I have the following recommendations for Best Buy after taking a peak at their digital strategy.

1. “Living Digitally”
Erica May’s look at Best Buy’s
digital strategy

2. How resourceful are these resources…

3. …to your target audience?
Pictures
pulled
from
Best
Buy’s
social
networks.

4. I talked to some fans, followers, forum gurus,
subscribers & even in-store shoppers to find out…
I
wish
I
could
logon
to
Best
It
would
be
cool
if
Best
Buy
had
Buy
with
my
Facebook
videos
for
some
of
the
products
account
&
comment
on
they
sell,
or
beCer
yet
how-­‐to
games
&
also
see
what
other
videos.
I
also
take
video
product
people
were
saying.
It’s
hard
reviews
very
seriously
&
they
to
see
what
people
think
in
so
usually
impact
what
I
end
up
many
different
places.
buying.
I
ask
a
lot
of
quesHon
online.
It’s
too
difficult
to
go
to
a
lot
of
different
places,
so
I
always
go
to
Yahoo
Answers
or
use
Aardvark
when
I’m
on
my
phone.
I’m
a
busy
stay
at
home
mom.
I
use
my
cell
phone
for
everything.
I
had
no
idea
that
Best
Buy
had
a
mobile
store
&
I
would
never
think
of
them
I
am
a
fan
of
Best
Buy
&
I
follow
when
buying
a
phone.
I’m
online
&
them
on
TwiCer.
When
companies
on
my
phone
50%
of
the
day.
give
back
to
the
community
it
makes
me
want
to
shop
at
their
store.
I
don’t
think
Best
Buy
really
does
anything
in
the
community.

5. So, how do we put these pieces together to
create a digital strategy that works?
INTEGRATION & AWARENESS
GIFT
TAG
FRIEND
FEED
TWELPFORCE
IN-­‐STORE
REVIEWS
RADIO
GEEK
BEST
BUY
ON
SQUAD
PHONE
FORUMS
IDEA
X
APPS
@15
YOUTUBE
FACEBOOK
RECYCLE
IT
REWARD
OOH
WAP
SITE
PRINT
ON
DISPLAY
ZONE
BLOGS
REMIX

6. •
Invest
in
a
branded
channel
/
SEM
YouTube
campaign
•
Integrate
“Best
Buy
On”
Videos
on
YouTube
channel
•
Make
playlists
out
of
customer
reviews,
vendor
videos,
relevant
news
•
Create
a
navigaHonal
gadget
to
make
finding
videos
easier
to
replace
featured
video
area
(also
can
track
more
metrics
with
Google
AnalyHcs
integraHon!)
•
Create
a
gadget
that
helps
customers
find
their
local
store
w/Google
maps
integraHon
•
Tag
videos
by
SEO
best
pracHces
so
users
can
find
them
when
searching

7. •
Let
fans
view
weekly
ad
&
shop
inside
Shop
+
Share
tab
instead
of
taking
them
away
from
the
experience
•
Let
users
buy
gii
cards/refill
them
for
friends
via
a
Facebook
tab
•
Idea
Giir
tab
would
be
best
as
a
virtual
gii
tab
where
users
could
post
product
on
their
friends’
pages
w/a
note
•
Recycle
it
On
should
be
an
applicaHon
that
lets
users
see
their
networks’
acHviHes
verses
being
an
off-­‐site
experience
using
a
Facebook
login

8. •
Integrate
total
number
of
objects
recycled
onto
category
pages
online
&
integrate
parHcipant’s
photos
to
create
awareness
of
campaign
•
Invest
in
Facebook
ads
so
consumers
are
aware
of
resource
with
a
target
of
people
who
like
electronics
and
also
have
fanned
“green”
pages
•
Award
“Reward
Zone”
points
to
give
consumers
a
beCer
reason
to
engage
with
brand

