Six Pixels of Separation: It Is What It Is And It Does What It Does

Social Media (or any other form of Marketing and Communications) won't save a bad product, brand or service.

This may seem like an obvious statement out of the gates, but it is something that many brand managers don't really wrap their heads around. If you love the TV show Mad Men (and who, in their right mind, doesn't?) the subtext of the early days of advertising (and something that kept happening until very recently) was the ability for a brand to engage with a Madison Avenue type of advertising agency to help them turn a coal into a diamond. The germ of mass media advertising was about creating an allure or desire for products and over-selling them. Making them seem and feel bigger than they really were.

Social Media changed all of that... and more.

While advertising still works on creating this perceived desire, things do change when all voices (the brand, the advertising agency and the consumer) have an equalized platform. Any one individual with a gripe or with something nice to say can get to the top of the search engines or have their online social network share their story (in places like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, etc...)so brands, products and services have to be able to deliver. In fact, with customer reviews (or peer reviews) individuals can affect a sales outcome right there where the "buy now" button lives.

Ultimately, your brands, products and services have to hold up to this very simple adage: "it is what it is and it does what it does."

It's great if it can do more (but if it could do more, you would probably say so in all of your marketing and communications), but it really doesn't have to. So, when you use words like, "better, brighter, faster, 20% more, 40% off, etc..." you can disguise the true realities of the marketing initiative in the small print. Social Media is forcing companies to do away with that fine print. Seth Godin wrote brilliantly about how brilliant brands are the only way to go in his seminal best-selling business book, Purple Cow. While being remarkable should be every brand's lighthouse, the conversation around what it takes and those who have actually done it eludes the majority of companies. Most companies still do make regular products for regular people (in fact, if everyone was able to create a Purple Cow, how would we know? We would probably need a phrase for something that is more remarkable than a Purple Cow - Purple Panda anyone?). Seth's right, we need to get there, but most brands are falling woefully short of those purple pastures.

The point is to ensure that your product is what it is and that it does what it's supposed to do.

That - in and of itself - is enough to begin some semblance of a conversation and the initial strikes at building a community. Sadly, most brands don't even do that. They'll make claims in their advertising and fight for people to understand "their side" on Twitter. It's sad, because it is only the brands that are the exceptions to this rule that we can point to... and we can't even do that one hundred percent of the time... and there aren't enough great examples (hint: we need more!).

Why? Why? Why?

Why don't brands live up to that one simple adage? Why can't we all (as Marketers) make a commitment that our initiatives, programs and campaigns will be based on creating an appetite for something that can do what it claims and that works? One hundred percent of the time. All of the time. Without any small print. We would have a very different world. One where consumers actually enjoyed (maybe even looked forward to) advertising and one where the notion of brand loyalty would go beyond sending out mass emails to individuals who relinquished some of their privacy to simply save a few bucks.

Wouldn't it be nice? Six Pixels of Separation - Marketing and Communications Insights - By Mitch Joel at Twist Image

Six Pixels of Separation: First Things First

Strategy before tactics.

"What are we doing on Blogs, Facebook and YouTube?" is the wrong question to ask (so don't let those boardroom discussions get too heated). The better question is: "why?" "Why should we be on Blogs, Facebook and YouTube?" As I've said before, asking "why?" forces a brand to look at the business objectives and strategy first. "What?" is simply a tactic (which should always follow from the strategy). It's the same as when initial brand planning sessions immediately diverge into conversations about the color of the logo or what the business cards should look like. We will (hopefully) all agree that the strategy needs to drive the tactics.

But before you get to the strategy, ask yourself this...

What are we really great at creating? Social Media isn't one kind of media channel. It's many different type of media that can be interacted with, created and collaborated on in many different ways. If you have a solid strategy that aligns everything to being on Twitter (let's just say), you then have to find someone within the organization that will not only understand Twitter (what it is, how it works, etc...) but they will have to be good (err... great!) at publishing small bursts of content, frequently and engaging with others within the Twitter community. As obvious as that may sound, I've seen many strategies relegated to the bottom drawer of the Chief Marketing Officer's filing cabinet because there was nobody within the organization who had the passion and skills to be the content creator and see the initiative through.

Remember: being great at Marketing means being great at Publishing.

Yes, you can still use broadcast media to drive a message through, but when you start to connect with Social Media and the many new communications and marketing platforms, you are a publisher, and the best publishers live and breathe the content they are sharing. So, if it turns out that the strategy deck calls for YouTube but there is nobody with a passion for online video, you're going to struggle (unless you can bring in the right resources). To make Social Media work - in a very authentic way - you need to sit down, review your team and figure out what you're good at creating, publishing and talking about.

There's some good news.

