Blame Second Life/I Am Getting Some Focus

…as if it were Linden Labs fault that hundreds of marketers have thoughtlessly followed the hype like lemmings. If you launch a television campaign with no strategy, it will suck, why would you think you can launch a Second Life campaign and have it magically work wonders?

• Marketers who have “failed” and now are complaining about your failure, blame yourself


• Marketers who have “failed” and have learned something, good for you


• Marketers who see experimentation as a series of iterative minor victories, ultimately leading to one larger victory, give me a call!

I am sick of marketing/business folks saying that the Second Life bubble has burst. Perhaps the bubble has burst for the unimaginative seekers of unearned publicity, but go talk to a resident of Second Life. Or better still, come with me to the SLCC in Chicago this year, you will see that, for the more creative minds, the bubble is still growing!

But I digress…

The Focus Experience and The Virtual Focus Group

The day before I turned 30, I had and article published in iMediaconnection entitled, “Focus Groups Get A Second Life”. In this article I was not really speaking of the type of exercise that one could liken to a more traditional focus group, rather I was speaking of something that I have been referring to as the focus experience (which is in no way endemic to Second Life or Virtual Worlds).

Last night I helped organize a group of PR professionals to get together at the iAsk Center in order to gain insights on new media and it was awesome!

Jack Tatar, President of GEM Research Solutions (a real life focus group company) contacted me after reading an article of mine and a seed for a great relationship was planted. I was enticed by what Jack was doing and new that there was an opportunity here for Morpheus Media and GEM Research/iAsk to work together. While nothing is set in stone, we have been speaking, so stay tuned :)

Tags: focus experience, imediaconnection, iask, iask center, focus groups, GEM Research, Jack Tatar, Morpheus Media, Second Life, Virtual Worlds, PR, PRSA,  SLCC, SLCC Chicago

What Is Content and Does Google Have Any?

How exactly does one go about defining what content is?

They look at wikipedia of course!

1. That which is contained.


2. Published information and experiences such as many novels, movies, music, game, webpages, presentations, organized data, etc.


3. The n-dimensional space contained by an n-dimensional polytope (called volume in the case of a polyhedron and area in the case of a polygon).

I think we can skip the last one for this post, but the other definitions may help us on our quest.

Alright, so the point of this post was not really define content; rather it was to take a look at Google News comment system (if you want a good write up on it head over to Danny Sullivan’s post on Search Engine Land.

I want to get one thing out of the way, I think this idea is a great experiment and I love Google for coming up with interesting ways to think about content. All journalist’s (and consumers) know that the news is largely defined by the people who tell it, and that a firm persuasion of a thing can make it so (that is William Blake-ism).

Back to defining content:

The second definition from wikipedia highlights concepts such as information, presentation and organized data. If we were to go with this definition as gospel, Google has been in the content business for a long time. If you were to ask someone at Google this question they will tell you otherwise.

The Content Business Has Changed

My personal feeling is that the content business has changed.

1. In older times content companies were responsible for finding, harboring and producing talent.


2. While this is still true (to a degree), today’s content company can only be successful by providing an expansive forum for content creation/generation by both the traditional producer and the prosumer.


3. The line between Content and the Content Forum have been blurred to the point where, those who wish to spend their time insisting that they are in the content business, and refuse to create forums for co-creation and collaboration,  will certainly perish in the annals of media.

The true reason that I love this approach is that it creates a meta-layer of content through mediated intervention.

This new layer of content seeks to be a new way to make news more fare and balanced than ever before. I truly hope that Google makes this work!

Tags: Google, Google News, Google New Comments, Danny Sullivan, Meta Content, Co Creation, Collaboration, Prosumer, William Blake, Wikipedia, Information, Content

Throw out your iPhone, Get Yourself A GPhone

I cannot wait to see how this one plays out. I would think the better strategy would be for Google to work with Apple, but I have been wrong in the past (once)

clipped from www.telegraph.co.uk Google to unveil phone of its own by next year Eric Schmidt, the chief executive of Google, recently said that mobile phone adverts are "twice as profitable or more than non-mobile phone ads because they are more personal".

