Why Baby Boomers Take Baby Steps with Digital Media

It’s time for me to admit the favorite time of my day is not posting on Facebook, tweeting and retweeting and reevaluating my profile on LinkedIn. I’m confused on tinyurls and the need for #FF so everyone knows it’s Friday. I have a Klout score but I don’t know how I got it and as far as Facebook goes, while I try to post the articles I write, no one seems to read them and instead, my friends post jokes and comments on bad days, birthdays and wow did you see that? I have been trying to create a Google+ hangout for a week now and I’ve just about given up!

How dare I make these statements?

It’s simple really—I’m a baby boomer and I fear digital media almost as much as when it was first rumored the Beatles were breaking up!

Growing up in Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, my parents had four daughters born between the years 1949 and 1959—I being the last born. Even though I could probably cheat my way into Gen X, those born from 1964 and forward, I must admit, I fear their digital media knowledge.

I found an awesome post on baby boomers and digital media by Jamie Carracher on Mashable. In his story “How Baby Boomers Are Embracing Digital Media,” he points out in 2011 there were 80 billion baby boomers turning 65, who are essentially now old folks or senior citizens. At 53 years of age, I feel their pain because I am close behind. Carracher also reminded us who are media-handicapped that the father of the Internet, Vinton Gray “Vint” Cerf will be 69 years old in 2012 so he’s been a senor for a while now. I wonder how he’s coping?

Carracher admits seniors are using some media: “…recent trends show older people are among the fastest-growing demographics online” and “Internet users 50 years old and older has nearly doubled to 42% over the past year (2011). And, that “In the U.S. alone there are nearly 16 million people 55 and older using Facebook.”

I must protest Jamie sir! Ever seek out those 55 and older and take a gander at their Facebook pages? You’ll find sonograms of grandbabies, wedding photos and announcements and well, maybe even a few angry parents shooting a laptop or two. What I see when I look at my friends who are my age and older are posts on “Let’s do lunch” or “Heck you finally figured out Facebook!” or “Isn’t it nice to be retired?” That’s not using digital or social media—we of this age are now boring and turn to the fodder from our children and grandchildren in an attempt to be Internet savvy.

My husband recently gave me a new car. It’s a 2011 Chrysler 300C Hemi with an 8 cylinder engine. The car practically drives itself, has parking assist and I can even push a button and have cold air flow upward in my driver’s seat in case I’m having a hot flash. There’s even a button to keep my drink cups hot or cold. It also has voice commands in case I’m too lazy to press buttons. For example I can say, “Navigation” or “Phone” or “Climate” and the friendly voice will ask how they can help me. This means I have to say something back. Since my dogs (I have six) travel with me a lot, the commands given are usually barks or woofs and the computer in my car says, “Canceling Voice Chat!” so I’m back to relying on buttons again.

A typical trip in my car alone requires me to file a “flight plan.” Are the seats adjusted, are my mirrors where I want them to be? Where’s that button to move the steering wheel and adjustable pedals?  Where’s the fuel button to open the fuel door in case I have to get gas? And, since I don’t need a key (you just step on the brakes and press a button) I have to ensure my keys are in the vicinity of the vehicle such as my purse. I have to set up navigation favorites because the computer won’t let me change where I want to go while driving—I can, however, change if I’m stopped at a traffic light, but heck, I’m almost a senior citizen and my mind isn’t that fast!

Of course many of you are probably saying, “You can preset all those things!” Well, I know that! I’m not stupid, I just don’t want to sit in front of my TV and watch an hour long DVD on how everything in my car works! I want to read about it—but the manual is the DVD! I’ve tried to pair my phone to UConnect several times and have failed so I’m starting to think those headsets you clip to your phone with a super magnet will work just fine.

These are just the tech things in my car! Can you image what I face daily on the World Wide Web? At least good old Jaime Carracher offered in his post the American Association for Retired People (AARP) is taking advantage of Facebook and Twitter. According to Carracher, “One recent post (Facebook) on people who have given up landlines for mobile phones sparked 138 comments.” That amount of comments doesn’t seem high to me when you consider the number of hours folks spend on YouTube. The point of Carracher’s observations are the words “one recent post”; one doesn’t impress me much. Get back to me when every AARP Facebook post receives a comment—even two.

Then there’s Twitter where I’m supposed to spread the word about what’s up right now in 140 characters or less, and use a tinyurl! As far as Twitter goes, I can Tweet, but attempting to @tweet someone or #something is lost on this almost-senior.

Further, what is Klout anyway? Apparently my score isn’t as high as some of my writing colleagues and actually, I don’t care. Google+ seems to be taking over and if you’re not +oneing—you better start now! It doesn’t matter what you +one, just make sure it’s something you’re interested in so if questioned on your post, you can provide a knowledgeable answer.

I’m lost on LinkedIn and this is one digital social media venue that wants my money in order to see total profiles and contact others who are LinkedIn—sorry folks, I only go for the free digital media. So again, my LinkedIn page is in bad shape.

I’m sure somewhere out in digital media world there are folks like Carracher who writes a blog “Aging Online” and a visit to his blog left me feeling a little better about my digital media use and knowledge. I am not alone! My sister is also a writer and I remember a few years back when I was helping her figure out how to install a computer program. I told her to put the CD in her computer tower where the CD slot was. Bless her soul, she told me her computer didn’t have a “tire.”

Of course the anonymity of the Internet will keep me forever young and I can be as pretty and sassy as I want to be. No one need know I’m a grandmother or that watching Swamp People on the History channel is more exciting to me than watching American Idol on Hulu. You know, in reality the reason I like Swamp People is the people who appear on the show have thick Louisiana accents so the show comes with subtitles—yep my hearing isn’t what it used to be either.

Someday, when my grandson is 18, I hope I am still on top of what’s new in digital media. I guess if I stay involved in top trends, actually partake in some tutorials and ensure Carracher’s blog is my new BFF, I’ll be fine. But if not, I’m okay with that too. Oops, time for my afternoon nap. Till next time! 

Image Credit: Stuart Miles / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Is Your Twitter Use Unhealthy?

Twitter has almost 500 million registered profiles now and users are churning out around 175 million tweets every day. That’s a lot of activity. If you’re a stat junkie then check out this infographic at MediaBistro for all sorts of interesting information.

The 140 character limit on tweets makes Twitter a weird and wonderful collection of voices. It also seems to be the platform of choice for celebrities to interact with fans. Throw competitions, promotions and random bits of information into the mix and even Twitter users following a modest number of people are going to struggle to keep up with everything that’s going on in their stream.

