Tarah's Digital Voice

As you might know, I spent two weeks in March down in Austin, TX, immersed in the chaos and glory of SXSW 2011. This was a truly intense, educational and inspiring experience, which allowed me to completely geek out with peers that both shared and challenged my existing views on digital, social, tech and marketing. I met many entrepreneurs & innovators, some of whom have become real friends and business partners. I tried out myriad new apps, behaviors and approaches to various parts of life and business, coming away with some valuable new tools and insights. My own entrepreneurial spirit was re-energized and I have transferred this experience into the work I am doing every day, here at Anthem Worldwide - Digital, bringing the new relationships, knowledge and clarity to clients and our own practice on a regular basis.

I look forward to hearing your thoughts on our recap, in the presentation below, which includes several videos shot on the iPad 2 by my colleague, Mark Silva, SVP Emerging Platforms. Some highlights of the presentation are listed below.

Let's continue this conversation - I'd love to hear what trends you think will prosper and what apps/technologies are getting you excited these days.

Hope to see you in Austin next year!

My friend and fellow digital nerd, Caroline Giegrich (Twitter, LinkedIn) recently published a thorough analysis of the Check-In landscape, including location, content and brands, on Mashable. Definitely check it out for a run-down of the major players, marketing and brand integration, and her thoughts on the psychology behind why millions of people have incorporated this activity into various parts of their daily routines.

Anyone who is connected to me on social media knows that I have been experimenting with check-in-based social networking since the beginning. For me, different platforms fulfill different, meaningful purposes in my life. The features listedbelow are in order of their importance to me.

Location:

• A record of where I'm going, eating, interacting with folks in the real world. As a foodie and a social person (offline too), I want to remember where I went when, and with whom. It helps me with subsequent blogs and reviews, and even looking at my behaviors when assessing time and money management.
• Social Planning & Tips: More and more, I find myself going to Foursquare first, before Yelp or other sources, when I'm looking for a restaurant or other nearby business. I have made meal choices and found hidden secrets, thanks to tips left by friends and the community at large, and have a long To Do List waiting for me if I'm ever bored. In addition, I have stepped up my efforts to be a good digitial citizen and leave my own tips as much as possible. If Facebook incorporates this functionality into Places, it would make that feature a lot more valuable.
• Post Updates to Other Social Networks: An important functionality for me, as I often want to tell my other social networks where I am and what I'm doing. The addition of photo posting to Foursquare is another reason for me to use that app, instead of others like Facebook Places or Pegshot.
• The Game: Not the most important features, to me, but I do still enjoy capturing a mayorship or a fun badge, especially the exclusive timely ones. With people that are clearly cheating the system, I don't really pay much attention to the points.

Content:

*Note: I've been testing GetGlue, Miso and Philo since mid-last year, so I will be posting a full review very soon. In short, GetGlue is one of my favorite social networks, of any kind, now, so it is my clear favorite. Miso has a great user interface and funcitonality, but is limited to TV and movies. Philo is restricted by being locked into cable provider, rewarding live viewing (I watch almost everything delayed) and low adoption numbers.

• Connect and converse with people that are passionate about the same content. Through GetGlue, I have connected with a wide range of people that are watching the same shows, thinking about the same topics, and otherwise engaged in the same content as I am. What is a social network for, other than to connect with people, both those you already know and new ones, about things that matter to you?
• Post Updates to Other Social Networks: More than with location, I often want to share my content experiences with my connections on other social networks. I also write a lot of reviews, so I'm enjoying posting these on platforms like GetGlue, where conversations are more fluid than on other sites containing reviews, such as Netflix or Flixster.
• Entertainment Planning: I love seeing what my connections are watching and thinking about, as it gives me the opportunity to discover new content that I might have overlooked or missed. Learning from others is the largest benefit of social media, in my opinion, which is why I try to listen even more than I post.
• The Game: I enjoy the gaming aspects more in the content-based social networks than in location, because I think that the platforms and their partners are integrating in creative, fun ways. For example, as a fan of Boardwalk Empire, I enjoy earning various GetGlue stickers, using vernacular from the Prohibition time, such as "Zozzled", for my check-ins to the show. I also think that the Guru feature on GetGlue is fabulous, as it gives the most passionate member of the community the opportunity to manage the network's webpage about that content and position him/herself as an authority on the topic. it's good to have someone to go to if you want to discuss and/or ask questions about content, which this feature streamlines.

