RIPPLE100 Micromarketing

How to word of mouth, or ripple? Get ideas here, then get started at Ripple100, where anyone can ripple anything, for any audience anywhere. Easy.

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Ah, politics: in one way or another, you probably have to deal with them.  This includes government officials, lobbyist, business owners, employees, union workers, activists, and the list goes on.  Each with their own vantage points, campaigns and ideas to share with the public.

Ripple your campaign, if it’s so obviously unique.

If not, dig deeper and ripple that which makes you different. Different vs. others. Different where you are. Different today vs. yesterday vs. tomorrow (in other words, what’s new? what are you protesting? making a promise? taking a stance on an issue?). Different in ways that matter to us:

Like, as a politico:

• Your latest community improvement project.
• Your campaign trail.
• Your statewide green initiative.
• Your corporate practice.
• Or protest against someone else’s.
• A position on an issue that you support.
• A solution that needs to be heard.
• A hero of a bill that was passed
• Or that is still fighting for approval.
• Your favorite candidate
• Or current politician.
• A grassroots movement that’s begun- and the inside scoop.
• A national rally or protest.
• A talk show you host
• Or the people you interview.
• An association you lead.
• A network group for your industry.
• The reason you choose to run for a position
• Or what’s holding you back.
• Your promise.
• Your past.
• Your change of heart.
• A bill you oppose
• Or one you helped write.
• The influence you had on a campaign.
• Your network of businesses
• Or what you’ve accomplished with them.
• Your industry-specific niche.
• An issue that’s important to you as an owner
• Or as an employee
• Or just as a person.
• A march you are organizing.
• A fundraiser for your candidate.
• A demographic your fighting for
• Or a statistic your fighting against.
• The straw that broke the camel’s back and why its time to make a move.
• The latest campaign triumph
• Or a promise upheld- maybe even surpassed.
• A goal that was met.
• A compromise that was reached.
• A town hall that you are hosting or how you can be contacted.
• Your pride in the location you represent.
• Your question to the people
• Or your answer for them.
• The party you belong to
• Or your lack of (your independence).
• Your famous 1-liner.
• Your iconic look or piece of clothing.

Click on comments if you want to add to this list, or see what others added.

Remember: if it’s different, or if it matters, it’s worth a ripple.

How to word of mouth, or ripple? Get ideas here, then get started at Ripple100, where anyone can ripple anything, for any audience anywhere. Easy.

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Travel has picked up as people are getting a little more cash in their pockets.  And your the specialist, the “vacationist”. From Bed & Breakfasts and hotels to rentals and sunscreen, your helping people enjoy what they hold dear- their vacations.

Ripple your travel service, if it’s so obviously unique.

If not, dig deeper and ripple that which makes you different. Different vs. others. Different where you are. Different today vs. yesterday vs. tomorrow (in other words, what’s new? what are you launching? products? services? promos?). Different in ways that matter to us:

Like, as an vacationist:

• Your location(s)
• Or the locations you offer
• The type of cars you rent
• Or boats, skis, quads, mopeds… just about anything really.
• How people get to your destination
• Or how you go to your customers.
• The “staycation” of a lifetime
• Or the very far and secluded place you send people.
• Your hands-on, one-on-one attention to customer needs
• Or the 5-minute automated online process you’ve developed.
• Your tour guides
• Or the people that recommend them.
• Your guarantee.
• Your wine tour around France
• Or beer tour in Germany.
• A spiritual get-away.
• Your inside history tour from the natives.
• The cultures you represent.
• The chocolate chip pancakes your Bed & Breakfast serves
• Or the fresh squeezed oranges- from your own field
• Or any signature dish.
• Your carbon-neutral trip.
• The local awards that you’ve won from a community that loves you
• Or your five-star rating that you honor.
• Your exclusive rights to _____.
• Your history.
• Your 24-hour availability.
• Your 1-person team
• Or 100.
• A virtual tour.
• A city-wide scavenger hunt.
• Your theme or symbol or song.
• The rooms you offer.
• The exercise facilities you maintain.
• Your special limited-time price.
• Your reputation.
• How you make traveling easier
• Or the products you offer.
• Your kid-friendly environment.
• Your couples only package.
• Your policy on pets.
• Your entertainment for the whole family.
• Your adult only shows.
• Your singles cruise.
• An all-inclusive package.
• The towel folding lessons you give.
• Your 25 year anniversary
• Or your 1 year.
• The weather you get.
• Your romantic view
• Or scenic ride.

