Like most Americans, I watch regular TV a LOT.  Nielsen reports here that on average, Americans spend 161 hours (153 hours of linear TV + 8 hours of time shifted programs) watching TV every month!  I’m not THAT bad but I do channel surf a LOT; not an easy task given the lame remotes and current programming guide that *cough* Comcast *cough* has. 

I happen to catch G4’s Attack of the Show with Kevin Pereira and Olivia Munn and it was really entertaining – fast paced, funny, and really well-done product reviews.  I’ll start tuning-in more often.  Their guest was Peter Facinelli - Dr. Carlisle Cullen to you Twilight fans – who was sporting enough to be part of their Breaking Dawn SPOOF video (I laughed). 

Peter also did a really great job demo’ing his new Vampire Transformer iTunes app ($2.99).  Basically, you load a picture of you or someone you love/hate.  The app has transparent vampire/monster underlay images to choose from.  Pinch or spread to size to your image  and rub the parts you want to add (horns, gashes, blood, backgrounds).  The underlying part comes through and appears on your own image.  Use several underlays to create a ghoulish picture.  The cool thing is that you can immediately share your new creation to twitter and facebook.

Note to Peter:  get a copy of that G4 segment and put it on Youtube – it’s better than the ones currently up there.

With over 100,000 iTunes apps out there so far, how do you find the good ones?  It’s not easy.  Sound like a familiar problem?  It’s the exact same dilemma that I just wrote about (see my post).  Millions of online videos in an on-demand environment – it’s overwhelming.  So how the heck do you find stuff?   For starters, the answer is that better-than-what’s-currently-out-there discovery process.

Ultimately though, as the space matures, it’ll come down to regular old marketing and advertising.  Online is just another distribution channel and you’ll have to spend money to gain attention and market share.  I’m sure those lucky apps that got featured on Apple’s “We’ve got an app for that” TV spots saw a nice bump in downloads/sales (right WhatBird?).  Those who can afford to market will have better sales/ views/ ads/ revenues.  With random exceptions, WOM and social networking will only take you so far, and you have to be really good at it.  Peter got valuable air time because of his celebrity status.  Not everyone is so lucky. 

When you launch your next iTunes app, webisode, or on-demand seminar, how will you get the word out?

Long before the Internet, people shared product opinions with friends and family through word-of-mouth. For years brands have spent countless sums of money on multichannel advertising campaigns to promote their products/services. Today, it is no longer about the millions or in some cases billions of dollars spent, but rather finding ways to become closer to your target consumer to stimulate trust and support to create brand evangelism.

With the World Wide Web, word of mouth has transferred into eWOM, a social networking platform where consumers are able to share attitudes, opinions and reactions about brands, products/services with each other.  Social networking  has provided consumers with the authority to influence a brand’s image and perceptions as people are relying more on the opinions of others.

The multifaceted and influential viral marketing has also become a powerful medium for corporations. The Web 2.0 development have ignited key features of social communication services like social network, virtual reality, and online community sites that have proven to influence a brand’s image and perceptions.

Corporations are beginning to implement viral campaigns using social communication services, such as Twitter, to reinforce their image and influence consumers.  With unlimited online access for everyone, the impact can be profound. There are many other means of social networking platforms, which ones you choose depends on what’s the product or service, your target audience and what is the main objective behind utilizing these platforms.  But the bigger question is which is the most powerful when its time to build that BUZZ?

ANTEFATTO:

Quando la sera per colpa di – o grazie a – un’ottima cena, un vino all’altezza e un bel po’ di risate fai tardi e la mattina dopo vedi che le risate (sì, solo le risate, Michi, certo…) hanno tracciato sul tuo volto linee dure a morire, tutto vorresti fuorchè essere costretto ad affrontare il traffico milanese per recarti a un convegno/una presentazione/una riunione, insomma un luogo terribilmente popolato e solitamente un po’ troppo illuminato. Solo uno spiccato senso del dovere oppure un evento particolarmente atteso riescono a sconfiggere il demone dell’accidia.

FATTO:

Oggi, 20 novembre, all’interno di una bellissima sala riuonioni all’interno della sede di Banca Intesa decorata da 4 arazzi importanti e sobri al contempo e impreziosita da antiche colonne di pietra imponenti e discrete, (dai, ci stava questa descrizione un po’ romananzesca), WOMMI ha fatto la sua comparsa sulla scena. Se non sai di cosa sto parlando clicca sul link… li hanno inventati per questo, no

RIFLESSIONE SUL FATTO:

Mi piace questo progetto, in particolare mi piace il codice etico dell’associazione e, nello specifico, il quarto punto:

4. Il word of mouth non può essere falsificato.

L’inganno, l’infiltration, la disonestà, lo shilling, e altri tentativi di manipolare i consumatori o la conversazione sono deplorevoli. I professionisti del marketing onesti non ricorrono a queste pratiche, non lo faranno, e se ci provano saranno smascherati.

