I received this email from The Grove, a local “lifestyle” center in Los Angeles, offering to enter me into a $50 gift card drawing simply for “liking” them on Facebook. I realized that over the past couple months, I’d been receiving similar emails with increased frequency.

Apparently, buying friends has now become an accepted strategy. And while our parents might scoff at the idea of purchasing relationships, it makes good business sense for a number of reasons.

1. As marketers, buying leads is something we have been doing for generations. Long before the Internet and Facebook, we have purchased lists and given away trips as the price for getting people to listen to a timeshare pitch.
2. Much of the time, the people you’re asking to “like” you are those with whom you already have a relationship. Take The Grove example; I’m already on their email list. So, since I’m open to receiving messages from The Grove, I’m a good candidate for “liking” them.
3. It’s an inexpensive way to augment your social media presence and strengthen your online reputation. One or two $50 gift cards is a small price to pay to add hundreds of new people to your Facebook community.

So regardless of what the Beatles and  your parents told you, it might be time to consider offering an incentive to get prospects to like you on Facebook.

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With the recent release of the Netflix iPhone app, the nation’s millions of iPhone users (who subscribe to Netflix) can now watch their favorite movies and shows without having to turn on their TVs. Who cares? Plenty of people. The Netflix app claimed the number one spot on iTunes’ Top 25 Free Apps chart the very day it was released.

It’s just another example of how mobile marketing is transforming the way people receive news and entertainment, conduct business and connect with friends. Think it’s all hype from the mobile providers and technology companies? Consider this:

• 70% or more of people between the ages of 18-54 use text messaging (PewResearch Center)
• 34% of US mobile users access the mobile web (eMarketer)
• The average number of apps per handset? (Nielson)

• Blackberry: 10
• Windows: 14
• Palm: 14
• Android: 22
• iPhone: 37

Mobile marketing is here to stay. And it’s working.

The American Red Cross received donations for its Haiti earthquake relief campaign via SMS from 3 million unique donors.

The Irvine Shuttle in California just implemented real-time shuttle arrival info via text messaging.

Apple iAd mobile advertising platform seems to be an early hit with marketers claiming that their iAds “tended to pull in users and keep them interested for significantly longer than other kinds of digital ads.” In fact, according to Nissan, users spent an average of 90 seconds on their interactive ad for its electric car, the Leaf. That’s about 10 times longer an interaction than for comperable mobile ads.

The bottom line: Mobile marketing isn’t a fad. It’s a viable communications tool that offers a higher level of customer engagement than many other forms of marketing. If it’s not a part of your plan, perhaps it’s time to take a closer look.

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It’s a common problem for many marketers, but one that’s easy to avoid if you ask the right questions prior to purchasing your list. In a recent article, Chris Golec of  Demandbase outlines eight key questions you want to ask the list company.

1. What makes your data unique?

Because there are so many data provides, it’s important to ask what makes the data in the list you are considering unique. You don’t want to purchase a list that overlaps the data you already have.

2. How often do you refresh your data?

It’s important to know how often your data provider adds names to its database, but it is perhaps even more important to know how often names are removed from the database and what steps are taken to prevent “dead” names from being added back in.

3. How is your data priced? Is there a minimum purchase?

Although the cost-per-lead price may sound minuscule, minimum purchase requirements could easily push you over your budget. In addition to inquiring about minimum purchase requirements or what the price breaks might be for larger purchases, ask about the vendor’s filtering system to ensure you will not wind up purchasing irrelevant contacts.

4. How do you handle inaccurate data?

Regardless of where you purchase your data, there are bound to be some inaccuracies. Prior to purchasing, work with your provider to establish some sort of “return policy” for bad data. Reputable companies will usually offer a full credit for data proven to be incorrect, as it helps them maintain database accuracy.

5. Do you remove or credit duplicates for contacts I already own?

A common frustration when purchasing lists is acquiring contacts you already have in your database. Make sure your data provider has some sort of system in place to remove or to credit back contacts you already own.

6. How are your lists targeted? Do I need to pay for any filters to refine my list?

Some companies charge you to run filters against their database that help you to target your list to your specific needs. For example, if you were looking for a list of marketing contacts at software companies, you might be charged $300 to remove all non-software companies and another $300 to target the marketers.

7. Do we own the data, or are we renting the list?

Data providers often rent out their subscriber lists for “one-time” mailings. You send them creative, and they run the email campaign for you and report back on opens and click-through rates. However, the real measure of success is conversions—how many people filled out the form on the Web page that was included in the body of the email. A conversion is the only way to capture the contact information of anyone in the list that you rented.

With a list rental, the cost per lead is much lower than it is for an outright purchase, but you do not own the information and cannot market to contacts again without renting the list again. Make sure to clarify whether the cost-per-lead is for a rental or for a list purchase.

8. Can I send email to the contacts I purchase from you? Are they “opt-in”?

If you are buying a list  that is marketed as “opt in,” be very careful; and keep in mind that the people on the list have not opted in to receiving emails specifically from your company. Opt-in is the gold standard in email marketing, without a doubt, but CAN-SPAM is the law and it does not cite “opt-in” as a requirement. Agree on a policy internally that will not only preserve your reputation but also allow growth of your brand and sales pipeline through the use of email.

