Watch this video and see Tim Brown from Ideo talk about a link between creativity and play at TED. You will get some inspiring ideas to fresh up your next brainstorm session. I personally like the ‘finger blaster’ the audience fires at the speaker but I guess that’s open for discussion.
[youtube]RjwUn-aA0VY[/youtube]
Cross post from Nathalie’s blog
A very interesting article from The Economist is actually stating the fact that we see in the advertising and whole communication industry: companies are really shifting to the web and it is a reality now…and not only in US. Europe is catching up and fast.
The article mainly focus on the shift in Advertising, a trend that we have seen coming for few years now. The interesting things is that advertising companies and professionals such as Creative Directors had for quite a while tried to ignore the wall coming towards them. And so many traditional advertising agency are struggling so hard in making that shift. They are sometimes at lost when we talk to them about Web 2.0 and things like YouTube, online communities. They now know the words and definition…but not really understanding their real meanings and consequences. They still were talking TV ads and print campaigns not more than few months ago. Online was just the little tiny thing to do on the side, but not that important in the whole scope of such huge TV/Print campaigns budget.
For sure, the recession will be the boost for the Internet. Not only in advertising, but as the main and driving communication tool at all level!! The first signs are all there. And being in the industry and talking to major international companies in all kind of sectors, we actually see the signs in real time here in Europe. 2009 is going to see major changes.
I have to admit that it feels good to read in a major media that “online advertising is making obsolete the old distinction between marketing spending “above the line” and “below” it. In the jargon, above-the-line spending drives brand “awareness” (probably on television) or “consideration” by a consumer planning a purchase (probably in a newspaper).” We have been saying at ZN for at least 10 years that Internet was really revolutionazing the whole communication industry and that there were no more boundaries and distinctions between below and above the line. Even more, for us the distinction between PR, CSR, PA, Advertising, Marketing no longer exist for quite a while. But most professionals, businesses, Industry Associations, politicians had a hard time really embracing the idea of such a change. It is not a small change. It is huge and require quite an adaptation and change in mindset and attitude. I was one of the lucky ones to swim into the online communication at an early stage in my career.
It is not only advertising that changes and shifts. It is the whole concept of communication. Now you have to have an integrated approach and no more think in silos. It goes for communication but for businesses too (externally; internally and structurally). The recession is going to force people to admit the shift and to really adapt to it. If you don’t, then you will be missing the train….and it is a fast one.
Check also interesting entry here from Philip Weiss on McKinsey report and article “The downturn’s new rules for marketers” from The McKinsey Quaterly.
McKinsey has once again published a white paper on a hot topic, one that matters especially in our sector: what new rules will apply to marketers in 09, the year of the recession.
Some interesting insights, and some background material to convince management and others that yes, you should cut marketing, but no you shouldn’t cut everything without thinking. Strong hints that the web and new media will come out stronger from this transition as it offers measurable and now proven cost effective tools to beat the recession. Other insights for B2B companies to make sure their customers are credit worthy, and to repriorities target audiences that still have money to spend (or new emerging ones) - this all means be ready for change, and reevaluate prioritities on a regular basis.
“Reprioritizing advertising vehicles
New communications vehicles such as the Internet, social networking, and mobile devices are gaining scale and delivering effective results. Meanwhile, classic media such as television have become, at a minimum, much more costly. Most marketing plans therefore try to meet their objectives cost-effectively by using a mix of traditional and new vehicles, with the latter typically accounting for 10 to 15 percent of spending.”
Instead of giving up when no suitable kidney donor could be found for her 15 year old daughter, Lisa decided to use the web to reach out for help.
In her blog ‘the Domestic Diva’ she explained her situation and how people could donate. Just about 3 weeks later the right donor is found.
This message got ‘retweeted’ and shared via Facebook, several thousand times: ‘15 year old girl needs a kidney. She’s dying. Can you help? Can you at least retweet? http://tinyurl.com/6bue7f’
Who could have known that one of Lisa’s ebay friends would turn out to be the right kidney donor to save her little daughter?
