This is Diet Pepsi’s “Beach Tweet” commercial, in which Sofia Vergara invites us to drink a Diet Pepsi and where superstar soccer player David Beckham appears.

Social media bandwagon

In one week´s time, there are generally one billion tweets out there. Yahoo recently conducted a study titled “Who Says What to Whom on Twitter,” which analyzed 260 million tweets. Granted, that´s only a little more than a fourth of one week, but the results are still worth a mention.

They found that half of the tweets examined were tweeted by only 0.05 percent of all users; a few people saying a lot. It also found that the site most linked to was Youtube. Among the top 20 were sites like Wikipedia, Facebook, MySpace, etc. Also, they found that celebrity tweets are some of the most read. Celebrities tend to follow other celebrities, while medias follow other medias, bloggers other bloggers; as the report says, Twitterers tend to be “highly homogeneus” they are most interested in what people just like them have to say.

The report concluded that information generally flows in two steps, stating, “almost half the information that originates from the media passes to the masses indirectly via a diffuse intermediate layer of opinion leaders, who although classified as ordinary users, are more connected and more exposed to the media than their followers.”

So, as we´ve stated countless times, if you´re trying to get you or your company´s voice heard, if you haven´t already, it´s time to get on the social media bandwagon. And, please retweet this article!

El SXSW reunió a miles en sus programas interactivos.

It defies logic one might suppose. After all, social networking now reaches most Internet users in the US and internationally, and has become an ubiquitous part of their lives. Thanks to rapid growth of leaders like Facebook and Twitter, updating statuses, posting comments and sharing links with friends have become routine for millions. And if you align that with the growth projections in terms of population and digital adaptation, the number should be eyeball-popping. However, some estimates indicate it might be more of a wink.

An estimated nearly 150 million US web users will use social networks with a computer, phone or e-pad device at least monthly this year, bringing the reach of such sites to 63.7% of the online population. But (and this is a big ‘but’, if you’ll pardon the pun), the heady days of double-digit growth in users may be over as social networking reaches a saturation point. According to the new report, US Social Network Usage: 2011 Demographic and Behavioral Trends, by 2013, 164.2 million Americans will use social networks, which is 67% of Internet users. All of that said, apparently no one told the attendees at Austin’s famous uber-conference/multi-media festival/concert/party SXSW this past week. It seems that the section on Social Media was on par with the latest musical sensation or avant-garde movie preview. It is rumored that the SXSW session broke a record for being oversubscribed, with over 400 people waiting in line, after the door had closed. This is testament to the number of startups working to help clarify the nature of conversation through their tools. Everyone wants to understand how to visualize the slice of social media that matters most to them and how to monetize that.

Party or not, it is clear that social networks will need to really nail down their relationships with their users, particularly people ages 35 and older, in order to keep them engaged and interacting. Creating compelling user experiences may sound easy, but one should note that the incredibly successful SXSW program took a short couple of decades to become what it has become today.

Teens pack a wallop when it comes to social media.

In the U.S. (and probably in just about every other modern country in the world), teenagers seem to be constantly connected to the Internet. It has been projected that almost 75 percent of all of those who can, do go online every day and that is a number that continues to snowball. It might be their smart phone, laptop, gaming console or even their school computers, but they are pretty much online all of the time. And, as you might guess, social networking including Facebook, Twitter and their kin are a large part of where they hang.

It would also seem obvious that this huge and growing (no pun intended) young group would be a very lucrative crowd for companies and their marketing armies to tap into. Well, not unlike the sometimes-whimsical world of teenage friendships, things aren’t always what they seem. Even online.

According to a new report by Forrester Research, only a small fraction (6 percent) of U.S. consumers between the ages of 12 and 17 show any interest in engaging brands on social networking platforms like Facebook, even though they’re routinely posting status updates to social networking sites.

However, it does seem that teens DO use social media to discuss brands and products they have an interest in, they just want to lead the conversation, not have it fed to them. So if you are marketing to them, you may have to become part of the conversation in less obvious ways. Like it or not.