Misleading Information About New Media Used To Help Pay For Fogies’ Martini Lunches (Part 2)

There has been some great commentary today:

Frank Shaw:

People spend time where they receive value, plain and simple. This could be knowledge, it could be entertainment, it could be social, it could be a combination of all of the above. If time spent watching TV dropped, it's because the perceived value, either relative or real, of what is on there fell.

Well said Frank. I love how you bring perceived value and the relationship between the advertiser and the consumer up.

Cory Bergman

One theory is as people spend more time consuming digital media than traditional media, they’re consuming more on-demand and short-format content, which “net net” results in less time spent consuming media overall.

Marc Cohen

Consumers will always prefer their entertainment content free, regardless of the medium - old or new. Always bet on advertising supported content.

What do YOU think???

Tags:  digital media, new media, VSS, traditional media, Veronis Suhler Stevenson's Communications.

Misleading Information About New Media Used To Help Pay For Fogies’ Martini Lunches

I just read an article in MediaPost entitled, “Time Spent With Media Falters, Digital Spawns Shorter Attention Spans”  that covers a study by Veronis Suhler Stevenson's Communications.

My first question is, who commissioned this report?

Highlights

I do not feel like paying two grand for this report so I am going to have to comment on MediaPost’s extractions. If anyone wants to send me the report for free, I promise to read it.

"For example, consumers typically watch broadcast or cable television at least 30 minutes per session, while they spend as little as five to seven minutes viewing consumer-generated video,"

Fine this may be true (to a degree), but what does this really mean? Is this something advertisers should fear?

• Are modern consumers really glued to the TV for 30 minutes per session or are they getting up during commercials or just plain skipping them. Come on guys, this is total crap. If I am tied to the TV for 30 minutes it is because the show is 30 minutes long sans commercial

MediaPost then goes on to talk about how the study mentions a decline in ad supported media.

• Ummm. Did they ever stop to think that this is due to the fact that much of the advertising is irrelevant and consumers have learned how to avoid ad supported media where possible?

Then they say that the share of time spent with "media supported predominately by consumers" rose to 46.2%.

• I think the answer here is obvious. Advertisers, sponsor better content or learn how to operate in the new media ecosystem. Trust me, it can be done!

The report  postulates that we are becoming a less literate society due to the decline in print consumption

• What does this mean? First of all, people do read text in the digital media space. Second, I would say that we are more media literate than ever before.

Why This Study Bothers Me

Not having the actual study I cannot tell if it is the study itself, or Mediapost’s analysis of the study that cooks my goose. Here is a direct quote from MediaPost:

“THE RAPID SHIFT OF CONSUMERS toward digital media options for news, information and entertainment is producing an unintended consequence for all of the industry's stakeholders--especially advertisers: It's reducing the amount of time people spend with media. For the first time in recent memory, the amount of time consumers spend with media has declined, according to the 2007 edition of an influential industry report, which forewarns that the efficiency of using digital media is the primary factor.”

Come on guys…

Perhaps we should try and stifle the growth of digital media so that lazy execs (I know a lot of people in traditional media that I respect and I am not pointing a finger at the industry, rather I am point a finger at those people who want to leave work at 3 to go play golf while the digital folks stay at the office until midnight trying to figure out the future of advertising and marketing) can continue to enjoy martini lunches and executive golf outings.

Tags: mediapost, digital media, new media, VSS, traditional media, Veronis Suhler Stevenson's Communications.

We Just Can’t Get Enough Mobile This Summer at A MediaCirc.Us

Have I Been Fixated On Mobile Lately? :)

I ran my first mobile campaign in the early part pf 2006 for the New York Times and saw mediocre results (the campaign was not a failure by the standards of someone who values return on experimentation, but in terms of direct response, it was not great). Since that time I have been reluctant to advocate mobile campaigns to my clients, as I feel that the US market has not been ready to deal with data on their palmtops. This is beginning to change.

Sure, we are pretty savvy with SMS and MMS at this point (my mother MMS’ed me a photo from the Canadian Rockies, but she is a super mom), however data is still relatively expensive at this point. Besides, how memorable of an impression can you really make with SMS and how many brands (outside of entertainment) can get away with sending multimedia.