In her recent blog post Lisa states: “I am amazed by the power of the web and the hearts of those who helped make a difference.”
This is a cross-post from Steffen’s blog.
Containing well over two and a half million articles in English alone, written and updated by anyone with access to the web, Wikipedia is an amazing resource. It’s also the eighth most visited site on the web, and many people’s first port of call when looking for information on something or anything.
For this reason, I often recommend that clients check the Wikipedia entries relevant to them to make sure the content is objective and fact-based, as it should be (note: I’d never recommend amending an entry so that it is overly supportive of a client’s position, brand etc - 1) it goes against the spirit of Wikipedia, which is to be a balanced and fact-based source of information, and as an avid user, I want everyone to abide by that spirit, otherwise it’d stop working; and 2) content which is not objective or well-referenced is simply removed by other users, so there’s no point).
Many times, clients don’t think it’s important. An article in a trade publication read by 10 people is, but a site with tens of millions of visitors every day isn’t. Go figure. However, I recently discovered a site which gives stats for every wikipedia entry, and since clients have started understanding the numbers at stake, they’re seeing Wikipedia in a different light.
Just take any current controversial topic and you can see just how many people landed on the relevant page on Wikipedia in any given month. Some sample stats for October to whet the appetite:
This is a cross-post from Steffen’s blog.
It’s often noted that replicating online tools that are mainstream and already perform the functions you need, just for the sake of having something with your own logo on it, is a mistake. In most cases, I’d agree. With social networks in particular, considering the number of existing tools with scores of users - LinkedIn, Facebook, Orkut, hi5, Bebo and so on - if you are looking to create a community, why would you want to create something new? Most networks fail, ROI is hard to measure (you have a load of members - so what?), and as mentioned, existing tools usually have all the functionalities you could ever want (and can even be used easily and cheaply).
All valid points. However, sometimes there’s a case for an organisation, movement, group, party etc. setting up a tailor-made social network:
The success of the US President-elect’s network - my.barackobama.com - confirms both points. The specific functions it performed were a) raising money for the candidate, and b) allowing supporters to mobilise great numbers of people in a very organised manner. And with regards to the second point, I think it goes without saying that Obama supporters were plentiful enough and fired up.
A less conspicuous case-study I’d cite, also from across the pond, is Firefighter Nation, the firefighters’ network, which has 26,000 very active members that are avidly using all the functionalities on the site (e.g. all thirteen forum topics had been active in the last 24 hours when I checked). So why is it working? Primarily because of a very strong dose of point 2 cited above: there are lots of firefighters in the US, they are very passionate about their profession, they have a very strong sense of camaraderie, and they want their own space where they can meet others like them and share their unique experiences. A Facebook group could probably do all the same things, but it just would not feel as special; it would not be a unique platform for them alone.
So the lesson is: if you’re thinking of setting up a network for philatelists or fans of tiddlywinks, use an existing platform (and don’t hold your breath). If you’re interested in something that can really get lots of people fired up (politics, saving wildlife, football) or, say, represent a very active political group or faction, then your own social network could work, if executed and promoted well. And if you really do fancy giving it a go, I’d recommend starting on Ning, which is the platform Firefighter Nation is built on - it’s brilliant, and what’s more, it’s free.
ZN, the eMarketing agency for European HQs, is now 10 years old. To celebrate this event, we have organized an Innovation session with our main clients and partners at Living Tomorrow. To have a glimpse of how the tour looked like, view the video-report from the BBC here.
The tour has been topped off with a brainstorm session that heated the spirits and generated valuable innovative ideas to be applied for five sectors: Packaging, Plastics and commodity, Consumer electronics, Consumer goods (sports and other), Healthcare.
