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Getting Savvy With Appsavvy: Application AdvertisingLast time, we talked with Mike Kerns of Citizen Sports Network about application sponsorships on social networks. This time and next, we talk with the other top player in this space: Chris Cunningham, founder and CEO of appssavy, the largest ad network of social applications. Harry Gold: Can you tell me about you and your company? Chris Cunningham: I've got a passion for this space. I was exposed to the social media application space by spearheading freewebs's widget initiative a couple of years ago. At that time, I got my first taste of the opportunity here for brands to play an important role in the social media ecosystem. At freewebs, I had the opportunity to launch the highly successful WidgetCon conference in 2007 and haven't looked back since. Prior to the application space, I was involved with several companies in the digital music space, including Digital Music Network and Music Vision. Now I am CEO of appssavvy. We are a direct sales team representing many of the leading applications in the social media space. Currently appssavvy sells integration and media around 15 of the top 25 biggest applications on multiple platforms and reaches over 50 million users over another 500 applications. Appssavvy sells contextually relevant advertising on social and utility applications and drives premium CPMs [define]. HG: What are those 15 apps and their stats? CC: Appsavvy represents 15 of the top 25 application companies, including leaders such as Playfish, SGN [Social Gaming Network], Flixster, Bantr, and 42 Friends. Each company has leading applications, such as Bowling Buddies, Circle of Friends, and Entourage. Through these partners, appssavvy has access to a user base of more than 6 million daily and 50 million monthly users. Advertisers have the opportunity to integrate their branding messages through exciting mediums, such as the bowling lanes on Bowling Buddies, where the brand can spend an enormous amount of time with a user. Or campaigns can leverage the millions of users across the SGN Gaming Bar to drive response and engagement. Read more... Labels: Advertising, Application Development, ClickZ Yahoo! Fenway TourThanks to our Yahoo partners, Mike and I were treated to a VIP tour of Fenway and a great Red Sox game last Wednesday Sept 24th. We were right there at the actual park (or pahk, I must say) grounds during batting practice/ pre-game, just a few feet away from the players! We had a great time and I thought I would share some pics: It is very hard to act cool and collected once you actually step foot onto the spongy grass...  Big Papi practicing one of his legendary hits:  Cleveland Indians dancing, er I mean warming-up:  View from the Green Monster (Monstah) during the Fenway tour:  Thank you James and Jessica!  David Ortiz and Dustin Pedroia  Two very happy Overdrivers:  Red Sox won, 5-4. Labels: Campus Life Texting Surpasses Mobile Calls...Big Marketing Opportunity"Nielsen Mobile found that during the second quarter of this year, domestic wireless subscribers sent or received an average of 357 text messages each month, compared with an average of 204 phone calls placed or received. It was the second consecutive quarter in which mobile texting significantly eclipsed the number of phone calls. " With 75 billion text messages being sent this past june in the U.S., this presents a huge marketing opportunity for businesses. Not only can it increase efficency of how messages are being sent/received (i.e. reminder of a service appointment, school cancellations to parents, etc.), it's also a powerful way to reach the younger demographic from a marketing perspective. The break down shows that the largest group is teens 13-17 who sent an average of 1,742 text messages per month while only making 231 mobile calls within the same timeframe. The next group of users is 18-24 that logged a text-to-call ratio of 790 to 265. Kudos to Obama for engaging the younger voter population and announcing his Vice President candidate pick via text message. But like any form of mass marketing, SMS marketing requires very strategic planning so that end users are receiving messages that actually mean something to them, otherwise, they will just deem it as spam which could leave a negative brand experience in the consumer's mind. And the next thing you know, they've posted warnings to their blogs, discussed it with their friends, removed you from their interest category on MySpace...you see where I'm going with this. So while permission to message the user is important, the actual message itself should be of great value to the target audience. While the number of texts continue to climb above mobile calls, it'll be interesting to track the impact on the SMS marketing industry. Labels: SMS Marketing A New Way to Get SkinnedThere has a lot of buzz around Microsoft's Bill Gates-Jerry Seinfeld ads (and by buzz, I mean both positive and negative). Personally, I was buzzing on the negative side, because I didn't think that Jerry Seinfeld was the best character for a PC. But I do like (very much actually) the new I'm a PC ads. And no, it's not just because of Eva Longoria, Vera Wang, Pharrell Williams, or the other celebrities in there - although I am pretty impressed with the mix of everyday people and well-known personalities proclaiming their allegiance to the PC. No surprise, because I'm a PC myself. However what really caught my attention was the innovative use of online media and viral marketing tactics of the new I am PC ad campaign. Yesterday there was