So there you have it. One simple marketing rule is that brands should talk to consumers wherever consumers wish to be communicated with. Facebook Offers is directly integrated into the Facebook platform which means you’ll be able to easily honor those preferences. Fans will see, redeem and share your offers directly within their news stream alongside updates from friends and family, without visiting your page. (Did you know most Fans don’t interact with your posts directly on the Page?)

That’s not all. The same location-targeting options apply for Offers as they do other Timeline posts, ensuring offer code caps/limits won’t be wasted and redemption numbers will be clean. You might want to feature different types of offers to Fans in different cities or countries. Or, you might not want them to see an offer at all.

You’ll also be able to showcase your offers to non-Fans via Facebook advertising. This is an important distinction (and for Facebook, an important revenue stream) because Facebook advertising will significantly increase the reach of your offers and help meet your marketing objectives.

Yes, objectives. It’s important to keep in mind that Facebook Offers might not be ideal in all situations. For example, Facebook Offers won’t help your brick and mortar business create new email permissions for future marketing the same way an optimized landing page would.

And yet there will be many great use-cases. Some of the most intriguing I can’t wait to try are:

• Surprise Rewards (e.g., “The first 50 Fans to redeem get a free ___ in our stores as our way of saying thanks”) — Keeping the number of redeemable offers low makes sense in initial tests if you’re especially worried about operational logistics or a stampede of foot traffic. For Fans miffed about missing a code, be prepared to tell them they’ll be additional opportunities in the future.
• New Trial Offers — Supporting an offer with ads targeted to non-Fans has the potential to increase sales and Facebook Fans in one fell swoop. If it’s an online-only offer, throw email permission into this mix as well. Win-win-win, for pennies on the dollar.

It’s been staggering to watch Facebook grow ever since I created my personal profile in 2004. It’s safe to say the platform will continue to evolve and create additional revenue-generating opportunities both for itself and your business.

What Facebook questions do you have?

If we can help your brand become more powerful using social marketing tools such as Facebook, start by calling Dan Heimbrock or Bernie Joyce at HyperDrive at 513-444-4000 for a free consultation.

During the class, we learned about creating content, building results-driven emails, and best practices about how to create dynamic content based on a subscribers unique attributes. Since then, HyperDrive has put a lot of emphasis on what we learned into new email campaigns for one of our favorite clients, RENT-2-OWN.

In the past for RENT-2-OWN, we had used dynamic content to place relevant localized information (mainly store information) using the data we have.  Yet, when you step back for a moment, it makes more sense to provide information about the store(s) that R2O’s customers frequent most. So why not take this customization a step further and actually build emails crafted for a specific store location?

RENT-2-OWN has 30 locations- all located in Ohio and Northern Kentucky. It is safe to say that what customers care about in Cambridge, OH isn’t always the same as in Louisa, KY. Yes, we continue to send out our company-wide emails with the same dynamic content mentioned above, but we wanted to accomplish something even better.

We needed a campaign that would allow a RENT-2-OWN store manager to choose their promotion, create a request, and send an email to only their customers. So that is exactly what we did. Our new individual store email campaign really takes advantage of all the cool things I learned at the ExactTarget Academy. I am now building content (of course, already designed) and serving up emails that are really getting the job done.

Proven Results:

• To date, we have sent a total of 14 emails
• Open rates have been as high as 16.5%
• Click through rates up near 3.5% and 4.1%

This new way of creating campaigns will only get better and grow with time. It was exciting to use all the information, tips, and tricks I learned at ExactTarget Academy, and I am even more excited to see it all working!

But as we know, there are many reasons why most new product launches fail. Consumers don’t fall in love with the product despite what can be multi-million dollar advertising and slotting allowance investments. A great product is certainly mandatory if brands stand any prayer of gaining a consumer following. It is surprising that so many me-too brands attempt to launch products that fail to have a compelling value proposition and/or deliver just an ordinary user experience. Be ordinary and you fail…its that simple.

