Monthly Archives: July 2009

Maybe the hardest thing for brands who face social media and social networking is to avoid the bandwagon and really come up with a strategic thinking behind their presence.

Lots of brands are making use of the social tools. But lots of brands are just replicating, with different layers, the messaging model when there is no conversation at all.

So, it’s great when some companies come up with richer perspectives and this is what makes me highlight what Best Buy is doing.

In this post from We Are Social you can see a video of Best Buy’s CMO explaining how they understand what is happening and what digital can do for them. In a sentence: “make dreams come true”.

As part of that, they launched Twelpforce, a dedicated help force to be there for customers via Twitter. What means that if I have a doubt I use @Twelpforce and someone will try to solution my anxiety.

Isn’t it simple and brilliant?

What I like most about it is that it’s a real service for people. A real utility for consumers.

Great because it builds value upon the space where people are already present and adds a new function inside it.

It’s also a big example of how companies and agencies can be skillful to bring up new uses of Twitter as a social tool applied to business.

If CP+B is not behind it (which I think they do), they are the ones who are spreading the service.

Have a look on the ads (here) that directs the audience to @Twelpforce and not to a microsite. Oh, and the stadium metaphor really makes one understand what the service is all about. Even for those who are not used to Twitter.

This year at Cannes Lions lots of people could interact with a new Coca Cola vending machine.

One that, besides delivering the product, delivered a new buying experience.

Before that, I watched a video of a Samsung’s person explaining its functionality, but it’s a huge jump when you observe people interacting with it.

It’s interesting to see how, through this technology, Coca Cola amplifies the experience at the moment of buying. A precious moment when the consumer has his attention totally focused on it and the brand can give something more than just the product.

It’s not just a moment for a “refreshing pause”, but a huge opportunity for the brand to be more relevant, to surprise and present a piece of its storytelling in a delightful way.

Also, this is a nice example of how great interactions can generate more interests for brands.

A natural thing if we think that the more pleasant an experience is, the more we want to repeat it.

Maybe, this is the little truth and desired effect behind the touch-screen.