GEN WOW: The Latest In Digital Marketing, from the Author of BRANDING UNBOUND, and THE ON-DEMAND BRAND

Forever 'Young': Evian's 'Roller Babies' Top Viral Video This Week

At least according to Visible Measures, which says the video got twice the viral play as Michael Bay's Victoria's Secret spot.

The Evian effort, which is actually six month's old - and has seen more than 14 million views in total so far - is part of the brand's "Live Young" campaign. Not sure I would have thought quite this young, but consumers appear to think the the effort is as fresh as ever, even after all these many months.

Read more, here.

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And Motorola Goes A-Twitter, Too, For Android

Trident Layers gum isn't the only offline brand running offline advertising evoking social media. Full page ads appearing The New York Times and others today tout Motorola's Droid phone, and is essentially a testimonial ad featuring Twitter, Facebook and other quotes culled from everything from the digirati to everyday people. 

Most of the missives are just what you'd expect them to be. Others are just kind of sadly indicative of the soc-net age. When Facebook is said to be a factor in 1 out of every 5 divorces, we should expect posts like these: "I spend so much time with my Droid my girlfriend calls it my mistress," and "I love my Droid more than my kids, more than my husband. It is my fantastic digital photo album, it is my wifi anywhere I want to go browser/email/facebook/news/weather/on demand connection. And I hear that it is a pretty nifty phone, too."

Oh well. I like the "on-demand" part, anyway (look right below this line to find out why)!

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Trident Goes All Twitter On Us, To Mixed Effect (And Media)

As the ad says, "The People Have Tweeted."

But does chewing gum really need to be a social media experience?

As I write in my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND (AMACOM, April, 2010), Sure, you can go to the Facebook page of Tide 2X Ultra Tide Detergent and share your "favorite places for stain-making moments." Or you can even visit the soc-net fan page Quaker Oats, and its unintentionally funny tagline "Go human, go."

You could also poke yourself in the eye with a stick.

Nonetheless, Trident is mixing social media across platforms to varying effect. Print ads use twitter comments about the gum (the tweets are real, even if they don't seem like it), and there are Facebook, Flikr and YouTube experiences - as well as a QR experience that lets you connect with more content via mobile phone.

On the one hand it works - it's fun, it makes the brand "relevant," and it connects people to on-demand experiences around this new product offering, a kind of gum sandwich with "real" fruit flavor.

But it's also about gum. Try as marketers might, you're not going to create a lifestyle brand just by creating social media experiences.

But overall, this particular effort does do a good job of inserting the brand into digital age, and equating Trident Layers with such cutting edge brands as Apple, Twitter, and so on.

Will it work? Hard to tell right now.

But it's certainly something to chew on.

Read Frog Design's take on the campaign, here.

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My Exclusive Interview with ADWEEK's 'Creative Director of the Decade'

You'll want to check out my exclusive interview with Alex Bogusky, ADWEEK's Creative Director of the Decade, in my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND (AMACOM, April, 2010), which hits stores in April. Bogusky talks about his creative approach doing "whatever it takes" to make his clients famous in the digital age.

You'll also go behind the scenes with Derek Robson, managing partner of Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, ADWEEK's Agency of the Decade, as he talks about Goodby's efforts to reinvent itself for the on-demand era.

And you'll get the inside scoop on ADWEEK readers Super Bowl Spot of the Decade, "Free Doritos," from the guys who created it - and a whole lot more.

Okay, that's enough shameless self promotion for today.

Check out the book, here.

And check out ADWEEK's Best of the Decade report, here.

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'Chuck' It Out: NBC Launches New Social Media Game

It's called "Mission: Chuck Me Out." And it's designed to track users who mention the the show - NBC's "Chuck" on social media. And every mention earns the mentioner one point toward having his or her picture shown during one of Chuck's mental flashes.

If you have no idea what I'm talking about, never mind. To fans of the show - which returns January 10 (a fact that I'm a bit torn about, as I thought the Season 2 finale would have been the perfect way to end the series), its yet another way they can use soc-nets to support what is undeniably one of the most entertaining show nobody's watching.

Last year, an expansive online soc-net based campaign convinced Subway to sponsor the show, and for NBC to keep it alive for one more season.

Now, Twitter, Facebook and MySpace will once again be brought to bear for the Intersect.

And if you don't know what that means, either, go home. Or read more, here.

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Study: Female Shoppers Influenced By Social Networking

Most women in the united states now use social networking sites - and 50% of them say this involvement influences their shopping habits, according to the SheSpeaks Second Annual Media Study.

Facebook appears to be the most popular of the sites for women, while MySpace has plummeted in popularity - down 33% in one year. Twitter..exists..with 38% participation, v. a full 95% for Facebook.

Apparently, 50% of female social media users say they have purchased products based on reviews and information on soc-nets, and 40% say they have used coupon codes found there. 

