Results

Traditional market research is seeing another shake up with the inclusion of social networking into their mix of techniques. While we’re all accustomed to seeing advertising on Facebook (everything from “That’s what she said” t-shirts to floral gift baskets are being hawked on their ad board), a new strategy has been popping up in the marketing departments of major companies. Now, not only will you see ads for your favorite products, but you will be asked to discuss them in social networking forums.

The process of tweaking and improving products is being taken out of the hands of R & D departments and being thrust upon the consumer. In an increasingly user-generated world, everyday consumers are being asked for their feedback on everything from doggie treats to tax software, all through the lens of online networks. Not only is this a cost-effective way to conduct high-level focus groups, but people sitting in front of a computer are more likely to be brutally honest than those sitting in a stuffy conference room. Some companies are using the standard sites like MySpace and Facebook, while others are creating their own social networks. Some are made up of selected consumers or internal employees, while others are open to a larger market set.

A good example of this is Proctor & Gamble’s networking site Capessa, which is open to any internet user. It focuses on what are believed to be “women’s issues” like health, beauty, parenting, relationships, and gardening. As the website explains, “Capessa is a gathering place for real women to share their stories, offer their personal wisdom and practical advice, improve their lives and be inspired. It’s a place where experiences are the common thread, where advice comes from personal experiences. Capessa is you and women just like you.” Not terribly subtle, is it? What is subtle is Proctor & Gamble’s involvement, which is mentioned hardly anywhere on the site. Users can post blogs and videos, recommend links, and chat about their favorite shoes and makeup, while P & G collects their opinions and ideas for future product development.

Another example of this is model is Turbo Tax’s Inner Circle, which is a social network open to any taxpayer, whether or not they use the software. The site boasts a membership of about 5,000 users, and they can ask questions and post comments about taxes and the software packages offered by Turbo Tax. Their marketing department monitors the questions and concerns and even stokes the conversations to gather data. What differentiates this from Capessa is the open acknowledgment that user comments and ideas will be used for future product cycles. The website urges users to, “Tell us how we can improve our products and services. Contribute ideas for new features.”

In addition to individual companies who have created online forums for focus group research, there are a few pioneering technology firms developing social networks as a business service. Mzinga, which translates as “Beehive” from Swahili, allows companies to integrate social networking tools into their existing website. These add-ons can include blog-style forums, wikis, consumer surveys, polls, user profile pages, and social bookmarking. Another front-runner in this trend is Networked Insights, has the added feature of rating customer comments and activity based on the responses they receive. For example, an active commenter who does not spark debate or attract other comments would be less important for market research than a one-time commenter who set off a firestorm discussion. This allows marketing departments to screen ideas based on their validity and popularity.

Companies who engage in focus groups based in online networks are reaching out to users in a low-cost, high-yield way. Clever marketers could potentially get free advice from people who actually care about the outcome of the product. One word of caution, however: be prepared to actually use their suggestions. There’s nothing quite as puzzling to consumers as ignoring their opinions. Making a product based on user-generated data not only has the power to appeal on a massive scale, but it also has a built-in consumer and the buzz of word-of-mouth advertising. It’s the recipe for a perfect storm, and I suspect that more and more corporate websites will be asking me to create a personal profile in the near future.

Professional athletes have always been big business for advertisers, but recent trends show that the pros are taking the lead when it comes to low-budget, online ads. Instead of allowing big-budget companies like Nike and Gatorade to create their images, athletes are reaching out to fans with Web 2.0 technology. Many have Facebook and MySpace profiles, contribute videos to YouTube, and write regular blogs. This grassroots marketing effort shows that celebrity athletes are stepping up to the plate to showcase their personalities, and it has helped them establish public identities outside of traditional sponsorships.