Like all social media I got a buzz when I first signed up to Twitter and then I lapsed and didn’t use my account for months. Just recently I’ve been getting back into it. It’s the variety that has me hooked at the moment. Yesterday I investigated after a tweet from Simon Pegg asked people to lay off Nathan Fillion about “holding twine”. Turns out some blogger asked him to send her a photo of himself holding twine and he ignored her, she tried the same with Pegg and managed to make it a trending topic which elicited a photo from him. Now you could argue that the ten minutes I spent reading about that during a busy workday was a complete waste of time and you’d be right, but sometimes Twitter is genuinely informative, interesting or it just makes you smile.

My favorite story last week was on the Guardian as Twitter co-founder, Biz Stone, said that using Twitter for hours at a time “sounds unhealthy”. He could have a point. Do you find yourself sitting for hours on end tapping those new tweets as they pop up? How much time do you spend reading tweets? What is your primary purpose in using Twitter? Who is your favorite person to follow?

I dip into Twitter a few times a day at the moment and read a few tweets. I guess my primary purpose in using it is to find and share interesting information. My tips to follow, apart from me of course, are William Gibson @GreatDismal for a really bizarre mix of tweets and Dara O Briain @daraobriain for some cutting humor.

Post a comment and let us know your Twitter thoughts. Or talk to me on Twitter @Setimerenptah.

The Power of Effective Web Graphics on Conversions

Images, images, images... A key component of any web presence? The eye candy that grabs your attention and says look at me? Maybe so, but are images always used effectively and for the right reasons?

No, not at all! And that can be just as damaging for your brand or message as it can be engaging.

Recently an article was brought to my attention that really resonated with Rock The Deadline. It talks of advertising guru David Ogilvy and his research into the use of images in advertising.

His findings offer insightful ways to use images effectively, and comes in stark contrast to the ways traditional web design and advertising engagement has been delivered. Images do not always make ads or web pages better. Without careful consideration regarding layout, format and selection they almost certainly distract and lower professional perception. Online articles and web pages very much fit the pattern of print ads, the way they have to try and catch peoples' eye through such a small window of opportunity. It is a critical process.

A really engaging, must read and very accurate in my opinion. I won't recite the research findings here, I'll just ask: How often do we still see these mistakes being made? If in fact we agree that they actually are "mistakes" in the first place?

Agree? Disagree?

Random image alert!!! We always need an image, right?

Imagination at Work: An Awesome Video Infographic From GE

It’s hard to go anywhere on the Internet these days without seeing some reference to infographics. However, more and more people are turning to video infographics as a means to communicate a lot of great information in a very short time frame.

As an added bonus, videos can be easily embedded onto any site -- whether it be a blog, social media stream, or regular web page. On the other hand, the sprawling nature of infographics requires a great deal more work when you are trying to incorporate them into your online presence.

Here is a great example of a video infographic from GE. If you've seen any others that you love, drop us a note in the comments.

Protecting IP Rights Is Everyone’s Responsibility

Have you ever seen something cool posted on your Facebook wall or Google+ stream, and reshared it with your friends and followers?

You could be guilty of violating intellectual property rights and not even realize it.

Ever since reading Kim Lloyd’s thoughts on the intent of SOPA, I’ve been thinking a lot about how often intellectual property rights are violated on social media sites like Facebook and YouTube – and how often the perpetrators don’t even realize they’re sharing something they shouldn’t. I still don’t agree with SOPA because I believe in looking for solutions via innovation and education rather than legislation. And, to be honest, the thought of a government-regulated Internet bothers me for a ton of different reasons. But, that’s a story for another day…

Even though I’m not a supporter of SOPA, PIPA or other similar legislation, I do feel that theft of intellectual property is a very real problem that continues to grow. Also, despite the rhetoric, big brands are not the only victims. In fact, it’s the little guys – startup independent video producers, bloggers, photographers, etc. – who are being hurt the most. I’ll talk more about that in a moment, but first I want to take a quick look at the so-called pirates.

So, Are We All Just a Bunch of Robbers and Thieves?

If you mention Internet or media piracy, a lot of people conjure up images of seedy characters copying and burning CDs and DVDs in a dimly-lit back room of some shop in the bad part of town. Or, you may picture someone in Asia scouring the web, intentionally looking for content to scrape and reuse on a short-term site to generate ad revenue. Basically, many of us assume that the people involved know full well what they’re doing is wrong, but they just don’t care.

In reality, the bulk of IP theft is committed by those who don’t think they’re stealing or, at the very least, don’t think they’re doing any harm.

Often it’s a case of ignorance. After all, usage restrictions and copyright laws can be pretty confusing – especially when it comes to what constitutes fair use. For instance, how often have you seen a video of a television show posted on YouTube that was clearly recorded by someone with no legal rights to do so with a note in the description saying, “I do not own the rights to this video, and I’m posting it for entertainment purposes only.”

Yes, there is a huge segment of the population that seems to believe if they aren’t personally getting a paycheck as a result of the infringement, they’ve done nothing wrong. They may even believe they’re doing a public service – providing the material for free so others don’t have to pay for it! They don’t stop to consider how others may be making or losing money from their “good deeds.”

Social media outlets like Facebook compound the problem. One person posts the video on YouTube, others share it on Facebook, and still others reshare it on Facebook without even noticing the name of the user who originally posted the video. As this sharing continues and grows, those doing the sharing may even assume that the original poster actually had full legal rights to the video.

YouTube, Facebook and Others: Please Stop Fencing Stolen IP

When you allow digital media to be distributed via your web site without worrying where that material came from as long as you’re somehow profiting through the distribution, is that really much different from fencing physical stolen goods? Rather than only deal with it when someone complains, shouldn’t you take measures to try to prevent it from happening in the first place?

The consensus among most of the big-name sites is that it’s the media owner’s responsibility to notify the site if material is being used without permission. These sites claim that other solutions would be too costly and would severely limit users – and would even result in a stifling of creativity.

Hey, you know what really stifles creativity? When you have to spend hours a week scouring the Internet to see who might have ripped off your old stuff instead of, you know, creating new stuff.

As I mentioned earlier, it’s the little guys who are getting hurt the worst. Big media companies like Viacom have enough money to hire people whose entire job consists of tracking down IP theft and copyright violations. I’m not saying they should have to do this, just that they have the ability to do this – making it harder for others to profit from their work. Independents, on the other hand, don’t have the time or the resources to spend and, as a result, have a much tougher time protecting their IP.

What’s the Solution?

I fully admit that I don’t know of a perfect solution to this problem, but I do think there are a lot of steps that sites like Facebook and YouTube can take to help curb IP theft. For instance, what about asking a few questions with each video or photo upload – things like “Do you have the legal right to distribute this content?” and adding fields for users to cite the original source of the material. Sure, this isn’t going to stop people who are determined to share the content no matter what, but it will make a sizeable percentage of the population stop and think before clicking the upload button.

