Tweets… For a limited time

Brand cereal special shapes...items on the fast food menu...and then there's Twitter accounts.

As microblogging platforms continue to explode, so do internal marketing/PR tactics on how to get the most bang (or should I say no bang) for your buck on Twitter. The most popular strategy: supplying lots of tweets, but providing the means to an end in building a brand.

Observe the constant Twitter banter between @GOPmccainwin and @BarackObama. Both candidates were in high stakes competition over maximizing one another’s political influence through quality tweets. After November 5, it all came to an end. The question is: should it have stopped? For McCain – perhaps… President-elect Barack Obama – a big hearty “no.” Since the tweeting did cease and myself and many others continue to get Mr. Plouffe’s e-mails, what are followers thinking of Mr. Obama now? Too busy? He's not Tweeting!

Then there’s another side to this: seasonal tweets. How many companies have asked you to jump on their bandwagon – to buy this laptop for this great value, or in general, just providing you tweets on what they are doing for the holidays? So far I’ve met up with @HPHolidayCheer. What are they going to do post-holiday? I’m dying to find out.

What do you think? Will brands receive backlash for limited time tweets if Twitter is at the bare essence a way to reach your consumers direct and with haste?

One last thing- Happy Thanksgiving!

Last Night, Facebook became Twitter

Did you notice something last night on Facebook? I did. A lot of people were updating their statuses frequently while the election results came in. It reminded me of something else....oh yeah, Twitter.

I would estimate that about 98% of my Facebook friends are currently not on Twitter, so this was very interesting to watch. A few people commented on how much fun they were having checking the updated statuses of everyone. This furthers my belief that Twitter will eventually go mainstream. It is still with the early adapters, but I believe it is nearing the tipping point.

When the status feature of Facebook was first introduced, it was mocked just like Twitter is by some people, "Why do I care what you had for lunch?" But eventually people have embraced the status feature, which is what I believe will soon happen with Twitter. There is value in both, but it is up to you to find where the value is.

Voter Machine Fraud

For those of you stressed out during election day, here is a video to distract you:


Voting Machines Elect One Of Their Own As President

How the Internet Shaped The Election

A few reflections on how the influence of the internet:

Twitter:
I wouldn't call Twitter influential in changing opinion in the election (it is hard to make a intellectual argument in under 140 characters), but politics have been a large part of twitter during the election. From live tweeting during the debates to the Election Page, Twitter users have been vocal on their political views. Twitter was also used as a way to spread breaking political news immediately, before the main stream media can report it.


YouTube:
Probably the most influential medium of the election. Yes, more than television...by far. YouTube was the dumping ground for user generated political videos, parodies, campaign speeches, gaffes, and basically any video involving politics. There are several political videos on YouTube with over 1 million views concerning the election. It has been a continuing influence in the election, where TV has only had a few big moments.


Facebook:
From Fan Pages to election events to broadcasting your political views across your profile, Facebook is the easiest way for the average person to get involved in politics online. Look at your friends status updates today and you will probably notice several who have donated their status to either of the candidates.


Ustream:
This isn't as widely used as the other mediums, but it is still a very important site. Both candidates used Ustream to broadcast campaign stops live over the internet. Could you have imagined something like this 8 years ago?


Apps:
The Obama team recently came out with an app for the iPhone and iPod touch. It is a pretty neat application for a presidential candidate. It allows the user to access campaign updates, media, call lists of their contacts (separated into swing states), and a few other features.


Concluding thoughts:
Technology has come incredibly far since the last election. In 2004 there was no YouTube, hardly a Facebook presence, no Twitter, no Ustream, and no iPhone. Incredible where we are today, which leaves me with another question to think about: What role will the internet play in 2012?

Viral Video of the Week: Vote However You Like

The video of the week comes from students at Ron Clark Elementary. With a heated election only a day away, it is refreshing to see a humorous bipartisan video. Check it out below and don't forget to vote tomorrow....however you like.

Whassup in 2008?

One catchphrase that I never thought would come back, besides use by Michael Scott in the Office, is Budweiser's "Whassup" slogan. It has indeed resurfaced again, this time with political relevance as a promotional ad for Obama.

The video visits the Whassup guys 8 years after their debut on TV and shows what they are up to now. One just lost his house, one is in Iraq, one needs health care, and one is watching his stocks drop. This is obviously trying to reach out to all of the different issues in the election.