9. •
Create
a
consistent
way
for
customers
to
get
to
“Best
Buy
On”
experience
from
main
site
as
opposed
to
adverHsing
topic
of
week’s
newsleCer
•
Embed
content
throughout
relevant
areas/products
on
the
site
to
drive
traffic
&
increase
awareness
•
Let
users
submit
arHcles
&
videos
which
can
be
featured
in
future
ediHons
•
Embed
relevant
links
from
BestBuy.com,
&
consider
a
new
name,
as
if
a
user
searches
an
engine
to
find
any
of
this
content
it’s
nearly
impossible
to
find
•
Consider
embedding
videos
from
YouTube
channel
for
SEO
value

10. •
Create
display
ads
&
place
on
electronics
focused
sites,
content
&
communiHes
that
let
users
logon
to
TwiCer
&
ask
a
quesHon
at
the
site
they
are
currently
on.
Banners
would
display
relevant
quesHons
related
to
specific
content
on
each
site
based
on
keywords
•
Integrate
the
ability
for
quesHons/answers
to
stream
onto
forum
based
on
keywords
•
Only
link
to
BestBest.com
on
skin,
as
URLs
that
can’t
be
clicked
with
no
descripHon
are
confusing
to
consumers
•
@BestBuy
should
have
a
different
look
&
feel,
as
it’s
a
completely
different
strategy.
Consumers
should
be
able
to
visually
have
a
different
experience
with
the
different
content

11. •
Each
of
these
sites
serves
a
purpose,
but
these
purposes
would
equal
a
more
meaningful
experience
embedded
together.
As
a
consumer
I
want
to
be
able
to
ask
a
quesHon,
offer
an
idea
&
see
my
rewards
points
all
in
from
one
place.
New
funcHonality
can
be
built
into
one
single
plakorm
&
experience,
which
would
make
this
experience
meaningful,
simplified
&
more
relevant
to
me

12. •
This
page
can’t
be
found
be
searching
for
any
relevant
keywords
and
it’s
also
not
linked
from
Best
Buy’s
homepage.
Consumers
can’t
see
the
value
in
these
community
iniHaHves
when
they
can’t
find
the
landing
page
•
This
is
an
iniHaHve
that
would
do
awesome
in
the
social
space,
yet
it’s
the
one
iniHaHve
that
can’t
easily
be
found
there.
A
YouTube
video
contest
with
Facebook/
TwiCer
integraHon
from
Best
Buy’s
(already
fanned/followed
pages)
would
grow
awareness
&
create
community
parHcipaHon

13. •
If
I
don’t
know
what
an
RSS
feed
is
I’m
probably
not
going
to
subscribe
to
one.
Let’s
either
list
out
the
different
RSS
feeds
in
one
place
&
what
I’ll
get
from
each,
or
let’s
just
integrate
RSS
opHons
where
relevant
scaCered
throughout
the
homepage
experience.
The
graphic
on
this
page
doesn’t
jive
too
well
with
the
social
experience
&
social
is
exactly
what
RSS
feeds
are.
•
Are
we
uHlizing
RSS
feeds
where
they’d
be
beneficial
to
Best
Buy?
How
about
we
analyze
where
we
can
push
out
RSS
info
that
we
have
access
to
on
social
networks
and
sHll
have
it
be
relevant
verses
roboHc?

14. •
There
is
a
whole
lot
of
mobile
going
on
with
Best
Buy
&
it’d
be
a
beCer
customer
experience
if
there
was
one
applicaHon
verses
a
few
and
there
were
links
that
drove
me
to
WAP
experiences
that
mimicked
the
online
ones
verses
sending
me
to
your
websites
as
they
exist
for
someone
looking
at
a
computer
•
Let’s
not
do
mobile
just
for
the
sake
of
doing
it.
Let’s
do
it
in
a
way
that
makes
sense
&
provides
value
to
the
customer
•
Consistent
shopping
experiences
from
WAP
to
applicaHon
to
online
make
it
easier
for
customers
to
find
what
they
are
looking
for

