What Can Twitter Do for You? More than you might imagine

For me, Twitter is not another Facebook. It's not about connecting with lost friends or letting your virtual posse know what you're up to. It's not simply a source of breaking news . And despite the fact that it blows Google away as a real-time search engine, even that barely begins to describe Twitter's true potential.Instead, I've found far greater benefits to incorporating Twitter into my life and onto my desktop.
Here's what Twitter's given me:

1. Instant access to thought leaders in social media, digital trends, technology and marketing in the new age of community. They're all here: the staff of Wired, the lead strategists at the next generation of agencies, the pioneers of social media itself. Not just the expected names like @crowdsourcing (Jeff Howe) or @johnabyrne (BusinessWeek's digitally proactive editor) or @henryjenkins (MIT's director of comparative media studies) or @jaffejuice (Crayon's Joe) but a new generation of even younger social media enthusiasts.
Most of them are remarkably generous with their knowledge, willing to answer questions, share ideas, even give away their content.

2. An opportunity to experience crowd sourcing in action. Conduct a brainstorming session in your own agency and you're pretty much limited to the usual suspects. But on Twitter there are thousands of people willing to help out. And because no one pays attention to seniority or title, new voices are more willing to express an opinion that more often than not is both fresh and provocative. I'm constantly surprised where the quote or thought or insight or example I'm looking for comes from. But it's always to be found.

3. A new way to connect with Millennials. We live in a society that does its very best to isolate generations. But because a Twitter relationship centers around content, information and ideas, it erases differences in age. I'm now connected with college students in New York, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Atlanta and Miami.
Many of their blogs are far more telling than another research report from Simmons or Forrester. And all of them are willing to make me smarter about how marketing has to change if it's to connect with a generation defined by community, collaboration and responsibility.

4. The first hand experience needed to become an authority. As has been noted by Adweek, clients are critical of most agencies' lack of experience in social media, specifically calling them out for not using the space themselves. For me, hanging out on Twitter inspired ideas like Trash Talk from Section Twitter and RedCarpet09, two virtual gatherings created around the Super Bowl and the Academy Awards.
They not only became successful events in and of themselves -- generating visibility for Mullen and attaining status as hot topics on Twitter -- they demonstrated to clients how one agency in particular actually gets it.

5. A better understanding of how to weave together all things social. If nothing else, Twitter gives you a clear sense of everything a brand can and should do with social media: enable connections and ultimately create a community that let's you listen, engage, inspire, build and mobilize. Maybe you can't achieve social Nirvana with Twitter exclusively -- you still need a broader brand network, relevant content and genuine utility -- but Twitter makes it easier to create connections and to identify the content and utility that can help make sure those connections last.

Yes, there are challenges. Co-founder Ev Williams admits that Twitter needs to come with a set of directions; the functionality remains less than obvious. It also takes time to determine a personal strategy. Are you building your individual brand? Seeking new contacts? Looking to master a category? Or simply practicing what we all have to preach? To make things more complicated, there are hundreds upon hundreds of Twitter apps to consider, thanks to the open API. Figuring out which ones matter is in and of itself a chore.

Still, it's worth the effort. If you haven't joined yet, you're missing out. If you gave up the first time around, give it another go. And if you want help making it easier, contact me. I'm @edwardboches or http://twitter.com/edwardboches. I'll gladly share everything I've learned about the platform, and willingly introduce you to a few hundred people who can teach you everything I don't know.

Those who cultivate wind harvest a storm

Published in Campaign ME magazine, 29 March - 11 April 2009 issue, Page: 18.

Based on (unconfirmed) reports of up to a 40% decrease in advertising spending in the first quarter of 2009 and unoptimistic forecast still the year’s end leaves no doubt that the global economic crisis has castits shadow on Kuwait’s advertising industry; but the truth is that the industry has been dented long before the crisis due to years of malpractice based on “if it isn’t broken why fix it” mentality.

Advertising has an important role to play in the marketing mix as “Advertising presents the most persuasive possible selling message to the right prospects for the product or service at the lowest possible cost”– IPA.

Lets examine the situation based on “cause and effect”.

1. Cause: Price wars, “Brown envelope” culture and long credit.
Effect: Lower profit margins, cash-flow problems and redundancy across all ranks of the industry.

2. Cause: Stock photos and clip art copy-paste creativity.
Effect: Poor creativity and ROI (return on idea).Client’s messages are neither standing out in the clutter nor differentiated from their competitors. As a result clients perceive advertising as a commodity and seek the services of the lowest bidder further contributing to lower profit margins.

3. Cause:Hiring on the basis of “whom you know rather than what you know”.
Effect: Poor levels of industry practitioners. Media and printing press sales representatives compete with agencies by offering lower prices directly to clients than those offered to agencies - further leading to loss of business or contributing towards lowering industry profit margins.

