(Digital) Powers of Ten

Ray Eames's film film, Powers of Ten, examines the universe at various magnitudes starting with a man by the lake in Chicago, going to the far end of the galaxy and coming back to the proton in an atom of DNA molecule on the man's hand. The image increases or decreases in scope by factors of 10 every 10 seconds. When watching this film, one can get a good feel for exponential growth and changes in perception that occur at various points.  The film, released in 1977, is simple and scientific in nature, but, the theories behind it can be applied to many aspects of digital marketing. 

Shots from Various Powers of Ten 

Design

When creating a design, is it best to focus on one thing or step back and include some background?  When comparing the image of the man on the lawn to the power of zero to the power of one, the viewer gets a different feeling and has a different focus. When closer up, the blanket and his outfit seem important, however, as the frame gets larger they get smaller and start to appear less significant.  This concept can hold true with any painting, logo, advertisement or campaign strategy as well. The scope of the design will depend on the market and the message. 

Problem Solving

This video is also an indirect reminder that things can appear differently depending on the frame and scope in which they are presented.  As Tim Brown explains in his blog about the Powers of Ten, when problem solving, it helps to both examine the details more closely and step back and look at things in a broader context.  If one looks at a problem too closely, they might miss out on important details.  On the other hand, if one only looks at the big picture, they might not have the correct information on which to make a decision. This same idea can be applied to problems that might arise in the digital media campaign process.  When facing problems with digital media, one must look at the details of what created the problem and where it went wrong, but, they must examine the effects on all customers and followers that have been exposed to it, shared or commented on it, etc.  As digital can spread around the globe, marketers must look at problems to the power of multiple exponents.  

The Speed at Which Information Travels

While watching the camera zoom out to include the state, country, planet, etc., I couldn't help but think about how it resembles the speed of information today.  Information today travels faster than ever and has the ability to reach more people in less time. From snail mail to fax to email to instant message, the speed of information has multiplied. Because of this, small things can become big things quickly. This video is a good reminder to marketers of both the opportunity available to spread messages and the consequences one might face if they send the wrong message.  

Before Launching a Digital Campaign . . .

People usually know that they need a better online presence for their business but, given all the options, it's often hard to know where to start.  Similar to traditional forms of marketing, putting together a strategy takes a lot of planning and consideration.  Below are five important things to understand before developing a digital marketing strategy and launching a new campaign.

1. The Goals

Before developing a digital marketing strategy, one must know what they want to achieve for their business. This seems simple but there are several ways to market a product or service online and, in today's digital world, more outlets than ever through which to do it.  Different outlets are designed to meet different goals and the results will be evaluated differently.  Goals may include things such as getting content in front of a certain percentage of the target market, building a brand or converting a specific percentage of people into sales.  If you have a specific goal in mind to begin with, the campaign and strategy will often be built around that goal.

2. Your Market

Who do you want to reach? Knowing your audience is crucial. Before a strategy or any content can be created, there must be a target in place.  General information gathered should include demographic data such as age, gender and geography as well as psychographic information such as interests, lifestyle and buying habits.  After these parameters are established, a strategy and campaign can be formed around them.  If there are still questions about who the best target market is, testing should be performed to answer them.  Not knowing the market will lead to an ineffective campaign.

3. Defining Success

What needs to happen for the campaign to be considered a success?  There are various ways to measure success in the digital landscape. Whether your goals are tied to a sales number, response number, awareness or something else, that needs to be taken into consideration before the campaign can be put together. It's fine to have multiple goals, but, it's important to know what kind of measurements are available and understand that the measurements used will vary depending on the tools used.   Depending on whether or not you are looking to track conversions, impressions, interactions, etc., that might influence they type of promotions and platforms used.

4. Brand Values & Guidelines

How is the campaign going to affect your brand? Regardless of whether you are looking for your digital campaign is to build brand awareness, create buzz or drive a certain number of conversions, your digital brand image will be affected by the content you use. So, marketers must have an idea of what kind of content supports and strengthens their brand. Knowing the values that should be associated with the brand ahead of time will allow a strategy to be formed the enhances the brand image and identity and, ideally, brand equity as well. 

5. How to Build on Previous Results

In order to build on previous successes and improve on previous failures, any content previously used should be evaluated prior to putting together the next plan. This includes any previous print ads, digital ads, websites, logos, videos, flyers, etc.  As it is important to send the same message through all channels used, there should be a solid understanding about what is being done offline and what has been done perviously.  Any new content created will be based on your brand and the market you want to reach, but, there should be consistency between all marketing material. 