Kit Kat

There are many stories coming out about the importance of social media for a company’s marketing efforts, and they usually refer to how major brands such as Nike, Unilever, Ford, etc. are utilizing these communication sources.  In the Wall Street Journal this week, there is another brand making a name for itself, not only in its own marketing efforts, but in its utilization of the medium to influence some major brands.

The brand in this case is Greenpeace International, and the other brand involved is Nestle .  The article “Nestlé Takes a Beating on Social-Media Sites” highlights not only the impact of social media for environmental activists but also the importance for each company to monitor what is happening in the realm of social marketing.

In a YouTube video (seen below), as well as postings on Facebook and Twitter, some claim that Nestlé is contributing to the destruction of Indonesia’s rain forest, potentially impacting global warming and endangering orangutans.  The claims are related to the purchase of palm oil from a company that allegedly has cleared rainforest to create palm plantations.   While the firm only supplies a little over 1% of the palm oil used last year, Nestlé has already decided to stop dealing with them and is also pressuring its providers to scrutinize their supply chains to make sure that they are not sourcing from companies that are damaging the environment.

This new attack opens the door and shows the impact that activist organizations can have, and of course this is an area sure to see tremendous growth.  The challenge for marketers is to appear to be listening while avoiding getting involved with long back-and-forth shouting matches that will most likely not benefit the company.  Other companies have seen major backlashes through digital means, and while many highlight legitimate issues, there is always the possibility for it to be taken too far.

The next year should prove to be very interesting in the social media realm, so stay tuned.

Twitter convert

I admit that I was a Twitter skeptic.  I thought nothing substantive could be expressed in 140 characters or less; I thought it was the meeting place for narcissists who feel compelled to share the minutiae of their everyday lives to strangers; and from a business standpoint, I simply didn’t see how it could help us in any way.  Yet after a little over three months of managing my company’s Twitter account, I must say that I have found it quite useful.  Consider me a convert.

I have found the main benefits to be twofold: first, I find many leads on potential publisher partners.  I see who one of our followers is following, and then who their followers are following, and so on until I have unearthed many potential business connections.  I start following, see what they’re about, and then possibly contact them later.  I have found many great sites for news, entertainment, mothers, politics and more just by following the chain of followers.  Secondly, and somewhat related to the first benefit, is that I’ve become aware of various communities out there who are engaged in the same areas as us- namely, the Hispanic market and digital marketing.  By reading what members of the community are saying, reacting strongly and negatively to, and engaging in, we see what is creating buzz in our industry, and we hope to become a part of these communities and this dialogue as well.

It turns out that you can express a cogent thought or word of encouragement in 140 characters or less.  Plus, Twitter can be fun, too: you can follow the antics of Conan O’Brien, the NFL’s Chad OchoCinco, movie critic Roger Ebert, and many, MANY more.  I look forward to continuing to use our company’s Twitter account to pursue leads, participate in the conversation, and have a little fun.

chile earthquake

Each of us have our media sources that we trust for information about certain topics.  In the U.S. and in many cases internationally, a few names come to mind such as ESPN for sports, TMZ for celebrity gossip, CNN for news, and the Wall Street Journal for business information.

With the earthquake in Chile- a country I lived in for four years- my first choice was to forgo the hours of analysis on CNN regarding the potential impact of the resulting 2-foot waves produced by the tsunami to find information directly from news sources in Chile.  Not so surprisingly, I found the largest Chilean newspaper El Mercurio’s website EMOL was down.   While I am not exactly sure which of the many legitimate causes (traffic, power outages, damage) were responsible, this highlights the challenges of finding reliable information from your country of origin or a country that you care about.

Outside of major occurrences, usually catastrophic or war-related, there is limited information available without accessing the country’s media publication.  For those who speak the language of the country this is not a major problem in the digital age; however for others,  blogs, Twitter, and Facebook have become a source of information.  While very useful, I for one rely on and hope to continue to rely on the journalists that make up local news sources from every city or country.

Twitter

Twitter, the popular microblogging system, could be on the brink of changing the world of online advertising. Everything seems to indicate that we could soon begin to see ads on its pages. Until now, people wondered, besides agreements with certain companies, when Twitter would start to generate profit. Now we have the answer.

According to rumor, the start date would be some time in March.

