We get excited when we get a chance to ahead forward with our full-service clients and strategize on the trends and tools that that will shape the coming year. Recently we gave some general ideas on how to create a social marketing plan for 2012. Today we’ll build on that and share some of the insight and best practices we’ve been developing with our premium clients.

As always, to go deeper on how each of these concepts can be integrated into your plans for next year, simply contact us. Without further ado, here are three important trends to bank on in 2012:

Go Mobile: Mobile continues to be adopted heavily as a research and purchasing tool by savvy consumers, accounting for 14% of all Black Friday traffic by some reports. Marketers should view it as a core tenet of 2012 planning. Stay ahead of the curve in 2012 and interact with your on-the-go audience in fun and unique ways. Utilize check-ins, instant offers or coupons to engage your audience in real-time. Think about using QR codes, which are underused and often misunderstood; when used properly they can help drive consumer behavior and can be a great compliment to a promotion such as a sweepstakes. Go beyond the web and reach customers in person or through print ads that utilize QR codes to drive consumers to your website, social channels, or a dedicated microsite.

Go Cross-Platform: Cross-channel promotions are becoming more essential than ever, as Google+ and other platforms continue to grow in popularity and cater to different user types and behaviors. The most social brands on the web are already experimenting with Google+ to find ways to authentically interact with their audience on this emerging platform. Google already announced that promotions cannot be hosted on the social network, surprising many brands that look to promotions to grow their audiences and interact with their fans. Instead, brands can use dedicated microsites, promoted and linked from their Google+ pages like they already do with Twitter sweepstakes, as the hub of a promotion geared toward their Google+ audiences. Microsites are the perfect way to allow engagement for users from their preferred networks, while controlling the visual branding, sharing tools and features.

Get In the Cloud: You know about the cloud, but you thought it was just for storage, security or distributed processing? It’s time to take your marketing into the cloud, too. Proactive brand marketers, already investing resources to engage audiences across social channels, think of their marketing as an always-on service targeted across a vast network of consumers, rather than a series of one-off campaigns and promotions. They use technology partners to deliver on-demand marketing utilities, ranging from promotions to branded apps to powerful back-end management and metrics dashboard.

You can start integrating the cloud by licensing a Software-as-a-Service tool (such as the Votigo Platform for creating audience engaging apps across all social platforms) or by tapping into a powerful API which your own developers can use to build out the social marketing apps that your need to take your audience to the next level.

Mobile…cross-platform…cloud.  Three technology trends in a grander context, and three critical components of your 2012 plan.  Check back here often, sign up to hear from us, or follow us on Twitter for frequent updates, offers, and examples of great executions.

When it comes to creating a winning social media promotion it’s all in the details, and no detail is too small. One seemingly small detail that can have a huge impact on the success of your campaign is the use of a custom graphic. When you create your own campaign with our new self-serve tool, you have the option of uploading a custom graphic into your header. You’ll want to take advantage of this feature, as it can help generate more entries and ultimately more fans for your Facebook page.

So, what makes a great graphic? The best graphics include your campaign details in a clean and straightforward design. This allows fans to get a general idea of what’s required to enter your promotion and what they have a chance to win, quickly and without having to read rules and details.
Here are a few ideas for creating a winning graphic:

1. List the steps required to enter your promotion so that people can see how easy it is to win
2. List the prizes at stake to get your fans excited
3. Take advantage of the space. You can upload large graphics with a maximum width of 520 pixels and a maximum height of 900 pixels

Create a great graphic and you’re well on your way to a successful promotion that grows your audience and engages your fans. Need more ideas for creating a winning promotion? Here are 5 tips for making your contest a success.

If you’re as tuned into the social media marketing landscape as we are, you no doubt noticed yesterday that Google unveiled Google+ Pages, the new capability for local businesses and brands and organizations worldwide to create their official home on the Google+, the rapidly-growing platform with at least 40M users. As Google writes, “…behind every page (or storefront, or four-door sedan) is a passionate group of individuals…For businesses and brands, Google+ pages help you connect with the customers and fans who love you.”

