Friday, July 31, 2009

Coleman's Spin on Social Networking


If you've ever gone camping, chances are you own or have used a piece of Coleman's camping gear. Well the folks at Coleman's are putting their own spin on social networking by trying to get people offline!

They've come up with a brilliant ad campaign claiming that they're the 'original social networking site' by making reference to camp sites surrounded by friends having a good time.

Kudos to whoever developed this concept for them - it captured my attention from the get go and made a fantastic point. As much as social networking is here to stay, we should also remember to cherish the time spent with friends and family and hanging around the camp site is a perfect way to reconnect.

You can view their website by CLICKING HERE.

What do you think?

Thursday, July 30, 2009

What the f**k is Social Media?!

Over the past few months, I've been working heavily with Social Media and Social Marketing. After speaking to countless marketers across every industry imaginable, I've learned one thing: most marketers really don't get Social Media.

Simply put, Social Media is all about people sharing conversations, images and videos online. This can be a simple "tweet", a full-on rant via personal blog or a photo slide show.

While websites like Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, MySpace and YouTube will inevitably continue to pop up, one thing is certain - this is not a fad. It is a fundamental shift in the way people communicate.

I could spend hours typing an essay to better explain Social Media but instead, I'll redirect you to two slide shows that will do a much better job.

1 - What the f**k is Social Media
2 - What the f**k is Social Media: One year later

A great deal of thanks to Marta Z. Kagan of Espresso for enlightening me.

Social Marketing... an brief intro.

For the past few months I've been working heavily in the area of social media and social marketing through a pretty cool marketing program called House Party Buzz.

In a very short period of time, I've learned that a vast majority of marketing professionals don't truly understand social marketing. To summarize, social media is "people having conversations online". This is done by sharing thoughts and ideas, photos, videos, etc.

Web 2.0 brought us sites like Flickr, Tweeter, Facebook, MySpace and YouTube - and there are many more on the way. These sites aren't about online fads; they represent a global shift in the way we communicate.

Social Marketing is about engaging consumers directly in an open and honest conversation. If they love your product, they'll talk about it. If they don't like your product, you need to let them say their piece and learn from consumer thoughts.

As a marketer you need to let go of the reins and let consumers take control of the conversation. The more you try to influence their discussions, the sooner you'll be resented for getting in the way. Regardless of the messages you try to put out there, people will talk; and social marketing is a great way to connect with your customers.

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

The innaug-blog

I did it. I took the plunge and became a Blogger.
The first question is simple: "Why?"

It took me a while to figure that out, but after a little thought it made sense. Here's what I came up with:

1) This isn't going to be an "all about Ethan" blog. The fact is, you don't care. And if, by chance, you are someone who cares, you'll hear it from me in person - not by reading about it online.

2) I work in Marketing. More specifically, I often work with Social Marketing. It seemed pretty hypocritical for me to be an advocate of encouraging online conversations with consumers when I don't do it myself.

3) By reading other people's blogs, I have discovered a wealth of information, which has helped me learn a lot - particularly with respect to understanding the intricacies of Social Marketing. As a result, I hope that others will find some use in my own blog and view it as a resource rather than another guy ranting about nothing.

Welcome. Enjoy. Discuss.