Social Media: The New Real-Time Shared Experience
Back in the Jurassic era of media, that is to say any time before 1990, culture shared experiences via appointment TV viewing. Think about it: The Cosby Show on Thursday nights, breaking news about Reagan's attempted assassination on CBS, and so on. people shared experiences real-time through broadcast TV. Fast forward 15 years and, thanks to DVRs, iTunes and other timeshifting technologies, rarely do people share TV experiences like these in real-time. But then a funny thing happened on the way to the road to social isolation: Social Media.
Anyone not living under a rock understands the meteoric rise of social media and its impact on news distribution. With the passing of Michael Jackson, the global impact of this news can be dramatically measured by simply looking at Twitter traffic, which strained under the weight of tweets and retweets of Jackson's death. I learned of his death not on CNN or BBC, but from a friend who tweeted the news of his death on Twitter. Now knowledge is immediate, and mourning has become more public than private: a collective expression of loss.
According to the Twitter tracking tool Twist, 22.61% of Tweets currently contain the phrase "Michael Jackson". “MJ”, meanwhile, accounts for 9% of Tweets right now. More than 25% contain the name “Michael”. In total, at least 30% of Tweets are commenting upon his shocking death..
Social media’s is the new shared experience and its role in rapidly distributing globally-significant news like this will surely be analyzed in great depth over the coming weeks. It’s notable that despite early news reports of Michael’s passing on blogs, the timing of the tributes coincided with confirmation by the LA Times – for the most critical information, it seems, we continue to trust mainstream news the most. For now, anyway.
Is your brand evangelizing...or recruiting?
Chris Guillebau from The Art of Nonconformity isn't talking about brands in this video, but he could be.
He describes two ways of growing your cause. Evangelizing is banging on doors. Selling. Arm-twisting. A brand equivalent of only mass outward-bound communication. The alternative is recruiting. Inviting people in.
Would your customers rather be preached to or enlisted? Would they rather hear how great you think you are? Or know what you stand for?
General persuasion is difficult and inefficient from a marketing perspective. Recruitment is effective because it's less about changing minds and more about helping like-minded people join you.
So, how can your brand recruit?
Meet Dave and his Blank
The relationship between brands and consumers has irreversibly changed. Just watch how Dave found and fell in love with his 'blank' here.
Obviously what is needed now is a new marketing paradigm that calls for clients to actually STOP 'marketing' and be more engaged in the consumer conversation and act on behalf of the consumer in a way that creates brand advocates.
You wouldn't turn your back on your friends, would you?
Essentially, the connection between a consumer and a brand is a relationship. If it is a good relationship, then it is safe for simplicity’s sake, to call it a friendship. So, with thinking in terms of a friendship, and how friends behave when times are tough – there is a clear message of how brands should behave when times are tough. Friends support each other. They empathize, they listen, and they care. If a friend bails on you when things aren't going so great only to reappear once things are starting to look up -- would you maybe start to question the authenticity of the relationship? I know I would.
It’s no secret that we are in a recession. Budgets are being cut and expenses are being looked at with an eagle eye. Advertising and marketing has been noted as the expendable faucet, which is easy to turn up and down. But if profits are soaring and you turn it up, times get tough and you retract, what message are you sending? If you value the relationship your brand has built with your consumers, do not turn your back on them. This is not the time to stop communicating. You will damage the trust and weaken the relationship at a time when there is a mountain of opportunity to strengthen it.
The challenge is for companies to be forward thinking, not only in regard to budgets, but also in regard to their brand’s message and actions. Don't cut back. Here you have an opportunity to be present when your consumers need you, and when the competition is cutting back. Someone will seize this opportunity and reap the benefits. The question is, will it be you?
This post was inspired by the following article in The New Yorker about Kellogg, Post and The Great Depression. The article can be found here: Hanging Tough
Banner Ads: Beyond the Click
Late last year and all of this year (thus far) there has been much conversation regarding "click attribution". i.e. If you see a banner for Shoe Carnival's Back to School Sale and DON'T CLICK (ALERT! Please do click as it makes it soooooo much easier on our campaign analysts) and later execute a search for "shoe carnival, back to school sale"... does search get all the credit. Below eMarketer shares some data from a recent iProspect study... enjoy!
Display ads do more than look pretty.
Online display ads have gotten a bad rap lately. It’s a format, according to many sources, with declining investment and waning effectiveness. But a study from iProspect may have discovered an unexpected benefit of online display ads. When Internet users were surveyed to find out what actions they took when viewing a display ad on an ad-supported Website, nearly one-third said they clicked on the ad.