I comportamenti scorretti saranno messi in evidenza dal pubblico e si ritorceranno in maniera letale contro chiunque li utilizzi.

Il resto lo trovate se cliccate sul link che sta più su

Una delle cose che più mi entusiasma della rete, specie nella sua evoluzione più attuale, è questo ritorno alle forme più arcaiche di relazione sociale.

Non c’è Santo che tenga, il web è veramente come la piazza del paese, qui se dici una fesseria, se cerchi di nascondere qualcosa o ti comporti in maniera scorretta, tutti lo vengono a sapere in un batter d’occhio.

Mi viene in mente una strofa di Bocca di Rosa di Fabrizio de Andrè:

“Ma una notizia un po’ originale
non ha bisogno di alcun giornale
come una freccia dall’arco scocca
vola veloce di bocca in bocca.”

CONCLUSIONE:

L’epoca della comunicazione aziendale lascia il posto all’era del Rinascimento della Conversazione e, quindi, ai marchi più coraggiosi e lungimiranti, ai marchi che hanno il coraggio di mettersi in gioco affrontando le sfide con determinazione e curiosità. (For women only: ma uomini così in giro ce ne sono ancora?)

Un sorriso,

m.

to Tweet or not to Tweet..that is the question!
What Is Social Media Optimization? and Guide to Social Media Optimization

Social media optimization (SMO) is a set of methods for attracting visitors to website content by promoting and publicizing it through social media. …try here http://twitter2000.com . As an average Web user, you don’t have to be a fan of social media optimization. However, as a site owner, here you do need to know that it exists and be aware ..

RT by shortlink: ( http://wp.me/pu40u-1g )

ERS from Tango Business
http://tangobusiness.net
contacto@tangobusiness.net
http://twitter.com/tangobusiness

This is a fantastic Nescafé campaign from the late 1980s.

It’s an interesting variation on the leitmotiv approach: evolve a creative concept over time to deliver increased depth and duration of audience engagement:

The same technique was harnessed in the equally wonderful Nicole, Papa work for Renault Clio a few years later.

Such storytelling is a powerful communications proposition that brands can deliver through conventional media like TV.

However, the proliferation of storytelling media like the Web means we now have many more opportunities to engage people than we did in the 1980s; which brand will be the first to refresh this approach and deliver the first epic  transmedia story?

I’d love to see more examples of these brand ’soap operettes’ – please share any links via the comments section below.

So we find ourselves surrounded by all those little problems in day-to-day life that we have a little mumble and groan about. But what happens when we get a ‘bigger’ problem like your mobile phone resets itself or decides that it no longer wants to accept your pin that you have had for the last decade!

What i find amongst people i have met is that they will often spend a greater period of time complaining to their friends than calling the corporate help line to sort the issue out.

Why is it that complainers feel complaining to friends will help the situation, when in reality it is only providing self-satisfaction for venting frustration. These actions highlight a  trend towards a culture of resistance to organisations customer care.

What is key for marketers is to determine why this occurs to help tailor their comms and actions to combat this behaviour.

With the twin arrivals of the Dell Adamo XPS and Windows 7, there’s a new wave of Fox News-esque ginned up drama about the arms race against Apple’s Mac Book Air for the title of world’s best ultrathin laptop.

Apart from tech bloggers and gadget foamers, who cares? Has anyone actually seen any of these exotic creatures outside a test lab? How many have been sold in this category?

And how is it a competition when Apple hasn’t bothered to do a follow-up to the original? They made their design statement and  have moved on to innovate in categories where people actually buy lots of stuff. Meanwhile, Dell’s R&D resources are mired in a competition to sell a few hundred units of executive desk candy.

Even among tech bloggers who are excitedly pumping out reviews pitting the Dell Adamo XPS vs. the Mac Book Air, the net effect is a commentary on fantasy objects rather than something they would/could actually buy/use outside their test labs. Sort of like discussing who’s the more powerful superhero, Superman or The Sentry: whoever wins, what does it matter in the real world?

The new consumer journey

A while back, I attempted to create a model the way companies need to leverage new marketing to engage today’s consumers. I looked at a number of interesting approaches, but in the end opted to build around the idea of a marketing spiral.  I’m sure there are a number of other ways to illustrate the consumer journey other than using a spiral, but this is what I came up with. If anybody wants to take another stab at this, please do and let me know where you post it. Read on to discover how you can use this model to define your new marketing program.

