Some Quick Thoughts on Motrin

Published
by
Matt
on Nov 18, 2008
in Advertising and social media
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If you haven’t heard about all this hooplah then just google “moms and Motrin” to find out the whole story.

In any event, I just wanted to quickly weigh in with my required post on the subject.

  1. It looks like, in hindsight, that a bigger deal was made of it than necessary. The immediacy of the new channels (blogs, Twitter, etc.) allowed people to broadcast their shock! and outrage! immediately without much thought.
  2. Motrin really only pissed off a small subset of people. This whole snafu isn’t really going to hurt their bottom line, and in reality it will probably give the brand more exposure.
  3. As Alan Wolk pointed out, they didn’t really anticipate a firestorm over the ad. There were no Hitler jokes, no partial nudity, etc. I’m sure no one thought “Wow, this could kick up some dust! Let’s go with it any way!”
  4. Right or wrong, Social Media experts are going to be citing this as a case study for a while.
  5. You’re going to piss some people off sometimes. It’s just going to happen that way.

3 Groups Of People That Are Important

Published
by
Matt
on Nov 18, 2008
in Analysis and social media
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Note: This is a continuation of a post from yesterday titled “Digital Natives Are Not That Important“

The Conquistador
If Digital Natives are people that have been born into it, The Conquistadors are the ones who worked hard to show up, and make no question about it, they run this town. If you’re reading this blog and are over 20ish years old, chances are you’re a Conquistador. Not only are you way ahead of most other people your age when it comes to the internet, but you’re most likely way ahead of everyone. Conquistadors are the trend-setters, celebrities, and taste-makers of the new web.

In many ways, Conquistadors are very like Digital Natives. You’ve got to work to win them over, but if you do, they’ll shout your praises through every channel they can think of.

The Trons
Aptly named because the last good memory they have of technology was the 1982 movie Tron. They don’t want it, don’t need it, and won’t use it unless they absolutely have to.

If you’re targeting Trons, then good luck. You’ve got to have a couple things working for you in order to be successful. The first thing is you have to be really really easy to figure out. The second thing is that you have to have a user base that includes the “slightly more tech inclined friend-of-Tron” or SMTIFOD as we call it in the biz. (I’m just kidding, no one really says that.)

The One Trick Pony
The OTP is a user who knows the internet enough to use it for one or two things, and as far as they’re concerned, that’s all it’s for. Take my girlfriend’s mom for example. Her web experience/expertise doesn’t stretch very far beyond emailing, but she is an eBay wizard. Her digital world consists of the big “e’s”: e-mail and eBay.

The key with the OTP is to make your service or site as accessible as possible. You need to show the benefits right away. They’re a tough demo to snag, but provide an extremely loyal user base once you’ve got them on board.

So are Digital Natives really that unimportant right now? Are there any groups I missed? Let’s hear your thoughts.

Digital Natives Are Not That Important

Published
by
Matt
on Nov 17, 2008
in Analysis and social media
. Comments

Note: This is the first part of a two part series. See part two here.

If you’re at all active in the blogging/new media/technology/futurist/marketing/social media space, you’ve probably heard the term “Digital Native”.

In case you’re not part of that 8 word super-slash, or just missed the boat, a Digital Native is someone that doesn’t know life without computers or the internet.

People have been making a big deal about “the impact of Digital Natives” and “what Digital Natives mean to ____________”. But the truth is, right now anyway, Digital Natives aren’t that important at all.

Let’s think about it - by my estimation/definition, Digital Natives were born around or after 1989. This makes the oldest possible Digital Native about 20 years old. And odds are, if you’re running a business, the under 20 market isn’t the biggest piece of the pie you need to worry about.

The big thing about Digital Natives is that because they’ve grown up with this technology, they’re quick to adapt, adopt, and move on to the next big thing. So when you’re rolling the dice on your next big “will they do it?” web project, higher adoption rates from Digital Natives can be expected (as long as your product doesn’t suck).

