Creating a Digital Marketing Case Study

• Project background• How BuzzFeed Valentine works• Outcomes you can expect• Ideas for adaptation

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Source

Source

1. Create and publish a BuzzFeed post one week before Valentine’s Day

2. Must be Valentine-related3. Must select a market to “hypertarget”4. 1,000 pageviews

1. Consumer identities and consumption

2. Information gaps and the psychology of clickbait3. Emotional response can lead to action

• Practical basics

• Image rights and attribution• “Market testing”• Search engine optimization (opt.)

• Student-preferred vs. market-preferred channels• Social networks and communities• Forums and websites• Email• Search• BuzzFeed “Seed” views

• Influencer psychology (Cialdini)• Liking• Reciprocity• Authority• Social Proof• Scarcity• Consistency

Education

Creation

Execution

Reflection & Discussion

Marketing Plan

Case Report

1,000 Views

Content

My inspiration for the post was… I loved the most recent X-Men movie and have seen lots of friends excited about it.

My target audience is… Primary: People who like X-Men or have a significant other who likes X-Men

Secondary: Comic book lovers, people who hate X-Men, people who like cheesy humor

My USP is… Multiple unique, funny, visual, X-men-related Valentines

They will find it via… Social media (Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest)

Search engines (Optimizing for “x-men valentines”)

Syndication (Comic-related websites, forums)

They will share it because… People want visual ways to express affection that aligns with their preferences; digital images

make these easy to e-mail or link to.

They may not share it because… It doesn’t have their favorite X-Men, they don’t like X-Men, they dislike pun-based humor,

design quality wasn’t good enough

My strategy to maximize product-

market fit includes…

Examples of market research/market testing: audience research, headline generation,

feedback from target market, identification of similar successful content, tools and data

sources (Be specific)

An example of successful content

targeting the same target audience

is…

http://www.buzzfeed.com/perpetua/94-x-men-members-ranked-from-worst-to-best (34,042

total shares via Buzzsumo)

Social Media (Twitter) Chris Conroy

(@dyfl)

Comic editor, shared X-men related humor 2,300 60

• 26,000+ total pageviews (1,085 average)• Promotion help from companies like PetSmart• Multiple job offers

“I didn’t realize how effective social media could be…I also learned the importance of having a target market and focusing your audience to be able to attract and engage individuals.”“I will definitely be applying this at my current internship and future jobs.”

“The biggest lesson that I learned… is how you must really be rational to what people will want to read. I chose a very targeted readership and I simply did not reach them. Trying to process all the considerations was a very new thing.”

“Originally I thought it would be overwhelming to create something on BuzzFeed…but I was pleasantly surprised at how manageable and fun the process was.”

“I took a lot away from participating in this process and I realized that a plan needs to be carried out strategically and in a timely manner.”

“I learned a lot…and received a lot of positive feedback from those that read my article. I learned that having a promotion plan is just as important, if not more important, as creating the content itself.”

“The BuzzFeed project was unique and fun overall...Being graded on views for BuzzFeed was intimidating… but without that motivation, I wouldn’t have worked as hard.”

• Auburn U• Baruch College• BYU-Hawaii• Bournemouth U (UK)• Campbellsville U• Dartmouth College• Erasmus U (Netherlands)• George Washington U• Georgia Gwinnett College• Henderson State U

• Texas Tech U• U of Central Florida• U of Maine• U of New Mexico• U of San Diego• Utah State U• Washington State U• West Virginia U• Western Kentucky U• William & Mary

• High Point U• Humboldt State U• Illinois State University• James Madison U• Michigan State U• North Island College• Penn State U• Radford U• Rochester IT• Saint Louis U

As a Dartmouth MBA group project…

Marketing strategyConsumer behaviorDigital marketingSocial media marketingAdvertisingNew product developmentTechnical and professional writing

Holidays• Valentine’s Day• Mother’s Day• Father’s Day• Halloween• Thanksgiving• ChristmasSeasonsBig EventsYour City

Change topic emphasisIndividual or groupReport or presentationUndergrad or MBA

Each student gets a personal case study in digital marketing, including experience with:• Analytics • Market testing• Social media & content

marketing• Segmentation, targeting, &

positioning• Influencer outreach • Strategic marketing plan creation• Campaign management • Industry tools• Search engine optimization • Media rights & usage

scott.cowley@asu.edu@scottcowley on Twitter/in/scottcowley on LinkedIn