Hawks Blog

I’m sure that we’re all familiar with the ideas and associations that come along with the corporate world and its marketing tactics or strategies. Maybe you’d use the words fast paced and evolving, or perhaps reinventing and expanding. Whatever words you choose to use in describing the corporate realm and corporate branding, it’s no secret that brands consistently aim to use current, popular topics to aid them in their marketing and brand strategy. We’ve seen it happen on social media through brand’s meme usage, celebrity endorsements and even through brand embodiment of social inclusivity movements. In looking at our positions in the field of Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) and the work that we have completed, we’ve come to understand why relevancy is vital to corporate branding strategy, as well as the overlooking of past brand identities and flops in marketing tactics. However, what if delving back into corporate brand history, failures and all, could actually aide and become beneficial to the brand as a whole? Well, this is exactly what brand researchers have implied recently.  

In a 2019 article published in Business Horizons magazine, Iglesias et al. states, “Managers are constantly looking to the future, identifying the emerging needs of consumers, anticipating the actions of their competitors, and innovating new products and services. However, because of this focus on the future, managers can forget or even reject a brand’s history.” According to the article, large corporate brands such as Adidas, Burberry and Apple have all gone through branding periods in which they overlooked their brand’s rich history and past branding in efforts of being more relevant and futuristic. Subsequently, because of these “history-rejection” periods, brands saw a huge loss of strategic focus, the pursuit of brand extensions, unstructured innovations and diminished employee engagement – all because of the desire to keep pushing their company forward and leave the past behind. However, after suffering these losses, the article notes that these corporate brands decided to utilize their unique and rich history in order to refocus and re-strategize their companies and brands (Iglesias et al., 2019). So, a brand’s history can improve their future? Exactly! 

Looking at past case studies and arguments regarding history in brand strategy, the researchers have provided us with several points in regard to why history is an integral part to brand strategy.  

1. History enriches the understanding of organizations as located in time; 

1. History inspires future strategy and corporate brand identity by drawing on those historical elements and resources; and 

1. History can make the case for change, motivate people to overcome challenges and help them enact strategies (Iglesias et al., 2019).  

Let’s think about this for a second. Can you think of any corporations (besides the aforementioned examples) that use their histories to brand themselves and benefit their marketing strategies? How about banks and insurance companies? Wells Fargo uses a tagline stating, “A proud history, a strong future together,” Allstate Life Insurance Company is famous for saying “You’re in good hands,” and Nationwide says, “We’ve been helping people protect what’s important for more than 90 years.” Banks and insurance companies are prime examples of how brand history aids in current and future marketing strategies. Afterall, we trust these “history-embracing” companies with the most critical things in our lives. In the article, Iglesias et al. contends big corporations like these demonstrate “how history can be a valuable resource in defining and implementing a corporate brand strategy.” 

Based on the research results, the authors propose a systematic model that can “enable the progressive institutionalization of history in corporate brand strategy making”. The model consists of four stages tailored towards brand managers: 

1. Managers should uncover history and bring it from latency to focus;  

1. Managers should promote those organizational structures and processes that help history to be remembered;  

1. Managers should promote the curation of history in order to make it relevant for the current context; and  

1. Managers should embed history to support the future strategy (Iglesias et al., 2019). 

Overall, the Iglesias et al. model of history corporate brand strategy lays out a clear and direct path for corporations and their managerial teams to build their branding on, ensuring that the foundations of a brand and its peoples are included in marketing communication. Even more so, with working in IMC, the model provides us with a systematic base for future brand strategy needs and revisioning processes that may be needed as time and trends progress forward. While people say the phrase “history repeats itself” in oftentimes negative connotations, we can turn the phrase into an IMC brand strategy slogan that will benefit companies for years to come! 

Keeley Brown is a junior at the University of North Carolina Wilmington, majoring in Communication Studies with a concentration in Integrated Marketing Communication. She was born and raised in Fayetteville, NC and plans to return home after graduating in 2021. Currently, she is interested in finding a job in advertising post-graduation. 

