Clay discusses how consumers have become empowered to generate news, social observation and political pressure at a recent TED Talk.
As usual, it’s the wonderful examples Clay uses that make his arguments so engaging.
See the talk: HERE
Clay Shirky @ TED Talks
Filed under: 2009, July | Leave a Comment
Tags: Clay Shirky, Digital Participation, TED Talks
Air New Zealand go all out to get passengers to pay more attention to their inflight safety film: HERE
Air New Zealand Safety Film
Filed under: 2009, July | Leave a Comment
Tags: Air New Zealand, Safety Film
Seeing things differently
I’m in the thick of lots of thinking for brands at present and recurring themes are:
- seeing things differently
- making ideas more resonant
- being more engaging for your audience.
Perhaps ’say what you see’ has become ’say what could be.’
Glitterball DeathStar
Filed under: 2009, July | Leave a Comment
Tags: Say what could be
Dawn Airey has called for a alliance between UK terrestrial TV channel operators in order to help secure viewers through a shared streaming video platform.
Read the coverage of Dawn Airey’s speech at the Future of Broadcasting Conference held in London yesterday.
I find myself in agreement, with the hope that Channel 4 and ITV would also join with the BBC and FIVE. Dawn believes the system could build from the start BT have made with BT Vision.
My hope is that such a service would include the entire catalogue of programmes made from this point forward; whilst gradually tackling (re-negotiating) usage rights to include old programmes over time.
Clearly the interests of multi-channel operators (Sky, Virgin etc.) remain locked in a customer subscription model. I would be interested to see the proposed new service funded by both subscription and advertising, which may open the door to some multi-channel content on such a platform.
Read about Dawn Airey’s speech at New Media Age: HERE
Filed under: 2009, July | Leave a Comment
Tags: Dawn Airey, Digital TV, Streaming TV
Uniqlo – Tokyo Fashion Map
An interesting fashion site from Uniqlo Japan.
Uniqlo Tokyo FashionMap: HERE
Filed under: 2009, January | Leave a Comment
Tags: Tokyo Fashion Map, Uniqlo
Whilst at least one early edition newspaper in London (Metro) changed it’s front page from reporting the death of one celebrity (Farah Fawcett) to another (Michael Jackson) today. My interest was in how quickly the news of Michael Jackson’s death would spread digitally.
By 8am Twitter was all a flutter, in fact as I type this note the top 3 trending topics are currently relating to MJ, while FF is in 4th place.
By 9.30am the first joke in dubious taste regarding the death was sent to me by text message.
After lunch Rory Sutherland was cheekily asking everyone to moonwalk at Liverpool Street station this evening in a flash mob T-Mobile could be proud of.
But it wasn’t until 2pm that the first email attachment arrived.
Was it wrong of me to have expected something like the image below to have reached me sooner in this social media crazed age?
Glove
Filed under: 2009, June | Leave a Comment
Tags: Michael Jackson, Rory Sutherland, Viral
CBS interactive poster platform
CBS iPhone Platform
An interesting digital opportunity has been launched by CBS this month. Where iPhone owners in the UK will be able to move, zoom and rotate the content displayed on digital posters, on certain sites set up to operate as part of a new interactive poster network.
Read the article in Campaign magazine: HERE
Filed under: 2009, June | Leave a Comment
Tags: CBS interactive posters, Digital, iPhone
“The man who stops advertising to save money is like the man who stops the clock to save time”
- Henry Ford, 1930’s Great Depression
An interesting view that still holds truth. But rather than stopping time, I prefer to think that board directors that lower the marketing budget hope that by cutting this vital fuel that allows their brand to fly, it may only have the effect of teaching the business to glide for a time?
Some businesses are great gliders, for a while, while other plummet. The problem initially may be in not knowing which of these two outcomes will apply to your brand.
But there is also a knock-on effect long term. Because in order to regain altitude (what you have lost by cutting budget fuel for sales, market share, hits, awareness, consideration etc.), you end up spending more than if you had continued to advertise throughout the period.
Glider pilots only end up flying in one direction with any certainty, down.
Filed under: 2009, June | Leave a Comment
Tags: Fuelling Brands, Henry Ford
Twitter – First or Last Tweet?
As social media breaks through and the heat around Twitter eclipses news items on TV and in the press, here’s a thought and a copy of the cartoon that appeared in The New Yorker on 1st June.
Why are people embracing social media in their millions?
