Google+ gets a facelift with 41 new features

Google+ which made its début 2 years ago has been updated with new features. There are 190 million people active on Google+ stream & 390 million across Google. Google which faced serious competition from Facebook introduced Google+ in a bid to enter social networking space. The new google+ features are great & provide it with the much needed changes to stay in competition with facebook. Some of the new features available on Google+ are

1) Information has been organized across the columns. It can be between 1 to 3 columns.
2) Photos & Videos look richer & they occupy the entire width of the screen
3) When you click on the sharebox, it bounces & also the menus slide
4) Hashtags have also been added to the info shared on Google+. Depending on the post, they are tagged accordingly.
5) Clicking on the hashtag, provides relevent information
6) Hangouts has also been updated with new features & the app is available from Google play, app store & Chrome webs store.

Top Brands on Instagram – MTV, Nike, Starbucks, Redbull, Victoria’s Secret & others

Instagram has become the new destination for top brands. With 100 millions members, Visual marketing is helping brands connect with the customers easily. Many top brands like MTV, Nike, Starbucks & others are very popular on Instagram. Instagram web profiles, helps view photos from the web on the computer. Instagram web profile features a selection of a user’s most recent images along with the bio and also a follow link with the number of followers & following. Many brands are also using Pinterest for their marketing activities. According to some study, brands on Instagram have more followers than Pinterest. Also with the integration of Facebook & Instagram, it is helping users to connect easily & share their preferences.

Brands are using Instagram frequently & updating with the pics. Each of the pics can be liked & also comments can be given which helps in engagement. Brands can analyze their profile based on most liked photos, most commented photos, popular filters, locations & others. Instagram web profiles make it easier to manage the profiles from the computer rather going for a mobile device. During Hurricane sandy, thousands of photos was uploaded to Instagram by individual users documenting the hurricane. Some of the top brands on Instagram are MTV, Starbucks, Victoria’s secret, Eonline, Nike, Redbull, Burberry, Gucci, NBC News, Audi, NPR, General Electric  The onion, Armani, Puma, Levi’s, Gap, Adidas, Southwest Airlines, Rolling Stone, VH1 & others.

Coca-Cola’s “The AHH Effect” – A New Digital Campaign

Coca-Cola’s new digital campaign called “the ahh effect” is targeting teens with 61 different URL’s. The 61 different URL’s with different ahhh’s includes games, gif’s & films. The home page of the campaign is www.ahh.com & each different URL contains one more “h” reaching the maximum of 61 URL’s. Each URL corresponds to different experiences of having coke. This is a unique type of campaign with Coke launching so many URL’s. Teens looking for creativity & delight. The game I played was the Bubble game, where users have to navigate a bubble away from falling ice cubes and straws in a glass filled with Coke. One can also submit what ahh means to them & will be utilized in the website.

Coca-Cola has worked with Wieden+Kennedy in Portland, Ore., to create the campaign. With the rapid growth of social media & smartphones, these campaigns provide a perfect opportunity for the teens to engage with the games & films. For the brand, this would help optimize which different experiences are performing well & eliminate the non performing experiences. Facebook app is also available for the campaign. Coke which is at the forefront of launching unique campaigns, had earlier launched open happiness campaign.

Dell India #ICanDoKuchBhi Twitter Contest

Dell India has launched a new campaign for the Inspiron series of notebooks. With the growing influence of digital marketing & social media, the campaign includes a twitter based promo called I Can Do Kuch Bhi. In this contest, one has to tweet about their passion with the use of technology including #icandokuchbhi. With the youths being the major users of social networks, this promo helps them create a great visibility for the brands.There is no limit to the number of tweets that one submits. Ten people with the most interesting tweets will be getting a Dell branded t-shirt along with their tweets printed on it. The contest was between Apr 27th to Apr 29th.

Related articles

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• The Best Digital Marketing Tips For Video Games Ever (supercoolcreative.com)

 

Role of Digital Marketing in Medical Tourism in India

Digital marketing plays an important role in the medical tourism. Affordable healthcare in India has attracted many foreign nationals to seek for operation & treatment in India. Those desirous of getting treatment in India can have information on the available treatment through the internet. On the net, information is available through reviews, hospital websites & social networking profiles.

