editor, Author at Mediastreet

In News

Magnite: Huge Upside Potential In Connected TV

August 27, 2020 No Comments

By Andres Cardenal, CFA

Summary

Magnite is facing a challenging environment due to the recession, but management is seeing a strong rebound in revenue going forward.

CTV revenue is growing at 50% year over year currently, and the opportunities for long-term growth are exceptional in this market.

Magnite is a risky stock due to industry cyclicality, competitive risk, and uncertain profitability levels.

The upside potential is enormous if the bullish thesis plays out well.

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Magnite (NASDAQ:MGNI) is a relatively small company with enormous opportunities for growth in programmatic advertising over the years ahead. The company is facing considerable challenges, and a position in Magnite is inherently risky. Nevertheless, the upside potential may be well worth it.

Solid Performance In A Challenging Period

Magnite is the largest independent sell-side omnichannel advertising platform in the world. The company is the result of a merger between Rubicon Project and Telaria; this merger is quite recent, as it was completed in April of 2020.

Rubicon brings a large presence as a scaled programmatic exchange to the table, while Telaria provides leading connected TV (CTV) capabilities, so the merger makes a lot of sense from a business perspective.

Scale and presence are key sources of competitive strength in the sector, and Magnite is very well positioned in that regard. The company has access to over 2,000 publishers in 50 countries, with over 150 billion daily impressions and more than 600 employees globally.

On the other hand, things are not easy for Magnite nowadays. Advertising is a very cyclical industry, so the recession is a major setback for the whole sector. Besides, implementing such a merger in times of work from home and rampant uncertainty can be a colossal challenge.

But Magnite still delivered better-than-expected numbers for the second quarter of 2020. Reported revenue increased 12% year over year to $42.3 million, the number surpassed analysts’ expectations by $4.7 million.

Even more important, management highlighted some very positive trends in revenue during the quarter.

Since our last earnings call, we have observed a steadily improving revenue recovery. We noted in our last earnings call that we had observed revenue stabilizing in April and early May at a level of roughly down 30% year-over-year on a pro forma basis. Revenue in May and June continued to recover, with June down only 17% year-over-year on a pro forma basis, resulting in a 24% year-over-year decline for the full quarter. Since the start of this quarter, we have observed even greater recovery, with Q3 revenue quarter-to-date nearly breakeven year-over-year on a pro forma basis. And since the start of Q3, we have observed even more rapid acceleration in CTV revenue growth, currently running at roughly 50% up year-over-year

The company also measured ad spend trends in U.S. regions that were impacted by a resurgence in coronavirus. Those regions initially showed a slowdown in April and May, and numbers started to recover in the following months. With the new hotspots in July, Magnite detected no corresponding slowdown in spending in these areas, and demand even continued to grow in these regions.

A Massive Opportunity In CTV

CTV is arguably the most promising driver for investors in Magnite over the years ahead. Management said in the conference call that CTV revenue was growing at over 50% year over year recently, which provides validation to the bullish thesis in the stock.

According to estimates from ARK, OTT ad revenues are expected to increase 7x in the next five years, from nearly $6 billion in 2019 to $44 billion in 2024. Magnite is expected to generate only $202 million in revenue this year, so even grabbing a very small share of this opportunity could be a powerful driver for the company.

Source: ARK Invest

Management is seeing an acceleration in the CTV market recently, with the largest industry participants such as Hulu, Disney (NYSE:DIS), Roku (NASDAQ:ROKU), Peacock, Sling, and Pluto benefitting from strong subscriber growth, increased consumer viewing time, and solid ad spend growth.

There is also a significant increase in CTV ad inventory. This is driven by both short-term factors and long-term drivers. In the short term, consumers are watching more CTV during the pandemic. From a secular perspective, consumers are cord-cutting and canceling satellite subscriptions while they turn their attention to CTV. Advertising dollars are obviously going in the same direction as consumers’ eyeballs over the long term, with or without a recession.

Source: Magnite

The CTV revolution was well in place before the pandemic, and the trend seems to be accelerating recently. Advertising is obviously affected by the economic slowdown, but the recent data from Magnite is indicating that the prospects for a recovery in the middle term look quite promising.

Risk And Reward Going Forward

The risks that come with a position in Magnite are undeniably high. Mergers always carry lots of challenges, and especially more during a global pandemic and a recession. The numbers from Magnite are quite strong considering the circumstances, but economic uncertainty will probably weigh on the stock in the short term.

Management is expecting to be profitable at the EBITDA level next quarter, but this still remains to be seen. Even assuming that the company can start producing positive EBITDA numbers in the near term, there can be a long path towards full profitability. Sell-side companies have traditionally struggled with profitability, and while the profitability prospects in CTV are much stronger, it is hard to know how industry dynamics will evolve going forward.

Magnite also competes against giants such as Amazon (AMZN). Magnite’s big advantage over Amazon is being independent, while Amazon is also a content creator, which can produce some conflicts of interest. Nevertheless, the competitive risk is an important factor to watch going forward.

But the upside potential in Magnite stock could be worth the risks over the long term. The company has a market capitalization value of $830 million, and it operates in an industry with massive potential for growth, so it has a lot of room for revalorization going forward.

Magnite stock is currently trading at a price-to-sales ratio of 3.4 times revenue estimates for 2021, and revenues are expected to increase by 19% in 2021 versus 2020. If the bullish thesis plays out well, Magnite could offer huge gains from current valuation levels.