AMediaCirc.Us <3’s 360 Degree and Social Strategies

As I have alluded to in my Social Networking 2.M posts (here is part 2 of Social Networking 2.M) and discussion on mobile email, the promise of mobile for brands is in marketing, not advertising. We had a great conversation at AMediacirc.us in early July about mobile marketing versus mobile advertising and we got to hear from Dan Meehan and Richard Hurring amongst others.

The Bottom Line Is That Mobile Is Not A Strategy In, And Of Itself Dammit!

A Strategy Is A Strategy, Mobile Is One Vessel To Help Deliver A Strategy.

Mobile Broadband Users to Pass 1 Billion by 2012 with HSPA Accounting for Over 70%

I saw this press release this morning and thought about how near we were to a world of ubiquitous computing, and a world of ubiquitous computing is inevitably a world of ubiquitous marketing. To some (consumers who hate advertising and marketers who hate to work), this concept may sound like a nightmare, and to others it is a challenge.

• How do we market effectively in a world of ubiquitous marketing?


• How do we not bombard consumers in a world of ubiquitous marketing?


• How do we add value in a world of ubiquitous marketing?


• How do we stay consistent in a world of ubiquitous marketing?


• How do we tell meaningful stories in a world of ubiquitous marketing?

Let’s try and figure this one out. The future of marketing depends on it!

Tags: SMS, MMS, palmtop, AMediacirc.us, Richard Hurring, Mobile Email, Mobile, Mobile Marketing, Advertising, Dan Meehan, Social Networking 2.M, HSPA, Ubiquitous Computing, Ubiquitous Marketing

Nokia and Microsoft Play Nice With Mobile

Personal note to readers:

While I do not consider myself a technologist, technology plays an extremely important role in my job, as well my day to day activities (I suppose the latter is true for most of us).

I do not necessarily seek out technological movements in order to write about them on my Blog; however there is an inexorable tie between technology and marketing.

That being said I have been spending a lot of time talking about mobile, as the space is really hot right now and there is a great deal of movement within the space.

I would love to hear from you as to whether or not you feel I spend too much time on technology.

Now for some technology :)

Nokia Plays Nice With Microsoft

Nokia and Microsoft have strengthened their allegiance in the mobile space. Nokia will provide support for Microsoft’s Playready on various handsets. The two will also seek to enhance the consumer’s ability to access mobile content.

As part of the agreement, Nokia and Microsoft will also collaborate on expanding and simplifying consumer scenarios for accessing, experiencing and moving digital content using mobile devices

How will this shape the mobile content/mobile marketing ecosystem?

Microsoft is paving the way to create a powerful mobile distribution network. My question is how will the Telco’s play in this space? With walled gardens or “on deck” platforms becoming decreasingly relevant, will the wireless network providers be able to get a piece of the pie the Microsoft (and others) is baking, or will they return to their role as mere service providers?

Tags: microsoft, nokia, mobile, Playready, on deck

Can Amie St. Help Reinvent The Music Industry?

Head Over To Tech Crunch for the full write up on Amie St.'s recent round of funding by Amazon.

clipped from amiestreet.com clipped from amiestreet.com We know music is social, and finding new music needs to be fun. Music discovery is best served by communication between people, so we reward fans when they recommend songs to their friends by giving them credit to buy more music. Whether you spend two minutes or two hours on Amie Street you are connected to a world of music lovers discovering new music together.

A Post For One Of My Clients Dealing With A Topic We Recently Spoke About

Of course I will not say who the client is, but I will alert them to this post and subsequently the article (and they may also not know about Clipmarks, so it is a win-win-win) I figured that recommending an article via blog post would be an interesting way to go about doing things.

For more info on this topic, click on the sphere button.

clipped from publications.mediapost.com In analyzing the data, we found the most obvious change was a decline in the average order value (AOV) during the free shipping offer period. The magnitude of the decline varied, but there was a definite decline nonetheless. In January and March, the AOV declined by 2.2% and 3.1% respectively, while the decline in February was much larger at almost 20%. These AOV declines resulted in a concurrent decline in return on advertising spend (ROAS), a key performance metric for this campaign, during each of the offer periods. The decline in ROAS ranged from 30-70% during the free shipping periods, indicating a clear loss of efficiency during the promotional cycles.