Today’s consumers start with an Initial Considersation Set. Martin Lindstrom’s brain scan research in his groundbreaking book, “Buyology,” clearly shows that we all have an initial consideration set for every product category, many of which are completely unconscious. We choose a brand of shampoo simply because we are used to choosing it, or because on some unconscious level, our gut tells us that it’s better than the others for any number of reasons which we spend less than a few seconds consciously thinking about.

“It’s natural.” “It has a secret formula.” “It’s scientifically proven.” “I like the way it smells.” “It makes my hair feel nice.” “It’s cheap.” All these statements and a near infinite variety of others, which are completely personal to each individual, contribute to our initial consideration set.

Martin Lindstrom’s research also reveals that changing these ‘consideration sets’ is harder than it looks. In some cases, it even requires truly radical events. It took a global recession to turn affluent middle class shoppers into price savvy buyers. It took an end-of-the-world scenario involving climate change to get people to start considering carbon footprints when looking to buy a new car.

Advertisers historically have used creative disruption as a way to “open our minds” to another possible consideration set. For decades toothpaste that cleaned the teeth and kept them healthy was enough for us. Suddenly however, advertisers have effectively convinced us that we actually want toothpaste that doesn’t just clean, but makes them white, because we all know, white teeth are healthy teeth. The same consideration set has now been given a qualifier, healthy teeth = white teeth, so I need whitening toothpaste.

On the Internet, transparency means that marketers have to think and behave differently, because people can quite simply use Google to research a product to find out if it actually makes our teeth white, or even if white teeth are healthy teeth. Which is why where Affinity comes to play. Affinity is about building emotional connections between brand and consumer. To build affinity in today’s online world, marketers leverage social media strategies targeted around Influence and Advocacy.

Although common social media lore is that some people are better influencers than other, BzzAgents in the US has found that anybody can be an influencer. An influencer happens to be somebody you know or meet who says the right thing at the right time. You might happen across somebody on a train who is reading a book that looks interesting because a) they are laughing their head off and b) you are bored stiff reading the same old celebrity trash in the Metro. So you might think, “if I had that book, I wouldn’t have to read this lousy newspaper.” This is precisely the experience BzzAgent discovered when it sent out its agents to promote some of the latest reads. At the end of the day, building an emotional bond with consumers is all about trust. And that trust starts more often than not, through somebody else.

As we continue down the crazy funnel of consumerist choice, we move towards having Conversations. Back on our train, you’re likely start up a conversation with the book reader. “So is that a good book?” You might ask, though the roaring laughter would probably be a dead giveaway. In more structured mechanisms, brands can create opportunities for conversation using Presence & Participation, by participating in or even hosting conversations on their own blogs and in existing blogs, review sites and forums. These conversations can have a massive benefit. Your consumers get to talk to real people who speak like real people, not like an aggressive PR agent on a mission or a call centre in Bombay.

The next step in journey is to facilitate their Participation with your brand by creating Visibility & Distribution. This is achieved with seeding content and leveraging advertorial placements, content partnerships, relevant sponsorships and other forms of content generation around the brand. The key is to think like Coca-Cola. “Be everywhere the customer is thirsty.”

Use social listening to map out all of the places people are looking for content about your brand, and ensure your content is there. Going back to our toothpaste example, our toothplace marketer should find everyplace online where people might be looking for information on ‘clean and white teeth,’ then make sure they have positioned the right content to help consumers in their research.

The Engagement step is crucial. Even if the consumer walks away believing everything they heard about your brand and product, they will do more research and participate in further conversations or interactions with the brand. In fact, the higher the cost or level of complexity the product or service is, the more research consumers do.

So once you have seeded loads of content across the Internet, you need to make it easy for people to search and find it. Discovery & Search of content is so important that brands who get it spend disproportionate amounts of their budgets on search engine performance and optimization. Keyword optimization, social topic and taxonomy analysis, content submission to multiple social sharing sites, the use of rich metadata on content and content linking are all techniques that can be employed to make it easy for people to find and engage with your content.

To ensure that the content does what it needs to, i.e. convince the consumer that you have the best toothpaste for instance, it’s best to leverage the consumer’s voice as much as possible and target against consumer passions (fashion, music, film, whatever). The more relevant you can be, the more focused your message is to your audience, the more likely you will be included in their final consideration set.

In other words, if you can get a hundred ordinary people to test, record and talk about your toothpaste versus other brands, the more likely people will add it to their brand list. To ensure credibility, it’s best to foster conversations not just on your site, but on trusted forums and communities that editorially make sense for your brand.

After all of this interaction with you, your content, other customers, our buzz agents and the average guy or girl on the street, the consumer finally buys your product. Great! Job well done! On to the next one. Right? Wrong!