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Performance as of August 16, 2020

By Andres Cardenal, CFA

Sourced from Seeking Alpha

In News

Marketing Stories: reinventing roads with users and commerce in mind

August 27, 2020 No Comments

Sourced from The Drum

In the future, road infrastructure will give real-time incentives to commuters to diversify their choices. Roads will be the centre of a data-driven ecosystem for transportation and advertising.

That’s what we delve into in this episode of the Marketing Stories podcast, written by The Drum’s APAC publisher Charlotte McEleny and narrated by our chief executive Diane Young, examining why roads will need to evolve along with the cars we drive on them.

TheDrum · Reinventing roads with users and commerce in mind

Marketing Stories can be found on iTunes, Google Podcasts, Spotify, or by searching for ‘Marketing Stories with Diane Young’ on your favourite podcast app.

The feature shared in this podcast was published exclusively in The Drum magazine. If you like what you hear, you can get the full magazine each month at thedrum.com/subscribe.

Sourced from The Drum

In News

3 Proven Strategies for Rapid Customer Acquisition on Social

August 26, 2020 No Comments

By Carol Sankar.

Although social media is a powerful way to get your products or services to stand out from the competition, all campaigns are not the same.

Social media can be a powerful tool for getting your products or services to stand out from the competition. But not all campaigns are created equal. While some do a great job of acquiring customers, others seem to fly entirely under the radar.

So what makes the difference? A major factor simply comes from the way account managers set up their social media campaigns. As important as witty copy and engaging images can be, they will only be as effective as your strategy allows them to be.

1. Build up your organic engagement.

Paid campaigns have become increasingly important in light of declining organic reach across Facebook and other social media platforms. But this doesn’t mean you should ignore ways to expand your reach with organic posts. While paid campaigns may help your target audience discover your brand, your organic posts are essential for keeping them engaged in the long run.

Case in point: Instagram Stories have become one of the most popular types of social media posts, particularly among Millennials and Gen Z-ers. In fact, studies have found that one-fourth of these users use Instagram Stories to discover new products and services. This organic posting method could be key in helping your brand gain new customers.

Research from Buffer indicates that brands can post twice per day on Facebook, and up to three times a day on Twitter before audience engagement starts to decrease. Rather than overwhelming your audience with a large number of posts, the key is to create highly engaging content and post it at the right times.

For best results, use your audience insights to get a clear idea of which types of posts most resonate with your customers. Digging into profile data specific to your audience will help you identify which content to prioritize for the future.

2. Reduce the number of campaigns you are actively running.

More campaigns aren’t necessarily a good thing on social media — especially if you are operating on a tight budget. Some campaigns end up targeting the same individuals over and over again, resulting in ad fatigue that reduces their effectiveness.

Research from KlientBoost has determined that most brands should run a maximum of three or four campaigns, with each campaign focused on groups in different parts of the sales funnel. In its case study, the single action of taking a client from six campaigns with 24 ad sets to four campaigns with nine ad sets led to a 40 percent increase in revenue and 20 percent more ad clicks.

Too many ad sets will spread your social media spending too thin to have a meaningful impact. Reducing your campaigns and ad sets allocates more of your budget to each campaign so they can achieve a wider reach with the intended audience.

Fewer campaigns will require less time to track, making it easier to identify whether they are performing as expected.

3. Increase the power of retargeting campaigns with Automatic Advanced Matching and Dynamic Ads.

A Little Data study of more than 1,100 e-commerce stores found that the average conversion rate sat at a mere 1.4 percent. This low conversion rate relates to a fundamental marketing truth: Customers will rarely make a purchase the first time they engage with your brand.

Because of this, your ability to successful retarget customers through your social media campaigns can serve as a powerful reminding tool that guides them through the rest of the sales funnel.

Facebook’s Automatic Advanced Matching links with its pixel tool to collect additional information from form fields on your website — even email signups or landing page forms. It leverages this information to create bigger and more accurate custom audiences, while also helping you improve campaign conversion rates.

When paired with Dynamic Ads, this tool can be even more powerful. Perfect for e-commerce sellers, these ads deliver personalized content based on the products a customer was looking at while browsing your site. This serves as a helpful reminder of the products they’ve looked at, or it can highlight similar products that they are likely to be interested in.

As just one example, a 2019 Aeropostale campaign using dynamic ads helped the company double its conversion rate and achieve 3.7 times as much revenue as the prior holiday season.

While these tactics can streamline your social media efforts, this doesn’t mean you can let social become a “set it and forget it” part of your marketing. By continuing to analyze your outcomes, introduce new campaigns, and make adjustments based on your audience’s engagement levels, you can continue fine-tuning your social media marketing to grow even more.

Feature Image Credit: Getty Images

By Carol Sankar

Carol Sankar is a high-level business consultant and the founder of The Confidence Factor for Women in Leadership–a global executive leadership firm focused on diversity and inclusion initiatives for high-achieving women. Sankar has been featured in TEDx, the Steve Harvey show, the Inc. Women’s Summit, the Society for Human Resource Management, and more.

@carolsankar

Soured from Inc.

In News

How One Swiss Guy Built The World’s Most Popular Cannabis Community On Social Media

August 26, 2020 No Comments

By Javier Hasse

Racking up more than 20 million followers on social media is no easy feat. In fact, it’s one reserved for only the most popular of celebrities and the most viral of meme accounts. However, reaching millions is particularly hard when dealing with cannabis, as limitations around promotion and marketing are especially harsh.

So, how did one guy do this from the comfort of his home in Switzerland?

