Beginning next Friday, visitors to the Estee Lauder counter at Bloomingdale’s here in New York will be able to get a free makeover and photo shoot, and can instantly use the branded photo as their social networking profile photos. The photographer will provide the makeover recipient with a hard copy of the photo (with the Estee Lauder logo in the background) and e-mail it to her, so she can instantly upload it to her online profiles.The promotion will also expand to other stores in select major cities.

This is an incredibly genius idea, because everyone wants to look their best in photos, and social networks have become popular among Lauder’s target demographic of middle-aged women, but this will also help draw a younger audience to the makeup counters. This photo could be used on any site from Facebook to Twitter to dating sites like Match.com, spreading the word about Estee Lauder throughout the Internet.

So…anyone up for a trip to Bloomingdale’s? Our photos over on the right side of the page could use a little sprucing up!

—Alyssa

Handbags Hit the Town in the Latest Twitter Hunt

Who is Rachel Nasvik? Thanks to an ingenious Twitter campaign, many women across Manhattan are now able to identify this name that was obscure not more than a week ago. Young handbag designer Rachel Nasvik recently embraced what seems to be the latest “cool thing to do” on Twitter, launching her very own New York City-wide, Twitter-based scavenger hunt…for handbags. Rachel has been hiding her signature totes throughout the Big Apple, employing Twitter as a medium through which she posts clues, tipping her followers as to her handbags’ latest whereabouts.

While Rachel’s handbags currently enjoy lofty perches upon the shelves of such upscale shopping meccas as Saks Fifth Avenue, boasting price tags valued at several hundreds of dollars, fortunate females across Manhattan are happily scoring Rachel’s playful designs free of charge.

Giving out handbags for free? How does Rachel benefit from this? Firstly, she is brilliantly building her brand’s reputation as a label that is fresh, fun and interested in giving back to its buyers. Secondly, brand notoriety has been born out of the buzz being stirred by the physical hunt taking place, as well as by the number of potential buyers now following Rachel’s campaign (if only because they would very much appreciate a free handbag, thanks).

Possibly the most interesting twist to Rachel’s campaign is its almost unprecedented embrace of the designer handbag piracy that plagues the streets of Manhattan, tarnishing respected names and threatening to diminish the desirability of signature styles that are copied in almost nauseating excessiveness. Rachel Nasvik’s marketing team has cleverly adopted a tactic guided by the mantra “if you cant beat ‘em, use ‘em to your own advantage” by “hiding” her authentic handbags at the stands of the very vendors who are peddling knock-offs.

In a video produced by MSNBC, the reasons for this tactful marketing ploy are explored, revealing that after reading author Matt Mason’s book, The Pirate’s Dilemma, Rachel’s marketing coordinator was inspired to find ways to use piracy as a point of brand leverage by which to prop up Rachel’s designs. The premise is that as Rachel’s campaign catches on among followers and onlookers (as it already has), pirates will be prompted to create their own copies of Rachel’s bags, who will consequently find themselves rubbing shoulders with such industry knock-off giants as Fake-Chanel, Fake-Prada and of course Fake-Louis Vuitton.

But is mimicry really the best form of flattery? Does being copied make you cool? Though I would never turn down a free handbag, I’m nobody’s fool!

-Kristin

Google is holding a Doodle 4 Google contest for kids to submit their own “Google doodle,” to the theme of “What I Wish for the World.” You can vote on the finalists, and the winner will be awarded a $15,000 college scholarship, a trip to the Google New York office, a laptop computer, and a t-shirt printed with their doodle. Their school will receive a $25,000 technology grant towards the establishment/improvement of a computer lab.

—Alyssa

With today’s struggling economy, coupons are all the rage. Forward-thinking brands like Dell have begun integrating online coupons into their social media campaigns by offering discounts to their Twitter followers. Now the developer of TwtPoll, which we previously reviewed, has made it even easier for them by creating TwtQpon, a cute application that churns out Twitter coupons in a matter of seconds. The best part is that you don’t need a coupon for TwtQpon, because it’s totally free!

—Alyssa

Roberto Cavalli has partnered with Coca-Cola to design Coke bottles for fashion week next month. The 300,000 limited edition bottles will only be available in Italy from September to December.

—Alyssa

(Thanks, Katie!)