Three Minds On Digital Marketing @ Organic

Brand advocacy is a term that is thrown around a lot within the social media spectrum. Conversations usually center on finding brand advocates who will serve as a social media lightning rod and generate an avalanche of user-generated content from a community based on their actions. Marketers are just as likely to find these mythical advocates as they are to track down Big Foot riding a unicorn.

Igniting a social media avalanche does benefit greatly by finding exceptional advocates; however, marketers can't simply rely on finding the right catalysts to spark success. Here are five myths brands need to free themselves from before they can deploy a successful brand advocacy program:
   
1.  They aren't out there looking for you.

Guess what? People have been sharing tips and advice on products brands they use and love long before advertisers realized the power of word-of-mouth (WOM) marketing. Consumers will continue to do so regardless of a brand's interaction, to help their friends, being acknowledged for their expertise, and sharing something they have found. It's the brands that need these people to help them authenticate and speak to potential customers they can't reach with ad dollars. However, marketers cannot expect these advocates to fall into their lap. If marketers don't have a CRM program, a strategy to reach out to bloggers and loyalists in niche forums, or any other venue for consumers to raise their voice, then you don't have a brand advocacy strategy.
   
2.  Some of your best advocates might not be your current customers.

What many brands fail to realize is that sometimes advocacy has nothing to do with a particular product and everything to do with a lifestyle. People who love Jeep, for example, may be fans of the brand in spirit as they associate with the car maker's branded outdoor adventure lifestyle long before, and even long after, they are owners of the vehicle. Some of your brand's biggest loyalists might not be talking about the company at all but talking about other products or activities that fit in with this lifestyle, including GPS devices, off-road trails and quality tires. While a truly great advocate will be able to speak about a product passionately and authentically, marketers shouldn't limit their search to current customers.
   
3.  It's not the size of your pool of fans, it's how you use them.

Coca-cola has 4 million fans. FAGE Greek Yogurt has 36K fans. Does that mean that Coca-cola is over 100 times more successful than FAGE in terms of brand advocacy? Well, that depends. What is the value of an advocate for Coca-cola versus FAGE or any other brand for that matter? I find myself asking, what does Coca-cola even need a Facebook fan page for? Coca-cola does not lack in awareness, but the purchase decision is largely made in the last steps at the grocery store as the result of a sale or coupon or is tied to beverage brand loyalty. But for FAGE, a small-time yogurt brand without much awareness, each one of their 36K fans could represent an opportunity for a new customer, coupon-pusher or a new voice piece to spread awareness to their circle of friends.
   
4.  A Facebook fan does not directly equate to a brand advocate.

For many people, becoming a "fan" of a brand on Facebook is as meaningful as acquiring a new bumper sticker or a patch on a heavily collaged backpack. It's a symbol of a lifestyle, it's a funny statement to their friends and is as temporarily interesting as the flow of the newsfeed that day. Ninety percent of the time a user spends on Facebook is in the newsfeed, so after they hit that "fan" button they likely will never return to your fan page. So while your fan page might say 10,000 "fans," that doesn't mean you have 10,000 "advocates." What it does mean, however, is that you have as many as 10,000 opportunities - but realistically probably much fewer - to create advocacy.
   
5.  Recognition, while always important, is not one-size-fits-all
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Some advocates are altruistic, so in love with your brand and what it means to them that they aren't particularly looking for a reward. Others need to be motivated by the allure of something a little extra to come out of their shell. In either case, recognition can't hurt as it lets people know their participation is appreciated as they further the brand's awareness goals. However, approaches to recognition are not one-size-fits-all, as they have to be evaluated closely by audience and by industry. In other words, what does your audience want? The prize of "front page of YouTube" exposure that might appeal to the 18-year-old girl posting a video of herself singing about a new energy drink is likely going to terrify the middle-aged man or woman opening up about their use of incontinence products. Both should be rewarded, but not in the same way.

With the right mixture of targeting, motivation and recognition marketers can create the wave of user-generated content and goodwill that they crave from their social media strategies. There are many ways to do this but developing a stable of knowledgeable evangelists is a boon to marketers. Rather than simply locating brand advocates, marketers must also inspire evangelists within their community by delivering fun, engaging social media experiences to create a thriving online community. Once a community is effectively promoting members from within to carry the brand torch, marketers can claim victory in the social media space.

Marta Strickland

Editor's Note: This piece originally appeared in DM News.

The President of the United States responded to questions from the public in a live YouTube interview at the White House on Monday, February 1st, at 1:45 p.m EST.
 
