Campaigns like this one from Element Skateboards give me hope for the future of marketing. They pieced elements (no pun intended) of the online world, video, real-life events and the passion of their audience and created a truly simple and elegant campaign. Take notes from the video below.
A campaign for Element Skateboards where skaters can challenge each other to claim spots.
The LA Times is reporting that augmented reality apps will finally be a reality in September with the release of iPhone OS 3.1.
Augmented reality software works to overlay useful info onto a real-world view using a mobile device. Imagine the amazing apps that commercial ventures could create with the augmented reality technology like the videos show below. You could walk into your favorite store, search for the products you’re looking for and potentially have information, coupons and offers pushed to you at the exact point when you’re ready to make a purchase decision. Both sides would benefit – stores would have to employee less people and customers would have a richer experience.
Imagine going to an outdoor concert, finding all the folks you know attending that same event and even exploring information about the bands and songs going on at that exact moment. The list is endless. Developers and marketers should be salivating like a wild dog over the potential.
Originally posted December 30, 2008
Everyone is making their 2009 online predictions these days, so I’d thought I’d throw my hat in the ring. Here are my online marketing and social media predictions for the new year. Tell me what you think will happen in the comments below. PS – I’ve made it super easy to comment. You can now login using your Facebook profile. No fuss, no mess.
1. Twitter finds a way to make money. I don’t think this will be through advertising. I envision a subscription model based exclusive content and features. This could be in the form of storage for music and photos or the ability to record and host videos.
2. Google will make a large acquisition of a TV network which will allow them to (1) further blur the lines between the different types of media we consume and (2) sell a larger market of TV ads on an auction basis.
3. Social networks become a thing of the past…..kinda. The web itself becomes a social network as sites take the first step with integrating Google Friend Connect and Facebook Connect. Content will no longer live behind the walled gardens of Facebook and MySpace. I think Google will be the first to make significant strides in this direction.
4. Media companies will continue to pump out free content, but will look beyond advertising as a business model. They will tie-in more exclusive deals with content distributors, makers and services.
5. The death of the banner ad. As online budgets shrink, more and more companies will move away from the typical banner ad and move to better integrate advertisements as content. Companies will work to expand customer ‘experiences’ over simply advertising.
6. More advertisers will begin to negotiate on a cost-per-action basis (where the advertiser pays for each specified action linked to the advertisement such as a purchase or form submission) rather than the traditional CPM or CPC model.
7. Grainy, low-quality web video will finally see its demise. 2009 will be the year of HD web video.
8. YouTube becomes the new Google. Users (beginning with the younger crowd) will start their queries at YouTube instead of a traditional search engine. Advertisers will shift funds to this channel.
9. Hot job trend will be for companies to hire community managers more often as voices for their brand. People like Matt Cutts , Jerimiah Owyang or Dave Delaney will be the passionate individuals employed to help evangelize brands and serve as the main community figurehead. Smart organizations will realize that social media efforts come from all areas of the organization.
10. As more smart phones such as the iPhone, G1 and Blackberry enter the market, Google will work to control the platforms and mechanisms we use to surf the mobile web. This will lead to Google leading and controlling the mobile advertising market. Expect a big announcement in terms of mobile advertising before June.
11. As more advertisers shift budgets online, the PPC market becomes very crowded. Increased competition over the same keywords mean that companies will need to work on capitalizing (and customizing) every click and customer interaction. Marketers that fail to do this will see click cost and cost-per-acquisition (CPA) begin to erode and eat away their once stable profits.
12. Google project that fails in 2009: Knol
13. Second Life use plummets
Legendary (and fictional) record producer Tommy Silk helps you rock out your R.O.I and synthesize your 
sales by making a free commercial song with jingle lyrics written for your own type of business. Jingle lyrics are customized based on the business name and information you provide. Commercials are based on Your Love, originally performed by The Outfield. Jingle Maker is provided by Intuit, the makers of tax software QuickBooks. I like how they’ve created a very creative and innovative campaign for a product that isn’t traditionally sexy. In addition to the Jingle Maker microsite, they also have footprints on YouTube and Facebook
Need a day off, but you have to have an alibi? Let Mike’s Hard Lemonade put together a personalized news clip that you can use to cover your tracks. Upload a picture, give them some basic information and you’ve got yourself a custom video detailing your hard luck. You can get sucked up in a street sweeper, stuck on a carnival ride or have your cat perform CPR on you. To top it all off, they put the video in a customized web page that resembles a news website. The videos are hard from believable, but worth many laughs.
Caterer.com has created 2 amazingly funny ads featuring a young Gordon Ramsay to promote their hospitality site. For my money (and attention), there’s nothing better than a kid with an English accent dropping f-bombs. You have to see the videos to believe it. Video 1, Video 2.
To promote their 1¢ back-to-school specials, Office Max put a hidden camera on an actor who went around to various establishments such as a deli, a used car lot and a jewelry store trying to pay with pennies. As you can imagine, he wasn’t greeted with welcome arms after presenting a bag full (or truck load) of pennies on the counter. Office Max ends the spots with ‘We’ll take your pennies’.
The only down fall I found with this promotion is that the videos aren’t able to be viewed without going directly to the Office Max microsite, which is a major bummer to the viral aspect of this campaign.
Maker of all things delicious, Häagen-Dazs, has created a public service announcement around the disappearance of the honey bee. The ice cream gods go on to ask customers to plant a seed and support bee-keepers so the bees can continue to pollinate the delicious fruits that go into their ice cream. Häagen-Dazs has also used more traditional forms of media to bring their cause to the forefront, including promoting their Bee-Boy dance crew that has been lighting up YouTube and the blogosphere.
I love the social aspect that Häagen-Dazs has employed with this campaign; its nice to see a company spend some of their own money to support and bring attention to causes they believe in. I feel this only builds a stronger brand and increases the stickiness of their customer. Check out the Bee-Boy dance crew video on this page in the feature video section.
So, what have you learned from these? What insight or tips have you taken away from these brilliant campaigns? I’ve detailed my thoughts and tips below for making a creative and viral online marketing campaign below, but I want to hear what you think. Leave your feedback in the comments or drop me a link to a campaign you find creative and witty.
So let’s say you’re a Mom and Pop ice cream shop or even Ben & Jerry’s for this matter. What could be a better promotion than embracing social media and integrating it with the latest cultural fad? Not only do you get your customers (and potential customers) involved with your brand, but you also make it fun for them and leave a lasting impression.
This is how I see the promo set up, but feel free to add you own twist on it. Start a YouTube page for your business – they’re free. Encourage your customers to upload their best performance of one of the greatest lines from There Will Be Blood – “I drink your milkshake.” Promote the effort on your website, company blog, in-store promotions and to your best clients. Have a definitive start and end date in mind. At the end, have the community vote on they think gave the best rendition of the movie. Have a screening of the movie for all participants, give away prizes such as a years supply of milkshakes or let the winner be in your next company commercial.
Not only to get free PR out of the effort, but you create goodwill and get your customers talking. They’ll share their story and videos with their friends. Their friends will want to take part in the promotion and before you know it, you’ve got life-long engaged customers. Now the tough part comes when you have to do your next promotion.
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