Hospitals should have a proper strategy in place to check & check the info on review websites. Any negative reviews would discourage those planning to seek treatment. The testimonials on the website offer crucial links & help develop a positive perception about the hospital. They should have a presence on all the major social networking sites like Facebook, twitter, google+, instagram & others. There should be regular blogging by leading consultants which would help drive away any fear related to getting treated in a foreign country. SEO on the websites can be done to optimize for top keywords which drives traffic. With mobile & tablet browsing on the rise, the sites should be optimized for them as well. Instagram, Pinterest & other visual based marketing sites provide a great platform by posting pics of the facilities & equipment available. Users can be involved by asking questions, reviewing the feedback given by them & others. Apps can also be developed for Android, iphone & other platforms. Cutting edge medical care helps in increasing the life span.

Top hospitals in India like Apollo, Manipal Hospitals, Fortis Hospitals, Narayana hrudayala  & others have a presence on Facebook & other social media sites. This would help them establish visibility, drive traffic to their sites & also help in medical tourism.

Related articles

• Medical tourism: A global stampede for affordable care (madrastourist.wordpress.com)
• Medical Tourism Now Includes Things Like ‘Dialysis Cruises’ (jaunted.com)
• Cohen on Medical Tourism (lsolum.typepad.com)

How Banks are using Social Media in India

With the globalization setting its foot in India in the 90′s, banking sector has witnessed a lot of changes. Competition among the banks led to the marketing activities by the banks in promoting their loans, credit cards, personal loans & others. Several foreign banks also set up their branches in India. Internet banking & ATM heralded a new wave of technology for the banks.

Banks have been using social media to connect with the customers, announce new offers & other activities. For ex: HDFC bank twitter account lists all the social media profiles of the bank. This is a very great move by the bank as it helps customers easily access all the profiles. HDFC facebook page has also lakhs of likes & frequent updates. Another bank, Axis bank has also listed all their social media profiles on their home page & also on their twitter page with thousands of followers. With lakhs of likes on their facebook pages. They also have a youtube profile

It is always a good practice to have profiles across all the social media sites & links to other profiles displayed in all the profiles. This helps customers connect easily. Also they can be used to address customer concerns, problems & others. The data found in the profiles can also be used to improvement of the operations. Facebook, twitter, youtube & linkedin are the top social media sites across the banking industry to connect with the customers. Pinterest, flickr, instagram, Google+ & others are also used to connect with the customers.

Google Play Books & Movies now in India

Google has launched books & movies on Google play in India. Movies are available for rental & purchase in India. This service is currently available in 13 countries now. With the booming of Indian mobile market, it makes a perfect move for Google to make available movies on Google play. Books have also been added to the Google play which ranges from Indian titles to classics. Many international best sellers are also available in the store. Books can be read across mobile, tablets & computer. Google recently started selling Nexus 7 mobile devices online in India as well. This is the first time Google is selling a device in India to a customer through its Google Play Store. Also available on Google Play is apps with a wide range of categories in both free & paid versions. Google play was earlier knows as the Android market.

SoDA Digital Trends 2013 Report

The SoDA Report (Volume 1, 2013) from Society of Digital Agencies

Society of digital Agencies annual Digital Marketing Outlook Survey. This provides the digital marketing outlook for 2013. There is a wealth of information on consumer markets, digital marketing budgets, innovations happening in digital space & others. As the internet penetration is increasing along with online commerce, companies are shifting towards digital marketing & also to increase their visibility.

eBay India Brand Campaign – Want it get it

With the booming of online shopping in India, eBay India has launched integrated brand campaign aimed at giving a push up to the Ebay India brand in the Indian online shopping space. Several new comers in the field like Flipkart, Jabong, Snapdeal & others have been runnings TVC for quite some time. TVC’s show people wanting to purchase a product & is being told by another about the great deals on Ebay India. Want it, Get it is the theme of the promotion. Ebay is one of the oldest entrants in Indian online shopping space.

Indian online shopping market has been growing rapidly & they are making great strides in tier-2 & tier-3 cities. Online shopping offers the convenience of variety, price & easy shopping. With different kinds of financing options, online shopping is becoming a big industry.

Citibank OMG! & Google’s GOSF sale – Online Shopping festivals in India

With the booming of e commerce in India, several online shopping sites have launched recently & creating a lot of buzz online. These provide the advantages of easy shopping, on time delivery, EMI’s & others. Several big names like Citibank, Google have launched online shopping festivals in India. Citibank’s was called OMG! sale & it was on Dec 5th. The sale had 17 websites & this helped provide value proposition to customers. Customers also had easier access to a wide variety of products at great bargains. Google’s GOSF sale was held on Dec 12 & 50 ecommerce websites had participated in it. Google had also launched GOSF.in website for the purpose of online shopping festival. This provides a great push for e commerce sites as well with good conversion rates. Also coupon codes would provide more discounts as well.