The folks at Mediapost were kind enough to publish a commentary I wrote called Social Media And Today's 'Marketing Athletes'.  Part of the story outlined "The Common Rings of Social Media and the Olympics."  Namely:

1. Measurability matters -- you don't podium if you don't medal. Facebook (Twitter and others -- more all the time) has incredibly compelling numbers to back up even more compelling stories for brands. Numbers can lie, but they don't here.

2. The Olympics are extraordinary because they always bring out the best athletes on a global basis. Social media is now attracting a similar elite talent pool because technology, consumer strategy and creativity all are leveraged for the "greater good"... like the Olympic spirit!

3. Change is what's normal. At the Winter Olympics, look at how snowboarding, ice dancing, etc. looks compared to just the last Games in 2006. Social media is the most dynamic media platform any of us have ever experienced. Technologists can't keep up with brand desires and vice-versa.

4. Three common "linked" words: Stretch body and mind as to what's possible today and in the foreseeable future. Test new approaches and equipment. Finding harmony can be hard, but it's worth finding. Be Nimble to capitalize on both of the above.

Even though the Olympics ended last night, I hope you'll read the full piece here.

Brands usually do everything to not act or talk stupid, in public or anywhere their consumers may see them. You could also say it’s usually not smart to act stupid, to share your inner stupidness in social situations, included social media. But Diesel shows just how compelling, how insightful from a brand positioning, messaging and target demo perspective a “little stupid” can be!

Diesel’s recent campaign “Be Stupid” is a total deep integrated marketing dive -- digitally/socially, store level, traditional media -- into creating a counter cultural POV. A total “We”, not “Them” state of mind. Simply, “Be Stupid” is the ideological twin of Apple’s historic “Think Different” campaign.  It took an Einstein to bring Apple’s effort to life.  The face of a genius was not needed here, just the face of a bold brand to drive real relevance for a consumer looking for the "it" to put down real dough in order to be part of something real…stupid!

The “Be Stupid” campaign featured an extremely engaging, very elegantly simple word based video that told the stupid story on their site, via YouTube, Facebook and other places-http://www.diesel.com/be-stupid/. It tells how easy it is to be smart, how expected it is to do the “smart thing” and how being stupid (aka a “contrarian”) takes the stuff of real stuff…another aka -- “balls”! The video is one great piece of communication, but not the only one. The outdoor posters riff off the same song sheet and the sentiment on the retail windows are real world “social media” looking to literally bring you in.

Eye candy today is everywhere. It’s the reality of our rich graphical playing field. But, Diesel’s “Be Stupid” effort shows why a really well thought out marketing idea that makes people think beyond the brand, will always be the smartest way to elevate a brand.

This stupid post was written by Cliff Medney and designed by Ryan Kitson!

 

It looks so easy: you pull out a camera, live your life, and stick it up on YouTube for everyone to see. But if only it was that easy. In actuality, creating good online video that will reach an audience and interest people is much more complicated than simply uploading it. As a video creator you need to know how to best capture your subject, the best route of channel, and how to get the absolute most out of your energy. Here are five simple but effective rules to remember as you start on your journey to video bliss.

1. Your equipment is important. Lots of books will tell you that it doesn’t matter what kind of camera you use, or how clean your edit is- and they're lying to you. Of course you can grab the video setting on your digicam and try the whole thing in just one take. Maybe if you’re Gary Vee you can actually get a great piece of footage from that, too. But, if you’re a company trying to produce quality content the first time around, and clocks and wallets are ticking, you should probably put in a little more work. Flip Cam’s are absolutely fantastic for raw, on the go footage. For everything and anything else, reach out to a trusted production co.  Not only will your video look less grainy but the sound quality will be out of this world compared to anything you would have achieved on a pocket cam.

