Class Discussion Thread

[jgueron]

Please feel free to use this thread to get ideas for class discussion or reflection topics! We at HubSpot will be posting regularly but would love to see others post their ideas as well. 

[jgueron]

The use of WhatsApp to Boost Lead Generation and Sales

Article: 

• https://landbot.io/blog/how-to-use-chatbots-for-more-leads-and-sales-on-whatsapp/?fbclid=IwAR3HbZPOp...

Questions:

• SEO for WhatsApp will start to get more competitive. What are the implications of this for marketing professionals? 
• Take a look at the various examples of embedded chat at the bottom of the blog post. How have these companies made consuming content a more active experience for their customers? 

[jgueron]

Google recently announced that it’s rolling out a redesigned mobile search results page. How will that impact your business? Here’s a look at the changes, and what businesses might want to consider when they take effect.

Articles: 

• https://www.blog.google/products/search/new-design-google-search/
• https://searchengineland.com/google-rolling-out-mobile-search-redesign-with-black-ad-label-favicons-...
• https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/22/18635774/google-mobile-search-redesign-favicons-website-names
• https://www.seroundtable.com/google-mobile-search-redesign-live-27611.html
• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6544209253425647616

Question:

• How will this change impact organic v. paid search results? 
• Read through the reactions and comments on the linkedin feed and the articles. What are some common themes? Do you disagree or agree, and why? 

[jgueron]

Apple's idea of Privacy Preserving Ad Click Attribution, meant to make ads more privat eand less jarring to website visitors.

Article:

• https://techcrunch.com/2019/05/22/apple-online-ads-private/

Questions: 

• After reading the article, how does relate to Inbound Marketing, and the idea of giving consumers control and agency? 
• Look into Google and Facebook's recent initatives into the same idea. How are they similar yet different?

Although this won't impact impact HubSpot's tracking directly, it would impact conversation tracking, optimization, and website retargeting abilities of Google and Facebook. 

[jgueron]

GDPR One Year Later 

Article: 

• https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/general-data-protection-regulation-consumer-attitudes (This artic...

Questions:

• Consider how HubSpot navigatess GDPR, the implications of GDPR on traditional marketing, and how marketing automation has changed to accomodate GDPR both in Europe and elsewhere.

[jgueron]

This summer, Nike says it will roll out Nike Fit: a new app that allows customers to virtually “try on” shoes using augmented reality (AR). And sure, that’s cool and all -- but what does it have to do with you and your business?

Here’s a look at the new Nike Fit technology, and what other companies can learn from it.

Article: 

• https://www.engadget.com/2019/05/09/nike-fit-augmented-reality-right-fit-size-shoes/
• https://www.theverge.com/2019/5/9/18538101/nike-fit-new-app-ar-measure-feet-shoe-size-online-order-a...
• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6542785641636343808

Question: 

• What are some the ways a business could use technology like AR to reduce friction for customers? 

[jgueron]

The holiday season for data nerds.” “The most highly anticipated slide deck in Silicon Valley.” These are some of the words used by Recode to describe Mary Meeker’s annual Internet Trends report. Here, we have a look at some of the key takeaways of the 2019 report for marketers and businesses.

Articles: 

• https://techcrunch.com/2019/06/11/internet-trends-report-2019/
• https://www.vox.com/recode/2019/6/11/18651010/mary-meeker-internet-trends-report-slides-2019
• https://adage.com/article/digital/mary-meekers-2019-internet-trends-report-11-highlights-and-lots-in...
• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6544662974282506240

Questions: 

• How can businesses incorporate these findings into its strategies? 

[jgueron]

Using SMART Goals

Article: 

• https://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/smart-goals.htm
• https://www.nbcnews.com/better/lifestyle/how-writer-uses-smart-goal-points-system-get-more-done-ncna...
• https://www.forbes.com/sites/andrewfilev/2019/07/08/learning-to-delegate-is-critical-in-growing-as-a...
• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6537674856392204288

Questions:

• Increasingly, setting SMART goals is a great way for employees to show their employers their value. What is an example of a SMART goal that you would have once you start a new job or internship? 
• Practice a job interview response where you set a SMART goal. 