A Lawyer Turned ‘WeedMan’

Fed up with the entry-level legal job in Switzerland, Marco Cadisch launched a Facebook page and a website to share the interesting, informative, weird, offbeat, and comical aspects of the cannabis world. He started targeting readers in his native Switzerland, but over time shifted his focus to the U.S. market, considerably more advanced than the Swiss market when it came to weed, and substantially more inclined to interacting with cannabis content on social media.

Within three years, Marco’s various social media channels had racked up more than 20 million followers.

Nowadays, Marco is the CEO of this ecosystem, dubbed Highlife Media. The company now specializes in social media marketing and management, influencer marketing, and content creation.

Ever since this project started in 2014, Marco says, his pages have shared more than 100,000 posts. “We know exactly what kind of content works and what [kind does] not,” he explains. “Further, we have ongoing connections with a lot of different websites, big social media pages as well as influencers. Nobody has such a good overview of the online cannabis market like we have.”

An Interesting Business Model

Marco says most agencies in the cannabis industry have to outsource their reach. However, Highlife Media owns 80% of the channels it advertises on. This means the compay can offer better pricing, transparency and flexibility.

But don’t let these words fool you: Highlife’s margins are really good.

“When you look at the established players, 90% or more of them are unable to grow their channels,” he says. “They simply lack the know-how to achieve constant growth. On the other hand, we grow our network a couple 100k followers a month and you will see a big difference when you advertise with us.”

Marco monetizes the traffic in many ways.

“We monetize the traffic on our websites, we do a lot of affiliate marketing, apart from that we promote a lot of different clients in the cannabis industry. For some clients we also fully manage their online marketing activities or we manage some of their social media accounts. We also produce a lot of content and we expand our reach with a lot of influencers in the cannabis industry. We basically upsell their options. Last but not least, I also offer consulting.”

Know The Law

As one might imagine, having a legal background came in handy when navigating the complexities of the cannabis industry.

“If you study law and work in the legal field, you are confronted with a lot of things that are essential to running a business, like setting it up, handling the account, being responsible for taxes, contracts and all that kind of stuff,” Marco says. “I set up the company myself and apart from the accounting, which I outsource, I handle everything myself.”

But formal knowledge is not enough, he adds, explaining he had been a cannabis consumer for more than 10 years before starting his business. “I know how the people in this field operate and how they tick. Even though, as the market progresses it gets more and more professional, the market is unlike any other. I’m sure that if you want to make it to the top you need to live what you preach and that’s what I always do.”

Feature Image Credit: Marco Cadisch, COURTESY PHOTO

By Javier Hasse

Sourced from Forbes

In News

Not Your Mother’s Marketing: 5 Ways Social Media Changed Marketing Forever

August 26, 2020 No Comments

By Molly Townley.

The marketing landscape has been in a constant state of change for decades – from print ads and billboards to radio, television, and then moving online to digital marketing. It seemed like all there was to say had already been said, and then – social media popped up on the scene.

It didn’t take long for marketers to realize its huge potential. These platforms reached millions, and connected everyone to…well, everyone. Anything you had to say was visible, available, accessible, and sharable to everyone else in a matter of seconds. Then came the true marketing revolution.

Here are 5 ways social media changed marketing forever.

A wider reach than ever before

There are 3.8 billion users on social media, according to recent statistics. That means 3.8 billion people that one can potentially reach through social media marketing.

Never before have brands been able to capture an audience this size, or their audience’s attention for as long as they can now. Marketing used to be limited to opportunities for it – ads in a magazine, on a billboard, on TV, in-person sales pitches – and the limited amount of customers were exposed to it sporadically, only under certain circumstances.

Nowadays, social media practically allows for non-stop marketing, all day, all the time. According to statistics, people spend, on average, just over 2 hours on social media every single day. That’s 2 full hours that marketers have a user’s attention throughout the day. Imagine how many TV ads a viewer would have to watch to achieve the same kind of impact.

The marketing never stops because it’s always there, with every use, and regardless of platform. Whether it’s a post on Facebook, an image on Instagram, or video ads on YouTube, marketers can reach their huge audience at any point, and on any platform.

Unique opportunities for engagement

The most effective way to get someone’s attention and create an emotional response to your brand is to engage with your audience. Since the advent of social media, it’s easier than ever before to connect with customers and followers.

The more you engage with your audience, the more you can grow user engagement on your page. That is going to achieve a couple of things. First, it establishes a degree of relatability that people enjoy in a brand. It allows them to form an emotional connection to a company and its marketing, which in turn, creates brand loyalty.

Second, it helps tremendously with “shareability” – i.e. how likely people are to share your content with others. When you’re responsive, insightful, witty, creative – that gets people’s interest, they appreciate it, and they share it. That increases your audience and your reach.

The ability to target specific audiences

In the past, targeting audiences was still possible, but more limiting. Ad placement during certain TV programs and movies was – and still is – common, to capture the attention of certain audiences. Say, running ads for beer during the Superbowl, or pantyhose during daytime soaps.

Social media helps make this type of specific targeting easier, more precise, and more sophisticated. It’s possible to target specific demographics according to the platform they’re active on, the groups they’re part of or even the hashtags they post in.

A company will know that if they are targeting Boomers, they need to place on Facebook, if they want Millennials, they go to Instagram, and they use Snapchat or TikTok to capture the attention of Gen Z. They can even access interest-specific groups, like wedding groups on Facebook, in order to address users directly.

Seamless marketing

And speaking of non-stop, very precise marketing, marketing on social media also enables one to do so in a very seamless way.

