The Twitter feed isn't much, but the chatter there may entice you to jump onto their website for a look at what's going on with SF street food. The interactive map is almost as addictive as a Kung Fu Taco!
SF boutique Doe-SF isn't too aggressive with their merchandising; from a quick run through their website it would seem that half their categories are without product.
But if you're good at playfully beguiling the public about what you do have in stock, your irregular inventory issues might not be such a big deal. Doe-SF are a great example of how to use Twitter for small retail businesses. Have fun, get involved, don't just talk about yourself, and occasionally blow the whistle to your followers for a Twitter-exclusive 2-hour only 30% off sale.
In the spring I started an "Email of the Month" feature. It lasted two installments before I abandoned it. I get too many emails and it's crazy trying to really digest them all every 30 days. And it's better written about over time when I can see interesting trends and consistency of strategy and creative direction. And so...
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I'm liking the sly strategy Bobbi Brown Online employs for their mailings - they send them out in the early evening. That strikes me as an interesting idea for a cosmetic seller, especially if you have mobile opt-ins. No women's retailer I know of sends their emails out when their potential customers are out at restaurants or bars. And if you're just sitting at home, BBO's promos will stand out from the usual batch of 15-20 emails you get first thing in the morning from all the other retailers who schedule for the same 2 a.m. PST deployment.
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Wondering what's up with the trend in retail of advertising the entire family of stores in email headers. This is the case with the Gap family (Gap, Old Navy, etc.) and with Forever 21 (21 Men, Twelve by Twelve, etc.). I'm not sure why a customer of 21 Men would be interested in what their plus size sister company Faith 21 is hawking this week, but the family of stores seems to think it's a good tactic.
As a consumer, I'm turned off by the sister-store advertising - it comes off as a tad arrogant while cheapening the brand of the store whose emails I opted in to receive. Also loses some above-the-fold real estate in the main graphic area. I'd be interested to know if this has been an effective cross-promotional conversion tactic for the retail families who include them in their mailings.
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Call me corny, but I'm still loving Free People's creative. Their anti-logo scrapbook design adds flair to a brand whose store experience often seems a bit too precious, fussy and narrow.
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Back in 2008 I was on Abercrombie & Fitch's house list for all promotions. That lasted about 6 weeks until I unsubscribed because all I was getting sent to me was a single B&W photo of a liver-lipped young male or female (or both) with a link to uninspiring landing pages full of copy about how cool it is to be young and beautiful and work in one of their stores.
That never struck me as a message designed for great cart conversion metrics, so last month I opted in again to see how they're trying to sell products in 2010.
Well, if you too are currently receiving A&F's mailings, I don't have to tell you what they're sending out now: More liver lips.
I know that the brand identification of Abercrombie & Fitch is young, chiseled, tanned, ripped, and on the upper end of upper middle class, but in trying to attract business with their messaging A&F seems to be running nothing more than a ponzi operation for amateur models. As a shopper I get nothing out of it. This would seem to leave an opening for chains like Hollister to grab some market share, for while their email and web creative slavishly imitates that of A&F, they do actually let you know that they're an apparel retailer and not a casting agency for Yale dropouts.
The UK's Daily Mirror ran an interview this week with pop icon Prince that's being panned all over the place because of the many outrageous statements the pop icon made therein about selling music on the internet.
The juciest excerpts:
"The internet's completely over. I don't see why I should give my new music to iTunes or anyone else. They won't pay me an advance for it and then they get angry when they can't get it."
"The internet's like MTV. At one time MTV was hip and suddenly it became outdated. Anyway, all these computers and digital gadgets are no good."
And so another popstar from the 80s refuses to come to grips with the cultural and financial realities of modern media. Or so he would have us believe.
The real reason for the granting of this exclusive interview seems to hinge on the promotion of an exclusive Prince CD release. Exclusive to? Buyers of the print editions of these same UK newspapers, of course. The CD is being bundled with the weekend edition for a consideration. I know, you're shocked to find this out.
In the interview he also also railed about the evil of pop culture and said that we all need more god in our lives.
That kind of absurdist celebrity prattle gives me a laugh. I love the idea of a filthy rich popstar wagging his finger at me about the evil of modern sexuality and telling me I need more god in my life. Especially when the popstar in question made the lion's share of his fortune by shrieking about kinky sex with women in tacky camisoles.
But I digress. What about the marketing wisdom of this move? The pros & cons:
Would you buy 14,000,000 shares in stock of a company you don't believe in?
That's apparently what JP Morgan Chase has done. Despite owning that amount of shares in the web browser Opera (approximately 14% of the company), they issued a release last week that warned their customers they would block customer access to Opera and Chrome for reasons of security/standards compliance.
I find browser wars a pretty tedious subject, but this strange tech news is interesting not only for its potential impact on e-com (Chase's customer base is so large that Chrome and Opera could lose users over this), and even more for the black humor of its subtext.
The idea that a financial institution would invest so heavily in a company and then smack it down by issuing a press release trumpeting their lack of confidence in it is a classic portrait of the dysfunction rife in the financial sector.
As a satisfied, opted-in owner of a 2009 Clubman, I'm a recipient of all sophisticated components that emanate from Mini USA's online marketing machine.
For example, I get all the "secret" information, like print ads and emails that can only be viewed with special glasses that come with a kit delivered to owners by regular mail. Upon reading the message, you are instructed to go to some landing page or other where you can get a first look at new Minis or be enticed into attending an event. Kinda goofy, but arresting in its uniqueness and innovation in utilizing different media to put together a message.
So it was through an email blast that I learned about their latest wacky stunt, the Mini-vs-Porsche challenge. Yes, Mini USA has thrown down the gauntlet and challenged Porsche to a race, and all Mini enthusiasts are summoned to cheer Team Mini to victory. If there was any doubt to the authenticity of this event, the irresistable tag line "THIS IS NOT A JOKE" put them to rest.
The punch line of course is that there is seemingly no way for a 170hp Mini to beat a 380hp Porsche in head-to-head competition. But then it's anyone's guess as to how this will play out as the details of the contest have yet to be revealed. Will it be on a test track? Through the hills of the Italian Riviera? Quarter mile? Paris-Dakar?
(My hunch is that this will be the surprise ending element. When Porsche accepts the challenge, they will be given the specs of the race only to find it's to be held on some donkey trail high in the Pyrenees with bends just tight enough to accomodate the Mini's nimble turning radius).
Like all Mini campaigns, the genius is in getting the target consumer/owner tied up in the various channels. The email talks about the race, but the only call to action (or possible clickthrough) is in the "Sign the Petition" button. This takes you to Facebook where you are encouraged to become a fan. Once you get in the loop you can watch the race on Facebook. The event is scheduled for June 21st in what is assumed to be live streaming (though Mini is coy about revealing if it's live or just a website update with taped footage). There's even a die-cast model car set to commemorate this grand hype event.
You also get the full viral video linkage from the FB page, with the challenge wittily delivered to the children of Ferdinand Porsche directly from the head of Mini USA via YouTube.
The Mini-vs-Porsche Facebook wall has rolled out beautifully, attracting comments from the Mini faithful to create a collage of the targeted demographic; comments are universally youthful, cocky and full of fun.
