Can You Feel the Love?

I knew there was a reason I liked Starbucks for more than just their Gingerbread lattes (if you haven't tried it, I highly recommend it!)

For this holiday season Starbucks has announced they will be making a big push in social media, calling it "Starbucks 2.0" because they recognize that their customers want to get more involved.

"It's like we've taken the version 1.0 of last year and now we're really doing it at scale and going to a lot more places where our customers already are," said Chris Bruzzo, VP-brand, content and online at Starbucks. "People are saying this is going to be a big year for social media and we're a microcosm of that. Whereas last year it was a curiosity, this year it's a core part of the program."

The chain is continuing its partnership with Red, launched last Thanksgiving, and created a new partnership with Pandora by offering a free "All You Need Is Love" CD, with tracks from U2, John Legend and the Dave Matthews Band, when consumers spend $15.

What I find most interesting is that Starbucks has also found a faster and easier way for consumers to get involved, even if they're not yet comfortable in social media. For these less-comfortable folks, Starbucks created the "love drawing," at StarbucksLoveProject, for visitors to create a digital drawing using different paints and colors. For each of the first million drawings, Starbucks is donating 5 cents to Red.

The Starbucks initiative is a great example of how to create an entire integrated campaign around the web and include all types of target audiences.

Customize your own Outfit- Now There's an App for That

A friend of mine who works in marketing told me how she recently attended a Twitter seminar and the instructor said something that left a lasting impression on her - that if companies were a meal of spaghetti, that social media should not be the cheese sprinkled on top, but rather the hearty meatballs that accompany the noodles and sauce. Driving home the point, that companies should be incorporating and focusing on social media in their marketing strategies.

Social media is not just for 15 year olds posting pictures of what they did on weekends. Rather, social media tools (sites such as Twitter, Facebook, Digg, etc) allow for companies to generate exposure, opportunity , sales and new business partnerships.

Social media is a way to talk about products, become part of a community, engage conversations and create buzz. Companies will only gain by using social media tools and more should jump on the bandwagon.

The following is an article on Ralph Lauren's innovative marketing plan incorporating social media. Imagine picking up your iPhone, choosing an 'app' that allowed you to customize an outfit to your taste. Now imagine that you can order this outfit and have it shipped to your home within a few business days. Well, now you can.

Check it out: http://www.clickz.com/3634938