Ads

Traditional ads are still present on social media, but they’re integrated into the user interface in such a manner that they look like regular posts. You can pay for actual ads, but there are other, more subtle ways to market, as well.

Posts

You can also make your own social media posts marketing your product or service. The bigger your audience and your reach are, the more users will be exposed to your messaging.

Influencer posts

Otherwise, you can take advantage of so-called “influencers”. Over the last decade or so, marketing has transformed thanks to the rise of influencers.

They are an exceptional marketing opportunity because the content they produce is not an overt ad. It’s framed as a review or opinion coming from real people that used the products or services and are offering their genuine opinions and experiences.

To gain exposure, a brand may send PR samples for consideration. Or they may pay for a sponsorship. Influencers have large followings of loyal, trusting users, so exposure on a platform like this can be very valuable and lucrative.

More effective tracking

Marketing online and via social media also has invaluable advantages when it comes to tracking and measuring effectiveness. You are likely to see the effects in real-time, by taking a look at the interest and engagement you get on a post, as well as receiving and listening to customer feedback.

You can also track what is being said about your brand specifically, to gain awareness of audience opinions and interests. Following and tracking data this way is called social listening, and it enables you to pay attention to what audiences – and competitors! – are saying and incorporate it into your marketing to increase effectiveness.

In addition, you can plan posts according to what is likely to get maximum engagement and conversions, based on the data you’ve been able to collect, either actively or passively.

Tracking clicks, conversions, and revenue on social media is much easier than with traditional marketing avenues, such as billboards or print ads. You can use tracking software for a detailed breakdown of who is exposed to your marketing, for how long, or how effective your campaign is, and adjust your marketing efforts accordingly.

Final thoughts

Social media took the world by storm in a million ways and changed the way we socialize, and the way we market. Marketing has been made easier, quicker, more effective, more precise – and its full potential has not yet been reached.

Both social media and marketing are constantly changing. Every new platform or feature brings innovation and new opportunities for marketers to leverage and create clever, inspiring, effective campaigns. You have to keep up to stay relevant and retain the valuable attention of your audience.

By Molly Townley.

(email: [email protected])

In News

REFLECTING ON SOCIAL MEDIA SPEND: WHEN TO SHAKE UP THE MARKETING MIX

August 25, 2020 No Comments

By Ricky Ray Butler.

This year has ushered in a period of upheaval and recalibration. As consumers explore the societal issues surrounding them, a social reckoning has begun. Consumers are setting new standards for employers, brands and public figures and are closely watching who adheres to these expectations.

Simply sharing a statement is not enough. Instead, brands must promote change by putting their money where their mouth is. In some instances, this means significant donations or investments in diversity and inclusion within the organization. For others, it means re-evaluating partnerships with companies or individuals who have become complacent in the fight for social justice.

The #StopHateForProfit movement on Facebook is the latest example of this. On July 1, Business Insider reported that more than 500 brands had committed to the #StopHateForProfit movement, pausing ad spend on Facebook and Instagram in order to voice their concern over the spread of hate speech and misinformation on the platform. As of August 11, that number had more than doubled.

From my perspective, this movement is incredibly powerful and stems from the simple truth that companies today vote with their dollars. Where and with whom they spend their money exposes more about their social ethics than what they say. And paid media is arguably one of the biggest driving forces for how brands show up and support our digital world today.

This movement has aimed to inspire change within Facebook as a business. My company’s work with content creators and in influencer marketing has shown me, however, that some content creators could be negatively impacted as well. Aside from pausing ad spend with Facebook directly, I’ve observed that many brands have also stalled or pushed out influencer marketing campaigns, which has inadvertently affected content creators whose livelihoods depend on sponsored content.

There’s an important differentiation here that brands should consider: Most influencers today operate as small businesses, and Facebook is not a part of the transaction between brands and creators. So pulling money away from holistic digital marketing campaigns in this manner doesn’t end up affecting Facebook’s bottom line — only the creators’.

As we collectively work to adjust how platforms combat hate speech, from Facebook and beyond, I encourage brands to consider whether they can continue supporting and empowering creators who are spreading positive messages and bringing communities together on a daily basis. Influencer marketing offers an incredibly diverse ecosystem of backgrounds, interests, talents, lifestyles and audiences for brands to tap into. If you’re working with creators who align with your brand’s values, you can create a natural dialogue among consumers and products or services and tie it to the world around them.

Today’s content creators also have the power to drive awareness and action around pertinent societal issues and have the audience engagement necessary to incite real change and shape a better tomorrow. Yet, while the industry is on track to be worth up to $15 billion by 2022, I still run into the same misconceptions about how only certain brands are a fit for influencer marketing, how complicated the process can be and the ultimate return on investment.

At a base level, every brand is a fit for influencer marketing campaigns, as long as it’s partnering with the right creators. Although it’s mostly touted as effective for direct-to-consumer brands, there are a multitude of options for creators and platforms to reach even the most niche audiences, whether it’s small business and entrepreneurship tips, auto repair or human resources software solutions.

For more unconventional brands looking to pursue influencer marketing, it’s important to start by really understanding which channels your audience is on and partnering with the relevant creators from there. A younger audience looking for how-to videos might call for YouTube, whereas an entrepreneurial audience might call for LinkedIn or Twitter.

