The Brand is Hero No More

Every person, journalist, blogger is talking about the evolution of media. Traditional means of communication have been turned upside down and shaken up. Social media is now becoming the norm, changing the way that we view information distribution. As advertisers, this change has a huge affect on what we do. We are constantly learning how to incorporate this change into our clients’ brands.

Brand Voice

Years ago (or maybe even just one year ago), branding and messaging were entirely in control of the advertiser. The message was displayed how, when and with whatever messaging the advertiser deemed necessary. The ad men formed meaning behind a brand, telling consumers what to think. Consumers were a passive audience that were receptors to those messages. Unfortunately for traditionalists, social media killed the brand hero.

Social Voice

With the increasing use of social networking sites and online communities, communication has changed. That changed created a need for advertisers to adapt, learning to really listen to the voice of their consumers to help mold a brand. These consumers are no longer strictly targets of advertising messages; they now play an active role in the brands they associate with.

This social voice also allows for trust to be generated between consumers and the brand. For years, people have either hated or distrusted advertisers and the messages they present; they think that advertisers lie. Embracing consumers’ interaction and engagement with a brand can help get to the truth, or clear the air, if you will, about what something really is. And while advertisers can still create strong strategy and messaging for a brand, this interaction creates a unique equation. Given the opportunity to complain, give feedback, or praise a product or company, consumers are given an environment to be heard. This interaction with the brand gives such meaning to the brand itself that the two cannot be separated.

Take Zappos.com for example. The site has become so much more than just an online place to buy shoes. Their use of social networking sites like Twitter has helped mold their brand image. Their shoes, social media policies, and internal culture go hand in hand; they have become inseperable.

Social Brand

Bringing the social voice into a brand can be a scary thing. But with the input of a consumer community, brands can adapt and become further defined, taking on new or deeper meanings that are linked directly to the consumer. The brand, once completely controlled by the advertiser, is now a social brand that results from advertisers and consumers meeting somewhere in the middle.  And ultimately, isn’t that what we should have been going for the entire time?

Sighting: Promoted Tweets

I saw this the other day when I logged in to Twitter: a promoted trending topic. I knew that Twitter had rolled out a promoted tweet platform, but didn’t expect it to come in this form. I grabbed a screenshot and tucked the occurrence in my mind for deep thought.

More than anything, I think I was surprised to see a promoted tweet as a trending topic. Will companies be able to purchase trending topics? How did that work? As an agency who works with a variety of clients, purchasing “ads” on Twitter would seem like a great option.

But I had to ask myself… What are the bigger implications of promoted tweets? Does it take the power away from the voice that Twitter users have?  Does it change the dynamic of the unique online community? Does it disable companies from having real conversations with their customers? If a topic is promoted, is it really “trending”?

I’m curious to see how promoted tweets or trending topics become integrated in the overall system. But I’m also curious to see how it going to affect the community. What do you think?

Cut the Crap – No More Lofty Social Media Terms

So we’ve been just as guilty as the next for using those lofty and abstract social media terms that drive everyone mad: transparency, engagement, content generation, conversation monitoring, blah blah blah. I think it is time we all shut up.

I don’t mean that we stop talking about social media or social influence marketing. I just think we need to re-evaluate the way we speak about it. We (as marketing professionals) need to move from the general to the specific and actionable. We need to move from “motivational speaker” to “business coach.”

Step back for a moment.

While we’ve got more and more people jumping at social media, we’ve also got some seriously bad lingo that follows. Let’s look away from jargon and look to stimulating specific, strategic social media dialogue. Saying that each client is different doesn’t cut it anymore. Let’s take these lofty ideas and break them down.

There are countless more ways to impact your audience: Need a flashmob? Don’t know how to pitch bloggers? Want to see how geo-location features can help your business? Need some social media resources? We try to give you resources to see how social media really works, and if you can’t do it yourself, well, that is what we are here for.

Setting Proper Expectations & Follow Your Plan

As an agency, its important to take a look at what is on our plate and strategize. Who is the client? What do they need? Are we working with a Business to Business (B2B) client? We can use social media tactics to locate key influencers in that company. Working with a Business to Consumer (B2C) client? We can locate their audience online by doing an in depth online audience scan and find their consumers, whether it be on blogs, forums, or Facebook, and leverage that community.

So can we please stop talking about lofty, abstract social media terms? Let’s cut to the chase and get working.

