Fast Company
Reid Carr

Let me first preface this with I am no expert on holiday party speeches. In the nine-plus years that I have delivered the talk at Red Door Interactive, I’ve run the gamut in being both awkward and eloquent. At the end of the day, I just hope that everyone feels like I appreciate them being there regardless of how well I waxed poetic.

A holiday party speech doesn’t need to be a source of inspiration, but rather an opportunity to simply say thank you and show gratitude regardless of the economic environment. For anyone that might feel a little anxiety once the glasses start clanking, here are some techniques that help me prepare:

Have heart – Everyone can deliver their speech in an authentic way as long as it truly delivered with sincerity. Imagine the scene in the movie “Wedding Crashers” with Owen Wilson pointing to his heart during the “maid of honor” speech. If you do otherwise, you run the risk of coming across as emotionless or phony.

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Mashable
Charles Wiedenhoft

You might want to add customer experience to the annual list you’re making and checking twice. Gift buyers are finding new ways to shop with feature-rich smartphones and immediate delivery of digital products and services. Here are a few suggestions to help retailers make one final push for a merry customer experience that will drive sales this season.

Digital Gift Cards
Shoppers are now looking for digital equivalents to gift cards to bypass the barrage of plastic many receive this time of year. Retailers can benefit from digital gift cards by avoiding postage fees and paper processing. Additionally, some studies show that more than 20% of customers spend more than the initial face value of their gift card — a clear sales booster right there.

Applebee’s restaurant chain is selling gift cards on Facebook. Fans who purchase there can personalize the cards with Facebook album photos and audio messages.

QR Codes
2D bar codes, often called QR codes, that link to mobile websites, product videos or click-to-call numbers are gaining popularity. Target is using QR codes in an effort to increase sales and awareness for new toys. Users can scan bar codes in the catalog and instantly get product and pricing information from the company’s website. Some bar code readers provide analytics such as number of scans, unique users, handset information and demographics. It’s a great way to push a product that you’re having trouble selling or learn a little more about your customer base.

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It’s the 4th Quarter and you need a big win.  As the holidays approach and marketing budgets increase, now is a crucial time to diversify and integrate your approach to online marketing.  In order to do this properly, you have to leverage several marketing channels and use consistent messaging/promotional offers across all of them. 

These channels include:

·         display ads

·         online PR

·         contextual ads

·         paid search ads

·         organic search listings

·         email/CRM

·         landing page optimization

Consequently, successful online branding and traffic acquisition requires a coordinated effort among several departments.  In many companies, the departments involved (SEO, PPC, Email, Tech, Creative) operate primarily in silos that don’t communicate well.  This is where management needs to make planning and collaboration a company priority.  Need a case study to convince management that a broad and integrated online strategy will provide results? Below, you’ll find links to five of them.

Combination of display, contextual, and paid search provides 21% lift in purchase intent

Paid search with specialized landing page creates 136% conversion lift

Email sets viral campaigns up for success (pdf)

Paid search combined with SEO leads to increased purchase intent and brand recall

Deep-linked email landing pages lead to 69% increase in CTR