Is Twitter dying or flying?

Is Twitter's recent fall in stock value anything to be seriously worried about for one of the largest social media companies in the world? It certainly isn't a small issue for a company or its investors when one fifth of stock value is lost following the publishing of results so what has led to such a stark fall in confidence over the latest period?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-26059710

Some believe Twitter is over valued, some believe the user growth is not in line with what it should be and some believe the lack of active users leads to little chance of long-term stability.  On top of all of this comparisons will no doubt continue to be made to Facebook. The fact that Twitter's main competitor has five times the amount of users builds into the perception that Facebook is the dominant player in social media. This creates an interesting dilemma for investors when deciding who to plug their hard earned cash into for a lucrative and growing portfolio.

http://www.foxbusiness.com/technology/2014/01/06/analyst-bet-on-facebook-and-google-over-twitter/

Incredibly 90% of Twitter growth can be attributed to advertising revenue so it will be more than a small shock to some that Twitter has yet to define a sensible algorithm to determine relevant customer tweets and relate this data back to a targeted audience. This is of course a significant part of Twitters issues as it means potential business is lost to competitors. If the average owner of a stock portfolio continues to place Twitter in the same bracket as Facebook there will only be one winner in that battle.

http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/article/1230188/twitters-value-drops-fifth-user-growth-stutters

We all shouldn't start to get too worried about Twitter in the long-term. The fact of the matter is the company continues to see an strong growth in users (30% compared to 2013) and there are a number of other unique competitive advantages over other social media competitors. The Brand Avenger believes the two most important factors to look is the ability for real-time and instantaneous content to be created and shared and the companies dominance of utilising second screen capability. One of the best videos I can find on the web today to bring this to life can be found at the below link and highlights how many people were tweeting on their second screen (laptop or smartphone) whilst enjoying the Superbowl on their main screen.

http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/video-news/video-super-bowl-lights-up-twitter-29988548.html

We have set it before and we will say it again! The way companies choose to spend their advertising and marketing revenues will change as we move into the next decade. Twitter have a clear competitive advantage in the sense that the public are already using hash tags and Tweets to communicate their feelings about brands. Twitter has an opportunity to potentially use this power to offer a integrated media package to the market that creates an aligned marketing message across TV and social. Alternatively they could just choose to highlight and embrace the value of their own platform for advertising investment, a value of which cannot be denied when you consider examples like the ones mentioned below.

http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20140208/business/702089958/

Twitter is different to Facebook and it already has pole position in a number of critical areas that could help bolster future growth. It's now time for the little blue bird to spread its wings and fly into the next decade as the main destination for lucrative advertising expenditure.

What is Facebook doing with your data?

Facebook might be the preferred social network in the US but that doesn’t mean it is immune from criticism or legislation protecting consumer rights. Most recently Facebook has fallen into some hot water following allegations from two American users that the site had scanned private messages for key words to sell to advertisers for targeted messages.

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/342366/scitech/socialmedia/facebook-faces-suit-for-data-mining-private-messages

Ever since Facebook began commercializing data there was always a risk that the company would come under some sort of scrutiny around how they decide to use it. Facebook may have taken some comfort from the fact that other data mining companies have been here before and have come through the other side relatively unscathed. However the fact that the class action is raised from 2 users on behalf of what could be millions of US Facebook users will be a huge concern to the social media giant. However this will only be a concern for Facebook if it begins to hit the finances and as of yet the stock price has remained flat.

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/5c940122-73ed-11e3-beeb-00144feabdc0.html#axzz2pYJxbhVE

Facebook are no strangers to the controversy that can arise from the uncertainties of data handling. In 2012 they were forced to drop face recognition technology due to the uncertainties around how the data was used.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2207098/Facebook-switch-controversial-facial-recognition-feature-following-data-protection-concerns.html

The question now is how will the most recent lawsuit in regards to Facebook data policy impact the brand in the long-term? The answer to that question will come down to how Facebook approach the publics concerns. There needs to be some clarity around exactly how Facebook intend to use the data and maybe more importantly what access rights advertisers is given when they purchase it. It is clear from recent popularity polls and Facebook’s stock price that there isn’t too much to worry about now. But the data issue won’t go away so the reputation of the Facebook brand and popularity with its users in the long-term will depend on how well they communicate the data policy to users.

