Ad Tech, Agencies, UnfilteredDecember 16, 2018

Is it True – Fame is the Only Media that Makes it On Social Media? FAME = No Rules, Just Nuggets.

The steep increase in paid media on social, combined with a shift in marketing towards short-termism, has given rise to a nonsense of KPIs and ‘best practice principles’ that have left brands prioritising a ‘2 second 50% view’ over real impact.

Agencies, UnfilteredDecember 13, 2018

Creating bad work is a choice: a choice that too many marketing teams make all the time by focusing on fashionable marketing buzzwords and ignoring the basics.

‘How did Facebook, which prides itself on being able to process billions of data-points…somehow not make the connection that electoral ads paid for in roubles were coming from Russia. Those are two data-points. You put billions of data-points together – you can’t put together roubles with a political ad.’

[Sen. Al Franken to Facebook’s General Counsel at the Senate judiciary subcommittee hearing 31.10.17]

Most Marketing is Bad Because it Ignores the Most Basic Data

Only a minority of brands make highly creative and highly effective marketing communications.

Work that’s distinctive, well-branded, emotional, fame-driving, maybe even award-winning.

Work that will drive sales today, sales for years in the future, and deliver returns far beyond what the CFO would get if she kept the money in the bank.

Getting the balance right between long-term brand-building and short-term sales activation, between creating memories and activating them, is important for maximum commercial effectiveness.

BBH – Sheep Driven Marketing Advice You’ll Flock To

Seven Tips to Success on YouTube

The Best Companies on YouTube in 2018

“We all know that YouTube reaches just as many, if not more, people than any of the existing cable networks.

However, what might be surprising is that the volume of videos uploaded per company is increasing tremendously. In total, the companies on our list have, during the past year, generated over 178 million views on YouTube.

You can also see a clear change among the types of companies that are actively using YouTube. When comparing 2014 and 2018, we see that YouTube was previously used largely by the retail industry but is now being used by all industries,” says Peter Söderlind, CEO of Chimney Sweden.

Seven Tips to Success on YouTube

1. Place the message you want to communicate at the beginning of the video. Viewers rarely watch the video until the end.

2. Make sure that the title of the video answers a question or tells the viewers how to solve a problem– this is a key factor in driving traffic from Google.

3. Add a clear link to your company or product. It should be a clickable link in the subject field, not just text in the video.

4. Add the video to a playlist along with other relevant videos, which will lead the viewer to more of your content.

5. Upload material frequently. Do not upload all videos at the same time if you have multiple videos ready. Spread out the publishing over a couple of days or weeks so that the channel appears live and current.

6. Use an eye-catching thumbnail. You want your video to stand out.
7. Think of YouTube as a fast and cost-effective platform to increase your reach, and follow up with optimized videos for Facebook.

YouTube has gone from being a platform where you can experiment with new ideas, to becoming an important part of our communication strategy. YouTube allows greater freedom, more interaction, and a higher engagement.

ChimneyGroup – Puffing from Sweden (and NY)

Culture, UnfilteredDecember 07, 2018

So much of the social engagement right now is not about a sense of community, but more about playing into your tribe, your following.

Reddit Co-Founder Alexis Ohanian Says Social Media Has Peaked—Here’s What’s Next

Reddit recently surpassed Facebook to become the third most visited website in the U.S. (Facebook still has larger traffic on a global scale.) But Ohanian suggests that it’s only a matter of time before its weakness starts to show.

“In some way, Reddit is still ahead of the game at this point. But it’s a ubiquitous platform; it’s not designed for specific communities,” he said. “I think we’re going to see this balkanization where more communities move from Facebook Groups or subreddits to entirely new platforms that are getting built.”

If you don’t have a following, you don’t really have a voice…

“What people seem to be clamoring for more and more is community, whether it’s going to private group chats on existing platforms, like WhatsApp groups, or going to new platforms that have emerged,” Ohanian added.