Another major benefit of influencer marketing is closer visibility into who is seeing your message and the content it’s integrated within. With automated advertising on social media and the internet more broadly, there aren’t enough checks and balances to ensure that your advertisements aren’t being placed against content that is deemed unsafe or unsuitable for brand safety guidelines. From my perspective, influencer marketing can help mitigate that fear because the message is integrated into the content directly and shared with a specific audience that is already tuned into that particular channel.

At the end of the day, I believe a campaign focused on disseminating helpful, timely information with the appropriate content creators is still a viable option for brands interested in partnering with influencers. This type of marketing gives brands the opportunity to bring together diversity in background, thought and interests. Instead of having a few blanket advertisements for different audiences, brands can leverage influencer marketing to communicate with audiences through the authentic voices of creators.

That said, when pursuing an influencer campaign, it’s essential to execute it thoughtfully. This will allow you to uplift the creative process for the content creators, as well as ensure that your brand is truly engaging with audiences in a genuine way and never forcing or disrupting the content itself.

Amid all the uncertainty, 2020 has inspired immense societal change and re-evaluation. Social media giants have work to do in mitigating the spread of misinformation and hate speech, and influencer marketing offers brands a powerful antidote by putting resources behind creators who are inspiring lasting, positive change.

Facebook is but one example of a platform on the wrong side of a controversy. These moments have happened before, with YouTube and “Adpocalyspe,” and I believe they will continue to happen in the future. Such challenges are inevitable — when the cards are on the table, brands must evaluate their responses and take decisive action.

For brands that have participated in influencer marketing in the past, I see now as the time to invest in more variety, support the small businesses and entrepreneurs we call content creators, and foster creativity and dialogue where we can.

Feature Image Credit: GETTY

By Ricky Ray Butler.

Sourced from AdAge

In News

How to Use Technology and Social Media for Business Growth

August 25, 2020 No Comments

By Zeinab Mehdi Poor.

What business doesn’t use technology? Yes, that is the unmistakable sound of crickets. But here’s another, more pertinent question: which businesses maximize their use of technology to generate revenue? The world is abuzz with technological chatter, with the noisy flux of shifting processes, incoming apps, innovative start-ups and increasingly simplistic digital tools which help us streamline our businesses and make a bigger splash for less cash.

As a business leader, you’re constantly learning. Searching for new growth strategies, emerging trends in your industry, and new products and services is a consistent part of your routine. Technology is about innovation and innovation in business is all about doing things differently so as to supply better products and solutions, and an improved service to customers.

If you are a business owner or leader means you’re constantly learning.

Researching new marketing strategies, emerging trends in your industry, and exciting new products is certain to be a continuing a part of your weekly grind. But are you furthermore may maintaining with similar changes in technology? If not, you’ll be missing out on tools which will make your life easier and your business stronger. Technology isn’t just essential for day-to-day business processes, but it also can help companies to realize growth and success when utilised effectively. Successful businesses don’t view technology simply as how to automate processes, but instead use it to open up new ways of doing business. But are you furthermore may maintaining with similar changes in technology? technology is helping firms of all sizes fulfil their business potential. While the pace at which technology is evolving is faster than ever before, these advancements present a range of growth opportunities for business leaders.

Technologies help you reach more potential customers, around the clock.

Various types of content marketing increase the visibility of your business far beyond your local community—often on a reasonable budget. Technology can help business owners leverage capital in smarter, more effective ways. In some cases, using technology provides greater efficiency and versatility, making it a natural progression for processes you may already have in place in your business. In others, you may need to make some adjustments to reap the benefits of tech-friendly alternatives. Use digital technologies for more effective marketing.

Businesses are now operating in an era where having a strong digital presence is essential, not only for success, but often simply for survival too. The lack of a strong digital presence is thought to be a contributing factor in the failure of many SMEs, half of which are failing in their first five years of existence. With limited marketing budgets, SMEs got to be wise about how they utilize digital technologies for max impact.

They key is to develop a clearly defined digital marketing strategy, including your aims, your tactics and how you’re going to measure performance. Many companies are digitally active, but not following a defined strategy. This can lead to resources being wasted and opportunities being missed.

Here are ways technology can help your business grow

1. Use a high-quality VoIP system

The benefits of using Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) should be obvious, but if you’re still tempted to use the conventional or analog system in your office, know that you could be missing out massively. Using the internet to make calls far cheaper and means you can log in anywhere in the world, conduct videoconferences, discuss important deals, and otherwise stay on top of things as if you were in the office. Mobility, functionality and adaptability are the three key benefits of putting in VoIP, which has undoubtedly enhanced communication within the business world and led to increased productivity across the board.

2. Don’t be afraid of video

A lot of business owners are afraid to put themselves out there: to add a face and voice to the text-based voice which narrates their online story. But embracing video, whether within the sort of live videos and ‘stories’ on social media or product-, category- or topic-led videos on your website, are often a winning strategy. Not only will it help to build brand transparency, making browsers feel like they’re getting to know you, but it will help to stimulate engagement.

3. Connect with people.

One of the best features of technology is the ability to communicate and connect with other people right at the fingertips. More people in the United States are leaning towards the use of technology for connectivity. It has become an essential and worthwhile part of not only an individual’s life but also his business. Technology is a great tool to get in touch with customers and employees. Nowadays, even remote working is a theme. When it involves modern technology, sending targeted emails and newsletters to the designated customers can lead one to grow his or her business over time.

4. Technology as a mean of security.

Apart from the many benefits of using technology for business owners, the best one is how it impacts the security of the business. Technology can be used to prevent any hacking done by hackers over the original work of authorship. In this way, issues like copyright infringement and other copyright laws get easily bypassed. Usage of the proper amount of technology or rather information technology can prevent any breach of security. With active firewalls and encrypted passwords, avoidance of this particular problem, in the long run, is possible.