When all was said and done, it brought in almost 800,000 votes on 14,464 questions from 64,968 questions. Not bad, but I would have expected much more from somebody running the country.

I suspect because it was so poorly advertised. I heard about it from colleague Craig Ritchie the morning of the broadcast. Russ Hopkinson mentioned he saw it on Google's home page "in the same way they are advertising the results now... in a one liner below the search bar."

Citizen Tube reports that people "submitted over 11,000 questions and cast over 667,000 votes after the President's State of the Union address last week." When I viewed the live stream around 2 p.m. it had only received a handful more than 47,000 votes.

Bridget McKinley agrees about the lack of publicity. "I didn't hear about it until people were tweeting about the answers. And I'm a political and media junkie. Not well publicized/marketed at all..."

I'm perturbed at the reason for this. What makes Jason Derulo's "Whatcha Say" video more popular (at 31,970,491 views) than getting your own question asked by the President?

Has President Obama outdone his digital presence?

Sarah Jo Sautter

image credit: smcgee [Flickr]

Five minutes after my daughter was born, I was running around the delivery room to grab my Canon 40D and iPhone to take pictures. A minute later, I was uploading my iPhone 3G photos to Facebook. Within five minutes, I had shared this moment - these near term "memories" - with over 600 Facebook friends, but that wasn't enough. I needed to use my Flip to take some video, which I'd upload to Flickr for my mom and dad, who live in California.

As my wife and I wheeled towards to maternity ward, I felt an impulse to capture all of these moments and reach out to my friends via email and Facebook -- not to brag, but just to share in the thrill of it all.

When I settled down to sleep that night, I took stock of my incredible day, without question the best of my life, but I wondered to myself: to what degree did I live the day to the fullest versus trying to capture it via a viewfinder? I remembered two months earlier attending my second cousin's 1st birthday. It too was a joyous, great event, but I smiled to myself as I saw all the parents scrambling to capture the perfect shots, for a single photo might have missed something. At the time, I thought they had "missed" something - the event itself and perhaps participating in it in real time, choosing to use the latest technology to be able to appreciate it later.

It could just be me believing that with my unswerving faith in progress and technology - with the endless possibility of capturing (photo, video, text, image, etc.) and sharing (via blog, Tweet, Facebook status update) - that I am capturing and sharing more than I am living and enjoying the moment.

As I watched the recent Paul McCartney DVD of his performances at CitiField, with the audience aglow in digital cameras, it became somewhat clear that I'm not alone.

Consequently, I think I'm going to start trying to "carpe diem" instead of "capture diem"... that is right after I post this blog post, so everyone can know what I'm thinking.

Jonathan Cohen

Editor's Note: Congratulations to Jonathan Cohen on the birth of his daughter

In the past few years, numerous businesses have popped up offering innumerable products and services for the Internet catering to the business traveling set. As a pretty frequent business traveler, I have benefited from services like GoGo inflight wireless as well as Wi-Fi from a variety of providers inside airports. I can buy books via wireless, check my Facebook profile, send emails and even watch videos on YouTube via my iPhone. And I do, frequently!

The problem is such constant Internet connection inevitably leads to the need for electricty, and as most computer and wireless device users know, there's never enough. You might be able to access Wi-Fi on Virgin America, Delta or American (not everywhere), but you'll probably have a great challenge with a drained battery.

In fairness, Virgin offers 110V outlets - 2 per row of 3 seats - but if you're last to break out your device, you have to delicately ask to "power share". At most airports, it's often a struggle to find power (though I must give kudos to US Air at LaGuardia, which has power stations at each bank of seats); in other airports, I've seen countless travelers sitting on the ground, connected to an outlet most likely placed to power cleaning machinery. This is not particularly convenient, even if you're fortunate enough to spot a free one.

Having spent 3 days at the hospital after my daughter was born, I was struck by how such a great hospital (NYU - amazing doctors and nurses!) lacked outlets in patient recovery rooms. I have been in ICU units where the use of wireless devices are prohibited, but not in a maternity ward, where moms and dads are constantly connected via mobile phones and email devices. I was able to find an outlet next to the area which piped oxygen to patients in need. [Again, I know this is low priority to having the best in healthcare.]

There are other examples where access to power is lacking and definitely more in demand: restaurants, coffee shops, etc. where one might want to connect.

Nice observation, strategy guy. So now what?