Put it all together and you understand why gift retailer 1-800-Flowers has flocked to Facebook, is now plunging into actual e-commerce via soc-nets, instead of relying on links directly to its website.

Get the full scoop from MarketingVox, here.

In my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND (April 2010, AMACOM BOOKS), I look at some of these dynamics, and how they've driven soc-net based offerings from the likes of Sephora. Check it out, here.

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Lonely Planet Enters Augmented Reality

Travel brand Lonely Planet has teamed with Mobilizy to bring augmented reality to, well, augment, content in the Lonely Planet Compass guides. Now useful information about your surroundings, nearby landmarks and other points of interest will overlay the view in your Android camera phone, according to reports in Wired.

That means an all new way to experience cities like Boston, San Francisco, New York, Seattle, and more. 

Sure, as AD AGE points out to day, augmented reality is getting seriously over-hyped. It usually involves a download (lame!), is usually pretty glitchy, and even the most widely touted experiences (Esquire's Augmented Reality Issue) are underwhelming.

But that doesn't mean AR isn't going to be big. And the right ways to use it - in my view, mostly mobile - could open up all new opportunities for marketers.

Read more about the Lonely Planet initiative, here.

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Coke Zero Reveals Early Results for 'Facial Profiler' Facebook App

Just got word from Coca-Cola about early results for the Coke Zero Facial Profiler Facebook app. Yes, it's creepy and cool at the same time. And so far, it seems like the perfect match for Coke Zero's demo.

According to 360i, one of the companies behind the app, the stats so far: (a reader informs me that that it's actually Coke Zero agency Crispin that's behind the app):

• The app launched last week doubling the number of users in the first two days alone!

• Over 100,000 new images have been uploaded; over 100,000 votes have been cast

• The photos have an average accuracy at 58.78% and will only improve here by incorporating voter feedback

Try it yourself, here.

(I personally have been afraid to try!)

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'Avatar' XBox Live Goes Augmented Reality Route

I was just commenting that with Coke Zero's "augmented reality"-inspired "Avatar" cross-promotional TV spot that I hoped there would be actual augmented reality components to the movie's marketing efforts.

Now there is, with this AR-based element of the new Xbox game.

I hope there's more than this - this seems like the perfect movie for AR experiences - it appears someone in James Cameron's camp is on the same page - or floating off it, as the case may be.

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Justin Timberlake's 901 Silver Tequila Announces Winner of The Big Idea Contest

Here's a toast to Malachi Rempen, the aspiring filmmaker and Albuquerque native who has won 901 Silver's Big Idea Contest.

Justin Timberlake's popular tequila brand just sent me the announcement to Rempen's win, which means he'll get:

"A VIP trip to Las Vegas, including round trip airfare for two, hotel stay, two tickets to the Justin and friends concert, and VIP access to any and every party, an annual salary of $0 with a one time bonus of $25,000, the opportunity to get coffee for the other 901 employees and of course, bragging rights about being the Executive Vice President of Big Ideas for 901 Silver Tequila."

Rempen's entry, "Only One Way Your Night Should Begin," apparently wowed the judges.

"'Only one way your night should begin' demonstrated Malachi Rempen's understanding of the 901 Silver brand and the concept resonated with our panel of judges," said Kevin Ruder, 901 Silver President, in a statement.  "Anyone launching a new brand understands how challenging it is to get a product to resonate with consumers and we've enjoyed creating a forum for dialog with our target audience as well as an opportunity for our loyal consumers to demonstrate their creative abilities."

I'm actually not clear on how this is bringing a big idea to the brand - it was pitched as a way to present an idea for a new way to market the brad, v. just a user-generated TV-style commercial, but whatever. It's fun.

View the winning entry, here.

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Discovery's Australian 'Shark Week' Promo Has Bite

With apologies, to paraphrase an old beer commercial, "Shark" is Australian for fear.

While the US version of Shark Week hit in August with its popular "Frenzied Waters" advergame, summertime is just getting going in Australia.

And Discovery Network has decided to kick things off with this Australian Coastal Watch site featuring alarming satellite link showing sharks swimming right next to bathers at Bondi Beach (via Adverblog).

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Coke Zero Facial Profiler Launches - To Some Unexpectedly Hilarious Results

I've been so busy the last few days that I'm only now catching up with my email - which included a note from 360i about the official launch of the Coke Zero Facial Profiler that I posted about a few weeks ago, which finds people who look like you based on their Facebook photos. 

As 360i tells it, here's how the profiler works:

Using the industry’s most advanced facial profiling software, Facial Profiler will match you against the vast database of faces collected by Coke Zero (there are already over 105,000) to find your look-a-likes. Results will be delivered soon after, and you can then discover the details about your doppelgangers based on the privacy settings for their Facebook profiles.

