I Love the Buzz!

Do you want to be apart of the "buzz"? Do you want to in "the know"? Are you in PR? Are you a blogger? Do you have a product that needs some serious marketing?

If you answered yes to any of these questions then you need to sign up for The Buzz Cooperative (here).

The Buzz Cooperative will get you linked up with the right brands or the most influential bloggers in the industry.

At the end of the month, I am partnering up with 20th Century Fox and Paper Shouts for the DVD release for Bride Wars. It's going to be a huge giveaway, on my other blog Giftfully Simple complete with gift certificates, DVD's, movie memorabilia and even a Cancun vacation giveaway! I got this great opportunity from the Buzz Cooperative!

Go sign up! It's free and SO worth it!

Ford's Frugal, Yet Creative Marketing Strategy

Ford is getting really creative in their marketing strategy!

Later this month, Ford will hand over the branding and promotion duties for the Fiesta to 100 twenty-somethings who have no advertising experience. This is a risky move since in 2006, Chevy let YouTubers make commercials for the 2007 Tahoe, and instead of getting clips that showed off the SUV’s features, most of the entries focused on how bad the truck was for the environment.

The recipients will be a diverse group from indie filmmakers, to single moms, to aspiring dancers, and even avid gamers, and they’ll document their experiences with the car through YouTube vignettes, blog posts and other social media updates for six months. Ford will have no control over what the testers post about the car which is risky because the car won't be hitting US dealerships for almost a year.

Ford felt they had to take a risk marketing to younger tech-savvy demographic because they felt that traditional marketing just wouldn't do it.

Another creative approach they have taken is with HouseParty.com. Ford is looking for people like you to host a Ford American Idol House Party. If you're selected as a host, you could have a 2010 Ford Fusion at your party for you and your guests to experience first hand the winner of America's most fuel-efficient mid size sedan . Also, one lucky host will be chosen to drive off with a new Ford Fusion and will fly to Los Angeles to experience the new American Idol finale!

photo: houseparty.com

The Social Media Highway

Social media sites like Facebook and Twitter are taking the world by storm! They are helping companies, like Dell, improve their customer service.

Bob Pearson, who was the former VP of Dell's communities and conversations, ramped up the companies social media efforts to combat the "Dell Hell" label applied by customers referring to its customer service department. The company now has 42 employees that make up its Social Media team that run blogs, a video channel as well as other forums and track what people are saying about the company. I'm sure they are on Twitter, so if you have something to say, say it. Someone is listening!

There is even a 46-member Blog Council put together by the word-of-mouth marketing company GasPedal. The Council is composed of the heads of social media for Fortune 100 companies including Cisco, GE, Dell, Microsoft, Wells Fargo, The Home Depot and Proctor and Gamble. The council focuses on best practices for blogging and social media within large corporations.

Coke became hugely popular on Facebook when two Coca-Cola enthusiasts created a Facebook profile because of their love for the beverage. With 3.3 million fans, it became the most popular brand-related page on Facebook.

The growth is a mystery because there are over 200 Coke-related fan pages on Facebook, but this one stood out from the rest. What's great for Coca-Cola is that it doesn't cost a thing for them to run the Facebook page and it is reaching millions of people. Smaller companies should think about making a fan page for their product or company to utilize the free marketing tool!

Unfortunately, Skittles was criticized when they replaced their corporate home page with Skittles-themed pages from Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Wikipedia. They generated a buzz, but some regarded it as a gimmick designed to exploit Twitter's popularity.

The gist...take the plunge!

"Social media is not a marketing tactic anymore--it is something that fundamentally transforms the entire enterprise" Andy Sernovitz CEO of GasPedal.