Eat Wild

www.eat-wild.co.uk/

Eat Wild is an enterprise of two parts: first and foremost it is a mobile catering unit supplying premium wild meat and game at country shows and other outdoor events (including London's 2012 Olympics). Eat Wild has also opened as a small restaurant in the heart of the Cotswold town of Cirencester.

With a loyal following on Instagram of over 2,000 - we stumbled upon this little gem of a brand and went to check out the newly opened restaurant for ourselves.

The restaurant space is on a street front with a big window  - we opted for a table at the front. The service was informal and friendly which, along with the quirky decor, reflected the whole vibe of the Eat Wild dining experience. It's a small space (max. 25 people) but has lots of character with 'funky' taxidermy pieces, (the stuffed squirrel was a fave) a wall-mounted, partially dissembled piano-come-bottle-shelf and a pet fish called Brian Blessed (the result of a Facebook competition - we like!)

The menu is brief, seasonal and locally sourced - with meat sourcing rarely straying over the Gloucestershire border. In the end we went for the pulled pork burger, willie's chilli consisting of pulled venison (yum) and buttermilk chicken with rosemary fries. The food came out promptly and the presentation gave off a real 'safari' game feeling with the use of old enamel camping gear. The food was cooked well and was delicious leaving us with no room for their amazing Sundaes! (It's also worth pointing out that a Wild burger + rosemary fries meal cost £8.00 - hardly breaking the bank).

What Eat Wild have done is created an authentic product/concept that is well-delivered. The product is infused with the unique personality of the brand. The cool/hyper-styled/informal tone is consistent across all of their messaging: decor, service, website, signage and of course, their social media which makes eating at Eat Wild a really engaging experience.

The restaurant was full and buzzing by the time we took our last mouthfuls. The bill was seen to and our first experience at Eat Wild came to an end...definitely will not be our last.

Abandon your table manners and Tesco's chicken immediately - eating Wild is the way to go.

Case Study: The Londoner

First of all everyone: acquaint yourselves with the Facebook page belonging to today's case study, a blogger: The Londoner. (this is not a sponsored post. sigh.)

Here I presume to list 5 reasons why this lady has a following of nearly 54,000 people.

1. She's aimed for a big crowd:
Rosie has chosen to blog about things that appeal to a huge number of people: fashion, travel and food. These are all cultural big-hitters (anything 'lifestyle' is generally a winner) but, while not all brands have the luxury to sell such things, anyone can apply the basic wisdom to their own strategy.

What we should learn from this:
Gauge which elements of your brand message appeal to a prospective majority. Then use these as touch-points in your SM strategy. E.g. If your brand sells garden furniture, you might identify: summertime, family/social occasions and outdoor activities as your key hooks. If you sell fitness holidays you might identify: exotic locations, current fitness trends and healthy food as your hooks. See?

2. She gives a little to receive a lot:
Rosie hardly ever writes a post without an accompanying photo. This adds immediate interest to all her information thus making it easy to ingest. But vice-versa, she makes her content work for her: lots of her photos include a bait-link to her blog on her website. This exposes her monetised url to a social demographic thus increasing traffic, SEO and advertising impressions. AKA - rakin' in the chips.

What we should learn from this:
Make sure wherever possible you can add a visual element to your content. Don't just slap up a photo to tick this box though - oh no, my friend - your visual content must comply with points 1 and 5. i.e. - it must leverage popular emotive hooks (point 1) as well as appear engaged in the message it's delivering (point 5).

3. She writes amusing captions for her photos:
 Many of Rosie's posts include puns or playful references to popular culture.

What we should learn from this:
Well, this.

4.She shares photos from Instagram:
This means Rosie's Instagram account is linked to her Facebook so that, at her choosing, she can post a picture simultaneously to 2 separate social networks while directing the combined following of both to her website. 3 birds; 1 stone.

What we should learn from this:
It doesn't work all the time - people use different networks for different things - but, often, once a formula has been worked out as to what types of content can 'do the double', it is an administrative masterstroke that can save you precious minutes everyday while allowing you to drive traffic from multiple networks.

5. It always seems like she has a good time creating and posting her content:
Rosie is always having fun. It looks like it's her job to have fun - which is fun to follow.

What should we learn from this:
This is key - if SM output has a poor energy behind it, this percolates through invisible gaps in the strategy and, online, you'll be unmasked quicker than you can say 'sod this'. You have to have an achievable, realistic strategy that keeps you inspired. Your brand might not be about having fun - it might be about selling digital consultancy services (oop, guilty) - but there will always be some way you can develop a vibrant SM personality. If you employ a staff of people, your work-culture is a great place to start with an SM strategy. Create a buzz in the office and relay it on your social networks.

