Tag: social media vending machine

Posted on | by pmasters@wittern.com

Denver Broncos are Giving Free Stuff Away Via Vending Machines

Denver Broncos Twitter Vending Machine
Image Source: www.denverbroncos.com

Social media in general is one of the most significant innovations to come along in quite some time. Not only is it a way to effectively make the world smaller by making communication easier regardless of geography, many different types of businesses are now using it as an organic and even fun way to increase consumer engagement exponentially. Case in point: the Denver Broncos professional football team has recently teamed with a vending machine manufacturer to give away free items via vending machines that are powered by one of the most popular advertising and social networking sites of them all, Twitter.

The Denver Broncos

Sponsored by Bud Light, the Denver Broncos recently placed a series of Twitter vending machines inside their football stadium. Considering the fact that thousands of patrons excitedly pass through the halls of the stadium each Sunday, this vending machine was a very well thought-out advertising plan.

The vending machine instructs users to send a tweet using their own Twitter accounts to the @BudLight handle, the official Twitter page for the beer manufacturer. The machine also gives those users a three digit code to include in their tweet. Soon after the tweet is sent, a mechanism is automatically triggered and the machine will give them a prize completely free of charge.

Though the machine is sponsored by Bud Light, the prizes do not involve alcohol. The Broncos have added a bit of a contest element to it, giving users the chance to win ticket upgrades, unlimited catering, interaction with Broncos alumni and players and more. Prizes can even be highly expensive or even collectible and can include things like Bud Light skis signed by Jake Plummer, wearable merchandise and yes, even vouchers for free beer to be redeemed at any point during the stadium.

Because the promotion is completely free, users are flocking to the machines in droves. Users get free prizes and the Broncos and Bud Light get an inexpensive marketing campaign that spreads their brand messages to millions of people each game day.

The Twitter vending machine is just one of the many modern examples of social advertising vending in practice. It’s not just a benefit for businesses, but for vending machine companies themselves – they get to push the envelope on innovation and release products that people can’t help but take notice of at the same time. By understanding just how powerful social media is and the ways in which people are using it, you put yourself in a better position to leverage it to your advantage.

Posted on | by pmasters@wittern.com

Vending Machines and Social Media for Making Purchases  

Companies of all types have long been looking for ways to use the marketing power of social media to their advantage. After all, sites like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and more all come with active user bases in the hundreds of millions of people – who wouldn’t want to tap into that? In the 21st century, companies are using social media marketing techniques to do a whole lot more than just send out the occasional clever tweet. Many companies are leveraging the power of social media with the benefits of the common vending machine to create a situation so enticing that people everywhere can’t help but notice.

Free Promotions

One of the best recent examples of using social media vending machine equipment takes the form of a promotion executed by the Boston Red Sox. The Boston Red Sox rented a vending machine that was connected to the social media network Twitter. If a user was in the vicinity of the machine and tweeted using a specific hashtag, the machine would dispense certain products.

The real crux of the idea, however, was that a signed jersey from one of the Red Sox’s star players was inside the machine. One lucky Twitter user could use the right hashtag to win the jersey, creating a situation that fans came from all over to participate in.

Old Navy

old navy vending machine

Another example of a company putting vending machines to good use is Old Navy. Every year, Old Navy has a sale where they discount a huge number of different pairs of flip-flops to just $1. One year, Old Navy took the promotion to the next level with the involvement of 36 different social media powered vending machines in New York City and Los Angeles. If a customer came across the machine, all they had to do was log into Twitter from a tablet that was attached to the machine itself and answer a few questions in a survey.

Once the survey was completed, they could then specify their shoe size and take home a pair of flip-flops to call their own. One user also won a $5,000 vacation package, generating buzz for the campaign that was impossible to ignore.

These are just a few of the many ways that companies are using social media enabled vending machine units to their advantage. As you can see, vending machines are no longer just for selling snacks in between shifts at work or for picking up the occasional soft drink in between classes. They’re a full fledged marketing channel that can generate millions of dollars a year in revenue if utilized effectively.