In addition, simply having an FAQ page that outlines what type of content is permissible and gives specific examples of common scenarios would go a long way toward educating the general public about intellectual property and usage rights. The trick here is to get away from the legalese and use plain language that the average person can understand. For instance, the creative-content subscription site PhotoSpin has a typical user agreement with all the legal bells and whistles, but it also has an awesome The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly section that spells out in clear language what you can and can’t do with the images you obtain from the site.

Would it really take too much effort and be too tough on the end user to implement things like this on Facebook, YouTube and other social media outlets? I don’t think so. Moreover, isn’t it better for these companies to formulate a solid self-regulation plan before some other group (like the US Government) tries to step in with its own method of regulation?

Enterprise Computing Trends in 2012

Enterprise computing for 2012 creates a plethora of challenges and opportunities within the B2B market. Business owners, clients and customers alike are having to adapt to increased globalization and the commercialization of technology owners, both at home and in the workplace. In this regard the scalability of E-commerce, cloud computing and big data management enhances an organizations ability to reach new audiences and position themselves within markets – both physical and virtual – that stretch the boundaries of culture and economic systems.

I recently consulted on a B2B Enterprise Computing industry trends analysis in collaboration with a national agency and network of Universities in the UK. It investigated the fusion of technologies, their impact on business and trade relations, and the trends in IT that will define not just strategic focus in 2012 but for years to come. Garnering opinions from industry experts and executives within a host of business verticals such as Health, Education, Finance, Law and IT services the results often sparked debate and conflicts of interests. Each sector certainly has bespoke IT needs and restrictions – public vs private, profit vs people oriented, etc. – but the core IT focus requirements remained the same. While priorities also differed at the outset, it was interesting to note the almost exclusive agreement on the final ‘trending’ points. That virtualization, collaborative systems and information governance play key roles. That the afore-mentioned commercial outlook, embracing cloud philosophies and big data management will drive success.

Trending IT needs in 2012…

1. Managing costs: This was rewording from "Cutting costs" to "Managing costs" as business leaders in several sectors objected to the terminology and philosophical mindset. It is less an exercise of 'cutting' and more about 'managing' what is currently rolled out and budgeted for. Which is especially pertinent in this economic climate when manageable and variable expenses are crucial. One major factor that makes this possible is the resilience and security of cloud technologies. Cloud computing is so attractive for this very reason - a company can manage costs, leave administration to external parties, reducing overheads and pay per user/usage. Downsized license agreements and internal IT infrastructure variables therefore become much more manageable.
2. Driving revenue through further investment in IT: This depended greatly on the company and sector of business. For example public sector industries – Health, Education – are greatly restricted by budgetary sanctions and governance "red tape", so their opportunity is limited to specific vendors and government run initiatives. Within big business, investment is made in-house or outsourced as an effort in consolidation, standardization or value adding. The bottom line, IT life cycle management that scales is uppermost in executive strategists minds.
3. Improve security governance and demographics: Globalization and commercialization are turning employees and customers into "digital aficionados." People are turned off by unfamiliar hardware, software they have to learn, individual access logins for each and every platform or interface they want to use. This culture creates an expectation for people to be able to use the tools and technologies they are familiar with and use in everyday life. This is a considerable challenge for IT departments, especially where cultural boundaries are blurred, local laws create road blocks to technological rollout and standards must be maintained in-house. Creating a policy and embracing "native experiences" is fast becoming a crucial aspect of strategic focus, to empower, engage and maintain productivity.
4. Big data: Especially key in Health and Finance, the ability to capture, store, search, share and analyse vast amounts of legacy data is at a critical mass. Providing greater storage and bandwidth depends on deployment, network storage capacity and in the 'cloud' on a pay for usage agreement level. The issue to address is migrating from old in-house physical data warehousing, security and recovery, to a methodology that embraces online virtualization. None of which is cheap, and all of which takes a lot of time to sort and filter.
5. Minimizing the energy footprint and impact: In several industry forums there was a distinct impression that this was the ‘white elephant’ in the room. While important as a process of stepping through hoops for regulators and government standards it was referred to as being important only as a “slogan of the day.” However, trends in IT are moving towards going green as matter of course. Economics, optimization, utilization, speed, space and time - all are key drivers for green initiatives. There are also movements afoot where companies will be penalized – for example regarding carbon consumption, energy usage, etc. Enterprise computing is being driven to make ‘green’ initiatives a priority, but it has to be said, this is at the chagrin of some, especially in these economic times with governance and capital restrictions stymieing growth.

For any B2B provider or client, smarter computing is going to drive the ability to scale. Fundamentally, businesses must build an infrastructure so that employees, customers and technology can be harnessed to grow the business while creating ROI. Which, when all is said and done, IS the key to any successful business strategy.

Tech Round Up: Apple and Microsoft vs Google, Sony's Green Credentials

Anyone with an interest in the competition between mobile platforms will already know about the patent wars that have been raging. The latest news this week concerns a German court upholding Apple’s claim that Motorola has infringed their slide-to-unlock patent. This concerns the simple act of sliding your finger from left to right in order to unlock your smartphone. Google has filed for a patent for an unlock screen which is a circle with a dot in the middle and sliding in any direction will unlock it. Do we, as consumers, really care about this? Should you be allowed to patent a gesture anyway? These kinds of arguments are usually settled out of court by licensing agreements but there is major enmity between the players in the mobile market right now.

Google’s Android platform has been targeted by Apple and Microsoft. Your point of view on this will probably depend on which company you prefer or possibly which you have invested in. Either Google gave away Android free of licensing costs to gain a big market share, exploiting technology developed by Apple and Microsoft in the process, or they wanted to create a level playing field and open up the market. So we’ve got Apple suing Android manufacturers like Samsung and Motorola, Samsung and Motorola are counter suing and Microsoft is forcing licensing agreements on every Android manufacturer they can find. Microsoft and Apple (along with a few others) teamed up to grab the Nortel patents. Google bought Motorola Mobility which many analysts are arguing was a move to strengthen their patent portfolio (though Google insists it is about more than that). There have been wins and losses on both sides but there’s unlikely to be a clear winner because both sides have legitimate claims.

This is a big legal battle that looks set to run for a long time. If you’re interested in the legal complexities then this Foss Patents blog post makes interesting reading. If you want to know more about the patent wars and licensing then check out this excellent article at The Verge.

The fight against Google on the one side and Apple and Microsoft on the other has been in the news on another front this week. Concerns were raised about Google circumventing Apple privacy settings on the Safari browser. If you’re concerned then check out this article at The Washington Post which explains what they were actually doing and points out that they have now stopped. Microsoft wouldn’t miss an opportunity like this so they charged into the argument with an IE Blog post suggesting that Google bypasses privacy settings in Internet Explorer as well. Google was quick to respond with a statement you can find at The Verge which calls Microsoft’s policy “non-operational”.