2. There’s more than just YouTube… but use YouTube. Blip.tv, UStream, Vimeo… there are plenty of websites to choose from when it’s time to upload your videos to the Internet; and they all have benefits. Some can be viewed in countries where others cannot. Some have better picture quality. However, in Social Media, when the aim of the game is to go where the people go, you cannot (at least right now) beat YouTube. And remember, with YouTube’s embed codes, you can feel free to plaster that video in lots of other spaces-  try a myriad of websites, bloggers, communities, emails- and still get all your analytics in one place.

3. Remember your  ABC’s of tags and titles. Be as simple yet descriptive as possible when you fill in that “title” field during the YouTube upload. A video about Washington DC travel in March, for example, could be titled “March DC Trip” but how much better would a title like “Washington DC Cherry Blossom Festival Getaway” be? Plenty helpful, since many people would be searching for “Cherry blossom” or “festival” and not specifically the month. This also applies for the tags you include during your upload. And don’t forget to include tags that hit on your research and are selected based on volume and competition.

4. Call on all of your promotional super powers. Video does not work alone. The biggest mistake some creators make is to spend time and money working on this fantastic movie, uploading it, and then sitting back and watching. What a waste of the resources at your fingertips! Chances are you’ve got a Facebook fan page and a Twitter account. You might even have a community or website, or even an email list. Go ahead and stick a call-to-action all over these properties. Link to the video in your emails and on Twitter. Embed the video in your website and Facebook page or community. Just because your video “lives” on one website doesn’t mean it can’t travel to others, and sometimes reaching out to the people is more cost effective than waiting for them to reach you. During editing of your video, you can also put in some URL’s you want people to go back and visit, giving the link backs a circle effect.

5. If at first you don’t success… then dig into your wallet.  If view numbers right off the bat are important to you, or you have zero time or resources to put into growing a following, remember that videos can pay to become a “YouTube Promoted Video.” Promoted Videos appear higher on search results, show up in the sidebar of YouTube homepages and channel pages, and appear higher on Google Search. This pay-per-click system encourages you to pay whenever you receive a new view, making it imperative that you also exhaust every other resource you can as well. Paid partnerships are also available. Finally, by keeping an eye on the YouTube blog, you can submit applicable videos for the Spotlight of the Month, cherry picked videos that include a theme YouTube is promoting for the month.  Of course, price should be analyzed on whether or not this is an effective means, based on results of other methods.

 

 

 

Nearly 70% of young people believe corporations can make a bigger difference in the world than governments.

This eye-opening statistic was quoted by Chrysi Philalithes, director of digital strategy and marketing for Product (RED), at last week’s Social Media Week panel on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).   Buyers are demanding that brands be more responsible, and that most sacred of relationships – consumer loyalty – is at stake.  This creates a huge opportunity for corporations that perform with purpose.

Consumer loyalty is very personal, and how we differentiate between our increasing options is changing.  Purchasing a product is also making a value judgment on the corporate values behind it.  Beyond altruistic goals like saving the world, CSR is a mechanism for brands to align themselves with consumers in a highly relevant space: The support of ideas and values that impact them.  

At the opening of the CSR panel, which also included executives from Justmeans, Pepsi and Ogilvy, moderator Jamie Daves of ThinkSocial offered three significant traits of CSR:

• CSR spreads a powerful message and ideas
• CSR is essential to do
• CSR is highly personal and resonate

Throughout the discussion, a set of emerging best practices came into focus:

1.  Social media is a mechanism for corporate values to transform a brand.  It allows companies to close the gap between a consumer’s instinct to buy responsibly and the lack of awareness that may prevent that.  Demand is growing from consumers, activist groups and the media for corporate transparency.  They’re talking about you on Twitter, Facebook and blogs already, so be a part of that conversation – even the negative – and help shift it towards social values.