When she isn’t in school, you can find Keeley with a large cup of coffee in hand, strolling around local shops, or working on freelance design projects.  

 References:

Iglesias, O., Ind, N., & Schultz, M. (2019). History matters: The role of history in corporate brand strategy. Business Horizons, 63(1), 51–60. doi: 10.1016/j.bushor.2019.09.005 

Written By: Casey Buchanan

 

Has a big name brand ever liked your comment on their post? Or comment back to you? Maybe they even gave you a follow? Social Media interactions can help to make or break a brand experience. 

Along with the internet came the introduction and evolution of social media. Social media has been seen as a marketing tool for companies and organizations to promote events, services and for branding. But how can a brand utilize social media to create a positive branding experience for its consumers? The brand experience can be explained as a subjective, individualistic consumer response to a product, service, or brand. Categorized into four different response types; sensory, affective/feelings, behavioral, and intellectual. A study conducted by Faseeh Amin Beig, a research scholar of Central University of Kashmir, helped to identify the top two ways brands can create those positive experiences through their social media accounts; content sharing & interaction.

The main objective of Beig’s study was to “investigate the impact of content sharing and interaction on [the] four dimensions of brand experience (sensory, affective, behavioral, and intellectual)” (Beig, 2018). Beig focused on 10 big name brands; Puma, Adidas, Spykar, Levis, Nike, Wrangler, John Players, Peter England, US Polo and United Colors of Benetton, and only studied their Facebook pages. In order to create a baseline, a pretest was done via a Google Form to 100 recipients to judge their recent activity with these brands. After analysis and baseline testing, Beig conducted a mall-intercept survey using systematic random sampling, every seventh mall shopper was targeted. Out of 300 people approached, there were 205 total complete responses, a 68.3% response rate.

The results of Beig’s study show that content sharing & interaction does indeed influence the four dimensions of brand experiences. This can help brands understand that their social media presence has a great impact on consumer choice in brand names. From the survey results, Beig concluded that “content sharing & interaction positively impacts all the dimensions of brand experience… Interactions has the strongest influence on the sensory dimension… content sharing has the strongest influence on the intellectual component.” With this information, it is now feasible for brands to justify that social media marketing is a critical anecdote to provide a positive brand experience for its clients.

 

Content Sharing

For social media, content can be considered as anything from just a photo to a flyer for an event. It is created by marketers within organizations to promote, inform and brand their company on social media channels such as Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn. The purpose of content sharing is to build engagement and social interaction between current and potential clients, as well as other brands. In Beig’s study, content sharing had the most influence on the intellectual component of brand experience, followed closely behind by the affective dimension. Under the intellectual component, clients do not have to think about what the brand’s message is trying to get across. It promotes critical thinking and curiosity but the main message is in plain sight for the client. Affective and intellectual dimensions can cause the client to be more inclined to choose that specific brand over another due to seeing that brand’s content and activity on social media.

 

Interactions

Brands also have the opportunity through social media to interact with their followers, current and potential clients. When a follower comments on a post made by the brand, it is proven that if the brand is to “like” or comment back, that follower is more likely to choose that brand. Showing emotion and care through interactions on social media has a positive impact for brands, especially the big names like Nike, Puma, Wrangler, Apple, etc. The results of Beig’s study shows that interaction has the greatest influence on the sensory dimension of brand experiences. This means that the brands who utilize interactions leave a strong impression on their clients. Getting a like, a comment, or even a follow from one of your favorite brands can cause a positive reaction and keep you coming to buy their products, making you a loyal customer.

All of this goes to say how important social media marketing is in the integrated marketing communication world. Social media is becoming such a prominent thing within the future generations daily lives, meaning that a presence on social media is crucial for brands to survive. Clients resort to social media to get feedback, reviews, information, and photos about brands in order to decide on which one to choose.