I think that there is an as-yet unmet opportunity for individual businesses, electricity utility companies and maybe these Wi-Fi businesses to partner to develop an offering that will undoubtedly be an ever-increasing consumer need. The demand for broadband access might be unquenchable, but knowing that devices will have finite power and require an electric umbilical cord, I believe there is an amazing opportunity to develop an offering. I'd first work on business travelers whose livelihoods often depend on connectivity while on the road.

Jonathan Cohen

Image Credit: estacey [Flickr]
Maybe you won't have time to read this entire post.

Once you christen something as a "movement," somehow it's more legitimate. It instantly becomes something that can be debated, passed along, and adopted. For me in the case of Slow Media, this was a particularly exciting addition to an already crowded Slow movement.

Most sources point to the Slow movement starting with a protest against the opening of a McDonald's restaurant in Rome in 1986, and the founding of the Slow Food organization as a result. Soon added to the club were Design, Cities, Schools, Money, Travel, and the list goes on. So when looking at all things Slow, it starts to feel like the idea is quite simply "Slow World." While the educational value and cultural shifts are already apparent, the larger the Slow concept becomes, the less it feels like an activated movement for change.

That's why I like Slow Media. The naming of these ideas consolidates a wide swath of technological, cultural, philosophical and spiritual debates into a more digestible concept that is expressly personal to a large amount of people living in the first world, and more importantly it speaks directly to the creators and purveyors of the content and channels we experience every day.

The stated goal of the Slow movement in general is "to address the issue of 'time poverty' through making connections," which for Slow Media is a perfect fit.

Slow media is largely about technology, encompassing arguments that have mostly been classified as nostalgic, such as vinyl vs. digital audio. But it's not just about mediums; it's about response time in communication, such as writing letters on paper vs. email. The speed of access to information changes the standard for knowledge, and leads to a culture that feels an obligation to expertise. We are teaching people to be shy about asking verbal questions in the age of Google. The traditional academic culture finds itself questioning its relevance. Expectations change, the basest kinds of cognition change. Social skills and the oldest of social contracts change, everything changes. Sigh.

So what's the problem? Just "roll with it," right? Most of this could be cast as a much-needed overhaul of the way we think and interact. The positive impacts of technology can be weighed against the negative, but the idea of Slow Media isn't really a global condemnation of technology, as much as it is a long overdue exploration of the human consequences. And in an era where the response seems to be that nothing can be done to change the way we communicate and ingest media, you'd assume the technology is predestined to accelerate the culture, with results that are out of our control. Transhumanists please forgive me, but there's another way.

So many of the specific human consequences of Fast Media are fairly well known, with much being written and researched in the context of social skills, mental health, global culture. And it's an ongoing debate that reaches all aspect of politics and culture from genetic ethics to prison reform. What isn't talked about as often are the "X factors" of human development, the unseen neural pathways and vestigial functions of human consciousness. The reason we don't talk about it is that much of it remains theoretical, and it's difficult to pin down a cause to an effect.

One interesting way to think about Slow Media is to ask the question "How much of what we've lost can be replaced?" how many of the systems we've developed over a 5 million year development cycle were working in concert with the world we experienced before technology? Is there a reason that some of us are finding it hard to live simple and full lives in the new framework, or is it simply a trait which leads to an inability to adapt, which some would argue sets us up to be selected out? We are not Luddites, we are not techno-terrorists. We simply want to be happy. Maybe we do need to be selected out (of the culture). But that doesn't mean we won't reproduce...

Forget big, intimidating problems of global responsibility and think of it as a personal health crisis. And then, if you will, think of how a health crisis can be monetized. Picture entire Slow communities, safe zones, sub-networks that practice the idea of Slow in general. Picture the brands that see experience through this lens. How can they use Slow Media to sell you a paradigm shift? Will your phone really always be the first thing you see in the morning, that last thing you see at night? It helps you remember, and it helps you forget? It's the thing you depend on most? Seriously? How true is this right now? More importantly, do you want it to be true?

*For an interesting take on this subject and the Western worldview, check out The Spell of the Sensuous, by David Abram.

Nick Sternberg

Google recently released Goggles which is arguably the broadest reaching AR program available to date. If you are not familiar, it allows you to do two things:

1. Snap a photo of anything and automatically search for results based on images and text within the photo
2. See location and direction specific google maps results by pointing your camera in any direction

The potential of this tool is that of most augmented reality: quick, easy and highly relevant information. This is also another avenue (along with voice recognition software) for mobile devices without a keypad to access search functionality. To see Google's description of benefits check out the video here.

