There’s no questioning that the pace of digital technology (and indeed, its subsequent adoption by consumers) means that each year, digital practitioners and marketing types face a new set of channels, mediums, challenges and of course, possibilities..

 Whilst I am loathe to add to the glut of run-of-the-mill, obvious ‘digital predictions’ currently swilling around the Internet’s waters (especially given we’re now well into January already!), I feel compelled to jot down my thoughts on the digital year ahead. 

In no particular order, here is what I envisage the digital landscape to consist of in 2012, providing the Mayans weren’t right and we’re not all doomed of course…

 1. Mobile

 Mobile is one of those mediums that seems to crop up in these ‘prediction’ lists annually now, but 2012 really will be different.  There’s absolutely no question that the advent of smartphones has triggered a fundamental shift in how society communicates with brands and each other, as well as with the world around them.

 Sources vary, but latest figures put UK smartphone ownership at around 36% of the adult population, up from 27% from August 2011 – and this will only continue to grow in 2012.  Add this to the fact that consumers are becoming more mobile-savvy (40% now know what a QR code is) and using mobiles when shopping and you quickly realise that we’re on the cusp of some big things for the medium. 

 What does this mean for marketing communications?  Quite simply, the ability to reach our target audience with timely locations in the geographical locations we deem effective.  This could be product information, conversion tools, offers or CRM information.  But the advanced nature of mobile phones, coupled with the increasing adoption of mobile internet and geo-location services spells big things for the mobile future.

 2. Social CRM

 Thankfully, the social media debate has (seemingly) finally been put to bed.  It’s here, it’s lasted, it’s not a fad and its benefits are clear for even the most ardent sceptic to see.  However, businesses are still looking for ways to quantify their investment and maximise their efforts – and why not?

 Social media analytics packages are now reaching advanced levels and social media’s integration with other digital channels (e-commerce, websites etc.) has allowed businesses to see the value in joined-up strategic execution.  So the question is no longer ‘should we do social media’ but rather ‘how well do we do it’?

 In 2012, I believe that more and more businesses will start analysing their social media activity and joining up the dots on a consumer’s digital journey.  We can collect rich data from consumers through their digital activity, whether mobile, online or indeed, on social media, so working out ways to offer intrinsic value to these customers and segment them through social networks remains a powerful concept – and one that we will see integrated into business in 2012.   

 3. Augmented Reality

 I believe that 2012 will also be a hugely exciting year for augmented reality.  Whilst digital marketing geeks such as myself have been bouncing around with excitement at the possibilities of AR for a few years now, it’s only literally in the last few months that we have seen working examples wheeled out to the public in high-profile marketing campaigns.

 Just as 2011 saw consumers starting to engage with QR codes that brands sprinkled liberally on every press ad and piece of packaging they could, 2012 will see consumers starting to engage with augmented reality executions.

 For a young technology, I believe that the coming 12 months will see the majority of AR provide ‘brand theatre’ and add some fun, excitement and innovation to marketing campaigns.  It’s a fantastically creative medium and one that holds limitless possibilities for marketing campaigns, making AR a big thing to watch in 2012.

 ***

 So there we have it – I could list plenty of other areas I believe 2012 holds big things for, but shall stop (for now) at these three core examples. 

 Every year in digital is fast-paced, challenging, fun and packed with learnings, opportunities and incredible executions – and 2012 will be no different.

What do you think?  Do you agree with my list?  Have I missed anything?  Leave your comments below!

Although Goffman’s lauded name has become synonymous with this sociological concept, this is a theme that has run throughout history. Plato spoke of the ‘stage of human life’, whilst Shakespeare penned the pertinent phrase “all the world is a stage, and all the men and women merely players”.

It’s now 2011 and with the advent of social media, the concept of displaying ourselves on a stage has become more pertinent than ever before. We live in a world that is permanently switched-on; ever-connected. Sharing all aspects of our lives, from big news such as engagements and pregnancies to banal trivia such as what we are watching on TV, sharing on the social stage has become very much de rigeur.