Taking time to think about and gather information related to the above five factors will lay a solid foundation on which to build a strong digital strategy. While there are more digital options available than ever before, the additional options can make things more challenging if the initial parameters are not clearly defined.  

Newsjacking: Not all News is Good News

As I notice the amount of content I read that consists of blogs and opinion pieces (often shared via social media) is higher than ever, I find myself wondering what my former journalism teachers are thinking.  None of us predicted that in a period of less than ten years we go from emphasizing that the best journalism is objective and unbiased to openly talking about how to take newsworthy events and "inject your ideas" into them. Today, however, that seems to be becoming the norm. 

David Meerman Scott describes Newsjacking as "the process by which you inject your ideas or angles into breaking news, in real-time, in order to generate media coverage for yourself or your business." When you think about all the digital media sources we skim,  Newsjacking is everywhere.  People and businesses are constantly adding in their two cents, not only to contribute and help steer the conversation in their desired direction, but also to get a piece of the spotlight.  Perhaps the most obvious and successful incident of Newsjacking this year is Oreo connecting itself to the Superbowl blackout.  During the Superbowl blackout, Oreo was able to take advantage of the frustrating but harmless situation by promoting their brand on Twitter in a way that tied it to the situation. 

While Newsjacking can be effective way to draw attention to a brand or organization, not all headlines are available to be shared. Last week we saw one of the most self destructive attempts of Newsjacking this year.  When Epicurious tweeted about offering a bowl of breakfast energy in relations to the Boston bombing, quite rightly, they only ended up hurting themselves. 

In this situation, the Epicurious failed to realize that consumers are not oblivious and are often well aware of the self-serving intentions behind Newsjacking.  While consumers might be tolerant of and open minded about these self-serving intentions under events or incidents that are slightly frustrating, they will not tolerate them in the aftermath of a tragedy.  There is a huge difference between Newsjacking with events that are well known or being debated and news events that are deeply emotional. 

In the age of social and digital media, the laws of Newsjacking are determined by the consumers and those who break them by Newsjacking content that is "off limits" can expect to be judged harshly.  Companies need to be quick to be effective, but, they also need to take the time to put thought into the news they are working with.  When deciding when to tie themselves to a situation, businesses need to realize that not all news is good news and not all spotlights are acceptable to try to get a piece of.  

Department Stores for Online Travel

Anyone who has used travel sites like Expedia or Orbitz can tell you the experience is much different than booking on the site of your go-to airlines. I recently booked a vacation through Orbitz and while it was great to be able to search through such a wide variety of options, I found myself feeling exhausted after the experience. I also find the experience of shopping for hours in a large department store to be exhausting for similar reasons. While I tend to go to boutiques or smaller retail stores because I find the experience to be more enjoyable and that it's generally easier to get what I want, I still go to department stores when the timing is right. That was when I began to see similarities between the user experience on these type of travel sites and the department store shopping experience.

Think about Macy's. It's easy to go into Macy’s to get a shirt, get distracted, and come away with two shirts as well as a new pair of shoes and socks. Well, on sites like Orbitz, it’s easy to go shopping for flights and come away with a plane, a rental car and tickets to see SeaWorld too. This is a very different experience than a user has when booking with their preferred airlines or hotel chain with which they know what they're going to get, have faith in the brand and are familiar with the experience.

While various travel websites can offer similar services, the user experiences are very different.  Below are five types of users that these sites might appeal to. 

Those who like to juggle options 

For the open minded traveler who wants to explore ads or is perhaps headed to a destination unknown, travel sites can be a great way to develop their itinerary. While lots of advertisements and options might seem like clutter to the destination shopper, they might spark an idea for the shopper who is still weighing options. 

Patient Shoppers

Travel sites were designed to allow consumers to compare rates between airlines. Then they went on to compare hotels, transportation, rental cars, packages, cruises, activities, etc. This requires more effort on the part of the consumer as there are simply more choices to make.  Like searching through racks in a department store, it takes patience, but, if you have it, there are some good things that can be found with a little digging.  

Those who dream of deals

I say “dream” because, let's be honest, the deals on these sites aren't actually anything different than any deal you can find on an individual hotel or airline site. The difference is that all the deals on the web are aggregated to one site where you can compare and combine them.

Travel tribe outcasts

For those who have no loyalty to a particular airline or hotel chain and are open to experiencing new brands, sites like Orbitz can be a great way to get introduced to them.  However, for the club member who prefers their familiar and comfortable experience, both on the plane and on the web, the extra advertisements and options are likely to make things seem clouded and complicated.

