I just get so excited when I see good marketing! I know, I’m a geek…
Yesterday I watched a video on YouTube and happened to be only listening to the audio as I multi-tasked in another tab of my browser. What caught my attention was the sudden voice of a jolly, middle-aged woman chatting about holiday decorating, so I toggle back to the screen and begin watching this YouTube advertisment. Her name is Jo Pearson and she’s having a good time making crafts for the holidays explaining just ‘where creativity happens.’ As I glance to the right, I also see a banner ad with Jo and the tag line, “Where Creativity Happens again.” So, I click and arrive at Michaels little microsite, WhereCreativityHappens.com and it’s loaded with ideas for the holidays: crafts, tree ornaments, kid activities and more. All the crafty how-to videos are also available on YouTube.
The campaign goes beyond just watching a video, however. The conversion tracking metrics are in place: View project sheet, Save or print project info, send to a friend, find a Michaels store, etc. The site also tells you where you can join their groups on Facebook or MySpace.
I do have a little criticism, however. The Groups are too controlled. I have attempted to join the ‘Holidays Made Easy’ group on Facebook; it’s a closed group and I must wait for approval, which I think is a turn off. People should be able to join on the spot, in my opinion–they need not be so paranoid.
Search engine results=bad. I searched some basic phrases, ‘holiday decorating ideas’ and ‘kids holiday crafts’ and a few others and no organic (1st or 2nd page) or PPC results for Michaels or WhereCreativityHappens. I think the campaign could certainly have benefited by developing a better search engine strategy and invested in some PPC.
Ta da! Overall, Michaels (or their agency) developed a well thought out, consise and effective internet marketing campaign. Now I’m motivated to make some new holiday decorations with my kids-I know they’ll love it.
