Mediaboss Marketing

With COVID-19 lockdowns still in place, in varying forms, in most regions across the world, it may seem like there's limited opportunity for travel marketing and pitching people on future holiday plans. But according to Pinterest interest in travel is seeing a resurgence, as more people look forward to future opportunities, and more travelers, right now, are moving through US airports.

Indeed, Pinterest says that more than 850,000 travelers passed through US airport security checkpoints on August 16th, which is almost 10x the volume of air travelers in early April. Those figures are still significantly down on the same time last year, but with reports of COVID-19 treatments and vaccines starting to trickle in, now might be the time to start helping users plan for that future escape that they'll most definitely be seeking once they're able to travel again.

As per Pinterest:

"Some of the trends were seeing? With COVID-19 still a concern, car-centered vacations are gaining ground. Searches for cross country road trip are up 89% while those for road trips routes have zoomed ahead 248%. Searches for outdoor-focused destinations are also spiking, with lake weekend up 41% and national parks up 60%. And RV camping tips searches have gained 1257%"

So, even with COVID-19 as a lingering concern, people are starting to consider their travel options. And if you're looking to reach them, Pinterest has this week provided some travel marketing tips to maximize your appeal to these consumers.

A key opportunity for travel marketers is to highlight the experiences people can have via digital means, in order to increase enthusiasm for future planning.

Pinterest uses Disney Parks as an example here - with many people unable to travel, Disney has been sharing interactive online experiences, like virtual roller coaster rides, which showcase what its parks have to offer, helping to boost interest in future visits.

Given the evolving nature of the pandemic, it's also important to reassure travelers that their bookings will be flexible, and that they'll be able to change the details, cancel, or reschedule easily as things arise.

This is a key element for travel brands, and various travelers have expressed frustration at not being able to obtain refunds, not being able to alter bookings and losing money as a result of changed health advice.

Being transparent, and helpful, on this front is key.

Pinterest also notes that many travel brands are now pitching closer getaways and day breaks in order to appeal to travelers who may not yet be willing or able to commit to longer distance plans.

Pinterest uses Hilton Hotels as an example:

That won't be an option for all travel marketers, but there may be ways to reframe related offers and packages around closer locations, keeping health advice in mind, and still enabling an escape from the situation.

Pinterest also advises travel brands to use Pinterest Trends to help guide their pitches to interested groups.

On Pinterest Trends, you can enter any term and get insight into its popularity over time, as well as related trends, which can help to guide your strategic approach.

As you can see along the bottom of the chart (though they're fairly small in this image), 'beautiful places', 'adventure travel' and 'travel aesthetic' are trending searches linked to the broader 'travel'topic. Tapping into those subtopics will highlight the same chart for that specific element, while each also displays a listing of popular Pins in each category, highlighting what, exactly, Pinterest users are searching for.

Using this data, Pinterest has identified, for example, thatsearches for national parks have increased 60% year-over-year, which is what lead Southwest Airlinesto build customized creative to help travelers visualize their trip.

Pinterest finally notes that travel brands can use Pinterest research to guide their approach by honing in on persona data.

"Visit California studied Pinterest Travel Personas to make sure they were appealing to peoples passions for travel that included wellness, spa, family, adventure and foodie experiences."

Again, starting with Pinterest Trends, and the platform's own published insights, you can formulate a more cohesive outline of the different elements of interest, then link that to specific pitches within your outreach efforts.

There are some good tips here, and with 416 million people now actively using Pinterest -more than ever during the COVID-19 lockdowns -it could be a good platform to, at the least, experiment with and see how you can align your pitch based on available data.

And while these trends are specific to Pinterest, they likely also reflect broader interests. As such, you could also use Pin data to fuel your approach on other platforms as well.

You can read Pinterest's full travel insights report here.

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Pinterest Provides Tips for Travel Brands Amid Early Signs of Travel Recovery - Social Media Today

In the Article, Which Was Published on August 14, 2020, Prairie Discusses Five Growth Hacks for the Popular Video Sharing Social Networking Service

SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY / ACCESSWIRE / August 20, 2020 / Elizabeth Prairie, Owner of the Digital Marketing Agency Social Static, is pleased to announce that she has been featured in a Forbes article about the best growth strategies for TikTok.

To learn more about Social Static and the social media marketing services that they offer, please visit http://www.socialstatic.co.

In the article, which ran on August 14, 2020 and is titled "Five TikTok Growth Hacks You Need To Know," the author noted that TikTok has definitely taken the world by storm. In addition to teens who use the platform to share their dance moves and other entertaining short videos with their friends, Prairie knows that TikTok can also be an effective marketing strategy for businesses.

Prairie, a self-described "Digital Nomad" has seen firsthand how challenging it can be for business owners to generate organic exposure on other social media websites like Instagram. However, she told the author of the article, TikTok can be an effective way for business owners to get the word out about their companies-all with no dancing required.

As Prairie noted in the article, the first step for an effective TikTok experience is for business owners to be authentic and find their audiences.

"TikTok is all about being genuine, it's about having fun and not taking yourself too seriously," she said, adding that users will recognize this and be more likely to press "follow" or "like."