Perhaps no athlete has done a better job of web self-promotion than Chris Bosh, the charismatic forward for the Toronto Raptors. This rising star in the NBA is card-carrying member of the Web 2.0 generation. In addition to being the fourth draft pick in 2003 and taking the Raptors to their first ever division title, Bosh has his own YouTube channel, the only athlete to claim this “honor”. Bosh got the channel following the success of his hit YouTube video, in which he asks fans to vote for his inclusion on the NBA All Star team. Dressed in a cowboy hat and a bolo tie (Bosh is a native Texan), he stumps using the classic language of a used car salesman: “You think it’s $20? No sir. You think it’s $10? No ma’am. Even five? Uh huh! It is free! That is right, it is free!” In case you’re wondering, “Bubba” is played by Bosh’s brother.

Bosh’s hilarious self-promotion was a success, and he will be playing in the All Star game on February 17th. Fans on YouTube have commented that his sense of humor won their votes. As one commentator wrote, “NBA should be THRILLED to have this guy! Young superstar coming into his prime. Tech savy for the internet.” The video has received nearly 500,000 views, all for a production cost of approximately $20. As Bosh told the Wall Street Journal, $15 of that was for the cowboy hat. On his official blog, Bosh expresses his interest in continuing his YouTube success: “I think I’ve found a way for me to show people how I like to have fun. I have a few ideas for new videos so I want everyone to be on the lookout.”

Another NBA star has also taken his branding into his own hands. Steve Nash, an All Star who plays guard with the Phoenix Suns, enlisted amateur filmmaker Lola Schnabel to put together a web ad for Nike. The unusual part of this is that Nike had no creative control or financial stake in the beautifully shot and expertly edited ad. It features Nash’s other athletic talents like soccer and skateboarding, and he felt it could better reflect his personality than a big budget masterpiece produced by Nike. While Nash isn’t quite as wired as Bosh, the two NBA and YouTube stars may represent the future of how professional athletes interact with fans and advertisers.

The biggest surprise in this new trend is that advertisers have not objected to these independent ads. While Nike has not specifically promoted Nash’s spot, a spokesperson told the Wall Street Journal, “If an athlete remains true to him or herself and respectful to others and the brand, then it is hard to envision a conflict.” Nike’s position acknowledges that athletes are essentially brands or commodities, and as long as their self-promotion efforts align with those of their corporate sponsors, the benefits are universal. As more and more tech-savvy sports stars emerge in the professional leagues, we can look forward to an increase in viral, web marketing efforts by athletes, and for athletes.

Major ad houses are struggling to keep up with their clients’ demands. Big budget companies want ads that reach beyond traditional television and print advertising and into spaces that have previously been commercial-free. Here are some of the growing markets for advertising that you’ll see in the coming year.

First, we’re all familiar with online advertising, but this 2008 is the first year when major companies are expected to spend more of their ad budgets on the internet than they do on the radio. By 2010, online commercials are expected to surpass the cost of magazine ads. We’ve previously covered the success of commercials on YouTube, but ad houses are beginning to set up portal websites for clients who want their content to be high-quality and properly branded. A good example of this can be seen on Budweiser’s website, which features a section called “Entertainment on Tap” where visitors can watch their best television commercials. They’ve even started a comedy “station” called Bud.TV, which allows viewers to access humor content with Budweiser branding all over the site.

Consumers will also see screens popping up in all sorts of places where they’ve never been before. CBS has launched an initiative to feature their content on small screens in grocery stores across the nation. According to a press release earlier this month, “CBS Outernet will be able to offer national advertisers the opportunity to target consumers via Ripple’s rapidly growing network of screens that feature community-specific and demographically-tailored lifestyle content from CBS, The New York Times, E! Entertainment and Yahoo!, and others.” Don’t be surprised to find yourself watching CSI as you wait in your doctor’s office; the network has also reached a deal to show their programming and advertising to captive audiences in health care facilities. You also might find something interesting to watch as you pump your gas and wash your car windows. Many gas stations are installing video screens which will give you the latest sports news from ESPN.

As the portals through which advertising is distributed begin to shift, ad firms are also devising new strategies to keep their content relevant. While focus groups and random polls used to be the gold standard, companies are now realizing that consumers don’t always give high-level feedback in these settings. Madison Avenue heavyweights are using observational techniques to reach out to consumers. A good example of this is in the research study done by Saatchi & Saatchi for J.C. Penny. The company sent staffers to the homes of more than 50 women, and rather than conducting surveys, they literally shadowed these consumers, helping with daily errands, chores and shopping. The data they gathered was used to make J.C. Penny’s popular “Every Day Matters” campaign, which produced this award-winning spot to better draw in customers.

