Advertising Ourselves to Death

Starbucks Digital Network points the way

Originally posted on BBDO Incite.

Starting this week the wired set is getting far more than free WiFi at Starbucks, and just about every business should be paying attention.

It’s called the Starbucks Digital Network and it started rolling out Wednesday. The network is actually a joint effort with Yahoo! which knows a thing or two about aggregating content.

The first sign that something has changed will come when you sign on to AT&T Wi-Fi at any Starbucks. It’s been free for awhile, but now logging onto the network will bring up a page of digital goodness. You’ll get a choice of content, some drawn from common sources like the The New York Times and the Weather Channel. But there’s also a lot of stuff you’d typically have to pay for, like full access to the Wall Street Journal, music and video downloads and free ebooks (and not just from authors you’ve never hear of before).

There’s also a wide range of content from more niche sources, like Runners World, and the Career Coach. And there’s an option to check in on Foursquare, just in case you want friends to come interrupt your reading time.

It didn’t take a lot of research to understand how this might appeal to Starbucks customers, just spend a moment looking at what people are doing while sipping their latte. But there is a real genius to this new offering.

For several years Starbucks has been a leading arbiter of music with its CD sales. Ask any artist what it means to get their disc on the counter at Starbucks. Now it has created a digital storefront that can only be accessed while in the bricks and motar locations. Content providers looking for quick access to a highly desirable audience will be beating a path to get on one of the six channels.

So now take a look around your business. What would your customers trust you to make available to them? Recommendations on mobile apps? Maybe independent films or new music? The digital channel takes so much of the cost out of the equation that just about any business can build a case to broker content to its customers. If your success is tied to time spent inside your shop then the need is even clearer.

Others have stepped tentatively into this space before, but Starbucks just delivered a compelling example of why value added digital content is worth its weight in gold.

Collateral damage or target of opportunity?

Originally posted on BBDO Incite.

There’s a nasty battle playing out along the eastern seaboard between Fox Network and Cablevision.

There’s nothing new in the issues. Fox wants Cablevision to pay more for its programming. Cablevision said no. So Fox yanked its programming from Cablevision networks leaving more than 3 million fans in the New York area without access to the National League baseball playoffs. I’m sure the timing was just coincidental.

This, however, was not. When people using Cablevision Internet access tried to find diversion by watching Hulu they were told to bug off. Fox, as part owner of Hulu, decided that if Cablevision customers couldn’t watch their programming on TV they darn sure weren’t going to see it online. And in that decision Fox opened a Pandora’s box of problems.

Let’s start with some basics. The dispute was over programming fees for cable television. No Internet service provider pays for the content you access. If you want to pay for content that’s between the site and you. More importantly this was free to everyone, unless you happen to be on a Cablevision IP address.

Then there was the problem of people who use Cablevision for Internet, but not television, like DishTV or DirecTV subscribers. But the real issue here is that all of a sudden Fox showed the vengeance that opponents of media conglomerates have warned us all to fear.

Play “What If” for a moment. What if your favorite radio station wanted Ford to pay more for its ads, and Ford said no. The logical answer would be that Ford ads don’t run on that station. But Fox’s example suggest that Ford then prevents that station’s its signal from being played on any Ford on the road. Play it out and things get ugly quickly.

Fox later relented, although it insist it had the right to take the action. But now law makers, the FCC, and plenty of attorneys are pouring into the fray. Sadly, none of that put the genie back in the bottle. It seems that we’ve only seen the opening salvo in this battle.

No MBA needed, just be kind

Originally posted on BBDO Incite.

It turns out all the most important elements of sales you learned in kindergarten, maybe even pre-school. That’s right, for all the brilliance of advertising, insight of research and heroics of sales force management, if we don’t remember to be kind, the rest doesn’t matter.

Case in point, Bill Taylor, co-founder of Fast Company magazine tells the powerful tale of his father shopping for a new car. A life-long Cadillac buyer, his father got a cold shoulder when he went to ask for a $1,000 discount that expired the day before. We’ve all heard this part before, rules are rules and the customer be damn.

But this story goes much further. Spurned by his beloved brand, Bill’s father went to check out the competition. Time and again the Buick dealer demonstrated common sense. While Bill’s father had the car for an extended test-drive he was rushed to the hospital. Again the dealer stepped up big.

