Social Media Marketing

A room full of direct marketers listened as three cross-channel retailers discussed marketing strategies including social media, mobile, sales attribution and more at the Direct Marketing Club of New York's June luncheon in Manhattan yesterday.

LovingEco, which launches June 6th, is an invitation-only, social commerce platform that offers unsurpassed and innovative eco-friendly products at exclusive price points without compromising style. LovingEco is an advocate of "style for change;" an opportunity for people to make smarter choices about the products they purchase so it can create a more environmentally and socially conscious planet.

Ever stumble upon a box of old family photographs tucked away in a closet or attic and end up spending hours reminiscing as you flip through the images? I know I have. While entertaining, the experience often leaves you unfulfilled because you're unable to share those memories with others. Well, at least until now. A startup business from e-commerce veteran Jim Simon is helping consumers to relive and save their cherished memories.

Twitter passions can flare in a heartbeat, turning potentially millions for or against a specific cause. Urban Outfitters is the current focus of one such movement — one attracting the attention of pop star Miley Cyrus — that alleges intellectual property theft from an independent jeweler’s “I Heart Destination” designs.

They spend hours each week touting favorite products, sharing home improvement tips and answering questions about everything from installing ceramic tile to venting a mircrowave. The Home Depot's social media store associates are part of a new hybrid group that spends two days each week managing the retailer's how-to community and creating content for use across the company. 

The latest social media benchmark results from eDigitalResearch found that Facebook remains the most popular site for retailers to connect with online consumers. F-commerce pioneer ASOS has added over a third of its total current following in the past three months alone after opening the world’s first Facebook store back in January 2011.

Express is packing its full e-commerce catalog, complete with credit card checkout, into its Facebook presence. The retailer believes it's delivered a tighter integration on the Express Facebook page than that of some other early social shopping stores.

Whether you just bought an airline ticket or a pair of jeans online, chances are an internet search preceded the transaction. Now Facebook hopes to make its vast web of online social connections another central ingredient in the complicated dance between retailer and consumer.

Marketers who are rushing to increase their social media spend take note: A new study says social media has almost no influence on online purchasing behavior.

You may already know there are 5 billion mobile subscriptions worldwide. Under current trends, mobile phones will surpass PCs as the device most commonly used to access the web. You may be surprised to find out that 200 million people access Facebook through mobile devices. These people are twice as active on Facebook, so it appears that having internet access anytime, anywhere via a mobile device creates twice the engagement.