The Poor Man's Blog

I left Blogger!

2009-09-01T08:25:00.000-07:00

My new blog is at:

http://plantinginsights.wordpress.com/

VA

Generation Anonymous

2009-07-17T10:55:00.000-07:00

In these past weeks, the untimely nature of MJ madness buried some significant global issues. Especially, the shoplifting of democracy in Iran. I’ve read numerous articles, but this one in particular (plain text below) added some provocative context around both the struggle itself and utilization of social media as a broadcast channel, replacing and outdoing traditional channels – in short, it’s a truth nugget ya’ll. Big shout out goes to Locke Hildebrand of CultureWaves. I think it’s a shining example of our local tech geek FX’s discussion re: cultural latency – indeed it is approaching zero!

I would have provided a link to the article, but it's not a pubilc site...

"I’m sure by now most of you know what is going on in Iran, so I won’t go into heavy detail on the topic itself. I want to talk about how social media and the political fallout in Iran have created our first look at a cyber war.
This current crisis tells us the Virtual Forest™ is becoming a lot less virtual. It also has profound implications on what you chose to do, or not do in your business. The cyber part of the war started on Twitter.
Two days into protesting the election in Iran, the hashtags started appearing on Twitter, the trenches of our new battleground with names such as #Iran, #IranElection, #Mousavi, #GR88, and many more. And for a while, what seemed like trending topics soon developed into means of communication between Iranians in a tightly monitored internet. The next day, people from all over the world began setting up proxy servers from their computers to give Iranians access to the internet, and the cyber warfare began.
Soon, Iranians began to tweet out government news sites that needed to be bombarded, and groups of hackers and programmers quickly began to DDOS attack sites. However, in the long run this proved more harmful than good. Sure it forced Iranian media sites down, but also slowed the already limited bandwidth that the protestors were using, so smarter tactics came into play.
Two of the largest internet freedom advocates jumped in the mix and joined together to create Anonymous Iran. Anonymous (already infamous for its war on Scientology, and overall online attacks, and antics on and off the “end of the internet” website 4chan) teamed up with The Pirate Bay (a torrent hub of illegal downloading and free media that is slowly evolving itself into a political party).
Anonymous Iran began to host everything from protest videos, which Youtube was taking down due to graphic violence, to English-Persian translations of makeshift medical advice and proxy setups. The site has been averaging 15,000 viewers at a time.
All across the globe, those sympathetic to the protestors began to weigh in. They were anxious for a way to make a difference, as this posting from Deborah Oakes at Associated Content said: “After looking at videos and photos documenting the Iran election protests, I had to find something I could do. I found it.”
From associated Content to Boing Boing, guides to getting involved sprang up, spreading involvement to those less savvy. The actions could range from protesting at the embassy in your country to simply changing your twitter location and time zone. Thousands changed their locations to Iran to mask the real Iranians from the regime’s security forces.
The Iranian security forces have noticed. In recent sweeps and raids at the universities, they have taken memory cards, smashed computers and confiscated cell phones. Globally, hackers have countered with denial of service attacks on Iranian government and media websites.
Social media is shaping everything in Iran right now. With news media coverage being shut off and anyone attempting to be a media hero being arrested, we’re finally seeing social media take a stand beyond a waste of time and talking to friends.
People are saying that the voice of the next generation is not a famous person, a music icon or a screen legend, but rather the individual. Everyone’s voice counts now. Those who only a few years ago talked about their lives on LiveJournal are now looked at as respected bloggers. The perspective has left the news room; and as news is reported faster on Twitter than the networks can break it, you have to wonder how long it’s going to be before seemingly anonymous people themselves become known not for blogging, but for being a newscaster. It’s already started with the election uprising in Iran. The media is changing, and the voice, once so narrow and focused, is now everyone’s.
The thing you have to remember is, well two things actually, are what side do I take, and how much will it hurt me in the end if I do the wrong thing. If we’re learning anything from #Iranelection, it’s that the power of anonymity is vast, it’s global, and everything is being watched. When they look your way, make sure people are seeing the right things.
In the Iranian protests, Twitter, Facebook and Google have gotten kudos for rescheduling maintenance, adding Farsi, and generally making themselves available. Sites such as 4chan and groups such as Anonymous have seen their street cred rise. People expect you to take a stand. Don’t be afraid of it.
Conversely, businesses that have come down on the wrong side of this event have been quickly vilified. CNN’s glacial weekend response while the Twitter firestorm raged earned it a #CNNFail hashtag. As Robert Scoble said at scobilizer.com, “Yesterday is the day when Twitter thoroughly beat CNN. Badly beat CNN. Embarrassingly beat CNN. And most other USA-based media too.”
Nokia and Siemens both took hits for aiding the Iranian regime with monitoring software installed last year. They weren’t thinking about the Virtual Forest that permeated their business and opened them to public scrutiny and scorn. Are you? That innocuous-looking contract you are working on now may come to light at the worst time for your company.
Are you working on the side of the angels? If not, are you ready for the large, anonymous and organized response that could come knocking at your door in a digital instant?"

