NBC, ULTA and Pottery Barn demonstrate IMC: Consistency is key for social-media-hopping customers

I've picked three brands that use an integrated marketing approach to Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram and at least one other social media network. Here's what I'll answer about each.

• Do they take an IMC approach?
• Are they consistent in messaging and imagery?
• Is content up to date?
• How do they drive users to the other social channels?
• Are hashtags used regularly?
• Any other items of note?

NBC

NBC is host to some of my favorite TV shows, and although my DVR is responsible for making sure I see those shows no matter my schedule, sometimes I miss things. Thank goodness NBC keeps their YouTube channel up-to-date. I missed this gem when it originally aired, but the internet was buzzing about it the next day. Courtesy of NBC's YouTube channel, I got to see it -- and then share it with my friends on social media.


NBC also maintains accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, Pinterest and Tumblr. Across all these networks, NBC's colorful peacock feather logo is present with muted gray and white fades or additional logos. The logo/cover/background setup is not exactly the same on each network, but the elements are definitely consistent, which offers the user a seamless experience. The voice behind the posts on all platforms is also consistent -- fun, entertaining and engaging -- and hashtags are regularly employed. On the networks that allow for longer descriptions (YouTube, Tumblr, Facebook and Google+), NBC offers links to all their social accounts, and nbc.com also has social buttons linking to all the accounts they maintain.

ULTA Beauty

ULTA uses these colors of eye makeup to bring consistency to their social accounts.

Beauty retailer ULTA has accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Google+, Pinterest and YouTube. However, they haven't done as well as NBC in keeping all of them updated. Although they have created their Google+ page with a profile and cover photo, and more than 500 people have put ULTA in their circles, ULTA has zero posts on the network. They're definitely missing out on properly introducing Google+ users to their products. Similarly, they've only posted one video on their YouTube channel. For a beauty product retailer like ULTA, YouTube seems like the perfect place to show potential customers how to use makeup or hair products and, even better, how the results look. Across all networks -- even the ones they are not updating regularly -- ULTA does use the same logo as their profile photo and a cover or background type photo with the same colors of eye makeup, which is fittingly pleasing to the eye. However, it was a struggle to navigate from network to network, as most of their accounts do not link to each other, but they do have social media buttons at the bottom left of their website. ULTA is utilizing hashtags regularly on Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest, and occasionally on Facebook.

Pottery Barn

Pottery Barn uses some version of this photo across their social media accounts, which, if you're like me, makes you want to go buy everything in the picture before Thanksgiving.

We all know that Pottery Barn is amazing, so it's no surprise that their social media managers work their magic across many platforms. You can follow Pottery Barn on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest and Tumblr. They link to these accounts from their Google+, Facebook, Tumblr and YouTube, as well as the footer on their website. Every cover photo or banner across networks is a beautiful table set for Thanksgiving -- some are zoomed in or cropped differently depending on the space it has to fill, but they provide consistency sweet consistency on every account. The photos are also deliciously seasonal and will be updated as seasons change. Pottery Barn is using hashtags regularly on Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram, but I'm not seeing any recently on Facebook or Google+. However, all of these profiles are up-to-date and the voice has a helpful and expert tone across platforms.

Using the same photo or same colors on all your social media accounts sounds like such a simple thing that might not even make that much of a difference, but it's actually a pretty big deal. Such consistency helps businesses battle fragmentation. You want a customer who has liked your Facebook page to feel a ping of familiarity when they stumble across your Google+ page; you can achieve that with consistent images, voice and, of course, updates.

Clorox, I have faith in your products, but your content needs a little help

I'm what you might call a clean freak.

I have a cleaning schedule to keep the house how I like it. I vacuum (because sweeping doesn't get all the dust) weekly, and  mop every other time. I disinfect the kitchen countertops before and after preparing a meal, and then I finish them off with Windex to eliminate streaks -- and the appliances get Windexed, too. I scrub the bathrooms every week until they smell like undiluted Clorox, because they're not really clean until they do. I disinfect doorknobs and light switches throughout the house, and scrub away scuffs on the stairs and baseboards with a Magic Eraser. I could go on and on (but I won't).

In a perfect world, I'd stay on my little schedule, and everything in my house would be always be clean. But it's not a perfect world, and there are messes around every corner.


Luckily, my husband has enough sense to not do that. But, Clorox certainly makes it easy to clean up such messes quickly, which is why it's one of my favorite brands as well as one I'd be proud to represent.

Women (and to a degree, men) are embracing homemaking like it's 1950, and Clorox -- a housecleaning staple for the past 100 years -- should be a part of that movement. Clorox already has a lot of great cleaning and laundry tips on their website. However, these features are not being promoted well elsewhere -- like on Clorox's Facebook or Twitter accounts. What Clorox is doing on Facebook and Twitter is providing sources of interaction for its followers. And that's a good thing. But it should also be mixing in quality content, such as blog posts on how to get red wine out of your carpet or how to make a dingy undershirt white again. Clorox is in the business of making cleaning everyday messes simple; the brand already represents the best of cleaning, so why not share that expertise through blogging and social media?

In this age of "new domesticity," Clorox's Pinterest boards should be chock full of cleaning tips that subtly incorporate their products, but it's sparse so far. I have a cleaning board on Pinterest (I named it Cleaning Queen), and there are many more clean freaks on the network collecting tips for tidying and disinfecting. Clorox could easily be the source for many of these pins. Because Pinterest has an a particularly engaged homemaker-type audience (users spend more time there than Twitter, Google+ and LinkedIn combined), Clorox could take the cleaning tips beyond just getting this or that stain out. How can Clorox help clean the crevices in your bathroom that are surely full of germs? How often should you bleach your sheets or towels? How long should whites soak in Clorox, and how do you properly dilute it? Clorox could also address questions like these on their YouTube channel, which is currently mostly ads. Granted, their ads are pretty funny.


But in addition to introducing these creative messes, how about some videos on how to clean things up? Creative advertising is great, but content is king.

I'm borderline obsessive compulsive about keeping my house clean, I'm an experienced social media professional (check out my resume) and I'm a believer in Clorox products. If you guys at Clorox decide to kick up your content and your social media presence, I'm just the clean freak to do it.

Classic vs. social media marketing: Which delivers your message best?

Time to get on the social media train, y'all. (MTAPhotos/Flickr)

Classic marketing deserves some credit. It's the building block upon which the social media marketing empire was and still is being built, and it still plays a role in modern-day marketing. But if you're not already on the social media train, it's time to hop aboard.

Social media allows you to have a real conversation with your potential customers. In the world of classic marketing, communication is "unidirectional" -- companies put their message out there and the only thing customers could do in return is listen. Through social media, brands can broadcast information or ask a question -- and the customer can respond directly with ease.

However, it's still possible for a company to (perhaps accidentally) communicate unidirectionally using social media. It's important for businesses to not only start social media conversations about their product or mission but to also pay attention to those conversations and engage in dialogue with those customers who took the time to participate. You need to be listening, because even if you're not there, the conversation will go on without you. Also, 42 percent of customers expect a response to questions or complaints in under an hour.

Social media marketing has also brought a more genuine and direct voice to campaigns. Classic marketing calls for lawyer-approved, formal language, which doesn't help companies connect with modern customers. Of course, businesses still don't want to say anything on social media that could get them sued, but the lawyer-speak is more often being removed in favor of a voice that sounds like a real person. And then, those real people behind the marketing push should get involved in the conversation.

Stiffly worded marketing campaigns handed down from an ivory tower just don't connect with customers of today. The audience expects real, non-robotic voices and a conversation that goes two ways, and as successful companies know, the customer is always right.