From my tests the text processing works well so things like book covers, business card, and anything with a URL on it return useful results. Goggles was able to identify flat logos but had much more trouble with 3D object logos, for example it immediately identified a Dodge logo on a sticker, but was not able to identify the Dodge logo on the grill of a Nitro.

While many augmented reality apps have been released recently, Goggles is the strongest indication that augmented reality is coming to the masses quickly. If using the camera on you mobile device to gather information and navigate on foot becomes a commonly adopted behavior this has significant implications to marketers.

How Google Goggles Could Impact Marketing
Many things can be done (or not done) with regard to products and storefronts to provide more value to customers and make shopping easier. An analogy is the way natural search, paid search, and search engine optimization work in concert. Users will see naturally occurring results regardless of where they are.

At some point in the future those results could have paid listing next to them or could be enhanced in some way. For example if a person is walking down the street looking for a place to get a coffee they see a Starbucks .25 miles away and next to that appears an ad for Mom and Pop Coffee Shop .5 miles away. So the person is made aware of a local option just a little further away.

Finally products and store fronts will be able to be optimized to better market themselves. For example logos could be optimized to be easily photographable (make them 2D not 3D). Search results could be specific to a model number to provide end users the most important information. For example if I were in market for a new car and saw one that I liked on the street photographing the trim level/logo could return results of fast it accelerates, the mpg and the cost if search results were properly optimized.

My guess is that Layers on Google maps will offer a lot of opportunities for augmented reality marketing through Goggles. Definitely a product to watch over the next year.

Russ Hopkinson
@rhops

The last century has seen a rapid urbanization of the world's population. In 1900 only 13%, but now more than half of all people live in urban areas. Cities are facing dramatic changes in how they adapt to their rising populations and effectively provide services for the people and businesses that they need to feed their economic growth. Cities are also hubs for much of today's innovation, and the future success of cities is in the hands of those who plan, design and manage the public spaces and functions of the city.

The World Design Capital is a biennial city promotion project by the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (ICSID) to highlight the accomplishments of cities that leverage design as a tool to improve the social, cultural and economic life in the city. In 2008, Turin, Italy was chosen to be the first ever World Design Capital, and next year it's Seoul, South Korea, who get to throw a yearlong program of design-related events.

And at the end of last month in its meeting in Singapore, ICSID announced that the next Design Capital, in 2012, is Helsinki, Finland. In total, there were 46 cities from 27 countries that applied for the designation. With a long history and culture of elegant design and strong public funding for high-tech infrastructure, Helsinki has for decades been using design as "a pivotal enabler to building an open city", according to the ICSID press release. Despite the country's small population, Finland and Helsinki as its capital have established an impressive line of well-known global brands, such as Nokia, Kone and Marimekko, architects and designers such as Eliel Saarinen and Alvar Aalto, and highly acclaimed education and research institutions. The city says its main goal for 2012 is to embed good design in the life of every resident by inviting all citizens, enterprises and organizations in Helsinki, as well as visiting design professionals and enthusiasts, to participate in the preparations and the events.

VIDEO: Open Helsinki - Embedding Design in Life

What would be your own Design Capital of the World, and why? Do you have examples of cities around the world that have successfully enhanced the lives of their residents through effective urban planning and everyday design?

Karri Ojanen

Last week was a pretty big week for gamers. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 had record opening sales. It made $310 million in one day. I'll repeat that. It made $310 million in one day. Activision, the maker of Call of Duty franchise, attributes the success to the CoD brands uniquely engaging experience-a combination of compelling story line and rich cinematic feel.

That was the second time last week that I heard "cinematic" being used to reference a video game. The other being PS3s Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. I've been hearing a lot about this game over the past few months. It's won 15 gaming awards. IGN.com rated Uncharted 2 at 9.5 (it's also an editors choice). And I also read one article where the writer bought a new TV just so he could enjoy the full visual splendor that Uncharted 2 unleashes.

So how amazing is Uncharted 2? Well, after playing for two hours and switching back to television (in HD no less) I thought my cable was broke because the picture looked so bad. Now, I'm not trying to compare the look of Uncharted 2 to Iron Chef, that's not fair to the production team behind kitchen stadium. I guess I'm just saying Uncharted 2 is gorgeous and one of the best looking video games I've ever seen. Oh, and it's fun as hell to play too.

image credit: jc5083

6 Ways Employee Social Media Freedom Benefits An Employer

The Social Media Revolution is seeping into the workplace and employers are nervous. According to social web blogger David Armano, approximately 70% of organizations ban social networks devices. USA Today reports a lower amount but still: an October 22nd, 2009 survey shows 54% of businesses are banning social media from the workplace. Fears and worry about decreased productivity and/or risk exposure seem to be resulting in microcosms of censorship within workplaces.  We all know how well that turned out for East Germany.  

