Influential Marketing Blog

The 5 Ways Media Will Cover The Facebook IPO & Why We Really Care Anyway

The big news all day today is going to be the Facebook IPO - and of course you would expect the media to care. Lots of "virtual" money is going to be changing hands, there will be nonstop media coverage throughout the day. To help you navigate the coverage, I figured I would take a stab at segmenting it into the five media "takes" on the story that you will likely see throughout the day:

1. The "Social Media Is Too Shiny" Take: We are totally in the midst of a bubble and Facebook is the poster child for unfounded social media hype.
2. The "Zuck's A Genius" Take: Facebook has the biggest IPO ever ... let's all imagine Mark Zuckerburg celebrating with a cigar in his solid gold hot tub.
3. The Dangerous Future Take: In order really to succeed, Facebook will need to figure out privacy/leadership/usability/regulation/global warming/[insert issue here]
4. The "How High Can It Go?" Take: Why not turn the coverage into a predictive game and just have people predict the closing share price and when they should buy? My prediction, by the way, on www.facebookipodayclosingprice.com/ was $48 for a closing price of $ 120,638,935,248
5. The Facebook Will Save Us Take: And what kind of media coverage would be complete without the optimistic predictions about how Facebook will save California/entrepreneurship/ technology/social media/cute kittens in trees/etc.  

Of course, aside from the predictable media story lines is a question that I think should be more important to anyone with a marketing background ... why do we care so much? Only a fraction of us watching the coverage today will actually be in the market to try and purchase some shares, yet we will watch. Is it merely the historic size of the IPO? No, I think the real reason is something more fundamental. 

We all have a personal connection to Facebook. We all use it, and not just as a "user" of Coke drinks a can once in a while. We rely on it to manage many of our personal relationships and share our memories. Facebook is more than a social network, it is a utility - like water.

 And so for many people its IPO is as if someone put oxygen itself on the stock exchange and asked you to buy shares of it. You might not have enough money to participate, but you sure hope whoever does won't mess up the utility that you depend on.  

 

 

 

Yahoo's CEO And The Modern Believability Crisis

I don't actually have a degree in Irish Poetry. I share this because recently at a few events I may have mistakenly mentioned that I did. See, I studied English literature at Emory University in the late 90s. While there, I took exactly two elective classes specifically on Irish literature and as most people who study that field already know - Emory has one of the best collections of Irish literature and poetry in the world. So I did focus on Irish Poetry, but the degree that I earned in 1997 was a BA in English Literature. 

Why am I telling you all this?  Well, you can hardly blame me for getting more specific this week. As anyone watching the story of Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson stepping down because of accusations that he falsified his educational credentials knows - small exaggerations can become big controversies. The fact that it has become enough to cause the downfall of a newly minted CEO of a big brand like Yahoo says a lot not just about our watchdog media culture, but also about the most important weapon that your enemies have today to take you down ... the Internet.

The fact is, today most people are predisposed NOT to believe anything that a large company or one of its officers says - this is the modern believability crisis where people just don't trust in the institutions around them. In this low trust world, if the media and blogs report that a CEO claimed to have earned a degree he didn't, people believe it without question. Why shouldn't they?  After all, they don't know him personally. But what if they did? 

What if you did? Would Thompson's resume gaffe still have been as big a deal?  I started this post by confessing the truth about my education to you. I didn't mean to lie to anyone. When I tell people I studied Irish Poetry, it is the truth. But I didn't earn a piece of paper that says that, so technically I tok . While you are considering whether or not you feel misled by my exaggerated claim - consider this question as well: what if Thomson had his own platform such as a blog to clear the air and tell his story in his own voice?
 

The fact is, as we live in a world where people believe fewer and fewer messages associated with corporations, the only real solution is to find a more human way to make connections. We believe the people that we know and like - whether they happen to be CEOs of big brands or marketing bloggers. It may also be the best recent argument for every CEO to start their own blog - or at least their own personal platform to talk directly to the people they manage and those who are influenced by them. 

