Have Trouble Deciding Where to Eat? Yelp Can Help

Deciding where to eat has always been a difficult task for my friends and I.
Whether it's debating which place is closest, has the best vibe, and most importantly, has the best food. Luckily for us, the app Yelp provides distance, price average, reviews, and directions.

Yelp allows consumers to write reviews which ultimately effects the businesses' star rating. Yelpers can rate a reviewer's credibility by checking when their account was created and how many reviews they have written.

Users are encouraged to "check in" to places in order to receive titles such as "The Duchess of Jamba Juice" (a title which I proudly held for sometime).

The company's brilliant e-marketing strategy of using real customer experience to provide basic business information such as hours of operation, location, and contact information as well as pictures puts it at the top of Apple's Must Have Apps list.

Yelp's form of income is by selling advertisements. Business owners that purchase advertisements on Yelp have boosted their annual sales by $8,000 according to Boston Consulting Group, March 2013. Businesses can manage their Yelp business page by setting up a free account to post photos, contact consumers about their experiences, and by creating special Yelp deals.



This e-marketing approach encourages users to engage, provide feedback for the company (as well as other consumers) and even as advertising since users can share their check-ins when they visit a location via social media.

The app is perfect for finding the perfect place to go with friends on a Saturday night.

Starbucks | E-Marketing Leadership via App

We're all familiar with Starbucks.
I don't even remember the first time I heard about it- it just seems like it's been here always.

The way the coffee company has positioned itself in our lives seamlessly says a lot about their marketing efforts. Some would even call their strategy aggressive, if their tactics weren't so in tune with what consumers want.

We see tons of Starbucks marketing every day, but somehow we aren't annoyed by it. Why should we be, anyway? Their modern, cool image and comforting products have become a staple of many every day lives.

The key to the company's e-marketing success has started through their app, which, paired with multiple marketing strategies that I will go over next, has made buying coffee easier and more fun for consumers and easier for their marketing team to reach their target audience.

My favorite marketing strategy that Starbucks has used recently is:

Starbucks For Life
This is an ongoing marketing strategy that the company has been using for two years so far. It is a website online, starbucksforlife.com, which allows users to log in with their Starbucks Rewards loyalty program, and earn a game play every time they buy something with their Starbucks Card. If users  match three stickers in a row, they win free Starbucks for life.
The strategy was so successful that Starbucks for Life is available during the holiday season as well as over the summer.
The fun, game appearance makes us forget about commercials and marketing and in the end provides an incentive to buy more Starbucks and earn more plays.

Although marketed toward adults, the game has a whimsical appearance that makes it seem fun to play and attracts adults.

A final point to note is that Starbucks has become almost synonymous with new seasons (and staple products like the Pumpkin Spice Latte). This means that consumers almost look forward to their next marketing campaign and welcome it.

And those campaign marketers know exactly where to hit us: social media.

I experienced first hand (and was very impressed) with their timely marketing strategy for the pumpkin spice latte.
When I opened Snapchat last week to take a photo of me in line at the Starbucks drive-thru for my first PSL of fall, I noticed there was a geofilter called "first PSL!"
It doesn't feel like an annoying advertisement, it feels like the brand knows us, and since familiarity with your audience is a key in marketing, Starbucks is doing everything right.

An example of the PSL geofilter in effect.

Will It Blend? | The Genius Marketing Idea Behind Blendtec Blenders

Before you watch the following video, I need to let you know that before I watched it, my favorite blender on the market was called a Vitamix. After this video, I changed my mind. I want you to think of your favorite blender brand now, and at the end of the video, see if your answer is still the same.

 


Yesterday, I was hanging out with some friends and we were watching funny videos online.
One of my friends pulled this video up and we laughed at it. The man speaks in a funny and entertaining way, and the video itself is nothing short of awesome!

The iPhone is pulverized to dust by the blender.

By the end of the video, I personally couldn't help but think: wow, what kind of blender is THAT?

And just like that, they hooked me and now I know the only blender I've seen so powerful it can blend an iPhone, is called the Blendtec.

And their marketing team is incredible.

Their technique is short, sweet and effective.

On YouTube, Blendtec creates a free account where they upload content.
Today, you watched their video. Well, you and over 5 million others.

For each view, not only does Blendtec make earnings from YouTube alone, they get advertising!

The special thing about their technique, in my opinion, is that at the end of their ads, users dont feel cheated. Usually at the end of commercials, you're aware it's a commercial the entire time and at the end you understand their selling point.

However, as unlikely a combination as it is, the Blendtec sells itself while entertaining viewers.

E(at)- Marketing? Taco Bell Competes to be Your Snapchat BFF

Taco Bell has been around as long as I can remember. When I was in elementary school, I'd mostly see the chihuahua commercials on TV, but having health-minded parents, I never got to eat it much (or think about its marketing efforts.) However, a lot changes in college, one thing being how much more often I think about, hear about, and eat Taco Bell.

Why? Because their marketing efforts have grown up with me and more than kept up with the changing technology and take-over of social media. Taco Bell markets their products on three main social media platforms: Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat.

On Twitter, they reply to posts from college students like myself who may be stuck in class craving a burrito or possibly begging for a discontinued product (mango freeze slushie) to be brought back. They also retweet users who mention them on occasion.
The tone of Taco Bell's social media team when engaging with consumers is really playful and cool, just like their target audience: teens to 20-somethings. Their social media team, composed of people who fit their target audience's demographic, sails easily through new slang, trends, music, and pop culture references.

One of my favorite campaigns they put together was the online scavenger hunt where users had the chance to win Taco Bell for life!

On Instagram, Taco Bell posts tantalizing images of their products, as well as people enjoying them. They have done a great job at creating hype for eating their food, and make it seem like a fun experience to get Taco Bell with friends.

The Taco Bell Snapchat account takes followers behind the scenes of the "Taco Bell Food Lab" on occasion, showing hints of new products as well as building up excitement for twists on old favorites.

Since we're talking e-marketing, we have to mention the app. The Taco Bell app was launched last year and it allows users to pre-order and pre-pay for their food so when they arrive at their nearest Taco Bell store (found through the use of GPS technology), they can skip the line.
Though the app has had a few bugs, they have been minor and the company has made up for it by providing users with coupons for up to 25% off their entire order as well as $1 slushies.

In conclusion, I think Taco Bell's marketing and social media team have things perfectly sorted out and if they continue to keep up with social media trends and pop culture the way they have, they will have no problem staying at the top year after year.