Contest to Be Announced Monday

Our apologies for not having a fresh, new blog post about social media for you today. Tim and I have been hard at work on a secret contest that will launch Monday. We are really excited about this campaign, but we can't tell you about it until next week! Here are a few clues about the contest to wet your appetites over the weekend:

- Twitter
- Easter Eggs
- and a very special prize...

Just In Case You Still Thought It Was A Waste of Time

The Internet is forever changing the way we do everything. If you need a little more proof that things will not be reverting anytime soon look no further than this week's headline from the UK. The British government is now recommending that Twitter, podcasting, blogging and social media become part of the mandatory curriculum in elementary schools.

There are still a lot of hard core skeptics that think this "social media thing" will soon pass just like all the other trends and fads. "It's a waste of time, pointless, not worth the time to learn."

That's what they said about the television and even the internet.

Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social networks may not be around in years to come, but the ideas are here to stay. The choice and consequences are pretty simple. Knowing that things are going to continue to move in this direction, you can start to learn about it now and think about how it will affect your business/industry/career/life. You can then have a head start and start to evolve those areas. Since you are reading this blog, you have probably already decided to go this route. The other option is that you can avoid and reject change. Ignore it long enough and you might become the next music industry or newspaper industry.

Social media and Web 2.0 are here to stay.

Can Numa Numa Guy and Geico Gecko Be Friends?

With more and more companies and brands getting involved in the social media space these days, marketers are trying hard to come up with new ways to engage the audience. Whether it's viral videos on YouTube, internet celebrity endorsements, or popular blogger outreach, brands have blurred the lines between company controlled messages and user-generated content.

Here's the latest video to makes its rounds on the web:


The Numa Numa guy has done stuff like this before (Pork and Beans with Weezer) and I believe that we will continue to see big companies working hard to tap into the social web for ways to get their brand in front of people.

Here's the question - Do company marketing and user-generated content really mix well? I can think of three camps of thought:

1. These videos are just plain fun and require no deep thought aside from their pure entertainment value. Numa Numa guy is funny and we love the dancing Gecko - bring on more of it.

2. These kinds of videos just feel like an awkward attempt to mix corporate advertising with viral user-generated content. They try too hard to be clever and don't really mix very well. Some in this group would even argue that this is the equivalent of selling out - these videos were never meant for this purpose. Think classic rock songs on car commercials.

3. Mixing corporate images with user-generated content does not get any real message across. Was 'Where the Hell is Matt?' successful? Extremely. Did it have anything to do with chewing gum? Nope. It's impossible to correlate the good feelings and fun these videos create with actual sales or growth, even if the video is extremely popular and company health and wealth improves in a year, therefore they are a waste of time, money, and effort for companies to make.

So where do you fall? Is there a category missing? Can corporate messages and marketing be mixed successfully with user-generated content?

How to Control Brand Messaging on Twitter

Twitter’s claim to fame is fast delivery and response, and consumers have come to appreciate the outstanding customer service such a tool provides. The takeaway from a brand using customer service strategies is a message of care and concern – everything that in-store customer service isn’t. Though, how can brands ensure the key messages part of their created identity will be carried across Twitter feeds? I once said it’s impossible to control brand messages on Twitter, but now I digress after recent revelations.

True, consumers have a powerful voice, but brands can certainly overpower negative and confusing tweets by considering how a consumer typically reaches out to a company on Twitter. Consumers only know how to interact with brands (not the people behind the brands) on Twitter in one way. By offering tweets of praise and complaints, they let the brand rep know the company either is or isn’t doing their job.

Subjectivity is not a good barometer when it comes to brand message development, because a lot of it might be considered blown smoke. (People still reply to @comcastcares with faulty messages about a broken down TV, internet connection, etc. just to see if they’ll actually respond). Knowing the potential for discrepancies, how do brands control the messages on Twitter?

• It’s all in the profile While I agree with a short bio about the tweeting brand rep, I don’t think it’s wise to blur the lines of professional position vs. personal interests by offering up things like “I love Cheetos” in the Twitter bio. In order to ensure brand messaging consistency, companies need to insert a shorter version of their values, mission, and passion. If too personal, consumers might think a company rep’s love for Cheetos is because he/she works for them. Here's a brief bio example I speak of:

• Addressing the issue publicly Honestly, what is the point of DMs (besides avoiding spam e-mail) if, by nature, all social networks and blogging platforms are meant to be transparent? Brands can stop a naysayer quicker by @-ing them. A DM message is not searchable, so when consumers are looking for answers via Twitter search, they won’t find a company’s reply to a very strongly worded consumer comment. And if you want to avoid spam e-mail, you can certainly DM them that info if further discussion is necessary.

• A ground for resource links Twitter is not the only way to communicating a promotion or contest, though companies love to do it all the time. But say a customer was to reply and ask what the promotion was and 140 characters didn’t allow for a good explanation. Hopefully, other communications would come into play, so Twitter could serve as a resource link to additional info on Web sites and blogs. Some companies have avoided this issue altogether by making their Twitter profile more concrete and theme-driven. Here's an example:

• Two Twitter accounts? If you’re a brand rep on Twitter and you really want to interact on a more personal level, a way that taps into your interests, you should consider creating both a personal Twitter account, and a professional one dedicated to brand values, mission, and passion. While I understand a professional Twitter account heightens the possibility of spam, it’s better than having mixed messages about the brand. If you’re McDonalds, you tweet about special menu deals, new products and service, and countries you love to visit. If you work for McDonalds, you tweet beyond your company and talk about your love for snacking on Cheetos, alternative music, and the hit television series “Lost.”

Remember, it's all about tweet consistency and not blurring the lines. People say mix the personal with the professional, but I have to disagree as personality can be conveyed through a professional Twitter account-- keeping in mind those key messages, values, and passion of an organization. I would argue the former only works if you're self-employed or a C-suite level executive.

What are your thoughts on branding consistency via tweets?

Axiom Featured in Upcoming Fox9 News Segment

Fox9's Trish Van Pilsum stopped by the Axiom offices this past Friday to talk about Facebook Faux Pas. Here's a summary of what happened, and be sure to check out Van Pilsum's segment on Tuesday, March 31 at 9 p.m. on Fox 9 Twin Cities.