The issue of tracking online behavior and privacy rights, whether you are signed into a service or not, is clearly concerning people. The reason behind it is generally to target relevant advertising at you. I wouldn’t be fooled into thinking that it’s any more for Apple and Microsoft than just another front to open up against their sworn enemy.

Getting away from the bitter tech war for a moment it was nice to see a positive story on Tech Radar about beleaguered tech giant Sony. They may have posted big losses and the release of the most powerful handheld gaming console ever in the shape of the PS Vita looks like it could be every bit as disastrous as Nintendo’s 3DS but they are engaged in some extremely smart green practices so let’s show them some love and buy a new Sony TV.

Do you take sides in the tech war? Post a comment and share your thoughts.

Redefining Work... Globalization Meets Content Marketing

Redefining the Deal

We all know that the post-war social contract most developed countries are familiar with is rapidly changing. Education has become much more expensive even as it has become a less reliable path to employment. Employment - until recently a promise of rising wages, rising expectations and social mobility - is now itself a lifetime of continuous uncertainty and anxiety. Personal learning must be continuous to learn new skills as technology replaces even more labor, and the better jobs involve more intellectual skills than ever before. The developed world faces billions of new workers competing for the jobs that are available and employers are increasingly more global in their search for new markets and for low-cost production. If you have kids, you’re nervous for them. You're nervous for yourself too. Globalization lets companies become less nationalistic and less concerned with - or accountable for - social well-being. Even so, here in the US the SCOTUS has ruled that corporations have unlimited ability to fund political discourse. Distanced from employment and distanced from civic representation - citizens, voters, taxpayers, and workers are increasingly on their own. The magazine Fast Company called this the “Age of the Individual” in its now-famous cover article, “The Brand Called You.” That was in 1997.

Redefining the Desk
Developed nation economies (especially the US) are increasingly moving toward a services economy at the expense of traditional manufacturing. Manufacturing now involves sophisticated technologies and systems controls over complex machines. The deployment of capital through technology is currently much more efficient than the use of labor. The jobs in the most productive of today’s factory are more likely to require a PhD than a strong back. But outsourcing is not limited to jobs. Many household brands now routinely use contract manufacturing, and the major trend in Information Technology integrates Software as a Service (SaaS) and Cloud Computing as the new norm.

There is also a pronounced shift in who provides the capital infrastructure that even service workers need. The service economy worker, aka knowledge worker, is being downsized from offices to cubicles, relocated from office to home, and re-classified from employee to contractor. This trend toward engaging people as independent contractors also shifts overheads like heating, lighting and connectivity, tools like hardware and software, and human resource issues like healthcare and pension benefits – all onto the individual. Gains in collective advantage are being redistributed as corporations respond to, or take advantage of, the globalization effects of technology dispersion and increased labor competition. It is probable that hundreds of thousands - if not millions - of knowledge workers are now working from home.

Redefining the Dialog

Compounding the increasing fragmentation of traditional civil relationships is the change of control in public and marketing communications. The days of one-way communication from party to voter or vendor to customer are over. In the business world, today’s customers – both consumer and business buyers – are increasingly vocal and participatory in discussing and critiquing the goods and services they buy. They use social networks to seek referrals and use their own social graphs to curate, not only the content they consume, but also the products they research and purchase. In this post-PC world of mobile communications, time spent on social networks has passed that of time spent on traditional web portals. Social Commerce is the hot new investment trend in VC right now as consumers increasingly rely on their own social sphere of influencers to make their buying decisions.

In order to stay part of this never-ending conversation, today’s marketer must adopt communications strategies that involve listening, conversing and messaging to their audience. The sheer amount of content required to satisfy this always-on dialog across multiples of media is enormous. Who will create this? How can we afford them? How will we manage them?

It was once famously said that what this country needed was a good five-cent cigar. I think what this world needs now is a good network of independent experts who create marketing content for businesses on a reliable, affordable, sustainable basis.

How will your organization develop the personal stories and deep-dive content that will keep your audience engaged?

Revamping Search Engines: Quantity Matters Too

Every once in a while I read an article or a blog post that makes me feel like I was just hit in the head with a hammer. I don’t mean a bad kind of hammer here – you know, like an “Ouch, that writing was so bad, I’m now experiencing physical pain.” I’m talking about a good kind of hammer that gives a soft, gentle thump to clear out the cobwebs and nudge those seldom-used portions of my brain into action.

I had one of those head-bonking moments yesterday when reading a post on Seth Godin’s blog about search engines and information density. The first line of Godin’s post says it all, “Memo to search engines: we’re smart enough to look at more than five search results above the fold.” That’s when it hit me. Have we all become so obsessed with the importance of quality that we’ve forgotten quantity plays a critical role as well?

I started thinking about the way I perform a search. Granted, I probably spend a lot more time researching topics than the average searcher, but I still wouldn’t be surprised if many people approach the task the same way I do. After putting in a search term, I usually scan the results on the first page, go to the second page and scan those, move on to page three and do the same, and then page back and forth a couple of times before finally clicking on something I want to read. Then, if I find out that site wasn’t what I wanted after all, I back out of the page and start the whole process over. I guess I know now why it's called "re-search."

So, why don’t I just change the number of results that show up on a page of search engine results? I’ve tried that a couple of times and found it to be an even more inefficient method. I end up scrolling so much that I lose track of the links that my mind is filtering out as potentially clickable. Basically, it’s easier to locate the top, middle and bottom of a page with a list of 10 results as opposed to a list of 50 results when those results are presented in a long single-column format.

Godin offers a potential alternative that sounds very attractive to me. Instead of one column listing 10 results per page, what about three columns on each page so you can see 30 results at a time?  Godin calls this a “power search” option, but I suspect a lot more people than just power users would like it.

Search engine developers (particularly those from Google) have spent a lot of time over the past year talking about changes that are supposed to give users higher quality and more relevant results. Here’s the thing, though. No algorithm – no matter how personalized it is – is ever going to be able to conquer the relevancy issue to the satisfaction of the majority of searchers if we’re limited to the number of results we can efficiently scan per page. And, the relevancy problem is just going to increase as more and more information is produced and distributed via digital means.

The relevancy of results not only depends on the searcher, but also on what the searcher happens to be looking for at that specific point in time. That is, a single person may type in a query one day to look for one thing and may type in that same query the next to look for something else slightly different. In order to determine true relevance, you need context – more context than most people type into the search field.

Plus, there are lots of times that I perform a search on a term and I’m really not sure what I want to find. Maybe I’m just hoping to see something interesting or quirky on that topic, or maybe I want something a bit more informational. It’s kind of like an “I don’t know what I’m looking for, but I’ll recognize it when I see it” situation. This type of query is almost impossible with today’s search engines.