Unless companies are trying to create a Dilbert-like workplace environment of mistrust and oppression, banning social media is simply not a good idea. In fact, allowing employees to access social media could actually result in many benefits for the employer.  Here's how:

Team Building and Camaraderie
US employers spend billions on employee team building activities like picnics, holiday parties and team building exercises. Allowing employees to participate in the virtual water-cooler dialogue of social media - gives them a chance to bond and find subjects they can relate to - free of cost to the employer. Studies show the main reason employees stay in jobs (or leave jobs) is due to their level of satisfaction with co-worker relationships. Social media allows employees to find a common bond and enhance the relationships with those they work.

Productivity Benefits from Brain Breaks
A Discovery magazine article reports that neuroscientists at MIT have confirmed: taking breaks helps us learn and be more productive. A 2006 study observed rats pausing after exploring an unfamiliar maze. The neuroscientists theorize the rats are using the break to re-trace their steps in the maze for memory purposes - thus leading to better productivity during the next maze run. Another example: educators can confirm first-hand the benefits of sending students to recess - and the chaotic results if kids don't get their downtime.

Social media is the equivalent of workplace recess. Mind breaks lead to employee satisfaction and better productivity. This results in increased morale, reduced employee stress, low absenteeism and more engaged, healthier employees.  All of these employee traits help the company bottom line.

On-the-Job Training
Social media can serve as a virtual think tank.  If an employee is embarking upon a new project and needs advice from her peers, it's as easy as posting a question to their social networks. Many professional groups are established on LinkedIn or Facebook and offer a venue for discussion and the opportunity to post specific questions. Polls and surveys enable virtual focus groups. Employees can easily follow subject matter experts on a site like Twitter for a RSS-like feed of relevant content. While many companies offer organized mentoring programs, with social media, employees can choose their own on-line advisor for guidance and knowledge share.

Trust and Transparency
If Facebook were a country, it would be the 4th largest. In September 2009, Facebook reached over 300 million active users. Gen Yer's continue to rely less on email and more on social media to communicate. Banning employees from this widespread communication tool is akin to telling your employees they can't use the phone for personal calls or e-mail friends and family.  It's a signal your company is oppressive and in the dark ages. With the sale of smart-phones on the rise, it's likely that employees would access their social media sites on their mobile anyway - creating an environment of concealment and mistrust.  

Allowing employees to access social media communicates: "We trust you're mature and know when enough is enough."  For employees that do abuse their time on social media, managers and HR departments should address the issue on an individual level - similar to any other performance problem like absenteeism, low productivity or work quality.

Listening / Monitoring
Much like many brands are monitoring customers to address satisfaction issues, employers can apply the same model.  If employees are complaining about their employer on social media, it might hurt a corporate brand - but it at least allows the employer a chance to address complaints or dissatisfaction.  

Many companies conduct internal employee surveys to evaluate morale and employee satisfaction. As an alternative, HR or Marketing staff could consider following and creating user lists / groups of employees on social sites to easily monitor conversation. Or, using a monitoring tool like Seesmic or Tweetdeck on Twitter allows an employer to continuously monitor keywords - like your company name - and immediately address unfavorable messaging. Caution: if your workplace doesn't offer a culture of transparency and openness, employees could misconstrue this as employer stalking.  

Brand Evangelists
Just like unhappy employees complain about their jobs, happy employees love to share their positive workplace experience. And, 78% of consumers trust peer recommendations over a brand's marketing efforts. That holds true for the workplace as well: happy, well-performing employees will attract similar employees - a huge recruiting benefit.

The key for happy tweeps and happy tweets is creating a culture and environment that an employee feels like they can contribute and express themselves. A satisfied employee will be an advocate for your company, might share job openings with their friends and boast about the latest accomplishments. You can't buy that kind of press. Employers that embrace social media and provide employees with a simple policy, best practices, legal no-no's and basic usage / etiquette training will create an environment of openness with lower risk to the employer.  

The fall of the Berlin Wall 20 years ago is a poignant analogy of how closing off people to outside connection ultimately fails.  And it's begging the question: How permanent are your social media firewalls?

Traci Armstrong, Director, Talent Acquisition
@tannarmstrong

Editor's Note: A version of this post originally appeared in Advertising Age November 16, 2009.