As the Web 2.0 generation gains more and more purchasing power, these shifts in the advertising agency will become more drastic and more noticeable. Competitive ad agencies won’t stop at gas stations and supermarkets; we’ll be seeing well-made ads on our cell phones, in our cars, at the gym, and wherever else we spend our time. Hopefully others will follow the lead of Saatchi & Saatchi by producing quality content like this little gem, also for J.C. Penny. Then at least we’ll be entertained in addition to being brainwashed.

About a year ago, Google announced its acquisition of DoubleClick for $3.1 billion. Since that time, the deal had been held up by the Federal Trade Commission due to lobbying efforts by Microsoft and privacy advocates. In December the FTC ruled by a margin of 4 to 1 that Google could move forward with the deal. The fight will now shift focus to Europe, where EU agencies will examine whether the deal violates anti-trust laws.

DoubleClick is a digital advertising firm which specializes in distributing web advertisements like banners and videos. Their system has been compared to a stock exchange, with an auction model that allows web advertisers and publishers to bid on ad space regardless of their affiliation. Google’s current system also features an auction, but only partner websites can participate. The sale of Doubleclick ended a bidding war between Google and Microsoft, which has been trying to compete with Google in the online advertising business. Though $3.1 billion is a much higher price than Google was expected to pay, it could be they went forward with the acquisition to prevent Microsoft from achieving a better position in the internet ad industry. Indeed, as one analyst surmised in this New York Times article, “Keeping Microsoft away from DoubleClick is worth billions to Google.”

The move puts Google in a better position to begin relationship-based ad placement with web publishers and advertisers. Up to this point, Google’s vast ad exchange has been algorithm-based. The combined companies may be able to deliver both search and display ads in one place to DoubleClick’s powerful clients. While the increased competition is what bothered Microsoft, privacy lobbyists also opposed the buy-out because it gives Google high-level access to consumer data.

In an open letter to the FTC, consumer-advocacy group The Center for Digital Democracy wrote, “Indeed, the purpose of Google’s acquisition of DoubleClick is to control a major competitor in order to foreclose any serious competition in the interactive advertising market. There are powerful network effects, involving the collection, analysis, and targeted use of consumer and business behavioral data sets that will be compounded if the merger is approved, effectively eliminating whatever competition is currently viable in the marketplace.”

The worry is that Google will have unrestricted access to consumer behavioral data, and it will give them an unfair advantage over competitors. The Center for Digital Democracy believes the FTC ruling is flawed, saying, “U.S. consumers will have to live under the shadow of an even bigger digital giant, with a privacy time bomb ticking in the background.” Privacy concerns are echoed on popular technology blog Slashdot: “When I saw this headline, all I could think was “Google buys up another chunk of the internet.” Seriously — DoubleClick is everywhere. It’s almost like Google’s trying to become the web.”

The EU now plans to investigate the deal to examine whether it would unfairly squash competition. Google has already pledged to the EU to preserve some of the information-sharing restrictions currently in place at DoubleClick. The folks at Google seem optimistic the acquisition will go through. Chariman and CEO Eric Schmidt says, “The FTC’s strong support sends a clear message: this acquisition poses no risk to competition and will benefit consumers. We hope that the European Commission will soon reach the same conclusion, and we are confident that this deal will deliver more relevant ads for consumers, more choices for advertisers, and more opportunities for website publishers” (Google Press Center).

By now, even the most dedicated of Luddites will have noticed a small orange square sporting a radio wave-like pattern on some of their favorite websites. This button, which is often accompanied by the phrase “Subscribe now”, indicates an RSS capability. RSS, which can stand for Rich Site Summary or Really Simple Syndication, is a tool which allows individual users to access continual updates to website from an outside page or reader. An RSS reader gives you access to content on your favorite sites without the tedious step of actually visiting them.

