December 8th, 2009
Is Facebook promoting Google’s Gmail Connect service as a way to get more users onto Facebook? Or is Google taking out ad space to promote their connect tool? More than likely it’s an internal Facebook effort as the logos of Yahoo, AOL, Windows Live and Gmail are all represented in the ad. So why now?
As
Mashable and
GigaOm both report Facebook’s growth is slowing. As they both point out Facebook has refocused their strategy by eliminating regional networks in place of a global focus and added new products such as Facebook Lite and
Facebook Touch Mobile. One thing is for sure – the users Facebook already has aren’t going anywhere, as there are no clear alternatives to the social network behemoth (at least in the US).
The question on my mind is this – will Facebook start creating ads to start pulling in your Twitter and LinkedIn friends to your Facebook network? They’ve created a fan page post to Twitter tool so it’s not that far of a stretch, especially concerning the strength of their network. Only time will tell but this is a move that Facebook would clearly benefit from if they implemented it.
Posted via email from db’s digital branding database
Tags: ad space, AOL, aren, behemoth, clear alternatives, Connect, database, download, effort, email, Facebook, fan, fan page, focus, gallery, GigaOm, global focus, Gmail, Google, growth, linkedin, Lite, Live, logos, mashable, mind, mobile, mobile one, move, network, one thing, page, place, point, post, question, regional networks, report, service, space, strategy, strength, stretch, thing, time, tool, Touch, twitter, US, way, Windows, Yahoo
Posted in branding, featured, social media | 1 Comment »
July 17th, 2009
Shannon Paul wrote an article arguing why we don’t need the words ‘social media’ in our titles. Intrinsically I agree with her- in an ideal world. Where social media’s perception is at right now we still need to visually identify with it in our job titles.
Some companies likes Zappos have completely integrated social media with communications and customer service into their brand identity. Unfortunately most companies are not like social media. Many large corporations are still wrapping their heads around social media and it’s effects on the company as a whole. They realize the power of it to affect their bottom line and know they should be involved with it but are still figuring it out.
In the future all media will be social but as of now we’re still laying the landscape. Shannon and her peers are thought leaders and early adopters. We tend to forget that we are in a “social media bubble in a social media bubble” (hat tip to Sarah Cooley).
Having social media in your title does one main thing- it signals to others what your focus is on. When focusing on social media in relation to the brand’s overall positioning you will undoubtedly take in offline messaging & communications, PR efforts, brand strategy, advertising campaigns as well as many other factors.
Having social media in your title intrinsically makes you a natural multitasker, conversationalist, discoverer, analyst and strategist but you were hired to focus on one specific thing- social media. Just because you can do many jobs at once in your position doesn’t mean you should be taking on other people’s jobs as well.
Until you’re able to change your position to encompass more or your company’s viewpoint and implementation of social media as a part of it’s brand DNA, just remember why you were hired.
A rose by any other name would smell just the same. At the end of the day you’re still a part of the social media Rennaissance while many others are still in the online dark ages.
Tags: branding, communications, social media, strategy
Posted in business, featured, social media | No Comments »
May 22nd, 2009
Is the web 2.0 bubble balloon slowly deflating?
Recently Meg Pickard released an updated version of the now infamous Web 2.0 image map. This new map breaks down who is dead, acquired and alive (X, O, and no mark, respectively)
Kevin Eklund’s statistical analysis of the chart:
Web 2.0: Project or Business?
Mashable touted all those on the list (survivors included) as a testament to those willing to do rather than watch. While I tend to agree with Mashable and others concerning the survival/success rate of Web 2.0 businesses, no one is asking the important question. Only Doug Martin begins to touch upon it:
I created one of the projects Xed out on the first chart. Looking back it was a project and not a business – I got coverage on all the hot tech blogs and the associated huge spike in traffic but there really was not a business there. It did help me get my next job though and it was a fun ride.
Many Web 2.0 companies start out with a great idea, ambition and a rush to get it first to market. The problem with that is when you think like a designer or a developer you get those results. A businessman thinks of the bottom line: money.
Amazing ideas are all well and good but if you don’t have a proper monetization model in place before you launch you are setting yourself up for disaster. You also need short & long term road maps and an exit strategy. Core values and belief systems MUST be set up before you can start doing business. Crawl, walk, run, fly.
I’m not interested in a failure rate or what that means for a new web industry. What I am interested in is why. Why did these companies fold? Why are some still around? Why did some get acquired? Rates mean nothing without reason behind them.
Web You.0
Meg Pickard is at least asking one question, a question about creating a new roadmap:
“If anyone would like to make a new collage of startups in this genre for 2009, I’d be very interested to see it – please post the link in the comments. Here’s the collage above, but with all the defunct companies removed. There are plenty of healthy and exciting companies around these days which could fill those empty spaces. Who’ll take on the task of filling the gaps?”
