This week we’re looking at US luxury department store, Barney’s most recent social media campaign: #BarneysUnwrapped.

It’s the season for giving and Barney’s is getting into the Christmas spirit on Instagram. The retail giant is posting short videos each day to their Instagram account, @barneysny featuring luxury prizes like these, kitschy Gucci sunnies, because … fashun … and free shit!

As long as you’re following their Instagram account, leave a comment, and do a bunch of other things we haven’t bothered to research, you’ll be in the draw to win stuff that you might never use … BUT is valued at the same price as the average second hand car.

The prizes might be questionable, but in actual fact, this strategy is GENIUS! Social media algorithms have changed in recent times to promote ‘viral’ content higher in the newsfeed. How does it judge virality? Likes and comments (and views).

And that’s exactly what Barney’s are encouraging … comments. Plus, they’re making sure people are following them too, and who doesn’t want more followers.

The campaign is exclusive to the Instagram platform, but Barneys are promoting it across their website, in stores, email database and 1.2 million Facebook audience, which is sure to deliver a nice boost in followers before Christmas.

In the age of the almighty Amazon, and the like, department stores have no choice but to offer their customers incentives to draw them back in store, maintain personal connections and remain relevant in an ever-changing retail landscape.

Barney’s have managed to tick all the boxes when it comes to an effective social media campaign: it’s platform specific, they’ve used their existing platforms to drive attention to a Instagram, they’ve included a call to action and they’re giving away in demand, expensive prizes.

So for these reasons, this week, it’s a Marketing Masterstroke.

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Nowadays, most businesses have a team dedicated to resolving customer complaints, or at least have procedures for how to deal with negative feedback.

And so they should. Why? Because making a complaint is now easier, and more impactful, than ever! You no longer have to endure the call centre experience or fill out an online form. Any person with a Facebook page can very easily publish a negative comment to a business page for the whole world to see. And with enough negative comments on your page, it can dramatically impact revenue.

So where’s the positive in those negative comments, I hear you ask?

Well, you absolutely don’t want a huge amount of negative reviews. However, a few negative comments, if dealt with properly, isn’t so bad.

Firstly, it allows you to demonstrate in a public forum that you’re willing to listen to consumer concerns and are committed to solving their problems.

And secondly, it’s good for social media algorithms.

Facebook and Instagram’s goal is to keep you on their platform for as long as possible, so they can serve you more ads. To keep you engaged, it will rank the posts with more likes, comments and shares, higher in your newsfeed because it determines that these posts are the most popular among people like you.

So basically, the more comments (positive or negative) the more people will see it.

An example of a post we did for a client was in response to the recent Same-Sex Marriage vote in Australia.

This post was published immediately after the result was announced.

As you can imagine, we had some vile comments on this post, which we hid as soon as we noticed them. We also had a total of 22 angry emojis.

But on a positive note, we got over 1,000 likes and loads of positive comments.

There were also several people respectfully debating the results on this post. The more people that commented on the post, the more people we were able to reach.

Media publishers are experts in this area. Check out Sunrise’s Facebook page, for example. They will often pick controversial topics to spark conversations. People become passionate about these issues and want to express how they feel. And what do you know, media publishers are some of the most followed pages on social media.

When playing in this territory, it can be risky. If your consumers are on the conservative side, it’s important to play it safe.

Ultimately though, every business must realise that they’ll never make everybody happy and there will always be some negative comments.

It’s about weighing up the positives and the negatives. Are YOU prepared to get a few negatives reactions in return for 1,000 positives ones?

The real challenge though is in selecting a topic that both aligns with your brand and also gets people talking.

That’s where we come in. Want to get your consumers talking about your business more and more online?

Contact us

The over-sexualisation of women in advertising appears to indicate that sex still sells in 2017 … or is it a trope that lingers around from times gone by?

From UltraTune ads to Wicked Campers, the objectification and at times sheer disrespect for women and their bodies is ubiquitous. Morally, it’s wrong – all of the research indicates that this kind of advertising leads to a higher support of sexist beliefs and an increased tolerance to sexual violence.

From a marketing perspective, it’s complicated. We certainly do not condone any of the aforementioned advertising campaigns, but we are interested in why they exist. When global giants like Dove, L’Oreal and Audi are attempting to make a statement on gender equality, you would assume that the rest would follow. But ad campaigns like this one are continually rolled out, and every magazine seems to have toned abs and pert butts splashed across their covers.

Is this because half naked women catch the eye, or because risque advertising campaigns are guaranteed to create a publicity storm, allowing brands to reach millions organically. Possibly a bit of both and Honey Birdette claim the campaign has led to a “spike” in sales.

This approach might work for Honey Birdette’s consumers, but does it resonate with the majority of women? And would it work for other businesses? Larger companies are pivoting away from such campaigns, because they know the general public expect more in 2017. Plus, promoting body shapes that are unattainable makes the consumer feel bad about their own bodies, which leads to more covering up, and less stripping off. And that is something lingerie companies DON’T want to happen.

So for these reasons, this week, it’s a Marketing Mistake.

What do you think? Let us know on FB or drop us a line.

This week we’re looking at Marie Claire’s limited edition magazine cover celebrating the success of the marriage equality vote in Australia.

In 2012, the magazine ran a similar ‘limited-edition cover’ with Aussie celebrities declaring their support for the cause. We can safely assume it was a success at the magazine stand, because they’ve done it again.

The importance for brands to align themselves with social causes is becoming more important and the impetus has been the realisation that ‘hot button’ topics are a phenomenal way to spark conversations on social media. Also, the same-sex marriage result is an historic moment, meaning that this cover really is a one-off.

Marie Claire’s base of readers are middle to upper class women, who are relatively well educated and this group showed some of the highest levels of support.

Then there will be some who will buy this edition purely for sentimental reasons, so it’s sure to send sales skyrocketing.

So, what’s the verdict?

This is most definitely a Marketing Masterstroke.

What do you think? Hit us up on FB or drop us a line.