"Unlike most of your content platforms, your content can (and should be) fun and playful. Show your personality through your videos, and let your audience get to know you in ways you don't usually show through a photo grid on Instagram."

Another way to effectively harness the power of TikTok, Prairie noted in the Forbes article, is to use hashtags. As Prairie explained, using a hashtag will not only mean the person will get on the page for that hashtag; it's also how the TikTok algorithm will know who to show the content to.

"So, if you're posting personal finance tips, using a hashtag like #personalfinance will get your video in front of the eyeballs of your perfectly curated target audience: users who have already engaged with related videos in the past," the article noted.

The other TikTok hacks that Prairie discussed in the Forbes article are: to sign up for the free Pro Account on TikTok in order to access analytics; to optimize the bio as much as possible and to research what is currently trending on the platform.

About Elizabeth Prairie:

Elizabeth Prairie is the Owner of the Digital Marketing Agency Social Static. Her home base is Saratoga Springs, New York but travels the world teaching her marketing principles through workshops, one-on-one coaching sessions, and monthly client management. She is also a proud Adirondack 46er with a passion for getting outdoors, traveling and networking. She's a perpetual trip planner and people can find her traveling often within the United States and across the pond to the United Kingdom. For more information, check out Prairie's TikTok page at https://vm.tiktok.com/J8Fg59g/, her Instagram page at https://www.instagram.com/socialstatic/ or visit http://www.socialstatic.co.

Contact:

Elizabeth PrairieHello@socialstatic.co5189281496

SOURCE: Elizabeth Prairie

View source version on accesswire.com: https://www.accesswire.com/602584/Elizabeth-Prairie-Owner-of-the-Digital-Marketing-Agency-Social-Static-is-Featured-in-Forbes-Article-about-TikTok

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Elizabeth Prairie, Owner of the Digital Marketing Agency Social Static, is Featured in Forbes Article about TikTok - Yahoo Finance

Photo courtesy of Cafe Rio

Back in early spring, consumers quarantining at home were watching a lot of TV. But there werent many commercials relating to this new normal. Social media channels were promoting takeout and delivery, but it seemed that marketing teams at restaurant and delivery companies were as unprepared for a pandemic as the rest of the country.

Fast forward several months, and the pace has picked up. While social media channels are still getting most of the action, television commercials are now appealing to pandemic-weary consumers with targetedand often humorousmessages.

McDonalds has been proactive in its approach, promoting its $1 drink deals as a way to get trapped consumers out of the house and into its stores. And GrubHub encouraged viewers to reward themselves with tacos after spending time on the couch, using animated characters to get the message across.

Mexican fast casual Caf Rio aired a commercial to announce the return of is Carne Asada, featuring the real family of actor and comedian Regan Burns. Its shot in the familys home and the humorous scenes show the kids and parents catching a whiff of carne asada through their masks, eating dinner surrounded by plexiglass and taking off for a day of home schooling with the item in lunch bags.

Caf Rio teamed up with Funworks, an agency that specializes in improv-inspired marketing. The goal was to create an ad that poked a little fun at pandemic restrictions yet remained empathetic.

We worked closely with the Cafe Rio Mexican Grill team to make sure the tone felt right and that the ideas could evolve as things within the world continued to change, Funworks CCO Craig Mangan said in a statement. From the script to the directing to the editing, we were constantly having conversations about the boundaries of the humor, showing the Carne Asada obsession as well as the absurdity of people's new normal in a relatable way that wasn't making light of the hardships people are facing today.

What type of commercials are resonating now with pandemic-weary consumers? EDO, a data, measurement, and analytics company that tracks advertising, reports that GrubHub saw a 14% lift in search engagement above the brands 90-day benchmark for its animated ad.

DoorDashs amusing ad Without Restaurants had greater impact. The commercial joked that ordering food delivery to help local restaurants really helps actors, as many current stars started off working in restaurants. When it was re-released as a 15-second spot in mid-August, it saw a 49% lift in engagement, found EDO.

Restaurant chains that took a more straightforward approach had impact as well. Dunkin recently debuted creatives showing masked workers inside restaurants, both preparing takeout and serving in-store diners.The 30-second Keep Running with Dunkin was three times more effective than the brands 90-day engagement.

While consumers eager to get out of the house may now be most interested in seeing restaurants following safety protocols, EDO reported that the response was different in April and May, especially with casual and midscale chains. Olive Garden, for example, generated high engagement from itsBuy One, Take One To Gocampaign, which offered empathetic messaging and an attractive BOGO deal. It scored 60% better than the brands 90-day benchmark.

In general, restaurants that continued to advertise during the pandemic saw results, EDO told Restaurant Business. Both the QSR/Pizza/Fast Casual and the Casual/Midscale categories have continued to drive above-average consumer search engagement with national TV advertising on a per-person, per-second basis compared to all national TV advertisers from the week of March 16th through now.This was particularly impressive given the downturn in consumer engagement seen across many other categories during the initial weeks of the pandemic, the company said.