2.  It’s a movement, not a moment.  Start with people who are passionate about an idea, and help them bring it to their community.  The days of, “Buy this and we’ll donate 10 cents!” are giving way to companies providing information and leadership beyond hard dollars.  It’s not only about what brands do themselves, but what they facilitate consumers to do, creating far deeper impact.  How does a brand become relevant to a new generation?  By helping them bring their ideas to life.

3.  Take an existing program, add social media and create incentive to spread it.  One Justmeans client put $150,000 towards issues that were relevant to their employees, who nominated and voted on the causes.  In year two, they brought it online.  The 27 nominated organizations provided blurbs about why they deserved a grant, which the client posted through Justmeans and employees began to spread.  This transformed the client into an ambassador for each initiative, giving a social media platform and exposure to all of them, not just the ultimate winners. 

4.  Embed the message in communications that people already use.  Last World AIDS Day, Product (RED) partnered with Twitter to let users post their Tweets in red.  The message truly resonated, giving users the ability to show awareness and support through Tweets they’d be sending already.  A recent breast cancer awareness campaign had women mysteriously posting their bra color as a Facebook status.  While money raised may be one metric, the generation of awareness is equally important.  Harnessing communication methods that people already use can create significant impact.

5.  The right platform is where the people you want to reach are.  Who’s likely to care about your message and what are they doing?  Social media strategy needs to be about arming the people who will become your strongest advocates.  CSR campaigns should be developed around the platforms those individuals most actively use.  You have to know who you’re trying to engage and where to find them.

6. Social platforms are being mapped to social change.  As a global society, there is a fundamental shift towards the realization that we want to bring change and have to do it together.  Society is being transformed by how we engage on social platforms, not just for personal connection but for how we connect with the world.  Ideas can spread like never before, and a strong CSR strategy gives brands the opportunity to take a leadership role in that conversation. 

 

It’s Social Media Week in New York City, and the digital scene is buzzing with conferences and brimming with ideas and insights about a culture that’s constantly in flux.  Yesterday, I attended the Advertising Research Foundation's event dedicated to 'The Science of Social Media' (#ARFSMC), and found myself particularly engaged by a presentation given by Jeff Doak, Chief Technology Officer of Converseon, called Social Media Mentoring Metrics.  Jeff’s presentation revealed some staggering insights into the analysis of social media metrics that confront the challenges of analyzing metrics via the confines of automated tools that are still in the infant stages of their technical evolution.

The first monitoring metrics that came under the lens were metric returns for “volume”—which is basically to say how many times a brand is mentioned, period.  The context for which a brand was mentioned in is, of course, up for grabs, and that is one of the biggest problems.  Volume without context is really pretty useless, and it’s really up to humans to decide how that volume aligns with overarching business objectives.  One trip to Twitter shows you that your friend Bill did, in fact, wake up this morning with his usual glass of Uncle Matt’s and drove to work in his Prius—and not much else. There’s your volume.

Well, what about influence?  Maybe Bill’s got the hottest blog right now on a low-emission lifestyle and over a hundred-thousand devoted readers who are hanging on his every tweet.  That’s not something your influence metrics are going tell you at face value, and those metrics are never going to provide perspective for the way your brand fits into Bill’s sphere of influence.  That’s the kind of pithy insight that only comes with human analysis.

Lastly, we really can’t forget about sentiment metrics, which is to say how people are talking about your brand.  Current social media monitoring tools measure something called “automated sentiment” which is basically an algorithm that searches for “sentiment words” and their proximity to your brand or product name.  Huh?  This analysis seems logical in a mathematical way, but we’re talking about words and that arbitrary phonetic symbolism that begets meaning.  Human beings can also be pretty witty, and as Jeff so bluntly puts it, “machines don’t get sarcasm or slang.” 

