Barnes & Noble is running a Web-focused campaign to promote the March 23 release of "Matterhorn," a book published by Grove/Atlantic and El León Literary Arts. The retailer is employing e-mail, paid search, banner ads on BarnesandNoble.com, in-store signage and social media to promote the book, written by Marine Corps veteran Karl Marlantes.

Digital firm Responsys launched a platform to integrate e-mail marketing and social media on March 16. Client Diapers.com is using the tool to add more social media to its digital marketing mix.

Although e-mail marketing has been a global business for years, numerous US-based vendors are now growing their presence in the Asia-Pacific marketplace. This week, e-mail firm StrongMail extended its small footprint in the region through a partnership with XCOM Media.

Integration of e-mail and social media took shape in 2009 with the inclusion of e-mail links allowing users to share content on social networks. Now companies like Flowtown are enabling marketers to append data to e-mail addresses based on information obtained through social profiles.

Business-to-business marketers are ahead of the curve when it comes to segmentation. After all, b-to-b marketing revolves around targeting specific groups of customers looking for particular solutions to problems.

Although marketers collect large amounts of data, they struggle to apply that information to their campaigns, according to a study of global marketers by Unica, an analytics and integrated marketing firm.

Unilever's Ragu line of pasta sauces is conducting a contest targeting moms, as well as a digital campaign to promote it. The promotion, launched March 1, runs through August.

Retailer Men's Wearhouse is conducting a viral campaign to promote tuxedo rentals during prom season. The effort encourages teenagers to sign up to be a "prom rep" for the chance to win a free tuxedo or a Chevrolet Camaro. The effort, launched at the end of last month, runs through July.

Video in e-mail is a hot topic on the e-mail vendor side, but I haven't seen a ton of messages from brands with videos in them. The trend is starting slowly.

Customer reviews and other forms of word of mouth make great fodder for e-mail campaigns. When measured against identical campaigns that don't include word of mouth, they generally drive higher click-through rates and sales. Two key benefits of e-mail and user-generated content include driving community participation and using trusted words of customers to market products.