Any user can initiate the subscription service by either entering a link into the RSS reader (also called an “aggregator”), or by clicking on the above-mentioned little icon. The reader then crawls your favorite websites to check for new content, and downloads any updates it discovers. The process works by pulling content from XML files (usually supported by blogging/content management tools) into a reader software. The idea was pioneered by Netscape, which wanted to give users the ability to personalize their homepages with links to external websites that they visited frequently. The icon, however, was the design of Mozilla Firefox and was quickly adopted as a universal symbol for RSS by other leaders in the field. RSS feeds go beyond simple bookmarking, though, by offering what amounts to headlines or teasers of new content.

RSS readers are sometimes described as a “personal newspaper”, which give users control of what type of content they want to see. For example, if you’re like me and you skip immediately to the Comics section of the newspaper, you could use an RSS application to limit your online reading to only Dilbert.com, though you’d probably be less-informed as a result. On the other hand, if your investment banking job requires you to closely follow the real estate market, you could set yourself up to receive continual updates on that topic from a variety of news and industry sites. Users are in complete control of the content they view, and they do not have to depend on remembering to check each site in order to stay informed about topics that are important to them.

RSS is one of the most user-friendly technologies to break into the mainstream as of late. People love saving time by having updates at their fingertips; they also love not having to give out their email addresses in order to receive updates like newsletters and press releases. Unlike email subscriptions, RSS feeds are also free from spam. It’s easy to unsubscribe and change your preferences at any time, without the hassle of sending an email or filling out a form.

In addition to pleasing the user, RSS is also making waves among content providers and businesses who advertise on the web. RSS subscriptions can serve as a targeted advertising forum, allowing web businesses to send out product updates, news, and sales/coupon information to users who actually want to hear from them. Ads become targeted and businesses don’t have the uncomfortable task of sending out spam, which is generally dumped directly into junk mail folders anyway. The downside is that RSS subscriptions are difficult to track, and it’s hard to know if subscriptions translate directly into site visitors. This issue is something that either RSS or analytics technology is likely to address.

The benefits of using some form of RSS subscriptions are many. In addition to enticing regular visitors to check back in for new content, your site will have the ability to speak directly to your most interested, valuable users. RSS technology is also starting to reach beyond its traditional stomping ground in the blogosphere to new users within the corporate world. One company which is attempting to fill this gap is KnowNow, which is marketing their product
Enterprise Syndication Solution as an alternative to search and email. Companies could apply this technology for distributing updates to intranet sites, policy manuals, project folders, or company blogs to their employees around the world. Imagine the possibilities of eliminating large email attachments by simply allowing employees to subscribe to feeds which notify them when a component has been uploaded to an ftp site or internal server. RSS could be a key ingredient in improving antiquated corporate communications. I’d be surprised if large companies don’t find the benefits of this technology as compelling as I do.

Web video continues to amaze and amuse users, and the options for watching high quality content continue to expand. Now advertisers are getting in on the game, but not in the conventional (i.e. Google-run) way. Time Warner’s popular website, Very Funny Ads, highlights the best and funniest commercials from around the world. Launched in 2006 to coincide with TBS’s annual World’s Funniest Commercials special, the site gives viewers access to highly entertaining and frequently updated content while showcasing the brightest talent of the advertising world and the companies who use humor to hawk their products.

Advertising firms are well aware of the power of humor. Funny commercials make us stop and actually watch the duration of the ad. They feel more like a short film, and they are often shared around the water cooler or dinner table. Advertisers have long harnessed the power of funny during the biggest ad spectacle of the year, the SuperBowl. Funny commercials aired during the big game often spawn entire campaigns and recurring characters who become the backbone of future ad efforts.

One of the most successful of these funny ads aired during the Superbowl last year and is now featured on Very Funny Ads. This spot shows Kevin Federline, the ex-husband of Britney Spears, daydreaming of his life as a rap star while actually serving up fries in a fast food restaurant. The commercial is for an insurance policy through Nationwide, but the product seems overshadowed by the hilarious situation. The ad was wildly popular, generating thousands of news stories and millions in free publicity for the company, though whether it sold insurance policies is another question entirely. The commercial has had a second life on Very Funny Ads and YouTube, which helps keep Nationwide Insurance’s name in people’s minds. We remember it only because it’s funny, and web allows us to enjoy it again and again.