a homepage take-over of the MSN homepage - but it wasn't just any ordinary take-over with a monopoly of all ad placements. It showed a new way to get skinned... The skin of the homepage was literally tiny little thumbnails of the "I'm a PC" video testimonials, and when the user rolls over one and clicks it to play, that particular video pops up into the very prominent box ad placement on the right. See screen grab below:   But aside from encouraging users to interact with the skin/videos, there's also another engaging component to this ad campaign: a landing page/mini-site that lets the user upload his or her own picture or video that lets them state what kind of PC they are and get a chance to see themselves in online ads - or in Times Square (!). See screen grab below: For attention-loving PC devotees (you know who you are), this is fun and memorable. (Yes, I submitted my own photo and caption.) Sure enough, something like this caught the attention of not just the "traditional" media (aka news and reporting) but also the online viral community (aka bloggers and members of bookmarking sites). Not only are the ads being forwarded around through YouTube, but the users are actually participating in the whole user-submission process. This is a great example of mashing together online media opportunities with social media distribution, and creating a solid branding campaign.Of course there are still criticisms about the ads, but I think the whole ad campaign in general is fresh and interesting, and gives brand marketers new ideas. Imagine what an interactive skin can do for user engagement, and what a well-designed and content-rich landing page can do for brand affinity. Think about it, and see you at Times Square! To show the world what you think a PC really looks like, click here. Labels: Industry, Online Media, POV Kellogg says ROI on digital trounces TV by a factor of 2 In the September 8th edition of AdAge, Emily Bryson York quotes Kellogg's CMO Mark Baynes as saying that the company's online ROI for the Special K brand has surpassed that of broadcast TV in the past 18 months "by a factor of well over two." Wow! Documented evidence of the online world beating out the broadcast behemoth by a factor of two? The article went on to quote Mr. Baynes as saying that the "biggest opportunity over time is driven by what the digital environments afford, and we are working to embrace this aggressively." And Kellogg, a company who spends about $300 million per year on promotional marketing, is serious about cutting costs to make their marketing more efficient. Some of their strategies are very clear-cut - they plan to shoot fewer commericals because they are able to save about $1 million for every three TV spots that they don't shoot. Others are less black and white, but no less important. Particularly interesting was their goal of "reassessing how customers look for added value at point of purchase." They've taken some interesting steps toward this goal when you look at their integration of a number of online elements for the "Special K Challenge". Central to the online campaign is the Special K Challenge website (http://www.specialk.com). This is the hub of the online presence for the brand where you can create a customized plan for your diet goals or get tips from online trainers. The full Special K product line also is well-represented here: cereals, protein meal bars, snack bars, even waffles and protein water mixes. But the site doesn't stop there - through links on the site Kellogg makes it easy to buy their products directly from an Amazon store. Another link takes you to the Special K group on Yahoo that Kellogg began in 2006. After joining the group you can read or contribute to a discussion thread, get diet recipes, or invite a friend to join the group. So, instead of a 30 second TV spot that tries to cut through the clutter and get the consumer to at least remember the name of the product the next time they visit the grocery store, Kellogg has created an interlinked online brand presence that offers full product line information, individualized support, and instant purchase options to a consumer who now spends more time in front of their computer screen than they do in front of their TV set. Which approach do you think is going to prevail? Labels: Online Media Overdrive Interactive Receives 2008 WebAward for LoJack WebsiteFounded by the Web Marketing Association (WMA) in 1997, the WebAwards name the best website in 96 industry categories. Over 2,400 website nominations come from interactive agencies and website marketing departments in more than 45 countries. Websites are judged on design, innovation, copywriting, interactivity, content, navigation and use of technology. “We are delighted to be recognized with the prestigious WebAward. To be recognized by a jury of your peers is definitely validating and an acknowledgement of the great work that Overdrive is doing on behalf of our clients.” commented Ty Velde, Director of Client Services. A corporate site, http://www.lojack.com/, is focused on vehicle recovery solutions. LoJack products are used in conjunction with law enforcement agencies and are available in over 20 countries. The site Overdrive built presents LoJacks’s full suite of products designed to maximize meaningful brand interactions and ultimately, drive consumers to dealership participation. For more information on Overdrive’s website development services, click here. About Overdrive Interactive Overdrive Interactive is a full-service online marketing agency based in Boston that helps clients grow their business with highly