 

Why I Don't Want You To Buy Likeonomics (And This Isn't A Marketing Trick)

A few days ago I got the first shipment of my new book Likeonomics to my house. Right now the book is sitting in front of me and I really want to ask each of you to go out and buy it - but I can't. In fact, it really helps me if you DO NOT buy it yet - and the reason why explains a lot about the nature of timing, business, and what is broken with the publishing industry itself.

Book sales, like movie sales, are reported on a weekly basis through a reporting system called called Bookscan. The Bookscan number is a key factor in helping to determine which books make "the lists" (NY Times Bestseller List and WSJ Bestseller list, among others). Hitting any of these lists for a new book is a chance to build momentum ... which is a real and important currency in the fast moving world of publishing where there is ALWAYS a newer book than yours being released.

Likeonomics officially launches on May 22nd. That is the date that it will physically be in bookstores, and I will be doing many of my media interviews. It is considered the "on sale" date in the industry. And the way that the publishing industry measures success means that if you happen to buy the book the week of May 20th (launch week), it matters more. In fact, it matters A LOT MORE ... because that number resets every week.

I realize that most authors don't really talk about this fact of the industry. So why am I tell you all this? One of the core beliefs of Likeonomics is that there is a real currency to unexpected honesty. It is why I told the story of the "Making of Likeonomics" several weeks before it was even out. I believe that if I don't hide my motivation from you, and share it openly - I can build trust, because I'm not trying to trick you.

Would I LOVE if you bought the book at any time? Definitely. But if you don't mind waiting, buying the book on May 22nd means a lot to me. I will also have a few amazing special offers and incentives available on that date for people who do buy it then, including loads of free content and a few giveaways.  And don't worry, if you have already bought the book, I'll make sure you get access to those offers too!

In the meantime, here are a few links that I hope will help you start to get a sense for what the book is about - and ways to get in touch with me:

1. Download a 42 page excerpt from the book >
2. Watch the "Making of Likeonomics" presentation >
3. Learn about exclusive bulk order options* >

*I have some fairly unique bulk order special offers, including a few things (like 1 on 1 advice sessions and custom webinars) that I have never openly offered to anyone before. If any of that sounds of interest, visit the link above or send me an email at likeonomics@gmail.com and I'll happily share more information about that.

Thanks, as always, for reading and considering supporting Likeonomics on the week of May 21st!

5 Marketing Lessons From Uber (The World's Best Travel App)

Several weeks ago I was standing on a street corner in New York. (This is not the sentence I thought I'd start this post with, but go with me ...) After unsuccessfully trying to hail a cab, I decided to try out an app I had heard about called Uber. I had heard it was useful for those kinds of situations. From the moment of signup - a process which took way less time than I expected, to the actual act of immediately booking a car and heading happily on my way to LaGuardia Airport just 15 minutes later - the experience transformed my NY trip. Experience itself is getting lots of great media attention for solving a big problem in the taxicab experience - but what was particularly interesting for me, of course, was the marketing lessons their successful experience can offer. Here are five big lessons you can learn from Uber:

1. Simplify mobile signups. I hardly ever sign up for any kind of service on my phone, because typing on a touch screen is such a pain. Unfortunately, when signing up for Uber, I was literally standing on a street corner and had no choice. The app seemed to be designed for exactly that. They only captured the most important and basic details, and let me take a photo of my credit card to scan in the number (instead of having to type it). Every app and signup process should do this one simple thing.
2. Add fun to necessary waiting. After I requested a pickup, the app confirmed that I had a driver ... but it didn't stop there. As I was waiting, the app showed a Google map image of where I was and where my car was. Then I could track my car's progress in real time as it drove to meet me. Sure I was checking email and Twitter while waiting, but it was actually fun (yes fun!) to watch that car coming closer and closer until it arrived exactly as the map predicted. No empty hoping that every next car would be mine. The entire experience was stress free.
3. Give people useful data they didn't ask for. After my trip, I received an email with my final total cost for the trip and a receipt. This was what I expected. What I didn't expect was that they also told me exactly how long my journey had taken, how many miles we traveled (which is how they calculate the fare) and what the average speed was that whole time. I definitely didn't need that information, but somehow I was still glad to have it.
4. Make rating a two way street. When your journey finishes, you have the chance to rate your driver - which is nice. What you don't expect is that your driver also has a chance to rate you. So now karma has a real rating system, and it penalizes you for being an a-hole to your driver, if you happen to be that kind of person. That's how the world should work, and people should get rewarded or penalized for how they treat other people, so I love this. Not to mention that it finally gives drivers some way to be part of that rating conversation as well.
5. Don't apologize for excluding some people. The app has been criticized for its focus on urban city dwellers and price point that makes it about 50% more expensive than taxis, if not more. But this criticism also means that they have a clear picture of who their target audience is ... a consumer who doesn't mind paying more for the reliability and comfort of a clean black sedan that shows up exactly when you expect it.

All of these together make Uber probably my favourite new app ... and marketing story to offer lessons to each of us no matter what we are trying to promote.

Greensurfing - The Rise Of Voluntary Social Media Jealousy

The idea that Facebook causes jealousy isn't new.  A study back in 2009 essentially demonstrated that romantic relationships were often suffering from jealousy induced by Facebook.  The same study is still being referenced today. Unfortunately, there are a few signs that this is becoming a much bigger trend than something driven by the insecurity of dating.

For the first time in human history, there is a place where any of us can go to be surrounded by only good news. Despite the troubles in the world, or your personal struggles - Facebook offers a nearly pain free bubble. Every status update is filled with friends getting married, colleagues finding their dream job, kids getting a new puppy and people sharing their vacation in real time. After all, how many people really share moments of desperation or loneliness, or just the ordinariness of their lives on Facebook?

In a world where we are only a few characters away from instantly experiencing the best moments in the lives of everyone around us, the bad news is that it makes us even more conscious of the normal and not-particularly-shareworthy times in our own lives. It leads to a new kind of voluntary social media jealousy. We start spending hours obsessing over what others are doing and comparing it endlessly to our own lives. How many times a day do you check your Klout score? What about waiting for Google Alerts with your name?  Or your blog ranking?

Greensurfing is a term to describe the time that many people choose to spend online "surfing" websites, social networks and conversations that cause them to feel more jealousy towards others for doing the things they wish they were (or could be) doing.

There are at 3 big reasons why I think this is becoming such a big behavioural trend:

1. Rankings are everywhere. No matter what you do online, there are plenty of free services to rank everything from your influence to your relative level of hotness. You are always being measured - just seconds away from someone slapping a rank or number on your back to define you.
2. People share good news more often. The simple face of social media is that people tend to share the good more often than the bad - so you end up with a warped sense of reality if you believe that people's lives are only as positive and happy as they share on Facebook.
3. Real time updates make it addictive. When your score or what people share is updated in real time, it makes watching the flow an addictive process. When the mobile phone chimes with a new update, you can't help but check it.

The biggest reason I thought about writing this post is that I am about to enter a greensurfing moment of my own - with my new book finally launching I know it will be hard for me to resist checking my Amazon Sales Rank constantly over the next several weeks. It is the ultimate comparison of your book (and yes, your popularity) against other Authors. And keeping it consistently high is almost impossible.

So what's my advice to conquer the impulse for greensurfing? I wish I could tell you I had the magic solution, but I don't. Awareness helps - just knowing that you are doing it can help you to change your behaviour. But at the end of the day, it doesn't have to be all bad. Check your online "score" on whatever platform matters to you. Enjoy your friends amazing life updates. But don't let your numbers define you. Klout scores are fine, just as long as they don't tempt you into to becoming a "Klouchebag." 