I propose not just a new update to the Web 2.0 map but a new way to organize it as well.
- Create a maximum uniform height and width for logos.
- Separate into color groups according to what their primary service is (sharing, storage etc).
- Make each logo into an actual clickable image map that links out to each service.
- Show how the social networking services are linked together i.e. Twitter > Facebook > Friendfeed <->Twitter
- Repeat for a Web 3.0 (aka Semantic Web) map
- Tie both the Web 2.0 and Web 3.0 map together in parallel linked maps
Just remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day. Also, Rome is just a city now instead of an empire. Think about that.
Tags: ambition, belief systems, beliefs, blog, brand, branding, business, businessman, chart web, collage, colors, commenters, communications, core values, design, designers, doug martin, eklund, excitement, exit strategy, experiment, Facebook, failure, failure rate, Friendfeed, fun ride, functionality, grouping, image map, interactions, lists, marketing, mashable, models, network, networked, networking, one question, organization, road maps, roadmap, social, social media, startups, statistical analysis, statistics, strategy, success rate, tech, technology, twitter, update, Value, web industry
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May 20th, 2009
I usually don’t reblog anything but sometimes I come across something that is so on point that there’s no need for me to say it any other way. The following about core values is from the United States government National Park Service training website:
What are Core Values?
The core values of an organization are those values we hold which form the foundation on which we perform work and conduct ourselves. We have an entire universe of values, but some of them are so primary, so important to us that through out the changes in society, government, politics, and technology they are STILL the core values we will abide by.
In an ever-changing world, core values are constant. Core values are not descriptions of the work we do or the strategies we employ to accomplish our mission. The values underlie our work, how interact with each other, and which strategies we employ to fulfill our mission. The core values are the basic elements of how we go about our work. They are the practices we use (or should be using) every day in everything we do.
CORE VALUES:
- Govern personal relationships
- Guide business processes
- Clarify who we are
- Articulate what we stand for
- Help explain why we do business the way we do
- Guide us on how to teach
- Inform us on how to reward
- Guide us in making decisions
- Underpin the whole organization
- Require no external justification
- Essential tenets
CORE VALUES ARE NOT:
- Operating practices
- Business strategies
- Cultural norms
- Competencies
- Changed in response to market/ administration changes
- Used individually
By Way of Comparison
By way of comparison, here are examples of Core Values identified by other organizations.
DISNEY – to make people happy.
- Nurture and promulgate wholesome American values.
- Creativity, Dream, Imagination.
- Preservation and control of the Disney magic.
- Absolute, meticulous attention to detail
MERCK – to preserve and improve human life.
- Corporate social responsibility.
- Unequivocal excellence in all aspects of the company.
- Science-based innovation.
- Honesty and integrity.
- Profit – from work that benefits humanity.
SONY – to experience the joy of advancing and applying technology for the benefit of the public.
- Elevation of Japanese culture and national status.
- Being a pioneer, not following others, doing the impossible.
- Encouraging individual ability and creativitiy.
U.S. ARMY
- Courage – Face fear, danger or adversity.
- Duty – Fulfill your obligations.
- Honor – Live up to all Army values.
- Integrity – Do what’s right, legally and morally.
- Loyalty – Bear true faith and allegiance to the U.S. Constitution, the Army, your unit and other soldiers.
- Respect – Treat people as they should be treated.
- Service – Put the welfare of the nation, the Army, and your subordinates before your own.
Our Core Values are a statement of the framework in which we accomplish our Mission. They express the manner in which, both individually and collectively, we pursue our mission. When we are challenged in fulfilling our mission, our Core Values sustain us and guide us in meeting the challenge. - National Leadership Council, 2001
Tags: american values, basic elements, benefit, brand, branding, business, business processes, business strategies, collectibles, communicating, communication, core values, creativity, cultural norms, experiences, experiment, follower, government politics, guide business, happiness, imagination, integrity, interaction, interactions, justification, life, marketing, merck, meticulous attention, moral, national park service, nurture, organization, personal relationships, personalities, personality, politics, politics and technology, profitability, relationships guide, responsibility, social, strategy, technology, Tenets, united states government, Value
Posted in branding, business, featured, life | No Comments »
April 30th, 2009
© Leo Reynolds
We’ve all heard the term “life is simple but it’s not easy”.
We often possess knowledge that far surpasses our demonstration in many areas of our lives. We know more about energy conservation than our fuel consumption and recycling habits show. We know more about the basics of great time and money management than our project lists and bank accounts reveal.
Then there’s my personal favorite, we know more about how to maintain a healthy body weight and lifestyle than our eating and exercise habits (and waistlines) expose.
