than it risks losing them to other features or even competitors content that is published.

Facebook Surpasses Google

According to Parse.ly’s first-party data across 400 publisher sites, Facebook took over Google as the number one source of traffic to publisher sites in July 2015. The company is trying to dominate the share of the market when it comes to publishing and posting news content as a traffic source. This would lead to a reliance on social media to get their News content to their targeted audiences. While publishers and news companies used to rely on their viewers’ loyalty. Now they must depend on social media to get their content out.

Publishers and News Agencies Pay Big Bucks

It is possible to post free content on Facebook but if a company wants to drive significant amount of traffic towards its own content, than you must pay Facebook for these referrals. This is good for Facebook but this payment also creates a reliance on Facebook for traffic. As mentioned, Facebook is trying to trap these publishers and agencies into their site so that they can offer quality content to their users while making these companies reliant on their referrals.

In conclusion we can see a dramatic shift in the way people gain access to news content online. From 2013 to 2015 there has been a 13% increase in the amount of people who use Facebook and Twitter for news. This shift should be taken very seriously by publishers and news companies who intend to keep and gain audiences in the future.

Mirza International is up to date with the best Facebook advertising and referral practices. To book a marketing consultation click here.

 

 

in Business / Marketing / Social Media 0 comments
 by Emma Cameron

How GoPro Empowers Their Customers

gopro

Social media is an amazing new marketing outlet that allows consumers to keep connected and engaged with their favourite brands. Social media not only allows brands to specifically advertise to their demographics, but it is also allows consumers to advertise and promote their favourite brands products and services as well.

GoPro has been doing a success job of empowering their users, while using their content to promote their brand. GoPro allows everyday people the ability to shoot HD footage and capture out of this world photographs on their miniature cameras – no matter what their past experience consists of. Not only are their products successful, but their presence on Instagram is as well. GoPro currently has 7 million followers, and averages about 300,000 “likes” per post. Their following is continuously growing, and so is their social media campaign. The company came up with the campaign “Photo of the Day”, where users upload their HD photographs to their own Instagram accounts, tagging GoPro in these photos. Everyday, GoPro picks a photo to be featured on their own Instagram account and tags the user in the re-uploaded photo. GoPro is not just stopping at photos, they are also promoting users to create extreme videos that they repost on their Youtube page.

gopro photo

This campaign has been extremely successful, and has been going on for years now. This allows GoPro to empower their users and promote their work, while at the same time be able to share these photos and use them as advertising tools. Creating a sort of win-win for both the user and the brand. This is just one of the many brands who are embracing social media, and really allowing consumers to take the reigns on advertising through these platforms.

As more and more brands move towards social media marketing, this tactic will become increasingly popular. Consumers love it and so do brands!

in Business / Lifestyle / Marketing / Tech 0 comments
 by Emma Cameron

How To Use Hashtags Effectively

Hashtags are an important part of our social media and tech culture today. So important that in 2010 the Oxford Dictionary added the word, and the board game Scrabble added it to their dictionary. Though most people in the world have heard of hashtags, or have seen them live in action, many still do not know to how to use them effectively. Hashtags are simple to use and can really drive traffic and engagement to your post or content – making them an important tool to know inside out.

 

Choosing The Right One:

It is not effective to just pick any word or phrase and proceed to use it as a hashtag. You should research which ones are already in use and in what context they are being used. For an example, if you come up with a hashtag that fits your brand perfectly, you need to make sure that other brands or individuals are not using that same one in a completely different way. This can cause confusion and a loss opportunity for your brand, and it could pick up some unwanted attention.

 

Pick The Right Social Media Platform:

Different social media platforms yield different returns for your content.

Twitter:

Twitter is the originator of the hashtag, and continues to still be the powerhouse. Tons of research has been done to track the effectiveness of the use of them on Twitter. According to one study, tweets with one or two hashtags can double the chances of engagement. However, if you exceed two per tweet, the chances of engagement actually drops by 17%. Staying within two per tweet limit is crucial. It is also important to note how “engagement” is defined in research. The engagement that is activated by hashtags can include different types of interactions; 22% of engagement comes from replies to brand’s tweets; 78% are retweets; And 92% are link clicks. Depending on the use of them in a tweet, it can either increase or decrease this amount of engagement

Facebook:

Facebook introduced hashtags to their site in 2013, which was a late start for the social media powerhouse. Though Facebook currently ranks the highest for the most used platform in the world, their engagement using hashtags is one of the worst. Studies have shown that Facebook posts with hashtags actually have less engagement than those without. Furthermore, studies have found that Facebook and Twitter are similar in the sense that overuse can also decrease the amount of engagement and interaction. It is more beneficial to keep hashtags down to one or two per post on Facebook in order to receive interaction back.