Another benefit of sites like Very Funny Ads is allowing users from all around the globe to see commercials aired overseas. This ad for Hydro, a Norwegian energy company, features daring and dangerous youngsters rerouting a train for their entertainment. The video is shot documentary style, as though one of the children is filming the incident. The captioning on screen says, “There are many young engineers. We can’t wait till they grow up.” The humor of the ad is universal, and it is a prime example of good content enabling a product to reach a global market.

While many forms of humor are universal (i.e. unexpected endings like in the Federline ad, absurdity like in the train commercial), sometimes companies who try to be funny in their commercials end up issuing formal apologies, pulling ad campaigns, losing customers, and probably firing their advertising firms. A great example of this can be found in this GM spot that was also featured during the SuperBowl last year. The commercial features a lovable yellow robot who makes a mistake on the factory floor, loses his job, and becomes so despondent that he jumps off a bridge. Alert readers will already have spotted the problem with this “funny” ad. Perhaps unemployed, depressed, and suicidal auto workers (be they human or robot) aren’t universally funny. The ad was also criticized for featuring the robot in the first place, since many auto workers have lost their jobs to automation in recent years. GM was forced to change the ending of the commercial so that the bridge jump was only a dream, but they never issued a formal statement.

Very Funny Ads streams videos and supplies links to the commercials they feature, but they do not allow downloads or embedding. Their content is updated frequently, and users are encouraged to suggest ads they would like to see featured on the site, though they cannot directly upload á la YouTube. This forum, and others of its type, give commercials which use humor a second life on the web. Perhaps we’ll see more and more advertisers using humor to give their commercials a longer lifecycle through video sharing and hosting websites. It certainly maximizes those advertising budgets.

It’s a struggle for any company to reach the right market for their products and services. How do you know what type of person will want to use what you’re selling? How do you find the right tools to market your service specifically to those people? And how do you know if your efforts were fruitful in the end? One process that can be applied to answer these questions is called persona building. A persona, simply put, is an easy-to-navigate dossier that describes a typical user or group of users. It is a detailed biography of existing or imagined customers. Building these personas can help you identify, cater to, and gather feedback from the customers who will find your product or service the most useful.

Many companies approach user profiling with little more than unfounded assumptions about user’s needs and actions. They believe that they “know” how users think, or can predict their behavior. Avoid this kind of conjecture. A truly effective persona will be based on concrete data and actual user profiles; it should be much more than baseless suppositions about their needs. Do the research, compile the data, and use that information as the skeleton for a user profile. You can organize this information in much the same way you would format a resume or CV. The skeleton profile can include sections on your user’s objectives, educational and occupational backgrounds, favorite activities, skills and abilities, and even shortcomings. Adding personal details, photos, even sound and video files (a theoretical subject’s favorite song, for example), will flesh out the picture, making your persona as human as you and me.

One mistake that businesses often make it to create just one user profile for each product or service. This can control your marketing efforts and restrict freedom and success. There are many different “standard” users for every product. For a high-volume website, for example, it would be advisable to create many personas, each of which are representative of a portion of your user-base. This is especially true if your product or service will reach a diverse or even international audience.

Another common mistake that is made is “over-doing” the persona. The profile you create should match your the type of customers that you actually have - nothing more and nothing less. Incorrectly identifying them will lead to decisions that will impact your business and the type of applications your trying to build. Missing a group of people could mean that certain features are not available or may not be easy to use. Identifying someone who does not fit with your audience could result in the addition of features that no one will use, and it will scuttle the user experience.

Below are two brief examples of personas for two different users of Talkibie:

User A - Karen Fielding

Background info: Karen is a graphic designer with a local firm in the Phoenix, AZ area. She is good at her job, but she has not had any professional development classes in a while. She is largely self-taught, and she tries to keep up with trends and technology by reading blogs and online training documentation. She finds her coworkers are younger and younger, and she’s trying to stay ahead of the new talent in her field.