You probably also noticed coverage from TechCrunch and others reporting that Google won’t allow contests and promotions on Google+.

So, what can you do? Brands and agencies are already clamoring to take advantage of the reach and authentic sharing that Google+ empowers. We have already given simple advice for our clients: keep doing what you’re doing. Run a cross-platform promotion where a microsite- a simple but well-design website or landing page- serves as the centerpiece. Reference it and link to on your new Google+ page- this is allowed as long as you adhere to all the applicable rules, regulations and laws that pertain to your promotion. And while you’re at it, set up a mobile version, a Facebook app and even a Twitter version (for sweepstakes) or a YouTube hub (for video contests).

Most of our clients recognize the value of running marketing campaigns and promotions across social platforms. Budget and timing- not to mention the unique features of each network- don’t always allow for that, and there are many platforms anchored on Facebook or YouTube that are highly effective.

But don’t forget that before Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn and now Google+, there were websites. You can make a great case that a dedicated microsite- with custom graphics, flexible features and all the sharing tools you can imagine- serves as the best anchor for a social promotion. And that increasingly, a mobile landing page is a must-have for engaging consumers on the go.

So as far as leveraging Google+, play by the rules and take advantage of what is already there. Create a microsite to serve as the hub of your video contest, photo contest, sweepstakes, instant-win giveaway, coupon- any branded promotion you’re ready to run. Outfit it with all the sharing features available- including the +1 button. Create a complimentary mobile version that can also incorporate check-ins, QR codes and real-time offers. And then simply link to it on your new and rapidly-growing Google+ page.

A quick plug for pragmatism. One of the noteworthy aspects of the latest from Google+ is how drastically different of a policy it is compared to Facebook promotions. As a Facebook Preferred Developer- and more importantly as a full-service provider accustomed to providing legal resources among our service offerings- we are advocates of knowing the unique policies of each platform. Whether you let Votigo help you navigate these platforms or entrust it to someone else, please do invest the time to do it right.

So don’t waste any time in creating a Google+ page for your brand, business or organization. And when you’re ready to integrate Google+ into a cross-platform promotion, with web and mobile components or a simple independent landing page, let us know. We are ready to help.

It may seem like a no-brainer to connect your social media promotion to an event. That’s because events have, built-in, some of the most important components of a successful, audience-building, awareness-generating social media promotion:

1) The definitive, time-sensitive attention of an audience
2) An easy-to-integrate theme
3) And often a logical prize that goes perfectly with the occasion (tickets, access, a timely discount or gift)

Sporting events…concerts…product launches…conferences and conventions…even social media milestones (”Our 1,000,000th Follower!”)…these are all great events that savvy marketers effectively tie their promotions to.

Holidays- and the frenzied weeks that precede them- may be the single best sort of event to serve as a promotional anchor.

This week we read that Americans will spend close to $7B on Halloween by October 31- or 18% more than we did last year. Not surprisingly, recent use of our newly-launched self-service platform reflects a HUGE emphasis on Halloween promotion. Seemingly every other sweepstakes launched over the past week is Halloween-themed, from ticket giveaways for haunted houses to best dog costume photo contests. Some of these contests have engaged hundreds of entries almost immediately. And some great ones have come out of our full-services, like this costume contest from The Children’s Place.

So as a social media marketer, what do you turn your attention to once the Halloween rush subsides on Tuesday?

Holiday retail. While the holiday bonanza official kicks off in the wee hours of Black Friday, Nov. 25, when throngs of Early Bird shoppers line up for morning-after-Thanksgiving specials to OFFICIALLY launch the retail spree that runs through Christmas Eve and, really, New Year’s, the reality is that holiday commerce is already underway.