Not such a Merry Christmas? M&S in the middle of a Christmas race row

Far be it for The Brand Avenger to chime into an issue that can be as controversial as religion however I think it would be fair to say M&S will face a tricky challenge to their brand reputation following the recent news that Muslim staff have the right to refuse sales of meat and alcoholic products at till.

http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/article/1225674/m-s-faces-revolt-muslim-staff-exemption-rules

Regardless of whether you believe it is right or wrong for religious concessions to conflict with customer service it is clear M&S are in the middle of a controversy they wouldn’t want their brand associated with. At this time of year where retail sales flourish and meat and alcohol purchases spike, no retailer wants to be at the center of a storm that leads to such polar opposite views on the rights and wrongs. 

M&S have moved quickly to issue an apology for the stance taken by the staff member, citing that as an all-inclusive business all religious concessions are tolerated and accepted. In many ways they have done everything they can to demonstrate a caring and considerate view towards the issue however will this be enough to calm the issue?

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-25488259

The media won’t certainly let the retailer nor the public forget about the recent news anytime soon. As long as the media continue to cover the story over the coming days M&S will spend Christmas in controversy. The exact time when the controversy will end will depend on how much of a stir is created on Twitter and how far the issue progresses. Let’s hope for the sake of the M&S brand the incident on Saturday is treated as a storm in a teacup as opposed to anything more major.

And Merry Christmas to all those who have followed The Brand Avenger this year.

Paid for complaint tweets tests British Airway's 'Fly to Serve' creative campaign

A couple of months an angry British Airways customer displayed the type of creative thinking that was so far outside the box most advertisers would be chuffed had they thought of it themselves. Taking aa dispute over poor customer service from BA following a lost bag Mt Syed decided to take out a paid for promoted ad targeting searches of the airline. The Brand Avenger wonders if Hasan Syed is just one of the growing breed dis-gruntled consumers who will fight back against injustice at any costs?

http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/article/1224122/trend-day-co-creation-rise-hyper-disgruntled-consumer

We have all shared Mr Syed's experiences. The Brand Avenger can't remember how many times I have lost sleep over the careless actions of an airline or a apparent lack of any type of customer service. The remarkable thing about this case is the lengths Mr Syed went to to ensure BA paid for their poor handling of a stressful situation. BA may have spent millions of pounds to alter the perception of consumers that elevate their branding around a strong customer service strategy. By spending £700 Mr Hasan certainly damaged BA's positioning and left senior team members so flustered they were using BA's own social media to apologise and clarify they had resolved the situation.

http://www.theguardian.com/money/2013/sep/03/businessman-promoted-tweet-british-airways

Access to a brand is key in todays age and unquestionably the balance of power is changing. Customers like Mr Syed are switched on and savvy. They know exactly how to make a brand pay for any perceived gaps in customer service and can damage a brands reputation with a drop of a hat. It didn't take Hasan Syed millions of pounds or months of strategic planning to generate enough publicity to communicate his intended message. David stood up to the Goliath of BA and they were left dazed and bruised by this confrontation.

As more and more of the public wake up to the fact that they have power and a voice we will begin to move to a world where brands will need to advance their messaging and media delivery.

http://www.dailyfinance.com/2013/09/04/british-airways-angry-flier-promoted-tweets/

Mr Syed had the last laugh and the final say when it came to his public challenging of BA, and as he so vehemently boasts on his twitter in this instance he holds the victory. The real test for BA now will be how they adjust their strategy to ensure this type of glitch never happens again. The worst case scenario would be a influx of disgruntled customers using similarly creative measures to bring them to task. The only way they can truly address is to embrace the message they have spent so much money on over the last year. Wholly embracing a fly to serve ethos and promoting this through all marketing touch points should prevent against getting on the Tweeters nerves allowing BA to truly serve the needs of their customer.

Is Xbox targeting sexist jocks?

It should be an absolutely fantastic week for Xbox. On the verge of Christmas and having recently released its most recent iteration of a gaming console Microsoft should be sitting back and reaping in the benefits of an extensive marketing campaign.

http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/news/sony-and-microsoft-square-up-for-ps4-and-xbox-one-launch-showdown/4008579.article

What a shame it therefore is that Xbox has instead fell victim to a heated sexism debate.  Having recently released a letter to the other half to justify the purchase of an Xbox Microsoft made one crucial tiny little error- They assumed the only people buying the console were men!

http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/news/microsoft-xbox-one-marketing-prompts-sexism-allegations/4008723.article

It is of course a shortsighted and immature mistake for the company to make. We live in a world where gamification is wide reaching across the sexes. These types of faux pas highlight the changing trends and important issues companies need to be aware of. Relying on old pre conceived ideas and/or stereotypes to shape creative messages simply won’t work in this day in age.  For a company the size of Microsoft it shouldn’t be new news that they have such a massive female base that would have potentially of taken offence to this messaging.

http://venturebeat.com/2013/09/19/microsoft-coo-40-percent-of-xbox-live-audience-are-female/

Pay attention and listen to your audience. If you do that you won’t find yourself making any embarrassing changes to marketing campaigns. In the case of Xbox once again the tweets and buzz of the social networks have prompted action from the games console giant.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-11-27-microsoft-slammed-for-sexist-xbox-one-ad

Not a great result for Xbox but one it will no doubt recover from. The question is will they learn this crucial oversight?