Twitter -again, according to rumor- would have the intention of showing relevant and truly useful ads and, of course, they would not be intrusive. This last point will surely be controversial for some of the more “sensitive”  Twitter users.

Bearing in mind that Google, Yahoo and Bing have begun to include Twitter conversations in search results, and that there has been a tremendous growth in users and page visits, the future couldn’t be brighter for a company that many didn’t take seriously when it first appeared.

ARF

There are so many websites that have platforms to rate products and services, yet according to the Advertising Research Foundation’s (ARF) findings mentioned in a recent Advertising Age Article, the ARF is publishing a new book, “Foundations of Listening”,  that discusses various case studies and the impact of consumers sharing their experiences.

The traditional system of surveys and paid customer research is alive and well.  While this allows the marketer to get answers to specific questions and control the environment, there is much to be gained from open discourse and listening to what your customers are saying outside of standard scenarios.  The article mentions that marketers are more inclined to see the views spread through social networking sites such as Facebook, Twitter and other online review boards as more of a curse than a blessing.  Listening to feedback can be scary for both individuals and companies, as they are opening themselves up to negative comments.  However, within negative comments they have the opportunity to improve, and the more open they are, there is an opportunity to continue to improve.

Much of the problem with receiving feedback from multiple sources in a manner that is unorganized is that it may be more difficult to find the useful information.  Companies and research companies are looking at ways to track the information.  From a digital billboard streaming live Twitter feeds, to tracking search, and monitoring brand mentions on various sources, the marketing community is working on its “listening” skills.

Whether you are paying for a monitored research panel or finding a way to organize and learn from the consumer input, there will most likely be a cost; however, for marketers, the benefit of gaining insight from consumers through new media outlets offers an opportunity to learn more from the people who use their products.

Powder day at Vail

Almost a foot of new snow fell in the Sierras over the past 24 hours and I will be heading up shortly to enjoy.  However, before I put the get all my gear together and put the boards in the the car I wanted to share some information about how Vail Resorts has adapted to the changing climate to help get the message out to snow enthusiasts everywhere.

I am assuming that everyone reading this has at least heard of their flagship resort Vail.  What many may not be aware of is that Vail Resorts Management Company is the owner of this as well as four other resorts (Breckenridge, Beaver Creek, Keystone, and Heavenly in Lake Tahoe) as well as twenty hotels and six golf courses making it a major player in the recreation and travel industry.  Cited in an Advertising Age About Digital report the CEO of Vail Resorts Rob Katz discussed recent changes to their marketing strategy.

According to Mr. Katz, there were recently two major “explosions” that led to major rethinking in their strategy.  The economy, which has led visitors who traditionally have booked four to six months in advance to last year having the majority of bookings within two weeks, and Media which has been rapidly changing. Essentially he stated that everything that they thought about marketing a couple of years ago has completely changed.

With traditional media outlets of which the majority was print magazines such as Outside Magazine, Mens Health, Ski, Skiing, Conde Naste Traveler and the like they would be required to commit four to six months in advance to the campaign and message that they wanted for the season.  Traditionally by this time almost 80% of their marketing budget would already be committed.  This year the print budget has been greatly reduced and they are currently retaining almost 80% of their budget in reserve to allow for continuous changes to the messaging.  While newspaper, online display advertising, and search engine marketing continue to play an important role, social media has taken a leading role.  In the past the industry made a decision prior to the season and lived with it, now at least in Vail’s case, the decisions and messages are on a weekly calendar.

One of the items cited in the video was the importance of video in selling their product.  Myself a connoisseur of “ski porn” a term he used for the conveyence of emotion in ski videos that are watched by avid skiers understand this.  Not only is their the video displaying the acrobatics of professional skiers on bottomless powder days, but there is also quick access to live cams and weather reports.  By embracing social media and the latest technologies Vail Resorts can change their message quickly to reflect the changing conditions and changing industry environment.  While currently the economic environment is one of caution and bargain hunting, as their changes they can adapt their message.

To see examples of how Vail Resorts is embracing social media all you need is a quick search in outlets such as Facebook, Twitter or others.  In one quick search in Facebook there were pages of groups associated with the company as well as fans of their properties that can serve as models for those thinking about as well as working with social media.