Now I understand what you’re thinking…wow, those are awfully big words for a company that is barely two weeks old. Twitter unveiled Vine, an app for iPhone and iPod devices that lets anyone create and share 6-second looping videos. The same way that Instagram burst onto the scene two years ago, Vine is following that same wow-factor entrance. Ad agencies everywhere have been put on notice: there is a new sheriff in town on how digital media advertisements should be created. And you have 6 seconds to grab my attention.
My friend Ann Handley of MarketingProfs had a really great blog explaining Vine as: Stupid, Simple, Brilliant. I couldn’t have agreed more, and I think she hit the nail on the head as to why content creation tools that are both intuitive and flexible scale and scale quickly:
1. Stupid-simple in design.
2. Dumb-brilliant in their constraints.
3. Foolproof-flexible enough to have broad application.
This GAP video collects all of the style, branding and messaging in 6 seconds. You’ll find yourself watching the loop 3-4 times to experience all of the 6 seconds too.
A trip down #Gap advertising memory lane for our #firstpost on Vine. vine.co/v/b5PeYQOLuLj
We’ve been slowly hurdled, a lot like cattle, into a digital world where every moment is a documentable moment. Before chat tools like AIM or gchat, were you ever saying, “BRB potty”? Until Instagram, were you ever taking a picture of your food before you ate it? The digital communication tools have educated users to see content moments everywhere. Everyone improves 1-2 levels of a particular skill because of technology apps like Instagram or Vine. Photobucket took too much time, so did YouTube. But with apps like Instagram and Vine, I’m creating visual media that can be digested and liked in a matter of seconds.
I think the true brilliance of Vine is the loop factor. The video is only 6 seconds, but if you watch it 4-5 times on ‘repeat’, which is what looping does, you experience what would normally be a 30 second commercial spot. You know the normal commercial, the one where you tune out everything after the first couple seconds. The loop factor sucks you in, and causes you to digest the video clip for longer, and with more intent and attention than any current non-hilarious commercials or advertisements.
That is where the next generation of advertising comes into play: I’m mobile and I don’t have a lot of time. How are you going to engage me in between checking Facebook, email, and text messages? Better yet, how are you going to get me to remember your brand? And share your message?…please…it’s my turn in Words With Friends. Vine does just that – it grabs my attention and evokes me to want to share what I’ve watched.
You can’t make the video longer than 6 seconds, so it forces content creators to “keep it tight”. There isn’t a pay-to-play premium account that lets your video be longer than mine. Think about that for a minute…if this new medium of delivering messaging ‘takes’…30-45 second commercials will be transformed into 6 second commercials. That means 80-87% of the fat trimmed. That is really tight messaging. That is challenging creativity. That is a game-changer if I’ve ever seen one.
The possibilities are endless. The medium of advertising as we know it has been thrown a very wicked curve ball, and I see Vine as moving a new medium of mobile advertising for brands. This communication style for brands will be adopted and become the newest tool in their marketing and advertising toolbox. The 6 second limit creates hyper-focused videos, which combined with the loop factor keep viewers engaged and enthralled longer than any form of advertisements today.
I realize I’m making some pretty drastic predictions off of very little data, heck no data really. I stand firmly behind those predictions though, I see this as the new ‘commercial’, especially in our mobile-focused world moving forward.
Imagine seeing this 6 second clip, with a “Folgers Coffee: It needs to be in your cup,” text for the last second. (You’d have to shorten this video by 1 second to add that, but you get my point.) And with the loop factor, you’re seeing the branding message every 6 seconds of the 18-24 seconds you watch.
Dying for a coffee. #magic #vineart #pleaselike vine.co/v/bJwnA9qjYiH
Vine is the first in the water, but the ripple effects of its tidal wave will be felt all the way inland to ad agencies in NY, London, and across the globe. It’s stupid-simple. It’s dumb-brilliant. It’s mobile advertising gold. It’s here.
I’m riding one hell of a wave of hard work + good fortune + successes over the last 7 months, and I want to continue to have those dominos fall in 2013. Here is a list of my 10 professional goals for 2013. They are in no particular order. These are actionable, obtainable, and hustleable.
Update: As I was sitting here rereading my goals and going over my goal sheets, I realized I’m spreading myself too thin. I was in the middle of reworking it when a friend commented and another emailed me. I knew my hunch was correct. Goals have been revised.