Because it is an enabler, it empowers people and let’s them feel able to engage and participate; it leaves them more in control.
What opportunity does social media represent to businesses?
Social media will become the primary vehicle for facilitating business relationships and establishing influential consumer dialogue and loyalty. Because the consumer will increasingly refuse to engage with the ‘old model’ that made them subservient to a brand and restricted. The shift is toward enabling consumer freedom.
Surely a Tweet (a Twitter message) is too brief to possibly be compelling?
Think of sound bites, key phrases from memorable speeches, lines from poetry and verse. 140 characters is ample to evoke, change perception and persuade. Partcularly as the audience expect a continuing dialogue – not a monologue.
Memorable lines such as
Winston Churchill:
“We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.” (140 characters)
Martin Luther King:
“I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” (135 characters)
But be aware – people were already engaged by and trusting of such speakers. So what they had to say was listened to.
Perhaps the first question you should ask is whether your brand will be listened to, because of your previous actions and interactions with your audience? Rather than: Will people listen to what you have to say, because you think it cool to join the Twitter bandwagon?
New Yorker Cartoon
Filed under: 2009, June | Leave a Comment
Tags: Martin Luther King, The New Yorker, Twitter, Winston Churchill
I’ve finally pulled together material showing some of my strategic planning tools and campaigns.
These are posted at: BrandZeal.com
Always in Beta.
Filed under: 2009, June | Leave a Comment
Tags: BrandZeal, BrandZeal.com, Kevin Sugrue, Portfolio
Felix Miller, Martin Stiksel and Richard Jones launched Last.FM, an internet radio platform, back in January 2002 from a living room in East London. In 2007 they sold Last.FM to CBS and by April this year the service had played over 1.8 billion tracks – just for the top 40 alt-rock acts alone.
Unlike some digital acquisitions (e.g. ITV’s purchase of Friends Reunited), the service has gone from strength to strength under ownership by a traditional media baron.
Last.FM Founders: Miller, Stiksel & Jones
This week the 3 founding partners have resigned. They have worked through their period of contractual obligation after the sale to CBS – and more. Personally I’m hoping they have a new business idea ready to set-up, as the Last.FM service is great.
Last.FM has continued to perform well despite increased competition. Blip.FM are in the same service space, while the music service by MySpace has reinvigorated that social network particularly in the States. The digital streaming service at Shoutcast is popular amongst do-it-yourself digital radio DJ’s. And other ‘all you can eat’ music subscription services target those seeking portable digital music, such as Music Station from Omnifone.
There is also continued competition from peer-to-peer file sharing services, notably including the launch of Spotify in the UK back in February. But illegal music file sharing is still very much a live issue. Back in April the founders of the file sharing site Pirate Bay were sentenced to a year in prison by a Swedish court.
I’ll be blogging about the huge volume of tracks played on Last.Fm and the sticky issue of performing rights and royalties soon. As you know, YouTube in the UK is still blocking music video downloads as it is in dispute with the Performing Rights Society over the amount paid per play and which artists are covered.
Wow, I wrote a blog article on digital music without mentioning Apple iTunes for a change. Oh.
Below is a copy of the ‘Brief History of Digital Music’ created by Revolution
December 1991
The MP3 file is invented by the Fraunhofer Institute, following years of research into compressing files
November 1997
MP3.com is founded, enabling users to access their music online, provided they have a genuine copyright version
February 1998
eMusic launches, becoming the first website to offer MP3 files for download as well as a subscription service
April 1998
Saehan, a Korean electronic manufacturer, produces MPMan, the world’s first MP3 player
June 1999
Napster, the first large-scale P2P network, is founded by Boston student Shawn Fanning
December 1999
Shazam, the mobile music recognition service, is established by Californian students who later move to London
April 2000
A US judge rules that MP3.com is liable for copyright infringement, one of the first rulings in favour of record labels
March 2001
Niklas Zennstrom, Janus Friis and Priit Kasesalu (who subsequently set up Skype and Joost) found KaZaa
July 2001
Napster is ordered to shut down by the US Circuit Court of Appeal for infringing copyright
October 2001
Apple sells its first iPod. It has sold almost 200m since, becoming the world’s most popular music player
January 2002
Last.fm launches in London, the first ad-funded internet radio platform offering personalised music
April 2003
Apple launches the iTunes Music Store which has since grown to account for 70 per cent of digital music sales
October 2003
Napster re-emerges with a paid-for model after Roxio bought its remaining assets at a bankruptcy auction
January 2004
Coca-Cola, with Mycokemusic, becomes one of the first major brands to launch a download store
January 2005
Downloaded tracks outsell physical singles for the first time and are later incorporated into the UK singles chart
September 2005
HMV and Virgin Megastores are late to the party when they both launch online music sites
July 2005
Apple sells 500 million tracks through iTunes after just over two years of offering downloads
September 2006
Microsoft lifts lid on Zune, its rival to the iPod, which promises to deliver ‘connected music and entertainment’
June 2007
Apple unveils the iPhone, providing the long-awaited joint experience of communication and music
October 2007
Radiohead releases its single In Rainbows online, inviting people to ‘pay what they like’ to download it
July 2008
UK record labels, media owners and ISPs agree a Memorandum of Understanding to combat illegal file sharing
October 2008
Nokia brings its Comes With Music mobile play to the UK market, backed by a multimillion-pound ad campaign
February 2009
Spotify opens free registration in the UK and becomes one of the fastest-growing start-ups in history
April 2009
The founders of Pirate Bay, a peer-to-peer file sharing site, are sent to jail for a year by a Swedish court.