Social media influencers use their personal brand to sell products through their social media following. And there’s no exception for moms. Mommy blogging has grown tremendously popular over the last few years. Sharing their experiences and motherly tips has landed many of them financial support through sponsorships or paid content. This form of social media marketing is extremely successful as followers trust their favorite bloggers opinions. These mommy bloggers (or mombloggers) are seen as influencers in their own community and rewarded with high dollar sponsorships. “We Connect With People Through Stories” examines the frequency of commercial content and personal branding tactics used by mombloggers.

The Method 

The research was conducted in Malaysia and focused on mother bloggers. They used BlogAdNet, which is Malaysia and Singapore’s largest blog advertising network to discover the top mommy bloggers at that time. The standards of sample were based on if the blogger wrote in English, made money from social media, used social media frequently, and posted about their children. After discovering the most popular mommy bloggers, they reached out for interviews followed by conducting content analysis from their social media. They investigated four women, Magdalene, Amanda, Yvonne, and Wendy. Magdalene and Amanda were more popular than Yvonne and Wendy. All participants were middle class with further education and supported by their husbands who worked full time. The content analysis determined different categories to separate posts into. These categories were: commercial (ads, paid links, business), family related, personal, children, parenting, outfit of the day, consumer, and miscellaneous. They later narrowed these categories in to four main, broad categories: commercial, family, personal, and other.

The Results

They discovered that commercial content was the second highest form of content posted on the mommy bloggers’ social media. Magdalene and Amanda utilized Instagram and Facebook to successfully create a monetizable audience. Yvonne and Wendy only used Facebook and their blogs to feature sponsored content. The article also exemplified how the mommy bloggers cultivated and relied on their personal brand. Amanda describes how she used her online boutique to market herself as an entrepreneur. Likewise, she is in a dual income relationship as many of her followers are in as well, so she targets women who have “spending power” and prioritizes the quality of her child’s products. She also encourages consistency in posts to create an aesthetic experience for users. Magdalene discussed how she uses fashion and authenticity to highlight her brand. Their bands are threatened when it comes to featuring sponsored content as they must balance personal and commercial content appropriately. Mombloggers must remain authentic when accepting brand deals to avoid losing followers.

Mommy’s Money 

Mommy bloggers are strategically marketing their personalities to gain supporters. They share their stories about being a mother to connect with their followers. By doing so, they can quit their 9-5 job, spend more time with their children, and make substantial income. Magdalene and Amanda were both making income that equates to a full-time job. However, being a full-time blogger didn’t happen overnight. To grow a social media career, one must be privileged enough to dedicate a mass of their time to boosting their online presence. All the mommy bloggers discussed in the article relied on their husband’s income to jumpstart their blogging career. Once their career starts earning money, they’re set as long as they continue posting about their life.

Personal Branding 

The rise of social media marketing has allowed mothers to express themselves creatively through the monetization of personalized content. They spend time creating their personal brand, which they can later sell in return for sponsored content. If they can maintain their brand image, social media influencers will remain successful in selling products to their supporters.

The Future of IMC

Anyone can make money online nowadays. Social media influencers are one of the newest job fields and are quickly rising due to its impressive paycheck and remote work. Mommy blogging is just one example of social media niches. Beauty gurus, gamers, and finance specialists are among the social media influencers on the rise. As proven in this article, these influencers are constantly thinking of their brand. Consumers trust influencers will provide honest reviews of products and endorse high-quality items. Employing a social media influencer establishes the trust between producer and consumer many companies desire. Integrating social media influencers into marketing campaigns will increase brand awareness and positively impact purchasing behaviors. Ensuring your product aligns with the social media influencer’s niche is essential. While followers trust their favorite influencer, the product must appeal to the influencer’s audience.