Goal 1: Create a daily/monthly/yearly blog calendar and KEEP UP with it — NO dropped balls. I’ve said 10+ times now publicly (via this blog, Twitter, Facebook, other blogs) AND privately (to myself, to-do lists, conversations with mentors) that I was going to blog more. I mean, I have so many friends who are ridiculously good bloggers and the kicker: they don’t have any more time than I do (in most cases less). Here are all the places you can find a blog or two of mine at in 2013: V3 Integrated Marketing, SiliconANGLE, Spin Sucks, MarketingTechBlog, TheCommunityManger, EverythingPR, ArCompany [link coming], ExactTarget, Fierce-Loyalty, KyleLacy.com, Kristen Nicole’s stealth news start-up [link coming], and of course, my own blog.
Goal 2: Begin to define my area of expertise. Over the last 4.5 years I’ve spun too many plates and become good at a lot of stuff, great at not as much. I really want to strengthen my recognition in three key areas: social data, social business intelligence, and relationship marketing.
(cc: Dan Martell)
Goal 3: Become full-time employee at ExactTarget. I’ve been a full-time independent contractor since August of 2012. I love everything about ET: my potential growth, the Orange Culture, and where I see ET being in 3-5 years. The scale of all three is steadily increasing to the upper 90 right. (soccer reference)
Goal 4: Continue my Thank You initiative. If you’ve ever met with me, whether digitally over #SkypeCoffee or in person, I send thank you cards. It’s pretty simple for me; I’m grateful as heck for the people in my life. Whether we are after-hours friends, or you’re a mentor to me, I’m still grateful and humbled by you giving me time. Something I started about 16 months ago and continue to this day is send a quick thank you card after a meeting. It’s my way of reminding them of how thankful I was they gave me some of their time. Time, after all, is our most precious asset.
Goal 5: Have a successful first year at ArCompany, a start-up I’m involved with that was concocted by the brilliant brain of Hessie Jones. Here is a quick teaser: A social data start-up that aims to filter through the noise of the social web and provide insights, allowing you to make intelligent business decisions. Measurable data translates to measurable dialogue. Arc is dedicated to building a new “social” standard via business intelligence that understands the connected consumer and how it impacts business long-term.
Goal 6: Hit 100 non-ask features in other blogs, journals, papers, etc. Again, a very aggressive goal, but with the amount of tireless and successful networking I’ve done over the last 4.5 years, I have built a podium of sorts that I can take advantage of with quality content and newsworthy updates. OBTW: And TRACK / notate them!
(cc: Gini Dietrich)
Goal 7: Relaunch my website, theryancox.com, on Wordpress. It is what my gut told me and what I wanted, but I, having shiny-new-object-syndrome (#snos), talked myself into going with Tumblr.
Goal 8: Speak at a big conference.
Goal 9: Don’t spread myself too thin. I had some very good feedback from a group of mentors that summed up said: “needs more focus, needs to execute and have greater attention to detail.” So my attention needs to be laser-focused in 2013 and improve in the areas I have room for improvement: Focus, Execution, Documentation.
(cc: Shelly Kramer)
Goal 10: Increase OMBO apps overall brand awareness, drive demand creation, improve customer retention, and establish key strategic partnerships. A direct goal of increasing brand awareness and customer retention by 50% in 2013. OMBO apps has a flagship product, Urban Gossip App, and plans are releasing additional apps in 2013. I was brought on in December of 2012 as a marketing consultant part-time.
Those are my 10 professional goals for 2013. I plan to move this post to my new blog on Wordpress (Goal 7) and add a √ graphic after each goal is reached!
*big thanks to Jen of TheJennaBee for the edits*
*image credit: Leadershipwithsaas.com.*
There are plenty of people I am indebted to and owe so much of my success to through the 29 years of my life, but what I wanted to focus on the people who helped me through what started off as a not-so-great 2012, yet eventually became my most successful professional year ever. This blog post is a collection of short Thank You notes written in one post.
This is my humble attempt at a digital thank you with all of the love, thanks, and gratitude a blog post can muster.
Shelly Kramer,
I can say with sincerity that there isn’t one person that has believed in me more over the last 4 years than you. Whether I needed some advice, an ear to listen, or just someone to give me an ego boost — you’ve been there for me through thick and a whole lot of thin. There isn’t a person alive I’d trust more to give it to me straight, but I always know it comes with the biggest hug of love possible. May 25th, when you responded to my mentor-catch-up-email with a job opportunity, you pulled me out of the largest, darkest hole I’d been in. Your words still resonate in my head to this day: “Okay, here’s the deal. I’m a big fan of yours and want to see you succeed.” I know I’ve told you how much that meant to me north of 5 times, but you’ll never understand the truth depth of how much that meant to me. I think you’re brilliant, I think you’re the savviest of business owners, and most of all, I think you are one of the most humble, good person I’ve ever met. I glean lessons from you on a daily basis, and most of the time you have no idea I’m learning anything. Your attention to detail as well as overall “do good, be better” mentality is something that makes me strive to “be more like Shelly” every day. Thank you for all of your continued support and belief. I look forward to proving that all of the time you’ve invested in me one of the best investments you’ve ever made.