Are Google having a goggle at my email?

Microsoft has taken the gloves in the fight for E-Mail supremacy with Google by questioning the ethical decision-making behind the commercialization of customer email info.

http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/news/microsoft-slams-google-for-email-snooping-to-sell-ads/4008513.article

Should Google be punished for using content generated in personal email to sell advertisements? If there are a room full of people whose job it is to scour every single LOL and XOXO in your email then of course they should. However when it comes to Google’s use of targeted advertisements in email is this is the case or is there something far less sinister at play?

As the continued power of the Internet and influx of social media sites shows no signs of slowing down we are more exposed to ‘datafication’ today than ever before. With the presence of data comes the ability of companies who know how to use to their advantage. This could be through understanding the customer in more detail and/or selling building the information to sell to suppliers. One quick review of the site Microsoft has set up to explain G Mail would seem to clearly suggest Google are commercializing their data for targeting purposes.

http://www.keepyouremailprivate.com/GetTheFacts

The further and further you dig into Google’s email policy the nearer you get to the fact that Google do in fact appear to be reading content generated. In some instances Google appear to be downright unapologetic for such policy preferring to reference themselves as an assistant rather than a spy.

http://www.dailytech.com/Google+Yes+we+Read+Your+Gmail/article33184.htm

Google have made attempt to quell any long-term mistrust of the brand by ensuring customers that the process of data sourcing for targeting purposes is automated and not ready by a human. This may bring little comfort to the suspicious John Doe who was worried that Big Brother was reviewing everything he communicates over email however does this still make it right for customer data to be used in this way?

http://www.foxnews.com/tech/2013/09/05/google-seeks-to-dismiss-gmail-privacy-lawsuit-says-it-has-right-to-scan/

The Brand Avenger would ague that the right answer revolves around how secretive you want to be and how accepting you are that as we continue to produce more and more data Google will become just one of many companies looking to make money out of data this way. Having access to intimate data sources is by no means a new process. Look at the transformation and continued success Tesco have experienced in launching the Clubcard, which gives an insight into half of the UK Households buying habits. If Google can ensure the use of data is automated and steps are taken to remove identifying info such as name and address, I would rather this form of advertising than getting hit with boring, irrelevant information in other areas of my super hero existence.

Guinness: Good things don't come from rounding up your mates.

Marketing Professor's wearing tweed jackets in dusty Lecture Theatres up and down the Country have long celebrated the genius of Guinness's television advertising. Who can forget the galloping horses in glorious black and white which ushered in an era of creative concept and highly visual imagery to build a brand? Whatever your view it is safe to say that you cannot argue that Guinness has spent considerable time and effort building a strong, durable and enduring brand image.

Imagine then my shock that Guinness have appeared to throw away that strong legacy of impressive advertising with their recent #RoundUpYourMates campaign.

http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/news/guinness-jonathan-ross-ad-experiment-backfires/4008379.article

The public backlash of the extended advertisements during The Jonathan Ross Show demonstrates the negative perception towards the new marketing scheme for Guinness. But can you blame one of Ireland's greatest exports with doing something unique and innovative? One look at the Guinness website quickly outlines how much importance and emphasis Guinness has placed on the campaign. You certainly wouldn't be able to tell from the current coverage Guinness is giving the campaign that them they feel as if they are doing something wrong.

http://www.guinness.com/en-gb/roundupyourmates/

It was only a year and a half ago that Guinness first struck success with the RoundUpYourMates television and YouTube advertisement. Take one look at the comments left for the below video and you can see that there is no doubting the success of the messaging used in this concept. You may therefore be forgiven for thinking that surely what happened then would continue to be met with the same critical acclaim.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y07at1bU89Q

So what's the big problem with the concept this time around? Why have the masses appeared to have turned on the 'Mates' concept quicker than an Irishman downing a pint of the black stuff on St Paddy's Day? The Brand Avenger believes 'the Twits' (my endearing term for the many tweeters out in the Universe) anger at Guinness isn't suggesting that the overall message is entirely flawed, rather the implementation. It is clear from some of the main themes generated by Twitter that todays consumer don't like being insulted or duped. Guinness execution of Mates in between actual content from Jonathan Ross's show just wasn't smart or intriguing enough to strike a positive chord with those customers who decided to tune in Saturday night. The next time Guinness want to launch a campaign maybe they should look to understand their mates a little better rather than treating them like mugs.