About Karen: She is in her mid-30s, and she’s very socially active with friends and coworkers. She likes to visit museums and galleries, and she considers her work to be an art-form. She uses the internet mainly for work to keep up with email, but she’s computer savvy and quick to pick up new skills.

What she values: Intelligence, efficiency, and a sense of humor.

Quote: “I like a website that’s informative and entertaining.”

User B - Dan DiMaggio

Background info: Dan is the CEO of a staffing firm which serves 3 states in the Northeast. His job entails managing a staff of 150, and they’re always suggesting ways to improve the company’s reputation through web-based technology. He’s great at the business-side of his job, but he’s lost when it comes to technology solutions.

About Dan: He’s in his 50s, and he’s been with the same company for 25 years. He loves managing his staff, and they like and respect him. However, he’s so clueless about computers that he has his assistant print out his emails each morning so that he can draft replies by hand. He wants to learn how to do these things, but it seems like no one has the patience to teach him.

What he values: Loyalty, hard work, customer satisfaction

Quote: “How can I approve new website functions when I can’t even figure out how to sign on to the internet?”

These two very different Talkibie readers have very different levels of experience and backgrounds, but after creating profiles of this type it’s easy to anticipate their needs. Dan would need a very simple interface which features instructive articles written so that anyone could understand the topic being presented. Karen, on the other hand, would want a slick-looking site where she can read about the latest trends and how to implement them in her regular workflow . Karen would be the type of user to give back to the online community by posting comments and questions on blogs, where as Dan would be more absorbent, looking for information rather than creating dialogue, and he’d probably want it in a printable format. A solid persona includes not just age, gender, and buying habits, but also less-tangible characteristics like experience-level, values, and attitudes.

The key to serving a diverse audience with any product is to actually get to know them and attempt to address their needs. Predicting this information can prove invaluable when it comes to designing an application or product tailored to your personas. If, for example, you know that a significant portion of your target audience is blind or disabled, you can maximize the accessibility of your application or service with careful design that allows your users to function at their peak. This would include strategies such as keeping content simple and organized so screen reading software can be effectual, including captioning options with multimedia portions of your site, allowing keyboard commands as an alternative to mouse-driven content, and enabling your user to control style sheets for maximum readability. If your target audience tends to be under 25, you can consider integrating social networking widgets for a customizable interface, or allowing each user to create a personalized profile for your site. A good user experience is the most obvious benefit of carefully crafting personas before beginning design. At the end of the day, the aim is to create a design for your customers that makes it feel as though it was built specifically for them, regardless of their various backgrounds. Having solid personas up front is key in reaching that goal.

But forget what the textbooks say about consumer profiles. When you create a persona, you should be creating an imaginary friend. Unlike when you were four, this imaginary friend should not be named Bongo or want to tip your milk cup over the kitty cat just to see what she’ll do. No, this imaginary friend should resemble your clients, your ideal clients. You should know this persona well enough to predict how he/she will use your services or products, and they should be an “easy sell” for your idea. Your persona’s motivations and abilities should become second nature to you. You’ll know before it happens that the milk cup is about to be overturned. And if you like, you still can name your persona Bongo.

We’ve all experienced it: someone sends a link our way, and it takes us to a popular commercial that has made its way onto YouTube. No doubt the company being spotlighted and the advertiser who produced the commercial are tickled pink by this phenomenon. After all, they usually have to pay TV networks to ensure their commercials reach millions of viewers. It must be a pleasant surprise when a popular website like YouTube accomplishes the same thing for free. This begs the question: why do some ads make the cut and others don’t? Let’s examine a few of the YouTube hits to see the common thread.

First, who could forget the hilarious ad showing a disastrous Wii accident. In demonstrating the realistic motions of the Wii baseball game, one guy says, “Now throw me a pitch just like we’re outside.” His buddy does exactly that, throwing the game controller at the expensive television, which falls onto and demolishes the even more expensive sound system. A narrator asks, “Wanna get away? Now you can with Southwest Airlines’ internet specials.” This ad breaks the cardinal rule of advertising, which holds that the product you’re selling should always be identifiable and obvious. However, by surprising the audience with the spectacular destruction of what we thought was the product, the advertisers are able to grab our attention and sell us cheap airline fares. The key with any ad is to get people to actually watch it, instead of doing something else while waiting for the program to return. This ad accomplishes just that in a very funny and engaging way. It also lampoons the incredibly popular Wii, which appeals both to adults who had to stand long lines to buy them for their kids, and to the generation of internet users who regularly post to YouTube. It’s no wonder this commercial is reaching new audiences on the video sharing site.

