The End

So it looks like this will be the last post from wiseonlienshopping.blogspot.com as marketing 1552 comes to an end. While it was fun I’ll leave you with some of the things I learned about blogging & what a difference it can make.

Online shopping sites already have different standards & characteristics than traditional stores, for this reason a blog is especially important for an online company. Your audience is already online, but what adds personality, credibility, loyalty and a face to a brand? Blogs...

I won’t preach but showing that you’re the expert and a real person on the other end is what will incline your customers to build a relationship with you (one way or not) and develop some sort of emotional connection – as price tags only do a certain amount of talking LOL. 

This was my first ever blog and from experience I can pass on the following information.

1.       Naming your blog (keep it simple, unique & memorable) you want people to remember it without having to bookmark the link... I have regrets on this one...Sometimes you think you wrote a really good post and no one comments – and then another time you think it’s mediocre and there’s lots of activity. Research your audience & evaluate your writing style to adjust and give your fans what they want without losing your style in the process. The hardest thing for me is cutting down the length – but it’s important.

2.       Use the tools that are free and readily available. Comment on other bloggers blogs, invite guest bloggers, build relationships and use social media platforms that share your content with a wide audience!

3.       Lastly, as tough as it was to make a video blog post there’s lots of potential to go viral and visuals are always appealing. By sharing your video on applicable platforms you may finally get the exposure you were looking for!

Lastly, this blog has helped me get over my fear of writing my personal thoughts in public and inspired me to start a “real” blog LOL. This one is for class but I’m the process of starting a blog that tracks daily weird, stupid, funny and strange moments that make me stop and think... If you enjoyed my writing style throughout the semester check out mangledmoments.com in a couple of weeks and I should be set up J

Amazon's FB Page

I went to the Amazon.com Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/Amazon?sk=app_165157536856903 to check out their lay out and creativity.  Let’s start with their wall. They have it organized by their posts - which is smart because negative comments are hidden behind their status updates unless a fan mindfully selects the recent posts option. Amazon posted last 2 days ago with 566 comments! The most recent post was from 5 minutes – from a few minutes of checking them out it looks like they’ve got their 600,000+ fans engaged!

The welcome tab was pretty lame; with the resources they have access to I’d say they’ve dropped the ball. Considering that the welcome page is the first page a consumer lands on before they “like” the fan page – you’d think more efforts would be put into first impressions.  I wasn’t planning on “liking” their page until I saw a fan had a question – so I had to “like” Amazon to answer the question... But this is the epitome of why their welcome page failed – I didn’t want to “like” them after I saw it...

There is one thing that I liked, and it wasn’t done with much creative abilities or fireworks but the @Amazondeals tab got me.  I scrolled down reading their daily deals and next thing you know I’ve clicked through and am searching the daily deals for the studded white gold and diamond earrings for $129!

While Amazon is wildly popular their lame attempt on Facebook is obvious with 600,000 fans – come on, even Papa John’s Pizza has more fans LOL.  In my opinion, the atmosphere is there Amazon just needs to take charge and do something for their fans.

Free Social Media Tracking Tools

After experimenting with multiple free tracking services (over 5 services), Twitalyzer proved to be the most useful in tracking individual and up to date conversations. Other services provided limited and outdated results. With Twitalyzer you can choose the exact search and receive all of the results in chronological order and real time. Even better - you can view multiple searches at the same time.

The company of choice is Lululemon which popular for shoppers both on and offline. I chose Lululemon because they have an aggressive social media campaign so there should be a large pool of results to choose from. 

10 Lululemon Tweets

P - Wooowwwww!! @lululemon stock down $4 and why?? Because they don't have enough clothes to meet their demand... #Success!!! Congrats folks!

P - whats on my wishlist? the @lululemon run:inspire crop. Preaaaaase

P - my bros status on fb is god bless tna and lululemon pants.. LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL

P - RT @lululemonfans: Congratulations on the new lululemon head office! We're very proud of you!