Image Credit: Facebook Breakup Image

The Ultimate Business Question: Are We Having Fun?

This weekend I found myself glued to a two hour piece of promotional television that I usually avoid desperately. The FOX network was having a special recap of their 25th Anniversary of producing entertainment programming. Amidst the 120 minute recap of over 140,000 hours of programming hosted by Ryan Seacrest (of course!) - there were a few moments when they brought actors of long running programs back into the studio and interviewed them.

In some cases, they created a "cast reunion" to bring actors back together (like the casts of In Living Color or Married with Children) while in others they just went and interviewed people about the characters they played (like Kiefer Sutherland from 24). From comedies like That 70's Show to dramas like The X-Files - the types of programs they looked back on were very diverse. But crammed into a short period of time, the thing that struck me was how every cast member was saying the same thing over and over as they recalled what made their shows great. Comedy or drama, on each of the successful shows what the actors pointed to was always the amazing fun that they had shooting with their fellow cast members. Success wasn't about changing the world or getting paid - it was all about the teams and people they worked with.

Perhaps that's not so surprising in the world of entertainment ... but consider how you might answer the same question if someone had an "anniversary special" where they asked you to think back over the highlights of your own professional career. Would you remember the annual profit margin that you achieved? Or the number of Facebook fans you were able to acquire within a month? Or what about the features of the new hit product that broke sales records back when you introduced it 5 years ago?

For most of us, the value of what we achieve can't be separated from the value of the people we achieved it with. In other words, you remember the people who were part of the ride with you. So the next time you look at the product you are selling or the service you need to promote - consider this often unasked question: are you having fun while doing it?  Having a great team or working environment may not be a necessity to do something great - but it certainly makes it more likely.  So whether you are the boss or just an employee, ask yourself what you are doing today that might show up on anyone's 25th anniversary highlight reel ... especially your own.

EXCLUSIVE: The True Story Of The Making Of Likeonomics

This is an exclusive presentation I just launched which will take you behind the scenes of my new book, give you a sneak peek at the new website which I'll be launching on Monday, and details on how to download your FREE EXCERPT from the book.  Check it out:

The Making of Likeonomics - How To Sell And Write A Book

View more presentations from Rohit Bhargava

How Case Studies Can Set You Up To Fail

My life would be a lot easier if I loved case studies. After all, they are all around me. In our agency, we produce case studies for our most successful work. Clients share case studies of previous work or industry standards with us all the time. In the educational world case studies are plentiful, and the majority of "practical" marketing and business courses are built entirely on using them to teach principles. So why don't I love them like so many of my peers do?

It's not that I don't believe you can learn a lot by studying other industries and other campaigns. But when it is packaged into a typical "case study" format, there are a few common problems that arise:

1. People are often not good at self diagnosing what worked well and what didn't, and case studies are often not written by the same people who executed a strategy either - which results in second hand information.
2. Case studies mostly focus on the positive or successful, but often we learn most from failures. Have you ever seen or written a "case study" on something that failed?  We need to see more case studies of what didn't work so we can learn from failure as well as success.
3. They are often written in a siloed way - looking only at individual channels (such as social or advertising or PR) and missing the broader point of integration and how it contributed heavily to their success in the first place.
4. The core behavioural insight is often missing in reports and case studies (ie - WHY did people respond to a particular message or approach as opposed to simply noting that they DID respond)
5. Results are often be presented in terms of numbers and volume does not necessarily proove effectiveness when it comes to actual impact achieved
6. Real first hand expertise is often missing because case studies may not be written by the person or people with the most direct knowledge of why something worked or didn't.

So are traditional case studies useless? Not at all, but I think there are much better opportunities for learning in a different way. The most powerful way to learn in many ways is still a face to face experience with a person - and when you couple that with real engaging experts who are actually DOING great things, then you have the type of experience that can really offer the most valuable learning. 