Also, there is a fun feature called the “Match Bank,” where users will be able to rate which matches they think are the best. By combining human feedback into the Facial Profiler equation, this will help improve the accuracy of future matches.

I've posted in some of their matches here. As you can see, the technology seems to do a pretty good job.

But you'll find some hilarious (reportedly actual) matches here (I won't show it as some of the people will no doubt be embarrassed). 

On its face, some very interesting technology - and a fun social experience from Coke Zero.

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'Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore': 80's Band REO Speedwagon Rolls Out Advergame

80's rockers REO Speedwagon have teamed up with Curious Sense to roll out a new online video game to promote the band's new album, "Not So Silent Night: Christmas with REO Speedwagon."

Go ahead and re-read the title of that album and then we'll move on.

The game comes out today, and is titled "REO Speedwagon: Find Your Way Home." As longtime GEN WOW readers know, that in and of itself is nothing new. What's interesting here is the business and promotional model. As the New York Times reports, game buyers receive coupon codes for 25% off the holiday album. And this is indeed a paid game. It costs $8 each time you play the game, and each session can last as long as 10 hours (the first hour is free.)

“We build digital experiences beyond a typical Web site, which offer long, interactive times between the content and the consumer,” Adam Blumenthal, president and chief executive at Curious Sense in Durham, N.C., tells the Times.

In my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND (AMACOM, April 2010), I talk to Tim Zuckert, head of Shift Control Media, which has created online games like Coca-Cola's "Happiness Factory," who tells me that consumers will spend an average of 12 minutes with a branded game - far longer than they'll spend with just about any other form of marketing communications.

In REO Speedwagon's case, here's an advertisement that consumers don't just endure - they actually pay for the pleasure of spending up to 10 hours with the brand every time they play.

Which means that beyond the unlikely holiday album, the band is getting an early Christmas present.

Read more, here.

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'Iron Man 2' Gets Facebook, Game Action - Along With New Movie Poster

Marvel's "Iron Man 2" doesn't hit theaters until May, but the poster and other fanboy maneuvers are already taking the web by storm.

The Hollywood Reporter released the poster peak today (shown here)(I think that's War Machine behind the hero). And as I posted last summer, games related to the release are already big hits.

But what's really interesting is that while the movie's official site is feature sparse, the action over at the movie's Facebook fan page is hitting a fever pitch. With most brands sporting only 10 to 10,000 followers, and mostly big brands topping 1 million fans, the film's fan page has a respectable 436,540 fans.

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Muppets 'Bohemian Rhapsody' Viral Sensation: 7 Million Views In First Week

Not sure there's much to say here - except how amazing it is that the Muppets and a 30-year-old song can become relevant again so fast. Just one of those things that catches fire. 

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HP Sends Celebs Scaling Mt. Kilimanjaro to Raise Funds For Global Clean Water Crisis

HP's hoping to reach new heights with an ambitious, star-studded initiative designed to raise awareness and funds to fight the global clean water crisis.

Summit on the Summit is a project that will send music star Kenna, Jessica Biel, Elizabeth Dole and other celebrities, activists and notables climbing the 19,340 feet of Mt. Kilimanjaro. Along the expedition, the team will use HP computers to blog, tweet and post video about the ascent, all of which users can follow at the summitonthesummit.com website.

You'll want to check out the site, from Goodby and Number 9. It scales the height of Kilimanjaro to nice effect. During the climb, which begins January 7, users will be able to scale the mountain with the team, and check out video posts and other content based on the team's actual position.

Users can also buy gear and sponsor a foot of the climb to raise money to get clean drinking water to those in need. (Full disclosure: Our agency is working on facets of this campaign.)

Check it all out, here.

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MasterCard & Amazon: Peyton Manning & Alyson Hannigan Help Launch 'Priceless Gift Finder'

I'm mostly just surprised this isn't an iPhone app.

Stealing a page from Target's Holiday Gift Globe, MasterCard and Amazon have teamed up to launch The Priceless GiftFinder.

The site apparently helps you find gifts for folks, and the sequences begin by asking questions about whether the gift is "for a Facebook friend" or "a real friend." Just kidding. "For a friend who isn't on Facebook." I assume the first option uses data from the friend's profile.

You can enter a price range, gender, age, relationship to the recipient and phrases that best fit the recipient, such as "The Do-It-Yourselfer," "The Sports Fanatic," "The Pet Obsessed" and more. 

I guess this is one way to go. I think an iPhone app would have been more useful for those of us who, you know, don't plan ahead when it comes to holiday shopping. Then again, it's probably harder for MasterCard and Amazon to place the transaction through an iPhone app.

But I'm not totally convinced (yet, it's still early in the season) that this app rises quite to MasterCard's usual level of "priceless."

Start shopping yourself, here.