N - @CrazyCurly where is that Lululemon wall!!?

P - @katyjmeuer Miss you, Katy! Glad you are still in the #lululemon family

P - went to metrotown got a new lululemon jacket and headband and some clothes and went to pizza hut!!

P - @lululemon Love my new gym clothes! Motivated me through a double header @ the gym today.

P - @lululemon LOVE your gym clothes!! they all fit so well & wash so nicely-best material!!

P - @meg76ai omg, you're HOOKED! @lululemon has the most COMFY clothes EVER. there were some traditional sweatpants there i was eyeing up

Comments Sentiment: Positive 9/10 Neutral 1/10 Negative 0/10

My findings using the Twitalyzer reveal a very positive cloud about Lululemon. Most tweets were about Lululemon’s comfortable clothing and the fact that they’re selling out because they’re in such a high demand. While the sample of tweets I pulled were from a specific time (influx of similar topic matter during specific times) the results might be biased, however if I had to draw a conclusion on the tool and what I learned about Lululemon is that Twitalyzer provides exactly what you ask for, and it’s up to you to decipher what it means. In this case, the tweets pulled from the stream were mostly positive except for one which was neutral since the context wasn’t clear.This tells me that Lulu's fans on Twitter are happy and have no problem tweeting about it :)

Zappos.com is Clothes-Minded, Thinks Inside the Box

Las Vegas, NV - Zappos releases their new television campaign "Step Into Zappos"sharing their quirky culture and endless opportunities to shop online for clothing, accessories and shoes.

February 22^nd, 2009  

Client Contact Information:

Tel - 1800-927-7671

 Email - cs@zappos.com

Website: www.zappos.com

PR Contact Information:

pr@zappos.com

•Two 30-second and six 15-second spots embed Zappos Ten Core Values in the graphics which are woven throughout the "Step Into Zappos" ad campaign
• New television spots launch on February 22, 2009, airing nationally
• Zappos now has a wider selection of clothes, shoes, accessories, handbags
• Free shipping both ways and 365 day returns
• Airing on cable networks including Comedy Channel, MTV, ESPN, Bravo and E!

"We wanted our new ads to convey the evolution of the Zappos.com brand from an online shoe store to a one-stop shop for your entire wardrobe," said Michelle Thomas, Brand Marketing Manager, Zappos.com. 

"The ads show viewers that we've taken all the risk out of shopping online by offering free overnight shipping and returns and a really fun shopping experience without ever leaving the comfort of their own home."

Resources:                                                       Related Links:                                
Zappos Website                                              Zappos.TV Blog
CEO Twitter                                                   CEO & COO Blog
Zappos Facebook                                           Inside Zappos Blog

About Zappos.com
Established in 1999, Zappos.com has quickly become a leader in online apparel and footwear sales by striving to provide shoppers with the best possible service and selection. In 2008, the company's gross merchandise sales exceeded $1 billion. Zappos.com currently stocks millions of products from over 1000 clothing and shoe brands. Zappos.com was recognized in 2009 by FORTUNE MAGAZINE as one of the "100 BEST COMPANIES TO WORK FOR", debuting as the highest-ranking newcomer to FORTUNE's 2009 list. More information about the company's customer service philosophy, unique company culture, and job openings can be found at http://about.zappos.com More information about the "Zappos Insights" business membership program can be found at http://www.zapposinsights.com

Online Shopping Sites + Social Networking

Online shopping sites that are well established really should be engaged in social networking sites. Here are some that I found memorable or not:

I've always been a HUGE fan of Zappo’s Facebook page because they’re constantly updating their FB applications for their fans (it seems to be monthly). The current app is about spring fashion with a short video on putting outfits together & at the end reminding their customers of free shipping. I love this video because they’re answering what everyone wants to know – what’s hot this spring? They’re offering different outfits and styles and making it available on their site. It’s combining the desire to be socially accepted and cool and selling it. Love it!