That's why I'm thrilled to announce two events coming up that I've agreed to participate in as a speaker coming up very soon.  Both offer amazing opportunities to go beyond the case study and learn something real and actionable from experts who are actually doing real and amazing work:

WOM Crash Course (Austin - May 10, 2012)

The one thing I know for sure is that Andy Sernovitz knows how to put on a great word of mouth learning event. He and his team remain unromanced by the allure of just focusing on social media ... which means this event is one of those unique moments when you will learn how to ACTUALLY create great word of mouth by using social media along with lots of other tools. From his unique format of having only real practioners present to his unique lunchtime sessions where six authors all show up to simply have conversations (no powerpoints allowed!), attendees always rave about this event. If you want to join us in the great city of Austin, just leave a comment on this post for a 25% off registration discount code - and the first 2 readers to comment will receive 50% off registration!

Corporate Social Media Summit (New York - June 13-14, 2012)

The fact that I have worked with the Useful Social Media events team for the past 3 years and agreed to speak or moderate sessions at multiple events for them is evidence of one thing: this team knows how to put on a great learning event. What sets the Corporate Social Media Summit apart is their laser focus on social media for big brands. If you work at a large organization trying to plan for using social media at an enterprise level, this event is for you. The speakers are all from big brands (just look at the agenda!) and the conference stays far away from any fluff or vendor pitches. In the past, the hallway conversations from attendees learning from one another have been just as powerful. To get a 10% discount on registration, use the code "OGILVY10"

Whether I was participating in both or not - I highly recommend trying to make it to one or both of these events. Hope to see you there!*

*There is also chance that all attendees of one or both events will get free copies of my new book Likeonomics!

How Whiskey Inspired The Making Of Likeonomics

The "fourth best island in the world" (according to National Geographic) isn't warm and rarely sunny. Yet the Isle of Skye is a celebrated part of Scotland and a popular tourist destination. If you ever happen to find yourself traveling there, one of the most popular places on the island is a unique distillery that produces some of the world's finest whiskey: the Talisker Whiskey Distillery. 

Though it has been more than a decade since I first visited there, I can still remember the tour that I took. A few months ago heading through the duty free store at an airport, the memory of that experience inspired me to purchase a bottle to take home. I do love a good drink ... but when I drink from a bottle of Talisker, it is still a different experience. And it doesn't have anything to do with how it tastes, or how it is aged, or what kind of barrels they use.  In part, I love the whiskey because I've been to where it was made.  

The reason it matters is a powerful one, and it explains a lot more than my love of one brand of scotch. There is a reason that Zappo's has a standing offer to pick up any of their customers from their hotel in Las Vegas and bring them out to their headquarters for a tour. It is the same reason that Intel has a museum on their main campus in Palo Alto. The more personal connections you have to something, the more likely you are buy or recommend it to someone else. Personal experience matters.  

This, in a nutshell, is the strategy behind a pretty unique virtual web chat that I am going to be hosting on April 19th called the "Making of Likeonomics." I partnered with a company called Shindig to use a brand new virtual chat platform to create an introduction to my new book that goes beyond your usual webinar.  

Using a two way video session (where you can see me and interact directly from your browser without any downloads or signups required), I will take participants through my process for actually researching and writing Likeonomics. Here are just a few of the things you'll learn:

• Why you should write a book (and why you shouldn't!)
• How to come up with a big idea for a book
• Who really came up with the title Likeonomics (hint: it wasn't me!)
• What it takes to sell a book to a big publisher (and why you should or shouldn't)
• Do's and don'ts of research
• Mapping your story flow and chapter outline
• How to produce quality writing (it's different from writing a blog post!)
• Pitfalls of book writing and what I struggled most with
• Working with an editor (and picking a good one!)
• How to build a content based marketing strategy
• And anything else you'd like to know about writing, marketing and publishing a book ...

