the Web Chef's e-Bytes

Mobile Marketing Magazine - Feb 2010

I came across the February issue of an online magazine from the UK called Mobile Marketing Magazine that could be shared by embedding into this blog.  I thought the technology was an interesting way to further optimize the sharing of digital assets like this magazine.

Update 3: Saving on the Web - Tweets, Coupons & Deals

Coupons.com, has a new commercial that they are running promoting "a better place to save" by using their service - click, print and save.  The ad shows a humorous approach to saving by eating the free samples in the grocery aisles. Beyond Coupons.com, if you are looking for savings you can sign up for deals and coupon Tweets from savings aggregators like these:

• BargainTweeter
• Coupon Cabin
• CouponSources
• CouponTweet
• CheapTweet
• DealTweets
• Poor Man's Guide

If you are a retailer and have deals to share consider expanding your network by communicating the deals through these Twitter sources.

New content
Webware author Don Reissinger has put together a review of a couple of the services listed above and adds a couple more:

• JustBoughtIt - Where users tweet the price they've just paid for something
• Schmap - track user reviews for a particular city
• TinyMassive

Update 2
TechCrunch announced that Savings.com has been re-designed along with a new addition to their board. They also have a database listing at Crunchbase with 48 companies with online coupon opportunities.  Other sites referenced in the comments at Techcrunch are Savingg, SlickDeals, FatWallet and DealTherapy.

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New Posting on IBMadison "Advancing by Retweeting"

Are you interested in learning how to use Twitter as part of your social media strategy?

If so, you might find my new blog posting at IBMadison -"Advancing by Retweeting" interesting.  The posting gives you 12 key steps to get going with Twitter.  It also analyzes some of the local, national and international businesses in Madison, Wisconsin that are using Twitter and briefly looks at some of the credit unions around the United States that are using Twitter.

Still confused about Twitter terminology? 

See this very informative post "The Non-Fanatical Guide to Twitter" from Deanna Zandt, that defines a tweet, retweet, #hashtags, followers, following, direct messaging, etc.  For additional resources related to Twitter see Scott Williams' blog posting "105 Twitter Tools".on BigIsTheNewSmall and for ideas on how to use Twitter in business, see Meryl Evans posting "62 Ways to Use Twitter for Business" at Web Worker Daily.

Happy tweeting!

Paul J Gibler, MBA
the Web Chef
@thewebchef

Evian Viral Video Explodes onto Scene

In yet another example of the power of babies following the successful eTrade baby campaign, Evian has launched a viral video campaign with roller skating babies. The campaign has been placed on YouTube and as of today had almost 3.5 million views. Hitwise reported on the success of the video campaign in a recent blog posting.

Viral Video Takes on United Airlines

Companies often don't get it when it comes to customer service. Airlines are big culprits in this regard. From fees for bags to snacks to possibly even using the toilet (one proposed revenue generator) they fail to remember that they are in the service business. In a video that has gone viral, the Sons of Maxwell, a band traveling on United Airlines to Nebraska, takes on the airline for breaking their Taylor guitar and for the lack of responsible customer service. The video is catchy and is not what you want to have happen to your brand.

Web Tidbits - Viral Videos and Internet Trends

The San Francisco Chronicle has published a listing including links of the top 10 viral videos for 2008.  Not too surprisingly the number one viral video was Tina Fey as Sarah Palin.  This video and her interview performance, took not only an unknown Governor to infamy but helped propel Tina Fey and Saturday Night Live into some great ratings numbers for their show.  Tina Fey has gone on to grace the cover of the most recent issue of Vanity Fair as a result of her performance. 

Meanwhile, Pew Internet has published a report called "Future of the Internet" surveyed technology leaders to come up with some perspectives on the Internet in 2020. The biggest change that they foresee is the use of the phone for mobile access to the Internet as technology improves to enable this tool.

