THE WHITLATCH WEEKLY

THE TOP 5 REASONS WHY BEACONS ARE A MARKETER'S NEW BEST FRIEND Picture this... You're walking through the Mall and suddenly, an advertisement, contest, or even a coupon pops up on your phone. Conveniently enough, that notification is from the same store you're currently browsing this very minute. Creepy right? Well, to marketers and advertisers across the globe, it's not creepy one bit. In fact, beacon marketing (or proximity marketing) is going to explode in 2016. I bet you think your smartphone is pretty smart right now. You haven't seen anything yet. Let's revisit that little scenario I mentioned previously. The lead-off batter in today's Top 5 list: 1.) Proximity Marketing   Whether the grocery store, your favorite restaurant, or even the mall, your location says so much about yourself.  Especially if there is a trend or pattern to that location. Proximity Marketing not only enhances the experience and convenience for the consu...

This will be the year marketing changes.  I mean really changes.  The year where the modern consumer jumps on the bandwagon.  The Millennial bandwagon that is.  Millennials are considered to be anyone born around 1980-2000, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have the “Millennial Mindset.”  Brands no longer target a certain age group, but rather those who have adopted the modernized way of marketing and being reached via marketing.  So sit back, relax, and let me tell you why Millennials will shape the new era of marketing... you just might like it. Making up a quarter of the United States, Millennials remind me of that friend we all have.  You know the one.  If you meet them once, you probably won’t really like them to be honest.  But after a few more hang-outs and convos, they begin to grow on you.  No more do you just see the headphones, the cell phone, text this, tweet that.  You finally see something more.  Somethin...

          As everyone knows by now, Social Media is constantly changing. The way we use Social Media, share Social Media, what's popular and what's not, even the way we keep track and evaluate Social Media changes regularly.  But we adapt.  We figure it out.  Develop a plan for 2016 and STICK TO IT. Rome wasn't built in a day, nor will your profile and follower base be. Here are some of the things to expect in Social Media for 2016.            Images are becoming more and more vital to a successful marketing strategy.  People like pictures or videos more than words.  Period.  Instead of reading some long paragraph, people would prefer seeing a picture or info-graphic to express what you want to say.  Who has time to read these days anyway, right?  In 2016, companies will actually implement specific image strategies for their marketing.  What catches people's eyes?  What p...

Social Media and hashtags go together like milk and cookies, peanut butter and jelly, or really any cliche example of perfect duos you can think of.  Like other resources provided via Social Media, hashtags are one we definitely need to be familiar with, inside and out.  Hashtags can be a very reliable and traceable tool, but you must know how to use them effectively.           I like to think of hashtags as a type of tool similar to the "Bat Signal."  Yes, the same one Lt. Gordon would shine so brightly over the streets of Gotham City as a call to Batman.  Such a simple image cast into the sky for a specific purpose.  It can be seen from far and wide, and when you do see it, you know something is about to take place, good or bad.           Unlike Gotham City, the world has no Batman (that we know of), but we do have millions and millions of Social Media users shining "Bat Signals" all across ...

          In 1995, Newsweek  released an article titled, " Why The Web Won't Be Nirvana ."  This article was basically written to make the argument that the Internet was only going to be a fad. Paragraph after paragraph, it literally mocks the thought of being able to take a computer to the beach, purchasing items via the internet, or even having newspapers or books replaced with digital versions.  Author of the article, Clifford Stoll, made it very clear this would soon fade out, and the Internet would only be a fad.  Two decades later, here we are again.  The term, "fad," is being thrown around once more, and guess what...they were wrong again.                 It's funny how wrong Clifford, and many others, were about the Internet and its possibilities.   Nearly each resource or tool he said could never come from the internet, has flourished on the internet.  As the...

One of the big advantages of Social Media is being able to see exactly what your customer or audience is saying about your brand or company at all times.  The only question is, are we really listening?     Something a lot of companies are having trouble doing since the rise of the importance of Social Media, is simply listening to what is being said about their brand or company.  Not only listening to the good things and positive things being said, but even more so, the negatives.  Hearing the positives being said is what each company should be going for, but something that will be even more beneficial to your company is hearing the negatives and doing something about it.  Not only does this give you a head-start in fixing the problem and figuring out what went wrong, but it allows you to see an outside opinion with no bias perspective getting in the way.      People have always had a love for knowledge and even more so, sharin...

      It is no secret that mobile usage and digital media in general has climbed over the last decade.  What used to be only accessible at your desktop, is now available right in your pocket.  Mobile media usage will continue to climb, but where should it be on your priority list as a Marketing professional?  There no longer is a question of whether a mobile presence is important or not, but rather, is it the most important ?         Don't get me wrong, to each their own as far as one's preference to look at certain types of media - desktop, laptop, tablet, smartphone, etc.  Regardless of the device or source of Mobile Media, you must be aware of the consumers behavior when using different Mobile devices and what they prefer.    WHEN WILL THEY NEED YOU?          ALL THE TIME - WEEKDAYS - WEEKENDS - AM/PM - HOLIDAYS - EVENTS   WHY WILL THEY NEED YOU?     ...

WHAT WORKS IN SOCIAL MEDIA Since the launch of the Social Media epidemic, users from all across the globe have found what you can and cannot do in the Social Media playground.  Similar to Google and some of the other powerhouses of the web, Social Media had no clear blueprint of what worked and what did not in the beginning.  Trial and error was the only real course anyone had in navigating through Social Media.  Thousands of little icons and emojis later, things are much different.  There is some understanding to Social Media these days, which is only making the Social Media realm bigger and bigger.  Here is what is working and what is not as we come to a close of 2015. 1.) PROMOTE ALL OF YOUR ACCOUNTS - One of the best features that the majority of Social Media outlets have is they can normally be synced to one another.  Instead of just posting a picture on Instagram, you now can post to Facebook, Twitter, etc. with a couple extra clicks.  Not t...

WATCH OUT 2016 Some new players in the app world are about to be knocking on the doors of some of the most popular icons are thumbs and index fingers can’t get enough of.   Here is a list of the top 8 apps to keep any eye out for the first of the year… (In no particular order) 1.) Shots – with the word “selfie” becoming more and more relevant each day (unfortunately) a new app breaks in to the scene in 2016, designed specifically for those oh so important selfie moments… imagine if “instagram” and “snapchat” had a baby... it would be shots .   It does have some features those two lack however.   It won’t be so focused on privacy and security, but more so connecting with people and being able to share your pictures.   You will not be able to comment on the pictures, but you can chat back and forth with others. 2.) Wanelo – what would be the perfect word for stuff you want, need, and love?   You guessed it... wanelo .   Allowing you to br...