Category: Uncategorized

Poll: Is Facebook hurting us?

Posted on by Lab Team

An Oxford neuroscientist recently suggested that repeated exposure to Facebook might have detrimental effects on our brain. Quoted in online UK publication Daily Mail, Susan Greenfield says, “My fear is that these technologies are infantilising the brain into the state of small children who are attracted by buzzing noises and bright lights, who have a small attention span and who live for the moment.”

Do you agree? Is Facebook permanently rewiring our brains, and hurting our ability to communicate and focus? Take our poll!

Come on up: The rise of multicultural marketing

Posted on by Lab Team

multicultural_lump_of_peopleWhen Barack Obama took the oath of office last January, he redefined America – not just this country and its brand, but its constituency as well.  In many ways he is living proof of a phenomenon that demographer’s have been predicting for quite some time:  descendents of the early settlers will be a minority by 2050 (then, a correction last year – 2042), and traditional minorities, will be the majority.

What does that mean to marketers, to brands, to this country, to the long-held American ethos?

I believe that it means that maybe we should put technology aside for a moment, and focus on the American consumer for a bit. We should identify how he/she has changed over the last four decades (and will continue to change), what he/she looks like (not just demographically, but psychographically), how he/she behaves, and alas – how connected  he/she is to a network? Regarding the all important network, we should also identify the network’s composition, how he/she interacts with said network (off-line, on-line, linguistically, culturally), and how we marketers can connect with the network via the consumer.

Continue reading “Come on up: The rise of multicultural marketing”

Can privacy exist in social media?

Posted on by Lab Team

Privacy (rpongsaj via Flickr)The Facebook privacy flap of the last week, shows that today’s social media user wants to be able to share and stay connected, but on their terms.

We’ve embraced social media platforms such as MySpace, Facebook and Twitter that were designed to help us share our thoughts, our lives and experiences.  We’ve willingly handed out our personal information and content streamed our lives. But we want to own the personalities that we’ve voluntarily shared in the digital realm.

Information posted on the social Web is meant to be shared, so perhaps Facebook believed that ownership was not a concern to its users. Well, they were very wrong!  Continue reading “Can privacy exist in social media?”

Six hot media trends in 2009

Posted on by Lab Team

IPG Emerging Media Lab's 2009 Digital TrendsEach year the IPG Emerging Media Lab issues its picks for the top trends in emerging media. Particularly for marketers, its an easy, painless way to get a finger on the pulse of a constantly changing landscape.

How we come to these trends is a journey in and of itself. There are endless brainstorms, weeks of handwringing, then drafts and more drafts. Ultimately, what emerges is a brain trust of sorts–one that comes out of spending a lot of time with new media, and an eye to the future…but not too-distant future, or we couldn’t call them 2009 trends.

You can download a copy of the IPG Emerging Media Lab’s 2009 Digital Trends, or check out this abridged rundown…cause this is where we’re placing our bets and putting our energy this year:

Continue reading “Six hot media trends in 2009”

Kindle illuminates Amazon

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Kindle (Amazon.com)When the Kindle first came out, there were many of us that wondered if yet another device would capture the public’s eye in a year or so full of “gadgets.”  In our 2009 Digital Trends, we’ve talked about the the fact that many consumers are clamoring for simplicity and the devices that are really winning, have one basic feature to highlight. Certainly the iPhone and the host of applications it’s opened the door for challenge that theory, but you could argue that the iPhone’s  most popular feature and function is as a “application house.”

More obvious is  the success of the Flip camera and surprise, surprise, the Amazon Kindle. Continue reading “Kindle illuminates Amazon”

Seven billion right reasons

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(iStock)This week Intel announced that it is investing $7 billion dollars to upgrade its existing facilities in New Mexico, Oregon and Arizona.

Intel’s President and CEO Paul Otellini said, “Intel will use the money to speed up deployment of Intel’s 32-nanometer manufacturing technology used to build faster, smaller, more energy efficient computer chips.”

Is this guy crazy? Intel spending all that money for chips?  We are smack in the middle of a deepening recession with aggregate consumption tumbling and this guy is shelling out $7 billion large ones?  Continue reading “Seven billion right reasons”

25 things – banal drivel or human revolution?

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25 reasons we like to talk about ourselves (iStock)Facebook has gone viral. I cannot go anywhere without hearing about the 25 Things About Me list that has been circulating on the site for no one knows exactly how long.

I’ve gotten ping after ping this week, as my contacts respond to various points on their 25 Things list. Last night I overheard while at RiteAid (a sure indicator a phenomenon has hit critical mass), a girl telling her almost boyfriend, “I tagged you in my 25 things list on Facebook, did you see?”

Not surprisingly, blogs are buzzing over the phenomenon. Who created it, who first sent it, and why has it caught on with users to become a mass movement, inspiring equal amounts of hatred and vitriol. Full disclosure, I was tagged three times before I finally gave in and wrote the 25 things, but I could not abide and tag 25 people while releasing my intimate details publicly, so I tagged five people and sent it via email–I thought it a good compromise. Continue reading “25 things – banal drivel or human revolution?”

Kutcher a ‘katalyst’ for innovation

Posted on by Lab Team

kutcher_flickrAsthon Kutcher is up to it again with a new web series airing on Facebook’s FunSpace application. The app comes complete with an “On Demand” interface with access to Funspace’s other channels (Kutcher’s Katalyst HQ series currently owns the main stage) and  the ability to forward to all your facebook friends and of course, commenting.

Unique to Katalyst Media’s play here is the first Facebook video series. Like Seth MacFarlane, the innovation is present in the sponsorship or brand integration with the video content and delivery method.  The mandate from their first sponsor, Cheetos, was to  target 18-35 year olds just out of college or getting into the real world; and to develop content that would entertain rather than interrupt.   Continue reading “Kutcher a ‘katalyst’ for innovation”

Research critical in 2009

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researchAcross the economic landscape, the general trend is that of contraction.  On both the supply and demand side of the equation, people and businesses are cutting back.  Behaviors are changing and in such a fluid environment, knowledge and insight are more important than ever.  For marketers, acting on a program of insight is going to help them know what is going on with their customers and more importantly where they are heading.  Knowing this before the economy regains its footing will put agencies and their brands ahead of the curve.

Market research can help brands better determine their product, their competitive position and target market.  This research also dictates the strategy for their marketing campaign.  On StrategicMarketSegmentation.com Linda Morton writes, ”From initially researching your product and market, to assuring that your marketing campaigns are successful, marketing research affects your bottom line and business success.” Continue reading “Research critical in 2009”