The Big Guys, like Procter & Gamble and Pepsico, continued to launch successful brands in 2011 according to Symphony IRI’s “2011 New Product Pacesetters” report released this week. But smaller, more highly targeted brands have been able to enjoy tremendous success not through mass advertising and promotion, but rather by attracting and engaging a core “brand fan” audience. The power of word of mouth marketing has driven the once tiny Udi’s Gluten Free Foods to spread across the country like wildfire. HyperDrive was proud to have been a part of the launch team and loves seeing Udi’s grow at a staggering rate in just 2 years on the market.

Udi’s secret to success started with a remarkable product that a specific target audience was desperate to find: a tasty gluten-free bread that didn’t crumble. When Udi’s introduced their line of breads and other baked goods in Whole Foods and Kroger to name a few, people were truly excited about the taste, texture and availability of fresh Udi’s products. The brand invested in online marketing capabilities and sought email permission from every one they touched, online and in person. Social media, especially Facebook, served as a platform for sharing content, reviews and “store spotting” of Udi’s products among the target audience. Word spread rapidly and sales climbed as the brand expanded retail availability. Read the HyperDrive Case Study of Udi’s Online Marketing Success.

Udi’s Gluten-Free Foods shows others how effective online marketing for CPGs is done today. Start with a remarkable product, one worth talking about, and enable your target audience to find you and connect with the brand directly. Then create and publish great content that is easy to share, easier to talk about and built around the brand’s core value proposition. Treat every contact as you would wish to be treated. And finally, rely on being a great brand rather than a great advertising campaign.

Bravo Udi’s! May your lessons resonate with the CPG industry!

Here is what the report’s editor said about the New Products success formula:

“With the growing presence and power of social media, as well as the potential to innovate freely and creatively, the ‘go-to-market’ playing field is a bit more level than it has been in the past,” says Susan Viamari, editor, Times & Trends, SymphonyIRI. “Many of today’s most powerful launches are quite targeted and this trend is ultimately changing the definition of successful innovation. Big or little, CPG manufacturers with a laser-like focus on true marketplace needs, at an increasingly granular level, will be the ones to enjoy new product success in the years to come.”

If we can help your brand attain this level of success is yet to be known. Start by calling Dan Heimbrock or Bernie Joyce at HyperDrive at 513-444-4000 for a free consultation.

Look out New York, here she comes!

The goal of the shows was to get Lish’s name and art ‘out there’ to prospects and other gallery owners in NY and around the world. According to Lish, “the published hand-outs and information HyperDrive provided not only answered questions but also helped to deliver solid leads for driving future sales.”

The printed materials gave prospects a quick glimpse of Lish’s accomplished art skills, and were also created to help grow her social networking campaigns and to promote her web gallery which can be found at www.LuminousLish.com.

“They (HyperDrive) worked with me at the speed and pace to accomplish my goals,” said Lish. “They listened to my custom needs and requests and matched my high expectations again and again to find the perfect solution to take my passion to the next level. I gave input to get the ball rolling and then left it up to the pros to make my dream happen.”

Lish’s artwork is special. Layers of paint and polyurethane separate and blanked each other in organic forms. Chunky transparent amber pickets contain the under layer of color and shape. Insects and plant materials sometimes become trapped in the layering process, give their own contribution to the image, as well.

“The hidden surprise to the viewer is when the photo luminescence is revealed,” Lish explained. “When the lights go out, the painting comes alive, as a totally different creation of color, glow dimension, and fluid movement. Glow in the dark has been around for quite a while, but this isn’t your ordinary glow in the dark media.”

To best understand her one-of-a-kind designs, Lish’s web gallery includes a good selection of her favorite works. When you arrive, you’ll notice a button toggle that says ‘Switch to Night,’ which gives the viewer a perspective of the artwork during daylight and nighttime hours. The art is energized best by natural sunlight, but artificial light also brings out the glow. To demonstrate this at the NYC shows, viewers were offered a laser pen that allowed them to ‘customize’ the paintings with light by drawing their own shapes and words on the canvas…all of which eventually disappear completely either when the lights are turned back on or once the luminescence fades.

