Introducing Christmas 2016 adverts (and their hashtags)

In the coming days, you'll see more and more of this year's Christmas adverts on every screen (telly, tablet, mobile). Building anticipation is part of the fun and a smart marketing strategy too.

Here are links to just three of the recently introduced retailer adverts playing on screens across the UK.

• Aldi's advert features #KevinTheCarrot (above) and ends with the strapline 'everyday amazing' to reinforce the retailer's low-price positioning. One million online views in one week.
• The new John Lewis #BusterTheBoxer advert has been viewed 15 million times on YouTube in just the first four days. Not only is Buster an adorable toy, 10% of the price goes to charity.
• Marks & Spencer features Mrs Claus in #LoveMrsClaus, its 2016 holiday advert. In four days, this advert has been viewed online 4.6 million times.

Watch for the hashtags integrating mentions of the adverts throughout social media and traditional advertising.

Zoolander 2 on Valentino's runway

Even if Paris fashion isn't your cup of Earl Grey, you have to smile when Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson stalk the runway for Valentino. It was a clever publicity stunt that had fashionistas gasping and reaching for their iPhones earlier today.

The stars made a surprise appearance during Valentino's Paris Fashion Week show to promote . . . well, the hashtag #Zoolander2 says it all: The Zoolander 2 movie debuts in 2016, starring Derek and Hansel, two models with attitude. The Zoolander Facebook page (1.1 million likes) also carried photos and posts as the stars completed their walkoff.

Both Zoolander2 and Valentino trended high on Twitter for hours after the stars left the runway. No promoted tweets needed, the photos and hashtag went viral worldwide through buzz. Think of the promotional value for the designer and for the movie when two well-known actors get into character and "perform" in front of a star-studded audience expecting a couture collection.

Bottom line: The promotion was effective because it was live, it was a surprise, and it took place in a setting where those characters would ordinarily be seen--a win-win for the designer and the movie.

McDonald's UK joins the twittersphere

Now in the twittersphere: McDonald's UK, where hash browns have been more popular than hashtags--until this week. McD's UK Twitter account has posted more than 50 tweets and attracted more than 500 followers in only three days. 

In addition to mouth-watering product photos, McD's UK is tweeting for Throwback Thursdays and--of course--following McD's Twitter accounts for Europe and elsewhere around the globe.

Two years ago, McDonald's US took a wrong turn with its Twitter strategy by inviting consumers to post tweets about favourite McDonald's experiences and products with the hashtag #McDStories. Instead, consumers posted negative comments, forcing the company to end that social media campaign. Recently, McDonald's appointed Ronald McDonald as one of its social media spokescharacters. 

McDonald's UK has been one of the multinational's bright spots in a crowded and competitive fast-food marketplace. Looking ahead, the chief exec of McD's UK plans to continue focusing on value and responding to what customers need and want: quality food and more menu choices.

 

It's a hashtag world

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Hashtags are everywhere. Remember QR codes? Still around, but not as stylish (not to mention possible security concerns). It seems your brand or product needs a hashtag (or more than one) to be hip and engaging in today's social media.

Hashtags enable users to search for content and follow social-media conversations according to the tag or subject. A Twitter or Facebook or Google+ post might have a single hashtag or multiple hashtags, depending on the content. When I tweet about this post, for example, I'll use the #marketing label so that people searching for marketing-related messages will see my post in the results.

One social media marketing expert recommends a three-part strategy for using hashtags in marketing: (1) brand and/or campaign-specific hashtags (such as #Nestle and #HaveABreak), (2) trending hashtags (if you see a relevant hashtag trending on Twitter, you can join the conversation but don't spam) and (3) content hashtags (relating to a particular product, for example, or a specific event or occasion).

Marketers often create their own hashtags to capture attention and focus dialogue on their particular brand or campaign. Of course, once a hashtag has appeared in social media, anyone can add it to a post. This might be a positive, spreading the message to others--or it might prove negative if people use the hashtag to complain. That's what happened to McDonald's when it created the hashtag #McDStories. Twitter soon lit up with negative comments from consumers (whether true or not, the comments included that special hashtag). McDonald's saw what was happening and changed course within an hour.

If you're on Twitter, try a search for the following hashtags to see posts about these topics:

• #marketing
• #customerservice
• #advertising
• #customerretention
• #customersatisfaction
• #retail