As he was lying in his hospital bed, thinking about whatever it is we think about in these moments, he realized that the Buick Lacrosse was sitting in his garage! So he called the dealer from the hospital and asked how he could get the car back. “Don’t worry about the car,” he said. “Just get better.” And the next morning, what should arrive at the hospital but a lovely bouquet of flowers and a nice note from the Buick dealer!

So, consider this. Obviously the Buick dealer made the sale. But here you are reading about it (not to mention all the people who read it originally on the Havard Business Review Blog), shaking your head about the Cadillac dealer. How many other stories like this will you see? And how much investment in advertising goes out the window each time?

Ask yourself, why is it so hard for people to remember to Be Kind? Then think about what you’ve done to reiterate that lesson.

Cynicism, teens and online programs

Originally posted on BBDO Incite

My 15-year-old daughter made a comment at dinner last night that sent a shiver down my spine. We were talking about Facebook applications and how companies use them to create or reinforce a connection with their customers.

“Are apps those things that pop up a box I have to check giving it permission or something? Because I never do that. I just change the page.” Talk about a sucker punch.

But my daughter is not alone. It turns out she’s just reflecting her peers. A new survey from Common Sense Media, a social advocacy group, paints a pretty harsh picture of how teens view the media we rely on to connect with them.

• 88% believe search engines watch their browsing habits and sell that information
• 79% believe social networks sell their personal information
• 68% think that games like Farmville are guilty of the same

That’s a pretty harsh assessment of an online world where this generation spends hours at a time. But it shouldn’t be surprising since they’ve been told since early childhood of all the terrible things that can happen to them online.

In fact the same poll found that 75% of the parents were convinced that social networks weren’t doing enough to protect their kids privacy. And a stunning 92 percent believed their kids share too much information online.

So what’s a marketer to do? It’s hardly time to walk away from Facebook, nor could any responsible agency recommend it. But it is a stark reminder that just because we CAN do something on Facebook, doesn’t mean we SHOULD. Nor does it mean consumers will play along.

Privacy has always been a huge concern. When planning a campaign it’s more imperative than ever to make sure there’s a clear and compelling value equation for the consumer. And every online program should have a clearly defined step in the process that explains to the consumer why you are asking for their information, what it will make possible to do for them, and how or if you will use that information going forward.

And remember, always say please.

Ok Go Leads The Rebellion

Remember this video?

The band is Ok-Go, a quirky group of guys who create odd songs and even more eclectic videos. That one was viewed more than 50 million times after being posted on YouTube, mostly embedded on other sites. In fact 90% of the viewings came from the embedded YouTube player, not on YouTube.com according to the band.

Now, have you seen this? No? That’s the official music video for the band’s new song. It’s only been seen 940,000 times in just over a month. The bean counters at EMI, the band’s label, won’t let them share the video the same way. So if you want to see the video you have to go to YouTube.com. For a band that made it’s name with viral videos this sucked. And the band’s leader said so, in a New York Times Op-Ed piece.

“Viral content doesn’t spread just from primary sources like YouTube or Flickr. Blogs, Web sites and video aggregators serve as cultural curators, daily collecting the items that will interest their audiences the most. By ignoring the power of these tastemakers, our record company is cutting off its nose to spite its face.”

Enter an unlikely ally, State Farm Insurance. Like many companies it was looking for a way to connect with younger prospective customers. What if they sponsored a video, paying for production costs and the royalties lost through viral networking? And the idea for the video was much bigger than the label’s version, a warehouse-size Rube Goldberg machine, created by NASA and CalTech engineers. Which leads to this:

This is the second video of the same song, “This Too Shall Pass”, a particularly appropriate thought since this video is now wildly successful. There have been 3.4 million views in less than 72 hours. Two million times people have seen the video, State Farm’s logo on the little truck and a heartfelt thank you in the credits. There’s another 300,000 views of a series on how the video was made, all with State Farm branding.

It’s a brilliant strategy by the band and nimble action on the part of State Farm. While terms of the deal haven’t been released, it was the band that approached State Farm, and gave them a seat at the creative process in exchange for the sponsorship. The fact that the band has openly told EMI what to do with its policies and found away around them isn’t lost on State Farm’s target market.

Why State Farm? The band’s leader is a policy holder.

For more, here's a brief interview with the director. Can you imagine resetting for 60 takes?!