creative and measurable online media, social media and search engine marketing campaigns and services. The agency specializes in online brand building, lead generation and customer acquisition for top companies seeking a high level of accountability from their marketing and advertising investments. For more information, please visit http://www.overdriveinteractive.com/. Labels: Awards, Events, Overdrive News Social Networking With Citizens Sports In "Seven Ways to Advertise on Facebook," I broke down advertising opportunities on the social network. I actually got a lot of flack from a few readers for omitting application sponsorships. I had left them out because one doesn't actually buy application sponsorships directly from Facebook. Among those weighing in were two of the larger players in the Facebook application advertising space: Citizen Sports Network and Appssavvy. So I decided to interview their CEOs to learn more about application advertising on social networks. This week features my interview with Mike Kerns, CEO of Citizens Sports Network. The company has developed applications for social networks, including one initiative that makes it possible for sports fans to participate in fantasy football games with friends. Harry Gold: Can you tell me about you and your company? Mike Kerns: I began my career with the leading angel investment level firm in Silicon Valley during the late '90s, early 2000s. I was one of two associates with Ron Conway's Angel Investors. We were early in companies such as Google, Ask, PayPal, and Napster. We did over 200 investments in tech, broadly distributed across different areas of focus. I then went on to get a foot in the door in the sports industry as the chief of staff at Steinberg & Moorad sports agency. We were the leading football and baseball representatives in the country. My eyes opened to the lack of innovation in the digital sports media business in 2003 [or] 2004. So I set out to develop a new way to interact with commoditized sports information. Our first product/effort was Protrade.com, a virtual sports stock market, which is a next-generation fantasy sports game and community. It grew to what is most likely the largest standalone (not owned by major media conglomerate) fantasy product. However, it appeals to a very passionate niche audience, so when Facebook and other platforms started opening up a year ago, we decided to shift the business direction to become the leading social sports media provider...hence the rebrand to Citizen Sports Network. We are building a diversified set of sports experiences within social networks that are based on fostering social interactions around sports information and games. Read more... Labels: ClickZ, Social Media Let's Give Them Something to Talk AboutLast Thursday, Microsoft launched its first ad installment of its $300 million campaign to counteract negative publicity around Window’s Vista. The ad features Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Gates in a shopping mall as Seinfeld helps Gates try on shoes. To read the WSJ article and watch the Microsoft commercial click here Labels: Advertising, Industry, Strategy Harry Gold, Overdrive CEO, to Speak at New Marketing Boot CampOther featured speakers include: Paul Gillin, Paul Gillin Communications Chris Brogan, CrossTech Media Harry Gold, Overdrive Interactive C.C. Chapman, The Advance Guard Aaron Strout, Mzinga Laura Fitton, Pistachio Consulting Cristina Addesa, iRobot More industry experts to follow... For more detailed information on the event, use this link: http://www.gonmbootcamp.com/. Labels: Events, Overdrive News, Social Media Marketing Brand Marketer's Wish List for Agencies of the FutureAn online digital marketing and interactive advertising survey by Sapient reveals brand marketers' wish list for their advertising and marketing agencies. At the top of the list is greater knowledge of the digital space or expertise in interactive campaigns. Others that caught my attention are: more use of "pull interactions" (such as social media and online communities), agency executives who use the technology they are recommending, Web 2.0 and social media savvy, and ability to measure success. As an online marketer, I completely agree with this list. And working for Overdrive, most of these things are like second nature already when we deal with online media campaigns. For instance, we strongly believe in using the so-called pull interactions to develop engaging and relevant social campaigns (our mantra might as well be social media is about socializing). And we all make it a point to be fully immersed in the technologies we recommend to our clients. And our reports measure not just success, but also comparisons to past performance and future expectations. So we're definitely on the right track. That wish list also got me thinking - what if agencies came out with our own wish list for brand marketers of the future? Most of the items would probably mirror or be parallel because let's face it, we're all shooting for the same stars anyway. What do you think - do you have your own agency or marketers wish list? To see the full Top 10 Wish List, click here. Labels: Industry, POV, Social Media Marketing, web 2.0 Google Chrome and its Implications for Online MarketingYesterday, Google announced their new web browser, Google Chrome, in a blog post. Chrome is an open source web browser designed to address many of the flaws with other browsers on the market today; notably, FireFox and Internet Explorer. Google has outlined the reasoning behind their development of Chrome and presented many of its features