“If she recommends it, they will come.”  Though that’s not the original quote from Field of Dreams, it is becoming more and more true.  Women are considered the biggest brand ambassadors.  It is highly likely that if a woman recommends a product or service to a friend or colleague, there’s a great chance of that friend purchasing or subscribing to that service.

NBCU, a female-targeted ad sales and marketing initiative, compiled “online search data from comScore, social media buzz data from New Media Strategies and online chatter charted by The Keller Fay Group, a word-of-mouth research firm,” to list the 25 brands most important to women.  Their findings are shown below:

Lauren Zalaznick, president of NBCU’s Women & Lifestyle Entertainment Networks, including Bravo and Oxygen as well as the iVillage Web hub, states that the index was conceived out of the fact that 20,000 brand recommendations are offered every month on iVillage and that 85% of consumer purchases were driven by women’s recommendations.

This index can prove to be key for companies.  The index found that brands that used new media in combination with their traditional marketing made some of the biggest moves along the index.  For example, Gap moved from No. 44 to No. 17 in August when they offered a discount incentive to shoppers via Foursquare check in.  Pizza Hut also utilized Foursquare to deliver discounts and moved from No. 73 to No. 60.

The major point Zalaznick wants to drive home is that women and their opinions are extremely influential.  Women trust other women’s recommendations more than any other form(s) of media.  So, if you want to see results in your cash registers, make sure you provide your women consumers with something great to talk about.

For more information on the index, check out: http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/special-reports/studies/e3i386774579db7c203fa322f60a6850e6a?pn=2

It’s no longer simply about creating the perfect campaign.  Companies that are becoming the most successful at marketing their products are doing so by creating “marketing movements.”  “Movement marketing starts by finding an idea on the rise within the culture and tries to capture it dramatically and emotionally.”

Movement Marketing’s goal is to have people feel like they are joining a brand, not just buying it.  Movement Marketing is powerful because it allows people to feel like they are part of something big and exciting.    For example, Dove’s Real Beauty Movement was one of the most powerful movement marketing pieces for women.   It gave women a reason to celebrate their bodies, during a time when the media was bombarding the public with images of too-thin models/ actresses and were depicting that as the norm. TBWA Chiat’s Pepsi Refresh Project is also an amazing example of getting the public involved in a large scale cause, but also a way to embed your brand as the positive part of the change.  A few other great Movement Marketing projects to gain inspiration from are the WWF’s “The Earth Hour,” and Lance Armstrong’s “Livestrong” foundation movement.

To find out more about Movement Marketing, or to get even more inspired, go to: http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/news-and-features/direct/e3iafd7f303bda986c2a2045827c9b26b32

CAPTCHA security codes allow websites like Ticketmaster and StubHub to prompt users to decifer a code of distorted letters and type them into a box in order to move onto the next step on the website, proving you are a person and not a phising bot.  The interesting thing about these CAPTCHAs are that they really require your undivided attention because the codes are so random and you have to type them in perfectly.

Advertisers are now realizing that these CAPTCHAs might be just the thing they need in order to get users to really pay attention to their online messages.  For example, “Toyota, has a type-in ad that features a mother holding her baby, and to the right says, “Star Safety System.” At the bottom, it asks the user to type in those three words.”  This reinforcement of Toyota’s safety perks as a security feature ensures that the user has at least seen the ad, had to read it and then re-type it before they can proceed with their online purchase.  Toyota, and other advertisers who are testing out this advertising medium, are banking on the belief that ‘If you write something down, you remember it.’

The best part about these ads is that even though the naked eye believes that they are merely re-typing a slogan or fact about their brand, no two type-ins are identical because each has slight variations in the pixilation.

For more information about the company behind this technology, as well as more about how these CAPTCHA type-ins work, go to: http://adage.com/digital/article?article_id=145986

Home builders, Toll Brothers and Lennar, have begun putting solar panels on their new homes as an affordable way for home buyers to benefit from solar energy without the huge upfront installation costs.   California, specifically, is where developers are testing and installing the solar panels, and so far the companies (and homeowners) are happy with the response.  The catch is that the solar companies actually own the systems, and the new homeowners just lease the panels from the company.

Toll Brothers’ partner, SunRun, offers 20-year leases on the solar panels, which they say, saves home owners an average of $50 a month on a $150 electric bill.  When the solar panel lease expires, homeowners can renew the lease of the panels or they can remove them.  The lease can also be transferred with a home sale.

On the other hand, Lennar’s program partner in their Fresno and Southern California developments is SunPower.  SunPower details that over half of the 260 solar homes sold, included leased solar, although no other details are provided.

This new trend in adding solar is not limited to California residential properties, in fact the state is also turning into the destination for greener companies as well.  WalMart is one company that is actively going greener with their new solar initiative.  For example, the company will put solar on another 20 to 30 facilities in California and Arizona. The solar installations will produce up to 30% of the facilities’ energy.

For more information on homeowner’s solar panel options, as well as WalMart’s green plan, click on the links below:

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/energy/2010-09-20-solar20_ST_N.htm

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/environment/2010-09-20-walmartenergy20_ST_N.htm

Wal-Mart is enterting the mobile communications arena with its new dirt cheap mobile plan.  Though the store has previously offered Verizon and Sprint plans at a discount, the new $45 per month Wal-Mart Family Mobile (including unlimited text and voice messaging) is a big step for the company.  The Wal-Mart Family Mobile plan also allows family members to add extra lines for $25 each and the plan does not require a contract.