I am here. Do you care?

Does anyone care where you are right now? Do they need to know exactly where you’re stopping for coffee, lunch or drinks? Apparently so, as we watch an explosion of tools coming online that let you make sure the world knows exactly where you are. (Remember when privacy was an issue?)

Today Google announced Google Buzz, which is part Facebook status, part Twitter and soon to be part Foursquare. It’s intended to let you use existing tools like Gmail and Google Maps to plug into your social networks. Like Facebook, you can use it to post your ponderings or witty comment. Like Yelp and Foursquare you will be able to track where you are and share that with those following you.

Earlier this month Apple acquired Quattro which does location-based marketing, then prohibited other companies from building location-based advertising into their apps (http://tcrn.ch/c5w8Va).  Meanwhile Foursquare, which allows you to check in from locations and achieve status based on your frequency, is signing deals with content companies like Zagat (http://tcrn.ch/cDMrh7). That puts them in direct competition with review sites like Yelp, which recently added a check-in feature to its iPhone app.

Why do you care? Because marketing is about to get hyper local. Your phone is a beacon that will allow networks and technology-based advertisers to pop you ads based on where you are at that moment. The message can be time sensitive (good for the next 10 minutes) or based on social network input (stop in, 10 of your friends are already here).

There’s a big change coming in mobile marketing. The dominate player may not even be on our radar yet. But regardless we have to start thinking about how our clients will figure in to the evolution.

This Is Not A Blog Post

Ok, well maybe it is. But I have to say I am drawing great inspiration from a campaign underway in the Atlanta market for Clear, a wireless internet provider.

The first piece of marketing I came across was a series of bright green balloons tied up outside a restaurant, with the Clear logo and the message "This is not a balloon." Unfortunately for the wireless company, this was the same day that Clear, the airport service for frequent travelers went under.

Despite the poor timing the guys at Clear have made a powerful entrance into the Atlanta market, not by talking bits and baud, or even speed. Rather they are making people rethink their world with a seemingly non-stop supply of message that recast park benches, restaurants, and even busses. ("This is not a bus. It is another place to watch streaming video.")

Each of the pieces is clean and simple. There's the setup line, one sentence to pay it off and the logo. No explanation of what Clear is, no pricing offer, no paragraphs of legalese. I can only imagine someone having to beat back efforts to make every piece tell the whole story.

In a nice change of pace, they use TV to do the heavy lifting, rather than just tease the consumer. The spots explain that Clear is an alternative to basic WIFI and even internet service from other cellular companies. 

Here however, Clear was again snakebit. Check out their spot which features cupcakes and sprinkles to explain the service. See if it doesn't remind you of the much funnier Verizon Wireless spot using sprinkles to explain their Friends and Families service. Someone is selling a lot of sprinkles these days.

The work is apparently from a Los Angeles shop called Secret Weapon Marketing. And despite a few stumbles, beyond their control, the work is a great example of how the pieces can work together, if you plan accordingly.

Oddly, the one piece of marketing that doesn't measure up is Clear's web site. I'm willing to bet it was done in-house or by a separate firm. Because the tone is entirely different, with boring stock images and 1-2-3 process that is devoid of any excitement. Oh well, for want of a good digital strategist.

The 3-Second Lifespan Of A Web Site

Great excerpt from the New York Times of a book called Startup 101. It talks about the intense competitive pressure on new sites trying to break through into the public mainstream. The logic is one of the most concise ways I've seen the often competing interests of usability and design put into perspective.

If you don't bother to read the rest of the excerpt, at least consider this:

Here is what an insanely great Web product looks like to the average user right now and through the next 3 years:

•30 seconds: "I get it."
•3 minutes: "I've used it and still get it, and it has not annoyed me yet."
•3 days: "I find this really useful or fun."
•3 weeks: "I am raving about this to other people."
•3 months: "I couldn't imagine not having this, and I'm boring my friends telling them about it."
•3 years: "How weird to see this on Oprah."

Of particular note are the three minutes and the three week marks. If we annoy users it is worse than never engaging them at all. And if they aren't telling their friends, then the ROI will be sharply suppressed. I'm not sure how I feel about any site I've worked on requiring three years to get on Oprah.

Then again, I don't know how I feel about Oprah doing justice to any site I've worked on.