Getting back to the whole quality vs. quantity issue, I certainly agree that quality should be a key factor in search results. But, with the growing amount of information available on the Internet, we need to have more choices available for us to see at one time if we want to find what we’re looking for faster and more efficiently. We’re more than capable of handling more information at a time when it comes to making choices. That’s why we have cable subscriptions that offer hundreds of channels, visit bookstores to choose from thousands of books, and scan Twitter feeds at a lightning-fast pace.

I suppose making this type of change would make search engines more like curation tools. But, hey, wait a minute. Isn’t that the point?

Image Credit: PhotoSpin/Design Pics

A Deeper Understanding of SOPA Intent: A Usecase of Plagiarism

I fell for it.

Like a ton of bricks, I bought immediately into the propaganda being screamed at me from every major player in the Internet industry.  The ones whom stand to have the most to lose if a bill like SOPA or OPEN are passed into law.  I didn’t do my homework, I didn’t research the intent of the bill, and I didn't research what the plans were to enforce the bill.  I just started blaring STOP SOPA across my twitter page, liked every anti-SOPA post, and plus one’d everyone who moaned about the death of the Internet as we know it.

Luckily, my wake up call came in the form of David Newhoff who said, "If SOPA and PIPA are defeated not because of legal merit but because of a desire to throw off the shackles of a media oligopoly, we will only have donned the shackles of the tech oligopoly who scared us into doing their political bidding." Anti-piracy battle reveals dysfunctional thinking - The Hill's Congress Blog

I would add to David's comments and say not only their political bidding, but ultimately their financial bidding.  Based on my experience as a publisher, it is crucial to create original, trustworthy content.  From an author's perspective, it is important that your work is protected.  The success of my current company, Rock the Deadline, depends on the fact that original content is valued and respected.  At the end of this blog post, I will describe the roots of this very real fear.

During my SOPA research, I ran across an excellent article from E.D. Kain, "If You Thought SOPA Was Bad Just Wait Until You Meet ACTA".  I decided on the fly to use this as an example of how plagiarism works.   I took a phrase directly from the article and typed it into Google with double-quotes.  So any website who copied that exact phrase came up in the search results.

I looked at each post and determined whether or not they:
1) Gave source credit to E.D. Kain and Forbes.
2) Even if citing E.D. Kain as the source, made it obvious that it was his and not theirs.
3) Backlinked appropriately to the Forbes website and article.
4) Used a reasonable number of words for an excerpt.  Not more than 125 words.

Out of 9 articles on the first page of Google (not including the original),  4 of them were/would be considered plagiarism.   That's 44%.  The sources of these cases included:

• Facebook
• Tumblr
• Wordpress

In the case of Tumbler, the plagiarism went wild.  Over 60 instances just on that one platform.   Although they have a mechanism to indicate the original source of the post, it's so easy for other Tumblrs to reblog without those same considerations.  Hence making Tumblr a powerful plagiarism amplification platform.

The $800 million valuation according to the Wall Street Journal, is based on the fact that they are a social media platform.  In essence claiming minimal responsibility for what their users do in the name of social media.  Is that really what social media has become?  Code for "It's okay to look the other way when our users plagiarize because social media is good."  Is that fair to build a billion dollar company off the backs of works stolen from original content creators?

As a publisher, we were accountable for monitoring plagiarism.  We paid 5 cents to check every article with Copyscape before it was published.  Shouldn't social media publishing platforms like Facebook, Tumblr, Wordpress.com and others also be accountable for this monitoring and expense?  With the kinds of valuations these companies have, they should be.  They should not be exempt from the same rules other publishers play by just because they have been blessed with the moniker of Social Media.

Technology solutions are also poised to bring scale to plagiarism.  This is another source of major concern.  There are technologies out there allowing brand publishers to aggregate original content on the web and basically pass it off as their own.  Making it easier and easier to steal content, while they benefit financially from selling their technology.

Another type of technology lets you build an article on the fly by putting original content about a particular theme at your fingertips.  You don't even have to open a new browser to find articles to rewrite and make your own.  It's all compiled for you easily while you are "writing" your article.  Now you don't even have to work as hard to steal other people's work!

The fact is, we were taken advantage of by the major players on the Internet.  Under the guise of the injustice of censorship and the death of the Internet, they hid their real intention.  That of not spending any of their own dollars to be responsible for their behavior and the actions of their users.  We need to address plagiarism at this level.  Social media platforms and technology providers are not exempt from the expense of accountability.  This shouldn't fall on the ISP's, Google, or the original author to bear the cost of enforcement.

I don't think SOPA, PIPA, and ACTA are going to fix the root cause in their current states, and I don't believe a new Federal law is the best way to address the issue of widespread plagiarism. The money and effort spent on a lobbying war between old media and new media could be much better spent on creating awareness that we are all participants, we can change our behaviors, and we can use technology to preserve ownership rights and to enforce the laws in already in place.

#Apple seems to have figured this out in the music industry.

We all have a stake in getting this right. I know that I need to understand the issues better and to keep an open mind.  So should you.

Why Your Business Needs More Than Just a Website: Getting on Board with Social Media

Did you hire a professional web dev team to build you a web presence and now that the site is up you haven’t noticed any difference in online or in-store sales? More often than not a website alone will not increase traffic in brick and mortar stores, or those who participate in both on-site and Internet sales. Enter the world of social media and content marketing.

Social media makes use of platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Google+, blogging and an array of other tools and techniques, to achieve a higher presence in our digital world. Let’s look at some fundamental statistics.

Your brand new website might not be pulling in the customers, but you can bet the farm your employees are using these platforms at work and at home. Just so you know why social media is so important, let’s delve into some intriguing figures from year-end 2011. Pardon all the extra zeros but it seems to have a better effect once folks see it in black and white:

Facebook – 750,000,000 people and companies have a Facebook account. Of this amazing number at least 100,000,000 logon to Facebook at least once a day and that’s not counting how many are accessing the site via their Smartphones.

Twitter – 200,000,000 followers and followed, and not all of them are following Charlie Sheen either – I have a few of my own! Since its inception in 2006, it’s estimated there have been approximately 1.5 billion sent tweets, and around 3 million tweets sent each minute. You can see here why Twitter, as silly as the name sounds, is no laughing matter. It is a very powerful outlet for broadcasting your message, once you have a following.

LinkedIn – 100,000,000 people are actively connecting to other professionals similar to their own. According to LinkedIn’s Press Room, they claim to currently have 150 million members. While LinkedIn is aggravating to some, it’s still creating a large presence in the social media world. It is playing an increasingly large part in the world of professional networking, personal filtration services and correspondence.

