Who doesn’t like free stuff?

At Carrot Creative, we choose to work with brands we truly believe in, creating the absolute best digital representation of our clients products and of ourselves. Brands need to understand how powerful it is to have these “brand evangelists” reppin’ them (aside from the agency partnerships). More importantly, they need to know how to reach these consumers who can build a more visceral connection to the brand using social media.

One way is the “free stuff” method. You may have noticed the influx of brands offering contests or free samples on Twitter. They’re interacting with people on Twitter to use/engage with their products. Here are some examples:

• Our designer Steve Badowski had a “late night out” (take that as you want to) with the Carrot team. The next morning we talked about our love for cocunut water and how it cures a small hangover and decided to tweet about it. O.N.E Coconut responded to Steve’s tweet and sent us a free box of 12! (Thank you!)
• @thegingerpeople were offering free samples of their new ginger candy online. I simply followed up on their tweet with an email and Boo-ya! ginger candy is coming my way.
• Last week Orbitz offered free tickets under the following promotional tweet: “We’re giving away a free airline ticket today! FOLLOW @Orbitz & RT this message to be eligible to win http://bit.ly/bVSuU” By re-tweeting (RT) this post, you were automatically entered into a free airfare raffle. The intent of a contest like this is to increase followers and bring Orbitz’s Twitter Community that much closer to the brand. Not to mention, that by engaging with Twitter’s audience these brands are getting “props” from the social media pundits.

By offering free products, these brands are playing out Chris Anderson’s Long Tail Theory of selling more for less in exchange for greater reach and frequency. As a consumer, this was a totally awesome experience because I got the chance to speak directly to the brand. By creating relationships with these brands I become more likely to support future products. and my followers will also see my tweet becoming fans as well because they trust my judgment. (It all comes down to trust… right marketers?)

By enabling social media and using the long-tail theory the brand is giving the consumer more options to engage with the product. Soooooo, maybe we should start handing out free carrots?

Do you have another example of the free stuff method on Twitter? Feel free to leave it in the comments or share it on Twitter @carrotcreative.

They say the neon lights are bright On Broadway

One of the greatest parts about seeing a Broadway show is the immediate connection that you feel to the cast. Look at how many young fans wait eagerly outside the stage door of their favorite show hoping to catch a glimpse of the leading lady or actor or grab a quick photo and autograph of the Playbill.

I’ve been a theater buff since my first performance in 6th grade as Lucy in “You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown.” My parents then began taking me into the city to see the shows on (and off) Broadway. Cats. Les Miserables. Miss Saigon. Rent (about 5 times) Mamma Mia! Speed the Plow. The list goes on. While I always felt a connection to the music and performance, the connection usually stayed on my Discman where I could immediately put myself back into the seats and relive the show from anywhere.

Now, with the help of social media—the connection to Broadway and its shows and actors has become much more apparent online. Ken Davenport, a Broadway and Off-Broadway producer and the founder of the social networking website, BroadwaySpace.com recently contributed to a Mashable guest post about Broadway communicating with its fans.

While this is one of the first posts I’ve seen really address this industry and social media, I’m not surprised as even Ken points out, “The majority of today’s Broadway audience were born well before the PC era. Marketing 101 will tell you to speak to your audience in the language that they understand, and one of Broadway’s prime demos is the “55 Year Old Woman.” This era is still new to Twitter and Facebook.

But, it’s changing. Ken posted some great examples of Broadway shows using social media including Altar Boys, Rock of Ages and Next to Normal. The Broadway musical revival HAIR also caught my eye with a huge interactive presence in social media including a Twitter account with live updates from the cast and crew, behind the scenes photos on the Facebook page and a YouTube and MySpace presence.

The industry is perfect for social media and a great place to connect with the thousands of fans that cross through Broadway every day. From individual performers to the full cast and crew, the shows can connect with the many fans eager to continue the experience they had in the theater once they get back home and open up their laptops. They want to know what goes on behind the curtain and see videos of the cast and crew singing impromptu versions of the hit songs. The content is there and eager to be seen by so many.

This is definitely a space Carrot Creative is looking into more as recent conversations have brought up this space and the need to provide some unique ideas to make all of this happen.