But with most businesses, these people aren’t the make-or-break in the market. Look at Facebook. I was on there from the very beginning, when it was all college kids. People my age are on the very verge of what is typically defined as a Digital Native, so by definition, Facebook was full of them. But Facebook didn’t really take off until it opened it’s doors to everyone.

So we know that Digital Natives will try out your new web service. They will shape the next Twitter, the next bogs, and podcasts. But they’re not the people you have to worry about.

And who is it that you should be focusing on? Check back tomorrow to find out!

Twitter Principles: Patience Grasshopper

Published
by
Matt
on Nov 12, 2008
in basics and twitter
. Comments

Alan Wolk recently wrote about how we (the current user base) need to “let go” of Twitter and embrace all the new users that will invariably come flooding in.

I agree with Alan that just because we’re doing something a certain way now doesn’t mean it’s the “right way”, but I do think there are a few principles of using Twitter that can be passed on to maximize your early experiences.

So, I’m going to be running a weekly series on Twitter Principles.

This week’s Twitter Principle is: Patience Grasshopper

It happens all the time that people get on Twitter and “OMG look at all the awesome people on here! I need to follow all 1,374 people I might be interested in immediately!”. First off, I love the enthusiasm, you’ve clearly got heart. But jumping in and following a massive amount of people right away isn’t a great plan.

The thing is, when people get the “Captain Followsalot is now following you on Twitter” they go and check out your profile. And then they see numbers that look like this “Following: 1,374 - Followers: 119″. I don’t know about you, but the first thing that jumps into my head is SPAM.

You have to take it slow with a new account. How about starting by following the 100 most interesting people you find/have heard of? That way you build your account and following slowly, instead of not at all.

Also, and I can’t stress this enough, you have to tweet stuff. You can’t follow even 100 people and expect for them to follow you back when you only have 2 tweets.

So to recap:
1)Add followers slowly
2)Actually use Twitter

And if you’d like me to be part of your well-paced expansion, you can follow me on Twitter.

The Best Social Media Works Offline

Published
by
Matt
on Nov 3, 2008
in Life, Web 2.0 and social media
. Comments

If you stumbled over the title of this post, maybe it’s time to jack out of the matrix, Neo.

I know that most people wouldn’t put “social media” and “offline” in the same sentence, but maybe that’s because only the best of the best social media efforts make it there.

It’s funny because you hear people all the time getting all excited because O.M.G. the web is SOCIAL now! I can talk to you, and you can talk to me, and I can write reviews that get read in Istanbul, and you can friend up the entire offensive line of (undefeated!) Penn State’s football team.

This is, undeniably, a big deal. But we need to remember that there was a place that people were being social before the internet came along.

It’s called the real world. It’s where your mother is right now, and your dog, and your girlfriend (well, maybe not your girlfriend) too.

And the best social media plans understand this. They serve as enablers, facilitators, catalysts, and precursors for real life interaction. Look at the Makers Mark Ambassadors program or the Fiskateers. How about the Manic Mommies and their Escapes, events like Blogger Social, the Plaid Tour, and the booming popularity of Tweetups.

Think about (and I know he gets talked about all the time, but it’s because he’s that good) Gary Vaynerchuck. He blows peoples minds with his energy and passion about wine on WLTV and then goes out there and connects with everyone on every social network you can think of. Then he follows up on every single email he gets. But the best part is what happens offline. That guy that gets his question answered about what wine to serve with the meal he’s going to propose to his girlfriend is going to tell his friends. Maybe online, but more likely at the office, at a party, at the wedding reception. And it’s going to go something like this.

“Oh man I was so nervous, you know me. I had no idea about the meal and then I had to figure out the wine too. There’s this guy online, Gary Vay-ner-chuck, who is, like, a total wine guru, and he answered my email about which wine to get. It was awesome. You should check out his stuff, he’s at winelibrary.tv.”

Winner.