Winning a consumer is only the first round. Imagine what will happen if the consumer’s experience with your brand is completely not what he/she expected, or worse, is just plain awful. That disappointed consumer will write about those awful brand experiences. Other customers will jump on the brand-bashing bandwagon and the individual and collective experiences will get shared to every living person they can reach ensuring your brand is not on anybody else’s initial consideration set.

Sadly, bad reviews outnumber good reviews in just about every category. This is basic psychology really. People who feel cheated want justice. Because they are unlikely to get their money back, they will enact justice by trying to prevent others from making the same mistake. So they become detractors. Detractors can destroy a brand’s reputation online, which is why it’s important to make sure the product experience lives up to the hype. The good news however, is that detractors can be won over surprisingly easily. It often just takes a brand that is willing to listen honestly and is sincerely willing to try to do better.

Most agencies recommend social listening however as a way to find out want people are really saying about your brand, and observing as away to learn how they use your products; all with the goal of tackling negative word of mouth and to improve their marketing to consumers. The general problem with this advice is that the real reason to listen to word of mouth is not to rush into a PR campaign whenever you hear harsh criticisms, but to collect ongoing feedback and communicate these as insights to the product teams with the mandate of making better products and services. That’s the message you want to communicate. “Sorry, we listened. We are making it better.”

Naturally, if you have a great product, your toothpaste makes teeth brilliantly white, your book is a brilliant piece of literature, then social listening will give you the genuine testimonials of real consumers. Best of all, they’ll be testimonials delivered not necessarily by you, because let’s face it, how many people trust testimonials by marketers, but rather by consumers directly to consumers. All you had to do was make sure that a) you have a good product and service and b) you are in the right places having the right conversations and supplying the kind of content people need to understand and believe in your product.

@tweetsandseo — Check rite now — http://www.webresourcesdepot.com/9-open-source-microblogging-applications

You just moved into your first house and, lo and behold, the hot water heater is already leaking. Having no prior experience with calling service personnel to fix such a potentially-expensive problem, what do you do?

A. Look through the online (or, if you’re old-fashioned, the traditional) Yellow Pages for repair people.

B. Do a Google search for repair people in your area.

C. Call, text or email your friends and family for suggestions.

If you said “C”, you’re like the 68-74% of individuals who won’t believe what they read but will believe what a close buddy or relative tells them. Really, who could blame them? Who would you trust – a biased advertisement or your dear, sweet mom?

For this reason, it’s critical for you to always keep in at the forefront of your mind the power of Word of Mouth (WOM) marketing. It’s customer-to-customer, intimate, honest and reliable. And that makes it the best way to grow your business.

Take a gander at some of these WOM stats and facts:

• According to the Edelman Trust Barometer, “person like me” is the most trusted source for info about a company.

• A whopping 83% of online shoppers say they’re happy to share experiences they have. (And you know that they will… regardless of whether those experiences are positive or negative!)

• Members of Generation Y (also known as “Millennials”) put a great deal of store in WOM. In fact, they aren’t nearly as swayed by TV advertising as are those in the Gen X and Boomer categories.

Of course, that doesn’t mean you get to sit back on your derriere and let the clients roll in from all the WOM. No, sir. You have to actively earn the right to get your customers to refer you to the people they know.

WOM does not happen in a vacuum. You can’t force it into existence. Sure, you could pay people to market on your behalf, but we’re not talking about the kind of advertising that takes away from your bottom line. We’re talking about advertising that’s organic, real and lucrative.

Sound like hard work? Perhaps it is, but if you want to reach the highest levels of success possible, you need to start making sure you’re offering a product or service that is WOM worthy.

Let me give you an example of how WOM works…

In my cosmetic dentistry practice, I’ve gotten to the point where I ask clients to refer me to people they know. However, I don’t do that until I’ve wowed them with the most incredible dental experience they’ve ever received.

And you know what? Because my patients know that my team members and I are serious about practicing what we preach, they are more than happy to become part of my WOM program. Their experience with us is exceptional and relevant, so they can confidently recommend us to others.

I also give my clients tons of opportunities to share WOM via online forums – through my blog, on my Twitter page, on LinkedIn and Facebook. That’s where the next generation of customers is going to head to see if you deserve their time and money. So if you’re not there… well, you might as well not exist.

The question remains:  Are you working your WOM?  If the answer is “no”, you know what you have to do!

By Atheer Al-Salim, account director

Everyone’s talking about the Microsoft ‘Windows 7’ campaign. Carrying the theme ‘I’m a PC and Window’s 7 was my idea,’ the campaign is based around the idea that showing that the users of Windows were involved in the development process is a selling point.

