Talk Bite: Facebook Welcomes an App Center
Attention Farmville farmers, Spotify junkies, and Draw Something artists: you’re about to get a lot more company in your world of social apps – courtesy of your friends at Facebook. Last week, Facebook announced their plans of an App Center roll-out, a central hub accessible on the social network’s platform to locate all social apps.
Now, if you’re asking yourself, “Isn’t this already available on my Apple App Store or Google Android Play store?” the answer is, yes… and no. Big names like Words with Friends, Draw Something and Bubble Witch Saga prove that social apps have major mass appeal. And while Apple and Google stores are great for locating and purchasing apps, finding those that have inherent social features can be daunting. This move by Facebook allows users to skip these stores all together and use one central place to find it all, that is: mobile, desktop and web apps with social compatibilities. Is it competition for Google and Apple? Definitely. However, Facebook has stated that native mobile apps listed in the center will still direct users to Apple or Google stores. But no matter where you download, the intention is clear: Facebook wants to make all apps social apps. And since Facebook is 900 million users strong, I think it’s safe to assume that developers will want their product featured in this new marketplace.
So what’s the implication for the Facebook user experience? Facebook is measuring the success of an app listed in the App Center by its quality. They’ll be using a variety of signals to measure eligibility, including user engagement and user ratings. This means if your app isn’t performing, it won’t be listed. It’s also an excellent way to cut back on those “spammy” apps that can clutter the user interface and interfere with user experience.
The announcement of the Facebook App Center is excellent news for both marketers and developers who are invested in the space. Facebook further expanding their interest in the booming apps and gaming industry allows users to easily discover, play, and share within the Facebook environment, ensuring they won’t have to leave the platform to play in another. This new development also speaks to the platforms commitment to expand and monetize their mobile capabilities. Furthermore, Facebook’s App Center guidelines indicate that the user experience will be prioritized, creating high engagement for repeat use, meaning even more regular traffic to the already popular social network.
So what do you think? Do you want search for your new apps using Facebook’s forthcoming App Center? Do you think we’ve found the be-all, end-all of app stores? Or is this just another Apple App Store/Google Android Play wanna-be in the making?
Social Media
Talk Bite: Click Here to “Like” the First Amendment
Though it usually is used to express feelings on such super important matters as the cutest thing your college roommate’s dog did the other day, the Facebook Like button is also used by millions to show support for politicians and political causes. However, a Like in and of itself is not protected political speech under the 1st Amendment, according to the first federal judge to consider the question.
Several Virginia sheriff’s deputies were fired for Liking their sheriff’s electoral opponent, so they predictably sued. The judge said that “Simply liking a Facebook page is insufficient. It is not the kind of substantive statement that has previously warranted constitutional protection.” Status updates and other written activities on Facebook would be protected, but clicking Like is apparently not expressive enough. What about Liking a written status update regarding a political view? Are purely commercial advertiser pages different, even though politicians as well are essentially brands? Since this is social media, should we be talking about freedom of assembly rather than freedom of speech?
I guess we can just add this to the list of legal issues keeping digital marketers awake at night, a list which includes online privacy and data tracking, SOPA/PIPA, net neutrality, etc. Though these will be hashed out in courts and legislatures over the next few years, we digital professionals may have to add a constitutional law degree to the resume just to keep up.
Media
TALK BITE: WHEN SOAP GETS IN YOUR EYES
This Sunday is Mother’s Day, so this one’s for the Moms.
You’ve probably seen this TV spot. Nearly 3 million have watched the US version on YouTube alone.
This two minute TV soap commercial isn’t an anachronism. It’s a strategic trifecta. Here’s how: 1) the Olympics are coming, so P&G has tapped into the cultural conversation (again). 2) Launched before Mother’s Day, the timing has become the greeting card we all wish we could give our own Mom. And 3) most importantly, they’ve managed to elevate the conversation to mean much more than soap. (I admit, I got a little teary at about 1:40.)
What you may not have seen, is the Facebook app. It lets anyone write a heartfelt message to their own mom and share it with their social media circle. Over 7,000 posts so far.
So, now. Think of the project you’re working on. Will it launch near any cultural event, or holiday? Can you connect with that conversation? More importantly, is your brand speaking on an elevated level, touching people emotionally? And finally, if your shoppers become fans, how can they participate?
Mad props to Wieden+Kennedy for this flawless campaign.
Brand Planning
Weekly Social Download: So you don’t have to stress out that everything just changed again.