Oh, 2009, You Were Good To Us…

Well, 2009, we bid you adieu. This past year has been many things for us as an agency. We’ve survived a recession, gained some new clients, and celebrated our 20^th anniversary as a force in the industry. We’ve also continued to think outside of the box, living and breathing creativity.

Now that this hectic year is over, we’re taking a moment of reflection, thinking about the things we learned (or re-learned) in 2009 and applying them to our future in 2010, which we welcome with open arms. So now that 2010 is officially here, we wanted to countdown 5 of the most essential lessons that our clients learned this year. (OK, so maybe we learned a couple things too)

5. Interaction and Participation: Actually Do It.

Both interaction and participation are important for social media to really work. It doesn’t help just to sign up for a Facebook account. Yeah, that may mean that you are technically using on social media, but it doesn’t mean you are using it the right way. To gain all the benefits of social media, you’ve got to be ready to participate, plug in, and converse with others. That is just the way it is. You’ve got to give to get.

Comcast is a great example. They have taken the time to embrace social media, allowing it to help their company connect with its consumers

4. Tools & Strategy that Work.

Lately, we have noticed a lot of social media obsession. Basically, we have experienced a lot of this: “I want a Facebook!” or “Can you create a Twitter page for me?” We call it Facebook-itis and Twitter-itis, and it is a serious, serious affliction.

You know that saying “there is a time and place for everything”? Well, this rings true here. Yes, Twitter and Facebook are powerful tools and can work, but they aren’t always the right option for our clients. We have developed our ability to assess clients individually, giving them the social media tools that match their specific strengths and that they need to achieve their goals. Sometimes this will include Facebook and Twitter, sometimes it won’t. Either way, we have learned to remain focused on tailoring social media strategy that is specific to each of our clients.

3. Campaign Integration

In 2009, we learned a lot about integration. Social media tools are great, but rarely stand on their own. We knew this was important, but after taking a look at some pretty integrated campaigns (like this one), we came to appreciate integration in that it must go across all platforms, whether that be between social media tools or fully integrated strategies, from creative to marketing to social media. In 2010, we are sure to see more campaign integration, which makes us happy.

2. Relationships = End All, Be All

Social media is about listening to people. Conversation monitoring and participation is at the center of this emerging industry, and we have really learned to listen this year. We now have a tool that allows us to gather discussions from all social media based on the keywords and parameters that we set. That means our clients can gather and sort through larger amounts of relevant conversations, and use them to expand their footprint and find their target audiences.

Take the Comcast example (again). You have a problem with them? Router not working? Tweeting about it will help get your problem solved. They may even tweet step-by-step directions at you. We call that strategic tweeting; fielding and solving consumer complaints has gotten the Comcast brand name pretty far in the minds of consumers on Twitter.

1. Social Media is Legit: It’s the Real Deal, Folks!

We wouldn’t say it’s something we learned, because we knew it all along. But we are thrilled that some of the largest companies are embracing and verifying it; social media is more than a trend and a hot topic. It has officially arrived as a moveable force in the advertising industry. New technologies, like Google Wave, have been created to take advantage of social media. Big time companies like Starbucks or Wachovia are embracing it as part of their marketing strategy. Even the government has acknowledged its influence. Take Obama’s Twitter page or his recent public address on YouTube as an example of this. The FTC also took a part by creating laws and consequences for misuse, which talked about here.

So overall, we feel great. We love what we do and are excited for a very social 2010. Happy New Year!

Viral Marketing: For Better or For Worse

Getting a YouTube video to go viral is every marketers dream. It’s essentially free advertisement, and a great way to get people talking about your brand. Here are a few current examples of companies with videos that went viral, and what we think about their strategy.

Vodafone

Quirky, funny, well-done, and short, this video has all the makings of a great viral piece. At the end you are either laughing or saying to yourself: “what just happened?” Either way, you remember it, and you might bring it up later with a group of friends because you thought it was funny or weird. This video is part of a much larger campaign, mostly housed on Facebook and YouTube. It has been immensely successful because of the multitude of videos, high frequency of their release, direct connection with the products, and of course because it gives people something to laugh at. The spots are entertaining, and these days consumers need something in return for viewing your ad message. The Zoozoos deliver in spades. (Ogilvy & Mather is the agency behind the work)

Nike Basketball

I didn’t get this ad at all. I thought it didn’t make any sense. Go figure.