Age of Conversation 2 Will Blow Your Mind

Published
by
Matt
on Oct 29, 2008
in Life, New Marketing and Reading
. Comments


Guaranteed. All you have to do is grab a copy (and you support a great charity while you’re at it). So make sure you do that, starting Wednesday October 28th at 8am.

Buy AOC2 Here.

For the full story on AOC2, you can check out the site at The Age Of Conversation. Also, make sure you click randomly on some of my fellow authors below.

Adrian Ho, Aki Spicer, Alex Henault, Amy Jussel, Andrew Odom, Andy Nulman, Andy Sernovitz, Andy Whitlock, Angela Maiers, Ann Handley, Anna Farmery, Armando Alves, Arun Rajagopal, Asi Sharabi, Becky Carroll, Becky McCray, Bernie Scheffler, Bill Gammell, Bob LeDrew, Brad Shorr, Brandon Murphy, Branislav Peric, Brent Dixon, Brett Macfarlane, Brian Reich, C.C. Chapman, Cam Beck, Casper Willer, Cathleen Rittereiser, Cathryn Hrudicka, Cedric Giorgi, Charles Sipe, Chris Kieff, Chris Cree, Chris Wilson, Christina Kerley (CK), C.B. Whittemore, Chris Brown, Connie Bensen, Connie Reece, Corentin Monot, Craig Wilson, Daniel Honigman, Dan Schawbel, Dan Sitter, Daria Radota Rasmussen, Darren Herman, Dave Davison, David Armano, David Berkowitz, David Koopmans, David Meerman Scott, David Petherick, David Reich, David Weinfeld, David Zinger, Deanna Gernert, Deborah Brown, Dennis Price, Derrick Kwa, Dino Demopoulos, Doug Haslam, Doug Meacham, Doug Mitchell, Douglas Hanna, Douglas Karr, Drew McLellan, Duane Brown, Dustin Jacobsen, Dylan Viner, Ed Brenegar, Ed Cotton, Efrain Mendicuti, Ellen Weber, Eric Peterson, Eric Nehrlich, Ernie Mosteller, Faris Yakob, Fernanda Romano, Francis Anderson, Gareth Kay, Gary Cohen, Gaurav Mishra, Gavin Heaton, Geert Desager, George Jenkins, G.L. Hoffman, Gianandrea Facchini, Gordon Whitehead, Greg Verdino, Gretel Going & Kathryn Fleming, Hillel Cooperman, Hugh Weber, J. Erik Potter, James Gordon-Macintosh, Jamey Shiels, Jasmin Tragas, Jason Oke, Jay Ehret, Jeanne Dininni, Jeff De Cagna, Jeff Gwynne & Todd Cabral, Jeff Noble, Jeff Wallace, Jennifer Warwick, Jenny Meade, Jeremy Fuksa, Jeremy Heilpern, Jeroen Verkroost, Jessica Hagy, Joanna Young, Joe Pulizzi, John Herrington, John Moore, John Rosen, John Todor, Jon Burg, Jon Swanson, Jonathan Trenn, Jordan Behan, Julie Fleischer, Justin Foster, Karl Turley, Kate Trgovac, Katie Chatfield, Katie Konrath, Kenny Lauer, Keri Willenborg, Kevin Jessop, Kristin Gorski, Lewis Green, Lois Kelly, Lori Magno, Louise Manning, Luc Debaisieux, Mario Vellandi, Mark Blair, Mark Earls, Mark Goren, Mark Hancock, Mark Lewis, Mark McGuinness, Matt Dickman, Matt J. McDonald, Matt Moore, Michael Karnjanaprakorn, Michelle Lamar, Mike Arauz, Mike McAllen, Mike Sansone, Mitch Joel, Neil Perkin, Nettie Hartsock, Nick Rice, Oleksandr Skorokhod, Ozgur Alaz, Paul Chaney, Paul Hebert, Paul Isakson, Paul McEnany, Paul Tedesco, Paul Williams, Pet Campbell, Pete Deutschman, Peter Corbett, Phil Gerbyshak, Phil Lewis, Phil Soden, Piet Wulleman, Rachel Steiner, Sreeraj Menon, Reginald Adkins, Richard Huntington, Rishi Desai, Robert Hruzek, Roberta Rosenberg, Robyn McMaster, Roger von Oech, Rohit Bhargava, Ron Shevlin, Ryan Barrett, Ryan Karpeles, Ryan Rasmussen, Sam Huleatt, Sandy Renshaw, Scott Goodson, Scott Monty, Scott Townsend, Scott White, Sean Howard, Sean Scott, Seni Thomas, Seth Gaffney, Shama Hyder, Sheila Scarborough, Sheryl Steadman, Simon Payn, Sonia Simone, Spike Jones, Stanley Johnson, Stephen Collins, Stephen Landau, Stephen Smith, Steve Bannister, Steve Hardy, Steve Portigal, Steve Roesler, Steven Verbruggen, Steve Woodruff, Sue Edworthy, Susan Bird, Susan Gunelius, Susan Heywood, Tammy Lenski, Terrell Meek, Thomas Clifford, Thomas Knoll, Tim Brunelle, Tim Connor, Tim Jackson, Tim Mannveille, Tim Tyler, Timothy Johnson, Tinu Abayomi-Paul, Toby Bloomberg, Todd Andrlik, Troy Rutter, Troy Worman, Uwe Hook, Valeria Maltoni, Vandana Ahuja, Vanessa DiMauro, Veronique Rabuteau, Wayne Buckhanan, William Azaroff, Yves Van Landeghem

