Good luck, Scoble

/ Angelo Fernando / Leave a comment

News that Robert Scoble is leavng Microsoft, is indeed quite a story. He’s been a huge influence to many of us, because his posts were candid, philosophical, and sharp in a world where a lot of puffery gets far too much credit and buzz. (If you haven’t read Naked Conversations, the book he co-authored with Shel Israel, go beg, borrow or steal a copy.) Listen to him, for instance, interviewed on his move, about moving towards the ‘fast slope up.’

Speaking of the Scoble-effect, his new employer says its site crashed and was down for an hour yesterday, when news got out that Microsoft’s most famous employee was joining them.

Good luck Robert. You give all writers, blogggers and communicators something to be proud of. Looking forward to your PodTech posts.

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iTunes – more than just music

/ Angelo Fernando / Leave a comment

Itunes Now that TV shows are popular downloads on iTunes, it’s about time to think of the once-upon-a-music site as a media and content distributor. This week, there was news that World Cup fans in Germany could download city guides, when travelling to Germany.

So how about school’s posting lectures? Or companies distributing press releases? Take this example. Abilene Christian University has an agreement with iTunes to put their course material there. This is probably based on the old Apple model of being the device for students, so the iPod is a much better fit than a PC. Apple’s site, "iTunes U" talks this up, and why "course content must be portable."

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Social Media Press Release: it’s about time!

/ Angelo Fernando / 1 Comment

Shel Holtz writes (in New Communications Review) about the introduction of something called a ‘social media press release’ by Shift Communications, but does not come down too hard on the old media press releases as most people do.

His point: While saying he does not argue with the folk that say the press release is often not newsworthy and poorly written, there is still value in them. He makes a great case –that the media often adapt, and don’t just allow someone else to write their obituary. "new media do not kill old media. Old media adapt and evolve."

As for the Social Media Press Release, it issued its own press release in the new format, that includes a purpose-built del.icio.us site. if you’re wondering what’s so different about this press release format, check here. Someone issuing a press release cn mix and match non-linear media elements into the release, including an RSS feed, a photo, a podcast or a video, or all of them.

The social media approach to press releases defintely fills a void as we straddle the analog and interactive world.

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Ad Agencies reboot –get CrispinPorterized

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A month ago I wrote this piece about network agencies basically rebooting, to incorporate online and interactive marketing. Yesterday’s article in AdAge, Handwriting on the wall clearly reveals this huge shift is underway. It’s how the broadcast-focused agency structure is moving into a more interactive one.

If you read the recent Businessweek cover story about CPB, you’ll know how they were the first big name agency to boldly go in that direction. David Kiley, who wrote the story recounts on the Businessweek podcast how the creative director at Crispin Porter + Bogusky told him he really did not like working on television comemrcials as they were so ‘passive.’ No other agency could have dared say such a thing –or come up with ‘subservient chicken’ idea! They were the un-agency, and now every one wants to be like them.

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Emerging media pickup, slow. Or is it?

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There’s good news/bad news scenario about emerging media. Forrester Research is reporting that 57% of those in a recent survey don’t plan to use mobile as a marketing channel, while 72% don’t plan to use video games.

But social networking and behavioral targeting is hot. MediaPost reports on sone brand marketers picking it up. MarketingVox, also reports on the YouTube/Myspace traffic, and the power of online video. So it’s a clow pickup, in a way that’s not altogether disheartening, as ironical as that seems.

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Great media buy

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Ad_wwfPrint media doesn’t get much credit these days, with so much digital options.

This ad, for the World Wildlife Federation uses te serrated edge of a newspaper in a way no one has ever considered as part of the medium’s benefit. Check a larger layout here.

The copy, next to the logo says: "Not recycling this newspaper is the same as cutting down another tree."

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Making a friend out of foe in TiVo

/ Angelo Fernando / 1 Comment

Brian Haven blogging on the Forrester Research site observes how a mysterious ad flashing on LOST, turns out to be a way marketers are beginning to use TiVo as a creative tool in the battle to circumvent ad skipping.

I had said something very similar to this in my previous post.

This has implications for anyone thinking of non-linear campaigns. First, we need to think of how the three screens will complement each other. No longer will we be able to compartmentalize budgets into TV, mobile and PC. There can not be a TiVo strategy without a plan to get into YouTube, for instance. Cross-channel will also pull in podcasts into the mix. Notice how Fox has ‘foxcasts‘ to integrate the TV programs with the RSS-driven media audiences.

Then, we’ll need to find an alternative to the ratings system –to make sense of how viewers migrate back and forth to their different media for any given program or commercial interaction…er, ad. DVR’s will probably include some serious tracking capability in a few years.

Imagine how this will play out when IPTV comes into the mix, and the Nielsen-meets-TiVo kind of metrics become available. There was a WSJ article a year ago where a media buyer is quoted as saying that if people are not watching a show live, they don’t count –as they probably don’t watch the commercials. If they do, he said, then these viewings are "too late to matter." Going by Brian Haven”s experience, media buyers who see the DVR as a problem, not a benefit, will have to eat their words.

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DVRs and the Ad agencies: no strange bedfellows

/ Angelo Fernando / Leave a comment

The ‘ad blocker’ for which agencies had fear and loathing was eventually going to be their best friend, I used to say years ago. When TiVo launched, it looked like the end-of-days for advertising had come to pass, but when you peeled back the layers of DVR, it was evident that the consumer being in control (and being able to skip past commercials) was only one part of the equation. The digital interface was also the best tracking device at that time, and smart advertisers were able to see that this was another way to identify viewer behavior.

So the news that TiVo has signed up with Universal McCann (nicely coinciding with the news that the Up-fronts are not so important anymore) gives us an insight into where television’s going. There’ll come a time soon when very creative media buys and interactive campaigns could use the very DVR technology. Remember how KFC used a secret code in commercials only viewable when played back in slow motion?

Now imagine this in the IPTV era. We would probably be able to create advertising that requires the viewer to use time shifting to the advantage of the advertiser as well –say saving a commercial that would have embedded codes or links to microsites that would only be valid in a week. These rich-media stories (we won’t call them commercials anymore) would create a high level of audience participation that would have never been possible without TiVo-like devices.

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Newspapers dying on the vine. Haven’t we heard this before?

/ Angelo Fernando / Leave a comment

The news seems everywhere that newspapers are dying a slow death. But I like to play the contrarian and say that there is life in them bendable, hand-held communication devices that operate without batteries or browsers…

This CNN poll, shows the weakness of newspapers in the news departement. 87% of people polled said they get their news from the Net. But what about ‘insights’ and non-earth shattering information? You know, movie reviews, food sections, ‘news’ about the latest mobile device or service, travel? Nothing beats a good read in a daily paper landing on your doorstep. I say this, in spite of subscribing to Nyt.com, and glancing at sfgate.com for great new tidbits (that don’t show up on my Yahoo home page)

Speaking of which, The San Francisco Chronicle is a great example of how the online product could impact the newspaper: Morning Edition moderator/deputy business editor recently spoke how the paper could benefit from the blog. Tech Chronicles, the blog, appears in the newspaper the next day. Talk about reverse re-purposing of content. This kind of experiment could add new life to print. I truly believe it could work. Good luck, Chronicle.

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