Springfest @ McCannNY

2009-04-23T17:56:00.000-07:00

I got very lucky and was invited to attend SpringFest, which was held at McCann Erickson NY (it didn't hurt that I happen to work there too). It was a wonderful day full of innovative concepts in media, social behavior and design. All very relevant and awesome topics for someone like myself, engaged in Strategic Planning on a daily basis. This was a FREE conference offered up by McCann and Brainjuicers - I applaud them both for going against the status quo of pay to play collaboration events.

Of the many memorable intellectuals that spoke, I was highly impressed with the concepts brought forth by Mitchell Joachim - co-founder of Terraform1 and honestly he's a design genius. His mass transit concepts helped to fuel the transportation scenes in the movie Minority Report, which is one of my all time favorite movies (and again shows if we can imagine it, it can be created once technology and demand catches up with our imaginations).

Evolution of Social Media

2009-04-17T23:19:00.000-07:00

I've been proud to watch social media over the past five years and its growth into one to the most powerful forms of communication and interpersonal interaction available. It's also interesting to watch the ad industry's different techniques for utilizing the influence of person to person dialogue via social platforms. I stumbled onto this new campaign by Ford Motor Co. for the new Ford Fiesta (back from the dead, if you remember the old Fiesta), appropriately title the Fiesta Movement. In a bold move, they are attempting to launch the model strictly on social media platforms, by providing 100 real people with a FREE Fiesta for 6 months, and then asking them to 'tell their story.' They are to blog, tweet, update and post their experiences, opinions and such on sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Blogger etc. Very interesting, and honestly very ballsy. Good luck Ford, you guys need it.

Viral Done Right

2009-04-01T13:44:00.000-07:00

I enjoy seeing when a Brand get's the premise of viral done correctly. I'm not a fan of overt viral branding, as is often done, to no prevail. The idea here is that you want to create somethings awesome (or useful), and hope that other people feel that thing is awesome (or useful), so much that they feel compelled to share that awesomeness (or usefulness) with someone else... and so begins the spread IE impressions. It's also key not to litter the content with your brand or message - therefore making people feel like a communications tool, instead of a participant in spreading awesome. I ran into this video, that I personally felt was just pure genius. I love the mash-up of two relatively simple and long existing elements (sheep herding and light bulbs) to creating something new and intriguing - thus representing LED technology. Well done Samsung, I'll gladly participate in the spread - buying a TV ummmm, not right now.

Customized Heroes

2009-03-23T12:51:00.000-07:00

I'm a big fan of product customization, even in the most simplest forms. I stumbled onto this link where you can build your very own super hero based on the tool's capabilities and your imagination - thanks to AFD Studios. But looking at the bigger picture, there are a lot of companies that can learn from this simple hero tool. Many have already taken a shine to customization, and with great success IE Nike shoes, Dell desktops, Scion vehicles, social networking profiles etc. But how far can customization reach? I think we should all take a look at the products we purchase and see who is appealing to our individuality and who is missing the mark. People are inherently drawn to products that provide them with these very freedoms, to no surprise.

Will the 'Jingle' Ever Die?

2009-03-19T08:48:00.000-07:00

I was sitting in my office, enjoying some much needed downtime, when I heard someone walk past and declare, "would someone please get that Filet-O-Fish song out of my head!" Within seconds, two other people in the area agreed wildly, while one other claimed, "I love that song!" What is it about a catchy tune that gives it the ability to burrow deep within our brains and appear without stimulus or request? Even when one concentrates on abolishing the song's melody from existence, the memory only seems to grow in size and strength. So, with that being said, I'm here to set the record straight - I hate that song.

The 6th Sense.. Reality?

2009-03-12T13:22:00.000-07:00

Often the human imagination is far more advanced that human technological innovation, and in reality this makes a great deal of sense: before 'it' can be, 'it' must be dreamed. This is often reflected in popular society, mostly in the form of movies IE Star Trek, Star Wars, The Matrix and such. Often we have the ability to dream of innovation that is nearly impossible to recreate, case and point: 'Beam me up Scottie.' What I find fascinating is when technology finally catches up to our imaginations. As you will see in the following clips, the smart folks at MIT have began to make our lust for Tom Cruise's awesomeness in Minority Report that much closer to a reality in the form of advanced digital interface between people and data.

May's Remix

2009-02-27T15:07:00.000-08:00

I happen to be a fan of Billy Mays and I'm also a fan of remixing. When people take things, and make new things out of them, regardless of how cheezy, you have to admire the effort and appreciate the originality. I think it's safe to say Billy is mainstream now and officially awesome! Welcome to pop culture Bill.