With over 600,000,000 active users, Facebook has rapidly risen in less than a decade to become arguably one of the biggest ‘stages’ in modern life. Our social circles are no longer limited to close friends we see regularly; instead we can now ‘perform’ to old school ‘friends’ (I use the term loosely), casual acquaintances and old work colleagues as part of an ever-increasing audience viewing multiple ‘stages’.

But over the past two years, social media marketing has also made significant strides, with brands and businesses seeping osmotically into our online lives. The updates we receive from friends and family are now intertwined with communications from retailers, car companies, food brands, charities and local restaurants – in short, anyone that we actively choose to ‘like’.

Whilst recent research shows that many users are motivated to ‘like’ brands and businesses for the chance to win prizes and receive exclusive discounts, research has also started to highlight the growing trend in ‘liking’ brands in order to visibly display association with that brand to a peer network on social media channels.

This form of ‘display to convey’ is nothing new: take coffee tables adorned with meticulously arranged ‘high-brow’ literature / magazines; t-shirts adorned with branded logos; carrier bags displaying which shops we have just frequented. All around us, we display our consumer preferences through related collateral, be this actual or aspirational.

And this age-long trend has continue into the social sphere. Whether it’s using geo-locations to ‘check-in’ at a trendy bar or ‘liking’ a fashionable brand on Facebook (Apple, Aston Martin, Tag Heur et al), we are now sharing more and more of our consumer choices with a much wider audience. Why?

I conducted some research in various LinkedIn groups, asking the question, “Why do you click ‘like’ on a brand’s Facebook page?”, which threw up (amongst others) the two following responses:

“I already feel a big connection with the brand and want to let people know I like it.”

“The reason I did [like a page] was much more related to the identification I have with the brand rather than a special feeling […] they are a reference for me.”

Even from these two ad hoc quotes, we can glean that social media users (which in 2011, comprises the vast majority of us) are building, constructing and displaying their chosen ‘identities’ on one of the world’s biggest stages. Humans have always desired to display a side to themselves, be it status, wealth or sexuality – however the advent of display in social media has given rise to what I call, the social peacock.

I’m not for one moment claiming that this is the sole reason for consumers to ‘like’ a brand’s page. As previously stated, material incentives such as prizes and discounts are huge ‘like-drivers’. Social channels have opened up another level to customer service, with dedicated teams on Twitter, Facebook and Skype becoming standard practice for companies in the Utilities sector.

But for many social media users, ‘liking’ brands has become a way to collect badges and trophies that speak about them as a person; it allows them to project a desired image of themselves and their life choices. Like it or not, we live in a global economy driven by capitalism, and much of our perceived identity is intrinsically linked to the brands (as opposed to products) that we consume.

Who knows what the future may hold, especially since one of the rising trends in social media is the focus on local communities and niche ‘pockets’ of users sharing niche interests. But for now, clicking ‘like’ on a brand’s Facebook page remains very much a way of conveying choice, status and image – and marketers would do well to ensure that ‘social peacocks’ are one of the key groups they focus on.

The premise of the BeKnown app is simple: provide a professional networking platform within the most popular social network platform in the world, making professional use of your ‘friends’ and their connections.  Put simply, Monster is attempting to recreate LinkedIn within Facebook.



The accompanying promotional material claims that being able to use Facebook for both personal AND professional networking provides users with the convenience of having one place in which to conduct all their digital networking – and I can certainly see this.

Those who fear mixing their personal, private selves with a professional persona need not worry; BeKnown only allows connections to see the information contained within the actual application, thus avoiding exposing your professional contacts to photos of your boozy stag do in Blackpool.

So in theory, a comprehensive professional app within Facebook’s walls sounds like a great way to network with professionals and utilise your friends’ networks too, right?  I have my reservations.

As a digital marketer, I know from first-hand experience how challenging it is to change customer behaviour and pertinently, I believe that BeKnown is attempting to do just that.  Despite Facebook’s position as THE poster boy for social media, LinkedIn is by no means a small player, with over 150m members.  LinkedIn has grown organically over the last few years to become the de facto place for job seekers, networkers and recruiters to engage in professional activity.