[jgueron]

Instagram will soon allow brands to promote posts from influencers who promote their products or services.

Articles: 

• https://www.campaignlive.com/article/instagram-will-allow-brands-promote-influencer-posts-ads/157803...
• https://www.cnbc.com/2019/06/04/instagram-will-now-let-advertisers-put-more-influencer-ads-in-your-f...
• https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/04/technology/instagram-ads-influencers.html
• https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:6547850434130903040

Questions: 

• What are the implications for this new type of advertising on Instagram for brands, influencers, and Small- to Medium-size businesses? 
• What does this change say about the need for authentic relationships between brands and consumers? 

[jgueron]

Why the Gig Economy’s Minimum Wage Debate Matters to Platforms

Article: 

• https://blog.hubspot.com/news-trends/gig-economy-minimum-wage-debate

Questions:

Discuss the obligations of platforms in the gig economy and in corporate transparency, especially in light of the larger themes of the article, including: 

• The obligation to be transparent and upfront about companies interact with workers
• How or where workers spend their working hours
• The term "micro-economy" 

[awakin1]

Some great ideas developing Julia - thanks for sharing

[kfreberg]

This is great, Julia! I think one thing I have seen being discussed a lot amongst professors now is how and what we cover related to influencers.

I'm currently working on an independent study this term with a student who will be working with me this fall and would be happy to share the readings and activities I'll be assigning with you all if you would like.

Here are some of the readings I have so far:

Differences in Types of Influencers

• The Real Difference Between Creators and Influencers - The Atlantic http://ow.ly/BIlJ30p6hL3
• The Rise of the Influencer Economy | Zoomph http://ow.ly/5y7X30p6hTB
• Social Media Influencers: Mega, Macro, Micro or Nano http://ow.ly/elp130p6icJ
• How much money could you make on YouTube, Instagram as an influencer? http://ow.ly/7zJc30p6hMp
• Influencer Marketing in 2019: How to Work With Social Media Influencers http://ow.ly/QflI30p6hMH
• Why does Gen Z love nano-influencers? Because they're *not* famous. http://ow.ly/3kHX30p6icu

Payment and Identification

• The Complete Guide to Instagram Influencer Rates in 2019 http://ow.ly/rcxg30p6hOa
• Survey reveals how much influencers earn as industry pushes for more standards – Econsultancy http://ow.ly/IODi30p6iyi
• How to find the best Instagram influencers to promote your brand - Talkwalker http://ow.ly/RCgB30p6hPQ
• The 7 Deadly Wins of Influencer Marketing - Talkwalker http://ow.ly/iegK30p6hR6
• What You Should Look for in an Influencer: 5 Key Characteristics http://ow.ly/iRDL30p6icV
• Instagram influencers | Federal Trade Commission http://ow.ly/637530p6ihJ
• FTC Staff Reminds Influencers and Brands to Clearly Disclose Relationship | Federal Trade Commission http://ow.ly/OY7030p6iiE
• How to Find Social Media Influencers | Sprout Social http://ow.ly/lw7m30p6ihG
• Instagram vs YouTube: Which Platform is Best for Your Influencer Marketing Campaign http://ow.ly/feIQ30p6iwN