There are a lot of travel options out there- what makes you special? We want to know why your different, and why it matters. Why and who should pick you?

Click on comments if you want to add to this list, or see what others added.

Remember: if it’s different, or if it matters, it’s worth a ripple.

How to word of mouth, or ripple? Get ideas here, then get started at Ripple100, where anyone can ripple anything, for any audience anywhere. Easy.

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Ripple your event or passion, if it’s so obviously unique.

If not, dig deeper and ripple that which makes you different. Different vs. others. Different where you are. Different today vs. yesterday vs. tomorrow (in other words, what’s new? what are you launching? events? pieces of work? promos?). Different in ways that matter to us:

Like, as an entertainer:

• Your carnival
• Or antiques show.
• One-of-a-kind jewelry
• Or the special materials you use.
• Children’s art
• Or how to preserve it.
• The reunion concert of the century (or at least for your town/region)
• Benefit concert and who its important to
• A day or a week of events and the theme that ties them all together.
• Your art gallery’s grand opening
• A music festival
• or any festival.
• The next big sporting event
• A networking event for your industry
• or for women
• or entrepreneurs.
• The party you just can’t miss
• A museum everyone should know about
• A last man standing competition
• or Mr. or Ms. townie.
• Family affairs with something for everyone
• Your tuber-wear party (or cloths or wine or chocolate…)
• An unusual place that may take people by surprise
• The costumes or required attire.
• A special appearance by a special person
• The variety
• The sounds or instruments or maybe lack of.
• A hero of the day, the week, the year.
• How the audience participates
• Or how they are the show.
• The reason to laugh or cry
• The games to play.
• A record that will be broken
• Or at least attempted.

Click on comments if you want to add to this list, or see what others added.

Remember: if it’s different, or if it matters, it’s worth a ripple.

How to word of mouth, or ripple? Get ideas here, then get started at Ripple100, where anyone can ripple anything, for any audience anywhere. Easy.

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Ripple your do-good non-profit, or association or your education program.  No matter what your status, you’re probably always looking for ways to make your case and get people’s attention.  You have a cause that’s worth fighting for.

If not, dig deeper and ripple that which makes you different. Different vs. other causes. Different where you are. Different today vs. yesterday vs. tomorrow (in other words, what’s new? what are you launching? products? services? promos?). Different in ways that matter to us:

Like, as a cause:

• Share your campaign
• Or event
• Your History.
• The reason it all got started
• Or why the world needs you.
• The people who inspired or sacrificed.
• The problem we can’t solve individually.
• Who you help
• Or oppose
• Or want to get involved.
• How you help
• What you’ve accomplished.
• Your goals
• Your pains
• A fundrasier
• Or other ways you raise money
• Or get volunteers.
• Recognizing your supporters
• Your volunteers
• Or opposition.
• The location
• A program
• A story
• A protest
• A special day for those that care
• Your theme song or just one that makes a lot of sense
• What you can do for others
• Where people can go for help
• The video that says it all
• A petition to sign
• Or a letter to send.
• Politicians who you support
• And those you oppose.
• A way to save a life
• Or to touch many.

Click on comments if you want to add to this list, or see what others added.

Remember: if it’s different, or if it matters, it’s worth a ripple.

Sears partnered with AOL a few months ago to create Good News Now, adding to their MySears efforts of last year.  Yup you guessed it, GNN is all about good news meshed with some causes but isn’t shy on Sears ads either.  Sears has an artillery of social media efforts including MySears, Facebook pages, Twitter feeds, and a back to school campaign.  Sears is doing a lot of good things, now if only they would take a look at the flow of their sites as a whole.

B+ for Authentic. I’ll give Sears props for all their efforts right off the bat. They’ve got multiple campaigns running for genuine and good causes.  They’re also upfront about what their Twitter feeds are for- deals (nothing wrong with that, as long as you know what you’re getting into).  GNN is definitely stuffed with good news, but is it overkill? Tech Crunch seemed to think so and gave a pretty tough review using words like “barf”.  The site does push the Sears brand to the forefront.  The question is: is it a crime to push your brand? I think that a brand has the right to match up with their causes (thus cause marketing) but Sears may be a too flashy on this one.  Also what does GNN really provide to the reader?  Random good news?  I’m more favorable of some of their other campaigns that are much clearer in their call to action and meaning.