Which leads me onto my second point: if we are to successfully change consumer behaviour, then we need to offer compelling reasons to do so – and as yet, BeKnown offers nothing different to LinkedIn.  I understand that these are very early days, but everything appears to be a carbon copy of LinkedIn, for example ‘Endorsements’ instead of ‘Recommendations’; ‘connections’, ‘experience’ etc. – there’s no dynamic unique selling point that makes me think, ‘wow, I NEED to be on BeKnown!’

Finally, BeKnown offers a ‘gamification’ element, with the issue of badges for certain tasks.  Gamification has become prevalent in social media society – apps such as Foursquare and GetGlue allow users to ‘compete’ with each other for points and badge unlocks, conveying social prestige and social currency.  But in professional terms, this aspect has been relatively untested.  One could argue that issuing users with ‘stickers’ for various professional achievements could in fact ‘cheapen’ those feats.

It’s very early days yet, and Monster seems to have invested a lot of work into a slick, well-functioning app.  However, asking users to completely change their behaviour and switch their allegiance from a very established professional platform in LinkedIn to Facebook, which has traditionally been focused on the personal rather than the professional, could be tricky indeed.

Only time will tell…

Back in 1995, cult English ‘trip hop’ act Portishead released the single ‘Glory Box’, a song in which lead singer Beth Gibbons continually begged the question:

“Give me a reason, to love you.”

This is a beautiful song on a seminal album, especially to someone of my generation.  But what does this melody have to do with social media, and more pertinently, check-in apps such as Foursquare?

Well, just like Beth Gibbons, social media users also need ‘a reason’ to check-in; yet so few businesses and brands are giving anyone that elusive reason.

Since I’ve been using Foursquare, I’ve amassed a whopping 929 check-ins, held down plenty of mayorships (currently 10) and earned 15 ‘badges’:

Yet despite all of this fervent checking-in, I’ve received no tangible ‘value’ whatsoever.

Why?

I read with interest today that Foursquare has just signed a deal with American Express that will offer users discounts when they check into places and use their Amex card – BINGO!!!  Here we have actual motivation to check-in!!

Since the accounts will be synched with the users’ Amex accounts, marketers will also be able to see how many people are checking-in and where, what they are purchasing and how much they are spending, providing some tangible ROI and insightful analytics.

Hopefully this is just the start.  Mobile is THE future, yet remains very much entrenched in the present, when there is so much that could be achieved:

• Greater in-store interaction through the use of QR codes to further research products?
• Check-in to receive exclusive vouchers?
• Review a product / store on Foursquare to receive an exclusive product?
• Affiliate deals for local communities, e.g. ‘since you’ve checked in at Bob’s Boutique, you can get a £1 coffee at Sheila’s Slurps next door’?

I’m truly excited about the mobile space, especially the potential it has to make shopping a more social experience.  But just as Portishead sang all those years ago, for mobile check-ins to be a marketing success, applications have to offer consumers ‘a reason’ – and good ones at that.

Here’s Portishead’s classic ‘Glory Box’ – enjoy!

When I graduated back in 2004, I took a job in the local HMV so that I could continue living in London.  Back then, HMV still held a considerable amount of subcultural capital: it was a great music shop that stocked great swathes of albums rather than simply selling piles of £3 DVDs as it does today.

For my interview, I had to sit down and discuss my musical, film and gaming passions, before taking a mini exam that asked questions on everything from The Beatles to Alfred Hitchcock.  As you can clearly see, HMV invested in its people: it wanted its workforce to be knowledgeable, passionate advocates who could talk authoritatively to customers about the entertainment world.

When working on the shop floor or behind the till, I would enjoy chatting to customers about their purchases and suggesting similar albums or films that I thought they would like.  One of the best things in that job (apart from great colleagues and a heft discount!) was when a customer would come in and thank you personally for the recommendation you had made for them, because they enjoyed it so much.

These customers would often become familiar with me – we’d chat about their plans for the weekend, what they were up to and always take the conversation back to shared musical and cinematic passions.

So how does this come back to social media?