Brands:

• Express Affinity: I am a big proponent of expressing positive experiences with brands, and not only because I work in digital brand advertising and social marketing. Whenever anyone, brand or human, contributes something beneficial to my life, I try to recognize it publicly, so I don't have any hesitation to give a warm shout-out to the companies that are helping me live the life I want.
• Discounts & Deals: To Caroline's point, the biggest incentive to check-in to a brand is when there is a clear financial benefit for doing so. Outside of checking-in, however, I use a variety of social and mobile tools to garner information and for shopping research, such as RedLaser and Stickybits. 

Check out the article and let me know how you check-in in the comments.

The Art of the Checkin: From Location to Content to Brand

About 2 days ago Caroline Giegerich
Follow her on Twitter for more social media and emerging tech insights.

Within the spectrum of social media, the act of sharing essentially amounts to a desire to personally define ourselves to others. In the age of the social network, there are an almost infinite number of options for creating that personal definition on the web. Checking in is just one of the newer ones.

There is an art to checking in and a way to make it part of your online identity. Below, we walk through some of the obstacles and best practices for doing it right. Read on and let us know what tips worked for you in the comments below.

via mashable.com

The great post, below, from GigaOM is spot on. As branded and social gaming have grown exponentially over the last few years (solid infographic here), the creation of custom branded games and integration into popular social games, as a tactic, have become one of the new shiny objects for companies looking to spice up their marketing. However, a brand is doomed to fail if they just slap some game mechanics onto their latest product offering or marketing campaign without considering why their audience would want to "play" with them in that context.As with all content and brand experiences, relevance is absolutely key.

People are flocking to games because they're fun, they offer social interactions, or the games otherwise benefit them in their lives. There are plenty of games out there, so there's absolutely no reason for people to choose a branded game unless it offers a uniquely engaging experience or incentive. 

It's not an easy challenge to merge a brand with a game, but it's possible. We, at Real Branding, have been exploring this arena heavily, recently, using the tactic only when we fully believe it's relevant. Our branded game endeavors include:

• Lipton Brisk: The Way of the Brisk
  • Solution: We unleashed “The Way of the Brisk,” which sought to tell the untold story of the story that was never told. Hmmm. Part Kung Fu movie, part mockumentary, part journey of flavorful discovery, the video series starred Chuck Liddell and his dream-destroying claymation counterpart, Tiny Chuck. Next, we launched a multi-level online fighting game that pulled consumers even further into “The Way of the Brisk” legend, while simultaneously highlighting the six flavors of Brisk. Finally, rich media banners, a Facebook page and featured placements on Funny or Die and Brisk’s own website helped rally MMA fans and drive them to all corners of the Brisk world.
  • Brand Microsite (click the bottom tab to play the game)
  • Case Study

• Michelob ULTRA: Challenge de ULTRA
  • Solution: Create an online brand experience that enabled people to “play along” with Lance Armstrong’s quest for an 8th Tour de France win – the “Challenge de ULTRA”. The Challenge was a Facebook application consisting of 20 daily challenges, one for each stage of the Tour de France. By designing a 20-point return engagement strategy, consumers came back each day to complete the current day’s challenge and get additional sweepstakes entries.
  • Case Study

• Lipton Brisk & Hess Express: Foursquare Integration
  • Solution: Tips & other organic content, point of sale deals and a sweepstakes drive Foursquare users to engage with the brands in PepsiCo's first location-based social gaming effort.
  • Check out my recent post about it

How do you think brands can be most effective in the gaming space? Leave your thoughts in the comments.

MINI launched a location-based social game in Stockholm yesterday, in which players use their mobile phones to track down a virtual MINI Countryman. When they get within 50 meters, they can take the car. Then, they have to evade everyone else playing the game; anyone who gets within 50 meters of the person with the MINI can snatch it away. The game runs from October 31 - November 7; whoever has the car at the end, wins a real MINI Countryman.

This seems like a very fun and innovative campaign - a great example of a brand creating a fun, relevant experience with an emerging platform, rather than just being there for some buzz. Not only have they made me pay attention to their car, but they've created another reason that it would be great to be in Stockholm right now, which endears them to the market that they're targeting.

Video of how it works via blogilvy.nl:

The campaign was developed by Jung von Matt Stockholm, an independent Swedish advertising agency that believes momentum is the force needed for attention warfare in this modern digital age. I love that phrase, attention warfare.

Hunt and catch a virtual MINI in Stockholm. Take it when you get closer than 50 metres. Now GETAWAY. Anyone within 50 metres can take it from you. Keep the virtual MINI on your phone for 1 week ...and win a real MINI Countryman.

You can download the App from the iTunes store, but you’ll have to travel to Stockholm if you want to play.