“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead

On Saturday, October 17^th, Morphites went to PS 59 school in Brooklyn to spend the day volunteering for New York Cares Day. The site, which was also led by a Morpheus volunteer, is a school that encourages students to participate in their community at-large, either through student government, community service programs or voting on decisions that affect the school community on a regular basis. Together with two other companies, Morpheus volunteers helped beautify the school and encourage active learning. We were very excited to contribute to this event and kept our spirits up despite the weather conditions and intensive labor. However, despite the fun we had, nothing was more satisfying as the look on some students’ faces as they saw the results. We are already looking forward to next year.

In the current economic climate, charities and non-profits are adversely affected as strapped budgets and donors cut back on everything from dinners out to charitable giving. Not surprisingly, volunteerism often climbs during this kind of economy as people hope to give back in some way, even if they can’t financially. In the spirit of finding ways to give back, Morpheus Media wanted to find something that we could help with that would make a real impact on people’s lives in the immediate future. With summer vacations and sunshine re-focusing priorities for many people in the summer, blood donations sink to extremely low levels – especially this year with swine flu and the recession as many planned blood drives were canceled. So on September 8th some Morpheus Media employees literally “rolled up their sleeves” to help!

With some support from other offices in the building (much thanks to the 10th floor) and a few publishers – shout out to X+1, Context Web, and Adconian! – we successfully gave 20 pints of blood to the New York Blood Center in their blood donation van parked across from the office. After re-cooperating with some pizza, cookies and juice, all was well. And now that everyone knows whether or not they are eligible (and that those British among us are not), we hope to have an even more successful drive on November 30th! Glad we have an extra excuse to load up on Thanksgiving turkey to keep our iron levels high!

There is an infinite number of Social Networks that people flock to daily. Depending on your fancy, if you live in the U.S., then you might be a regular Facebook user, browse for videos on YouTube, and update your status on Twitter. However, around the world there are people on all different types of Social Networks and if brands restrict themselves to only Facebook and Twitter, they are missing the boat.

The ever-blossoming population of mothers online are engaging and playing on CafeMom and MeetUp.com. Hip young artists and emerging technology kids are often found utilizing Tumblr, iMeem, DeviantART, and searching for their daily videos at VideoSift and Vimeo. There is a Social Network for everyone and anyone. From Disaboom (an online community for people with disabilities) to Mobikade, (a mobile community for people in the U.K.) there are endless possibilities for people to interact with others who share similar interests.

Where do brands fit in to all of these Social Networks? That is where the Social Om ℠ theory comes into play. Om is defined as the whole universe coalesced into a single sound, representing the union of mind, body, and spirit that is at the heart (in this case of a brand).  Before jumping into the “chosen” networks, like Facebook and Twitter, brands should consider all networks that might apply to them and their consumer. Being present in all Social Communities that their customers are will improve brand presence and perception control.

Being present on many Social Networks does NOT mean a brand has to contribute to them all. If the brand feels it can communicate best through Facebook, but wants to be present on CafeMom, the CafeMom profile should clearly state that the main community hub is located on Facebook (with a supplied link). A unified presence across all networks should be maintained. This will control the mind, body and spirit of the brand in the eyes of the user in each community. By unifying the brand name, URL, content, tone, and voice across all Social Platforms prior to seeding and maintaining a meaningful level of engagement, the brand’s audience will become accustomed to this presence across the internet.

I love product packaging; I’m actually obsessed with it.

In late February of this year I noticed a change in my favorite orange juice, it looked different, and not in a good way. So I did what any curious package design junkie would do, I Googled it. Low and behold the New York Times and about billion other people noticed this too.

The New York Times article titled “Tropicana Discovers Some Buyers Are Passionate About Packaging” sparked a conversion that spread like fire in the Advertising world as well as in the Foodie world. Package design junkies and consumers alike were taking their complaints to the web and posting their displeasure on blogs and other social media outlets like twitter and Facebook. They felt that the packaging was “ stupid”, “ugly”, “resembles a generic brand” and countless other unfavorable comments.