After the shambolic launch of Vista, which experienced unprecedented levels of negative Word of Mouth, it’s interesting to see Microsoft’s new strategy. According to David Webster, GM for brand and marketing strategy at Microsoft, “our customers co-create the product with us. We’re using the customers’ voice to tell our story.”

So, in true Citizen Smith style, Microsoft is effectively positioning Windows 7 as a product for the people, by the people.

This kind of Empowered Involvement harnesses a powerful psychological phenomenon known as the Hawthorne Effect, which according to Dr Paul Marsden “is simply the ‘I did that’ effect, the consequence of being asked one’s opinion and seeing it acted upon.”

For evidence of this technique in action on a massive scale, look no further than reality TV shows such as X Factor or American Idol. The viewing public create the next Will Young or Leona Lewis. We feel a part of their success and this is reflected in the number of singles and albums they shift.

The recent Walkers ‘Do me a flavour’ campaign is another great example of highly successful Empowered Involvement. Personally, I’m not a big crisp fan, but I lost track of the number of conversations I had with colleagues, friends and family about possible combinations and I made sure I tried some of the winning flavours, triggering further conversations. The campaign attracted more that 1.1 million entries – that’s at least 1.1 million advocates talking about the Walkers brand.

The only problem with this kind of campaign is that the product needs to deliver. Positive Word of Mouth is primarily based on a good customer experience, so Windows 7 needs to be more than a clever advertising campaign and deliver what it says on the tin.

Next WOM UK event, Nov 18: Dr Martin Oetting discusses ‘The Ripple Effect’.

By: Emily Chan, Grade 11 & Puneet Riar, Grade 12

PRESENTING! Your November 2009 Warrior of the month: Chanel Ly!

Congratulations Chanel! You’re November’s Warrior of the Month! So, first of all, why do you think you were nominated?

C: I don’t know exactly… I didn’t even know I was nominated until I heard I won!

ARE YOU SERIOUS! It was, like, all over school! Haha! Jokes! Anyways, what kind of extracurricular stuff are you involved in?

C: Hmm… Currently, I am coordinating Windermere’s organic garden and I teach piano at elementary schools. I’m also this year’s community service liaison.

You have such an expensive name. How does it feel to be named after a high end fashion line?

C: It’s pretty handy to be named after the brand because my name would often be spelled wrong. All I have to do is refer to the brand.

I wish my name was Dolce and Gabbana Gucci Lacoste. Okay, random question. How many hats do you own?

C: I wear hats because they keep my ears from freezing off, so all I have are a couple of toques. I have one that my grandma knit that I secretly don’t like.

*GASP* don’t let your grandma see this. Tell me, how does it feel to be “Ms. Community Service Liaison?”

C: Pretty, pretty good, it’s definitely an honour, even if it can be stressful at times. I’m planning to start the Darfur Challenge at our school. The challenge is basically a competition among schools in Canada to raise the most funds for Darfur, where there is extreme violence among the people, especially children. This has resulted with 300,000 people killed and 3 million displaced. Please support our cause and check out whscommunity.weebly.com for updates! Oh and enter into the photo contest everyone!

So, you’re a big girl now in Grade 12. What are your plans after graduation?

C: I don’t have specific plans, but my plans are to study sustainable community development in university. After that, my future is undetermined. Hopefully, I’ll be able to find a career that I’m passionate about doing and positively influencing others on the way. As they say, go with the flow!

The next David Suzuki anyone? Hee hee hee! I like to eat. If I came to your house and raided your fridge, what would I find in it?

C: You would be raiding my family fridge, which is filled with the usual family drinks and condiments, but with additional Chinese dinner leftovers and herbal stuff that looks like dried up hot dogs. If I had my own personal fridge, it would definitely contain cheese and dill pickles.

If you raided my fridge, it would have leftover curry in margarine containers. Hobbies? Interests?

C: I like to eat, sleep, volunteer, listen to music, plan events, and jelly fishing.

OH EM GEE! JELLYFISHING LIKE SPONGEBOB LIKES TO DO? LOL! Anyways, I’ll stop kidding around. I just have one more serious question. Be brutally honest, because it’s the real deal.

If a tree falls in the forest and no one’s around to hear it, DOES it make a sound?

C:  Of course it does. Well, if a glass bottle breaks at home and no one’s there to hear it, does it make a sound? The bears and rabbits would probably hear the tree fall anyway.

But, what about the… I mean YES! Exactly what I was thinking! Well Chanel, thanks for your time and congrats again!

Two or three decades ago Saturday Night Live aired one of its trademark commerial parodies, this one taking aim at the empty calories of popular breakfast cereals. I can’t remember the spoof brend’s name, but the punch line sticks with me: “Just add fruit and milk and it has all the nutrition of fruit and milk.”

Apparently nothing has changed in the intervening time.