Pizza Hut Gets Remixed

2009-02-26T12:29:00.000-08:00

Remixing (or recombinant culture, <---- I suggest you watch this lecture by a really cool brit guy I work with) is a part of our culture, but I'm still trying to figure out if all forms of remixing result in positive impressions for you brand. This Pizza Hut spoof shows what some people really think of their product. Personally, I just happen to agree.

Dentyne Ice

2009-02-19T07:44:00.000-08:00

I must admit Dentyne has been doing some awesome work as of late; although I may be biased considering it came from my very own home base at McCann NY. But what struck me as incredibly insightful was how the developers dug deep into cultural inertia to pull out the insight that in modern societies people are experiencing a disconnect with each other due to the proliferation of advanced communications platforms. I blogged about this prior to the launch of the campaign, and to my delight was shocked to see that I wasn't alone in this belief. Essentially, the ads look to encourage physical human interaction again; not via mobile communications, text messages or social networks etc. I think it is a refreshing notion that we can all learn from, let's just get back to being people. Instead of sending an e-mail to that coworker across the hall, just walk on over and actually do something far too many of us dread, talk to them. Oh yea, please ignore the irony that you're be reading this post, most likely alone and behind a computer screen. If I could I would give you a hug right now. I also encourage you to visit Dentyne Ice's home page, but be swift, in an effort to curb web browsing and stimulate people to 'make face time' they set up a site that only allows 3 minutes of browsing per session. Very cool guys.

User Generated Content Crossing Over

2009-02-18T16:17:00.000-08:00

I was watching TV the other night, channel surfing course. I stopped on a grainy, unknown network 'Current_' and remembered hearing about this channel (launched with the backing of presidential hopeful and environmental champion Al Gore, back in 2005) in the past but never payed close attention to it. But this night what sparked my interest was a viewing segment 'VC2' which expanded means 'viewer created content.' It was obvious at a first glance that this wasn't network quality production, but instead clips, pods and even commercials of which is mostly user generated content; there was even a Chase Bank commercial that was created and produced by an Indie. Although I'm quite late, I still find it very interesting that user generated content is beginning to crossover platforms from the web on to mediums such as Television. Something to pay close attention to as our attentions spans collapse and our desires to interact and engage with our media increases. This is TV we can contribute to, and in the end isn't that what we all desire.. more autonomy? I'll monitor this new channel 'Current_' and see how this develops. The video below is a taste of what you could find.

The Globe is Shrinking

2008-12-05T09:06:00.000-08:00

I read an article in AdAge (http://adage.com/globalideanetwork/post?article_id=133043) regarding a print ad PepsiCo. published in Germany. Appearantly it is quite controversial (can't really agrue with that), however relatively acceptable in Germany. The interesting phenomenon that I witnessed is that within days of release to the public in Germany, it was already buzzing among US advertising circles. On top of that, Americans whom found the ad offensive were able to influence Pepsi to quickly remove the ad from circulation, in Germany! This is an extroidinary example of how fluid global communications have become. Niche markets are no longer, niche.

Our Own Worst Enemy

2008-08-11T11:59:00.000-07:00

In my last post I promised to follow up the previous commentary "Connected, Yet Unconnected." Which I fully plan on doing in the near future. However, I came across this article that has sparked a completely different conversation among Advertising professionals. Below is a summary:

Crest calls for slogan ideas on YouTube. Procter & Gamble's Crest Whitening Expressions brand toothpaste has been pegged to Emeril Lagasse's trademark, "Bam!" since 2003. But with the introduction of the brand's newest flavor, Wintergreen Ice, Crest is looking to YouTube fans to come up with a new catch phrase.

I understand that innovative ideas have the ability to emerge in the most unlikely of places. Personally, I don't think I am a big fan of the "ideas by committee" theory. Especially when it has the potential to make those that make a living off of creating ideas, seem inept. Then again, I also think it depends ou the creator's (on the ad agency side) intention. Some agencies use this method of user generated content as a way to create immersion, interaction and communication with a particular brand. In today's immensely competitive consumer landscape, it requires more than blanket messaging which most likely falls on deaf ears. Today's consumers require pampering and an intimate invitation to feel, smell, and taste a brands true essence. They no longer solely seek out the functional benefits of products, they also desire emotional satisfaction from the brand. Creating this brand satisfaction and then transforming consumers into participants or advocates is the responsibility we as Advertisers have been tasked with achieving for our clients' sake. In this case, such a consumer contest can prove to be both effective in creating new ideas for campaigns as well as inviting people to gain first hand experience with a brand.