NB: The above tips are really helped along if you/your team also happen to be as good-looking as Rosie.

Cultural References in Social Media

Today, our cultural references come from some fairly absurd places (TOWIE being one of the most disconcerting) but nevertheless a cultural phenomenon, once coined, has the strength and power to pervade our everyday lives, penetrate through to our deepest levels of consciousness and earn Buzzfeed millions.

Who doesn't have some inkling of what a 'selfie' is? Who wouldn't know the origin of the hashtag #letitgo?  (If you are genuinely perplexed on these points, just go back to sleep). You don't even have to watch the stuff - I don't own a TV but I am alarmingly well-versed on the status of Lydia Bright's relationship with Arg (so over btw but a reunion would be totes emosh). But, despite everyone in the stratosphere knowing about these things, on social media, it becomes a clever secret.

As people, we are sometimes remarkably simple beings and the perception of a shared experience makes us feel really, really good. It reassures us of our place in the world - makes us feel plugged in and part of the unfolding universe. Acknowledging references to our popular culture makes us feel part of a shared identity; gives us the sense of psychological community (which, Freud will tell us, stimulates the pleasure principle in our brains). And it just feels good, ok?

So, when a brand puts out a post about their product and makes clever reference to something in popular culture (by clever I don't mean so covert that people will miss it but rather that the reference is well thought out in connection with the content of your post) PEOPLE WILL LIKE IT.
When referring to popular culture, brands usually do so with some level of irony or parody and browsers sense the tone, get the reference and hit like to reassure themselves (and others) that they're on the inside.

People who like a post like this are doing the digital equivalent of a smug little nod. 

What their little thumbs-up icon is saying is: 'Hey guys, I get what you're doing and I like it *wink*'. 

What it also says to the person's  friends is: 'Isn't this just too rich for words? You do get it, don't you?'

It makes them feel good and it increases engagement with your content. Result. Everybody wins.

So my suggestion is to read. lots. all the time. read, read, read. Don't actually WATCH Made in Chelsea - just read the bloody papers. Channel your inner-sponge: soak that shit up. You need to have a firm grasp of today's popular culture in order to make it on social networks.

In summary: there has never been a more important time to know all of Disney's song lyrics.

The Tale of the Sun and the Wind: An Analogy

Once upon a time the Wind came to the Sun in a sulky and belligerent mood. 
'Why does everyone like you more?' asked the Wind, 'it doesn't seem fair. I am far better than you.' 
The Sun merely shone serenely and let the Wind continue (as was his habit):
'Let's have a contest,' said the Wind. 'I bet I can remove that man's coat from him quicker than you can.'
The Sun smiled in weary acceptance of the challenge.

The Wind huffed and puffed and pulled and pushed at the man's coat, but the garment didn't budge. The Wind blew a gale in the man's face yet the man simply pulled the coat tighter around him. 
When the wind had blown himself out, it was the Sun's turn to have a go.

The Sun gently beamed down rays of warmth on the man and it wasn't too long before he got too hot and took off his coat.

And so it is, my friends, with Social Media.

Social Media and Company Sales.

Should you use Social Marketing to increase your sales?

Well, no. Yes but not exactly. There's a lot of grey - a grey that's just as likely to spank you as the E L James type. SM success isn't measured by increased sales, it's measured by increased engagement. (this is apt to evolve).

But for now, here's a break-down:

Social:
Adjective. 'Relating to society or it's organization'
Synonyms: Community-based, collective, public.

Therefore, your social media isn't (or at least shouldn't) be about driving sales. It should be about 'relating to the society or societal organization' of your audience. It is a public, inclusive community organised around the main thing that each community-member has in common: your brand.

So, what we're dealing with when it comes to Social Media is, in basic terms, a dialogue with your audience about the very thing that brought them to the party - your product/message/service. They have come to your party so they're interested in (here's the rub) what they perceive your brand to be about.
So in theory, they're still on the fence. They've subscribed to an idea they have about your brand and your job is to try and deliver on those expectations/exceed them with your SM output while remaining consistent with your brand messaging. (see? plenty pit falls... good SM, despite what people say, is a skill).

Some maths:

good product + fulfilled expectations = trust

Once you've identified the key areas of expectation upon which you can convert browsers to loyal fans, your following will grow organically and thus, contrary to paid growth, will remain engaged even as your numbers soar.

So, how is this improving your sales? It isn't. It's building credibility.

A final sum:

trust + brand credibility = a super fertile/receptive/engaged community.

And this, chaps, rather than raking in vulgar wads of cash (*cue bitter tears*), is the true measure of a good Social Media strategy.

*If you are a blogger/you are your own brand, ignore all of the above.*