Case studies

• Marissa Fuchs's Proposal Was Pitched to Brands - The Atlantic http://ow.ly/PzjX30p6hLX
• How Tea Accounts Fuel the James Charles YouTube Feud - The Atlantic http://ow.ly/2z0930p6hXo
• Mavck case studies
• How Adidas is using smaller-scale influencers http://ow.ly/Gbls30p6ijC
• Ahead of ‘shop’ button for publishers, Snapchat launches in-app stores for Snap influencers http://ow.ly/3gXj30p6ik6
• 'Believe in the brand': Kellogg's is now using influencers like creative agencies - http://ow.ly/dJJz30p6ikt
• Why General Mills is spending more of its digital budget on influencers http://ow.ly/iAO930p6ikP
• Sephora Takes Crowdsourced Approach To Influencer Marketing With New Beauty 'Squad' http://ow.ly/NcjM30p6isy
• 'Influencers pay double': The ice cream truck defying Instagram freebies - BBC News http://ow.ly/r3se30p6ixL
• The Fyre Festival Does Not Represent Influencer Marketing http://ow.ly/647s30p6iVW
• Adobe Insiders http://ow.ly/Tz7130p6j2n

[jgueron]

Thanks @kfreberg ! This is great 🙂 

[dcaaronson]

This is a great post about influencers.

Thanks.

[jgueron]

How is the ad landscape change affecting your business?

Article: 

Facebook Offers Content Creators Ad Breaks To Monetize Video

So Long, Skip Button: YouTube Ads Can Now be Unskippable 

Questions:

• As the year continues to progress, ad formats continue to evolve - and adapt to rapidly-changing consumer preferences. How are the changes to the ad structure on YouTube and Facebook going to effect businesses and influencers?
• What principles of good video advertising and marketing apply all the more that these changes are in place? 

[jgueron]

Going viral isn't necessarily the key to reaching the right audience. LinkedIn's self-reported algorithm changes is found to favor posts that align with more niche professional topics -- not virality. 

Article: LinkedIn Has Outlined its Recent Algorithm Updates, Which Focus on Broadening Engagement

Questions: 

• LinkedIn advises those who are attempting to optimize content to "encourage conversations", "respond and engage in conversation", and "be yourself". How does this align wit hthe Inbound Methodology? 
• What is some content that you would be able to create to reach a larger audience on LinkedIn
• How will these changes inform your LinkedIn Strategy? 

[jgueron]

Facebook has received a $5 billion fine for data privacy violations, and will be subject to privacy checks moving forward. According to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC),

Facebook deceived “users about their ability to control the privacy of their personal information." The settlement could potentially be a turning point in how the government will regulate data privacy on social media.

Article: 

• Facebook will pay an unprecedented $5 billion penalty over privacy breaches

Questions:

• How do you think this will impact tech and business in the future?

[awakin1]

Great questions Julia

These are very useful indeed. We’ve had some recent and further issues around privacy in the UK aligning with challenges in China in using facial recognition technology. A similar question related to this would also be interesting. Particularly were the technology can do wonders with personalisation but the challenge of data privacy are significant.. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-49030595?intlink_from_url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/topics/c1...

[jgueron]

Instagram is rolling out two new features to curb bullying, each built with the help of AI and customer feedback. According to the platform, the features include a pop-up asking commenters to think twice about what they’re saying when commenting something seemingly harmful, and one that allows users to block others without notifying them.

Article:

• How will Instagram’s new anti-bullying features actually work?
• Our Commitment to Lead the Fight Against Online Bullying

Questions:

• Do you think the features can make a difference?
• What are some other businesses that are successfully (or not) leveraging their influence and power to protect their consumers? 

[jgueron]

Facebook is revisiting -- and rebuilding -- the idea of community, with a special team that's been tasked with creating a new slate of apps.

Articles: 

• New apps, new experiences: NPE Team, from Facebook
• Facebook says it will launch experimental apps under NPE Team name
• Facebook is revisiting -- and rebuilding -- the idea of community, with a special team that's been t...

Questions:

• What exactly will the NPE do?
• Why is Facebook doing this? 
• What audience is Facebook trying to reach with this initiative?

[awakin1]

Thanks for sharing these Julia. Also - appreciate your support with HubSpot Dublin!