Has Virgin already lost with their decision to sponsor the Commonwealth Games?

You spend all that money on advertising for the Commonwealth Games and for what? For three quarters of the Scottish public to not even know who is sponsoring the event.

http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/article/1214670/three-quarters-scots-oblivious-commonwealth-games-sponsors

This is clearly an issue for the businesses who have decided to pay for the advertising and the Commonwealth marketeers who are looking to make a fast buck over the games. Perception can be everything so it might concern the official sponsors even more that the most recognised of the companies (RBS at 19%) ISN'T even an official sponsor! that's right, a company who hasn't invested one dime into the pockets of the Games organisers is simply benefiting from the existence of an event. If only the organisers could charge money for any publicity generated whether it is paid for or not.

http://www.theguardian.com/media/2013/may/24/virgin-media-commonwealth-games-sponsor

Virgin Media have clearly invested an considerable amount of time and effort into the sponsorship so it will come as a shock to the multi-media provider that they are currently ranked last of the official brand recognition poll taken from YouGov. Virgin are no stranger to lucrative, sponsorship partnerships with athletes and sporting events but this is clearly a blow to their long-term strategy. What is the point of spending millions of pounds on event sponsorship if the general public can't even identify your brand with the product. And there are many who share the view that event sponsorship just aint cutting the mustard.

http://www.meetpie.com/modules/newsmodule/NewsDetails.aspx?newsid=15209

Whether you agree with Fisk's view in the above article or not I cannot argue with the face that most people do in fact only remember three key pieces of information at any one time.  However, in the case of Virgin's sponsorship of the Commonwealth Games it seems that even three sponsors is too much for Joe Public to remember.

Of course we may have prematurely jumped the gun. The event hasn't even started yet and of course brand recognition will really peak around the time of the event. If anyone doubts the power this type of advertising can have they should look no further than the success of the Olympic and Paralympic Games last year.

http://money.aol.co.uk/2012/10/10/paralympics-success-for-sainsburys/

So what is the important takeaway for companies? If you are looking for a long-term, brand recognition exercise then Event Sponsorship might not be the thing for you. However if you are looking to build short-term acknowledgement and brand value then events might just be the thing for you.

Be More Dog and Be More Rewarded

It’s very rare to find a brand so far ahead in consumer perception scores and satisfaction surveys than O2. If you are not aware of how much success the mobile phone provider has with winning long term brand equity with their consumers take a look at their brand perception scores from last year.

http://www.brandindex.com/article/o2-breathing-success

How does O2 ensure such a consistent and strong brand advocacy scoring? Well quite simply they reward their customers and give them incentive for staying loyal to the brand. O2 operates a customer centric strategy and has created a world where loyal, committed customers are treated with the best deals before others. In this model rewarding your longest serving customers with exclusive offers comes first before acquiring competitor customers.

Customer centricity is not a new concept however very few companies have truly grasped the concept and even fewer have chosen to embrace it. Think of the numerous companies The Brand Avenger have featured over the last 6 months and decide for yourself how many of these tragic brand stories have truly grasped the concept of putting the customer at the heart of your decision making.

Putting the customer at the heart of all major decisions has transformed a business, which experienced a traumatic and desperate re-launch following the transformation from BT Cellnet in 2002. Incredibly Accenture have predicted O2’s customer first approach has led to ROI of 80:1 for its marketing communications.  Whether it be through the priority event access given to O2 customers through the rewards scheme or the roll out of iPhone 4 for customers on long term contracts before new customers O2 appear to be practicing what they preach.

https://www.marketingsociety.co.uk/the-library/2012-o2-long-term-marketing-excellence-case-study

O2’s most recent campaign has been met with critical acclaim from many of the advertising industries harshest critics. ‘Be More Dog’ has been praised for doing something different in an industry littered with repetitive messages and copycat advertising regurgitated across multiple media platforms.

http://www.marketingmagazine.co.uk/article/1208758/adwatch-o2s-be-dog-will-long-running-success

In many ways ‘Be More Dog’ could serve as a perfect eulogy for O2’s loyalty based strategy. In a world where many mobile phone operators are happy to treat customers as just another financial transaction O2 have taken a stand and have chosen to offer something extra. O2 are rewarding the very people who have taken the decision to spend their hard earned money on O2 products. Under this context perhaps we could all do with embracing the advertising slogan. So the question is how many of us are going to embrace O2’s strategy and  ‘Be More Dog?’