In part 1 of this post, I introduced four cutting edge marketing strategies that can help your company stand out against the 21st century landscape. Here are three more:
05. Re-Engineering
Re-Engineering is a fancy name for a simple strategy that’s gaining in popularity. The idea is to reduce research and development costs by inviting the public to purchase your product unfinished. It sounds a little crazy, but your customers just might jump at the opportunity to participate in the development of your product.
As early adopters begin to interact with your product, they discuss and refine ways to make the product better. You listen, implement the best suggestions and release improved products. Easier said than done, since most of us aren’t really that great at the listening part. But there’s no better way to build trust in your brand.
06. Strange Loop
A strange loop is the holy grail of modern marketing.
A strange loop is an infinite loop that gives you the impression that you’re actually moving forward. It’s like walking along the surface of a Möbius strip, psychologically speaking. At no point should it be clear you’re in a loop, even when you’re back at the start.
It’s not cheap or easy to do this, but it’s so profitable if you succeed. A good viral marketing campaign has built in strange loops to prevent the campaign from reaching critical mass. There is always forward motion.
In a practical sense, this means, not only creating content the recipient will want to pass on, but creating content he or she NEEDS to pass on. It means your content has some built-in element that compels the receiver to spread it.
To date, social networks are the biggest pioneers here. A social network is only good when the network is big enough. A viral network will attract users. a strange loop will force those users to bring more users.
07. Buzz Monitoring
Once you’ve implemented some of the six strategies I’ve described so far, you’ll be well on your way to seeing a serious return on your investment. But, don’t forget one vital, overarching strategy — buzz monitoring.
Buzz monitoring isn’t just about measuring results, although that’s important too. Buzz monitoring allows you to track and respond to what people out there in the world are saying about your brand. A failure to monitor and respond to chatter about your brand has lead to many fatal or near-fatal media catastrophes.
One key metric to consider in buzz marketing is influence. Every forum, social network or blog has a different level of influence. If a tiny business blog in Mongolia mentions your website, that’s not worth as much as getting featured on Smashing Magazine’s site. The concept of influence will help you prioritize your responses as people begin to notice and interact with your brand online.
So there you have it! Seven marketing strategies you may not have thought of!
Which of these strategies have you put to work in your business? Tell me in the comments…
August 25, 2010 at 10:32 am |
I’m not sure if I understand buzz marketing. Isn’t that just things like customers surveys? I thought people have been doing that since forever?
August 25, 2010 at 10:48 am |
Great question, Rebekah! Customer surveys have been around forever, but social media technologies allow us to take this to a whole new level. Large companies can now interact with individual consumers like never before. That’s not the same as gathering feedback from a sample.
Also, with buzz monitoring, keep in mind that the chatter may not be directed at you. People may be talking to each other about your brand within their own social circles. Effectively, you’re eavesdropping on other people’s conversations, but only when they’re talking about you! This gives you a whole new level of insight into what they’re really thinking.
August 25, 2010 at 10:36 am |
[...] back tomorrow for part two of this post, where I’ll reveal even more cutting edge marketing strategies you’ve never heard of! Possibly [...]