Well, a great many people are continuing to peddle tired marketing messages out through dynamic new social media channels.  A great many people believe that talking about your brands is the only thing you should be talking about on your social media channels.  And in my humble opinion, this is wrong.

Take the following quote from an excellent AdAge article this week:

“As it turns out, many people in social networks don’t want to talk about your product, they just want to talk.”

Social media is fundamentally about building relationships with customers – plain and simple.  Just like old-school HMV staff, marketers should be tapping into customers’ passions, talking to them about their lives and making themselves relevant.

The entire ethos of social media is in its name – ‘social’.  If people wanted to listen to you go on and on incessantly about your products, they’d probably subscribe to your mailing list…

Of course, marketers are on social channels to increase brand exposure, increase sales and provide a customer service function.  But just like my chats with customers in store all those years ago, remember that you’re dealing with real people and we need to take an interest in their passions AND the fact that they are real people.

“In the past, big brands held the advantage with traditional media: bigger budgets, esteemed ad agencies, impressive websites, and large sweepstakes.  Now in the social era, even the smallest of businesses can find success and achieve incredible gains without a single ad spend.”

And you know what?  He’s absolutely right.

We think of social media as a ‘game changer’, when in fact, the game is exactly the same.  It’s the playing field that’s changed, or, to be more precise, has been levelled.

Game on.

I’ve long been a fan of Sony’s advertising, especially when the Playstation 2 was launched, ushering in a fantastic series of eerie and creative adverts.

In creating some buzz around the forthcoming Sony tablets, the electronics giant has produced a teaser that is typically nebulous, ethereal and creative.

It’s clearly a fantastic short video, and I’ve no doubt that the tablet will sell hundreds of thousands of units.  But am I the only one who thinks that the brand has completely ripped off Honda’s award-winning creative?

However, this fantastic ad for Everlast Boxing equipment, produced by Euro RSCG in Germany to promote boxing / the brand’s health benefits, shows just how powerful a simple idea can be.  It certainly packs a punch.

Erik has produced an updated yet totally new video for 2011 – as always, wow.

Enjoy

It’s interesting to see how different brands, different businesses and different sectors are employing this need to engage with their customers.  This weekend, I visited Tesco as usual to carry out the weekly food shop, when the following piece of in-store signage caught my eye:

This signage struck me for a number of reasons:

i) It blurs the boundaries between the offline shopping experience and online engagement.  Supermarkets have traditionally bombarded us with in-store signage in order to tempt us with special offers and multi-buys.  However, this piece of advertising clearly goes beyond that and considers the shopper long after they have left the store.

ii) The QR code is a nice touch – it allows smartphone users to access more information (and thus, engage more deeply) with the brand right there and then.  My only criticism is that the social media handles are not signposted clearly for those who do not use QR codes – an ‘@Tesco’ for example would allow customers to search specifically when they got home.

iii) There is an opportunity for genuine two-way interaction and engagement – customers are asked to submit their own recipe and get involved with Tesco’s new venture, the Real Food TV show.

iv) The platform on Facebook itself is innovative, dynamic and adds value, offering a place to compile and view recipes.  Not only is this a nice tool in itself, but it offers clear potential for several repeat visits.

v) It ties in with Tesco’s key business – the app details food that is ‘in season’ etc., providing a clear call-to-action for consumers to return back to the store and spend money.

In a previous post, we saw how Facebook’s marketers are talking about the new cycle of social engagement, and this piece of social marketing activity adheres to each step in that cycle:

AWARENESS: In-store signage
INTEREST: Competition mechanic and recipe feature
DECISION: QR codes and social channels visited
ACTION: Interaction with the application online
RECOMMENDATION: The ability to share / tweet tool with friends

Engagement is not solely the preserve of social media channels, as we saw in my recent ‘Social Media is a Budweiser Bottle’ blog post.  Social media undoubtedly acts as the platform in which brands can engage consumers more deeply than ever before, but successful brand engagement is an integrated phenomenon.

And this first-class example from Tesco highlights how the offline and online channels are becoming ever more intertwined.