5. Save on IT spending

Cloud-based technologies help businesses grow with technology by providing state of the art tools without the high cost usually related to huge enterprise software programs. Web based technologies allow multiple users to collaborate during a single document or provide unlimited data storage. Cloud technologies eliminate the necessity for IT departments and therefore the solution providers perform backups, tuning and upgrades as a part of their offering. Small business owners can access their data from any location at any time. These tools are often free or pay as you go eliminating the need for long term contracts.

Social Platforms for Business Growth

Social platforms helps you connect with your customers. What are the advantages of using social media for business? Consider that there are now quite 3 billion using social networks across the world and these people are using social to interact with brands. Social networks offer you the chance to interact directly with customers and fans, and likewise give them the prospect to interact directly together with your brand.

Unlike traditional media, which offers only one-way communication, social media may be a street . If you would like customers and followers to be engaged, you’ve got to be engaged yourself. Stay active and answer comments and questions on your own social media posts during a way that’s appropriate to your brand. Here are reasons why investing in social media may be a wise business move.

1. Build Awareness

If people don’t realize your business, they can’t become your customers. Social media boosts your visibility among potential customers, letting you reach a good audience by employing a great deal of your time and energy . And it’s liberal to create a business profile on all the main social networks, so you’ve got nothing to lose. Define what you would like to urge out of social media to develop a social media strategy. does one want new customers to get your services? does one hope to bring more local shoppers into your stores? By keeping your strategy specific, you’ll determine which social media channels are the simplest fit your business.

2. Improve Search Engine Ranking

There’s a lot of debate around this subject , but rock bottom line is that, this social media can (and will) improve your program ranking. How? The domain authority increases when the social media share rate increases. This results in an improved program ranking of your pages. But it’s quite just that. Many consumers visit your social media profiles before heading to your website to urge a far better understanding of your brand before they create a sale .

3. Social media is cost-effective

As more social networks add algorithms that filter what users see in their news feeds, your organic content may stray within the shuffle. cash in of the low-cost advertising features offered by the social networks to market your content and special offers. Some social media advertising is cheaper than traditional advertising, so you don’t need to spend tons of cash to increase your audience, and grow your business.

4. Tell Your Brand’s Story

Using social media may be a good way to share your brand’s mission and share stories. Effective stories can have an excellent impact on your brand’s image. they will be simple or extensive counting on what you think that are going to be best .

5. Boost sales

No matter what you sell, social media can assist you sell it. Your social accounts are a critical a part of your sales funnel—the process through which a replacement contact becomes a customer. As the number of individuals using social media continues to grow and social sales tools evolve, social networks will become increasingly important for product search and ecommerce. The time is true to align your social marketing and sales goals.

Feature Image Credit: Pixabay

By Zeinab Mehdi Poor

Sourced from Entrepreneur India

In News

How Gymshark Became A $1.3 Billion Brand, And What We Can Learn

August 25, 2020 No Comments

By Jodie Cook.

Sports apparel brand Gymshark has just hit a $1.3 billion valuation after securing investment from General Atlantic. The company, started by Birmingham U.K.-born Ben Francis in 2012, now age 28, has entered into a strategic partnership in order to expand further internationally. General Atlantic will take a 21% stake in the business following the deal, which marks Gymshark’s first ever investment round.

Gymshark began life as a supplements company, before moving into clothing. The apparel, initially consisting of gym vests and t-shirts, was sewn and screen-printed by Francis, his brother and a group of friends after Francis’ grandmother taught him how to use a sewing machine. Francis said, at first, they were just making clothes they really wanted to wear themselves. They enjoyed learning how to create and fulfil the orders they had received, and priced items based on what sounded about right. Here’s how they grew so fast and here’s what entrepreneurs can learn from their approach.

Staying humble

This motto is displayed on walls at Gymshark HQ, and the #stayhumble Instagram hashtag is peppered with selfies from Gymshark fans and team members. Steve Hewitt, Gymshark’s CEO, advised that, “It takes zero talent to work hard and zero talent to stay humble; if you get those things right you will always do well in your journey.” Further advice from Hewitt is to “Learn to fail fast” and “Own as much of the supply chain as you can.”

The lessons: Staying humble is far harder the more success and fame you achieve. Keep things as simple as possible for as long as possible, scale with demand, and remember where you came from. Never underestimate the contribution of those around you and the fortune you’ve been granted.

Focusing on customer needs

Gymshark has a clear target audience of 18-25-year-olds whose lives revolve around fitness, fashion and music. They do not deviate from the audience and everything they do is aimed at their needs. Customers are looked after. In 2015 Gymshark suffered a website outage on Black Friday, resulting in customers not being able to get their deals. Whilst this might have broken many companies, Gymshark’s founder personally hand-wrote 2500 apology letters to customers, including discounts, who weren’t able to purchase during the crash.

The lessons: Proudly exclude everyone except your target audience so you can focus solely on them. Double down on the customer experience. Test your site, and test some more. Utilise the best technology to create exceptional customer touchpoints, via your website and in-person. If you do mess up, own the mistake, respond in an exceptional way and carry on.