Learning To Love The Change

Yesterday I posted about the growing battle between Google and Facebook for the future of how you engage with the web. It's just one more example of the dynamic nature of the online world.

All to often people see the pace of change and lament that they can't keep up. Or they worry that they're missing out on something critical. And so they throw up their hands, and give up on keeping up.

Consider trying to get your head around Google Wave, a technology still in development that proposes to let users interact in real time across a multitude of sites. WTF? Even the demo leaves most people in the dark.

But start reading the coverage an you'll learn that you and your friends can interact with each other at any time, regardless what site you're on. So consider shopping for a car, where both you and friend can customize the options simultaneously. Or a creative review where parties from all over the country can add their feedback to the page, rather than watching a webex.

Lightbulbs going on?

Embracing change, and the pace of change is no longer optional for marketers, or agencies. What is happening online will dramatically all of our lives.

• The role of focus groups will change dramatically, as we get more and more visibility into the daily lives of our customers.
• The expectations of our customers will grow at the same time, as they create more connections with the brands they favor.

It also means that our clients will no longer have the luxury or challenge of deciding where and when to engage with social networks. They may will have outposts on the popular sites like Facebook. But even if they don't, the social networks will come to them. That means we will have to view all our projects as social networks.

Forrester goes so far as to predict that social networks will gain enough clout to demand traditional brands adapt their products to the wishes of the masses.

So what is the shell-shocked executive or agency veteran to do?

1. Start thinking beyond your friends list. Read status updates and news feeds on Facebook, MySpace and Twitter as if you’re sitting behind the glass of a focus group. Realize that you have insight in how dozens, or even hundreds of people are thinking. 
2. Use every tool you can find. The era of social networks breaking through into the mainstream is over. If you’re still waiting for an engrave invitation, here it is. Play with every site that comes along. Use the ones you like, abandon the others.
3. Don’t get too comfy. Today’s status quo is tomorrow’s ancient history. 
4. Be cautious, not paranoid. Certainly think about the information you are sharing and make sure you limit your exposure to invasions of privacy. But don't live in fear of hackers invading your life. Seriously, does telling people what TV shows you watch put you at risk of financial ruin?
5. Remember measurement. Ultimately we are about creating experiences that advance our clients’ business. It hasn’t been about clicks and page views for a long time. Look for new ways to quantify the experiences you have online. Is it an engagement metric (how often you update status)? Or should the measurement be reach (how many friends you have)? It won’t be the same for any two clients.

But most of all, enjoy. Consider the world at your fingertips today, and what's coming tomorrow. To paraphrase President Ronald Reagan -- Are you better off today than you were four years ago?

Google vs. Facebook, Let The Battle Rage

What’s your choice, people or computers? Anonymous or friends? Google or Facebook?

There is a growing awareness that the battle of the future isn’t Microsoft vs. Google. Rather it is Google vs. Facebook. And the winner will be determined in large part by how people want to organize, search and interact online.

There are two great synopses of the looming battle, Wired Magazine’s and a report by Forrester’s Jeremiah Owyang. It’s worth taking the time to read them in that order. Wired does a great job of outlining Facebook’s battle plan. Owyang build a very compelling case for a Facebook victory.

If Google seems too big and too dominant to be challenged by something as whimsical as Facebook, then it’s time to think again. Consider the following:

• Facebook has 200 million members, people who use their own names, real email addresses and rich profiles of varying depth. That’s one-fifth of the Internet population.

• Those members spend an average of 20 minutes on the site, DAILY.

Google virtually owns the search world. But what does it know about its members. I have subscribed to almost all Google’s products, but it doesn’t know my real name. Nor does it have a clue what I like to do on weekends, or where my friends live.

There’s even a very strong privacy element in the mix. Search my name on Google and you find out whatever is publicly available. I have no say, nor is there context to what you find. Search my name on Facebook and I have to let you into my network before you learn anything. But, you will get a much richer picture of my life.

In media terms, Google can tell you what I search for, and offer text ads to capture my interest. Facebook can tell you what my interests are, and show me ads based on my lifestyle, demographics and anything else I’ve disclosed.

When I’m online considering a purchase Google can tell me how hundreds of others rate the experience of an online merchant I am considering. Facebook can let me ask hundreds of my friends if any of them have experience with a merchant, online or off line, I am considering.