The Effect
So far the video has over 2.5 million views on YouTube. It has circled around on numerous blogs and was featured in the Wall Street Journal today.

Will this have any impact on how people vote? Probably not. It is more so a clever way to bring back a catchphrase that died out 7 years ago. There have been thousands of political videos on YouTube parodying other videos, songs, and movies. This is just one of the more well done and creative spots.


On a side note, I hate when companies or individuals representing their company shout out their personal opinion on politics via their blog or twitter. Below is a humorous video promoting Obama. Here is a humorous article favoring McCain from The Onion.

The Newest Microceleb: Joe the Plumber

Last nights debate was kind of weird, right? In addition to usual problems of quibbling over statistics, there was a bizarre section where McCain and Obama started courting "Joe the Plumber". I thought this was a symbolic gesture, but today's headlines show that there is a real guy named Joe they were actually addressing.

Joe is apparently a plumber who hopes to buy his own plumbing company, and makes just over $250,000 a year. This number is important because Obama wants to raise taxes from 36% to 39% for anyone who makes over a quarter of a million annually. Joe's in this demographic, and he's not happy about it. He confronted Obama on a clip that showed up on youtube (above).

There's speculation about who Joe really is; he doesn't have a plumbing or contracting license, and he owes tax money. Daily Kos suspects that he's a relative of Charles Keating, and a GOP plant. He's also getting negative attention for making some latently racist comments about Obama tap-dancing "almost as good as Sammy Davis Jr."

On the other hand, many Americans are relating to Joe, who preaches that people should learn about the issues for themselves and ask tough questions. He's even inspired a line of "Joe for President" t-shirts.

Regardless, Joe has come to represent the fundamental difference between the tax policies of Mccain and Obama, and furthermore two interpretations of the American dream.

An Epic Fail Whale

While watching the presidential debate on Friday, I was also following along with the conversation on Twitter. As expected, most people on Twitter were following the debate and giving their play-by-play commentary. With so many people on Twitter, I hoped Twitter would have beefed up their servers for the heavy amount of traffic they were going to receive during the debate. I knew better though. I predicted a 'fail whale' and it did indeed happen:




The 'fail whale' came out during the debate. While it wasn't long lasted, it was still an epic fail. Imagine if you were watching the Super Bowl and your TV reception kept going in and out, you wouldn't stay with that cable company much longer would you? Twitter needs a business model, a revenue stream, and more reliable servers.



The VP debate is this Thursday. Let's hope Twitter can handle it. I wouldn't bet on it though.

Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon on LinkedIn

This may not come as a surprise to you, but it definitely stunned me. LinkedIn usually sends a disclaimer when you click on a high-profile individual about having nothing in common with the person with who you are trying to connect. Well, what do you know? Kevin Bacon knows someone who knows me.

LinkedIn is a professional ground for not only celebrities but politicians. Look up all of the major politicians you see broadcast over CNN, MSNBC, Nightly News with Brian Williams, and voila-- they have 500+ contacts. Barack Obama has attained the 500+ status; John McCain has too, adding on 30 recommendations part of his tenure as the Arizona Senator.

With profiles that provide a detailed account of a celebrity's employment, or should I say acting history, can we really trust that it is indeed the person whose autograph we so desperately long to have and display?

Regarding politicians on LinkedIn, I'm not sure this is the best way to utilize social media to garner public support. It seems like a third-party website is the best way to reach your constituents. Or then again, maybe those 50 bajillion e-mail messages I receive from my presidential hopeful may do the online political network a bit of justice.

Should you ever want to send Kevin Bacon an e-mail, write to him at KEVIN.BAC0N@hotmail.com. (That's a zero between C and N in BAC0N), he says.

McCain/ Palin - Genious or Risky?

John McCain has picked Alaska Senator Sarah Palin for his VP running mate. What does this mean for the GOP ticket? Message boards are already showing the polarization of opinions:

"This (decision) is an insult to women"

"Go Palin!! She has been an awesome governor and will be a great VP."

"Sarah Palin is not Hillary Clinton. "

"American politics hasn't seen integrity like Sarah Palin before..."

Will McCain's choice prove wise or will it backfire? I personally have mixed feelings. I can see how she may be a good choice based on her past signs of bold commitment to her beliefs, but her lack of long term experience will be pointed out by Obama's campaign. While this move probably won't capture all of the Hillary supporters, it is a strong move with the intention of creating buzz for McCain.