It’s no secret that Twitter use has exploded…it’s not just the social media mavens that are mad ‘tweeters’, but the mainstream is using it to stay in touch with friends far and near – most of which they’ve never met. Athletes like Lance Armstrong, Shaquille O’Neal, and Shaun White are very active – with Lance having one of the largest group of ‘Followers’ on Twitter. The biggest growth rate I am seeing? Business usage. Great article in Advertising Age about How Social Media Tools Can Complement What You Do.
David Veneski Twitter Athlete, Social Media, Twitter
Really interesting post in the technology viewpoint area of Business Week on February 19th. This is a classic line that many marketers sometimes assume to be true: “Using social media to market your business is a good idea. Just don’t plan on getting your whiz-kid nephew to do it for free“.
Quickly here are their 6 ‘myths’: full descriptions in the complete article.
1. Social media is cheap, if not free.
2. Anyone can do it.
3. You can make a big splash in a short time.
4. You can do it all in-house.
5. If you do something great, people will find it.
6. You can’t measure social media marketing results.
David Veneski Social Media Myths, Social Media
Traditional marketing as we know it is changing. Heck, it’s changed a LOT over the last few years with the rise in user-generated brand advocacy and criticism. Companies need to start thinking about social media in this way- and some already are, like Scotts:
Adotas profiles them in their February 20th article:
“The Scotts site leverages social media to elevate the consumer experience. Scotts enables consumers to participate in blogs, forums, and photo galleries that are designed to inspire and assist gardening enthusiasts….. Within days of rolling out the social media features, thousands of visitors registered to create blogs, connect with other lawn care enthusiasts, and share their stories and pictures. To date, the Scotts site has hosted more than 246,000 social interactions between consumers.”
Allowing people to connect on your site around their passion points to elevate your brand affinity…smart.
David Veneski Integrated Marketing Brand, Integration, Social Media
Scott Monty of Ford
David Armano (author of the Logic + Emotion blog) writes an article for Advertising Age that addresses the blurry lines between where a personal online brand ends and where the company’s brand they work for begins. Scott Monty of Ford has taken some criticism lately for those blurry lines. Done properly, I think it can be very effective. Done incorrectly – it puts your credibility and the image of the brand you represent at risk.
David Veneski Personal Brand, Twitter Personal Brand, Twitter
As Advertising Age states: “A mere mouse move can’t measure influence“.
That’s a smart statement, but one that many advertisers are not listening to.
The article goes on to state “….ComScore research, which studied 139 online ad campaigns by marrying data from its panel of U.S. internet users with shopper data, found online ads, even when they didn’t result in a click, increased a consumer’s likelihood of making a purchase at an advertiser’s retail store by 17% and increased visits to a marketer’s website by an average of 40%.”
Net net? Just because they didn’t click doesn’t mean they aren’t engaged. As a person responsible for media myself, I sometimes forget that.
David Veneski Online Advertising Advertising, Influence, Online
In addition to being a staple for rapid-fire communication among technophiles and a networking tool for tech-savvy companies, Twitter is swiftly being adopted by celebrities who see it as a way to give the public a controlled peephole into their otherwise highly private lives. Clipped from the NY Times. Full article here. And you thought Twitter was only for the true Internet mavens….
David Veneski Twitter Celebrity, NY Times, Twitter
I’m an early riser. I’m up at dawn, walk the dogs, get myself ready and then head into work. One of the first things I do is check Facebook. I used to check sports scores first. What happened? Well, to be fair I still hit the sports page – but it’s just not the FIRST thing I do EVERY morning… Facebook has changed my behavior. Has it done the same for you?
Research Fortune has done for this article says yes… “This addictive quality keeps Facebook’s typical user on the site for an average of 169 minutes a month, according to ComScore. Compare that with Google News, where the average reader spends 13 minutes a month checking up on the world, or the New York Times website, which holds on to readers for a mere ten minutes a month.”
David Veneski Facebook Facebook, Google, NY Times, Zuckerberg
I’ve been a big Shaun White fan ever since I saw his first interview. It baffled me how someone so young could have such a comprehensive acumen about the importance of his ‘personal brand’. Oh yeah..and he’s a pretty good snow-boarder too. Full article in the January edition of Fast Company.
David Veneski Personal Brand Athlete, Personal Brand, Shaun White
It’s long been the practice of advertisers to simply slap their TV commercials online as video advertising units. I’ve long thought it doesn’t work – rather, that you need to tailor the spot specifically for the medium. This Adotas article supports that and points to 3 basic tenants for success:
- Tell a story
- Make it interactive
- Finish with a strong call to action.
I agree. Michael Radigan’s last line in the article sums it up best for Digital Video Advertisers: “Let’s stop being lazy and get some practice making online videos for the active viewer“
David Veneski Online Advertising Online, TV, Video