Also consider the campaign requirements from your email vendor. Some companies require you to be able to prove “opt-in” on every email you send, while others simply require you to comply with the law.

Read Chris’ full article for more in-depth information on purchasing a marketing list.

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Consider this 72-character subject line, and see what happens as it begins to get truncated.

New herbal fresh soap available at special price at your  local Harry’s (full length)

New herbal fresh soap available at special price a (50 characters)

New herbal fresh soap available at speci (40 characters)

Also, be sure to place as much critical information at the beginning of your subject line, rather than at the end as a hedge against important content being truncated. In the examples above, the name of the retailer gets chopped off, as does the “special price” reference in the 40-character version. Those are pretty important pieces of information that the marketer surely would want front and center.

In a recent  Email Marketing Reports post, Mark Brownlow offers up this free Excel spreadsheet that shows you how your subject line looks at any length between 10 and 125 characters. It’s a great tool that’s definitely worth downloading.

Bottom Line

1. When writing email subject lines, keep character count limitations in mind.
2. Put the most important information up front.

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I don’t know about you, but with just over 150 friends on my own Facebook page, I’m getting more Farmville, Mafia Wars and Bejewelled Blitz updates than I can handle or care about. With 10 million fans, I can’t imagine what Starbucks is going through.

Truly, though, a fan base that large is a testament to Starbucks’ social media savvy. By promoting special offers, coupons, discounts and more on Facebook, the company keeps its customers engaged with its online content and in-store products.

Starbucks’ success with emphasizing product promotions on Facebook seems to validate the results of a Razorfish study last year that found that traditional direct marketing techniques like offering discounts and deals are the keys to building engagement on social networking sites rather counting on some deeper connection to a brand. Except from Online Media Daily, 7/15/10

For more  on Starbucks’ successful Facebook program, read the Online Media Daily article here.

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For a more detailed look at the findings, the survey can be downloaded here, free of charge.

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1 in 5 people suffer from the pain of arthritis. By the year 2030, 67 million people in the U.S., or 1 in 4 adults, will be living with arthritis.  *The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)

Although the weather was pure June Gloom, the mood was anything but, with stilt walkers, live music, face painters, food and drink setting a festive tone. When it was time to walk the Walk, we hit the streets of Santa Monica, along with thousands of others, and completed a refreshing 3-mile route. It was a great experience and, once again, thanks to everyone who supported us!

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Why? Because that’s how vanilla is made. And who pays attention to vanilla?

No knock against vanilla (unless it’s in candles), but great marketing does not start with a strategy position that reads, “I hope every single person likes it”. Great marketing, and I’m talking about the kind that gets results, not just awards, is provocative. It challenges people to think differently about something.

Not everyone is going to like that. But you have to ask yourself, who are you trying to impress, everyone or your target? Then the question becomes, will this offend my target? If so, perhaps you should rethink the creative. Otherwise, go bold and don’t worry about ruffling a few feathers.

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1. Discover all relevant communities of interest and observe the choices, challenges, impressions, and wants of the people within each network.

2. Don’t just participate solely in your own domains (Facebook Fan Page, Twitter conversations related to your brand, etc.). Participate where your presence is advantageous and mandatory.

3. Determine the identity, character, and personality of the brand and match it to the persona of the individuals representing it online.

4. Establish a point of contact who is ultimately responsible for identifying, trafficking, or responding to all things that can affect brand perception.

5. As in customer service, representatives require training to learn how to proactively and reactively respond across multiple scenarios. Don’t just put the person familiar with social networking in front of the brand.

6. Embody the attributes you wish to portray and instill. Operate by a code of conduct.

7. Observe the behavioral cultures within each network and adjust your outreach accordingly.

8. Assess pain points, frustrations, and also those of contentment in order to establish meaningful connections.

9. Become a true participant in each community you wish to activate. Move beyond marketing and sales.

10. Don’t speak at audiences through canned messages. Introduce value, insight and direction with each engagement.

Click for the complete list.

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1. Using a weak password Stay away from simple names and obvious choices with a number tacked onto the end. Instead, mix upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols. Better still,  add a number or symbol the middle of your password.
2. Providing your full birth date Avoid showing your full birth date in your profile (day, month, year). This info can be used to obtain additional personal info, or access to your bank and credit accounts. Just show only your birth month and day, or nothing at all.
3. Ignoring useful privacy controls Take advantage of Facebooks many options for limiting what private information is seen by who-knows-who.
4. Posting a child’s name in a photo caption Just don’t do it. And, if someone else adds a tag to one of your photos with your child’s name, just delete it by clicking “remove tag”.
5. Mentioning being away from home When you do this, you’re letting everyone know that the house is empty.
6. Being found by a search engine You can stop strangers from accessing a profile by going to the Search section of Facebook’s privacy controls and select “Only Friends for Facebook” search results. Be sure the box for Public Search isn’t checked.
7. Permitting youngsters to use Facebook unsupervised. If there’s a young child or teenager in the household who uses Facebook, have an adult in the same household  become one of their online friends and use their e-mail as the contact for the account in order to receive notification and monitor activity.

Read the original Los Angeles Times article here.

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