Thank you,
Ryan
——
Tim Kopp,
There aren’t a whole lot of words to say, but I’ll keep it short and to the point. Your belief in me and your help in getting me into the ExactTarget door is something that will leave me forever indebted. From our walking coffee meetings, to you putting your name behind me a bit — thank you. I appreciate all of the advice and actionable recommendations you’ve given me to date. I look forward to proving you right, as well as coming for your job one day. =) Thank you again for giving me a shot, Tim, and for your continued friendship and mentoring along the way.
Thank you,
Ryan
——
Kristen Nicole,
There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t consider you one of my best friends. From the days of Schindigs and flying you into my investor meeting that was nothing short of me and a few friends, you’ve always had my best interests at heart. I can’t quantify the amount of on-hand support you’ve given me, even if I have to initiate the gchat. It is always, without question, a “let me figure out how to do that” and not a “sorry that can not happen” with you Kristen. You let me onboard at SiliconANGLE and introduced me to OMBO apps. The Fab giftcard is the least I could of done. You’ve been a best friend and supporter of mine from long before I ever deserved it.
Thank you,
Coxymoney
——
Scott Thomas,
To my boss who basically created an opportunity for me — thank you. You’ve been nothing short of everything an employee could ask for in a boss. You’ve been open and honest with me about anything and everything, as well as laid out a framework that allowed a consultant mentality to transfer into the corporate environment. I’ve had some bumps along the way, but you’ve continued to encourage me and have given me chances to redeem myself. Your continued belief in my abilities and finding a ‘best fit’ at ExactTarget have been nothing short of a concrete “solid” anyone could do for someone else. Thanks again boss, and here’s to knocking out some more ideas for 3sixty in 2013.
Thank you,
Ryan
——
Hessie Jones,
I know we haven’t known each other for very long, but that late October message on Twitter might have been my best move of 2012. I’m tireless when it comes to making connections, but you’re a connection that will prove to be fruitful for years to come. Everything I’ve ever said or given you the impression of was legit. I don’t fluff, and I don’t fake. From that first Skype call, I’ve felt we just “got” each other and that we were meant to work together. I’m all about #TeamArc and making it the social data company everyone envies. Thank you for your near-blind belief, trust, and opportunity. You gave me a shot without a reason to (at least from my point of view) and I am focused on proving that to be the right decision in 2013.
Thank you,
Ryan
——
Kathy Pierce,
You quickly became a best friend in 2012. I can’t explain where it came from, or how, or why, but I’m glad that it did. It’s cliche to say, but you’re the ying to my yang. You seem to always be able to bring me down from outer space and keep me focused and grounded. Your ability to ideate and connect is rivaled only by my own, and our ability to feed off of each other truly added to my successes in 2012. I very much value your friendship, and I’ve quickly became nearly obsessive with staying connected. You’re, without question, one of the most sincere and coolest people I’ve ever met. Maybe one day I’ll be a profitable partner in that empire of yours that you’re building. =)
Thank you,
Ryan
——
Zena Weist,
Another one of my “cold call” emails, and another one that I’m patting myself on the back for everyday. I just knew you were brilliant and the kind of person I wanted to be connected with. The fact that you took me in as a mentee and have provided hours of your precious time to listen and to provide feedback…well, it’s worth its weight in diamonds and gold. You are so good at what you do, I literally get a little nervous before we have our mentor call every month because I want to sound “smart”. I look forward to furthering our relationship in 2013 and maybe even doing some work together. Thank you for the opportunity, and thank you for giving me time that you didn’t have to give.
Thank you,
Ryan
——
David Hosei,
I sure wish I’d have connected with you like this back in high school — I’d be a much smarter professional today. =) You’ve been the best same-city mentor a guy could ask for. We’re learning so much along the way together, and I’m really proud to call you a friend. Simply having someone I can see in person and discuss my goals and my hurdles with has provided me with the most clarity I’ve had in a long time. Really looking forward to 2013.