4. Cause: Lack of (credible) media research, transparency and absence of media auditing.
Effect: Misleading data. Hindering the function of advertising targeting “the right prospects for the product or service at the lowest possible cost”.

5. Cause: Proliferation in the media mix.
Effect: Fragmentation of the budget (based on misleading data).

6. Cause: Lack of enforcement of intellectual property copyrights laws.
Effect: Copying the communication solution of a totally different set of problems, which does not yield a ROI - instead resultin a pandemic of copycat advertisements.

7. Cause: The over-simplification and generalization of obtaining an advertising license.

Effect: Advertising is not acknowledged as aprofession that requires certain qualifications to be practiced. Anyone can venture into the industry and cause havoc then exit leaving behind long lasting damage. Pre-press service bureaus, commercial printing press, advertising agencies, PR consultancies, calligraphers, sign makers, corporate gift items and premiums, event management, publishers and distribution companies - All fall under an advertising license with the exact same set of requirements.
Based on these stated facts; my conclusion is that the local advertising industry is in dire need of major restructuring.
If such problems are not seriously tackled promptly, the industry will remain in crisis long after the world economy recovers as per the Arabic proverb “Those who cultivate wind will harvest a storm

Follow the lines :Copy Cat

THE ORIGINAL?

Ariel “Stain-Free” - 2000

Source : Advertolog ad archive

Agency : Unknown

LESS ORIGINAL :

Persil “free the stain” - 2005

Source : Adsoftheworld,

Agency : DDB Warsaw (Poland)

Sony::: Kuwait Copy Cat

Published in Kuwait - 2009

Cheers and hope tarnished

Published in Arab Ad magazine February issue, copycat section, Page: 154.

Chevrolet :::Branching out into widgets

BRAND OWNER:General Motors
CATEGORY:Automotive
REGION:USA
DATE:Apr 2008 - Jun 2008


As gas prices skyrocketed, the American consumer was looking for an environmentally conscious car. Most consumers think Toyota, but Chevrolet wanted to make consumers aware of its commitment to environmental sustainability and conservation.

Chevrolet’s research showed that most consumers do not want to make the big changes in their life to become a true environmentalist. They will however, join and champion a cause that requires little personal time or involvement.

The campaign was launched on Earth Day across several media type, concentrating on key digital spaces that provided a one click platform where consumers could make a real world difference and show off their environmental commitment to their friends and family. Chevrolet teamed up with MySpace to develop and launch a virtual tree widget.

The Chevrolet widget allowed users to plant a seed within their profile that over 30 days grew into a tree to showcase their support for the environment. If users stayed committed to the cause for the full 30 days, then Chevrolet and MySpace pledged to plant up to 225,000 real-world trees in partnership with the Nature Conservancy in Florida. The widget was promoted within MySpace, but was spread virally.

To get the message across, each recruit would receive a note from GM’s VP of Environment, Energy, and Safety Policy stating that Chevrolet has “dedicated time, resources, and the brightest minds available to make our processes more sustainable, our vehicles less petroleum-dependent, our suppliers more conservation-minded, our plants more efficient and our planet more livable.”
Financial resources limited the number of tree plantings to 225,000, and this number of Tree Widget downloads was achieved in days.

To date, the Chevrolet Tree Widget has been downloaded by more than 18m MySpace users. Awareness of Chevrolet alternative fuels improved by 53%.

Dove::: Finding body and soul

BRAND OWNER :Unilever
CATEGORY:Toiletries/ Cosmetics
REGION:Canada
DATE:Feb 2008 - Sep 2008

Some 91% of Canadian women believe it's time society thought of aging in a positive way. Dove agrees, and in support of its Pro-Age products, spearheaded a campaign to change societal views on aging by promoting the belief that beauty has no age limit.

Dove commissioned an award winning playwright to create a one-of-a-kind live play, "Body & Soul", using a cast of real women aged between 45 and 78.

The media strategy was based on partnering with a limited number of media suppliers to foster a meaningful relationship with the audience, maintain their attention through the narrative and allow them to participate in the program. Dove chose Transcontinental Media (Canada's leading publisher of women's magazines) as the print and online partner, and CBS Television as the broadcast support.

To find cast members for the play, women were invited to write an audition letter, Dove and Transcontinental worked closely together to create customized magazine and online content which built emotional credibility for the campaign, and encouraged women to audition.

Advertorials, letters from the editor, e-blasts, web forums and brand ads were used to drive submissions. To promote the theatrical run of the play, the partnership with Transcontinental resulted in an eight page article featuring interviews with the cast and playwright, letters from the editor, web features, a chat session with cast members, a contest to win tickets to see the play, and a cast picture on the cover of Canada's top ranked women's magazine.