Search 2.0 and Social Networking 2.0? (I have had enough 2.0!)

I think that the world is getting quite sick of products positioning themselves within the realm of meaningless new revision numbers.

In two press releases I read this morning the products I am about to talk about did just that.

Search 2.0?

On first glance this is no more than a Meta search engine with a slick interface. One second glance, I cannot it is much more than that. There is apparently more going on here, says Wookah’s press release:

Search 1.0 has:
- Sites ranked by algorithms and spiders
- Irrelevant results
- Search spam
- Many sites
- Many searches

Search 2.0 has:
- Pareto Principle (80/20 rule)
- Only the best sites
- No spam!
- Deep Search across multiple sites

I never say never and I love start-ups. I will keep my eye on this one, but for now, not sold.

Social Networking 2.0?

This technology is a bit more compelling to me, but I am not sure it is the product, or my own interpretation of the product that excites me.

In a less than pleasing interface, Zeptile is seeking to redefine Social Networking by thinking outside of the profile page. If I understand this correctly they are seeking to give people their own coordinate within a mosaic. Here is how it works:

• 
  

  When you enter the network you become a Zeptile (not sure I want to be one of those)

  
  


• 
  

  Along with your Zeptileship you get a zLoc

  
  

Every Zeptile has a zLoc, or Zeptile Location. It is the coordinate by which the Zeptile can be identified and located on the Social Networking Mosaic. A zLoc is basically a X/column and Y/row coordinate pair. zLocs are displayed in the form zLocX.zLocY (i.e. 511.511) where zLocX corresponds to the X/column coordinate and zLocY corresponds to the Y/row coordinate on the mosaic.

My zLoc is zLoc: 112.113…come find me :)

Now, to move away from negativity…

In theory I like what is being done here. In fact, it is very reminiscent of what has become of Second Life has become, and what Kaneva is doing (in a very roundabout way). While this social network is not 3D, it does give add a sense of space and place within a social network, and navigation throughout this network is not merely a series of hyperlinks.

Do I think that Zeptile will take off? Not unless they makes some serious changes to the interface and some really good partnerships, however this did stand out to me and I had to write about it.

Tags: social networking, search, search 2.0, web 3d, 3d, Wookah, Zeptile, zLoc, Mosaic, Second Life, Kaneva

Really Small Big Ideas

I AM SICK A MARKETERS SAYING "I WANT THE BIG IDEA"

What the hell does that mean anyhow?

A really small "big idea"...

I have been a listener of Joseph Jaffe’s Across the Sound since the beginning, and just when I think I have heard enough of this renegade marketer, he hits me over the head with some slick marketing moves (the master of making waves is back).

I realize the iPhone for an episode initiative has been going on for a while and I have not been a part of the conversation. Well, Leesa Barnes’ audio comment has sprung me into the conversation (if you want to hear her comment you will just have to listen to ATS #86. If you are not an ATS fan, sorry :) You may want to check it out).

First of all, the iPhone for an episode sponsorship was obviously a steal for Chip Griffin of Custom Scoop, the river of sponsorship has flowed from podcast to podcast to blog (you are reading one of them right now, free advertising anyone) and back. Chip got much more than a single show sponsorship; he got the ability to sponsor a whole conversation. Obviously this is what Jaffe was setting up from the start.

Now…on to Leesa.

Leesa, I am calling you out.

I think you know he will get the laptop and I think that you want him to get it for the sake of your book, and I love you for it!

In fact, I am a few conversations away from putting my money where all the mouth’s of this conversation are. Not for the sake of Jaffe getting a Macbook, but for the sake of The Conversation. If I can find a way to make it happen, I will make it happen (or look like a fool, I have no problem with that either).