Filed under: 2009, June | 1 Comment
Tags: Digital Radio, Last.FM, Streaming Music
A brighter future for Saab?
The automotive industry has been slowly realising the need to put its house in order.
Issues such as:
- state funding
- poor product quality (particularly amongst American brands)
- environmental concerns
- the disconnect between brand manufacturer and dealer service
- increased taxation
- credit funding constraints
In a sense the recession is acting as an accelerant, speeding the change, or demise, of weak automotive brands.
Last week GM announced the sale of its Hummer and Saturn brands, and its European operations are being demerged into a separate group centred around Opel in Germany.
But the one GM asset I have a personal interest in is Saab. Saab is a premium brand that represents a difference in attitude and style from the German counterpoints (Audi, BMW and Mercedes), because of its drivers more than its advertising. While I’m not one to regularly quote Jeremy Clarkson, he has commented ‘Saab’s are the best driven cars on the road. Their drivers just aren’t like BMW owners.’
Saab 9-3
Having survived a multi-car motorway pile-up last February, when a lorry drove into the back of a queue of 4 stationary cars. I am able to endorse the level of protection offered by the Saab 9-3 in a crash. All 4 cars were written off, but my experience as a live crash-test dummy in the Saab left me able to walk away virtually unscathed. The drivers of the other cars weren’t so lucky and the nearest ER was kept busy that day.
If you are able to put up with the occasional jibe that all Saab owners think they are fighter pilots, which perhaps reveals more about the age of the person criticising than it says about the Saab owner; then the Saab driving seat is a fine place to be. Unless perhaps you are GM.
Originally buying half of its shares in 1990 and taking full control of Saab in 2000, GM have now received 3 offers for the insolvent Swedish brand, and will choose a preferred bidder by the end of this week.
The nature of the sale is unusual and complex, as it includes clauses that continue to ensure GM share engine and parts technology under service agreements. This is interesting as GM has done little to expand the very narrow product range Saab manufacture over the last 19 years. With the most emission friendly turbo diesel engine unit originating from Fiat and also found in Alfa Romeo 159’s.
The 3 bidders are believed to be:
- Koenigsegg – the Swedish supercar maker who sold 18 cars at around $1.6m each last year
- Renco – a private equity holding that bought and turned around AM General – who manufacture the Humvee military vehicle
- Merbanco, a private group of investors from Wyoming State
GM, which has filed for bankruptcy protection in the US, has made a provision, contributing $500m in cash and assets to finance the spin-off of Saab. None of the bidders are expected to match this level of investment to gain ownership control.
As well as holding cash worth around $150m in the bank, Saab is also in position to launch new cars.
- the new 9-3x (an estate /off-road crossover that is arriving possibly 5-10 years after market demand peaked for these vehicles)
- the new 9-5 (the outgoing model is no longer competitive, so this is a welcome step).
However Saab haven’t updated the 9-3 and still don’t have either a small car or an electric/hybrid vehicle. So the sales volume in the current recession is unlikely to even reach the 98,000 units sold last year, let alone the 133,000 units sold at Saab’s volume peak back in 2006.
