32 questions and 1000 connected consumers
It’s that time of year and Razorfish have released their annual study into how technology is changing the way consumers engage with brands. They have included the full data set from their ‘Brand Experience Study’ for us all to review and as with the last few years it’s brought up some really interesting results.
This year, for multiple just reasons, it’s largely focused on Twitter and Facebook and the findings have been a hot topic across marketing and social media blogs alike. The main piece of data a lot of people are particularly interested in is that whilst 1/4 of people on Twitter have followed a brand, 40% of them do so solely to get exclusive deals. They also show that out of the ‘connected consumers’ interviewed, a massive 40% had connected with a brand on Facebook.
What does this mean for brands? Well, it would seem to mean that Facebook and Twitter are being used by people to do the job that a lot of ‘industry types’ are selling in, that is, ‘connecting with brands’. Even if it is largely around offers and deals, for a brand it can still act as a channel to engage with people when the time might call.
Readwriteweb have a great breakdown in their usual, easy to absorb yet thorough style if you want more info.
Oh and just because it’s very cool, you can grab yourself a real prop from Dunan Jones’ Moon by getting involved with their Ebay auction site, a real life size GERTY is up for grabs!
Paranormal Activity, Oscars and the Moon
So, now we’ve had time to sit back and chew the fat, so to speak, it really does look like the social media campaign Paramount ran around the release of their super scary, super indie, budget movie, Paranormal Activity actually worked.
What happened? Well, essentially they said that the $15,000 movie would be given a nationwide US release if they had 1,000,000 requests for it via their website. The idea was pushed across social media venues far and wide, and what happened? The request mark was reached and the film expanded to 160 screens and averaged $49,379 per screen setting a major record for a limited release.
It seems that the answer as to whether, ‘can social media put bums on seats?’ is effectively, yes, if done creatively, with the right content and the right ideas, it really can bring people into the cinema.
What’s up next then? Use your social power to get Sam Rockwell an Oscar nomination for his amazing performance in Moon. Supported by director, Duncan Jones, a fan has taken it upon himself to get a petition signed by 1,000,000 people once again to help Sam receive the nomination, at about 300 at the moment, it’s a little way off, but head over and help out and we’ll see what happens!
Justin Timerblake, David Fincher, Mark Zuckerberg
So, depending on what sort of person you are, you’ll probably recognise the first two out of the three of the names above, but the third is quickly becoming a household name himself. If you’re unaware who Mark Zuckerberg is, he’s 25 years old, one of the founders of Facebook, currently the world’s largest social network, and depending who you read, he’s worth anything from $750million to $5 billion.
Why are these three names in the same line of a blog title though? We’ll it’s just been confirmed that Justin Timberlake is going to be playing Napster co-founder Sean Parker, in the ‘The Social Network’ or ‘The Facebook Movie’ as a lot of people are calling it at the moment.
Penned by Aaron Sorkin (writer and creator of “The West Wing” and “Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip” it’s based on Ben Mezrich’s book, “The Accidental Billionaires,” which explores the overnight success of Facebook and the impact on its young founders.
With the magic that is social media, the huge start-ups that capture the imagination and content of so many, could this be the first of a series of similar movies? Twitter the movie next maybe? Worthy of a nationwide launch, or straight to DVD? Let us know what you think in the comments!
Twitter, social media and Hollywood
Social media subjects of discussion move and shake like any hot news topic, but one is sticking at the moment. It seems everyone is putting their foot into the debate about just how much of an effect social media can have cinema ticket admissions.
Bruno, recently released, saw a 39 percent box office drop off from Friday to Saturday. Did the exit tweets have any impact? Did people turn to social media venues like Twitter and Digg to find out real consumer opinion on a movie they weren’t 100% sure they’d enjoy? Some have suggested this is the case, and on the basis of their negativity, they turned their backs on the movie.
This is obviously extremely pertinent for studios and the debate is raging. The Baltimore Sun recently got access to some interesting people in order to report back on the phenomenon. One point is a quote by Brandon Gray, president and founder of boxofficemojo.com saying that, teen-vampire romp Twilight saw the same drop off in box office revenue without any mention of the Twitter effect. More recently though, highly vocal Peter Sciretta of SlashFilm jumped into the debate with a short bit of insight on a quick marketing effort from Ashton Kutcher, attempting to engage his three million followers:
“The case against Twitter as movie marketing (but NOT WOM): Ashton Kutcher has 3,336,374 followers, urged them all t (cont) - http://tl.gd/e7bf” - slashfilm twitter
Whilst this is obviously a micro-assessment, it does add to the debate, as a marketing tool, Twitter might not be that effective as a word of mouth tool for consumers. We know people can step outside of a cinema and tell 500 people what they thought instantly, rather than waiting to tell a few people down the pub, but do people pay attention to celebrities who endorse their own product? Research would say they do, and are paying more attention all the time, but that is another debate all together. At a base line, we’re moving ever deeper into a world where there is a need for a lot of interesting thinking on how we, as marketers, strategists and promotional agents can work with the people and the space to benefit both the paying public and the studios. Your thoughts in the comments section please!
Hello world, we are Way to Blue
It’s fairly clear that as a digital PR agency that is becoming ever more involved in the world of social media and bridging the gaps between our clients and their consumers, we need our own soap box so to speak.
On here members of the Way to Blue team will be talking about and voicing some of their opinions on the latest issues and technologies revolving around digital PR, the social media, the internet, campaigns, people and communities.
So on that note, Twitter it is! Clearly the biggest talking point of the moment, the numbers are in and they’re huge. With almost exponential growth it’s eating up members at an alarming rate and which sees it growing faster than even the global giants like Facebook.
The question really is though two fold; how is it ever going to make money, and secondly, how brands engage with consumers and the platform itself? We’re more concerned with the second question really, and there’s lots of different ways of looking at it at the moment.
@stedavis from PRBlogger and the digital agency 3W PR has just put a presentation on the matter that he gave at the Don’t Panic Guide To Social Media. I particularly like his closing slides that give tips for brands and people on how to legitimately broach the medium. Our personal stand point varies across our international offices, as attitude differs in different countries, but one linch pin always remains.
“BE HUMAN”