Tags: Joseph Jaffe, Across The Sound, Leesa Barnes, iPhone For An Episode, Macbook Pro, conversation, iphone, Jaffe Juice

Elements Of A Semantic Web

While these definitions have nothing to do with the internet, you can see why it is important to for search engines to understand these concepts. I thought I would clip this and post it, as I found it interesting.

clipped from en.wikipedia.org Hypernym A word A is a hypernym (in Greek υπερνύμιον, literally meaning 'extra name') of another word B if A's meaning encompasses the meaning of B, that is, if B is a kind of A. For example, vehicle denotes all the things that are separately denoted by the words train, chariot, dogsled, airplane, and automobile and is therefore a hypernym of each of those words. A hypernym is the opposite of a hyponym. For example, plant is hypernymic to flower whereas tulip is hyponymic to flower. Hypernymy is the semantic relation in which one word is the hypernym of another. Hypernymy, the relation words stand in when their extensions stand in the relation of class to subclass, should not be confused with holonymy which is the relation words stand in when the things that they denote stand in the relation of whole to part. A similar warning applies to hyponymy and meronymy.

Feeling Sluggish--Drop A Load

Hey, there is nothing wrong with touting a core value of your product, even if it is slightly vile.

Tags: all bran, you tube

Boys vs. Girls--The Battle For Social Media

It may not be PC for me to say that social networks focused on fashion are mainly for females, however if you look at the demo info for sites such as StyleHive and ThisNext, you would probably see that this statement is fairly accurate.

Now that I got my disclaimer out of the way, lets look at the newest fashionista social network to hit the scene.

As you can see it is not just women gracing the pages of Stylemob :)

My concerns for sites such as these is, how well will they integrate with other social networks? With each launch of a new social network I think to myself, boy do I wish I had one digital identity. I cannot wait to see how this site turns out.

Tags: social networking, social network, social media, fashion, Stylehive, Thisnext, Stylemob, fashionista, digital identity

SEM Has Been Behavioral Before Behavioral Was Behavioral

Check out this great post by Jonathan Mendez. I especially like his notion of "cross experience optimization" although I am not sold that this is some manifestation of what he is refering to as Web 3.0. As of late, I have been hearing more and more people throw this around as a term refering to the semantic web. The semantic web however is not a new notion and has been a goal of web pioneers since day once. I am stil not sold we have reached the point where we can claim this goal as reality.

clipped from www.optimizeandprophesize.com The growth of the semantic web or web 3.0 will make cross-experience optimization an everyday feature of the web. In fact, it may be more than a feature of the web. It may be the very platform. Those marketers and agencies that know how to use the platform will be the winners. I don’t think these winners will come from a display background. Though display will have a key part in the holistic marketing conversation BT reaps its greatest rewards to intention, action or affinity.

WILL AOL NOW BE CALLED TMZ?

Perhaps it really is time for a re-branding.

clipped from www.billhartzer.com First, it was “America Online”. Then, in 2006, “America Online” changed its name to “AOL”. Now AOL will reportedly change its name, yet again, to TMZ.

E-Mail To Go

According to Gartner, by 2010, 20% of all email accounts will be mobile.  Unfortunately the findings do not point to the type of activities (sending, receiving, opening attachments such as multimedia) that consumers will engage in, but it does predict that mobile email will take share away from SMS. Does this mean email is not for old people after all? :)

What does this mean for marketers?

For one thing, it may behoove you to start to get into the habit of checking your email newsletters on various handsets. For me, the main place I read email newsletters is on the go. While everything looks good on an iPhone, this was not the case with my Blackberry Curve.

Here is another interesting sound bite from this report:

"Convergence will happen on the client side, hiding technology complexity from users and allowing them to focus on messaging content. By 2017, wireless email will be fully integrated with other messaging tools into personal, converged communications," added Basso.

I fully agree with this statement. The mobile phone will become eventually become a true palmtop computer (much like my iPhone) and users will increasingly find little differentiation in the common tasks they do from device to device.

As for content, I still believe content consumption will always be a different story on the palmtop computer. Place and time will always play a factor.

Tags: Gartner, SMS, Mobile, MMS, iPhone, Convergence, Palmtop, Marketing, Blackberry, Curve

The Sobytiinost’ Meme Continues

(pre-requisite reading :) ). Much of my interest in the concept of "eventness" is due to Brad, so I recommend heading to his blog and seeing what he has to say first.

Brad Berens of Mediavorous and iMediaconnection always has a way of challenging me that extends the conversation started on both my blog and the articles that I write for iMedia. These types of challenges are the reason that I write, so for all of you who want to challenge anything I write about, bring it on!