After juicing up cereals like Cocoa Krispies with added vitamins and “antioxidants,” Kellogg’s loudly declares on the cereal box front “Now Helps Support Your Child’s IMMUNITY.” The following quote from USA Today’s story sums it up:

“Of all claims on cereal boxes, this one belongs in the hall of fame,” says Kelly Brownell, director of Yale University’s Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity. “By their logic, you can spray vitamins on a pile of leaves, and it will boost immunity.”

And so will drinking water, sleep, exercise — healthy living!

So what is the Kellogg’s brand saying here? Any gimmick in a storm? Damn the science, full speed ahead? Let’s take this virus viral?

For more news and information on America’s breakfast default setting, check out The Boxtop.

El pasado Jueves 30 de cotubre de 2009, gracias a trnd España, aisistí al Online Marketing Expo Barcelona 2009 como “invitado VIP” como el resto de los bloggers, ya que disponiamos de una conexión WIFI para twittear lo que iba sucediendo, en mi caso incluso hice algun livestreaming de Online Marketing Expo Barcelona 2009,  el cual fué muy bien acogido por mis followers de twitter que no estaban en BCN y pudieron seguir las conferencias de forma remota  .

La verdad es que fué una experiencia diferente a la edición de OMExpo realizada en Madrid. En resumen en Online Marketing Expo Barcelona se le dió una gran importancia a las ponencias y la presencia de los “stands” por así llamarlo de los ponentes fué simbólica 100%, ya que disponian tan sólo de una pequeña mesa de junto a una banderola y poco más.

La calidad de las ponencias a las que estube fue bastante buena, coincidí con varios trendianos que asistieron  a la conferencia de Canal IP por Xavier Castellnou, Director Comercial y Pau Lari, Director de Informática, CanalIP y todos coincidimos que estuvo algo “floja” que no significa que fuera mala, pero sí que esperábamos algo más quizás. A mi parecer los ponente expertos a nivel técnico, pero les falto interacción con el auditorio y leían demasiado su propia presentación.

Google t-shir OMExpo BCN

Después de esta ponencia que pudísteis ver muchos de vosotros mediante el streaming mediante twitcam.com y juzgar vosotros mismos. También asisití a las de Overalia por Víctor Puig, Director de Reputación, Overalia, a la de trnd España por Sven Mulfinger, Director General, trnd España y la de Google por Alex Gibelalde, Product Marketing Manager de Google (en la que gané la camiseta feak :) una “greate UX” con el concurso inicial )

Os dejo algunas frases interesantes que recogí durante el Online Marketing Expo Barcelona 2009.

En el WOM (Word of Mouth) es muy importante la ética y de esta forma reforzarás la credibilidad del mensaje.
En el WOM lo que funciona es el efecto WOW!! (Sven Mulfinger – trnd)
Hay que escuchar lo que dicen de ti, bueno y malo, no le puedes caer bien a todos. ( una de las frases que tb predico )
Cada minuto se suben 20 horas de vídeo en youtube.
Pasos para desarrollar una estratégia de marketing online: (Alex Gibelalde – Google)
1.- Diseñar experiéncias de búsqueda con acciones “longtail”
2.- Llegar a todo nuestro público objetivo “publicidad contextual si es necesario”
3.- Usar las redes sociales como aprendizaje (son una gran fuente de información)
4.- Conectar a nivel local
5.-  Toma de decisiones basadas en datos

Here is  a very bizarre video from WomWorld that came by email with this short message ” Just when you thought the project was over…”

via: The Nokia Review

(update  03/11/09 )

here is a other video from WomWorld with this short message ” Just when you thought the project was over “

What could it all mean? tell us your thoughts in the comments below.

via Zomgitscj

You don’t see splashy ad campaigns from Acer, and that might explain how it can be making such a rapid ascent in consumer PC sales, and why it has the best chance of prospering in the low-margin end of the market. Having surged past Dell in global units last quarter, and with its eyes now fixed on #1 HP, it quietly markets decent products at an attractive price and lets WOM do the rest.

While Apple, Dell and RIM throw millions at advertising, Acer sticks to the basics and eschews high-profile, high-cost stunts that might grab a few headlines but can’t seem to move the sales needle. Instead, it prefers to let the momentum of tech media buzz do the work. Low-key disclosures drive positive buzz for upcoming products by providing more info on bread-and-butter content — specs and unofficial pricing – than competitors divulge. Amp that up with marketplace momentum and you have a little WOM engine that could.

Without the high marketing expenses, Acer can afford to keep downward pressure on pricing not only for netbooks, but also for tablets, smartphones and the rest of Acer’s aggressive product pipeline. So while other PC makers try to claw back margins on higher-spec notebooks, don’t be surprised if Acer’s approach disrupts that strategy as well.