Google+ – 20,000,000 strong and rapidly growing in popularity, Google+ is relatively new compared to other social media platforms. According to statistics, singer Brittany Spears has 1,873,869 folks in her circles and Snoop Dog lands second with 1,686,689. These astonishing numbers should tell you why you need to be on Google+ right now. I guess I need to get to work too!

… And what about YouTube? The statistics for this video sharing phenomenon are so large I thought I’d save them for a separate section.

Get “Tubed”

According to Mashable, “More video content is uploaded to YouTube in a 60 day period than the three major U.S. television networks created in 60 years.” Wow! I used to be in the automotive sales business and have owned several dealerships to date, and the number of dealers uploading informative and funny videos is vast – that’s just one industry taking advantage of putting their prettiest faces on the Web to sell something, and it works.

Mashable also points out that as of February 2011, “YouTube has 490 million unique users worldwide per month” and this translates to an “estimated 92 billion page views each month.” Another stat? The average person spends approximately 15 to 25 minutes on YouTube per day. It sure has become a valued source for anything you missed, and for leveraging your brand or image. Didn’t see the entire State of the Union address? It’s posted on YouTube. Looking more for the macabre? You can find all sorts of videos showing celebrity meltdowns (or worse). Then there are those funny videos everyone tweets about like the awesome “Charlie Bit My Finger.” If you think a video of one brother biting another brother’s finger is, well, stupid, apparently 12 million folks disagree with you – that’s how many views it has as of this writing. By way of another example, our own Simon Hill, in his weekly tech roundup, pointed us to the current viral YouTube video of a father shooting his daughter’s laptop in response to her Facebook activities. 23 million views and counting. Talk about the power of social media when harnessed with a topical point of interest!

Need More Convincing?

Cast your eyes over the following list of the “World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies.” It includes some of the names you've read about above.

Facebook, Google and Twitter all made to the top ten. Why? It’s because Facebook has changed its “face” by adding timelines and other features, Google has expanded its product line with even broader social reach and Twitter creates global conversations, 140 characters at a time.  

These companies are innovative because they’ve all realize their power in the social media marketing world.

The Problem with Your Social Media Marketing Is You!

Your business needs to utilize social media! When considering which tools will work best, you must think of whom you want to reach based on cultures, needs and business goals. YouTube does appear to have the most visitors but is more of an entertainment or “I missed that information” sort of experience. Facebook and Google+ are great ways to initiate viral campaigns and LinkedIn will help you connect with peer professionals. Making the decision on which of these avenues to take may mean utilizing one or a combination to reach your target audience.

However, all of these statistics come with a caveat, and that caveat is you, the business owner. When an entrepreneur wants to utilize the Internet to sell, upload a video or gain customers using social media tools, they often turn to internal staff that either lack the requisite skills or don’t have the bandwidth to scale an effective digital media strategy. Usually these folks are responsible for “Internet Sales.” They may be great sales people, but handling sales and marketing on the Internet is not the same as developing a social media campaign. Unfortunately, many businesses make this mistake over and over again and then complain when their social media efforts go nowhere.

Beyond that, if you assign a salesperson who is supposed to be focusing on Internet sales, when do you expect them to find the time to develop and maintain your campaign? They can’t – it’s that simple.

If you’re ready to break into social media marketing and all of the exciting tools you can use to increase sales and get noticed, you need to hire a content marketing company with social media expertise. Don’t rely on an employee who knows nothing about this highly dynamic and increasingly important part of your business.

On the other hand, if you think you’re doing fine with just an Internet salesperson dedicated to creating and maintaining your web presence, I have one thing to say to you? Why can’t I find your website?

Special thanks to the following websites for providing helpful statistics: 

Socialnomics 

LinkedIn Press Room 

Mashable 

The Future Buzz 

LinkedIn World’s 50 Most Innovative Companies

Image: Social Media Marketing - Paola Peralta C.C. BY-SA 3.0License

Tech Round Up: Laptop Shot, Stores for Google, Windows 8 Hype and App Store Ratings

Time for another tech round up and we’ll kick off with the biggest social media story of the week “Angry Dad Shoots Daughter’s Laptop.” If you’ve managed to miss this story, which is very unlikely, then the basic gist is that a 15 year-old girl wrote a whiny post on Facebook and her dad got revenge by posting a YouTube video in which he angrily reads from her post and then shoots her laptop. It has kicked off a major debate about parenting and Facebook with many supportive comments and many angry criticisms. Watch the video and decide for yourself (at the time of writing it already has over 22 million views.)

You may think bitterly complaining about your parents to your friends is just a natural part of teenage life but social media changes the rules. In the past moaning to some friends would have had little consequence but to post a public moan online is opening it up to a much wider audience and, unfortunately for this girl, her parents too. The fact her father responded through YouTube was supposed to teach her a lesson about the dangers of posting online and how you can’t take something you post back. It seems as though it is now a lesson he’s learning himself as he gets 15 minutes of unwanted worldwide fame as that dad who shot his daughter’s laptop.

It has stirred up a surprising number of issues and coverage looks set to be a meme that will run for quite a while. Amongst all the arguments we should all pause and spare a thought for the poor innocent laptop that was brutally gunned down!

There has been a lot of talk on the web about bricks-and-mortar stores for Google, eBay and Amazon. This is mostly connected to the rumor that Google is opening a new retail store in Dublin to sell “Google merchandise.” In December eBay opened a pop-up store for a few days in London where you could make purchases with your mobile phone. That sounds more like a gimmick and PR stunt than the beginning of a retail strategy. As for Amazon reports suggest that retail stores may open in Seattle and Washington mainly to show off their branded wares – the Kindle range.

Why are these online behemoths making the move to offline stores when most retail stores are going the opposite way? Apple is the answer. Apple’s mega profitable retail stores are the envy of everyone and speculators think Amazon and Google would love to emulate them. That’s probably true but neither really has the necessary prerequisites that made Apple stores such a success – a big self-branded product range and a fanatical following clamouring for the next release.

The hype surrounding the imminent release of Windows 8 is ramping up. Microsoft has been offering developers sneak peeks and the Windows 8 public beta consumer preview should be available any day now. Depending on what you read, Windows 8 will catapult Microsoft back onto the tech throne or drag them to the bottom of the lake of failure like a lead balloon. As usual the truth is probably somewhere in between. One exciting facet of Windows 8 is the idea it will offer a unified experience across devices, even the mighty Apple hasn’t unified iOS and Mac OS. The question is – do people want a tablet or smartphone UI on their PC?