[jgueron]

If you want to become an experience disruptor in your industry, you must focus on creating a better end-to-end experience for your customers. One way to do that is by creating highly personalized experiences for your buyers. Companies like Netflix, Spotify, and StitchFix are experts at this! How do you integrate personalization into your customer's journey?

Video:

• https://hubs.ly/H0kJp0N0https://techcrunch.com/2019/05/22/apple-online-ads-private/

Questions: 

• After viewing this keynote at INBOUND, what are some experience disruptors that you can think of that weren't mentionned? 
• Additionally, how does the flywheel experience play apart in setting Experience Disruptors a part? 

[jgueron]

Feedback is one of the most powerful sources of growth for your company because it’s what helps to create a better product and customer experience. SVP of Product at HubSpot, Christopher O'Donnell,  explained at INBOUND exactly what happens to a piece of feedback at HubSpot.

View slides here.

How will this effect the way you offer and receive feedback? 

[jgueron]

Should a business have a customer advocacy program? Discover the four types of customer advocates, and why each one might be motivated to promote a brand.

Article:

• The four customer advocate personalities
• What is a customer advocate? 
• What is Customer Advocacy and 11 Reasons Why it's the Bedrock of Your Business

Questions:

How can you help customers promote a brand? 

[jgueron]

Articles: Should Shareholders Share the Wealth?

INSIGHT: Shareholders to Stakeholders—The Business Roundtable Wants to Expand a Corporation’s Purpos...

Stakeholder Capitalism (As defined by Investopedia)

Summary: Historically, the purpose of a corporation was to deliver shareholder value. But this year, that definition changed. An organization called the Business Roundtable — which is a group of over 200 CEOs from of the biggest companies in the world — made a public statement to adapt the purpose of a corporation and acknowledge ALL its stakeholders. Now, the top two things on the list for a corporation are delivering value to the customers, and investing in employees. This is an important change because the most successful companies in the world realize they are building two products: one for customers, and another for employees. Just like you want to attract and retain the best customers, you want to attract and retain the best people.

Questions:

What’s one of the most valuable “features” brands you'd like to work for are building for their employees?

[jgueron]

Article:

Google rolls out new privacy features

How to Set Your Google Data to Self-Destruct

Google is Rolling Out More Privacy Features

Summary: Want to put the customer first? Here's a friendly reminder from Google that data privacy is still front-and-center for a lot of users, by way of new security features across a number of its products.

Questions:

With these changes growing more common - how is Google putting the Customer First? 

[jgueron]

LinkedIn is Launching Skill Assessments to Help Job-Hunters and Recruiters 

Articles: 

• Announcing Skill Assessments to Help You Showcase Your Skills
• Everything You Need to Know About LinkedIn's 'Skill Assessments' and How to Use Them
• Sometimes is helps to show, not tell

Questions: 

• How could Skills Assessments inpact your job-seeking goals? 
• What skills are you hoping LinkedIn adds? 

[jgueron]

Facebook Mind-Reading

Articles: 

Facebook is building tech to read your mind. The ethical implications are staggering.

Mind-reading tech? How private companies could gain access to our brains

HubSpot's post about this on LinkedIn

Questions: 

What are the ethical implications for those in marketing? 

[jgueron]

Facebook is Cracking Down on False Information

Articles: 

• Working to Stop Misinformation and False News
• How is Facebook addressing false news through third-party fact-checkers?
• Facebook will label false posts more clearly as part of an effort to prevent 2020 election interfere...
• HubSpot's LinkedIn Post

Question:

• Will Facebook's false information labels help make their social channels a safer place?

[jgueron]

Questions nearly all businesses, including us, are asking right now: What should we change about our strategy? What can go on as business as usual? Where should we invest our resources? To start to explore solutions to the above, we looked at aggregated data from over 70,000 of our customers to understand how business metrics are shifting, spot trends, and develop insights on what this means for the future.

You may consider sharing this with your students and asking them to forecast how COVID-19 will effect business, sales, and marketing: https://hubs.ly/H0plSFm0