Ethics. Metrics. ROI. Ownership. Internal education.

These are the big five topics we hear raised again and again when it comes to the word of mouth industry in the UK. Brands big and small really are accepting the value and power of WOM as part of their future survival, but they’re still struggling to a) do it authentically and ethically, rather than as a short-term reactive activity, and b) get buy-in, integration and ownership throughout the company.

via dullhunk @ Flickr

When many social media conferences and meet-ups are little more than glorified geek-outs about cool tools and insider networks, we’re committed to creating safe spaces where people can share their real challenges, fears, hopes and ideas about effective word of mouth – from questioning the Guardian’s latest influencer research to examining when WOM doesn’t work.

We’re looking forward to finding out what the hot WOM potatoes are in the US at WOMMA’s Summit in Vegas a couple of weeks, but it will be interesting to see if they differ from our key concerns here. So let us know: what are your big issues around the industry? What questions would you like to see broached at debates and events? What topics can’t you find sufficient education, research or case studies on? What are you afraid of? Which great people and projects deserve more airspace?

Drop us a comment below or, if it feels a little exposed, get in touch privately, and let’s start directing the WOM agenda in a truly collaborative way.

Despite the death of film-and-chemical imaging, the Kodak brand name remains strong . For years the company has tried to figure out what they can sell instead of film and instant cameras. The current push on cut-rate inkjet printers and cartridges doesn’t seem to be gaining traction, but is that a surprise when a premium photographic imaging company abruptly gears down into bargain brand mode?

But to Kodak’s credit, there seems to be no stinting on marketing programs to sustain and nourish the original tenets of the master brand — apparently so those scrapbooker pocketbooks will spring open once a viable product/service strategy emerges.

Taxi reports that Kodak has a new integrated marketing campaign called “It’s Time to Smile,” configured around a ”trend” called “BrightSiding,” described as creating moments that bring people together and make them smile) [Note to Faith Popcorn: Please confirm whether this is an actually trend or just Kodak's WOM gimmick]. I wonder if this summer’s teabaggers and town hall criers are BrightSiders, as they made a lot of folks smile.

Anyhoo…

According to Taxi, Kodak has announced three new social media applications to build momentum for a Q4 TV and online ad campaign (I don’t have the time/inclination to hunt them down, and Taxi didn’t include links, so I’ll just say that to the best of my knowledge they are pending):

1.  
   1. Kodak Konga Line: This new Facebook application allows users to create community photo albums surrounding an event or theme. Invite friends to share their images and watch the Konga line grow.
   2. Kodak Smile Meter:Kodak’s new Facebook application invites users to send custom smile messages to brighten a friend’s day. The application maintains a running message total—the Smile Meter.
   3. Kodak Smile Maker: A new free iPhone application which lets users paste unique smiles over their favorite photos, then share with family and friends.

Kodak takes a different approach with the Hispanic market, teaming with Yahoo en Español on “Muestra Tu Herencia” (Show Your Heritage) which is intended to encourage Hispanic consumers to share photos online that display their heritage. Kodak created an online mosaic of the images and for each one uploaded, donated to the Hispanic College Fund.

It’s an audacious approach, really. Marketing an image rather than imaging products. But what else can they do?

Susan McLain, general manager of The Baby Einstein Company, sent me an e-mail this week. Well, me and millions of parents, grandparents and others who like the company’s colorful, cheery flash cards and DVDs or who (like me) have been too lazy to unsubscribe from the company’s e-mail list long after their children outgrew the target demographic.

McLain was ticked off:

Dear Parents:

I have to admit, I’m upset and frustrated by what’s in the news. I am a mom. I have two daughters, one of whom was born earlier this year. Because of my job, more often than not, my personal and work “lives” intersect constantly, so it’s hard not to take attacks on Baby Einstein personally.

I take these attacks very personally because I believe in our products. I believe that music, art, nature, animals and the range of things Baby Einstein explores are positive, fun and give parents a chance to spend quality time with their babies.

“Genius” isn’t part of our name, and it’s not our focus. Our philosophy has always been to help bring music and beautiful, real-world objects to babies. Anyone who’s seen our DVDs or read our books knows what Baby Einstein is really about – and what it’s not. There are no scientific formulas or quizzes. No math equations. No memorization techniques. Yet the media and propaganda groups continually demonize and try to dictate to what parents should and should not do.

We believe that parents have a choice and we value and appreciate those of you who know, understand, and love Baby Einstein.

As long as there are parents, there will be parenting debates. For several years, I’ve been trying to take the high road and let our products speak for themselves. After the recent turn of events, I’ve decided that it’s time use my voice and get in the conversation. As always, we want to hear from you – real parents – on the continued assault on and judgment of parents.