Thank you,
Ryan
——
Sarah Robinson,
I didn’t have a lot going on for me in the first half of 2012, except your friendship and co-working. Even though I was just getting to know you and you me — you helped me grow leaps and bounds. You are a great mentor, but even greater friend. You are my go-to when it comes to community building, and I look forward to anything we tackle together in 2013. You were my rock for so much of 2012.
Thank you,
Ryan
These are people that I can directly relate my successes in 2012 to, and I hope that their inclusion in this list gives them any kind of indication just how thankful I am.
Here’s to kicking ass and taking names in 2013.
*big thanks to Jen of TheJennaBee for the edits*
#BandsMakeHerDance
I need to apologize. I’ve dropped the ball….big time. I got overwhelmed with a bunch of professional and a few personal changes that all seemed to hit me at once, and I let my blog suffer. July 12th I said I was going to fill you in tomorrow. Well, if tomorrow meant 40 days later, let’s do it!
In May an amazing business friend and mentor Shelly Kramer, founder of V3 Integrated Marketing, responded to one of my ‘catch up’ mentee emails with a proposition that can be summed up like this: “I’m a big fan of yours and want to see you succeed. We have an opportunity we’ve been thinking about creating for you, but you’ve gotta start small.” Fast forward over two months and I’m integrated deeply into the V3 team and loving absolutely every day of it. Shelly, Katy, and crew are amazing to work with. I’m doing a lot of blogging too. Have you checked out our Best of the Web weekly series?
July started off with a double barrel bang!
The first barrel fired: A year worth of walking coffee with Tim Kopp started a ball rolling in May that culminated with a job offer from Exact Target. I’m a full-time on site consultant that is working on the Product Enablement Team focusing on the 3sixty product. I absolutely love my job. The company culture is second to none. The PE team is a collection of ridiculously smart people that work seamlessly with each other, but anyone could go solo for a few days and still kill it. It’s an amazing opportunity that I hope to turn into a ET job (not consultant)!
The second barrel fired: Kristen Nicole has been a dear friend of mine for over four years and is currently is the senior editor at SiliconANGLE. After this guest post on the 4 Obstacles Digital Media Faces, she asked me to be a contributor. It’s an amazing opportunity for me, and combined with the exposure I get from the V3im blog — gives me a very big platform as a writer.
On the personal side I’m getting ready to move into my own place downtown Indianapolis, just a one bedroom sans any roommate. I’ve narrowed it down to three places and plan on moving the first week of September. I’m really excited to get out on my own!
So there it is, I’ve caught you up!
Welcome back, welcome back, welcome baaaaack!
You matter to me. I appreciate your friendship and readership!
![Marissa Mayer — taking up the entire page 1 above the fold of Techmeme. Marissa = #winning. lmao
[When was the last time Yahoo! got a full-page above the fold on Techmeme?]](http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m7b5awtdzJ1r3dk53o1_500.png)
Marissa Mayer — taking up the entire page 1 above the fold of Techmeme. Marissa = #winning. lmao
[When was the last time Yahoo! got a full-page above the fold on Techmeme?]
I’m redoing my website, going to be moving it to Wordpress too. And I’m going to have a poetry tab. Yes this is poetry is mine. Yes I wrote it. I don’t flipping care if you like it, read it, or anything opposite of either. I’m doing it for me.
Here’s a sample:
Why You Matter
Words are a vehicle, not a choice.
When you let go of angst, you’ll find your voice.
Believe you me, beautiful describes you best.
Worth every ounce of energy, beating in his chest.
He will give you his heart, in exchange for one last kiss.
Only to realize his heart, will never again be missed.
I sure as hell haven’t. I mean, the last couple posts on his blog weren’t even his. Where did this fool go?
Well, luckily this story has a happy ending.
The news, is all extremely, positively, awesomely, amazingly, outstandingly, (how long is he going with this joke) phenomenally, brilliantly, astonishingly, (f*cker is still going) fortunately, helpfully, happily, crazily, (seriously dude give it a rest) profoundly, exceedingly GREAT news!
I will share tomorrow.
That, ladies and gentlemen, was How To Generate Buzz And Leave A Cliffhanger 101.
And yes, I’m coming back to blog, and overtly throughout the week again. This blog is going to get some serious attention!
Passionately Love,
Ryan
No matter what business you may be running, going green is an important step that we should all think about making. It is not only very important for environmental conservation, but it is also important for the conservation of your resources, decreasing the amount of wastage your company produces. By aiming to go green and making your processes more efficient, you could indeed increase profits and have a nice eco-friendly story to help you acquire new business.