Votigo clients are well on their way to an impressive variety of contests, sweepstakes, mobile promotions (including check-in and coupon-based giveaways) and much more. Some are keeping it simple: a Facebook photo contest asking fans to submit a snapshot of them demonstrating their need for / favorite use of / funny drawing of a newly launched product or holiday favorite gift item.

Others will get more sophisticated with a cross-platform campaign that first captures audience attention on Facebook OR Twitter and a branded microsite, then drives them to a store for a chance at a mobile instant win or a coupon offer, and finally invites users to spread the word for additional votes (for a photo contest) or sweepstakes entries. These strategies work especially well for retailers, from mom-and-pop shops to national chains.

So even though it’s nearly All Hallow’s Eve- and that means Black Friday is a mere month away- there is still time to create your own promotion in our self-service tool or call our full-service team to get started on a premium promotion.

You’ve made the commitment to launch a photo contest or video contest to engage your customer audience on social channels. It’s a great idea since it clearly addresses the question: what do I do with my Facebook and social media following?

But all user generated content contests are not cut from the same cloth. Some work tremendously- relative to the goals of the sponsor. And some probably flop- though we’re unfamiliar with that variety.

There are a lot of factors involved. But while we’ve recently shared our thoughts on Why Social Media Contests Work and, earlier, simply How To Do Social Media, we’ll continue on the theme and get closer to our sweet spot. Today’s lesson, polled from our full-service client team: 3 Features that Push a Social Media Contest to Success.

1) Geotargeting: Localize the User Experience

Big brands are gravitating toward a localized content experience on Facebook, mobile and beyond, writes Lauren Fisher at SimplyZesty.

Or as Dave Williams, Bling Media CEO, wrote recently on Ad Age:

“Localized creative is effective at generating awareness and ultimately driving people into stores, building higher order value, and powering transactions. Think of it like the Sunday circular that runs in the newspaper every week. Instead of buying ads in the paper, brands can push weekly specials out to localized audiences, and do so far more efficiently with mass reach and frequency.”

The social media promotion feature that solves this: Geotargeting. Say you’re a retailer, restaurant or service provider and you want to talk to customers based on proximity to your retail locations. Either through Profile information (on Facebook) or by asking for a zip code, geotargeting allows you to promote events (store openings), offer coupons or even customize contest parameters and prizes at the local level.”

2) Voter Incentive: Removing Barriers to Participate

Everyone creates content on the internet right? Actually not: as Forrester Research reported last autumn (via ReadWriteWeb’s Sarah Perez), fewer than a quarter of the internet audience are Creators of social content.

It’s true that in nearly a year since the Forrester study was released, new forums for publishing social content abound. Not just Google+, Quora, Tumblr and the other surging social networks, but also apps like Instagr.am and services like Spotify are empowering users with even more opportunity to publish content (like stylized photos and personal playlists) to the social web.

Still, content creation is a barrier for some would-be participants of a photo or video contest. So on the one hand, a significant chunk of your brand’s audience are Creators. They are in the habit of creating content for the web, and they have more tools than ever to do so. That user generated content will lead to authentic engagement, viral brand storytelling among your customers, and a repository of content (video, images, words) to be repurposed for future use (with permission). Many contest sponsors would be thrilled with that result.

But on the other, you can generate far greater participation in the contest if you also remove the Creator barrier from participation.

A Voter Incentive does just that. This feature layers a sweepstakes, in which anyone who votes, or comments, or shares a submission, is eligible to win a prize, on top of the contest. Rewarded for participating, voters who haven’t submitted content still have incentive to check back daily or weekly, see the latest entries, cast a vote, spread the word again, and most importantly for you, reconnect with the brand.

Check out ABSA’s My Team, My Passion photo and video contest, which promotes the Currie Cup- South Africa’s premier rugby competition- and is sponsored by one of the nation’s largest banks. ABSA’s contest is perfect example of a well-staged user generated content contest- especially because the winning video will air during the Currie Cup Final, but also because the Voter Incentive awards weekly prizes to voters.