Enter the hammer and the scalpel.  Jeff prescribes the use of one these tools, metaphorically of course, to analyze your social media monitoring metrics.  The hammer is most appropriate for those analysts looking to smash into that data and create some cool charts that’ll impress the boss.  For the rest of us, it’s really the scalpel that going to come in handy.  The scalpel is best suited for that kind of detailed analysis that requires a surgeon’s precision and a human being’s understanding.  Scalpels let you bisect tiny segments of consumer data to bring under the lens and expertly carve around other irrelevant brand chatter.  It’s the scalpel that’s going to help you understand if it’s Bill’s preference for your organic orange juice that’s driving sales, and how you might leverage that affinity to connect with your consumers.

Right now, we’re working with social media metrics that have been around for as little as eighteen months.  The measurements are bound to get better over time, and it’s nice to imagine having tools that create easily accessible and understandable data.  But that’s just not where we’re at right now.  I have faith in the human ingenuity that will eventually lead to greener pastures, but until then, I’m keeping my scalpel on hand.   Kudos to Jeff from Converseon for an enlightening presentation.

 

Using text messages to make donations isn’t a new concept, but few could have predicted the way this simple, innovative use of technology would explode in response to the earthquake in Haiti.

An historic $27 million had already been raised for disaster relief via text as of Monday (1/18), six days after the earthquake. Compare that to less than $500,000 total in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, or $190,000 raised by the American Red Cross Text 2HELP campaign from September to December, 2008.

The contrast with Katrina is even more startling when considering that total Katrina donations were more than double total Haiti donations over the first six days for each. Texting has accounted for more than 10% of Haiti donations. The American Red Cross has been the biggest recipient; of $112 million total raised through Monday, a staggering 15-20% came via text, with two-thirds donated online.

The effectiveness of the text campaign when combined with major media outreach was proven on a stunning level last weekend during the NFL playoffs. Frequent PSAs aired throughout all four games. The result: text donations poured in at a rate of $500,000 an hour during that time.

While the sheer amount of money raised may be a surprise, text donations reaching its tipping point is not. Consider the factors:

• A disaster of tremendous proportions commanding the world’s attention
• The ever-increasing use of texts not only for communication, but for companies to offer services
• Ease of use: Anytime, anywhere, text a short code to add the donation to your bill, no sign-in, forms or credit cards required
• Social media like Twitter and Facebook spreading the word to the same demographic most likely to adopt this technology in the first place

As with any new technology, expanding so quickly has not been without growing pains. News broke that donations could experience delays of 60-90 days in reaching its destination, as mobile carriers waited for donors to pay their bills. Almost immediately, providers announced they would fast-track the money, pledging to advance 80-100% right away.

As Haiti earthquake relief brings text donations to the mainstream, it will be exciting to see how organizations and grassroots campaigns harness this new power in the very immediate future. Also fascinating to track: How this may empower the demographic most likely to use it – the young generation who knows texting as a way of life, but may never have participated in a campaign like this before.

There’s a large, new generation ready to step up, and a whole new way for them to do so in the most simple, effective way possible.

 

 

Foursquare has been living in the social media spotlight.  Sure, it is fun for users; you virtually check-in at certain venues across your city and receive digital badges and accolades for frequenting select spots. But, what do businesses have to gain from Foursquare? What business model will this new chosen one of social media show us in 2010 that will solidify it as a digital tool and not just a trending topic?

Among the best recent news out of 4sq headquarters is the announcement of global domination. Though the game was once restricted to specific cities  with numerous venues within each, you can now check-in from any location across the world, and any venue in any location is fair game. This global awakening is just the first step in providing access to millions of businesses’ who couldn’t reach users before.

No venues? No problem! In 2009, 4sq partnered with Motorola for its CLIQ and DROID parties. When the party elite arrived at New York City's Morimoto restaurant and pulled out their gadget of choice to check-in, they were greeted with a Foursquare surprise! Upon check-in, they received a special message encouraging them to tweet with a suggested hashtag and giving a few lines of info on the party. Though Foursquare has made it's rounds encouraging venues to offer incentives and deals, in terms of temporary events, this was a first. And, by enabling this check-in, Foursquare made it easy for bloggers and microbloggers to share information from this event.