Being visionaries

Part of Gymshark’s mission statement reads: “In everything we do, be true to our own vision and respectful of others. We are here to bring ideas to life. There is no idea too big, or too small… We are not future-proof. We are the future.” The brand is known by its fans for putting its own spin on timely topics. During the U.K.’s lengthy lockdown Gymshark employed otherwise out-of-work personal trainers to present on its gym workout app. They raised £180,000 for the NHS with their #NHSsweatyselfie campaign and their own version of the last Black Friday was #blackout, whereby the entire website was rebranded to match the theme.

The lessons: Dream big with what you could achieve and how many people could be involved. Plan your calendar of activity far in advance and be prepared to respond to last-minute events with hard-hitting campaigns. Explore everything that your target audience is already talking about and work out how to make it relevant to your brand in a big way.

How Gymshark became a $1.3bn brand, and what we can learn

GYMSHARK

Building an influencer community

Gymshark were the earliest adopters of the influencer marketing model, partnering with YouTubers including Lex Griffin and Nikki Blackketter. Now, the brand markets products through its community of Instagram influencers and YouTubers and sponsors a range of athletes, each of whom operate at the top of their game. The athletes include Irish professional boxer Katie Taylor and Ross Edgley, who in 2018 became the first person to swim (1780 miles) all the way around Great Britain.

Francis said, “From the point of view of the athletes we work with, we want to create a real, strong team that speaks to our values. And we work with them for a long, sustained period of time.”

The lessons: Don’t think of influencer marketing as a quick smash and grab, think of it as building relationships with people over a long period of time, for the benefit of both of your brands. The goal isn’t shallow and fleeting promotion. Be prepared to invest in the process and communicate you’re looking for long term. Do the research and keep standards insanely high.

Assembling a dream team

The brand’s HQ houses 500 team members and aims to “create a culture where every morning feels like Christmas morning” according to Hewitt. The Solihull campus also has Gymshark Lifting Club, a state-of-the-art strength training centre reserved for team members and invitation-only athletes.

Although Francis is founder and owner, he has opted out of the CEO role, explaining the decision in a YouTube video called “I’m not Gymshark’s CEO anymore” and recognising, “The most difficult thing for me was learning to trust others to do the things in the business that I used to do.” He also asserted, “You need to constantly be around people who give you a reality check, people who are better than you.” and admitted he rarely communicates via email, saying it’s too slow and he prefers to talk to his team.

The lessons: Hire the right people for the right seats, ensure alignment with vision and values and leave them to get on with executing. As the owner, you don’t have to be the CEO if that’s not your jam, you can design your own role. Work out how to give your team more and more, to ensure their best work and their pride at working for your brand.

Documenting everything

Gymshark uses its busy social media channels to document its entire journey. Videos and images appear regularly, whenever it opens a new premises or takes a new step. There are professionally filmed and edited walkthroughs of Gymshark HQ, Gymshark Lifting Club, plus the in-person events and behind-the-scenes photoshoots by different members of the team. There are topical updates in response to COVID-19 and how it affected their community and fans, as well as explainers of the decision behind getting involved in certain campaigns and opting out of others.

The lessons: The global brands set up before the 2000s didn’t have chance to document their journeys in such detail, but if they had they might be stronger today. Documenting every part of a brand’s journey lets its customers feel like they are getting an inside look. Use social media to be transparent. Everything you do can be remarkable content as long as it’s planned and executed exceptionally.

Building the founder’s profile

Francis has his own YouTube channel, with 162k followers, where he answers in-depth Q&As about his company and role, including how he grew the business and challenges he overcomes. He also uses it to announce news and share his own journey. Francis works with so many influencers, it makes sense that he practices what he preaches.

Video titles include, “My favourite apps for running Gymshark,” “Full explanation: the future of Gymshark” and “Creating the world’s greatest office.” It’s content of substance and it amasses messages of support, congratulations and secures customer loyalty.

The lessons: In documenting everything, include the founder. Be prominent as a company founder. It’s interesting. People want to know what you’re doing so they can associate with your success. They like to tell people when they first found out about you. Hold yourself accountable to staying humble and being personable. Create the public persona and control the news channels. Break the stories before the media do.

Emulate Gymshark’s journey by dreaming big but staying humble, documenting and sharing every part of your journey, including from the founder’s perspective, building long-term relationships with influencers and surprising and delighting your growing customer base.

Feature Image Credit: UNSPLASH

By Jodie Cook

Since starting my social media agency in 2011 I have been fascinated by the influences that create entrepreneurs. I co-wrote a series of children’s storybooks, Clever Tykes, which develop positive, resourceful and creative behaviour in 6-9 year olds; they are now read in every primary school in the United Kingdom and I’m determined to replicate this in countries across the world. I was included in Forbes’ 30 under 30 social entrepreneurs in Europe 2017 and gave a TEDx talk with the title ‘creating useful people’. I’m big on travel, lifestyle design and helping people access the freedom that modern entrepreneurship should bring.

Sourced from Forbes

In News

How to Analyse Instagram Stories: 7 Metrics to Track

August 24, 2020 No Comments

By NANCY CASANOVA.

Want to know if your Instagram Stories content is working? Wondering how to make sense of Instagram Stories Insights?

In this article, you’ll discover seven key Instagram story metrics that reveal what content piqued users’ interest, where interest may have dropped off, and whether people are taking action and engaging with your stories.

#1: Find Out How Many People Watch Your Entire Instagram Story

The completion rate metric can give you a feel for how engaging your Instagram Stories content is. A high completion rate means people are taking the time to watch or tap through each slide (a single photo or video posted on your story) until reaching the end. This can help you determine whether you’re posting too many slides or the right kind of content for your audience.