3) The Viral Incentive: A Round Trip to Spreading the Word

This refer-a-friend feature is critical for creating the word-of-mouth effect that is typically a goal for any social media contest. In essence, the contest participant gains additional entries to a sweepstakes each time someone they invite registers, votes or otherwise participates in the contest. It is a simple and powerful form of referral marketing and it virtually ensures word-of-mouth will happen.

You’re investing in a social media promotion- a great step to engaging and expanding your pool of potential customers and advocates across digital channels. Don’t forget about the details- those premium features that broaden participation, personalize the experience and trigger word-of-mouth.

Last week we offered up 4 reasons why Social Media Contests work in summer, in the marketing blitzes leading up to the school year and the holidays, or any time of year. Today we continue with 4 more reasons you should consider Contests and Sweepstakes as part of your social media strategy on Facebook and beyond.

5) Contests Work for a B2B audience, Too

93% of B2B marketers already use some combination of social media for marketing, according to SocialMediaB2b (via B2B magazine’s study).  Using social media for B2B marketing isn’t so different than for consumer brands, wrote Inc.’s JJ McCorvey: define your target audience and go to the channels they use with consistent, resourceful content.

A well-targeted contest geared toward business participants can certainly be part of your B2B social media strategy. Much more on this topic to come, but check out  the city of Yonkers, New York’s efforts to attract start-ups and “smart” businesses through its Y-Your Enterprise video contest. Small, growing businesses are entering to win office space at the Y-Enterprise Business Center; finalists videos will soon be posted. The contest also attracted press from Mashable’s Jennifer Van Grove when it launched in May.

6) Contests Integrate Well with Digital Ad Campaigns

Any social media promotion can- and should- be supported with an ad campaign that drives users and attention to it.  Speedway isn’t relying on word-of-mouth alone to drive (highly entertaining) submissions to its Fountain Palooza video contest. It’s also supporting the promotion with a digital display ad campaign that drives awareness and clicks from other entertaining websites to the contest home page.  Retailers with physical storefronts can  also represent the promotion with an in-store display, and add Twitter, Facebook and YouTube components, to attain cross-media awareness. And vice versa: a contest can support a broader ad campaign, and the video and photo submissions can (with permission) be repurposed into future ad content.

7) Contests Bring Your Brand’s Subject Matter to Life

Let’s say you’re an established business introducing a complex new technology, or simply launching a new product into an established market.  How do you hold the audiences’ attention long enough to convey the benefits of your latest innovation?  A contest is an effective way to tell the story of something new and breathe viral life into any discussion.

Waste Management, the long-reigning king of waste removal and recycling, launched a new product- the Bagster- to fill a void in the home waste removal market.  How does WM get consumers to think about this alternative, which fills a void between the curbside garbage can and the dumpster?  By asking customers to demonstrate the impact the new product could make in the Bagster Home Waste Loss Plan photo contest, which taps users for Before and After photos of home renovation projections where the large-capacity container could’ve come in handy.  It’s a clever spin on asking customers to show how they would use a new product.

8 )  Contests Build Through Stages To a Remarkable Conclusion

Finally, a great contest tells a story not as a one-time exposure (like seeing the same ad over and over), but through multiple stages of  activity.  Brands sponsoring a contest can engage the audience at several touchpoints- from announcing the imminent launch of the contest to collecting and showcasing submissions to announcing semi-finalists to hosting a finalist stage or grand prize event.   It’s easy to incorporate a lot of event milestones and multimedia elements to keep the audience engaged and checking back often.

Bank of the West’s recently-concluded Rockin’ O!maha Band Contest first collected videos of emerging groups performing original songs, and built to the crescendo of a free outdoor concert and fireworks show that took place over Independence Day Weekend in Omaha.  The contest winners- Take Me To Vegas- won the honor of opening the show for .38 Special and Cheap Trick in front of an estimated 62,000 fans. That’s an incredible build-up to a very memorable event.