15. •
Speaking
of
mobile,
most
customers
will
interact
with
you
in
this
channel
by
searching
on
their
phone
•
Instead
of
taking
your
current
paid
search
strategy
and
clicking
“yes”
to
turn
it
into
a
mobile
one,
let’s
make
it
more
relevant
•
Use
keywords
like
“mobile”
or
“phone”
in
your
ads
for
a
higher
CTR
•
Bid
on
all
major
categories,
as
users
are
more
likely
to
search
quickly
than
type
in
an
exact
product
•
Use
funcHonality
that
lets
users
see
a
map,
hours,
call
the
local
store
&
outbid
compeHtors
for
these
placements

16. •
Don’t
link
to
places
that
aren’t
updated,
like
Barry’s
Blog.
Barry
hasn’t
updated
his
blog
since
December
2009
•
Brian’s
whiteboard
is
a
great
user
experience.
His
video
content,
photos,
etc..
could
be
repurposed
onto
many
relevant
places
•
The
“Connected
World”
&
“Sustainability”
content
could
be
beCer
paired
with
the
@15
content
to
really
show
investors
and
consumers
all
the
good
that
Best
Buy
is
doing
in
the
community
•
All
Best
Buy
bloggers
should
be
trained
on
best
pracHces
of
blogging

17. •
Once
again
here’s
another
microsite
that
isn’t
easily
found
with
a
slew
of
great
content
that
could
easily
be
integrated
into
one
central
community

18. •
This
was
probably
thought
to
be
a
great
concept,
as
it
integrates
a
lot
of
different
social
sites.
However,
it’s
really
defeaHng
the
purpose
of
delivering
specific
messages
to
specific
plakorms
in
a
relevant
and
targeted
maCer.
Gepng
all
this
content
at
one
Hme
is
a
liCle
confusing
to
the
average
consumer,
&
as
far
as
I
can
see
this
feed
is
not
being
repurposed
anywhere

19. •
Ah,
what
consumer
doesn’t
love
a
great
wish
list?
This
is
the
single
most
beneficial
technology
that
needs
to
work
seamless
with
the
online
browsing
experience
•
Repurposing
the
plakorm
of
IdeaX
isn’t
the
best
experience
for
pupng
together
a
list.
In
addiHon,
it’s
confusing
that
it’s
a
different
experience
from
creaHng
a
wish
list
from
a
product
page
•
A
mobile
integraHon
of
being
able
to
take
pictures
while
in-­‐store
&
then
have
that
translated
to
a
wish
list
that
would
help
me
get
back
to
product
pages
would
also
be
useful

20. •
There’s
a
lot
of
useful
informaHon
to
someone
who
likes
apps,
WAPs
&
all
things
mobile
on
this
site,
but
how’s
a
user
going
to
find
it?
The
two
other
brands
that
can
be
easily
integrated
into
BestBuy.com
easily
which
will
provide
value
to
the
overall
brand
is
Best
Buy
Mobile
&
Geek
Squad.
•
Between
numerous
sites
there’s
a
ton
of
video
content,
but
how
am
I
ever
supposed
to
get
to
these
videos
or
any
of
the
other
videos
if
they
aren’t
all
easily
found
in
one
central
place?

21. •
Thank
you,
Geek
Squad.
You
have
done
some
great
things
with
your
page,
such
as
embedding
your
YouTube
videos
(SEO!),
given
me
a
simple
way
to
see
your
Tweets,
let
me
read
interesHng
blog
posts
&
subscribe
to
all
of
this
with
RSS
feeds,
but
I
can
only
find
all
of
these
resources
from
one
single
link
on
your
homepage
•
Integrate
Facebook
•
Where
is
this
YouTube
page?
I
suggest
gepng
the
YouTube
name
youtube/
GeekSquad

22. •
These
455
people
fanned
the
Geek
Squad
page
because
they
love
their
service.
They
don’t
need
a
Wikipedia
definiHon
-­‐
they
need
love,
resources
&
access
to
the
videos,
tweets
and
teched
out
world
they
love
so
much
•
Integrate
a
YouTube
tab
featuring
videos
•
Integrate
live
stream
from
GeekSquad.com
or
at
least
create
awareness
for
it
•
Ditch
the
Wikipedia
tab
and
replace
it
with
a
find
a
store/contact
informaHon
tab