Nice Move Wachovia

Published
by
Matt
on Oct 27, 2008
in Communication and Customer Service
. Comments

My girlfriend (@ashlebo) went to get some cash out of the Wachovia ATM the other day, and the following card popped out with her receipt.

If you can’t read the quote, it’s an Irish proverb that says “When we count our blessings, we count you twice.” Pretty nice stuff. And the thing is, how hard was that?

It’s a little refreshing to see, in the middle of these tough times, a bank that cares about its customers. It’s easy to say “Hey guess what? It’s customer appreciation month! We appreciate you!” and then leave it at that. In fact, at my last job during “Employee Appreciation Month” they laid off 1/5 of the company.

But that little card was like a fortune cookie style complement. And you know what? It felt good.

Well played Wachovia.

10/29 Update: I’d like to learn a little more about this idea. So if someone from Wachovia is reading this, let’s talk!

The Google Machine Has Spoken

Published
by
Matt
on Oct 24, 2008
in Web Sites
. Comments

You’ve probably heard someone (probably a new media pundit trying to sound cool) say “If I can’t find you on Google, then you don’t exist.”

This is totally ridiculous.

While showing up in Google is certainly important, it’s far from the be-all end-all, oh. my. god. you should probably quit the internet right now, kind of deal. Seriously.

Don’t believe me? Pinch yourself, wave to your dog, call your mother, scream “PC’s Rule!” in a room full of Mac fanboys. And the verdict is, you most certainly do exist.

Now that we’ve got that out of the way, on to the next problem. Showing up on Google.

First things first, I might as well state the obvious: you can’t show up in Google if you don’t have a website. No excuses here. Making yourself a home on the web is easy, free, fun, and beneficial, so there’s really no reason not to do it. Check out Blogger or Wordpress to fire up a blog for free or Squidoo and Twitter for a more varied approach. It doesn’t take long to hang out your shingle on the web, and if you’re at the point where you’re reading this blog, I’d be surprised if you don’t have something going already.

Which brings me to the next important point: how to get that something in the right place in the Google search results. This, my friends, is the entire goal of Search Engine Optimization (SEO). And for this I point you to people who do this for a living. I’d start by checking out the posts below on how to get rolling with SEO.

- The Bloggers Guide to SEO - SEO Book
- SEO for Blogs - Problogger
- Beginners Guide to Search Engine Optimization - SEOmoz

So the moral of the story is, if you’re not dominating the search results on Google right now, don’t worry. Put in some good effort and give it a little bit of time and you’ll start showing up in the right places