We’ll finish off today with a quick mention of app store ratings and their general unreliability. Many apps and games are offering users rewards for giving five star ratings in an obvious attempt to boost themselves. This is understandable since climbing into a chart position in the App Store or Android Market is going to lead to a positive feedback loop of more sales whereas missing the charts can lead to a negative feedback loop of no sales and complete obscurity. There are also third-party services popping up that use dodgy techniques to boost your chart rating. Apple released a comment last week warning developers about using services that guarantee a chart position and there are rumors about bots being used to artificially boost download stats. Probably best to read reviews rather than rely on that star rating if you download a lot of apps and games.

Got an opinion on any of this? Post a comment and let us know. Don’t worry, even if we don’t agree, we won’t be executing any laptops.

SEO 2.0: It’s All About Social!

Over the past five years I have worked first hand with a rich and eclectic mix of authors and editors, covering a diverse mix of topics, digital media formats and voice needs. Of all the takeaways during this time, when there has been an inevitable shift in the needs of digital media coverage, I believe this is now what truly matters. Maintain quality at all costs, don’t dilute or expand where you cannot offer unique insight and expertise, and don’t under any circumstances hang your hat on SEO as the be-all blueprint for success.

Let’s think about that term for a minute. Search + Engine + Optimization. Ask a very straight forward question: Why are we trying to optimize content for a search engine? We want to get found, to maximize reachability, to broaden awareness, to capture more of our existing followers’ time and potentially to attract new audiences, of course! But … Is the “Search” finding the right audience? Is the “Engine” the best way to drive us to that audience? Are the results truly “Optimized" for the end user? These are three pretty huge questions many are still not convinced we have the right answers for.

We are assuming the “Search” provides accurate results from authentic, unique and reputable sources. This is a big assumption when we have yet to see a stable search platform that caters to the searchers’ needs – without showing rogue or scraped results – on a consistent basis.

We are assuming the “Engine” works as it was intended and without bias. This is not a popular viewpoint because search providers have an uncanny knack of giving preferable placements to sites and materials that serve their own needs, regardless of whether such results provide the user with the best search “experience." After all, that’s what they always say they are trying to achieve – ahem!

We are assuming the "Optimization" element is driving every search result, yet why do so many results show an acute inability to filter out scrapers, low quality and regurgitation? If search results are being driven by algorithmic analysis of quality, reputation, uniqueness and social signals, then it’s pretty head-scratching when you see garbage infiltrate the top of your search results so often.

These algorithms are a Jedi Knight or a Phantom Menace, depending on your viewpoint. While revealing nothing is obviously important to prevent "gaming of the system," it does add an element of skepticism. Here I refer to a nice quote I recently read from Dave Kerpen, CEO of Likeable Media, ”In the social media age, transparency is no longer a choice. Embrace it." I think that rings very true for SEO too. Transparency, or at least a hint of non-bias and firm action taken against scrapers, duplicators, and fluff would really help searcher confidence.

I am regularly asked this question, "Can we trust search, can we trust the engine?" Personally I don’t think so; though it is getting better. I’ve just seen too many pieces of content get pushed and pulled, deleted, archived, updated and recreated, simply to fit into an algorithmic mold the search engine “likes.” Why? We should want to please the audience, NOT the search engine, but in order to even get seen by that audience – or at least some of it – we need the search engine to like us. What a conundrum.

But I digress – I recently read an interesting news item regarding search engine forecasting and the collaboration between Microsoft and BrightEdge, “the leading global SEO platform provider.” It highlighted some eye popping revenue figures that are being lost in the retail, finance and technology areas, all because of poor search optimization techniques and passive attempts to integrate them into business. The numbers, for scare mongering purposes: Retail $51 million, Financial $51 million, Technology $5.4 million.

That’s unrealized sales to the tune of $112 million because of poor search driven strategy. That's a figure that will turn a few heads, especially at executive level and in advertising circles, where finding accurate, predictable ROI for SEO is like finding a needle in a haystack. It has long been chimed, “Where is the proof?” … “How are these numbers quantified?” … “How do you really justify this on the balance sheet?” So when I read, “BrightEdge analyzed terabytes of page rank, social signals, keyword, backlinks, ranking and CPC data," I like that for three reasons.

1. A statistical analysis, diving into terabytes of pages, quantifies a deep data mix.
2. Relevant factors of searching page rank, keywords, backlinks and ranking cover the quality barometers of search results.
3. Media engagement via social signals are fast becoming THE key benchmark for quality, not just an afterthought for SEO purposes.

This combination quantifies what is truly happening. Key questions, therefore, can be answered: Trusting the data, where it is coming from and what it is pointing to. Now we have the full gambit for representative forecasting that means something, and not just in terms of the search engine, but social too as a pivotal component in its own right.

In terms of search, I have always frowned upon complete solutions and the theories of “experts” offering insights they can’t back up with proven results. Many are too hung up on principles and methods based on flawed data and old ideals. It’s implausible across a digital media landscape that changes at the whim of a search engine’s algorithmic tweakage and the social behaviors of online readership.

For now, let’s look at the ability of brands to stay ahead of competition by maximizing their position with search optimization and social engagement. That involves being perceived as a market leader and utilizing social networks that are seen by relevant customers and clients. Simply, where are the biggest gaps and opportunities for brands to make an impact within their niche? That is a considerable challenge, not only to get off the ground, but also to remain fresh and engaging.

As you build a portfolio of content you don’t want poor or outdated legacy material dragging down the good, topical and current. Microsoft is an excellent case in point here. While it obviously has a larger portfolio of digital content than most, its infinite need for quality and throughput makes it difficult to coordinate when and where to archive, retire, delete or refresh existing content. Also where do gaps exist for new materials, and where does duplication have the distinct possibility of dumbing down or diluting the good with the bad? This entire work flow is expensive and time consuming to assess, create, recreate or store relevant content – for Microsoft, let alone the small to mid-sized business. Couple that with content life cycles that differ by industry and media type, we can appreciate the need for serious strategy and dare I say a "formula." But, at what price?

An SEO effort requires building a framework that sees opportunity in the analysis of your customer or client base. It shouldn't simply cater to the search engine. Meet the needs of your audience, reach out to them and embrace the social signals they are giving off about you – be they local, national or global in recognition. Many have become seduced by the “keyword phrase.” In my experience, I have seen people employing a strong technique using keyword data and analysis to pick low hanging fruit. That works great but it’s not scalable. As soon as you start trying to be bold, go too broad with hugely popular but ultra-competitive phrases, you need more, MUCH more than just an ability to find a phrase and optimize it within your brand or site. You need a solid reputation as a source of real quality, flawless content, slick navigation and a buzzing hive of social connectivity.

We often hear, and with fair substantiation, that page rank, keyword backlinks, bounce rate and cost-per-click play crucial roles in SEO analysis. But extensive involvement in both the creative and strategic process of content delivery leads me to believe it has so much more to do with having a robust view of the social signals you are giving off and the social relevance you possess. Creating the right content type, format and depth of coverage for a particular searcher, and really having an identity as a brand, makes all the difference. Newsy or evergreen? Conversational or instructional? What does your audience want to see? Content that is represented in search results is much more about social habits, networks of trust and patterns of behavior than traditional keyword focus, which is stats-driven and formulaic in approach.