As I always do, let's play devil's advocate. Has the so called infinitely deep well of fresh ideas began to run dry within the walls of Account Planning and Creative departments across America? It seems as if such methods of creating a new "catch phrase" should be left up to the professionals. Are we truly conformable with the possibility of a 14 year old high school frosh developing the next catch phrase for a major brand which may have years and years of shelf life? As Lewis Black states on his show "Root of All Evil," this is my ripple effect.. We (advertisers) create a contest that challenges anybody to create their own commercial for a brand, product or service. Someone decides that wouldn't it be great is they simply show 1 minute and 35 seconds of their baby laughing loudly while holding a puppy and titling the video "Britney Spears gets naked," then at the end of the "fo-mmercial" they tag it with 2 seconds of the brand name, since after-all it is a contest about making the brand the star. The video within one day, quickly gets to 10 million views on YouTube, MySpace, Yahoo! and numerous other video hosting sites. Within one week, 100 million views, then soon after is announced the unanimous winner of the video contest and has generated viewer ratings beyond belief for nearly zero cost to the advertiser. Wanting to get in on the gravy train, more and more companies are commanding their ad agency to follow the exact same strategy, creating a culture of unmotivated and uneducated advertising professionals fishing for ideas among the masses. Then someone comes up with the biggest idea of them all, "Why waste money on the production cost of expensive non-effective and traditional TV commercials? We should run user generated videos on TV, all the time!" So it happens, the death of the TV commercial as we know it, and the birth of brainless idiots jumping off rooftops and shooting bottle rockets out of their hind parts in order to possibly land their commercial on TV. Careful planning, strategy development and creative concepting are dead, random and talentless stars are born ----Oh wait, hasn't this already happened?

I'm nowhere near ready to admit such a disastrous event had already taken place, but my industry of talented and bright minds should be weary and educated before sourcing the great vast sea of people creating content. We have to be creators of our own ideas and regulators of everyone else's.

Connected, Yet Unconnected..

2008-08-01T15:23:00.000-07:00

The Big Question:

As our lives become increasingly more integrated with new technology, should we begin to fear the gradual disappearance of actual human interaction?

The Small Answer:

First and foremost, I just want to state that I love social networking, both as a means to stay connected with my own circle and to monitor cultural trends, however, there's a devil's advocate for every issue. Here's mine.

I recently attended the 2008 AAAA Account Planning Conference at Loews Resort in Miami Beach, FL. This annual conference is always a wonderful retreat for me since it has the tendency to refresh my confidence in the bright minds, creative thinkers and innovators the advertising industry has to offer. For those on the outside looking in, this particular conference is for Advertising Account Planners, and if you happen to wonder what it is exactly Account Planners do, you'll have to Google it, because it is definitely a long story. However, it wasn't long before I realized that this years "theme" was centered around the new digital front, and more specifically social networking. As advertisers, it is essentially a vital part of our job to monitor pop culture trends and best understand how said trends have the potential to positively effect our clients' business; today, there's no trend more popular than social networking.

That being said, I began to truly put this relatively new genre of websites into perspective and what has dawned on me is that the advent of social networking has probably had the greatest impact on our social behaviors since the accidental creation of the Internet itself! That seems like a bold statement, but just think about this for a moment. My grandparents, my parents and myself included all grew up in eras personified by protecting our personal information. There was a strong sense of privacy and being let into one's inner circle took persistence and trust building. Now, fast forward to the new generation of Internet users, there is an accepted level of interaction and exchange of information unprecedented in our modern history. Never before have individuals been willing, excuse me, WANTING to share their lives and everyday actions with perfect strangers. Voyeurism is no longer taboo, it's mainstream! Don't believe me, last I checked MySpace and Facebook were the 3rd and 5th most visited sites in the United States and FB has recently recorded it's 90 millionth unique profile page (user); that's almost a third of our country's population.

Circling back to the question at hand, I believe although we have the ability to meet millions of perfect strangers across the county, the existing personal relationships we have in place have suffered due to this phenomenon. I remember as a young teenager, I had at best 20 friends whom I lived near and went to school with that I communicated with on a regular basis. Each relationship had substance and actual interaction, also since I only had 20 friends, spending time with each of them was possible. Now, observe the average user of social networking, they have approximately 188 friends according to a recent online study. Approximately one third of which they claim to communicate with on a "regular" basis. The shear volume alone can't possibly allow one to dedicate adequate time to developing a close personal relationship with any one of these friends, not to mention the time detracted from person's they interact with in person. I know what you're thinking, most people know each other before they connected online. Very true, but my original question asked about our future, not today. Should this trend continue, will there be a need for each person to take time out of their busy day to meet and greet another, especially when you can just send a short message requesting to get to know someone else on much more "no strings attached terms." Heaven forbid one should have to commit to being a friend permanently.

As always, I promise to dissect and explain the continued ill effects of social networking on our societies socialization, however one post at a time my friends...

*update: I just learned through the source comScore that Facebook has 132 million original users, however, 63% of which are from abroad. Originally, I stated there were 100 million user in the US, according to Facebook themselves.