As a result, Body and Soul played to sell out crowds, winning rave reviews. CBS was the platform for the documentary, "Finding Body and Soul." The campaign delivered 124 million media impressions, with 55,000 unique visitors to the website

Blush lingerie ::: illegal ad of the day.

Four Ways to Exceed Clients' Expectations

1. Agree to a deadline you know you can beat. Clients nearly always appreciate when good work arrives before the due date, because it affords them flexibility. Plus, it shows that you are both efficient and customer-focused. Of course, you shouldn't nudge clients to begrudgingly accept deadlines that don't suit them just so that you can exceed expectations later. But the surprise of early delivery is more memorable than an up-front offer to beat a client's proposed due date.

2. Be an astute questioner, not a silent sage. People often overestimate the value clients place on not being bothered while their work is with a contractor. In fact, asking pointed, proactive questions during the process demonstrates your genuine interest and focus. That doesn't mean nickel-and-diming clients so that they suspect you have obsessive-compulsive disorder. But follow-up that proves you have foresight and a knack for process efficiency sends the reassuring message that while the work is in your hands, there's no need to worry about it. Silence, in contrast, can generate unease. Besides, the occasional question is a pinprick compared with the laceration that a wholesale misinterpretation can later prove to be.

3. Be collegial. "Duh," you're probably thinking. "I'm obviously not going to be rude." But collegiality is less about politeness than about your level of deference. Too much deference, which is what most contractors show, makes you seem merely like the hired help rather than a capable complement to the internal staff — and that doesn't inspire confidence. Most clients would rather work with an equal (i.e., a colleague) than a lackey, especially if you're providing expertise. That said, acting like a know-it-all obviously isn't collegial either

4. Offer constructive suggestions at the end. Every process can be improved, and who better to provide insights than someone who just went through it? If you focus solely on the merits, not on how you would benefit, your ideas for improvement won't sound presumptuous or like complaints. A truly useful suggestion, offered in good faith and with great tact, is one that the client will want to implement, probably with you. Of course, making suggestions as an outsider is a delicate endeavor that requires appropriate circumstances and good social skills. But if you've got both on your side, the payoff can be big.

Most expensive TVC ever "Honda Accord" ::: 90” for $6,200,000

“content is king”: how brands can best leverage content without the need to force-feed brand messages.

Branded content is made up of ideas that bring entertainment value to brands and that integrate brands into entertainment. This could be in the form of a TV programme, community events, film or video – any content, provided it links important passions to brands with a strategic reason.
Branded content is a by-product of a changing media landscape. Fragmentation and consumer empowerment in a world of personalised media platforms mean that consumers can choose if they want to engage with brands or not at the touch of a button.

Sophisticated content strategies enable brands to reach people without shoving brand messages down their throats. By facilitating new entertainment experiences, brands gain fame and goodwill. The more value created for the consumer, the more value is created for businesses.

It differs from sponsorship because it is not simply adding a brand’s logo to an already existing event or entertainment property. Branded content involves coming up with the creative ideas together with the brand and producers.

There are many pitfalls with branded content - Not only can it be prohibitively expensive, but it raises issues of intellectual property and can often require brands to relinquish editorial control: a prospect too terrifying for many to swallow.


Great content will draw an audience to unexpected platforms
Purina (FREE)
A cat-food manufacturer shows that gaming isn’t only for teenage boys, with an online gaming channel targeting cat owners.





Save huge production costs with live experiences
Huggies
Huggies changes Colombians' perceptions of the brand as an expensive "gringo" brand through a link up and live tour with a local comedy troupe





Ensure value for consumers and brand with truly relevant content
Dove
Dove finds a perfect content fit to take its 'Real Beauty' message to China with TV show Ugly Betty.






Develop ideas in conjunction with media owners
Meat and Livestock Australia
Meat and Livestock Australia became part of the non-commercial airtime of the Australian tennis open with live branded content.







Engage consumers across multiple platforms
Cornetto
Cornetto reaches Chinese consumers with an online karaoke competition linked with a TV show and point of sale activity













Unify fragmented audiences with tailored media favourites
Halifax
Halifax International drives business among the disparate ex-pat community in a competitive market








Be creative with distribution channels
Cheetos
Cheetos engages with 18-35 year olds with the first ever web series distributed on Facebook.















Reap the brand rewards from funding funky technologies
Fanta
Fanta creates a series of mobile applications including an augmented reality tennis game to engage with teens.










Provide tools that travel across the net
STA
STA Travel maximises its brand message via a range of Travel Tool widgets that can be embedded in users' social network profiles.