Again, Social Media isn't just one media. It's many media channels. You can create content in text, audio, video and images. You can create short pieces of content (think Twitter or posting pictures to Flickr) or you can create an ongoing Podcast series (in audio or video). Spend those initial first moments before diving into the strategy to really figure out what type of content you would be best at producing. That line of thought might help move the strategy along, and it will also ensure that there is someone (or many people) within the organization that not only see this as part of their day-to-day job, but enjoy the process of creating it and engaging within it.

Take the time to really figure out what you're good at before chasing after the latest shiny social media object.



Six Pixels of Separation - Marketing and Communications Insights - By Mitch Joel at Twist Image

Six Pixels of Separation: The Almighty Endgame Of Marketing

We can talk community. We can talk loyalty. We can talk brand value. We can talk 30-second spots. We can talk Social Media. All of that is fine and dandy, but for Marketing to truly be respected, it's going to need one thing and one thing only...

During the two-day summit that was the Canadian Marketing Association (CMA) National Convention last month (full disclosure: I sit on the Board of Directors of the CMA and act as the Co-Chair for the National Convention), both Avinash Kaushik (the Analytics Evangelist for Google and author of Web Analytics - An Hour A Day and Web Analytics 2.0) and Ken Wong (the esteemed marketing professor from Queen's School of Business) pointed out that as long marketing does not focus (with a red laser's eye) on profit and the overall economic value that it brings to the company, brand, products and services, all is lost.

Economic value and profit is more important than creativity... it's sad (but true) to say.

Kaushik actually remarked that it is "God!" If Marketing does not focus on the overall economic value that it adds to a company's bottom-line, we're simply going to be referred to as the people who make those cute commercials or the folks who put the pretty pictures around the products and services (and let's face it, none of us want to be regarded as the people who are "on Twitter and Facebook for us." That's just depressing). The fight for the c-suite boardroom, where some companies do have Chief Marketing Officers (CMO) - and some don't - is an important one for marketers to rally around. Let's not forget about about The Four P's of Marketing. They're more important than ever and they're critical to the overall health and wealth of the company.

Sometimes, marketing does focus on the wrong things.

The first step of solving the problem is in admitting that we have a problem. We are all a little too quick to get excited about logos, commercials, online social networks and iPhone apps versus looking at a P&L or sitting through the revenue generation meetings. Perhaps if we became a little more bold and focused on the left side of the brain as much as we tend to focus on the right side of the brain, there would be that much more respect for Marketing (in the boardroom and in the mass media's eyes as well).

We can do this.

Thinking about the business first. Focusing on the numbers and the overall economic wealth of the company might not stifle the creative sparks. In fact, being acutely tuned in to the overall business might force Marketing to get that much more creative. I get where both Kaushik and Wong are coming from. It can't all be Converse Chuck Taylor's and Beer Friday. We're going to have get more serious about diving in the analytics of this all. Even the basic website analytics that are being stored within a finger's reach aren't being capitalized on the way they should. We're still too busy looking at unique visitors and traffic spikes versus running multivariate testing to see which landing pages the customer prefers. That doesn't kill creativity, that makes creativity more creative. Instead of designing one page (and hoping our gut instinct is right), we're now able to experiment with multiple pages and then use the data and analytics to optimize.

This will push creativity.

Instead of seminars on brand management and how to market your company on Facebook, maybe there needs to be a marketplace for courses on profit and economic value? How many Marketers do you know that would attend one of those seminars? We're going to have to push Marketing in this direction. It's the one thing all of the other business units are paying attention to, and it's probably one of the few things that - when done right - will really put Marketing where it deserves to be in the corporate food chain (think: close to the top).

Who is with me on this? Please view in full at:Six Pixels of Separation - Marketing and Communications Insights - By Mitch Joel at Twist Image

Six Pixels of Separation: The iPhone Of The Future

How many articles can one person read about another newer version of the Apple iPhone?

Apple head honcho Steve Jobs launched the iPhone 4G this week in San Francisco at the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference. This is the fourth generation of the smartphone that changed (and continues to change) the world. And, while no one knows how cool, fast and impressive this next generation smartphone will be, there are some key lessons all businesspeople can take away from the presentation and promises of what this device is and what it can do.

Let's start with the raw features: Jobs did not invent video conferencing and the fact you can now multi-task (have multiple apps open at once, instead of one at a time) is not that big of a breakthrough (the Palm Pre -which was an industry flop -offered this years ago as does BlackBerry and other smartphones). Having a battery that now lasts up to seven hours also is tablestakes when you look at the average person's work schedule and how long other mobiles can go without a charge.

In the end, the new iPhone is not about the new features, but it's about where we are going with both computing and connectivity.

