Mike de Block

As a Dutch 28 year old entrepreneur, who founded the B2B e-commerce site, Uniq Print Naambadges, I love companies who embrace the future according to the principle of "it's the story you tell and not the product you sell". On this blog, I would like to share my vision and recent examples that underpin the need for change for the (lagging) companies who are still spammy, pushy, sales-y as a mean to attract new clients;). You can email me, tweet me, facebook me. I'd love your submissions or reactions. var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-9191613-3']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); })();

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Brilliant! Nivea turns their print ad into a trackable wristband that warns parents if their kinds stray too far. Talking about how brands can create the goodwill that might evolve in loyalty. Nice!!

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Will 2014 finally be the year when supermarkets go all-in on retail 2.0? If so, what new features will they implement? This months column gives the desired inspiration. What do you think? (dutch only)

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My latest column for @distrifood, where I discuss why flexible pricing might be the next frontier in retail. What do you think?

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This weeks column discusses the supermarket 2 years from now. Will data generation become the core-business of a supermarket and to what extend will Google Glass impact this development?  Let me know what you think!

Mike

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This weeks columns discusses how retail owners can treat their store as a website. 

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This weeks column is about how the discovery of products will be changed by our interest graph and how this will impact the supermarket industry. Let me know what you think!

Mike

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Supermarkets can become Rockstars with @vineapp . How? Read it in my latest @distrifood column (dutch)

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While traveling trough China & Japan for @Wannahaves, I noticed that a lot of learnings out of the start-up world are embedded into the Japanese & Chinese retail market. However, not in Holland (yet). It's for this reason, I wanted to send a wake up call to all supermarket organizations in Holland via this column.

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My first column of the year 2013, where I discuss the impact of the upcoming Facebook Graph Search on the supermarket industry.

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My 10th and final column for @distrifood for the year 2012, where I discuss the lessons retailers can learn from Airbnb.com. Moreover, distrifood wanted to extend our corporation for the year 2013, so there are many more to come!

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And here is my 9th column already! This time, I discuss how large supermarket chains can learn from Google Ventures to ensure that they turn the threat of "showrooming" into an opportunity. 

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Supermarkets have no excuse anymore to avoid Facebook, after the launch of the Facebook gift store. In my latest (Dutch) column, I discuss the opportunities that arise and why branding is more vital then turnover within Facebook.

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Above is my seventh column @distrifood, where I wanted to underpin that doing your groceries is a social experience, regardless whether this happens online of offline.

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Introducing #gamification @distrifood, the magazine for supermarket entrepreneurs in Holland.

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Little monsters is Lady Gaga's own Facebook. The online haven for Lady Gaga fans lets them create or share Gaga-related content, mingle with other “Little Monsters” and publicly show whether they like what users are posting. While Facebook helps people build their social graphs, Little Monsters aim to build identities around specific “interests, affinities and movements. In short, Facebook lets you create a social graph (communities at large) , but as you not always like the same things as your friend, an interest graph (communities of focus) is the solution to meet-up with peers.

In short, interest graphs are a collection of people who share the same interest and will arise next to your social graph. Social networks, will therefore become nicheworks and Lady Gaga is giving you the perfect example how to do it. What kind of passion can you facilitate to bring peers together? 

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Pay with sweat not money, is a new FB campaign from Nike Mexico. It embodies an auction where you can bid for certain Nike shoes with kilometres that you've run and recorded to your Nike+ app.  If you’re outbid you can rebid by adding more miles (if you run them) within each auction period (15 days). 

I sincerely love the idea by agency JWT, since it strengthens the image Nikes want to create for their customers: competitive sport people, #makeitcount. By selling performances instead of shoes, they get people moving as Nike is playing out it's competition card. People love to win something free and when you pay with sweat, it's likely that friends will battle on FB who can run the most miles.  

The Subasta de Kilometros (official name) gives people an incentive to increase their exercise regime and enables them to win rewards for their training. Inspiration for other retail models?

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The launch of the ex-lover blocker app by a Brazilian beer brand is a perfect example of how to combine a branded app with Facebook. The trend to launch social utility apps is growing and this app is another great example how to do so. The app prevents heartbroken men to call their ex-lovers by warning his best 3 mates when he is about to do so. If the user bypasses the app and continues to connect with the ex, then a public status will be posted on Facebook for everyone to see how “weak” he/she was.

Providing aid for your customers in a funny yet helpful way by connecting their friends is the way to go for promotional apps.