To calculate this metric, divide the total number of viewers of your last Instagram story slide by the number of people who saw the first slide.

reach of last slide / reach of first slide = completion rate

Let’s say your first Instagram story slide had a reach of 152 and your last slide had a reach of 108. Your completion rate would be 71%.

Example: 108 / 152 x 100 = 71% completion rate

Upload a Complete Series at Once

When posting to Instagram Stories, batch-upload all of the slides in a series instead of posting them individually throughout the day. By uploading them in one segment, you can more easily determine the completion rate and analyse how the series performed from beginning to end.

Click HERE to read the remainder of the article.

By NANCY CASANOVA.

Sourced from Social Media Examiner

In News

The Future Is Here Now: How Covid-19 Has Changed Consumers, Now And In The Future.

August 24, 2020 No Comments

By Gary Drenik.

On March 11 a national emergency was declared, and states quickly began locking down. The economy turned down to a trickle. By early May almost all states began to gradually reopen in phases. Now, 90 days later, Prosper Insights and Analytics August survey of over 7,500 consumers provides insights into how much they say their behaviours have changed and how they expect to behave in the future. When viewed over the course of the last 90 days there are some consistent behavioural changes occurring. These consistent changes may be emerging trends that the marketplace needs to be aware of. Below is a quick recap:

Impact of Covid-19

Consumers continue to be quite concerned and are even slightly more concerned than they were in May. These concerns are carried over to their concerns about the economy and a pessimism towards the government solving the crisis.

Concerned/very concerned about Covid-19 crisis: May 71% August 68%

Covid-19 Impacts your view of the economy: May 84% August 80%

One of the biggest impacts from Covid-19 has to do with the delivery of health services via telehealth. Every month since May this service has increased dramatically. For many who put off going to a doctor or hospital telehealth seems to have filled an important need. There is a great deal of consistency, from May to August, for emotional well-being with anger and feeling disconnected from family and friends representing significant segments of the adult population. With several vaccines entering last stages of approval many are not willing to take them especially younger folks.

Avoiding Doctors’ offices/Hospitals: May 41% August 27%

Have used telehealth during Covid-19 pandemic: May 22% August 31%

Believe a vaccine would make you feel comfortable about returning to pre-Covid-19 life: May 58% August 54%

Impact of Covid-19

PROSPER INSIGHTS & ANALYTICS

Will take an approved Covid-19 vaccine: August 44%, of those aged 65+ is 55% and 25-34 years old is at 41%. This question was not asked in May.

Prosper Aug 2020 Yes will get Vaccine

PROSPER INSIGHTS & ANALYTICS

Impacts on Individuals economic well-being/workplace

More of those laid off during Covid-19 expect to return to work but they also anticipate an impact to their earnings. Fewer also expect the economy to return to the pre-Covid-19 level. Most who are now working from home would rather continue working from home and that the workplace will be a social distance environment.

Those who are laid off and believe they will be rehired: May 77% August 67%

Think Covid-19 crisis will impact future earnings: May 45% August 46%

Think economy will return to pre Covid-19 level: May 51% August 46%

Those now working from home rather than office who want to continuing work from home: May 46% August 63%.

Think social distancing will become workplace policy: May 68% August 71%

Social Impacts

Social distancing practices appear to be a long term trend as a majority agree with social distancing policies, say they will change social behaviours in the future and plan to continue to practice social distancing in the future.

Those who agree/strongly agree with social distancing policies:

May 73% August 74%

Agree/strongly agree they will change their social behaviours in the future:

May 59% August 57%

Plan on continuing to social distance in the future:

May 83% August 84%

Impact on Retail Behaviours

Retail behavioural changes have been the most apparent due to lockdowns put in place by Governors of states back in March. These changes appear to have accelerated the digital shopping changes which have been gradually gaining ground over the past 20 years. Consumers say they like the experience which also helps them fulfil their social distancing desires. A majority say they will change their shopping behaviours in the future. Many prefer contactless checkouts. Walmart meets the needs best in brick and mortar world while Amazon is far and away the online choice. Both have increased their perceptions since May. Product shortage issues have also declined compared to May.

Agree they will change purchasing behaviours in the future:

May 51% August 50%

Walmart has the best in-store selection for what they are looking for:

May 20% August 25%

Amazon has the best online selection for what they are looking for:

May 40% August 48%.

Having trouble finding items in stores: May 31% August 23%

Having trouble finding items online: May 15% August 11%

Media coverage

One of the fastest growing survey responses is how the media is handling the coverage of the Covid-19 crisis. In August the percentage of people who believe the media coverage of Covid-19 is becoming too political is at 40% which is up from May. This growing distrust may be even more worrisome since 78% believe there will be a second wave of Covid-19 later this year.

Believe the media coverage of the Covid-19 crisis has become too political: May 39% August 40%.

Based upon what consumers have factually stated over the last 90 days, don’t be surprised to see a world where social distancing practices continue with many former office workers now working from home and shopping online…Oh wait that world appears to be here now.

Complimentary Coronavirus/Covid-19 findings are available at AWS Data Exchange. To learn more, click here: Strategic Insights: Coronavirus Covid-19 Consumer

Feature Image Credit: TIERNEY – STOCK.ADOBE.COM

By Gary Drenik.

I cover consumer-centric insights and analytics that provide executives with solutions needed to drive strategy. I am the CEO of Prosper Business Development where, for more than 20 years, we have provided market leadership and developed contemporary solutions to help Fortune 500 companies navigate change that impacts their business. I got my start in the radio industry.