Written By: Allison Phillips 

References:

Hopkins, J. (2019). “We Connect With People Through Stories”: Gender and Affective Labor in Momblogging. International journal of communication [Online], 4702+. Retrieved from https://link-gale-com.liblink.uncw.edu/apps/doc/A610367781/PPCM?u=wilm99594&sid=PPCM&xid=9aaf4a7b

A woman uploads a YouTube video of herself reviewing the most popular makeup brands while wearing the latest fashion trends – with just the click of a button, she just made money. How? Fashion blogging is a real life example of how self-branding can be turned into a business. The authors of the article, “‘Having it All’ on Social Media: Entrepreneurial Femininity and Self-Branding Among Fashion Bloggers,” discuss how fashion blogging is one of the most commercially successful and publicly visible forms of how the internet shapes the way people interact, communicate, behave and think with each other in a societal setting. However, they are confined to the restraints of the roles of women as consumers in society – a restraint that they use as a strategy to gain their following. 

Through the qualitative research of the textual and visual content uploaded by the top-leading fashion bloggers, the authors, Brooke Erin Duffy and Emily Hund, show how the most popular fashion bloggers portray “having it all” on social media to create entrepreneurial femininity. To the public, it looks easy and enticing – a life full of glam. The camera lens shows them living their carefree lives. Little do they know, the top-ranked fashion bloggers are good at what they do because of the strategies they employ to attract attention. To determine how fashion bloggers strategically promote themselves through various social media platforms, they “conducted a qualitative analysis of the textual (blogger narratives) and visual (Instagram images) content of the top 38 US fashion blogs” (Duffy & Hund, 2017). Bloggers structure their content into three topics: the destiny of passionate work, the glam life, and carefully curated social sharing.  

Although each top-ranked fashion blogger earns an income from their digital media brands, they promote their blog as an outlet for their passionate work whether it may be style, art, photography, makeup, etc. Whatever their passion, their social media pages are tailored to it, which will attract viewers with similar passions. Their “glam life” is portrayed through traveling across the world, receiving luxury swag, attending exclusive and prestigious events, and more. This makes their audience entranced in their lifestyle – they want to be them. Since they can’t be them, the next closest thing is watching their lives through their digital media. The third interrelated topic, carefully curated social sharing, is how the bloggers show off their passions and glam lifestyle to the world – through social sharing (Duffy & Hund, 2017). Each topic draws in their audiences to continue to follow their social media channels. They want to be them, live in their shoes and have their glam life.  

Fashion bloggers have become conduits for financial independence and female empowerment. Through effective branding strategies people (in this example, fashion bloggers) can promote themselves on social media platforms, gain a following and turn their self-branding into a business. Research by Duffy and Hund supports that “despite their [fashion bloggers] seemingly effortless nature, bloggers’ online presentations were paragons of discipline in their displays of passionate work, glamorous lifestyles, and selective social sharing in their construction of blogging as a way to “have it all”; the interviews revealed the significant amount of time and energy required to achieve this” (Duffy & Hund, 2017). Although their lives may seem like a breeze, they are putting forth a significant amount of work for them to appear that way to their audiences. 

Fashion bloggers have unveiled the rigorous labor, discipline and strategy it takes to go into the production of the digital self. It actually was not as easy as just a click of a button, after all. They are proof that social media platforms are tools that, when used effectively, can help brands and companies build their brand in a way that their consumers can interact with. 

Written By: Jenna Pugliese-McNamara

 References:

Duffy, B. E., & Hund, E. (2017). “Having it all” on social media: Entrepreneurial femininity and self-branding among fashion bloggers. Social Media + Society, 1(2) doi:http://dx.doi.org.liblink.uncw.edu/10.1177/2056305115604337 

Research has shown that 80% of college students procrastinate; a practice that many college students are far too familiar with. Most college students would probably admit that they have procrastinated on an assignment at some point in their years of school, and even on a regular basis. Additionally, putting off the responsibilities of school and scrolling on Instagram is something we have all probably done. Chinese researchers Ruihang Shen of Northwestern University and Meina Liu of George Washington University conducted research in this area of study, attempting to gain further understanding in different cultures on how and why students procrastinate in relation to their time orientation, social media usage, and various coping styles. They studied from a cross cultural perspective how and why social media usage may or may not effect procrastination in China and the United States.