in a short comic book. Primarily, Chrome has been designed from the ground up with a more streamlined, efficient, and security conscious architecture designed to meet the needs of modern internet users and to present modern Web 2.0 sites as efficiently as possible. As a result, Chrome has a minimalist design that presents only the features that Google thinks users want, is intuitive and easy to use, and loads many pages faster than other browsers do - especially pages that rely heavily on JavaScript, like many Web 2.0 applications. The current release of Google Chrome is a beta, and still has bugs. It is currently only available for Windows XP and Vista. However, it is certainly making a big splash in the tech industry, and many bloggers and news sites are predicting a return to the "Browser Wars" of the 90's (before Internet Explorer became dominant). Whether Chrome will gain significant market share in the near future is up for debate. As marketers, an important issue is the impact Google Chrome will have on online advertising. For now, it appears that the answer is very little. While Chrome has made significant advances in user interface and the fundamental back-end design and structure of web browsers, the ultimate user experience is fairly similar to other browsers. Chrome is reported to render pages the same way that Safari does, so preliminarily, it does not appear that web sites will have to change site design to meet the specific needs of a new browser. From a user experience and interaction point of view, Chrome is likely to have a negligible impact. One of Chrome's features is increased security to help prevent malware and phishing attacks. Additionally, Chrome offers an "Incognito mode" that wipes cookies and search history when tabs opened in this mode are closed. These features may impact long-term cookie based tracking for actions resulting in later sessions from a user's initial interaction with a banner or other advertisement. However, similar features have existed in FireFox and Internet Explorer for some time, and Action undercounts as a result of browser or other security settings is an acknowledged issue with tracking the results of online advertising. Significant impacts are not expected to result from Google's new features, as the heightened security modes that may interfere with most tracking solutions are not enabled by default. Although there has been speculation about Google using data collected by Chrome to adjust their search results and their ads, this does not appear to be true for the immediate future. Matt Cutts, head of Webspam at Google, posted a rundown of what information Chrome transmits back to Google on his blog. Chrome contacts Google to search for updates to the software of the browser, and transmits some data back to Google to provide search results and suggestions to the user. However, Chrome does not transmit web history to Google, and does not present additional advertising. Google Chrome is also an open source project, meaning that all the code for the browser is available to the public and any programmer interested in contributing to the project or simply curious about how the browser is put together. Any code that provides information to Google to help better target advertising would be public, and will likely quickly be discovered in the coming weeks as the online community scrutinizes the new browser. Ultimately, Chrome is an interesting application that could have a significant impact long-term on the way people browse the internet and the way web browsers are built. However, in the immediate future, it is unlikely to have a significant impact on online marketing or web design. If you want to try Chrome, you can download the beta at http://www.google.com/chrome/. To learn more about its features, you can read the Google Chrome comic book at http://www.google.com/googlebooks/chrome/index.html or view a short video tour at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xlh8gSF_hhE. Labels: Google, Industry, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), web 2.0 Ten Things to Do Besides BannersWe are familiar with great decline of banner click rates. It's funny how we now look at a 0.2 percent click rate and think that's good. There was a funny parody of "Adweek" called SadWeek that appeared when the dot-com bubble burst around 2001. One article was headlined, "Banner Click Rates Drop Below Zero Confounding Marketers and Mathematicians." The industry has combated it several ways including research to justify the branding power of banners (which I whole heartily believe in). However, branding clients always agree with a campaign being about the brand until they read their reports. Then, they start to look at things like clicks and action rates. At our agency, we try to get the client to focus on a campaign's top-line metrics. We have high CPM banners for branding and visibility and a wide variety of non-banner placements that tend to get more or cheaper clicks to balance things out. For example, one buy we do again and again is on a site that sells us all the banners and skyscrapers at mid-range CPMs. Then, as almost a value add, the site throws in millions of text link and button combination units as fixed placements at the bottom of their pages. Then we come in with Google Site Targeted Text Ads that we apply to our media buy from our media budget. As a result, we get the visibility we want from the site with the banners and tons of low cost clicks to bring the cost per click and cost per action from the site way down. |
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