Open-tab keepers

For the planner who is looking for that rental car and open to a variety of hotels and activities, the abundance of options on these sites can be worthwhile. These sites allow users the convenience of adding multiple purchases to one tab and having a single itinerary as opposed to having five separate emails to track down later.

Similar to the shopping for handbags, consumers who are have their minds set on a specific brand and nothing more should stick to the boutiques. However, those who are willing to take the time to “sort through the sale racks” might come out with some exciting things.  

Emotion vs. Function . . . Does Either One Win On the Web?

In an age where there is an unbelievable amount of content on the web, everyone is fighting to get their website noticed. Whether an e-commerce site, reference site or website for a brick and mortar business, it's tougher than ever to get in front of the consumer. Bids for ads on Google and Facebook continue to increase and there is more "noise" than ever surrounding ads and organic links. With all that noise going on, people and businesses should not only be concerned with being found but also captivating the consumer so that they actually pay attention and engage with their website.

Creating an Emotional Experience

In the Mashable video, Why Emotion Makes for Great Web Design, behavioral expert Kare Andersen

discusses the importance of connecting with the consumer on the web on a deeper, more emotional level similar to how you'd connect with them in person. In the same way people can be attracted in person before they really know that much information about one another, people can decide to stay on a website before they really scroll down or know all of the content they will find. After hearing two speakers talk about the same thing, it can usually be agreed that one can "say it better" than the other . . . well, one website can say it better too.

Kare Andersen’s theory that emotion precedes rational thought can and should be applied to the web design process. If a person or site can show that they understand another person's needs, they will create that emotional connection.  Andersen points out how a less intelligent but more likable person can get ahead. This is true in web design as well. Similar to how people can make you smile by smiling at you, your website can make someone happy based on the emotions it triggers when they encounter the site.  Because emotion can be a main reason why people connect with something, emotions triggered by a certain design should be taken into account when it comes to creating a website. The business or person that is able to bring about emotion in a user and wipe off the “screen face” they have from spending too much time on the web is going to have a better chance of keeping that consumer’s attention and eventually getting a new transaction or follower.

Providing a High Quality and Well Functioning Platform 

Design Thinking

While one must connect with the consumer emotionally in order to get them to stay on the site,they must also deliver quality content in order to keep the user coming back. Emotion may precede rational thought, but that doesn't mean that rational thought won't eventually happen, and possibly be more influential than emotion, after logical thinking comes to town. Designing a clean, attractive and flashy website might get you a "first date" with the consumer, but if you can't offer more than physical attraction, you might not see them again. 

In order to determine the best web design possible, it is necessary to consider the practical and analytical aspects of the desired message as well as the more intuitive and emotional aspects.  This entails a process sometimes referred to as Design Thinking.  A site that the consumer can truly connect with emotionally will also offer useful content in a way that is easy to digest.

In Digital Advertising: Be Clear. Be Conspicuous.

The Federal Trade Commission issued the original Dot Com Disclosures in May 2000 in response to a rising discussion about how FTC rules and guidelines apply to online advertising.  These were developed as a guide to let advertisers know how to make effective disclosures in digital advertising. An updated version of the Dot Com Disclosures was released in March 2013 to better reflect the amount of advertising that is now being done on social media platforms, mobile devices and other “space-constrained screens”.

While one can spend hours reading and going through the examples, there are really three things advertisers need to keep in mind when trying to figure out how to apply these to their ads.

1. Deception is Unlawful No Matter What

The FTC originally developed consumer protection laws to protect consumers and prevent false communication. They wanted to ensure consumers have clear and accurate information about things they pay for and, as a result, maintain a high level of confidence in the marketplace. This has not changed with the evolution of the Internet and increase in new mediums available to reach consumers. 

In short, the same laws and principles that apply to traditional forms of advertising extend to digital advertising. While advertising may now be taking place through new mediums such as smartphones, tablets and social platforms, the rules are still the same. Advertisements must be clear and conspicuous and ads without disclosures could be considered deceptive and unfair. 

2. “Clear and Conspicuous” is in the Eye of the Consumer

The Dot Com Disclosures do not provide a formula for creating compliant ads and they can’t let you know if you will be liable for running a specific ad. According to the Dot Com Disclosures, all advertisements must me “clear and conspicuous” and that is determined based on how the ads perform with the consumers. If you think an ad is clear and customers complain that it is not . . . well, it isn’t clear enough.