Studies indicate that procrastination is related to other traits such as low confidence, stress, depression, anxiety, forgetfulness, disorganization, and a lack of energy that all reveal poor psychological wellbeing. Shen and Liu studied the role social media plays in relationship to procrastination; does it contribute to a poor psychological wellbeing or help mitigate it? When students were coping together and supporting one another, their stress levels decreased and so did their frequency of procrastination. In comparison, when students seek support online it raises their avoidance levels and promotes internet addictions.

The participants for this study were 224 college students attending Chinese and American universities, 123 students being Chinese and 101 being American. The average age was 21. Of the 123 Chinese students, 78 were female and 45 were male. Of the American students, 87 were women and 18 were male. The Chinese participants on average spent 4.48 hours a day on social media, and American participants spend an average of 3.71 hours.

Having a high consideration for future consequences, or being more concerned for how current actions will affect your future, led to less procrastination. If the participant had a present time orientation, they were more likely to procrastinate. Motives for using social media were recorded to determine the reasoning behind someone using social media apps.

Essentially, what motivated them to pick up their phone and log into social media? For example, one of the response options to be chosen was, “I use social media because it’s enjoyable.” Coping styles were recorded to better understand why a participant may engage in an action to manage their stress. Such as answering, “I do this a lot” when asked “Do you seek emotional support from others when you are stressed out?” Additional avoidance tendencies were measured through asking questions regarding the characteristics of a person who procrastinates. Such as the tendency of feeling rushed when completing an online task.

The results of this study reported that Chinese students were overall more likely to procrastinate than American students. They had similar reports of concerns for future consequences and their high use of avoidant coping tendencies. American students reported to be more likely to use social media for entertainment reasons. This includes going on social media to watch videos, connect with influencers and generally be entertained. Another strong desire to use social media can be to solve problems and seek out information. Both of these contribute to avoidant tendencies because students are ultimately reaching for their phones instead of completing their work. The use of social media for entertainment or relaxation instead of completing an assignment reflects the lack of both prioritization of tasks and future goal orientation by college students.

Those who live in the “right now” moments and don’t consider what is ahead are far more likely to procrastinate. We think we are using social media to find information to help with our procrastination of an assignment, but we actually procrastinate more. When this happens students may be experiencing a psychological trap. Being mindful of future goals and future consequences is key in resisting social media use at poor times and overall eliminating procrastination in our lives.

So, what does this mean for the practice of Integrated Marketing Communication? It is important to look at research like this to understand how specific target audiences operate. When planning to market and communicate to college students through social media, it is essential to understand how and why they use social media. Understanding that some of the main reasons students use social media are for entertainment, relaxation, problem solving and information seeking will help an IMC team to target their messages with precision. Identifying motivations behind college students’ choices, which can lead to procrastination, further provide information when marketing to this group. When IMC experts know these motivations are attributed to time orientation and coping styles they are more equipped to market to this audience effectively. Certain services or products can be advertised to this demographic that would not be applicable to others. Ultimately, research such as Shen and Liu’s teaches IMC professionals how to use a targeted consumer approach informed by the habits and desires of the audience.

Olivia Nelson is a senior majoring in Communication Studies and minoring in Studio Art with a focus in Integrated Marketing Communication and Graphic Design. When she isn’t studying brand strategies or practicing her design skills, she enjoys trips to the beach and a warm cup of coffee.

Source:

Shen, R, Liu M. Time Orientation, Social Media Use, and Coping Style: Cultural Similarities and Differences in How and Why College Students Procrastinate. Chine Media Research, 2019.