Also on the horizon for the GPS based app, don't be surprised if you see Facebook-like fan or business profiles. Though every Foursquare user is provided with a profile, A venue could potentially work with the company to create branded top user and mayor lists, incentives clubs, and daily specials. Brooklyn Museum, for example, is one of the first company's to use this model by providing a great to-do list for museum go-ers and locals interested in arts and culture. The online savvy hot-spot lists staff picks in the area and links to a mobile site where users can find out more about the art on display.Effectively, you would check-in upon arrival to the museum, via Foursquare, click over to the mobile site to browse the galleries, and click back over to the staff picks list when it's time to head to dinner. Pretty effective planning on the part of the museum.

With the many incentives Foursquare can create to draw new business, locate where patrons visit the most, and entice frequent trips, this start up has definitely proven its worth in terms of a steady business plan. Though they are closely related, and often thought of as a predecessor of Twitter, I wouldn't expect a Twitter-like wait for this business model to become mainstream. Though some of these initiatives are still in beta or early form, they are paving a path for future business models, as well  

 

 

 

It seems like every few months Facebook rolls out a new design, or changes on existing designs. For users, these changes are often frustrating, but for developers and designers, it can be downright crippling to turn the blind corner. There's no miracle tutorial, but there are a few very simple thing you can do to ensure that your next project doesn't go up in flame (or completely disappear) when Facebook incorporates its next round of updates.

1. Keep Up With the Timeline. No Facebook project ever keeps an exact date of completion, but the Facebook Developer's Wiki has some pretty good estimates that you can follow along with. Bookmark the site and check back regularly for updates. Even if a change goes live prior to expected date, you'll already know what was in store and know how to deal with it. Also, add Mashable, Facebook Insider, and All Facebook to your daily blog reader for other news and tips. 

2. Design With Changes in Mind. You can't always predict what the next big update will be, but remember that as far as Facebook goes, nothing is set in stone. Many companies spent thousands of dollars on promotions that use capabilities that are either no longer available, or not allowed any longer; that's wasted money and time. Of course you want to put your all into everything you develop, but keep the Developer's Wiki in mind. Maybe you want to roll out a game that has unique Application Dashboard settings now, so when that change comes, you're ready. Maybe it's time to begin designing in 520px and preparing your Boxes tab for removal. Any decision that prepares you will be well worth it.

3. Bounce Ideas Off the Like-Minded. If you aren't surrounded with Facebook-on-the-brain friends, try the F8 Conference. This Facebook conference, scheduled for April 21-22 in San Francisco, is a great way to catch up with other Facebook Developers. There's no shame in not being versed in every single detail of upcoming updates, particularly for a platform that changes so sudden and rapidly, which is why keeping a roster of friends around is handy. Who can tell what tiny detail you've missed that a friend can remind you of -- and vice-versa.

4. Expect Change. Certainly you expect change; you work on social platforms, after all. But your client doesn't. Gently remind anyone you create Facebook promotions for that this is a fast-moving system. Today’s great idea might be tomorrow’s ancient history. Online is not traditional marketing and everyone needs a little patience, and to go in and out with the tide. With this in mind, you’ll never have all your eggs in one basket with the chance of total failure should your well-developed pixels or sidebars change around. Plus, once this process is understood -- and once you've built-up trust -- you'll be working with a client who is open to so much more of what's offered out there, and you'll have more fun. 

 

There’s a reason that I’m a little bit excited every morning when my alarm goes off—and it’s not because I roll out of bed with a Mary Poppins outlook.  No, one of the reasons I’m excited these days has to do with my relentless capitalistic urges, and I know that each day a new Groupon offer awaits me in my inbox.

If you’ve never heard of Groupon, check it out.  It’s a new internet coupon company that’s taking 26 U.S. cities by the power of discount.  Groupon operates by a concept its founders have dubbed “collective buying power”, and it’s rather simple-genius approach secured an additional $30 million in funding in its first year of operation.

