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‘Salesmen’, ‘Connectors’ and ‘Seekers’ are three key social network influencers on the purchasing activities of three quarters of the population, according to a global social networking survey, Consumer Marketing Using Social Network Analysis, Worldwide 2010, conducted by Gartner.

Salesmen have extensive social connections and a propensity to persuade people to do things, buy certain products and act in certain ways. It’s a personality trait which impels Salesmen to get people around them to act on information in highly directed ways.

It’s time to take a look at Sports Marketing 360, the interactive forum for sports marketing and sponsorships. The likes of Mark Osikoya, head of sponsorship, Coca Cola GB, Richard Heaselgrave, vp of business development, NBA – EMEA, and Sam Rush, international COO, Wasserman Media Group, will tackle a raft of themes, including:

By Hugh Jordan. Myths exist in many industries, perhaps none more so that marketing. Luckily, Chris Clarke, LBi’s chief creative officer, was on hand at brand-e’s recent the Buzz about the social media buzz event to puncture a few choice social media myths.
“A lot of people say technology is the biggest driver of social interaction,” Clarke posited. “Bullshit! [pop went myth number one].

The APA is launching the International Content Summit in London on 24th November 2010. The event, The Power and Future of Content, will assemble international marketers, media leaders and content makers to deliver insight into branded editorial content.
Confirmed speakers to date include David Seers (COI), Ben Hammersley (Wired Magazine), Julia Hobsbawm (CEO Editorial Intelligence), Julie Meyer (CEO Ariadne Capital), Lorna Tilbian (Numis Securities), James Pimentel-Pinto (Agency Mobile), and Susan Aubrey-Cound (M&S).

By Simon Fuller. Marketers really need to understand what social media is at heart.
“Social media is wild and untamed,” Andrew Grill, UK head of sales and business development at Visible Technologies, said at brand-e’s recent Buzz about the social media buzz event in London. “Listen, [as] you need to know what’s going on. If a product sucks, fix it – it’s better than hiding it – people know what’s going on. No matter what the marketing promise is, if you don’t deliver, they’ll tweet to let you know.

Only 40% of US firms surveyed by Digital Brand Expressions said they have a strategic plan in place for social media. However, 88% of those without any social media planning in operation agreed that it was strategically important to do so.
Seventy-one percent of respondents with a plan indicated they used social media for PR communications, [...]

Smartphones, and iPhones in particular, are leading advertisers to make big investments in mobile advertising, while close to one-third of advertisers say that mobile is the focus of their interactive spend, according to the STRATA quarterly survey of major US ad firms.
Respondents say almost 90% of their clients are interested in advertising on the iPhone, way ahead of the BlackBerry and the Droid. The iPad ranks lower than all three with only 26% interested in the device for their marketing.

Organic food outfit Cascadian Farm has become the first official branded crop to be offered in Zynga’s hit social game FarmVille. During the week-long partnership, which kicked off 19th July, Cascadian organic blueberries will be the most profitable FarmVille crop offered in the game.
The brand has also recreated the real Cascadian Farm, located in Washington’s [...]