A- for Inclusive. Sears provides a lot of ways for consumers to give feedback like through MySears Community where you can write/read reviews and participate in discussions. When they launched this new media outlet, Mashable took a deeper look at the application, pointing out a few quirks like the sites directing you to idle (wrong) twitter accounts- and they still have fixed it. Overall they got a good review, and I agree that these are the steps companies, especially large ones, need and should be taking.

Snapshot of MySears Community

B for Constructive. On one hand they have some specific campaigns (like their Heroes at Home) but GNN itself? Well a little too noisy for my taste.  Some may argue the point is simply to show good news and they do tie in their other campaigns that have a call to action. OK I won’t argue with that but their Good Causes category is listed down near the bottom of the site while Store Locator, Good Deals and Weather (not sure what this one is doing here), are listed near the top.  At MySears, consumer contributions are at the forefront, much more construct- of course this is a mechanism to generate reviews which is of a higher interest to Sears.  There really isn’t a natural flow, however, from their different online presences- facebook, MySears, Sears.com, etc.  I think if they were to reorganize and take a look at how all of the pieces can work together, they’d be more constructive, drive more back and forth, and be more efficient in capturing interests.

A for Mutually Beneficial. At the end of the day Sears is doing a lot of great things with their campaigns. In short: they’re making the effort.  Maintaining such extensive sites, and so many at once, is no easy task.  They have a good flow of content and their efforts benefit real people (consumers and military vets at home mostly).  On their Heroes at Home page you can read the stories of military personnel that were helped and see search results by location + active users (check out CT). Sears has really expanded their efforts over the last year in reaching out to people and interacting with the community.  I think by tying their sites together a little better and cutting out some of the fluff they would really rise as a top brand for social media.

The effort is there and like a lot of these big companies, Sears is aggressively moving in the right direction (consumer interaction). There are flaws and improvement to make but on the 4-way test (+ my views) they score an A-. To really hit this one home Sears can work on how their sites/campaigns can work together and continuing to improve the consumer experience.

Whole Foods Market has hit our 4-way test out of the ballpark. The company lays out their values, shows action and is constantly interacting with & reaching out to people.  Their campaigns reach a variety of kitchen table topics including poverty, environment, education, and of course health- all while utilizing social media.

A+ for Authentic. What I love about these guys is that they not only spell out their values (check out bullet 4- very honest), they say how they are accomplishing them and what actions they are taking.  These actions are generally campaigns that support the values + different communities.  A lot of brands get lost, don’t stick to their values and get knee deep in campaigns that don’t make sense (and don’t add as much company value).  Here the brand focuses its do-gooding efforts on campaigns that make sense for a high quality natural & organic food chain such as a local producer program, seafood sustainability and taking a stand against genetically engineered food.  They also have different layers of campaigns from local communities to a world campaign to “alleviate poverty”.  Even the use of “alleviate” is more authentic than the generic campaigns boldly (and unrealistically) stating to end world poverty- unfortunately there will always be poverty.

A+ for Inclusive. Generally, brands score weaker in this area but I think Whole Foods has this one down.  They have all the big “social media outlets” including Facebook, Twitter, Flickr and a company blog- and they are using them well.  On Twitter they reply to people, addressing concerns and questions. What’s more is they have sub-accounts for specific stores, topic or metro area.  On Facebook they post news, contests, blog posts, articles, pictures, video… and so on.  Overall it seems very systematic (most companies struggle with this) plus all the different parts work together to send traffic back and forth- helping the user get the info he/she wants.

A+ for Constructive. Here’s where the campaigns come in again. Plain and simple: through these causes Whole Foods helps others.  They give donations, have a foundation, support local buyers, and provide a ton of information on just about everything you need to know about organic and natural foods.  Whole Foods is constantly educating people about healthy eating through tips, recipes, comparisons, articles, even hosting cooking classes.  The company supports sustainability through the relationships it establishes and making decisions based on the guidelines laid out here.