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Coke Zero Mines Augmented Reality In 'Avatar' Cross Promotion

Coke Zero - they of the Coke Zero Facebook Facial Profiler app - are mining the augmented reality wave  with a new commercial tied to James Cameron's new movie Avatar, which opens next month (if it can be completed in time.). Not sure if this is from Crispin, and I'm not sure if there's an actual AR experience tied to it yet. But I hope there will be.

In my new book, THE ON-DEMAND BRAND (Amacom/McGraw Hill, Spring 2010), I look at AR as an increasingly popular way to create engaging brand experiences for consumers. Prinz Pinakatt, head of interactive for Coca-Cola Europe, has some particularly insightful things to say about the future of AR in branding. You definitely won't want to miss it.

Find out more, here.

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Starbucks In The Name of 'Love': Less Holiday TV Ads, More Social Media

Starbucks is saying its big holiday push won't have much in the way of TV ads this year. Then again I don't remember ever seeing any Starbucks holiday ads in past years, either.

This year's efford does, however, include a large measure of "Love."

The coffee shop brand is partnering with Pandora to offer branded holiday playlists, and is encouraging consumers to come into stores with the offer of a free "All You Need is Love" CD, with tracks from U2, John Legend and the Dave Mathews Band, when the make a purchase of $15 or more. Otherwise known as a Frapuccino.

There's even some spirit to it: Starbucks will give $1 to Project Red's fight against Aids in Africa. Consumers can also go to StarbucksLoveProject.com to create a digital drawing using different paints and colors. For each of the first million drawings, Starbucks will donate $5 cents to Project Red.

"People are saying this is going to be a big year for social media and we're a microcosm of that," Chris Bruzzo, VP-brand, content and online at Starbucks, tells AD AGE.  "Whereas last year it was a curiosity, this year it's a core part of the program."

Word is they already have several thousand drawings, but this writing, the gallery of consumer drawings appears to be empty, at least when viewed through a Safari browser - and it's not clear how drawings are tied to Starbucks in any way, or what makes this particularly social, for that matter.

But it could be a nice, lighthearted way to get into the holiday spirit. Before you trek to the nearest Starbucks to buy that $15 coffee drink.

Read more, here.

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GEN WOW Radio: My Interview with Sangita Verma, CEO of TAG Networks

There are a lot of Silicon Valley CEOs you can describe as smart and visionary.

But how many can you also describe as warm, engaging and breathtakingly beautiful? 

Without a doubt, TAG NETWORKS CEO Sangita Verma is not your conventional chief executive. Then again, she’s delivering an unconventional – make that groundbreaking – new approach to reaching television viewers to marketers the world over.

I recently met Verma on a panel on games as a marketing platform that I participated in at Digital Hollywood. 

What I didn’t realize was that her little startup, which enables consumers to play games such as Tetris, Diner Dash, Texas Hold ‘Em Poker and others right on their television screen, has been quietly accomplishing something every major cable television network operator has been trying to do for years. Namely, enable marketers to target consumers at the specific individual level – not just the household level – via television.

Turns out Verma has raised over $35 million in venture capital because TAG, which she launched with colleagues Robert Craig and Cliff Mercer after successful stints at Atari and Midway Games, among others, could quite possibly be a game changer in television advertising.

On the one hand is the free, ad-supported network itself, which is running on Time Warner and another operator now, and could be on five cable networks by Q1 2010.

Users play games using the controls on their television remote controls as easily as flipping channels.  And it’s a compelling experience – one that can be played from the coach solo or via multi-player mode with friends at their own houses.

According to a recent test, 20% of cable subscribers on systems that carry TAG  interact with the channel at least once in a month. Nearly 75% of those players interact with the channel at least once a week, while a whopping 42% play every day.  And TAG attracts nearly as many players ages 35 to 50+ as it does those 13 to 17 or 18 to 34.

But here’s where it gets supremely cool. Users create profiles just like you do on console games, to keep track of top scores and for playing networked games. They’re asked to supply gender, a birth date and a zip code.

Future enhancements may include a “this or that” to fine tune the kinds of product advertising may be of interested to users.

But even now, it means ads can be targeted to specific individuals in a household – Dad getting ads for American Express while he plays Tetris, while his teenage daughter sees a trailer for “New Moon” while she plays Diner Dash. If something is of interest, the viewer can click through for more information or even place a purchase directly through the TV.

Six of the major cable operators have teamed up to create Project Canoe to do much the same thing – without much success so far. Here’s a tiny startup that’s doing it now in a way that brings value to consumers.

I recently sat down with Verma at her Mountain View, California offices to find out more. You’re going to want to hear the results TAG’s seeing on ad targeting.

TAG, YOU’RE IT: AN INTERVIEW WITH SANGITA VERMA, CEO OF TAG NETWORKS

(Approx 17:26)

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