Visit www.babyeinstein.com for our official stance on the misinformation that the CCFC has been reporting to the media.

Sincerely, thank you for your support of Baby Einstein. Let’s take a stand together.

Susan McLain
General Manager, The Baby Einstein Company

P.S. Also, check out the latest news on our Twitter feed (www.twitter.com/babyeinstein), YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/babyeinstein) and official blog site (www.baby-einstein.net).

What set her off? Media and blogosphere buzz concerning parent company Disney’s decision to  refund $15.99 for up to four Baby Einstein DVDs per household, bought between June 5, 2004, and Sept. 5, 2009. While not admitting any shenanigans, Disney’s action is widely viewed as an admission that despite their mythic reputation for passive genius-making, the products are basically placebos; entertainment, not edutainment.

I understand McLain’s sincere-sounding, warm-and-fuzzy, parent-power righteous rage. After all, those evil, venal meanies at child advocacy groups and their media minions are attacking her best-selling babies, as well as “assualting” the judgment of parents.

But…well…um…her arguments are tissue-thin BS, and really don’t help her cause.

1. While “genius” is not part of the name, “Einstein” — the quintessential genius metaphor — is. Coincidence? Was naming the company a toss-up between “Baby Einstein” and “Baby Real-World Objects?” “Baby Couch Potato?” I’m only speculating here, but might the company name have been picked to tap into the confluence of the twin delusional American obsessions of Super Babies and products that offer the possibility of making us smarter, richer, thinner, etc. with little or no effort?
2. Hypocrisy: “As long as there are parents, there will be parenting debates. For several years, I’ve been trying to take the high road and let our products speak for themselves.” While Baby Einstein might not have made explicit claims about the pseudo-scientific genius-izing properties associated with its products, neither did it distance itself from those claims when rhapsodizing parenting media and customer feedback made them on their behalf. As Tamar Lewin reported in a recent New York Times piece , “Last year, lawyers threatened a class-action lawsuit for unfair and deceptive practices unless Disney agreed to refund the full purchase price to all who bought the videos since 2004. ‘The Walt Disney Company’s entire Baby Einstein marketing regime is based on express and implied claims that their videos are educational and beneficial for early childhood development,’ a letter from the lawyers said, calling those claims ‘false because research shows that television viewing is potentially harmful for very young children….The letter also described studies showing that television exposure at ages 1 through 3 is associated with attention problems at age 7.’”
3. Either McLain does not understand what her company makes and markets, or her PR folks need to work harder at crafting counter-arguments that make sense: ”There are no scientific formulas or quizzes. No math equations. No memorization techniques.” Really? What the hell are flash cards for, then?
4. “Yet the media and propaganda groups continually demonize and try to dictate to what parents should and should not do.” Apparently reporting on the recommendations of those jack-booted thugs and thought police at the American Academy of Pediatrics has gotten out of hand. Curiously, following McLain’s reasoning, criticism of Baby Einstein infringes on parents’ freedom to make uninformed choices about commercial products for their children.

McLain concludes with the invitation, “As always, we want to hear from you – real parents – [sic] on the continued assault on and judgment of parents.”

Well, Susan — May I call you Susan? –  since I received your heartfelt, personal e-mail I’m assuming that I’m not one of those fake, judgment-assaulting types, and that you value my input. As far as I’m concerned, the only assault going on here is coming from you, and it’s on my intelligence.

You had one very strong and engaging line in your e-mail: ”We believe that parents have a choice and we value and appreciate those of you who know, understand, and love Baby Einstein.” Bravo! Well done! I get it. That message really spoke to me.

If you  had only limited yourself to that expression of pragmatism and gratitude, I would have applauded Disney and Baby Einstein for acting responsibly and exhibiting the good sense of a mature brand in a crisis: acknowledging, remediating and moving forward with transparency.

Instead, you threw a very public tantrum, like one of your end-user customers shouting ”Not fair! Not fair! You’re mean! You hate parents! I hate you!”

Trying to play the victim and making this into a crusade about parents and parental judgment conveys to me that the management of Baby Einstein is not being sincere or honest. It’s a losing strategy. At least you’ve lost me.

Alors, je connaissais l’expression avoir les cornes…. mais généralement il s’agit des cornes de cocu.

Ici, New-Balance nous fait découvrir tout au long de ce film, nous montre que les cornes de cocu sont en fait représentés par des pieds… Ou alors, si le jeu de mots existe en anglais, il s’agit des cornes au pied.

En tout cas, une chose est sûre la réalisation laisse parfois un peu à désirer, mais je trouve que le concept est super fort.

BBDO New York a réussi à développer un concept de spot publicitaire qui possède en plus un très fort potentiel viral.

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