Eye Candy For "Digitists"

It's no surprise that retail analysts are expecting holiday sales to be up sharply this year with digital marketing growing at a spectacular rate, as more social media and online platforms mature, delivering larger and more engaged digital audiences. When Twitter launched its "promoted trend" advertising property just last year, it cost Rainmakers $25,000-$30,000 per day to promote their brand on the 140-character tweet platform. Today, Twitter can demand $120,000 per day for a promoted trend placement. Overall, brands will spend nearly $50 billion on online ads in the U.S. by 2015, according to a recent survey by ZenithOptimedia, with online video ads commanding the most dramatic growth. That's a lot of eye candy for "digitists" on computers, tablets and smartphones.

Holiday Package Malware Grinch

With all the packages shipped over the holidays, Rainmakers should be aware that their online customers will be targeted by the Malware Grinch who typically first send a spam email telling them that their package was "delayed" and they need to do something to "fix the shipping mistake." If the email is from a legitimate online retailer or shipper, no action is requested. But with tracking capabilities, a spammer can tell if the customer clicks on a link they sent. Now, all they have to do is send those people a fake email from a shipping company telling them that they have to download an attachment so they can "clear up any shipping issues before it’s too late." The "attachment" actually contains malware that once installed, infects the victim’s computer enabling the collection of sensitive information.

Chasing Online Holiday Shoppers

 

 

 

Some experts predict that online Holiday sales this November and December will be higher than last season. eMarketer is predicting a 14.3% increase over the same period last year. If they're right, this season’s growth will push annual ecommerce sales to $162.4 billion for full-year 2010, giving online Holiday shopping a 23.7% share of all online sales. So with November and December as the most important months of the year for online retailers, digital marketers who leverage social media networks have an opportunity to provide a rich array of product selections, complementing product accessories and intensify their analytical processes to understand what consumer who come to their sites are looking at. Online retailers with product-selection guides, easy return policies, and friendly and accessible customer service representatives put digital shoppers at ease and can turn them into lifelong online customers.