[youtube]lD2jxEB7e4o[/youtube]
Here is a glimpse of the positive feedback that the Innovation event has incited:
Helen Dunnett, ECPA –> “Thanks so much for a great afternoon at Living Tomorrow yesterday. I really appreciated the opportunity to meet your other clients and hear what they are up to online or up against internally. I’m amazed at the work you are doing and your drive in uncertain times and feel privileged to be working with you and your team. ”
Trevor Jenkins, LyondellBasell Industries –> “Many thanks for your invitation to your anniversary event at Living Tomorrow. I found it extremely interesting and stimulating”
Petrina Soh, Sappi Europe –> “Thanks for inviting me to the very interesting tour of Living Tomorrow and a lively discussion/brainstorming session. It was great to meet others interested in the topic of innovation and technology”
We have set up a Hyperth!nker NING for all of those of you who would like to hyperth!nk with us and for those who would like to experiment with this application.
Ning is an online platform where users can create their own social website in just a few minutes. It’s quite simple - you create your own social network on the Ning plattform which can then be linked to other networks - a bit like a mini Facebook. Try it!
We look forward to seeing you on the Hyperthinker Ning.
If you watch news and are a bit interested in what’s out there on the web, you must have came across the ‘GSM induced Pop Corn Video’ in the last 2 weeks. And now you might also know that the Pop Corn video is in fact a viral video from a Bluetooth Headset solutions’ company to do some brand awareness/eMarketing.
Some basic facts I took from TV (not my own): working GSM raise temperature about 10°C, but to pop a corn you need at least 100°C …so 4 phones won’t make it happen except if you warm the corn before hand. But honestly when I first look at it I wondered how this could be possible. But it is so big and incredible, deep down you want to believe it without looking too much into it. And to be honest, we all know that putting a thingy on you ear that raise temperature about 10°C cannot be that safe for your brain…but GSM are soooo practical! And then you can see on YouTube lots of video made by others people to verify this or to play along on this and then it even makes it up to TV news!
That is what one could call a successful viral marketing campaign…but who really looked up at the company behind this campaign and remember its name??
Being in this business I am all for viral effect of any good creative ideas. And this is very creative!! But is it a ‘good’ idea to promote a company brand? This campaign surfs on the edge of rumors and fear distorting the truth. One part of me is ‘whoa what a creative idea to create buzz!’. But the biggest part of me is ‘New Marketers be aware of your responsibility’.
OK this campaign is a little thing and won’t blow up the world but it made me think. The Internet is a great tool of communication and sure we are facing an overload of information which is not going to decrease soon. To be heard one need to do things differently, to amaze to create buzz and viral effects. But where are going to be the limits for us eMarketers.
It took 30 years to radio in the US to reach 50 billion of listeners. It took 1 year only to the Internet to reach the same numbers of surfers. We have a fantastic communication tool at our disposal and regulation won’t be able to cover/regulate that magnitude especially as Internet has no physical borders. One way to control it will be to close it, or restrict it in the way China is trying to do so…and even there they are not really succeeding. And we certainly do NOT want that to happen.
Somehow it will come to companies and eMarketers to create their own ethics and code of conduct. The Internet gives us total free will…but it is up to us, each of us, individually and collectively to decide what are going to be the limits and how we are going to shape it for the best if we do not want to pollute and ruin this fantastic media.
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Have you ever dreamt of sending your husband an automized shopping list on a weekly basis?
You are the worst with remembering birthdays and you wished reminders could just fly in your Inbox?
You’ve become too much Web2.0 endorsed to respond to real-life paper post-its?
Or are you simply lazy and in need of gentle structure to survive your day?
If any of the above applies, try remember the milk.
This application enables you to list, share your tasks and send reminders. The cool thing is you can share lists with your buddys and syncronize the application with your email & a range of Google applications. You can even get an upgrade and integrate with your I-Phone or Blackberry.
One of those little useful applications that can save a (hu)man’s day: www.rememberthemilk.com
Cheers,
Mira
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