Instagram:

Instagram is the complete opposite to Twitter and Facebook when it comes to hashtags. Other social media sites diminish your return on engagement with the more hashtags you use per post. Instagram views this in a different light, and the more hashtags that are used the more noticed, liked, shared, and commented your post will get. Post that exceed 11 or more hashtags, are the post that bring in the highest number of interactions. Hashtags can be your best bet for growing a fast following on Instagram.

 

Timing is Everything:

As with most things in life, everything always comes down to timing. The same can be said with using hashtags on social media sites. There are many different online tools that can help you set up and schedule times to post content to your social media sites. This helps with getting content out during times of high usage, and on significant dates (e.g. holidays, campaign launches, etc). This can really help with getting your hashtag out there, and bringing in traffic.

 

Hashtags are a huge part of our social media sites today. Hashtags allow brands to reach more followers, give followers the opportunity to engage and interact with their favourite brand. It is one of the greatest inventions and one of the best things for online marketing.

in Business / Marketing / Tech 0 comments
 by Emma Cameron

How To Use Snapchat As A Marketing Tool

For years Facebook and Twitter have been the kings of all social media platforms. Combined, these platforms have over 2 billion users and growing, making these platforms one of the most looked at sites for marketers. Recently however, a new social media king has stepped onto the scene, and is bringing brands along with them. Snapchat reports an estimated 6 billion views daily, and has over 100 million active daily users (65% of which contribute content). This portfolio has brands and marketers not only impressed, but jumping at the opportunity to use it as a marketing tool. There are many benefits to advertising on Snapchat, however it has to be the right fit for your company. If you are looking into using Snapchat for your own business, check out what we think are the 4 best ways to utilize it.

 

1.Provides Access to Live Events:

Snapchat is one of the best tools for real-time social media marketing due to the fact that is can give audiences around the world access to live events. Companies can use Snapchat for real-time product launches, trade shows, or one-of-a-kind unique events. It allows consumers to feel involved in events, and engaged to be up-to-date on what their favourite brands are doing.

Lives events that have been successfully featured on Snapchat include the American Music Awards, the Westminster Dog Show, and Oktoberfest.

 

2. Embrace the Time Limit:

Many would say that the time limit that Snapchat offers is a negative for some businesses. However, many marketers and brands do not think this is always the case. The time limit (24 hours) allows for brands to create short videos or photos that last only a few seconds that can be sent to consumers as teasers. These teasers leave viewers wanting more, and creating a demand for these teasers.

Make-up powerhouse brand, NARS, used the app to allow followers an exclusive sneak peek look of their upcoming Guy Bourdin collection. NARS only allowed followers who added their @NARSissist Snapchat the opportunity to preview the collection. Due to the time limit and the ability to send personalized content to followers, this made Snapchat the best possible media for this type of release.

 

3. Offer Contests, Promotions or Perks:

Online consumers repeatedly check brand’s social medias to score on promotions or perks that not all customers get access to. Snapchat is no exception to this. Many consumers flock to Snapchat for the opportunity to see new promotions and contest that are offered by their favourite brands.

GrubHub excels in the Snapchat community by using different promotions and deals to engage their audience online. Grubhub became the first brand to launch a nationwide scavenger hunt campaign in 2014. The campaign lasted for five days, and each day followers were given a new challenge to complete. The winners of the challenges were given a $50 credit to GrubHub and had access to other promotions. GrubHub saw an increase growth of 20 percent in their followers, and found that more than 30 percent of their followers participated in the challenges.

 

 

4. Partner with Individuals with an Audience:

Snapchat can be used to promote brand awareness, brand loyalty, and also be used for product placements. Influencers with a large following can be a vital tool for brands who want to get their product noticed by demographics that are hard to reach through their traditional medias.

During the Superbowl, Audi teamed up with the app and the blog, the Onion, to bring a Snapchat campaign to followers. Photos of “typical things people may exhibit during the game” included humorous captions and drawings. The end result of the 3 hour campaign resulted in an increase of 5,500 new followers to Audi’s Snapchat page, and endless retweets of screen grabs from the campaign.

 

Snapchat is dominating in the app world, and brands are continuously growing their presence on it. Is your company ready to jump on this Bandwagon?

in Business / Marketing / Tech 0 comments