Another popular ad has not only become a hit on YouTube (over a million views), but also spawned various spoofs created by users. This Cingular ad (now AT&T) features a young girl arguing with her mother over the text messaging charges on their wireless bill. The girl speaks entirely in “text acronyms”, and the commercial cleverly provides subtitling for those of us who don’t understand the abbreviations. When asked who she is texting, she replied, “IDK, my BFF Jill?”, which has become a kind of mantra for texting addicts. Some YouTube spoofs have replaced the original subtitles with similar but naughtier “translations”, while others have entirely recreated the commercial with their own actors and scripts. The ad is meant to promote an unlimited text messaging service, but like many incredibly popular commercials the product is overshadowed by the humor of the ad. This example also appeals to a cross-generational group: those who have to pay the wireless bill, and those who spend a lot of time on YouTube.

Apple has also been a YouTube success in its “Mac vs. PC” ads. Some users have created medleys featuring all these ads, but a recent favorite has been the ad that criticizes Microsoft Vista. The “PC” character is accompanied by a security agent, complete with dark suit and ear piece. The security agent filters all of PC’s actions, saying, “Mac is asking a question - cancel or allow?” PC explains that Vista’s security procedures interrupt users to approve many functions that are invisible on a Mac. The ad ends with the security agent telling PC, “You are coming to a sad realization - cancel or allow?” This ad is perfectly suited to appeal to the average YouTube user, who is likely to keep up with technology trends and product releases. These Mac vs. PC commercials have also been spoofed, including a version with South Park characters and an hysterical (but nerdy) rap video.

These commercials have built success beyond the major TV networks by crafting a message that appeals specifically to a demographic that contributes to YouTube. The ads are funny, clever, and high-quality, with products or services that are directed at the Web 2.0 user (but paid for by their parents). These commercials all span the generation gap, and they are funny both to the network television audience and the YouTube audience. Ads that have a second life on video sharing sites are often those that poke fun at our current technology culture, be it Wii accidents, talking in texting language, or the frustrations of an OS upgrade. We like to laugh at these universal experiences, and sites like YouTube prolongs the life of clever ads. The advertisers reach new and eager viewers, without paying for airtime, and they get the last laugh.

Earlier this year the media research giant Nielsen began tracking and analyzing the audiences of TV commercials, not just programs. This is a huge change in the current modus operandi of television advertising. Ad prices were previously based on the ratings of shows, using those ratings as a kind of currency to gauge how advertising should be bought and sold. If the rating of commercials proves successful, not only would the “currency” change to reflect ad ratings, but it would also change how buyers and sellers chose to place ads.

Nielsen measures ratings using the following system:

• Homes are chosen to reflect the demographics of various populations, and Nielsen technicians install monitoring equipment in these homes.
• The monitors track when the television is on and to what programs/stations it is tuned.
• The information from the monitors is transmitted back to Nielsen, and they compile the statistics that feed the advertising industry.

This system works well for programs, but will it be sufficient to measure viewership of commercials? For example, it can generally be assumed that when a TV program is on, it is being watched. The same cannot necessarily be assumed for commercials. If many viewers are like me, they use the commercial break for just that: a break. And Nielsen’s new service will not even measure individual commercials, just an average rating during a complete program. It will, however, take into account shows and commercials that are watched later through a recording service like Tivo or DVR. Clearly, though, it doesn’t take a statistician to see the gaping holes in this measurement system.

