Using Social Media for Customer Service

Thanks to the ease and popularity of social media, more and more businesses are feeling the heat of customer service-related inquiries via Facebook, Twitter and other social channels. Now that consumers can send direct, private messages to brands with the new Facebook Timeline, customer service via social is more important than ever. What used to be handled in private, offline … Read More

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Are you craving Quiznos today? We are!

But actually, make that “QRAVING.” Yesterday, our client Quiznos kicked off QRAVE Quiznos, its new national branding campaign that we helped create. The campaign, which includes digital, print, local store marketing and a direct marketing campaign, supports the rollout of 25 new menu items like wraps, salads and flatbreads and introduces a new line of desserts, including—our favorite—chocolate brownies. You may … Read More

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Email Address Collection: What Not to Do

The first step to successful email marketing is permission. If a person does not want information from you, then don’t even attempt it. Some people believe that permission is transferable. The assumption is that if someone has any relationship at all with you, then they will be open to receiving emails. If you agree with that assumption, then keep reading. … Read More

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Becoming Justin Bieber

What do Justin Bieber and Kansas City barbecue have in common? Pretty much everythi…okay, absolutely nothing. At least, up until this past weekend’s UMB Smokin’ Vault Barbecue Competition. During the annual two-day event, UMB associates team up to try to out-grill each other and hopefully win a spot in the acclaimed American Royal Barbeque Competition. This year, Barkley had its … Read More

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“We are KU” Parody Video Goes Viral for Barkley Partners

Early on Monday, January 30th, I was looking on Facebook and a ton of my KU grad friends were sharing a video called “We Are Mizzou.” After watching 45 seconds of the video, I actually thought the video was made by Kansas kids dressed up in Mizzou gear making fun of Missouri. I’m emphasizing the timing as it is definitely … Read More

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Four Reasons Why Email Is The Marketing Medium of Choice

Ask yourself this question:  If you had endless funds, all the time in the world, and a group of people who were 100% consistent, how would you market to your members?  I call them members because any customer who is a repeat buyer/user should be treated with respect as a member. If you’re like me, you believe face-to-face communication is … Read More

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Forget What You Think You Know About Millennials

Millennials are lazy, right? They’re spoiled and they want everything handed to them. If that’s what you think, you’re going to be way off target when you try to market to this large and increasingly valuable consumer demographic. The Boston Consulting Group today released the latest report based on the research partnership between The Boston Consulting Group, Barkley and Service … Read More

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QSR Insights: Restaurant Loyalty Programs Surge

It started with the airlines, and then quickly spread throughout almost every consumer and business-to-business industry. Loyalty programs/frequent buyer programs are one of the primary drugs driving today’s consumers’ buying habits. And I say drug because they are truly addictive. The latest news from the restaurant industry is that over the last two years, frequent diner programs have increased in … Read More

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CPG Marketing Trends: Effectively Marketing To Moms

It’s no secret that women are an important target for most brands’ marketing goals and objectives. A recent post on Mashable cites Pontiflex research which finds that women make 85% of the purchasing decisions in a household. Higher volume purchasing households are most often driven by families, where the women are making buying decisions for multiple people. Read the rest … Read More

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Making the Most of Facebook Timeline for Your Brand

In case you haven’t heard, Facebook Timeline for brand pages is coming. The good news (besides the fact that the new Timeline features are awesome for marketers!) is that this time we had a heads up. Read More

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