July 2, 2009 25 Comments

Glynne Soaps- Beer-Flavored Soap and Online Presence

Glynne Soaps That soap in the picture came from Glynne Soaps, who evidently knew that I stunk. This one was a soap made partially from the biproduct of beer, and yet, it was very clean and wonderful. They also gave me a bar of Bug Off soap, which supposedly keeps the bugs away. (I didn’t really test it well, but it smelled nice, and I wasn’t bothered too badly by bugs, given all things.)

But you know this site, and I’m not going to review soaps. What I am going to point out is their web presence.

twitter presence Glynne Soaps has built a @glynnesoaps Twitter account with many thousands of followers. They have a Facebook Fan Page, and they also have a blog. All this comes on top of their mainstream Glynne Soaps website, too.

Is it working? I’m not sure, but I sure had lots of ways to connect with the company and the products. That’s a win to me. If I wanted to know about that soap, I had a way to find a bar and get it shipped to me.

My one comment about this is that I’d like to see the human behind the soap, but whether that changes things? That’s another question. I guess they could test a little of both and see what that does to the business overall.

I liked the products just fine, but I really appreciate their approach to connecting to people via the various online channels, and that’s the story I want to tell. What do you say?

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  • http://www.fabulousphotogifts.co.uk/ Fabulous Photo Gifts

    Hi Chris

    I would say that the social marketing wise – the more you put yourself about, the more likely you are to pick up visitors and ultimately sales, especially where it's a tangible product like soap.

    I did want to stop by and say that I think they've got their twitter usage spot on – not every post is a 'buy it now' but a mixture of their news, products and general 'what are they doing now' (much like ourselves).

    Jonathan.
    http://twitter.com/fabphotogifts

  • http://www.fabulousphotogifts.co.uk/ Fabulous Photo Gifts

    p.s – I also like the humour in their packaging – that made me smile and when you can make someone smile, well that's very special indeed don't you think?

  • startabuzz

    (A) I'm sure you don't stink. (B) Given the opportunity to wash with beer, I'd seize it.

    But I digress.

    I think they're doing it EXACTLY right. I have clients ask me all the time whether they should blog OR use Twitter OR Facebook … and so on and so forth. I submit while each of these tools has its own strengths, those strengths become truly Atlas-ian (did I just make a new word?) when married together. To really harness their power, a coordinated effort needs to be extended.

    As for whether I need to see the “face” behind the soap? I don't know that I do. There are plenty of companies who choose The Company as their “face”, and to great success.

    Hope your vacation has been pissah!

  • http://www.mqu.be mqube

    I feel that corporations can remain behind their corporate face, however, for some cases (cue Scoble images) having a personal face to relate to makes interactivity more rewarding.

    I do feel that small businesses should definitely have a personal face. This allows your current client base and potential clientele to relate to you immediately. Need an all-natural soap product? Talk to Joe Soap at Glynne Soap. Need a website designed and developed? Talk to Mikael at http://www.MQu.be :)

  • http://ryanstephensmarketing.com/blog/ ryanstephens

    Honestly, I think I'd like to know more about their outposts from your vantage point. I understand we can all look for ourselves, and that you're on vacation :) but I'm worried that people would read this and interpret that having a Twitter account with lots of followers, a Facebook Fan page, and a blog is the answer to being successful with social media, and frankly, that's just not true.

    The way you use these outposts as a part of your entire communication/marketing strategy if what makes the difference, and as thought leaders (you much more so than me) I think we're responsible for articulating WHY their use of those particular outposts really benefits them (and maybe accessibility is one of those, but I suspect there might be more?)

  • http://jimstorer.com jstorerj

    Thanks Chris. It's a great, simple case on how a small company can use the power of social media to spread the word and speak with customers.

    'm starting to wonder about the “Brogan Effect” and what this post will do to lift their sales? Did they just send this to you out of the blue?

    Jim | @jimstorer

  • partywedo

    I have been thinking a lot about the “human behind the soap” concept in our business communications.
    I appreciate that you bringing that concept up again.
    I can't be sure, but it just feels right to me when I can read something REAL about the people who are providing me with products and services.

    I am testing this concept in our newest blog.

  • JoeMescher

    Getting Chris Brogan to Advertise…I mean, Mention…Your Soap = WIN

  • saxjazz

    Chris, I checked out the Facebook page and found virtually nothing there besides head shots of a few fans. Was I missing something? How about suggesting a Great Fan Page to check out . . . for those of us looking for a Great Model to Emulate.

  • confused

    At least you know what the company is promoting. There is another company out there who is sending out chocolate covered grasshoppers. Problem is, it looks like it's selling entrepreneurs, not a phone service. I'd like to know if the investment helped one iota in branding, positive web presence or even connecting entrepreneurs with entrepreneurs.

  • http://twitter.com/calgreg greg cryns

    Chris,

    Once again we have a company making great strides to improve their online presence. And once again we don't know if they are seeing anything that shows an improvement of their bottom line.

    I know, what is the ROI of such things, of beautifying your company building and its surrounds? That is tough to spot in a short time.

    I am not a rah-rah fan of Twitter any more. I feel that Facebook will not be much more amenable to marketing types no matter how much they say so. But, if you use the Internet to improve your brand awareness and provide a human contact in a very unhuman world (think 800 bank phone numbers that go to a central call place, and the fact that it is nearly impossible to call your local banker or many other companies who are online), then I say “go for it” in moderation.

  • http://www.soapboxincluded.com/ Brandon Mendelson

    I'd like to see the person behind the brand. It's increasingly important to put a (trusted) face with everything, and it's almost backwards these days not to identify who is running the ship.

  • amy

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  • amy

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  • amy

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  • http://www.pimpyourmarketing.com ChrisDonaldson

    I think Scott Monty from Ford has done a nice job of providing a personal face to an otherwise corporate behemoth. I would argue that the goal of any social media is to provide this face – this connection – to and from the people – yeah?

    Chris – are you saying they aren't providing this human touch? From the Tweets I'm reading from them – seems pretty personal to me, but perhaps I miss your point. Happy 4th to all.

  • http://arataacademy.com/arata Seiti A.

    hi Chris – been reading your great blog for a while and this is my first comment (sorry – not yet with a disqus account)

    The soap guys have a profile, not a fan page. As far as my first steps of social networking skills go, this is a bad strategy. Their account can be exterminated at any second without warning by facebook as it infringes the ToS.

    Would be better if the social media man at the soap shop would create a profile with his real name and then make a page for the soap. That's what I heard from friends.

    While pages are adequate for corporate long term relationships, groups could also be used for targeted outcomes, like a new product or an event.

    Do you agree?

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  • huangqin
  • http://blog.uprinting.com/ UPrinting

    So what are the benefits of using beer soap? Getting drunk in the morning before going to work so you won't care that your boss is screaming at you? Haha! Just kidding… :D

  • http://blog.uprinting.com/ UPrinting

    So what are the benefits of using beer soap? Getting drunk in the morning before going to work so you won't care that your boss is screaming at you? Haha! Just kidding… :D

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  • http://socialfocus.com/ social media marketing

    Hello Chris, I would like to work with you. I will send my details to you. If you like me, kindly hire me.