A+ for Mutually Beneficial. When you add up all that I’ve talked about above you get a better consumer-brand relationship.  Not only that but Whole Foods keeps it real; one of their values is to make a profit.  Companies need money to survive + grow, there is now shame in that!  As a result Whole Foods is opening up new stores in troubled times (= jobs), while gaining followers (@WholeFoods +854,000) & fans (+91,000 Fan Page).  In return the community receives support, knowledge and a chance to have their voice heard- at least by Whole Foods .

Even businesses whose core function isn’t as “wholesome” as this, can take social media notes from Whole Foods and how they’ve developed their online presence. Some good news for you local Greater New Haven folks, there’s a new store opening up in Milford, CT.

SendOutCards (SOC) helps you send real cards via that “old school” US Postal Service, but with a new-age twist. Through their website you can select, design and personalize cards as well as get reminders on important dates (Mom’s B-day?). It’s a way to keep in touch, connect or reconnect when the moment strikes you- for personal or business. Here’s the breakdown:

• Authentic A-.  Its simple, you pick or create the card, write a note and SOC handles the rest.  That is what they are about and don’t try to be anything more, you can add a gift to your card but that’s all they sell.  A true credit to the company is its sales force; independents who are advocates for the product.  It fits a fundamental of marketing- get your customers that love you to sell you (I suppose the caveat to that is getting them to love you first).  Advocates can start their own home-based business as a distributor and earn money.  The only thing that may shy visitors away is cards are bought through a points system and to join you have to buy a package.  The numbers themselves may look a little daunting to a someone using just for personal use and would probably enjoy a pay-as-you-go account.  I’d get a much better feeling here if they laid out ]the packages and pricing with full descriptions and made it clearer what you are actually paying and for what.
• Inclusive B+.  Advocates as sales people allows people to participate in a way most companies miss out on, the customers become word-of-mouth marketers for the product.  SOC is tapping into social media through their blog and Facebook group.  However the communication mostly consists of company updates and news.  On their main site they have some testimonials to introduce you to the product but it’s a static page and who knows how old those are or what inspirational stories people may have to add.  My recommendation here would be to make submitting testimonials as easy as sending cards, provide a tool that lets people easily share their stories.  It also wouldn’t hurt to start a few discussions on their Facebook Fan Page and get their community talking whether its asking for suggestions, exchanging tips or running a contest they could really engage their loyal community members.  All while making SOC better.
• Constructive A. Plain and simple SendOut helps people grow relationships through a single tool to send cards.  They have a clear call to action: make a difference by sending a card.  The founder pops up as a video-guide to create your card and introduce you to how it works (only thing about the video is it keeps popping up every time you reload the page).  There are a lot of tutorials/videos in addition to this one loaded on the site to help you out if needed.  The site isn’t completely open for anyone to check it out, you need a sponsor ID to really check it out or contact them for one.  However if you Google SendOutCards and look at some of the lower links, it’ll get you to a distributors page where you might be able to try it out for free.  Maybe we have some friends out there that can leave a link to their page?
• Mutually Beneficial A.  The brand grows through independent distributors, people that use the product so for the brand that means some pretty loyal customers.  The service opens up a job opportunity for people to become distributors and get rewarding for helping spread the product.  On the consumer side the bulk prices breakdown into a good deal per card (as low as $0.62 for the post card) if you don’t mind a monthly fee.  The founder, Kody Batemate, lays out their mission pretty well on how much sending a card can make a difference to someone.  SOC also hosts events and training, like their Treat ‘Em Right Seminars, for their distributors and seem to put effort into foster the right, positive mindset.  Top three to me: making someone’s day, networking with a new friend/associate/mentor, and being reminded about dear old Mom and Pops’ anniversary!

SendOutCards seems to have an authentic message and mission of making a difference through a the simple act of sending a card.  There’s room for improvement on being more inclusive and there’s some simple things they can do to get the ball rolling.  What I like best about this company is they have a clear call to action that’s understandable to anyone.  They’re clear about what they do and aren’t stretching themselves in a million directions. I’ll send out a little love with an A- on the 4-way test.

Southwest Airlines (SWA) created Nuts About Southwest blog way back in April of 2006 to give people a chance to learn more and interact with the company.  The blog itself is a start but it’s the other efforts by Southwest that push them to an “A”.