Interestingly enough, Wal-Mart isn’t erecting cell phone towers , nor are they building a global communications network.  They are simply “partnering” with T-Mobile by running on their network, but your “contract”will be with Wal-Mart and you will use their customer support.  Plus, Wal-Mart’s plans are definitely cheaper than T-Mobile’s.

Wal-Mart’s Family Mobile plan won’t be a game-changer in the industry (due to its data restrictions) but it definitely will be bringing more handsets to low-income families. (And this is definitely something for marketers to pay attention to!)

So Rox’ers….will you be visiting Wal-Mart to check out their new cell phone program?

For more information, go to: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/13/walmart-cell-phone-plan-i_n_714765.html

The times of fully-formed search queries are gone! In the biggest change to the look and feel of web searching since the beginning, Google Instant, allows search results to pour in, beginning with the first keystroke.  Users are now able to access a plethora of information immediately, and advertisers are able to get their information in front of consumers more quickly and more often.  For example, “a specific query like “men’s work boots size 10″ yields dozens of top natural results (Mapquest, Mets, Menupages, Men’s Wearhouse, Men’s Workouts, etc) as the query is keyed in.”

Google Instant claims to save users and estimated two to five seconds per inquiry.  The major concern with this influx of information is that people could get easily distracted with all the information being thrown their way and shift away from what they originally started searching for, ultimately negatively impacting a company’s click-through and sale rates. Google tries to diffuse concerns with marketers by letting them know that all companies will be affected evenly in both the positive and negative circumstances.

What marketers do know right off the bat is that the number of ad impressions per search increases astronomically with Google Instant.

For more information about why your Google Search looks and functions differently, go to: http://adage.com/digital/article?article_id=145854

There’s nothing more exciting in our industry than when an innovative campaign hits the market.  You know, the types of campaigns that leave you at a loss for words, while thinking “Why didn’t I think of that?!” Marriott is getting my vote for the most exciting new O-O-H campaign.

Marriott is building upon the success of their 2009 campaign “Refreshing Business,” a campaign that showcased the redesign of their lobbies.  Now Marriott is upping the ante by recreating actual hotel lobbies at airports nationwide.  The lobbies, which are being set up a Chicago O’Hare, Hartsfield Atlanta and Denver International, will debut on September 15th and will be on display through November 14th.  Travelers will get free access to the lobbies, which boast a vibrant and contemporary color scheme and also includes free internet access for guests.

The campaign kick-off event was even more spectacular as Marriott created a replica of its new lobby at Grand Central Terminal and invited Grammy Award Winner John Legend to perform.

Marriott believes this o-o-h/guerilla campaign is the best way to reach its target demographic: the savvy, modern, business traveler.  By featuring the lobby set ups where business travelers are, airports and train stations, they are keeping their brand top of mind with their prized consumer.  For more information on this campaign launch, go to: http://www.brandweek.com/bw/content_display/news-and-features/direct/e3i5d86cb3297fb74c5fe9728144b4911e4

Two additional companies that are launching very exciting and innovative campaigns are Delta and Timberland.

Checkins, barcodes, group buying initiatives, activity-based rewards and opt-in lists are just a few ways that location-based services are helping small businesses get noticied.  As location-based technology continues to grow and as more and more consumers begin to feel comfortable with sharing their every move, small businesses will have the opportunity to reward their loyal patrons for their in-store behaviors.  Here are several suggestions for how small businesses can make the most of the location-based technology:

1. Verified Checkin Rewards – Verification is critical for small business owners who want to provide their consumers with checkin rewards.  SCVNGR is a great location-sharing service because it was built with verification in mind, alleviating the concern with other apps that might not provide the data they claim to.  “The startup, which seeks to serve as a game layer for the real world, has a QR code checkin feature; businesses can display QR code decals to encourage patrons to pull out their mobile phones and scan the QR code to check in to their venues. Since the scan is tied to a specific location, the checkin is valid.”
2. Social Barcodes – If you are a small business that sells products, you already have barcodes.  New technology from companies like Bakodo, Stickybits, and Shopkick allows consumers to scan your product barcodes and engage with them, either to comparison shop, read reviews from friends and/or make informed purchasing decisions. The social engagement element is highly beneficial to small businesses.
3. Group Deals – Group deals are the newest craze.  Led by companies like Groupon, consumers are introduced to small and local businesses and can try their services at a highly discounted rate.
4. Challenge-Based Rewards - Not only does SCVNGR allow QR code checkins but it also enables retailers to offer customer rewards to patrons based on specific behaviors.  SCVNGR’s challenge-based reward system is a lot more flexible than Foursquare and Gowalla, as it allows businesses to decide the number of rewards they want to give out, how many points are needed to unlock a reward, etc.
5. Opt-in Deals – In an effort to reduce the clutter that can accumulate with traditional email marketing campaigns, new startup Bizzy, was designed as a go between for small business who want to distribute their hyper-local deals.  Bizzy only offers the deals to interested parties who have opted-in.  It is ideal for a small business because you can connect directly with the consumers that are interested in  your product and you can find out what they really want/need from your business.

As location-based technologies continue to grow, small businesses will be able to fine tune what their consumers want and need and the business will in turn be able to provide it.  The suggestions listed above are great ways to introduce yourself to the technology and play around with what works and what doesn’t, without paying an agency and spending your marketing budget.

For more information, go to: http://mashable.com/2010/09/04/location-based-small-business-deals/