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Marketers create TV ads that resonate with pandemic-weary consumers - Restaurant Business Online

FASHION & COMPASSION August 19, 2020 | Views:

Overview:The Communications and Marketing Coordinator will manage and support the Fashion& Compassion brand voice through all aspects of both traditional and digital marketing channels to include our website and social media, as well as physical collateral. This is a critical role and requires someone who is extremely detail-oriented, customer-focused, has great writing skills, and the ability to produce and edit content in a fast-paced environment.As a story brand, we are in a unique position to tell that story in a way that is compelling and informative. Youll work in a collaborative environment where youll be responsible for creating innovative content based on the strategies laid out by our Executive Director and Marketing partners.

This position will be a 15-18 hour a week commitment and can be managed from our office in Dilworth and at home depending on weekly responsibilities.

Responsibilities: Manage the branding and voice of Fashion & Compassion from online/email, social media, and marketing collateral perspectives. Partner with third party marketing/branding consultants to execute on overall marketing plan/strategies when applicable. Create and post content across all digital marketing channels via an omnichannel platform; engage with followers as appropriate. Craft, execute, and manage email marketing campaigns. Provide input on website design. Create quick and easy graphic designs that can be utilized for website banners, invitations, signage, product packaging, and other collateral. Provide consistent reporting on the effectiveness of various marketing efforts. Assist with product photography as needed.

Qualifications: Undergraduate degree or equivalent experience 2+ years of experience supporting omnichannel marketing platform Experience with photography and editing A passion for marketing communications, including a basic understanding of digital and social media marketing. Detail-oriented, including a drive for problem-solving, innovation, and results. Strong understanding of email marketing, social media, and web analytics. Effective written and verbal communication skills. Takes initiative to understand and contribute to the achievement of goals and strategies. A strong work ethic, ability to multitask, and personal accountability for areas of responsibility.

To apply:If you are interested in applying, please send a resume and cover letter to careers@fashionandcompassion.com and we will respond to you shortly.

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Part-Time Communications and Marketing Coordinator - Charlotte Agenda

During the COVID-19 pandemic, companies redirected almost half of the marketing budgets (46%) towards social media and mobile activities, according to the latest edition of Deloitte Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Survey, twice as much as before the pandemic. The study also emphasizes that marketers anticipate a continuous growth for mobile spending over the next 12 months, while spending on social media will remain close to the new high level. Deloitte CMO Survey was the result of an analysis of almost 300 responses from top marketers active in 13 industry sectors in US.

In these past few month, social media played an important role both in brand awareness and in company performance. Three quarters of the respondents used social media mainly for brand awareness and brand building (84%) and over half of them focused social media activities on the retention of current customers (54%) and the gain of new customers (51%). Additionally, the study underlines that social medias contribution to the company performance spiked during the pandemic, with a 23.5% increase from February 2020. Another finding is that marketers make little use of influencers campaigns, as only 8% of their budget is allotted to online influencers on social media such as LinkedIn, company blogs, Instagram, Facebook and others. Respondents anticipate that in the next three years they will increase their budget allocated to influencers to 13% of the total marketing budget, and the highest growth is expected in industries such as banking and professional services.

More than ever, the CMO is in the right position to bring the voice of the customer on the table. This resides in the ability of the CMO to respond to three challenges: turning customer data into actionable insights, creating relevant customer engagement and building the organization that delivers. Without data sources connected from inside and outside the organization and discipline in place for data quality, customer insights simply cant materialize. At the same time, carefully aligning technology and data with human values and identity is a must for attracting customers. However, if the customer-centricity can-do mentality is not set in the DNA of the organization, no amount of data and technology can save you, said Ruxandra Bandila, Marketing and Business Development Director, Deloitte Romania.

Despite a 70% increase in mobile spending during the pandemic, marketers observe a very little lift in mobiles contribution to company performance, as 28% of respondents believe that mobile activities dont help at all in performance improvement. The study also highlights that when investing in mobile activities, marketers demonstrate a clear prioritization of mobile website optimization (70%) over app creation and maintenance (30%).

The role of the marketing department inside the companies changed during the COVID-19 pandemic, as almost two thirds of the respondents (62%) report that marketing function has increased in importance, with business-to-business (B2B) companies seeing this increase most strongly at 63% (B2B products) and 72% (B2B services). Alongside a recognized key role of the marketing function, findings of the study reflect the importance of the priorities set by the organization for the marketing department, such as retaining customers and maintaining brand awareness, as the pandemic raised the marketing budget to 12.6 % of the firms overall budget compared to the pre-pandemic period (11.3%).

This importance is striking given the fact that marketers are doing more with fewer people, as 9% of the marketing jobs were lost during the pandemic. Workforce inside the marketing function could raise concerns in the nearest future, as a quarter of respondents (24%) anticipate that these jobs will never return.

Deloitte CMO Survey is conducted twice a year, via an online survey, covering companies from industries such as technology, banking, retail, healthcare, professional services, communications, consumer package goods, manufacturing, consumer services, transportation, mining and construction, energy and education. More information is available here.

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Deloitte study: companies redirected almost half of the marketing budgets towards social media and mobile activities during the COVID-19 pandemic -...