• A for Authentic As much as I try to be a stickler about this topic, SWA is doing this by posting opposing comments, offering a wide range of media (video, podcast, blog, etc), and most importantly laying it all out there.  It’s plain spoken, simple language that doesn’t seem to be hiding any tricks.
• A- for Inclusive  Being able to post comments, pics and the like is good for opening the conversation.  The blog itself doesn’t allow users to really start any conversation, so its completely guided by the company.  I don’t have any issue with this since it provides a needed structure but what SWA could do is emphasize their Facebook fan page more.  Here there’s more of a conversation.  On the blog there are links at the bottom to SWA’s Facebook, Twitter, etc. They push the Flickr but not Facebook.  Also their Facebook page doesn’t mention their blog, at least in the info section they should fill in a little more info at with their blog link at the very least.
• A- for Constructive Feed back is a wonderful tool.  Opening themselves up for comments and even posting not-so-desirables, allows SWA to grow + learn from consumers which equals brand builiding + loyalty. Consumers in the meantime get to have their voice heard and concerns addressed.  Not all concerns will be addressed but the major ones are important to take care of and keep the conversation going.  On the downside, SWA needs to do a better job with their flow between and across sites.  As mentioned above they need to develop more seamlessness between their blog and social media sites better.  This will help consumers to piece together SWA’s view and voice with the more consumer sided voice from their Facebook page.  A stronger connection between the voices will help make the relationship more constructive.
• A for Mutually Rewarding  Airports can be a pain in the butt, it’s apart of the nature of travel: stuff happens.  Also- big surprise here- companies make mistakes!  Having outlets for consumers is important to taking the temperature on what’s happening.  Southwest has basically given itself (through Facebook) a way to test out new ideas, poll travelers, gather testimonials and maybe even learn something they never thought of.  The company knows what the consumers want and can act on it.

The biggest fish tale has been around for years and it’s about a “Magical Charity Carousel“.  In May, 1999 Lenny & Joe’s Fish Tale Drive-In restaurant bought a handmade carousel to celebrate their 20th Anniversary.  The charities selected to receive the money get 100% of the $1 charge for the ride.

• Authentic.  From head to tale.  The two restaurants take care of maintenance + improvement costs the Carousel needs- the charities get all the money, all of the time.  Not to mention they do an excellent job sharing their story of 2 brothers and go an extra step to recognize even past employees as part of their team Alumni.  However they lose “transparency points” on how they select their charities and dates, not sure what the process is here.  It’d also be a great addition to have a quick way for groups and organizations to contact L&J for their charities.
• Inclusive.  This brand is definitely working with the community to raise funds for the charities but not necessarily as an “insider”.  They shoulder the costs of the Carousel but (at least on the site) there is still only a 1-way conversation.  There are excellent opportunities here to use a little social media to help a)the charities and b) the restaurant. They could do this by adding a sharing widget to the Carousel pages to help get the word out.  Also the restuarant would do well to add somewhere for people to submit testimonials of their experience/comments about the restuarant or raising funds through the Carousel. A few simple tricks to get the conversation going could really kick this campaign up a knotch.
  
• Constructive.  Wide range of local charities receiving funds- love the community support.  The short timeframes for the charities (1 day to a week) develops a sense of urgency for people to come in to support.  I can’t help but wonder though if they’s raise even more by setting specific goals and gearing extra focus on a few of their top charities- creating a greater impact.  On their charity list they highlight one annual charity; Local High School Scholarships where they donate $5,000 per year. I’m sure there are many reoccurring charities on the list, if not most.  My advice to be more constructive: set specific goals for more of the charities and get people excited by tracking + posting results.
• Mutually Beneficial.  550,000+ over 10 years, not too shabby for a $1 ride.  Great setup here in supporting the community to get support back.  By designating fundraisers on a given night, supporters come around and just might hang for some eats.  The restaurant also has a Seafood Chatter section on their site that people can subscribe too for updates on what’s fresh and ongoing deals, this simple interaction helps keep the brand + consumer relationship going.

Overall I’d give Lenny & Joe’s an A- on our 4-way test and plan on paying them (and their Carousel) a visit myself.  What do you think, are they ripple ready?