Cadbury

Cadbury has recently stepped up its viral marketing efforts, and hits another home run with this video. The song is catchy, the kids are creepy and cute at the same time, and the effects are just enough to make it funny without going overboard.

Samsung

This ad is simply brilliant, and is more than just a viral video. This video actually encourages interaction with Samsung’s audience, showcases the featured product, and even uses comments from viewers in the explanation video. Totally cool, and very well done.

YouTube Flips its Lid and Reddit Diggs

April fool’s day is upon us and every year, some of the most visited social media sites like to play fun games to trick their viewers. Last year, YouTube pulled a bait-and-switch and propelled Rick Rolling to one of the largest memes to date. This year, the video giant has flipped everything upside down.

Here’s a list of other things going on around the web for today’s celebration of foolery (from webdistortion):

The Guardian says its swapping print for Twitter.

Youtube give us a new layout.

The Pirate Bay sells out to Warner.

Gmail on AutoPilot

Jason Calacanis invests in Smellr Flickr for your nose.

Opera Face Gestures

Google’s CADIE – Google Cognitive Autoheuristic Distributed-Intelligence Entity

Chrome in 3d.

Hotel’s Room’s on the Moon.

Miss World visits ‘beautiful’ Guantanamo Bay

Smashing Magazine’s Internet Explorer Update.

SitePoint’s Internet Reboot Day

Expedia offers flights to Mars.

Add some shine to your website.

Landmark JQuery plugin.

Reddit changes it’s layout.

Web Standards Project unveils the purpose of Conficker Worm.

Woopra Web Cam

Woot – 3 dollar item, 1 million shipping.

Top Gear to stream on the Web ad supported.

Web2.0 ireland’s 10 million euro funding

Facebook acquires Boards.ie

Wired claim they’ve got Twitter’s business plans

Yahoo idealogical search.

the end of Advertising at Marketing magazine.

ThinkGeek. Hilarious as always.

BBC Iplayer available on a Toaster.

Facebook in Trouble via E-Consultancy

Qualcomm opens the door on it’s top secret R&D.

Identi.ca acquires Twitter

Floating Amazon Cloud Environment

Digg’s algorithm cracked

Automatic mood detection from MSN

Get your Harry Potter E-books here

French Films banned from Lovefilm.

For more, check out Mashable’s April Fools list.

Defining Social Media Experts

Many people have written about the influx of social media “experts” that Twitter and other social media tools seem to have attracted. You may see them refer to themselves as specialists, experts, mavens, consultants, etc. But, with so many “experts” out there, how do you know which ones are real, and which ones are abusing the label? One University is now trying to make the distinction official.

Starting this September, Birmingham City University will be offering a year-long Masters in Social Media course attempting to “explore the emerging area of social media through scholarly research or practice.”

According to Jon Hickman, the course convener:

“During the course we will consider what people can do on Facebook and Twitter, and how they can be used for communication and marketing purposes. There has been significant interest in the course already, and it will definitely appeal to students looking to go into professions including journalism and PR.”

Dr. Hickman offers this video to outline how he sees the MA program:

Is a Masters degree what it takes to prove you are an “expert” in social media? Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.

Townhalls for the rest of us

Last Thursday, Digg held its fifth Digg Townhall in which founder Kevin Rose and CEO Jay Adelson share updates and answer questions asked by the Digg community. This type of open forum has become popular among online sites with large followings, but what about offline? Can companies benefit from creating an open forum like this with its community? Of course…

Hearing directly from your community (employees, customers, stakeholders, etc…) can lead to many things, the most beneficial of which being hearing quality suggestions on how to improve your business and strengthen your base of loyal customers.

Here’s Digg’s latest Townhall and below it, ways you can open the lines of communication between you and your community.

Opening the lines of communication:

Of course you could take the same route to your community that Kevin and Jay did, but likely that wont work for you so here are just a few ways you can engage your community to get quality feedback.

• Create a Twitter account and make yourself available for those interested
• Send an email survey to previous and existing customers and ask for their opinions
• On your website, invite users to send in questions and then answer them on video or respond via email
• Hold a live chat and send customers an invitation

For more ways to listen and talk back to your community, feel free to give The Cyphers Agency a call and we’d be happy to talk to you about how you can leverage the web to enhance your business.