Here are some reasons why I’d like a job in social media:
- It’s a new technique of showing outthinking is better than outspending, which Fallon proved 30 years ago.
- The Internet is open for business 24/7, worldwide.
- All businesses – business-to-business, business-to-customers and nonprofits – are able to send their messages through social media.
- I knew how to use computers and the Internet before I learned the four principles of advertising in college. Now I can combine both loves.
- It’s focuses more on communication than technology.
- Ink didn’t create newspapers and TV sets didn’t create newscasts, journalists – humans – did.
- Younger generations use the Internet and can possibly keep using it until retirement and beyond.
- Elementary to college students use it for education, as well as entertainment. Students use search engines, Wikipedia, YouTube and other online avenues as previous generations used libraries, encyclopedias, etc.
- New infants and babies could learn the three Rs through social media before they learn them in a classroom as new parents are presenting their babies and infants in social media avenues.
- I’m using social media to learn how to find a job in social media.
- Social media is more than just a tactic of advertising.
- Newspapers, magazines, TV and radio stations are just a few news outlets who use social media to spread the news.
- Humanitarians use social media.
- The 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, 2008 Sichuan earthquake and 2009 protests of Iranian elections are some of the few examples social media was used to ask for help.
- All social media users are collaborators.
- The stories I’ve learned about social media draw me in and I want to tell more and new stories about it in the future.
Is This How You Were Filtered To My Blog?
I absolutely love this video.
Eli Pariser, author of The Filter Bubble, discusses how Internet search companies who can personalize Web searches based upon a searcher’s, such as you or myself, personal information may be constricting their view of the world. I find this subject quite fascinating as I start my career in SEO. I don’t know what my outcome will be after watching this but I know I want to find out.
Video courtesy of TED.com
Is This How You Were Led To My Blog?
I absolutely love this video! Eli Pariser, author of The Filter Bubble, discusses how Internet search companies who can personalize Web searches based upon personal information of a searcher (such as you or myself) may be constricting their view of the world. Fascinating, I know.
Super Bowl Adness
Last night’s Super Bowl showcase of horrible ads reaffirmed my fear of getting into the advertising career that follows my degree. Here are some reasons why:
Here’s Steve Kopcha’s definition of creativity:
Using communication to create a desired reaction with some predetermined audience.
I saw a very, very small amount of that last night.
- Advertisers mostly have 30-60 seconds to explain their product or service’s benefit. What I’m trying to say is just get to the point. Gags and puns usually take too much time and effectiveness away if done incorrectly (which is mostly the case).
- The unique selling proposition should be unique. It’s not unique if everyone else is using it.
- It usually takes more than one time to sell something. More commercials should be done in integrated campaigns to get the message across, not flashy one-timers.
- “But 100,000,000 Americans watch the Super Bowl! That means 100,000,000 Americans can buy my product or service.”
– Misguided argument.
True but 100,000,000 is one of the worst target audiences I know of. Some of those Americans are old, young, black, white, parents, unemployed, CEOs, convicts, surfers, churchgoers, painters…the list goes on and on. America is full of different folks with different strokes. Advertise to those whom you know are willing to give your product or service a sensible try and politely disregard those whom you know won’t.
- There are now multiple, cost-effective ways to reach consumers than the boob tube. Thank you technology.
I’m glad for human innovation and technology to brainstorm big ideas such as digital marketing, guerilla marketing, search engine optimization, etc., to bring about an era of advertising more suited for this generation.
Nifty Tips for Watching Commercials
I’m writing this in response to the fiasco of last night’s Super Bowl commercials, which were the (and most expensive) I’ve seen. Steve Kopcha taught me some rules with how to create a TV commercial, now I’m going to teach all of you who read my blog. Who knows, maybe some adman will stumble across this post and learn something new.
What A Commercial Needs
- A message.
- An idea how to get that message across.
Before you write:
- What’s your big idea you want to get across?
- What’s the benefit of the big idea and whom does it benefit?
- How can you turn your benefit into a visual?
Turning the big idea into a script:
- Write a narrative.
- Put the narrative into script form.
- Read the script out loud and listen carefully.
- Revise, revise, revise.
- Length. Too long? Too short?
- Opening. Grabber opening?
- Main idea. Open on a main idea? Close on a main idea?
- Enough product?
- Enough visual?
Effective elements:
- Humor. Southwest Airlines.
- Slice of life. For All You Do, This Bud’s For You.
- Testimonials. Jessica Simpson and Proactiv.
- Demonstrations. Will it Blend?
- Problem/Solution. Alka-Seltzer.
- Talking heads.
- Characters. Charlie Tuna, Tony the Tiger.
- Reason why.
- News.
- Emotion. MasterCard.
Knowing how to make commercials is really frustrating because I don’t see enough of them made like the way my advertising degree taught. Maybe factors in our new era in advertising like digital marketing and our current rough economy will help bring it back to its fundamentals.