 

 

In today’s increasingly digital career world, maintaining a positive public image and a professional personal brand has become an emerging asset. Social media has changed the game for personal branding, making your online brand just as important as your “in person” brand. A “personal digital brand” is a recent term to describe a strategic self-marketing effort created via social media platforms to promote an individual’s professional online image (Kleppinger, 2015).  The largest professional networking platform is LinkedIn, with over 350 million regular users. LinkedIn links corporate culture and social media culture to connect job seekers with potential employers. The social-corporate platform plays a major role in personal branding strategy and is essential in establishing a professional career in today’s digital world. Knowing your LinkedIn profile is on display for millions of employers to view is an intimidating thought; however, with the help of William Arruda’s exploratory research, “Personal Branding in the Digital World” you will learn what it takes to optimize your profile and successfully translate your real-world brand for the virtual professional world.

Arruda’s research provides insight on the deciding factors that need to be considered when creating your online personal brand and that it remain “authentic, compelling, and relevant.” Arruda explains that the first step in building your brand involves authentic self-reflection because you cannot promote a brand that is not true to you. You must ask yourself, “What unique ingredient do you contribute to everything you do? What do you do better than anyone else? What would you do if you knew you could not fail?” A brand that has successfully articulated answers to these questions is Apple. Arruda states, “Apple owns the brand attribute of innovation because everything it does, from its products to stores to how you navigate its website, is innovative” (p. 44). Once you achieve brand clarity, you can then connect your attributes to one of your most important career tools: a bio. A bio is essentially an engaging elevator pitch that tells your story and captivates your audience. Yes, your resume is an important career tool, but it is just a document. Your bio however, is your emotionally-charged story that connects you to your audience in a personal way that your resume cannot. The author’s findings state to keep in mind that “your brand is relevant for today and positions you for where you want to be tomorrow” when creating your online brand identity.

After you have had time to analyze how you wish to perceive your brand, you are ready to digitalize it. With online branding, Arruda developed a mnemonic called, “B-GRACEFUL” to remember nine actions you should maintain monthly to keep up your digital brand. The author’s mnemonic is the following,

Bolster: think of one thing you have accomplished that you can use to enhance your profile.

Give: commit to one monthly act of “digital kindness” such as re-sharing content your company posts or promoting colleague’s content.

Refine: update your bio/headshot or any minor edits so profile is up to date.

Act: take social action by liking, commenting or sharing posts from connections. Connect: make your LinkedIn connections current, add people you have met during the past month.

Ego-surf: Google yourself to see what changes have occurred to your online presence. Follow: choose one hashtag you follow and check out what’s happening on that topic in all social media accounts.

Update: commit to at least one monthly post.

Learn: read an article in one of your favorite publications or listen to educational podcast.

For those using their LinkedIn as a professional job search platform, using Arruda’s tips will help you stand out among skilled recruiters and hiring managers who analyze your overall profile and personal brand to see if it matches the position and company you applied for.

Arruda goes on to mention that creating a personal digital brand –is not about you, but who you seek to influence and engage with. Once you find what makes you unique you must employ some of these strategic ways to help differentiate your brand from others. Overall, the author presents helpful strategies which will allow for a better understanding of how to use social media, specifically LinkedIn to achieve and build your personal brand online. After analyzing Arruda’s article, I was reminded of Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon, famous quote, “Your brand is what other people say about you when you’re not in the room.” In other words, your personal brand is your reputation and how you are seen in people’s minds online and offline. While having a personal brand has recently emerged in the IMC (Integrated Marketing Communication) world–it is here to stay.

Bio: Alana Myers is a Communication Studies senior at the University of North Carolina Wilmington graduating this Spring 2020. After graduation, she hopes to find a job in Wilmington or Raleigh in either Public Relations, Social Media Marketing, etc. Go Seahawks!

References

Arruda, W. (2019). Personal branding in the digital world. Talent Development, 73(2), 42-47. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-

com.liblink.uncw.edu/DocView/2188850099?accountid=14606

Kleppinger, C. A., & Cain, J. (2015). Personal digital branding as a professional asset in the digital age. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 79(6), 1-4. Retrieved from https://search-proquest-com.liblink.uncw.edu/docview/1719226331?accountid=14606