23. So, what are the overarching
lessons we can learn from
all these examples?

24. DIGITAL
LESSON
NUMBER
1:
Social
networks
each
play
a
very
different
role
and
have
different
purposes.
Each
new
company
iniHaHve
doesn’t
necessarily
deserve
it’s
own
Facebook,
TwiCer,
blog,
landing
page
and
Friend
Feed.
When
these
sites
are
used
for
the
wrong
purposes
or
when
they
no
longer
add
relevancy
and
meaningful
purpose
to
a
consumer’s
life
it
becomes
a
confusing
and
aggravaHng
experience,
and
people
will
start
using
those
sites
to
voice
negaHve
opinions
instead!

25. DIGITAL
LESSON
NUMBER
2:
Brands
don’t
always
have
to
create
their
own
experience,
and
even
when
they
do
they
don’t
have
to
neglect
the
places
people
are
already
engaging.
For
instance,
Best
Buy
would
benefit
immensely
from
having
associates
answering
quesHons
on
Yahoo
Answers
&
direcHng
users
to
TwelpForce
or
product
pages.
In
addiHon,
someone
should
be
listening
and
replying
to
blogs.
Also,
gepng
help
would
be
more
personal
and
cupng
edge
if
video
chat
with
someone
was
an
opHon
from
the
website,
in
addiHon
to
standard
IMs.
There
are
a
lot
of
great
couponing
apps
and
mobile
experiences,
and
it’s
now
become
a
necessity
for
brands
to
integrate
their
off-­‐price
strategy
with
mobile
couponing
too.

26. DIGITAL
LESSON
NUMBER
3:
An
online
video
strategy
is
necessary
for
any
brand.
Where
are
we
going
to
house
videos
and
why?
How
are
we
going
to
post
videos
onto
sites?
What
plakorms
are
we
going
to
consistently
push
our
videos
to?
These
are
all
quesHons
that
need
to
be
answered.
Customers
love
video,
and
video
can
only
tell
the
story
it’s
meant
to
when
it
can
be
easily
found
and
shared.

27. DIGITAL
LESSON
NUMBER
4:
Awareness
is
necessary
for
any
plakorm
to
be
successful
and
engagement
is
necessary
for
any
community
to
be
valuable.
If
you
aren’t
planning
on
making
a
sizable
push
to
get
consumers
to
a
site
and
grow
awareness
then
don’t
build
it
in
the
first
place.
An
adverHsing
component
is
important
to
most
digital
efforts.

28. DIGITAL
LESSON
NUMBER
5:
Consistent
and
thoughkul
integraHon
is
important
for
any
brand.
Where
does
it
make
sense
to
repurpose
content
to
social
networks
and
vise
versa?
What
links
does
it
make
sense
to
promote
on
TwiCer?
Most
importantly,
how
can
you
integrate
your
digital
and
social
content
into
the
in-­‐store
experience,
as
well
as
use
it
to
make
tradiHonal
adverHsing
more
of
a
two
way
street
with
consumers?

29. DIGITAL
LESSON
NUMBER
6:
Social
and
digital
efforts
are
usually
a
lot
like
puppies,
and
if
you’re
not
planning
on
feeding,
watering
and
taking
the
puppy
out
every
few
hours
then
you
shouldn’t
take
him
home
in
the
first
place.
Upkeep
and
relevant
content
are
necessary
to
keep
these
plakorms
engaging
and
purposeful.
Before
launching
a
new
social
effort
make
sure
you’re
not
pushing
past
efforts
to
the
side
and
that
you’re
ready
to
take
on
the
responsibility
of
managing
and
monitoring
them.

30. “For
us
to
be
a
brand
that’s
relevant
and
in
the
future
we
have
to
live
digitally.
We
have
to
live
digitally
with
our
communica?on
and
we
have
to
live
digitally
through
the
products
we
sell.
And
the
brands
that
figure
this
out
and
the
brands
that
are
on
this
are
going
to
be
the
brands
that
succeed
in
the
future.”
-­‐Barry
Judge,
Best
Buy’s
Chief
MarkeHng
Officer