There you have it- 8 solid reasons why social media contests can help you break your brand through the historically slow summer months and continue to build a following on Facebook and other social media platforms.  Please contact Votigo if you have questions or want to start planning something special. Enjoy the rest of your summer!

OMMA Social was already a week ago today, but the resulting insight continues to float around in the ether. Continuing on with yesterday’s recap of the Top 5 gems of social media marketing, as Heard on the Street at OMMA Social Internet Week New York last week…

3) “…you gotta get local!…”

Marketers know how important it is to reach customers at a truly local level- especially in retail, consumer goods, automotive, restaurants, etc. Digital and social media tools increasingly make this easier and more effective than ever. Integrating mobile features like check-in or real-time coupons is one effective means to the local end. Another is to simply design promotions that are targeted to local audiences. Taste of Dallas did just that to promote its 25th Annual festival, launching the Taste of Talent video contest the taps submissions from North Texas performers for a chance to win cash prizes and an opportunity to perform live at the July 8-10 event

4) “…Create a Destination & Host a Conversation…”

ong before social media, brands did their best to create a single destination on the web, a primary presence for attracting and retaining users. While e-commerce rapidly evolved, though, there was rarely anything inherently sticky (memorable, worthy of a return trip) about even the best company website. Enter social media and Facebook. Even companies that are coming late to the social media party understand: it’s not nearly enough to set up a basic Facebook page. The best brands motivate their visitors to return and participate in an ongoing discussion. SpikeTV gives MMA fans plenty of reasons to return with The Ultimate Fighter’s Facebook destination. Set as the default tab on the show’s Facebook page, this tab illustrates how video, comments, Twitter feeds and polls are great examples of content that engages users for longer and repeat visits.

5) “…Be Authentic…”

Probably the most repeated mantra of all social gatherings at Internet Week - from technologists demoing their latest tools to  brands sharing success stories to comedians talking about building loyal fan bases on Twitter - was “be authentic.” For brands, this means, among others, addressing the audience directly and with a level of (in)formality and transparency that matches the venue. On Twitter and Facebook, talking 1-to-1 with fans, responding to questions or comments, and dealing with critique are all part of it. In these social channels, brands simply can’t fake their way through a marketing campaign. Users are far too savvy. In general, the audience is okay with being marketed to if it’s not disruptive to how they are otherwise using the channel. And if it’s authentic. There’s no substitute.

The National Australia Bank Group (NAB) is a major sponsor of the Australian Football League, and a Melbourne-based banking business  in a community full of AFL fans. So when NAB launches a contest dubbed NAB Commentator- asking Facebook users to record audio commentary for memorable AFL moments - it uses the authentic voice of a sports fan (vs. a staid financial institution) to address the crowd, entice entries and activate the audience. Beautifully written and inviting- and the reward is authentic as it gets (an opportunity to call a quarter of AFL action and also attend the league championship.) Nothing could be more appealing to a fan.

If you’re like us and made the near-cross country trek last week to join the citywide festivities at Internet Week New York, your head was still spinning into the weekend from the abundant content, impassioned speakers and spirited meet-ups that marked the 4th annual Manhattan pilgrimage for thousands of laptop-toting, mobile checking-in, tsotchke-collecting, iced coffee-swilling, sweltering heat suffering, blogging, Tweeting, Facebooking mavens of the digital realm.

While our schedule was jammed from jackhammer-on-10th Avenue sunrise through OMMA Social on Thursday (which we proudly sponsored) to rooftop-party sundown, we had time to take note of certain recurring themes  that strike us as shareable. With a heavy nod toward social media promotions, and generous paraphrasing, here are 5 gems on doing social just right, as heard on the streets last week in New York.