You might need to be of a certain age to appreciate it, but if you are, you won’t find a more enjoyable 90 seconds on the internet today than you will playing Perfect Strangers: Nothing’s Gonna Stop Me Now. In it, you’ll control Balki Bartokomous as he tries to collect enough stars to help you achieve your dream. Failure results in a poorly pronounced version of said dream — and we won’t spoil what happens if you collect all the stars.
Glancee makes a mobile phone app for social discovery, similar to Highlight. Download it, hook it up with Facebook and it will tell you if your friends are nearby … who needs people to check in when you can stalk them?
Facebook hasn’t said anything about this acquisition, so it’s not clear how Facebook will use the tech — if it will keep Glancee around as an independent product or not.
Absolut Inspire: Augmented Reality Street Art
Check out this Future Lions 2012 entry by Iris Gavric & Daniel Otterbein. Proposed for Absolut Vodka, they’ve attempted to create movement called Absolut Inspire, an Augmented Reality Street Art App designed to create a new world without creative limitations.
Crowdsourced Grocery Shoppers Will Pick You Up Last-Minute Items
Milk, Please! connects users with others nearby who are going to the store, or are already there. Users can request for the shopper to purchase something like bread, milk, or eggs, and drop off the item at their home or office. The innovative service is also eco-friendly as it reduces the carbon footprints of unnecessary trips.
Social Media
Saving Lives through Social Media
Now just about anyone with a Facebook account can save lives with a simple click of a mouse. This week, Facebook announced a life-saving addition to its Timeline feature, giving its members in the U.S. and the U.K. the option to share their organ donor status with friends. Through the tool, users can sign up as organ, eye and tissue donors, find quick access to their state’s donor registry and post videos related to the cause.
Facebook’s effort to publicize and unite possible donors and recipients through member statuses is just the latest example of how the company is leveraging its fan-base to create social change. It seems that Facebook has broadened its initial purpose of simply connecting people, moreover giving them the freedom to become catalysts for solving important issues, with the ability to spread information at light speed.
Facebook has become one of the greatest tools for the mobilization of friends and group organizations to spark conversations and take action towards issues they feel strongly about. It’s a vehicle to get people talking about or uniting on things they may had never known or spoken about otherwise.
The whole idea comes down to 3 simple steps:
“We never could have anticipated that what started as a small network would evolve into such a powerful tool for communication and problem solving,” said Zuckerberg and Sandberg in a joint statement.” As this happens, we hope to build tools that help people transform the way we all solve worldwide social problems.
With bullying being such a huge issue today, the company recently issued online prevention tools, such as Safety Center upgrades, downloadable and sharable content, videos and community resources to prevent cyber bullying. Additionally, back in December, the company launched the Lifeline feature, which allows people to alert Facebook if they feel one of their friends has expressed thoughts of suicide or self harm. From there, the company will issue an email with information including a telephone hotline and a link to a confidential online chat resource.
With adoptions of these programs still in the early stages, it remains to be seen what the overall success rate of each will be. It’s possible that a significant impact could be seen over the next couple of years; at least we can hope for this. One thing is for certain; that the possibilities as to what other types of issues Facebook could begin to help solve are endless.
When it comes to our business, work with non-profit organizations comes to mind. Imagine all the ways we could begin to help. Maybe Facebook too.
Brand Planning
Weekly Social Download: So you don’t have to stress out that everything just changed again.
Trident Gum Fun Audit on Facebook
Trident Gum recently launched a tax-time themed Facebook campaign that is aimed at taking your mind off financial issues. Their Facebook Fun Audit app, is a variable video that connects to your Facebook account and brings in various aspects of your profile (friends, photos, etc), using a algorithms to place them in the video.
Volkswagen Amarok: The Facebook Flipbook
McCann Erickson Istanbul created a simple a flip book using over 200 Facebook photos. No custom app development. Just simple photos. This is a great example of being creative using Facebook’s native functionality without violating any Facebook terms of service.
Who’s Winning The Battle For The Interest Graph: Facebook, Google+ or Twitter?
A very important aspect of the Interest Graph is that unlike the Social Graph, which is for the most part static (except for an occasional friending or unfriending), the Interest Graph is elastic, dynamic, and rapidly changing for any individual consumer based on what they search for, what they follow, and what they express.