Some simple steps that can help lead you to a greener future are fairly obvious things such as ensuring that all unused office equipment is properly powered down – not just left on standby! In addition to this, it is wise to ensure that all PC’s, printers and monitors are properly shut down every night when you are finished for the work, and during the day turning off your monitor when you are away from the desk will help your efforts. This will help lower your electricity bills, as well as lowering ambient temperature in the office decreasing the amount of work that your air conditioners are required to do.
If you are willing to invest in your green credentials, then fitting solar technology to your office can help save significant amounts of electricity – technologies such as solar tubes (natural sun powered light replacement) and photovoltaic arrays (to generate electricity) are gaining popularity, and more importantly getting more efficient by the month.
You should encourage your staff to lean toward a paperless mentality, if that’s not possible then you should implement the following tips to decrease your paper usage.
Consider your suppliers carefully. If there is a green alternative for your standard office consumables such as pencils, notepads, and office stationary then it would be wise, if the cost doesn’t prohibit, it to use the eco friendly choice.
Outside of the office needn’t be out of bounds for someone trying to help the environment – help staff understand the health benefits and fuel saving associated with a cycle to work scheme. It’s coming into the summer and you should definitely be encouraging your staff to make the effort to cycle, walk or if unavoidable car-share into the place of work.
The important thing to remember when beginning to go green is ‘baby-steps’. You aren7t expected to be super eco-friendly from day one, but with some of the simple steps listed above you can certainly start to make some baby steps to a greener business.
Do you have any great idea’s about how one can increase their green side in an office -environment? Why not leave a comment below – I would love to hear your ideas.
[Image Credit: business.com]
This eco friendly article was written using 100% recycled electrons, by Stephen Rendell - owner of super green invoice software company Paper Free Billing.
These days, more and more organizations are turning to video and other digital media to promote themselves. Why is this the case? Consumer preferences are increasingly shifting away from long-form print and instead towards a wide range of dynamic digital media, such as video and audio. Digital media can convey a business’s story in ways that print fails to do so: for online visitors, it can bring a business to life, highlight existing products and services and tell the stories of the real people behind the business.
It’s especially important for business owners to consider including digital media as a part of their online marketing strategies. When developing content for your website, stop and think about what stories are better told in print, and which ones are better told using a more dynamic medium. You have several to choose from:
Web videos can take a wide variety of forms, from content matter to production value. For example, a web video can consist of a formal commercial, an informal interview with a business owner, interview with a selection of the business’s customers or a highlights reel of the business’s products or services. Videos can be used to give online visitors a virtual experience of visiting your business. Web videos provide an added benefit in that they help boost your business’s SEO ranking and help new customers discover your business. Although anyone with an Internet connection and a camera with video recording capabilities can create a web video, business owners should consider hiring a professional videographer with high-quality equipment.
Have interesting content to provide to your customers? Consider developing an audio podcast series. The subject matter is entirely up to you: for example, if you’re a garden supply store, you may choose to talk about weekly gardening tips. Podcasts need not be extensive; often enough, a simple five-minute podcast provides customers with a digestible clip that they can listen to in their cars or at home. Audio podcasts can be promoted online and listed in the iTunes Podcast directory, attracting new listeners and therefore serving as a powerful marketing tool in itself. For a really comprehensive list of audio podcasts, checkout Chris Christensen’s list of the 71 best podcasts.
Although web videos can turn any story into a compelling one, business owners wanting to shy away from the camera or requiring more privacy may choose to develop animated videos. Animated videos have an added bonus in that they can communicate concepts and information clearly and concisely. Although the prospect of animated videos may sound intimidating, they need not be. Animated videos can be as simple as moving text and basic animations, and as complex as 3D, computer-generated graphics, depending on a business owner’s budget and interests. If you’re looking more for simple animation, you can checkout Animoto. On the other hand, using a post-production company in your area is advisable for more complex projects.
We already know that digital media can serve as a more powerful storytelling platform than print. As an added bonus, digital media is infinitely more shareable, which helps strengthen relationships with customers and increases a business’s visibility. As a business owner, you have the option to disseminate your web videos, podcasts and animated videos on your various social media accounts, such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr or Pinterest. Users can discover these videos or podcasts on their own through Google search, YouTube, Vimeo or iTunes, and then have the option to share this media with their friends and family. The sharing potential of digital media—and the accompanying potential of building lasting relationships with customers as well as acquiring new ones—is huge.
——
Tristan Pelligrino is one of the founders of 522 Productions (web video production) and specializes in developing dynamic content for the web. Tristan also co-owns 522 Digital, a digital media company located in Alexandria, VA.