Normally, like any other large corporation (Tropicana is owned by PepsiCo) they would ignore such complaints, as they do not add up to even the smallest percentage of their consumers, but this time it was different. Neil Campbell, the President of Tropicana North America, said the following in an interview about the new packaging:

“We underestimated the deep emotional bond” they (consumers) had with the original packaging. “Those consumers are very important to us, so we responded.”

“The straw and orange have been there for a long time, but people have not necessarily had a huge connection to them.”

“What we didn’t get was the passion this very loyal small group of consumers have. That wasn’t something that came out in the research.”

After reading this article and peering through some of the numerous blogs I tried to think about what this means to Morpheus Media and its clients. Several important points came to mind.

- Social media will tell you things that standard focus groups and research will not, plus the feedback is boundless and instantaneous

- Consumer feedback or lack there of will help gauge where your brand is on the social scale

- Social media gives brands the opportunities to respond to consumer complaints and strengthen brand loyalty

Tropicana took the comments seriously and started to pull the new design and roll out the old one. Starting March 1^st the old packaging was back in stores along with new campaign ads.

Social Networks during the years 2001-2003 were platforms where people connected with one and other without targeted advertisements. Blogs were not popular to distribute content, but to use as personal journals. Many people were using Chatrooms to communicate with new people.

From 2004 to 2006, Social Platforms were not as popular as they are today. Facebook was only open to college students with valid .edu email addresses. MySpace was in its prime being used by 15-30 year olds on a regular basis. Twitter was in its infancy and only being used by a select few who were in the Internet (pre 2.0) industry.

From 2007 to 2008, Social Platforms we know and love seemed to improve and expand. Facebook opened to the public and increased engagement levels by offering Applications. MySpace came into its own by specializing in Music. And Social Networks expanded to other countries.

Today, Social Media is whatever the user wants it to be. Accessible by Mobile, Application, or Website, Social Platforms can be updated and used on a frequent basis. Because the speed of Social Media consumptions has rapidly increased, platforms are visible in multiple locations. As the future of Social Media and the value of Social Platforms continues to unfold, we will see many advancements in targeted platforms. Trending in Social Media has defined our culture. What was once a platform that kept us engaged for hours now keeps us notified and up to speed in just a few seconds. To become more beneficial for advertising campaigns, the goal should be to keep users engaged for longer periods of time.

As a Social Media marketer, I believe that expansion of these practices will start to encroach on traditional marketing campaigns, infiltrating subway billboards, and become more prominent on Search Engine result pages.

How many times have you been watching television, something sparks your interest and you want–no–need to find more about that topic immediately (any LOST fan knows exactly what I am talking about)? You grab your laptop and fervently search for more information on what you have just witnessed.

A common trend at this year’s CES was Internet-ready televisions and new vehicles for users to digest Web content. We’ve heard of products and applications such as Apple TV, Roku, Netflix through Xbox 360 amongst many others. This has been the existing way to absorb web content directly through your large format television. Taking this a step further, Yahoo and Intel Corp. are planning on developing television ”widgets” in order to access such Web content more easily through your existing remote, bypassing previously mentioned hardware and using the television exclusively.

“You are going to see very broad adoption of this open technology by the best brands in the TV industry — not just for specialty products but deeply penetrated in their product lines”…..Patrick Barry, VP of Connected TV @ Yahoo

We currently can access services such as YouTube and Google’s Picasa on our televisions as well as generic services like the weather. With the adoption of “Ready- Web” televisions, users will more frequently access Web content alongside their regular, habitual television programming. This opens the opportunity for advertisers to capture audiences outside the 30-second spot and could add a layer of targeting methodology that was not previously possible.

This past week, I was in Toronto for the SMX Search Analytics Conference. We discussed mostly advanced analytics techniques and traffic segmentation, which is becoming increasingly important to be on top of, especially in this competitive marketplace. I think the standout talks were Michael Jensen’s on event tracking in Google Analytics, as well as Carrie Hill’s on the value of Traffic Segmentation, and some advanced techniques she uses.

Here are my full notes from the conference…

–

SMX Search Analytics Keynote Address – Vanessa Fox

Search marketing not only brings in targeted customers, it provides an abundance of metrics – about your customers, your potential customers, your entire market. So much data is available that it’s easy to get overwhelmed. In her keynote, Vanessa Fox covers the importance of focusing on the actionable data. You don’t need every metric; you just need the right metrics for your business.