Nielsen: Women more likely to visit a social networking site while watching TV
A recent Nielsen report found that people aged 18-34 are the most active with social networking. Those same people are also watching less TV than the older generation. This seems to suggest that younger people are swapping TV screens for their mobile devices, which is further supported by data that shows the time spent on live primetime TV every day increases with age.
Free Throws like Dirk Nowitzki presented by ING-DiBa
ING sponsors the Basketball league in Germany and wanted to connect their offering to a younger audience at Basketball events across the country… So they aimed to leverage smart phones to create an interactive experience anyone could play, and “Free Throw Billboards” were born.
Social Media
Weekly Social Download: So you don’t have to stress out that everything just changed again.
Ford Turns Parking Problems into Pinball in Paris
Parking in a big city is never a breeze, but drivers in Paris are especially cavalier in their efforts to fit into any available space. Ford takes advantage of this unfortunate habit in a new ad highlighting the company’s Park Assist Feature.
Facebook is beginning to allow advertisers using its API to ask it to show their ads to people most likely to take any specific post-click action on the social network, such as sharing a brand’s content to the news feed, buying virtual goods in their apps, or redeeming one of the new Facebook Offers at a local brick-and-mortar store. Previously Facebook’s Ads API and self-serve tool only permitted optimization for clicks, Page Likes, app installs, and check-ins. Data on conversions 1, 7, or 28 days after a click will now appear in the Ads Manager.
Smart Brand Use of Pinterest by Kotex
Smoyz, a creative agency in Israel, ran an a campaign for Kotex dubbed ‘Women’s Inspiration Day’. The campaign involved targeting 50 influential Pinterest users, taking the time to understand what they pinned and therefore what interested them. Then for each of the influencers they created a customized gift box based on their pins. Nothing groundbreaking here but there’s cleverness in its simplicity, harnessing the new platform.
Social Media
Weekly Social Download: So you don’t have to stress out that everything just changed again.
Interactive Shoppable Music Video
An online fashion store called SSENSE collaborated with Iggy Azalea, FKi, and Diplo for their music release by creating a shoppable music video. The musicians are wearing designer clothes from Phillip Lim, Givency, and Alexander McQueen and viewers can click on hot spots that will drive them to a commerce experience.
Microsoft and Facebook have partnered up to create A Year in the Like, a tool that takes you on a visual journey through the past year by pulling information from your Facebook Timeline.
Smart Argentina: Animated Twitter Ads
Smart Argentina used Twitter to do an innovative animated campaign for its Fortwo microcar in the South American market. Scrolling down on the brand’s Twitter page gives an idea of the concept, but doesn’t fully convey the intended effect, so there’s also a YouTube video combining the total of 455 individual tweets to show an animation of the Fortwo driving through Argentinian city streets, and ending with the tagline, roughly translated from Spanish, “It fits in any space. Why not in 140 characters? Smart Fortwo…a big idea for the city.”
The Value of Social Business: Exploring the ROI Question
Social is a new type of technology, one that’s much more freeform, unstructured, and unpredictable than the advances that came before it. This means much more innovation, variety, and volume will come from it. It also means it must be managed very differently. The ROI of a social business effort regarded and managed through the traditional IT project delivery process will look very different than a deployment and management effort matched to the technology.
The power of social media and young boy with imagination who raises over $140k for his college fund with one video.
Stop Blabbing About Innovation and Start Actually Doing It
These days, every established company is at risk of having its industry–and its own business–disrupted by a startup. Cognizant of this, companies devote a lot of time to talking about how important it is to innovate. But here’s the truth: most companies can’t innovate because everyone is paid to maintain the status quo.
Social Media
TALK BITE: Skype vs. Facebook and Twitter
Skype is on a mission to put humanity back into the way people connect. Skype has released a provocative new campaign, “It’s time for Skype,” putting Facebook and Twitter directly in the cross-hairs. The ads suggest the social networking sites are “degrading humanity” with impersonal communications of 140-character limit and wall posts.
By identifying an enemy, Skype has created a talk-worthy campaign that not only communicates a point of difference in a world of bigger fish, but creates a greater purpose that goes beyond the digital realm. Whether you think it’s too vicious, bitter or brilliant, we can all agree that the world could use a little more humanity.
Brand Planning
22squared One of
Ad Age’s 2012 Best Places to Work
“Staffers enjoy a weekly themed-drink cart, floating summer holidays and a culture like that of a family. ‘We always have each other’s back, and we truly believe we are better together,’ wrote one employee.”