Whether you have ever aspired to write a book yourself, you are already a published author, or you just want to hear the real and whole truth about the ups and downs of being an author and writing a book ... this event is my chance to take you behind the scenes and answer all of your questions. I want to build a personal connection by giving you an unfiltered and VERY personal look at Likeonomics, directly from my home office where I worked to write it.

As a bonus EVERY REGISTERED PARTICIPANT WILL GET AN EXCLUSIVE EXCERPT OF THE BOOK (whether you manage to make it to the LIVE virtual conversation or not). In case this event looks interesting, I would love for you to register here (the event is completely FREE):

Registration Link: http://makingoflikeonomics.eventbrite.com

There may even be a guest appearance of some Talisker Whiskey. So now you really don't have a reason not to join me! :-)

 

5 Insights From The 2012 Social Media Marketing Industry Report

Earlier this morning the team at SocialMediaExaminer.com released their annual report on the state of Social Media Marketing. Based on the responses of over 3800 surveyed marketers, the report offers an interesting look at how businesses are using social media to grow and promote their businesses. As with any surveys of this type, you have to remember that the people who responded are already a self selected audience of business owners who care about social media.  So it's not surprising when the survey reports that "94% of respondents indicated they are employing social media for marketing purposes."

Still in reading over the report, there were several conclusions that I took from reading between the lines that I found interesting for anyone who is grappling with the challenge of how to effectively integrate social media into their marketing. 

1. Marketers are overly focused on measurement and not concerned enough with strategy.

In perhaps the most telling section of the report, marketers were asked about the "top 10 social media questions they want answered."  Coming in at #1 was all about measurement. All the way down at a sad #6 was strategy. In a nutshell, this is the reason why so many businesses struggle to describe the value they see from social media. If you focus on how to measure what you're doing without having a good strategy for WHY you're doing it - you've already failed. 

2. The lines between "social" and "non-social" are misunderstood and don't depend on platform.

Late in the report, marketers were also asked about how they will change "non-social marketing" in the future. Search engine optimization, event marketing and webinars were all on the list of "non-social" marketing. One problem with this is that a webinar featuring a live Q&A is inherently more "social" than a Twitter feed used only to blast out messages. The truth is, being "social" with your marketing has little to do with the platform you choose, and more to do with how you choose to use it. 

3. Great writing and video production skills are still undervalued. 

For all the buzz about content marketing, many businesses still undervalue the importance of actually being good at content creation. Not everyone can write or produce compelling video. Today more than ever, there should be a premium for marketers who are gifted writers and producers. The ones who can craft an engaging message in as little as 140 characters. Or do an in depth blog post that will be relevant for more than just a few hours. Simply committing to produce more crap video or hastily written blog posts will no longer be enough. When content is a commodity, quality content is king.

4. "Social" businesses don't do daily deals (or at least they don't admit to it).

Daily deals did not fare well in the survey, as "more than 72% of marketers have no plans to use daily deals." Also reported in the survey was the dismally low number of only 12% of marketers planning increase their use of sites like Groupon or LivingSocial. Marketers who responded to this survey on SocialMediaExaminer.com are typically social media savvy. More than any other result, I think this distaste of daily deals is definitely overstated as plenty of less social media savvy businesses are still actively using these sites to drive sales and exposure. 

5. Platforms still drive interest, but integration should be the ultimate goal.

The survey overall offered a lot of insights into the platforms that marketers were interested in using. For the second year in a row, YouTube/video was the "top area where marketers plan on increasing their efforts." In addition, Google+ and Pinterest were both hot platforms that marketers wanted to learn more about. Almost nowhere in the entire survey did any marketers highlight the challenge or importance of integration across all of these disparate platforms. That is already a huge challenge and one that I believe will continue to grow this year. 

The full report was just published this morning and is now available for FREE download until April 19th at http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/social-media-marketing-industry-report-2012/