Remember when nobody paid for a cellphone? The culture of "free phones" permeated the mobile carrier business for years and what Apple did with their first generation iPhone is shift the mass mind-set from free to paying close to $600 for a mobile device. That mindshift opened the floodgates and, suddenly, the everyday person was comfortable (no, happy) to shell out their hard-earned dollars for a mobile device that was not only feature-rich, but would offer them a level of social status among their peers. The iPhone became a product of envy for those who didn't have one and an object of pride for those that did.

Design is everything.

One of the best business books of the past decade is Re-Imagine! Business Excellence in a Disruptive Age by Tom Peters (DK, 2006). Beyond the beauty of the book design and page layout, Peters continually highlights - in words -the importance of brilliant, jaw-dropping design in relation to the brands that have truly created businesses that are built to last. If Apple does one thing magically great, it is their industrial design. Apple products are beautiful. They fit with the times and they give us a glimpse into the future. This new iPhone also is an object of beauty. Every micro-inch of space was optimized and rethought and - by the looks of it - nothing was spared (not the weight, overall size or even how it feels in someone's hand). Creating a product that people will marvel at is no small feat in a world like ours. It's not the inside, it's not the outside and it's not what goes into it ... it's how those pieces all come together that make it so special to consumers.

It also is not about the phone.

When you pull together all of the features of the iPhone 4G, what becomes abundantly clear is that this is no longer about telecommunications. The phone (or calling) part is now shadowed by everything else. The new iPhone offers us some preliminary glimpses of what our world of connectivity, communications and computers will be. It's less of a phone and more of a remote control for your life. A fully featured computer that has all of the necessary moving parts for what a mobile device should be. When everything from the quality of pictures and videos become comparable with devices that only serve those individual purposes, we begin to really see how - in the not-too-distant future - we won't be trudging around laptops, iPads and mobile devices. There will be one device to rule them all -great text, images, audio and video in one hand-held/portable device.

It's all about the resolution.

Apple calls it Retina Display, and it boasts four times the pixel count of previous generation iPhones. Apparently, the pixels are so dense that the human eye is unable to distinguish individual pixels. Jobs made a comment during the launch that the iPhone displays content so clearly that it is virtually indistinguishable from text on paper (everyone from Amazon and Sony to every book, newspaper and magazine publisher's ears must have perked up). Funny enough, everybody thought the existing resolution of the iPhone was already pretty impressive. You have to respect a company that iterates and innovates when what was presently in-market seemed more than above average.

Finally, it's all about the media and apps.

Music, movies, books, television, newspapers, magazines, games and more. Apple is as much of an entertainment company as they are a design and hardware company. They not only provide the hardware and connectivity, but also get a fair chunk of change by charging for the content and applications that run on devices like the iPhone. And, as if that were not enough, their new iAd advertising platform also is going to go gangbusters for the launch of the iPhone 4G. Apple will get money for the apps and they will get money from the ads. And while many are highly critical of the fact Apple is not more of an open environment, that didn't seem to stop 2 million iPads from flying off the shelves in under 60 days, and by the looks of things, the iPhone 4G will experience a similar effect.

The iPhone 4G is newsworthy beyond the innovation of the hardware, software and connectivity.

Apple turns people from consumers into loyal evangelists and they also are perfectly fine with those who can't stand them. What great bands aren't polarizing? The lessons of innovation, pushing technology and providing a product, brand or service that consumers don't even realize they may need are the real lessons that every business can learn from Apple -time and time again.

Have your say below...Six Pixels of Separation - Marketing and Communications Insights - By Mitch Joel at Twist Image

Six Pixels of Separation - Marketing and Communications Insights - By Mitch Joel at Twist Image: There Will Be Blood

Why do so many companies struggle with Digital Marketing, the Internet and the mobile platform?

If this Blog has done anything over the years, it has grappled with the question above. At a macro level... at a micro level... and at every point in between. We've looked at specific platforms, dissected trends and even looked into the crystal ball to ponder what the Marketing world will be. It is incredibly frustrating to watch one individual talk to a room full of senior marketers and explain - in a couple of sentences - why most brands grapple with the Internet and Digital Marketing as much as they do.

I hate Avinash Kaushik.

Kaushik is the Analytics Evangelist at Google, Blogger over at Occam's Razor and the best-selling business book author of Web Analytics - An Hour A Day and the recently released, Web Analytics 2.0 (he's also a semi-regular guest on my Six Pixels of Separation Podcast). And, I hate him because he did just that... in magnificent form. Last week at the Canadian Marketing Association (CMA) National Convention (of which I was the co-chair), Kaushik (who was the opening keynote speaker) gave a very passionate presentation to a select few senior marketers during the President's Dinner, and he helped crystallize this brand struggle perfectly:

"The Web has been around forever and yet it is not in the blood of the executives who staff the top echelons of companies. Make no mistake, they are smart, they are successful and they want to do better. But the web is such a paradigm shift that if it is not in your blood it is very difficult to imagine its power and how to use it for good. How do you demand innovation & creativity & radical rethink if you can't imagine it?"