And so it is with branding. There is Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: bank accounts, bloggers, brand, brand strategy, branding, business, communicating, communication, communications, different products, distinctions, energy, energy conservation, exercise habits, facets, fuel consumption, great time, habit, how to maintain a healthy body, integrity, inventory list, knowledge, life, lifestyle, lists, market share, marketing, money management, niche, niches, personalities, personality, plans, productivity, profitability, reviews, selling, single thing, strategy, tag line, term life, time and money, website logo
Posted in branding, featured | 1 Comment »
April 21st, 2009
© Anita Gould
The colors you associate with your brand are extremely important.
Even if someone isn’t aware of who you are or what you do, your brand’s essence is conveyed right away by what your colors tell them. Many different feelings are associated with individual colors. Picking the wrong color could turn a customer away before they have the chance to become one. Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: attempts, best friend, brand, branding, business, businessman, clue, colors, communicating, communication, communications, consensus, conveyance, design, designers, desire, doing business, emotional color, emotional effect, feelings, friends, generalities, gould, headway, lists, Lost, marketing, Peers, science, strategy, tagline, usability, Value, verbal message, visual representation, visuals, words
Posted in branding, featured | 5 Comments »
January 16th, 2009
http://www.will-lion.com/digitalbites
“I don’t think brand as “broadcaster” is going away anytime soon, but I do think the exciting challenge which lies ahead of us is to figure out what tactics actually work in the “brand as facilitator” category” -David Armano. WHAT IS A BRAND WORTH? This was a question that was inevitably sparked by my one-on-one chat with my infinitely wise friend Carl Gucciardi about Freemium Marketing. Upon moving the conversation to Twitter this back and forth arose between myself and @AdInfinitum:
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags: benefit, brand, branding, broadcaster, business, chat, communicating, communication, communications, competitor, concerts, consciousness, conversation, corporate practices, david armano, decentralized conversastions, es, evangelists, event, freemium, friends, gay, goals, good stuff, hero, homonyms, lesbian, life, marketing, mentions, models, multitude, new media, niche, noun, Paris, perception, plans, platforms, present, product customers, productivity, reality, relevant questions, reply, responsibility, signs, social experiment, social media, social network, social networking, strategy, tagline, Television, The L-Word, twitter, video, Web 2.0, Whatever X.0, wise friend
Posted in featured, social media | 20 Comments »
Has the Web 2.0 bubble burst?
Is the web 2.0 bubble balloon slowly deflating?
Recently Meg Pickard released an updated version of the now infamous Web 2.0 image map. This new map breaks down who is dead, acquired and alive (X, O, and no mark, respectively)
Kevin Eklund’s statistical analysis of the chart:
Web 2.0: Project or Business?
Mashable touted all those on the list (survivors included) as a testament to those willing to do rather than watch. While I tend to agree with Mashable and others concerning the survival/success rate of Web 2.0 businesses, no one is asking the important question. Only Doug Martin begins to touch upon it:
I created one of the projects Xed out on the first chart. Looking back it was a project and not a business – I got coverage on all the hot tech blogs and the associated huge spike in traffic but there really was not a business there. It did help me get my next job though and it was a fun ride.
Many Web 2.0 companies start out with a great idea, ambition and a rush to get it first to market. The problem with that is when you think like a designer or a developer you get those results. A businessman thinks of the bottom line: money.
Amazing ideas are all well and good but if you don’t have a proper monetization model in place before you launch you are setting yourself up for disaster. You also need short & long term road maps and an exit strategy. Core values and belief systems MUST be set up before you can start doing business. Crawl, walk, run, fly.
I’m not interested in a failure rate or what that means for a new web industry. What I am interested in is why. Why did these companies fold? Why are some still around? Why did some get acquired? Rates mean nothing without reason behind them.
Web You.0
Meg Pickard is at least asking one question, a question about creating a new roadmap:
“If anyone would like to make a new collage of startups in this genre for 2009, I’d be very interested to see it – please post the link in the comments. Here’s the collage above, but with all the defunct companies removed. There are plenty of healthy and exciting companies around these days which could fill those empty spaces. Who’ll take on the task of filling the gaps?”
I propose not just a new update to the Web 2.0 map but a new way to organize it as well.
Just remember, Rome wasn’t built in a day. Also, Rome is just a city now instead of an empire. Think about that.
Connect with me on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
Tags: ambition, belief systems, beliefs, blog, brand, branding, business, businessman, chart web, collage, colors, commenters, communications, core values, design, designers, doug martin, eklund, excitement, exit strategy, experiment, Facebook, failure, failure rate, Friendfeed, fun ride, functionality, grouping, image map, interactions, lists, marketing, mashable, models, network, networked, networking, one question, organization, road maps, roadmap, social, social media, startups, statistical analysis, statistics, strategy, success rate, tech, technology, twitter, update, Value, web industry
Posted in branding, business, featured, social media | No Comments »