In reaction a recent article that I wrote Brad wrote an incredibly insightful post. Here is an excerpt from that post:

The excess, the eventfulness, happens in what ISN’T recorded for posterity. It’s not enough for one avatar to meet another avatar that happens to be worn by Rachel Leigh Cook.  What makes it eventful is what’s happening elsewhere in the user’s life and consciousness that complements, extends, distracts or disrupts the Rachel Leigh Cook encounter. Cognitive oscillation of focus between the encounter and the context of the encounter is what will make something truly memorable.

As always, Brad has a great point!

In my article, I focus more on the central force of an event that I use to exemplify my point. While this central focus is of critical importance to making the event a success, it is not necessarily critical in providing the necessary components for “Sobytiinost’”. These components may never be fully known, for as Brad writes, they are not necessarily recorded. They are comprised of the social interactions that occur beyond the core event. They occur within the context of the event.

It is still pretty early in the morning and I have a ton of work to do today (as well a big meeting in Stamford) so I am left with a question that I wish to throw out to Brad and the rest of the AMediaCirc.us crew while I ponder it throughout the day.

How can the context of an event be leveraged (for marketers) in the interactive space in such a way that takes full advantage of the medium?

Online, in a more static environment contextual targeting can be employed fairly easily and can be pretty effective (i.e. Adsense). I have also seen attempts to create dynamic advertising in Second Life based context, but as you can see, it is far from perfect.

I will continue to think about this but I can use your help!

Tags: Brad Berens, Eventness, Adsense, Second life, Sobytiinost, Contextual Advertising, Contextual, iMedia, iMediaconnection

Nielsen Changes Approach, Comscore Follows Suite

It is undeniable that time spent is a much more valuable metric of measuring the online space than impressions. It looks like Comscore finally agrees.

clipped from www.ft.com ComScore refines web metrics system Published: July 25 2007 18:18 | Last updated: July 25 2007 18:18 By Carlos Grande ComScore, a leading measurer of website audiences, is refining its system to help advertisers avoid bombarding a minority of heavy online users and missing less active surfers.

Virtual Roundup For July 26

So You Think Virtual Worlds Are A Fad, Do Ya?

I am sick of hearing all this worthless, Second Life bashing. I was about to list all of the fair-weather journalists who were praising Second Life 8 months ago, and are now bashing Second Life. You know know what, those are the people that really need a life! Look at the bigger picture that is glaring at you from the gorgeous eyes of your children. (had to get that out of the way, now on to some news).

More Great Stuff  From MTV

MTV continues to prove their belief in the power of  virtual worlds and transmedia storytelling with a new initiative for their hit show, "The Hills". MTV once again proves they understand how to monetize a franchise. This new initiative is based on the release of the 2nd season of show:

By pre-ordering the DVD, you'll receive an invitation to enjoy an exclusive Virtual Hills viewing party on Friday, August 10 at 6 p.m. ET - with Lauren and Audrina - in which you get a VIP advanced screening of the third season premiere of "The Hills," three days before its television premiere on Monday, August 13 at 10 p.m. ET/PT.

Brilliant  entertainment, franchise marketing!

Wallace and Gromit 2.0

Ok, this has nothing to do with Wallace and Gromit (what a shame) but it is brought to you by the makers of the our favorite claymation characters, Aardman Animations. Have a look at their new virtual world called, WebbliWorld. Like many of the other virtual worlds aimed at children Webbliworld has its own currency, Webbles. If you are lucky you may even be the worlds first WebbliOnaire (ok guys,  c'mon :) ). I have not signed up for this one yet. Maybe later today.

Virtual Fashion

I am a little late with this one, but it is still cool. Have a look at what H&M is doing with the Sims. I thought it was pretty interesting they decided not to work with Second Life, and you know, it may have been a smart move.

Finally, head over to Virtual World News for an in depth discussion with There.come CEO, Michael Wilson

Tags: there.com, second life, wallace and gromit, Michael Wilson, Virtual Worlds News, virtual worlds, MTV, virtual hills, Webbliworld, the sims, H&M, WebbliOnaire, Webbles, Aardman Animations