Political Humor and effective use of the Internet - Palin Attacks

It has been interesting to see how the web is being used to create an alternative narrative or to support the accepted narrative about a candidate.  It also continues to have significant viral effect as these two anti-Palin items make their way around the Internet.  The first uses the power of online video, while the second is a great example of an interactive web site - PalinAsPresident,  that encourages viewers to play with the site while generating a message supporting the producers intent.

The Disgruntled Employee, PowerPoint and Viral Marketing

Philebrity and The Globe and Mail have coverage of a PowerPoint presentation that was put together by a Comcast Customer Service agent explaining the "What doe CQE (Comcast Quality Experience) Really Mean" that highlights some of the significant problems that are being experienced by Comcast customers.  Philebrity actually posts the PowerPoint show, while Toronto's Globe & Mail comments on it.  While the presentation doesn't follow guidelines I'd suggest for an effective live presentation, it certainly serves as a tool for creating a story that you can read about CQE.

This story reminds me of other ways that PowerPoint and YouTube are being used to spread a message of dissatisfaction not only by employees, but even more importantly by customers.  One example of this that I saw several years ago was in a PowerPoint presentation ("Yours is a Very Bad Hotel")that a disgruntled customer created trashing their experience at a specific hotel that was part of a big chain in 2001.  Given that this PowerPoint presentation was created before the days of slide sharing tools like Slide Share and Authorstream the distribution occurred through e-mail and viral marketing of the slide show as it was re-mailed over and over again. 

Two points of interest - 1.) you can still find this PowerPoint presentation by doing an Internet search and 2.) when I gave a presentation in early 2002, I referenced this as an example of "negative viral marketing" and asked if anyone had seen or heard of this presentation.  In that audience of around 100 people 4 - 5 people had heard or seen the presentation.

Do you have examples of how PowerPoint has been used in this fashion that you'd like to share?

New Column in Wisconsin Technology Network - Widgets

I've written a new column in the monthly series of articles, Buzz Networks, recently published in Wisconsin Technology Network.  The article "Widgets - web components for plug, play and pay" reviews the evolving and expanding world of widgets or gadgets and the benefits they can provide companies looking to connect and distribute their messages widely. 

With Facebook, Microsoft and the major blog platforms endorsing these portable applications, they will only be growing in the future.

If you'd like me to come and speak to your group on the latest developments in e-marketing, I'd be happy to discuss your budget, needs and schedule.  Please contact me in the United States at 608 255 4092 or via e-mail.

Have a great Thanksgiving!

Paul J Gibler

Web Tidbits - UGM and Viral Content (Updated)

User Generated Contest - jetBlue
In an interesting example of User Generated Marketing or Content, JetBlue created a photography contest that ran from June 5th to September 5th to launch their new real time flight tracking with Google Maps.  As part of the entry the photographs needed to be taken on a JetBlue flight and the location of the photo needed to be mapped using the real time Google Map that was available on the seatback monitor in front of them. 

The number of contest entrants (1700) exceeded their expectations.  They also reflect some very interesting images.  You can vote for your favorite at the site through September 28th.
Hat tip to AdFreak.

UPDATE
User Generated Content Research Results
McKinsey reports (registration required) on research they conducted in Germany to determine why people contribute video to video sharing sites.  The results found that 65% reported they were seeking fame, 50% reported it was fun, 41% wanted to share videos with friends, 29% wanted others to benefit from the information in their video.  In the same report

Online Viral Game - General Mills EatBetterAmerica.com Food Fight
Meanwhile halfway across the country, General Mills has launched a fun online game the Good Food Fight that allows you to select a healthy recipe, a character and start an online food fight.  I had fun with the hot dog vendor and the spaghetti recipe.
Hat tip to AdRants

Online Viral Promotion - Dylan's New Album
Getting on our plane and flying across the Atlantic we come to the Ten4 produced viral site to create pre-launch buzz for Bob Dylan's compilation of greatest hits to be released on October 1.  The site (Dylan Messaging) allows you to compose a message that is in turn displayed in a "video", along with a Dylan song and sent to a friend or friends.
Hat tip to AdverBlog