In
addition, 27% reported that they did an online search for the product,
brand or company, and 21% typed the company Web address in their
browser. Nine percent sought additional information using social media
tools.
Among respondents who saw a display ad and performed a related
search at some point, the largest proportion (38%) visited the
advertiser’s site through search results, 11% searched but did not
click on any of the results, and 14% searched, visited the site and
purchased the product advertised.
How likely ad responders were to purchase a product depended on how well-acquainted they were with the offering or company.
“Online display advertising is far from dead,” said Robert Murray of iProspect.
“In essence, search is an alternative mechanism for Internet
users to respond to online display,” he added. “If marketers are going
to invest in display then they should leverage search marketing to help
them capture the demand that display advertising creates.”
Supporting charts can be found on eMarketer here
That means a click is only one measure of a display ad’s effectiveness.
One-third of those who knew the product eventually purchased,
compared with 14% of “first timers” who learned about the offering or
the company and eventually bought something.
22squared Welcomes Our Atlanta Summer Interns
Davis AdamsClient Leadership Intern
University of Georgia
Graduating in December 2009 with an A.B.J. in Publication Management, Minor in German, as well as a New Media Institute Certification
While at Just Drive Media, Davis worked to improve the website interface and aesthetics. He currently volunteers as the Mobile Media Outreach Coordinator for the Dry Tears Campaign (www.drytears.org). Davis’ passion lies in the automotive industry, so we are thrilled to have him work with the Southeast Toyota account team this summer.
Follow Davis on Twitter: @DavisAdams
Allison BeardenMedia Intern
University of Georgia
Graduating in December 2009 with an A.B.J. in Advertising, Minor in Speech Communication
Allison worked with the University System of Georgia to plan the “Accepting the STEM Challenge” conference. At the same time, she also wrote for the www.mathsciencesuccess.org website. While at Gold Kist in the marketing department, Allison assisted by writing press releases. We are excited to have Allison join our media team this summer.
Follow Allison on Twitter: @APBearden
Gracie ChildressMedia Intern
University of Georgia
Graduating in May 2010 with an A.B.J. in Advertising, Minor in Spanish
Gracie is very involved in her community and has had a number of internships over the past couple years. While at Sporting Youth Magazine, she collaborated with the Board of Education in seven southeastern states to determine demographic data of students in each county. She then incorporated the data into a new marketing plan for the publisher. Gracie also worked on the Cheeseburger in Paradise account while at Rawle Murdy Marketing Communications Agency. We are pleased to have Gracie – and her breadth of experience – as part of our media team this summer.
Josh DelaneyBrand Planning Intern
University of Georgia
Graduating in May 2011 with an A.B.J. in Advertising, Honors Program
Josh is involved in a number of activities, including The University Council, Outstanding Academic Advisor Selection Committee, The University Theatre, Friends for Life Big Brother Program and the UGA NAACP. He also worked as a Production Assistant with Ben Loeterman Production Company, assisting on a PBS Television Network documentary. We are anxious to bring Josh’s energy and enthusiasm to our brand planning department this summer.
Follow Josh on Twitter: @UGADelaney
Dawn HallClient Leadership Intern
University of Georgia
Graduating in May 2010 with an A.B.J. in Advertising, Minor in Anthropology, as well as a New Media Institute Certification
Dawn is a freelance advertiser for the Athens Choral Society and Morton Theatre, strategically reaching an untapped student market and increasing event attendance. She also holds a position on the University Union Student Programming board as the Advertising Chair of Promotions. All the while, Dawn volunteers for AthFest, Athens’ Music & Arts Festival, in the promotions department. She is also a member of UGA’s Ad Club and the American Advertising Federation. We are delighted to have Dawn’s drive in our client leadership department this summer.
Follow Dawn on Twitter: @DHall1188
Alecia TaylorMedia Intern
University of Georgia
Graduating in December 2009 with an A.B.J. in Advertising
Alecia is a member of the UGA Ad Club and Public Relations Student Society of America. She also volunteers for H.E.R.O. for Children, a philanthropy rooted in Athens, GA. While at UGA, Alecia has been honored with a number of scholarships, including the Hope Scholarship, R.A. Bowan Trust Scholarship and the General Electric Scholarship. We are looking forward to having Alecia join our media team this summer.
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