(Note: So good was the word-on-the-street that we’ll break it up over two days…)

1) “…Roll out the welcome mat…”

Not simply because new users are visiting your microsite, reading your Twitter feed or logging on to your Facebook page for the first time should you spend an inordinate amount of time on your landing page . It’s been the rule of the internet for almost two decades, and the same now applies to your social media presence. Carefully design and test any destination page to your sites or microsites. Nail the description on your Twitter home. And on Facebook, invest in great tabs.  It may be the difference between a quick bounce and a return visitor, but more important, it’s as much a representation of your brand as your logo, your ad on TV, or your booth at the trade show. See an example in the home tab for Craftsman’s Finding American Treasures photo contest landing tab on Facebook. It’s visually striking, to the point, and an authentic homage to the timeless tool brand.

2) “…Define your audience…”

Know your audience…target your audience…understand your audience…cultivate your audience…  You’ve heard it so much  that it’s almost cliche.  But it could never be more true.  Social media is not mass media, despite the opportunity to reach a vast audience.  Every component of a social channel can be geared to a carefully defined audience.  The narrower the target, the more interactive their response will be. Great promotions- like great brands- don’t try to be all things to all people. This theme comes up repeatedly in a forum like OMMA Social- so much so that we can break it down further:

(part 1): Address an Affinity

Identify the affinities- professional interests, personal passions- that unite your audience and center your social media efforts on them. We are not all drummers even though we all may wish we could channel an inner John Bonham. But percussion & music publishing brands Mapex, Remo, Zildjian, Vic Firth and Alfred didn’t worry about targeting the whole universe when they launched the Drummer of Tomorrow user-generated video contest. They simply targeted the whole universe of drummers with a relevant call-to-action (and extremely relevant prizes).  The reaction from the community has been a robust and heart-pounding flood of entries from drummers laying down their beats over the downloadable soundtracks.

(part 2): Multiple Channels for Multiple Audiences


Not all customers share the same perspective.  Hopefully they all end up at the same cash register or check out page, but they arrive at your brand with very different attitudes and motivations.  Whichever audiences you are pursuing, interact with them uniquely.  Case in point: not only is  Mercury Marine’s Mercury Film Festival a well-integrated user-generated video contest microsite (with complimentary coverage on the brand’s homepage) and again, great prizes for entrants; the “celebration of all things marine” also offers a sweepstakes with additional prizes for the voters, the company’s partners and dealers, and even its employees.  These other parties- not typically eligible for an open contest- are often the best advocates for spreading the word. Mercury Marine is giving all segments of the audience their due in this contest.

Tune in tomorrow for Part II of Heard on the Streets in New York: How To Do Social Media Marketing

Further reading: SmartBrief just published a follow-up Internet Week / Social Media recap written by Heidi Cohen of Riverside Marketing Strategies.

Team Detroit is no stranger to accolades for its Ford Motor Company work, so it isn’t merely to sing praises that we highlight The Global Ford Ranger Challenge. The latest Ford social media promotion also illustrates some important mobile functionality and user experience queues- not to mention that it’s visually striking with great alignment of brand and call-to-action, and powered by Votigo.


The just-launched Global Ranger Challenge asks users to submit photos, videos or essays of how they would put Ranger’s Dynamic Stability Control to the test, in competition for a chance to attempt and film their challenges and ultimately win a new Ranger. One entrant promised to relive a long-ago family road trip; another would head straight to Ayers Rock for some off-roadin’ in the Outback. A quick browse of the Challenges already submitted is enough to inspire a dream holiday to the home of Uluru.


Viewers can see featured entries and share them via Facebook, Twitter or email, but must register and log-in to submit, comment or vote. Sharing drives traffic back to the microsite-FordRangerChallenge.com.au- which then links to the Australian home page for the truck.


To accommodate the campaign’s incredible geographic reach- it launched first in Australia as homage to the truck’s design and engineering heritage but will ultimately extend to 11 countries, from South Africa to Thailand- entries can be submitted from any mobile device, including smart phones but also feature phones and basic handsets. A must for any brand launching an international promotion with a critical mobile component is to extend access to the broadest range of devices possible, not to mention to get expert guidance on the local regulations in every jurisdiction where the contest or sweeps is open.