Maybe it’s time for an upgrade, what about SEO 2.0… Social Engagement Optimization!

Social awareness has totally changed the landscape of SEO. While not dead, SEO as a formula using tools and techniques garnered from databases and SEO experts applying “tried and trusted methodology” has to be balanced with social impact. When the algorithms started to look at what we originally assumed were intangibles – social indicators of trust, respect, loyalty, readability and voice – we saw a cultural shift in what was meaningful for the SEO analyst, content curator and searcher as a whole. The experts had a wake-up call; their knowledge base has to incorporate a far broader social mix. Embracing it is what will separate the wheat from the chaff.

Image Credit: Shutterstock/Peter Holecka

Giving Credit When Credit Is Due: A Key Factor in Reputation Management

Since writing about the Budweiser Canada Super Bowl commercial earlier this week, I’ve been thinking a lot about when and how acknowledgments for ideas should be given – and why this is more important than ever in today’s world. We could talk for days, or even months, about the legalities and ethics surrounding this topic, but there’s another aspect to this argument that many people haven’t thought about. How does recognizing (or failing to recognize) someone else’s contributions affect your brand’s reputation?

Lisa Tucker makes some great observations in her post discussing the different levels of emotional connections in advertising. While she focuses on the varying degrees of positive emotional responses, negative connections can be formed as well – like the belief that some big brand with lots of cash is stealing a little guy’s idea. In situations like these, there’s more to it than just typical moral outrage. Often, people are identifying with some event or circumstance that actually affected them.

Almost all of us have at least one experience in our lives when we felt we weren’t given proper credit for something. Maybe your boss presented your idea as his own at an important company meeting, or your sister ignored your suggestion until she heard it again from someone else. Or, it could be something as small as someone forgetting to send a thank you note for a graduation gift. Even in cases when we recognize such a slight was accidental or inadvertent, we generally still experience unpleasant emotions like anger, sadness, frustration, annoyance or just plain ol’ disappointment.

So, when we hear about some instance where a person or group hasn’t been given due credit, we naturally tend to associate that with a similar event from our past. This drudges up all sorts of negative feelings, which are projected onto the company perceived to be the offending party. Thus, an emotional connection is formed – but it’s not really the one you want for your brand.

While this scenario is nothing new, it is much more prevalent today due to the fact that information spreads so much faster and more freely than ever before. Ten years ago, if a couple of people thought your idea was copycatting one from someone else, they might tell their friends, neighbors and so forth, but the story would probably remain fairly localized. Today, those same couple of people might make a comment on YouTube, Twitter or Facebook – and BAM! All of a sudden, millions are talking about it and your reputation management team has to go into overdrive to clean up the mess.

Yes, borrowing ideas and concepts may be perfectly legal and even accepted by others in the industry, but what will the general public think if the original creative personality isn’t acknowledged? Instead of focusing on legal responsibilities and towing the “this is the way things work” line, we need to give more thought to customer perception. One thing is certain: If we’re not transparent enough about our practices, there’s always someone waiting to step up to let us – and the rest of the world – know about it.

Photo Credit: PhotoSpin

Emotional Connections in Advertising: Are There Varying Levels?

In a previous post about the GE/Budweiser commercial and my thoughts on how such collaborations could redefine the advertising industry, I mentioned how much I love to watch the Super Bowl commercials. Normally I can’t get to my DVR fast forward button quick enough to skim by the ads, and even in the rare cases that I’m actually watching a show that isn’t recorded I still use the commercial time to check email, get a snack, go to the bathroom, etc. The Super Bowl is always a time for the best of the best in advertising, but what makes some stand out more than others? What makes some elicit such a strong emotional response that a person actually follows through on a call to action? This year’s Super Bowl featured many commercials of humor and other emotional connections, but one in particular grabbed me from a truly nostalgic standpoint.

The MetLife spot features a blast from the past of cartoon characters from the 1960’s, 70’s and 80’s. It opens with the peanuts gang walking up a hill in a field and leads to a series of scenes which feature He-Man, Pepe Le Pew, Speedy Gonzales, Atom Ant, Scooby Doo and a host of other cameo’s by characters long forgotten. Now they have me at Scooby Doo because it was by far and away my most favorite cartoon, but I’m beginning to realize that some of these characters I haven’t even thought about in 30 years, and I am loving this commercial. It has also elicited vocal responses from various age demographics throughout the room at the party I’m attending. We are all watching this commercial and trying to shout out the names of the characters and saying which ones were our favorites. The final shot of this ad is a group image of approximately 50-55 cartoon characters joining together.

This commercial not only had me pausing and rewinding live television with my DVR so that people in the room could see a character again or try to see if anyone else in the room could remember it’s name, but it actually had me stop the commercial at the final shot because everyone in the room wanted to see who was in it. Now what you need to understand about this scenario is that my family are avid NY Giants fans and it was a nail biting game, so for a commercial to render such a universal response to all viewers around the television is huge. Nobody said “Get back to the game!,” we just all had a blast in a nostalgic few moments bonding over cartoon characters. Stopping for the commercial and reviewing the characters actually put us 5 whole minutes behind in viewing the Super Bowl live because we didn’t want to fast forward through any of the other commercials either in order to catch up. Now five minutes may not sounds like a long time, but when you have family in other parts of the country calling to talk about a certain play it turns out to be a very big deal.

The funny part is that I had completely forgotten that MetLife is associated with The Peanuts characters. I personally never even thought about MetLife, but I have now spent my morning writing this blog about them and liking them on Facebook so that I could see the names of the characters we didn’t know. This emotionally charged, nostalgic focused style of marketing is genius to me. I have followed through on their call to action of going to Facebook and liking their page, but most of all I remember the company that the ad is for. How many times do you see a commercial you really like or that makes you laugh and you think to yourself “that was a great ad”, but when asked later who the ad was for you can’t remember. Ultimately that ad was a failure because you remember the commercial and don’t remember the company, and while the ad is strong enough to remember, it’s not strong enough to make you go and find out who it is?

Yes there were other ads with dogs in them that really resonated with me because I love dogs, but they didn’t make me remember their brands or do any follow-up. So what was it about the MetLife ad that produced such a strong connection for me? Was it showing characters from so many different decades that caused a group response that I fed off? Maybe a little, but I know that if I was alone and saw that particular commercial I would’ve still taken the same actions. Was it the nostalgia of bringing up childhood memories? That’s possible. What do you think draws the line in the sand of creating an emotional connection compared to creating an emotional connection that actually initiates follow-up?