But if we forget about the problems with the data that’s being gathered, it is a very compelling initiative with the potential to revolutionize television advertising. If networks and advertisers can agree on a standard rating system, commercial ratings could replace program ratings as the currency used to buy and sell ads. This could be a risky move, especially for networks; since ad ratings are demonstrably lower than program ratings, buyers could negotiate down the prices of advertising on television. However, advertising could become more targeted, with influential businesses targeting particular “spots” within a commercial break, either the first ad or the last ad, which generally have higher viewership. This practice is currently in place only for major TV events like the Super Bowl.

Nielsen may find some stiff competition in the media measurement market from Google, which is rumored to have plans to acquire the old UHF network. Experts warn that simple measurement of TV commercials does not necessarily mean better quality in advertising. But Google may be planning to change the game entirely, by “running a trial to deliver better ads to viewers and help advertisers, operators, and programmers more efficiently buy, schedule, deliver, and measure ads on television.” (Google Press Center). As reported in Talkibie’s earlier article about the Google phone, the internet search giant is working to apply features like those of Google Analytics to television programming and advertising. Analytics uses a series of metrics to track a website’s visitors, providing data on where a visitor is from, how long they stay on your site, where they click, etc. Frankly, the technology makes Nielsen’s black box look about as futuristic as a rotary phone. If Google’s measurement expertise could be applied to improving, and not only measuring, television advertising, Nielsen could face an unexpected rival in media measurement.

Competition in the online marketplace is stiff: your customers have shrinking attention spans, demand instant gratification, and your competitors are just a click away. Websites must find ever more unique ways to attract and retain visitors. The newest trend in attention-grabbing technology is to use avatars or digital personalities to engage your site’s visitors in face-to-face interaction. Retailers and service companies are using these “3-D” hosts to make the online shopping and commerce experience more familiar and engaging. Rovion’s model InPerson, Oddcast’s SitePal, and Innovate Ads’ Video Spokesperson are great applications that allow you to incorporate an interactive personality on your webpage.

SitePal uses an avatar model, providing personalized spokespeople to their clients. Animated characters are customized in various configurations, and SitePal allows you to choose skin, hair, and eye color, clothing options, voices, and backdrops for their animated characters (their demo lounge even has a Benjamin Franklin model). Clients can choose to submit a digital photo to SitePal from which a 3-D character can be generated. Personalities can be programmed to speak in 14 different languages, and clients can record their own audio content for upload or hire a voice actor. Many companies, including Swedish furniture giant IKEA, are using these avatars as an interactive“FAQ” bank. IKEA’s “Ask Anna” avatar answers typed questions with a smile, responding to insults saying, “You are entitled to your own opinion, of course. Now, please ask me something about IKEA.” And she even gives a little smirk.

InPerson works on a similar principle, but this application uses video of real people to grab the attention of site visitors. These video clips can walk across the screen, point out site features, and deliver audio messages about promotions or special events. 1-800-FLOWERS utilized InPerson to make customers aware of a special offer; spokesmodel “Megan” encourages visitors to use her name as a promotional discount code at checkout. Site owners can choose from a bank of spokespeople or use their own actors or employees as characters. These real-life streaming videos can arrest the attention of site visitors and add interest to an otherwise average-looking page.

Innovate Ads offers three different products to incorporate video into your site. They can create a video spokesperson, similar to InPerson, but they have the added services of online video ads and “video snacks,” short pieces to grab attention and provide information on each page throughout the site.

But how do users respond to face-to-face interaction on the web? Rovion’s metrics indicate engagement rates of 30 to 70 percent, meaning visitors either watched more than half of the video message or clicked on the character. Sounds like mixed results. Many web surfers are simply annoyed by intrusive video or audio applications, especially when they come in the form of pop-up advertising. However, if you use a digital character that is well-integrated, easy to engage or disable, and informative, they can be a very effective way to grab a visitor’s attention. Digital personalities can lead to higher response rates, name recognition, visitor retention, and, the ultimate goal, increased revenues. We suggest designing a character that represents your target persona and reflects your branding: think about the tone, appearance, and interactive opportunities of any personality you display on your sites. If you are thoughtful and calculated, your visitors will feel like they’re interacting with one of their own, and they will recognize themselves as a part of your company’s culture. Best of all, you have a chance to show your sense of good old-fashioned customer service by greeting even your online customers with a smiling face.