The next online shopping site on my list is H&M, as their discussion board caught my eye. The H&M Facebook Discussion Board was filled with different topics and regions. While I think their wall is a lot more active and popular it’s good that they’re giving their fans a voice. I do feel that H&M is big enough to allocate more resources into building apps for their fans, they certainly have the following.

Lastly, & certainly not the least is the ThinkGeek Facebook page. I love their dedication to geek products and language. Their social media personality is completely dorky and their product features work for them. I like them because their products are weird and out there. So their “New Shinies” tab is awesome! They can directly market to their audience because the audience is being entertained by the products.

How to check if the site you’re ordering from is “safe”

This week’s blog article focuses on the security of shopping online. The Epoch Times released the article “More Canadians are Shopping Online” late in 2010 outlining the increase in online orders by Canadians.

Helena Zhu from The Epoch Times did a great job in sharing the collected stats from Statistics Canada about consumers and online shopping between 2007 and 2009.  The most shocking statistic for me was that 48% of people that both did and didn’t engage in online shopping were “very concerned about credit card use.”

Check out the following video for tips on checking the validity and security of a company before ordering from them.

Top 10 Shopping Sites

Everyone enjoys top ten lists so here are my top ten shopping sites and why.
If you think I missed any good one's let me know and I'll add them to the list!

-          ITunes (who isn’t using itunes?!)

      Spud (support local businesses)

-          Ami Clubwear (super cheap clothes & coupons)

-          Lululemon (Easy to navigate online shopping experience)

-          London Drugs (A place where you buy almost anything)

-          Price Canada (hunts the best deals on electronics)

-          The Shopping Channel (easy returns)

-          Amazon (a pioneer in online retail)

-          Think Geek (truly original products)

-          Victoria Secret (just because it’s every girl’s guilty pleasure)

And here are more recommended sites:

www.etsy.com

www.allcosmeticswholesale.com

www.hautelook.com

www.beyondtherack.com

www.priceline.com

Can You Digg It?

I'm sure the cheesy title has been used before, but this week’s blogging assignment had me signing up on Digg to “digg” a blog post. While I’ve heard of doing this – it was my first time. I chose a short but sweet blog article from the Clearly Contacts blog. While I may have some affiliation to this company, I truly enjoy their blog and the specific post that I Digg’d. With a million things on the go, I don’t really have interest or the attention span to read long winded articles unless they directly speak to me so this article is awesome. Clearly Contacts sells glasses online however they also have a blog that frequently runs themed contests, talks about glasses fashion and how to take care of your eyes.

My favorite post is called “Frames I Love Under $100” which has a quick run down of some popular frame choices that are under $100.00. The blog post is straight to the point and provides direct links to the site to order any of the frames. Posts like this from more websites would be most desired (for me at least), at the end of the day I care about style but only at the right price. I don’t want to weed through an article to find out what’s on sale; I want big pictures and links to low-priced items. I personally enjoy blogs that add new content regularly however keep the article short. I suggest subscribing to blogs from retailers that you enjoy buying from, or even brands that you like - you may just get in on deals that you can’t find anywhere else.

Who's Social Media Campaign Would I Want to Test?!

I would be interested in creating a test for online retailer Zappos.com and their social media campaign through Facebook called “What’s our Relationship Status” in the “For the Fans” tab http://www.facebook.com/zappos?ref=ts&v=app_172405469440343#!/zappos?v=app_172405469440343. This campaign is a Facebook app that asks fans to select one of the messages to describe their relationship with Zappos and posts to the customer’s wall. I would like to find out if this application is actually appealing to customers or do consumers see it as a blatant attempt for free advertising to their friends with no extra benefit to them. I would like to test this aspect of the campaign because social media campaigns require that the customer is engaged, entertained or educated, while they’re choosing the message it doesn’t really provide any entertainment.