Everyday there is potentially a new Groupon deal.  One business offers a special discount promotion via Groupon’s daily email to its members.  What’s actually up for sale is variable—spa treatments, restaurant discounts, classes, tastings, tours—anything and everything available in your local urban hub. But whether or not the daily Groupon goes through, all depends on you.

Groupon deals require a minimum number of buyers, and if enough people purchase the daily deal, the Groupon is on.  Now, here is where the power of you really counts…if you want that Groupon deal to go through, you have the potential to make it happen.  All you have to do is tweet, post, or email all of your friends about it to spread the word, and Groupon makes it very easy for you to shout from those digital parapets.

The discount that a daily Groupon offers is generally pretty fabulous, usually between 50 – 80 %.  So, in order to make it worth it for local businesses, they need commitment in the form of numbers. And numbers they get.  Local businesses see Groupon customers pour into their businesses typically by the thousands, and to them, that’s thousands of new customers they’d never met any other way.  The potential that those Groupon customers become regular customers makes it worth the extravagant discounts offered.

Besides being fun and extremely clever, Groupon also has something else going for it—timing.  In the midst of this economic lull, small businesses can give themselves a rejuvenating jolt of new business with a single coupon.  That kind of momentum and energy drives financial life-force right into the heart of businesses and primes the pump for repeat visits and residual offers. 

I’ll be honest.  The reason I like Groupon is because I can get awesome savings on luxury goods and services I’d normally ignore, or would have never known existed.  A $225 spa treatment marked down to $100 most definitely puts the chim chim che-ree back in my step, and the daily thrill of bargain hunting keeps me hooked.  Try it for yourself, perhaps you’ll become a fellow Groupie?

 

  

Two weeks ago I participated in the Word of Mouth Marketing Association Conference, dealing with Social Media, communities, digital branding, and, of course, straight word of mouth marketing techniques. WOMMA prides itself on grassroots marketing and crowd-sourcing content, reviews, even customer service: in short, letting the consumer take the wheel.

Because of the hands-on consumer approach of these sort of marketing campaigns, the topic of ethics is an enormous deal, and always on the tip of WOMMA presenter tongues. This conference was no different. In fact, taking place just days before FTC blogger regulations were to go into effect, ethics and morality in digital marketing was a theme that panels could not shake.

So, diving deeper into Social Media, where can we expect to come across ethical issues? And what place do ethics really have in Social Media? For a brand that’s using this digital outlet correctly, ethics is the cornerstone.

Transparency. When dealing with, or inside a large brand, being completely transparent may seem like it’s not an option. Every company makes mistakes, has products that don’t go as expected, and experiences a little negative feedback. Instead of choosing to deny these shortcomings, use that moral know-how and be transparent. Honesty gives you credit with both fan and foe and you’ll be surprised when others come to the rescue for you.

Privacy. On the frontline of Social Media outlets like Twitter and Facebook, you might come very close to a few cases of TMI with consumers, partners, and other businesses. It might be tempting to use the personal info you view in the digisphere for your own good, but think twice. Those who let you into their personal networks are showing you that they have placed a certain amount of trust in you. There’s a reason why Facebook needs to correct its privacy statements every few months.

Customer Service. We’ve all been there. An angry consumer who has had a bad experience can sometimes be too quick to take it out on the first person they deal with, even thought it might not be the best outlet. Instead of feeding off that anger, get to the bottom of the situation. If you’re being totally honest with yourself, every spitting angry consumer that reaches you is just another opportunity to right a wrong that can make your biz or product 100% better.

Respect. Treat those in your network as you’d want to be treated. Keep the posting to a minimum, keep it relevant, and let fans and followers know what they’re getting. When you humanize your business with these very flesh and blood tactics, you’ll be treated as a human- as a friend, too.