Useful tips on social media

I just finished reading "The Art of Social Media" by Guy Kawasaki and Peg Fitzpatrick.  The ebook version is full of many useful hyperlinks that allow you to review examples while you read.  It's an essential guide for those of us who have a fairly good idea of the basics but want to get insights and tips on getting better at using social media for our businesses and personal life.

Showrooming

During the weekly digital marketing capability program we have here at the office, there was a fascinating session on different online/offline consumer behaviors.  One of them being the concept of showrooming, when someone checks out a product in a traditional retail store and then buys online. When the moderator showed this image, I totally related.

During the holiday season I walked into a small boutique in NY's Chelsea neighborhood and left with a pair of shoes from a brand I had never heard of:  Common Projects.  The salesman did a wonderful job talking about the brand story, their obsession with urban design, Italian manufacturing.... I was sold.

Back in Madrid, I decided to browse through the brand's site and clicking on 'buy online' I was redirected to an amazing multibrand ecommerce platform called thecorner.com that delivers any Common Project shoes in Spain. Perfect.  There I was buying my first pair of shoes online, something I've never done because of a number of reasons. Does the photo reflect the actual model? Will the shoes be comfortable?  Is the leather soft? What is the right size since different brands use different criteria and countries have different standards?  Now, since I have a pair that fits well and a style I relate to, suddenly my fears were over.

I must say that my story also made me feel I little bad since the store experience was exceptionally good but now I ordered my second pair online.  That's why I related so much to this cartoon.

Journeys for the mind and soul

The more I travel, the more I'm interested in learning experiences.  So, I enjoyed reading about The New York Times Journeys - an opportunity for discerned travellers to book trips inspired by the newspaper's editorial content and led by journalists and subject matter specialists.  Wouldn't it be amazing to join journeys like "The Two Sides of Southern Africa" or "Contemporary Life in Cuba"?  They're announcing over 25 itineraries, 70 departures dates in 7 different continents.

With the media industry being disrupted in so many ways and companies having to rethink how they can provide more meaningful relationships with their customers through new business models, this is a cool concept.  It makes you want to live the news and not just consume it.  Fascinating.

DIY experience for teens in NYC

Travelling with teenage daughters requires being imaginative and coming up with experiences beyond traditional tourist attractions.  So, this holiday season in New York, besides crossing the Brooklyn Bridge in the bitter cold to see the new year fireworks or exploring the interactive exhibits at the Cooper Hewitt Museum of Design, my wife made an appointment for them to make their own lipstick at Bite Lip Lab (174 Prince St. - Soho).  They loved it.

We see the do-it-yourself and customization model in many different categories.  More than just making the shopping experience more memorable, within our daughters' demographic, these moments have certain social currency.  For the brand, which I later learned has a retail presence in stores like Sephora, this is exactly the type of buzz that builds advocacy.

Great concept.