Hello Kitty: Marketing kawaii (cute)

Cute beer? Yes, Japan's superstar licensed character, Hello Kitty, now has her own branded, low-alcohol fruit-flavoured beer. Given Hello Kitty's high kawaii (cuteness) factor, beer might not seem quite appropriate for a brand that has children as its primary target market. Sanrio, the company behind Hello Kitty, insists that young women in China and Taiwan are the actual target for this product, because they have literally grown up with the brand. The kitty character was launched 40 years ago, and her appeal crosses national and generational boundaries.

Hello Kitty's pop-culture cachet has made it a perfect partner for Western celebrities and brands eager for recognition and acceptance in Asia. Lady Gaga did a photo shoot in November to promote a Hello Kitty doll in her likeness. Other performers (including Katy Perry and Avril Lavigne) have also been photographed with Hello Kitty for promotional purposes. Avril even released a song called 'Hello Kitty' on her latest CD.

Sanrio earns more than 4 billion pounds each year from sales of Hello Kitty merchandise. It's no surprise that Hello Kitty is extremely social: Her Facebook page has nearly 14 million likes. Kawaii!

EasyJet vs Ryanair: Rivalry in the sky

EasyJet vs Ryanair--a long-time rivalry in the sky is simmering once again as budget carrier EasyJet soars to new profit heights and competitor Ryanair's profit falls for the first time in years.

2013 was a brilliant year for EasyJet. Its well-received 'Generation EasyJet' campaign has expanded brand awareness across Europe and put its customer-oriented moves into the spotlight. More and more of its flights use major airports instead of out-of-the-way secondary airports. Rather than having a last-minute crush for seating, passengers can now check in via mobile and receive boarding passes the same way. Combine the new convenience with the low fares, and EasyJet is flying high as a brand and as a business.

For Ryanair, 2013 was not so brilliant. Even its own execs say it's 'the airline everyone loves to hate'. The chief financial officer comments: 'We cannot offer low fares without having a really low-cost base. So if that means we have to get up in the morning and have a fight with everybody, we will'. In the past, passengers would endure brusque employees and airport inconvenience to save a lot of money. Not these days. Competition is so fierce, and Ryanair's service reputation is so poor, that chief exec Michael O'Leary has cut excess baggage fees and is taking other steps to try to win back customers--starting with thanking customers for their business.

How will this long-time rivalry evolve in 2014?

Multichannel marketing and the 'last mile' challenge

Customers want to be able to buy in a store or online or via app, from anywhere, at any time. Perhaps the most problematic aspect of multichannel marketing is actually getting products to buyers--the 'last mile' challenge.

Different retailers are tackling the 'last mile' challenge in different ways, as Marketing Week points out in its yearend review of UK marketing. 

• Waitrose is storing grocery purchases in temperature-controlled lockers that buyers unlock with a code delivered via mobile. This allows the grocery chain to serve customers in areas where it has no stores.
• Ebay purchased Shutl in October, with the goal of speeding purchases to customers in a growing number of markets worldwide. 
• Asda's 'click & collect' program adds convenience by encouraging shopping via app and convenient pickup from locations near customers' homes or offices. 
• Amazon has announced plans to investigate the use of drones (Octocopters) for delivery within 30 minutes of online ordering. Really.

Watch for more innovations and experiments as online marketers test new ways to make buying and receiving products as convenient and painless as possible.

Opera, theatre, ballet, museums and Doctor Who

When Doctor Who's 50th anniversary special was simulcast on BBC channels and in 800 movie theatres around the world, it was only the latest in a growing trend toward selling specially-priced tickets to special performances on the big screen.

The concept of showing a series of live or special events in HD at local cinemas began eight seasons ago with New York's Metropolitan Opera HD Live series of opera performance transmissions. Today, more than 2,000 theatres in 64 nations show Met HD Live performances. Over the past eight years, more than 14 million people have attended an HD Live performance in their local theatre. The ticket prices are far lower than at the Met's opera house, but higher than movie ticket prices. Most important, the ability to reach millions of people in one season was the main marketing reason for starting this project. And yes, the Met HD Live is profitable.

Now all kinds of cultural organizations are bringing their performances or exhibits to larger audiences on the big screen. National Theatre Live brings "the best of British theatre" to local cinemas worldwide. Royal Opera House Live brings opera to cinema audiences in 30 countries. Ballet in Cinema brings performances from the Bolshoi and other renowned ballet companies to theatre-goers. World-class museums are opening special exhibits to cinema goers in many countries. And some rock concerts are showing on the big screen, as well.

Watch for more big screen events, thanks to the success of these cultural pioneers in marketing.

Hot toys of today . . . and yesterday

When Debenhams looked back at the most popular toys of the past 50 years, it discovered that Cabbage Patch Dolls were far ahead of perennial favourites like Barbie and Lego.

The retailer's top picks for 2013 feature some technology toys (see Kurio) and some traditional toys (Monster High dolls, Lego sets).

The Toy Retailers Association has listed its top 2013 picks, which include Lego, Furby and of course tech toys like the LeapPad Ultra.

Hamleys is carrying today's hot toys, but it also put another old favourite Beanie Babies, in its Regent Street Xmas windows this year. The toy store says an updated version of the Teksta robotic dog has been selling well. And, like so many other retailers, Hamleys invites customers to join the conversation on its Facebook page.

'Share a Coke' Goes Global

Two years ago, Coca-Cola and its marketing agencies created a marketing plan designed to boost sales and stimulate buzz in Australia. Research showed that teenagers and soft-drink lovers in their 20s weren't drinking Coke as much or as often. The marketers developed a plan for the summer months, with two goals in mind.

The primary campaign objective was simple: to increase consumption of Coca-Cola over the summer period. The secondary objective was to get people talking about Coke again.

Coca-Cola chose the 150 most popular first names in the country and printed them on Coke bottle labels. Before publicity or advertising began, the new Coke bottles were shipped to stores for shoppers to discover and share.

This started a lively social-media conversation that continued as publicity and adverts joined the mix. Consumer feedback via social media resulted in crowdsourced ideas for 50 additional names to be printed on Coke labels.

The campaign worked: Consumption by consumers in their teens and twenties increased by 7% during the summer months, giving sales a significant boost. The Coca-Cola Australia FB page was the most talked-about FB page in the country, with traffic increasing by an amazing 870% during the campaign.

Today, Coca-Cola Australia's Facebook page has more than one million likes and the company is constantly changing the content to promote its products and keep up a dialogue with brand fans.

Note the metrics: First, consumption--which drives sales--and then social-media interactions that involve the Coke brand. Results Down Under!

'Share a Coke' was so successful that Coca-Cola used it in Europe during the summer of 2013, again choosing the 150 most popular names, country by country. The long-term goal is to double Coke's sales by 2020, and successful campaigns like 'Share a Coke' are going global to help achieve that ambitious target.