The results from networking in NYC helped Lish open up 3 new product lines, and also diversified her art to multi-levels of application to reach a broader market. It also opened doors to new markets she had not thought of, including glass table tops, glass tiles, and reusable doors.

Lish’s current collection is ocean-themed and very organic. “My Discover Belize collection is based on the concept of ‘under the sea,’ said Lish. Her next opening will be held at the Warsaw Project Gallery on June 8-9 in Cincinnati. Currently she is showing at Gallery Veronique, 11356 Montgomery Rd, Cincinnati, Ohio 45249. You can find and purchase her newest creations at her website (www.LuminousLish.com) or on her facebook page.

About Lish (Alicia Emley) Luminous Abstract Expressionist
Inspired by Mother Nature’s endless creativity, power, and detail, Lish’s paintings are extremely textural and organic. Her work contains excessive “globs, cracks, and transparent pockets” that reference depth, energy and balance. Layering the mixed media with encapsulated organic matter, metallic washes, and a hidden surprise only to be seen in the dark. The glow of a whole different creation.

Fluid movement and powerful energy thrust with texture and color, all done for the most part with recycled paint and other building materials. To receive the brightest glow from the paintings, use direct sun light to charge. The solar charge is the brightest glow.

Her work dating back to 2003 can be seen at Bridgetown Finer Wine, Oak Crest Animal Office, FanMail Marketing, HyperDrive Interactive, Klekamp Industries, Rybolt Snap Fitness’s, Domain Salon, Wegman Company, and Kessler Photography.

This is a turnkey program. From the identification of your best customers in geo-targeted cities or regions, to the development of a Taste & Tell Kit fully customized to your brand’s unique needs – we do the work for you.

Then we gather information and feedback along the way to measure your program success and ROI. Brand leaders remark how well their Taste & Tell Program integrates into existing email marketing and social media strategies – but it can also be used as an affordable grassroots campaign to kick start any direct-to-fan marketing plan.

What Do You Get with this Program?

• Strategy Development:  HyperDrive determines execution and communication needs based on your goals and objectives for WOM.
• Asset Creation: We develop digital assets to convert your greatest fans into brand-influential Taste & Tell Members. Your customized program may include targeted online advertising, invitation emails, signup landing pages, and a variety of in-program and post-program email campaigns.*
• WOMM Kit Ideation and Creation: We create a custom WOM kit (physical and/or digital) to send to your fan base. It contains the best tools, tips and topics for Taste & Tell Members to use when sharing your product with others. Materials may include a program overview, product information, samples, trial coupon flyers and other sharable content.
• Fulfillment:  HyperDrive’s full service in-house fulfillment center will process and deliver outbound kits to your requirements.
• Program Measurement:  We provide complete program reporting and continuously analyze your metrics at every step in the process to ensure you are getting the most out of your investment.
• Customer Service:  If questions or suggestions arise, one of HyperDrive’s Customer Service representatives will act on your behalf by responding to consumer feedback and requests for additional materials. We provide you with detailed reporting of all interactions.

Top 3 Reasons Why HyperDrive Taste & Tell Programs are Successful…

• All Inclusive: We’ve developed an efficient program with strategic development, online components, kit development, fulfillment and results tracking.
• Scalable to Fit Your Needs: From proof-of-concept to continuous and fully automated daily programs, HyperDrive supports your brand from design through fulfillment.
• Metrics Reporting: Coupon redemption, email engagement, post-program feedback, outbound customer support reporting, and detailed email marketing results.

The Bottom Line?
Consumers today have taken full control of the buying process and rely heavily upon the advice of friends and family combined with online research. Let HyperDrive show you how to enjoy an all-in-one solution that makes your brand the focus of their conversations. Call Bernie Joyce at 513-444-4000 or email bjoyce@hyperdrivei.com.

*an account with ExactTarget email marketing is required and available as a separate cost.