The Dot Com Disclosures include guidelines as to where to place disclosures so that they are visible enough and what kinds of things need to be disclosed. They also give recommendations as to how to deal best deal with space crunches and changes in formatting. For example, they talk about using hyperlinks to link to disclosures and making the buying platforms and websites compatible with mobile devices so that disclosures won’t be missed. However, in most situations there is more than one way to properly format an ad. The best way is the one that most effectively communicates the information to the consumers.

3. Use Common Sense When Creating Ads

The great thing about ads and buying platforms is that they are often created by the same kinds of people who use them. By looking at the advertisement from a consumers point of view and asking a few simple questions, one can get a pretty good idea as to whether or not the ad could be misleading.

Medifast fined for making
unsupported Claims

Are the disclosures present and in proximity to the claim? 

If not, move them so that they are to ensure they won’t be missed by potential customers. If a customer has to scroll down to the bottom of the screen to find the disclosures, or if they misinterpret what they are guaranteed they could feel mislead.

Are all charges accounted for before the end of the purchase funnel?

This includes things such as taxes, extra fees, term lengths, recurring charges, shipping, etc. and it all needs to be presented in a visible manner and broken down clearly before the consumer clicks “I Do”.  If the customer gets billed for extra charges they are not aware of, it could result in fines for unclear advertising.

Are you able to disclose the necessary information?

If not, don’t run the Ad.

Also Note:

The Federal Trade Commission’s rules apply to advertising in the United States. When marketing to another country, know that they may have similar types of guidelines and you need to check their laws to know if your ad is compliant. If you are in another country marketing to the US, read these rules to make sure you are properly disclosing the necessary info and that your ad is compliant.

Mobile Marketing: To the Sky and Beyond

There is only one thing I remember about my January flight from SFO to JFK and that is that it was the first flight where I've gone completely paperless. Yep, similar to my internet bill or cell phone bill, I can now have an entire my airlines experience without printing a thing.

It appears in the past couple of years that several airlines have increased their use of mobile marketing. As well as checking in for flights on mobile devices more frequently, consumers are beginning to use their mobile devices for all aspects of their trip from finding flight to getting in their seat. Recognizing the increase in use of mobile devices among their highly transient customers, airlines are increasing their mobile marketing initiatives for general promotions and all aspects of communication with consumers.

For the Convenience Flyer

While printing a piece of paper seems like such a simple thing to do, it's always one more thing on the checklist that isn't as convenient as it seems.  In general, with the increased use of emailing documents, reading online or on tables and using mobil devices, rise of mobile options, people are printing less. The idea of having to log in to a website, hooking up the printer, restocking ink and print the boarding pass before jetting to the airport seems simple but also one more extra thing on the checklist that doesn't need to be there (and soon won't) with the technology trends of today. 

Airline apps are starting to simplify the boarding pass process by letting flyers get through security and board the plance with their smartphone.  The Fly Delta app is a perfect example. By allowing customers to send their boarding pass directly to their phone which can be scanned at the gate saving time and paper for the convenience oriented eco-friendly traveler. 

For the Social Flyer

Not only are social apps a great ways to interact with customers but they are also a way to increase the word of mouth about their services through their current socially savvy customers. This is no different for airlines.  While it's becoming the norm for the tech oriented flyers to check in for their flight via mobile devices, it's also becoming more and more common for the social butterfly's of the sky to check in again . . . on Facebook.  In 2011, Virgin America Airlines incorporated Foursquare and Facebook checkin options at their San Francisco terminal with their "T2 Takeover" campaign which gave incentive to those who participated.

This year, Virgin America Airlines took top prize for Innovative Campaign at the fifth annual Loyalty Innovation Awards for taking the idea of Social-Mobile-SkyHigh to the next level with it's multi-media #myVXexperience campaign. During this campaign they actually allowed passengers to share their Tweets and Instagram photos while inflight sharing and spreading in-flight experiences all over social platforms.  

For the Everyday Deal Seeker

Knowing that customers only spend a limited time traveling, relative to the amount of time they are on-the-go, airlines have also began to use mobile devices for general marketing campaigns.  This past year, Southwest airlines started a mobile campaign as a way to increase engagement with their highly mobile customers through sending emails on a weekly basis. Through their mobile click n' save campaign that allows mobile users to sign up for weekly emails that include special offers and discounts, they were able to touch their mobile customers more frequently. This campaign also allowed Southwest to grow their database and further segment those of it's customers who are active mobile users so that they can use them as targets for future mobile campaigns and promotions.

This campaign also served as way to increase the amount of Twitter followers and users of their iphone app which already allows passengers to make reservations, book car rentals, check in for their flights, check flight statuses and and look for more offers and deals.