Author Archives: David Armano
Yesterday was a interesting day in Chicago. In the afternoon, there was the Blogwell conference which featured real life case studies from large organizations executing initiatives in the social media space. Companies like:
- The Home Depot
- Mayo Clinic
- H&R Block
- Sharpie
- US Coast Guard
- Allstate
- Walmart
- Procter & Gamble
And later that evening, I gave a talk at the Social Media Club in Chicago (above). In both talks I noticed a reoccurring theme. When companies engage a social manner, even the big ones—their initiatives are often powered by individuals. People with real names. faces, families and lives. In fact, most of the more successful examples included people who worked for brands who were beginning to become known on a fist name basis. The Home Depot for example has Sarah, who handles their Twitter initiative. This poses a question for all organizations. What happens if the Sarah’s of the world leave your company? Isn’t it better for a brand to just be a brand?
Enter the “brandividual“, a term I blurted out in my talk about personal branding later that evening. The phrase was born of a series of questions from the audience which all focused around the same topic. Where is the hard line between my employer’s brand and my own? The answer is not a simple one—but I believe that trends are pointing us to a blurring of that line whether we like it or not. “Brandividuals—people who represent your brand and their own, balancing the two may be something we see more of, not less as companies and brands try to figure out how to engage on a web that’s become increasingly social and personal.
Let’s say you’ve got a site, blog or any digital property equipped with an RSS feed and you feel like like you’re doing a good job of serving up bite sized morsels of content custom created for this “snacking culture” we live in, but you’re concerned about the lack of an “artifact”—something which can last a bit longer.
With Tabbloid, you can insert your feed, or multiple feeds and create an instant PDF with the click of a button. It even designs it to look like a print publication in seconds (check out the one we’ve created for Experience Matters Download CM_tabloid). You can also combine multiple feeds and have copied sent you your inbox—you get to decide how often.
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We’ve been thinking about the current economic climate and the pressure, not to mention scrutiny digital (if not all) initiatives are currently under. Digital by definition is highly measurable, which can increase the focus of ROI (return on investment) for project before it ever gets off the ground. The challenge however is that there is so much to learn from initiatives that launch—insights can be applied directly to that project, or indirectly to something else. In addition to launching our own initiatives as organizations, we realize that companies may not see the advantages they can have simply by listening and potentially participating in what we like to think of as “The Collective”. Every day, millions of people are talking about what they care about, and your products and services are most likely part of that story. Download our POV
on “The Collective Is The Focus Group” and let us know what you think about what we have to say about tapping the collective for insights. Is this something that can yield a real return? You can also see a version of this article on BusinessWeek.
The Collective Is The Focus Group
Written by David Armano
Today I found myself browsing the Quaker Oats Website. I’m adjusting my diet and wanted to look up some nutritional information. Being that I work in the interactive industry, I started browsing the site a bit more because I liked the design of it. The navigation was clear and intuitive, the photos and type were easy to read and visually pleasant. And then it happened…
BLAM!
The “invitation” to take a survey. Except it’s never really an invitation now is it? Now, I want to be fair—marketers have a job to do and surveys can provide valuable data that we need to help market the products and brands we represent. I totally get the business challenge. But it is a business challenge. The average user doesn’t care about surveys, and brands don’t typically benefit from them because they can be seen as a nuisance. Still, it’s commonplace and we see this all over the Web, not just the Quaker site.
The problem with surveys is that they create a “disturbance in the flow” not unlike a “disturbance in the force” to quote a bit of popular culture. So we’ve got a marketing, design and experience problem on our hands here. How do we include surveys without disrupting the entire experience. Especially when its’ a good one? It’s like the equivilent of settling down with a good book or television show only to have someone slam the book shut or stand in front of your screen.
I have a few ideas—maybe a window that floats off to the side, or what if the site could detect mouse movement toward the browser bar and only serve it up to you then (that would indicate you were about to leave). But these are just some initial random thoughts and I know a few smart people read this blog. So what do you think? Is there a way to serve up surveys or polls without disrupting flow?
Written by David Armano
Originally published at AdAge DigitalNEXT
I know what you’re thinking. “Not another recession article – ugh.” Well it’s not, really.
Several weeks ago, I had the opportunity to go for a ride in the world-famous Oscar Mayer Wienermobile. Actually, I went on several rides, and it started with getting picked up at the Las Vegas airport, no less. Right off the bat, there were several things I noticed as I approached the giant wiener on wheels. It was surrounded by a crowd. Everyone was taking pictures, talking to each other about it and, of course, smiling. Just take a look at my own behavior as I sat inside of it. I was instantly transformed into a child. Which isn’t really hard for me because I’m a kid at heart, but as we drove around I noticed that the Wienermobile had this effect on virtually everyone.
These are not the best of times. From a business perspective, all you need to do is scan the articles to see the patterns. The phrase “Return On Investment” is one of the most common statements you’ll likely come across as you look for guidance in how to make the most of a tough economy. We’re all trying to figure out how to prove our worth. On a more personal level, it’s times like this that our work can seem nearly thankless—most of us are just grateful to be employed. In a couple of days my own family will be on our way to visit my in-laws in Michigan, a state hard hit by the economic downturn. I’ll be sitting across from relatives who are unsure of what the future holds for them. Maybe this scene sounds familiar to you.
Last year I asked if there was an experience you were thankful for. But that was then, and this is now. These are the times to be truly thankful for what we have versus what we don’t. It’s a good time to re-calibrate and re-prioritize. Sometimes it feels like we’re living in thankless times. When we’re all too busy justifying our own existence to be thankful for the existence of others.
But it’s exactly in these times that we come to terms with what really matters. It’s an opportunity to dial down our hectic lives if even for the moment. It’s an opportunity to reflect. That’s something I’m thankful for, even in times which seem thankless. That matters to me. So I ask you, in times like this, what matters to you?
Written by David Armano