Find Vanessa Fox on the web at Nine By Blue and on Twitter.

* Old data acquisition models
o Pain to impliment
o The type of data we get online would be impossible to get offline
* How is the mountains of data we can collect actionable for the client? So what?
o How to sort through all the data?
* At the end of the day, the important factor for analytics is conversion. -How do you define a conversion?
* Analyzing Data
o Rankings reports are dead
o Key is to figure out what to be measuring
o If not actionable, it can only be of limited help
o Realize what assumptions go into computing data – can be “deadly important”.
* Critical to a lot time to collect, analyze, and act on data.
* Stages of data
o Market Research – Keyword Research – Searcher Behavior
o Industry Research – Competitive Landscape – Revenue Potential
o Conversion – Search Results Conversion – Page Conversion
* Social Media Media Metrics Greasmonkey Plugin

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If you ask anyone in Marketing (traditional or online) right now what trends they are seeing from their clients, I can almost guarantee that high up on the list will be the cutting of marketing budgets.  In what could be one of the worst recessions in recent US history, a Fear Economy has developed over what the next year and a half may bring to businesses and brands in almost every field.  So, a question remains.  What are we supposed to recommend as marketers so our brands weather these hard times and come out on top?

At the risk of sounding like a Give-Us-You-Money-And-We’ll-Spend-It Media Strategist, the most impactful solution to this question is….keep spending.  During recession periods, marketing budgets are typically first on the chopping block (especially within big companies), however, remaining visible during a downturned economy can be incredibly important in keeping a company profitable during these times (as well as paying dividends once the economy begins to improve).

Historical data shows us that there is a significant messaging void during slumps in the economy (due to the aforementioned budget cuts) and that the impact of brand messaging and Direct Marketing efforts can be more impactful because, well….there’s just not as many people on the playground.  Marketing within this recessionary void can increase brand share of voice and promote “company health” to consumers, avoiding the feeling of “abandonment” that consumers can feel if a brand’s messaging goes silent all of a sudden for extended periods of time (see Guns’N’Roses, Chinese Democracy).

During the Great Depression, brands such as GM, Proctor & Gamble, and Camel cigarettes became brand leaders and survived the economic downturn by increasing marketing efforts while their competitors panicked.  Moving forward, I still see budget cuts….but (for the brands willing to make the investment in the future) a big opportunity for brand awareness and, ultimately, conversion.

Birthdays are a big deal here at Morpheus, and for March’s birthday crew, we classed it up with some Dunkin Donuts Muchkins. Tasty.

Morpheus' March Birthday Crew

Just a few moments ago I had the opportunity to meet with an old friend of Morpheus Media, Jimmy Walker.  Mr. Walker was here to share his experiences from the 2008 Mongol Rally with us here at the agency.  Mr. Walker and company successfully completed a 6 week auto rally from London, England to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia last summer.  If the photos are any evidence, this appears to have been the trip of a lifetime for those involved.  To say that this trip makes for a great story is an understatement having just been treated to a live narrative of the experience by Mr. Walker.

While the successful completion of this trip is amazing in its own right, what is really impressive is that Mr. Walker and team were able to blog about this experience as it happened. The record of this adventure can be found at TeamDesertaxi.com and is worth a good look.   The logistics involved in updating a blog hundreds of miles from civilization and potentially thousands of miles from the nearest mobile network are daunting to say the least.

What makes this trip personally interesting for me is that I had the opportunity to watch the creation of the strategy for this social media extravaganza transpire at the desk next to mine.  Morpheus Media’s own SEO & Emerging Technology guru Jeffrey Donenfeld pioneered the program from the comfort of our offices here in Midtown Manhattan.  Multiple scenarios had to be planned for, accounting for all possible technology failures and the redundancy needed to remain successful while traveling through some of the most isolated regions of the world.  Team Deserttaxi was literally able to successfully blog from Outer Mongolia thanks to Jeffrey’s hard work.

I really wanted to tip my hat to Jeffrey on a job well done, as he is responsible for helping the team tell a great story under uniquely challenging circumstances.