The audience I would be interested in testing would be men and women between the ages of 18-35 years old who currently use Facebook and “like” Zappos. Zappos currently has a little over 94,000 fans so I think 1% of their Facebook fan base would be a decent sized group to test (940 participants). With a large group of 940 participants an interactive survey would be the easiest testing option. To get people to participate I would offer the chance to win one of five prizes (along the lines of an Ipad) for participating in the survey. This would be a Facebook tab on the Zappo’s page that has a sign up option; a fan would have to enter their email address to participate. Once the registration has reached 940, all the fans would be emailed a link to a questionnaire that expires within 48 hours. If they complete the questionnaire then they will be entered into the draw for the five prizes.

The link would first have the “What’s Our Relationship Status” application, then the questionnaire would follow. After the questionnaire there would be the option to view or participate in a live chat/open forum at the end with other participants to provide further feedback to the testing moderator or other fans. The questions I would include in the survey are posted below, the discussion option at the end is to allow and encourage discussion between customers and the brand. It’s important to show that the purpose of the survey is to listen to consumer opinions and offer them a chance to speak back to the brand – who knows they may have a good suggestion.

The questions for the questionnaire would be based on the application that they would view first, below are the questions:

-          Have you seen the “What’s Our Relationship Status” application previous to this survey? Y/N

-          If yes, did you use the application? Y/N/NA

-          If no, would you use the application? Y/N/NA

-          Do you like the concept of this application? Y/N

-          Do you feel this application entertains, educates or engages fans? Y/N

-          Do you feel this application is useless or boring? Y/N

-          Do you think this was a successful attempt to share the Zappos love among fans? Y/N

-          Does this application feel like a marketing campaign? Y/N

-          Do you think the tab “For the Fans” is the right place to store this app? Y/N

-          Does this app make you feel like you would:

o   Support Zappos more

o   Support Zappos less

The questionnaire would be kept at 10 questions to dig deeper into people’s initial feelings about the social media campaign without being overwhelming where they sign off because it’s too long. With simple multiple choice or yes/no questions it’s easier for the people running the test to come to a general conclusion than if they were in depth questions. The discussions after the survey would also be analyzed for additional feedback.

My blogging personality, if you haven't seen it already...

Honest, experienced and real are the three words I’d use to describe the way this blog is written. While writing these posts I think of my experiences while shopping online and how I’d tell my friend or family member what to look out for. I reflect on things I’ve seen and experienced, as well as heard of from other people. I think writing in first person is more interesting than third person, and provides more of a personal connection that you may not get otherwise. I write the way I think, and although my humour is often only funny to me I include it anyways. I will often write about what is, and my smart remarks throughout the post will spice up the content.

A blogger that I particularly like is Miss 604 http://www.miss604.com/. She has loads of local information on her blog but also mixes in her personality. When reading her posts you feel like she’s telling you what’s happening in the community and some of her other posts are quite personal. I’d like to think that the way I write about online shopping sites, is comparable to her writing style while still keeping in first person for a touch of personality. Maybe I should keep dreaming (LOL), but I’d like to share her writing qualities one day.

Who needs transparency when you’re shopping online?

A company that is afraid to share their policies and be open and honest about how their business operates should set off some red flags. It’s crucial that a company leaves up their positive and negative reviews as well provide a response on their social media platforms. Unanswered concerns or deleted posts lead the public to believe there’s dishonesty and potentially that the site is a scam.

Consumers often research, (which they should) before purchasing products from new sites. They will probably check the company’s site, background, Twitter account, Facebook page and blog if there is one. If there is frequent correspondence between the company and its customers that is a good sign. If the comments seem staged and there are no negative posts anywhere, chances are the company isn’t being transparent. The lack of transparency may cause a shopper to look elsewhere because they don’t know company’s integrity and commitment to its customers. 

When Kohl’s staged comments on their Facebook page two years ago they received a public back lash because their employees were stating great deals but didn’t admit that they worked for Kohl’s. While Kohl’s can be considered an established company, their actions deterred some consumers from trusting their brand and social media platforms.