I love Avinash Kaushik.

This isn't about hiring young talent. This isn't about outsourcing all of your Digital Marketing needs. This is about shifting attitudes, embracing the very real reality of what the Internet has done to business and holding everybody within the organization accountable for their marketing actions online.

"I must admit up front that I am as hard core as any evangelical born again Christian in my passion when it comes to the web. The raw innovation and empowerment that a connected digital world has unleashed is the reason I lovingly refer to it as 'God's gift to humanity'."

While those are the words that Avinash used to open up his speech (and words that I choose to live by as well), it is how every member of your team should be thinking too (from the senior most executives to the latest newbies).

For brands to be successful, they need the Internet to be in their blood. Period. End of story. Case closed.

...and there's more where that came from. Avinash published his comments as a Blog post today titled, Online Marketing Still A Faith Based Initiative. Why? What's The Fix? Read it now and pass it on to your entire team. It is an important read.
Six Pixels of Separation - Marketing and Communications Insights - By Mitch Joel at Twist Image

Six Pixels of Separation: The Truth (And Value) In Advertising

Sometimes, it is not about creating something new for an existing brand, because it should be more about ensuring that the true value of that band, product or service is ever-more obvious to the consumer.

Advertising is not dead. That's the amazing message from Rory Sutherland in this fascinating TED Talk from 2009 titled, Rory Sutherland: Life lessons from an ad man.

Do yourself a favor and take sixteen minutes to watch this amazing presentation on Marketing, Advertising and Communications from someone who not only does it on a day-to-day basis, but can also talk about it in such an eloquent, humorous and impactful way: Please click here to view video: Six Pixels of Separation - Marketing and Communications Insights - By Mitch Joel at Twist Image

Six Pixels of Separation: A Fascinating Look At The Numbers Behind Social Media

If you're looking for some cool Social Media stats to bulk up a presentation or bring this new media channel to the attention of your superiors, look no further.

Yesterday, Erik Qualman (the author Socialnomics) released an updated version of his very popular YouTube video on Social Media stats titled: Social Media Revolution 2 (Refresh).

Here are some of the more interesting Social Media stats: Please continue reading & watch video @ Six Pixels of Separation - Marketing and Communications Insights - By Mitch Joel at Twist Image

Mitch Joel at Twist Image: Maybe We Need To Ease Up On The Advertising

When you play in the Social Media sphere, a lot of people will refer to advertising as "interruption-based marketing". No one likes to be interrupted.

It has been a huge week for the online advertising community. Everybody is scrambling to figure out the ramifications of what Apple's soon to launch iAd platform will mean to the industry. As if it's not enough of a struggle to get your interactive development team primed to produce content and new digital environments for the iPad, this new iAd advertising network that Mr. Jobs and his team launched last week is going to force us to figure out how to create engaging advertising within the apps as well. Plus, let's be realistic here, what works on an iPhone won't work on an iPad (and vice versa) - although these devices look similar the usage, flow and user interaction is totally different.

But wait, there's more...

Today, Twitter announced their advertising platform, which sounds a little like Google AdWords. These sponsored tweets will appear at the top of the user's Twitter feed and will only appear if their content is relevant to the advertiser. People complained about optimizing two lines of text when Google launched their advertising model (people still complain about it), it's going to be fun to watch the creative juices squish around over 140 characters of text.

Where else can they nail consumers with interruption-based marketing in Social Media?

When it comes to Social Media, we need to shift away from advertising models and move towards better marketing models (more on that here: The Shift From An Advertising World To A Marketing World). With everything happening in online advertising, these two new advertising platforms will only further confuse an already littered landscape. We need to dig deep (much deeper) and consider the consumers (and how they connect) and what their needs really are all about.

Brands can do more. Brands can do better.

Why would a brand simply want to put a 140 characters of advertising drivel in someone's Twitter feed, when - for free - they can monitor the many references about their brand, listen closely over time and then figure out some semblance of a strategy around how to engage, connect and... GASP... Market to them more effectively? What would drive loyalty and passionate evangelism more? Engagement and adding value in the actual conversation or a random (unrequested) message to kick off their Twitter stream?

What would have been interesting...

Is if Twitter (and Apple, for that matter) had come out and said, "listen, no more ads. We have created an internal agency that will assist brands in better understanding the many opportunities that can come from engaging in our communities. We have the data, we know who people are connected to and what they're talking about, and these insights will be able to help you better communicate and market to those people. We can also use this data to show you the type of individuals who are looking for the products and services you sell, and all you have to do is better communicate to them why they should buy from you."

The gold is not in advertising to people. The gold is in the data. The gold is in using the data to become a better Marketer.

Is it just me or as brands really missing the bigger idea?
Six Pixels of Separation