Back in 2005/2006 the arrival of the more efficient Fiat diesel engine and increased dealerships supported this relative sales boom. But technology has moved on, with BMW and some Audi engines offering significantly lower emissions and higher resale value; appealing to company car tax payers and also improving leasing prices.
The contractual negotiations around the continuing supply of GM engine and parts technology isn’t necessarily what will help Saab in the future, as new and better units are needed.
Although continuing support for the current vehicles is clearly an important part of the sale during this transition. The GM sourced electrical systems and some engines haven’t always proven themselves reliable in the Swedish premium cars. I encountered 3 electrical faults and 2 engine faults in the 2 years I owned a 9-3. But I was driving around 20,000 miles a year at the time.
Saab filed for insolvency in February and has been undergoing reorganisation. It has reportedly cut its workforce by 700 down to 3,400, and has asked a judge to approve the reduction of its debts by 75%. GM is the largest Saab creditor, followed by the Swedish government.
Personally I believe Saab has a viable future with the introduction of appropriate funding, product development, distribution and marketing. However this may require a $1bn investment in an industry that is possibly looking to radically cut costs and sell old as new, rather than innovate, at this time.
Filed under: 2009, June | Leave a Comment
Tags: Saab
Survey for bloggers
Videojug are running a survey to evaluate the level of interest amongst bloggers in incorporating syndicated video in their blogs.
If you wish to take part in the 2009 Blogging Trends Survey and receive an advance copy of the research report summary, it takes five minutes to complete and includes questions about:
- your specific blog
- your blogging experience
- commercial activity
- future trends
- new content formats.
All answers are strictly confidential.
Take the survey now
The survey is operated by Robert Stone, Research Manager, Videojug Corporation Limited.
email: robert.stone@videojug.com
Filed under: 2009, June | Leave a Comment
Tags: Blogger Survey, Videojug
“Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but not their own facts.”
- Daniel Patrick Moynihan
“It is a great shock at the age of five or six to find out that in a world of cowboys you are in fact an Indian.”
- James Baldwin.
“If I can’t dance and sing, I don’t want your revolution.”
- John Lennon
Filed under: 2009, May | Leave a Comment
Tags: Baldwin, Lennon, Moynihan, Quotes
“It is possible to fly without motors, but not without knowledge and skill.”
Wilbur Wright (1867 – 1912)
From the invention of powered flight, commencing with the first manned flight made by the Wright Brothers in 1903; it took mankind only 66 years to fly so far we could land on the moon and return safely.
In less than one lifetime, the world of transportation changed from a horse and cart to it being possible to travel in space.
Such levels of change, innovations, are startling. We are currently at the start of such a major period of change and innovation in digital technology. What will the digital revolution’s equivalent be for walking on the moon?
If the birth of the internet was equivalent to the ‘first flight’ of the digital transformation of the world; imagine how unrecognisable the world we live in will become in another 50 years from today.
One thing is certain, forecasters and pundits don’t usually get things right. I will be digging through some example views from forecasters, examining what they thought would be happening in marketing from a few years ago, over the next couple of weeks.
As Wilbur Wright pointed out, it’s the knowledge and skill, not the engine itself that really powers the flight successfully.
“Angels can fly, because they take themselves lightly.”
- G.K. Chesterton.
Moon Walk
Filed under: 2009, May | Leave a Comment
Tags: Digital Innovation, G.K. Chesterton, Innovation, Stephen Fry, Wilbur Sright
Wizdom from Bill Bailey on tour
Bill just tweeted a wonderfully understated truism, or maybe it’s just my Irish blood that it appeals to?
Bill Bailey: “Dublin in the rain…ah one of life’s great pleasures.. and certainties.”
Filed under: 2009, May | Leave a Comment
Tags: Bill Bailey
It’s believed that play has a formative role in the development of a child.
I wonder if that means that this toy from Playmobil will be a fond childhood memory amongst the next generation of thieves?
Playmobil Thief Set
Filed under: 2009, May | Leave a Comment
Tags: Playmobil
A Painterly Sunrise
A Painterly Sunrise
Filed under: 2009, May | 2 Comments
Tags: Painterly Sunrise
Recent Entries
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- The Future Of Streaming TV: Mutually Suported Distribution Platform Seen As Key In The UK
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- Michael Jackson – social media frenzy
- CBS interactive poster platform
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- Twitter – First or Last Tweet?
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- Founders Scrobble For the Last.FM Time
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