The "New" Addiction? Tablet Users Report Peace of Mind, Creative Boost, According to Viacom

by Dave Sniadak

@dsniadak

Very interesting findings were just released from Viacom this week, talking about how tablets are now the "second screen" of choice for television viewers. The media and research company calls this latest trend "Tabletomics," or the science of using tablets to consume media, technology, all while enhancing creativity. Move over laptop, there's a new screen in town. But beyond that, it seems that tablets are the new "cup of coffee" we so often need to have attached to our hands - without it, we start to get jittery and shaky.

Viacom found that tablet owners feel an emotional connection to their devices. Research findings show that more than 50% of respondents said their tablets bring peace of mind, almost half (49%) said they're managing their daily duties better, and by simply having a tablet in hand, almost 4 out of 10 people feel more creative (39%). Sound familiar? I feel the same way about my morning can of Pepsi.

This video posted on Stuart Schneiderman's blog on Viacom.com shows how consumers are using their tablets to perpetuate the consumption of media beyond simply sitting on the couch and watching their favorite shows. What it doesn't show is how our addiction to tablets is creating a divide between personal connection. I'm alarmed by the footage of the family sitting on the couch, all using a different mobile device, instead of sitting on the floor, playing with toys or board games.

Is it time we have a technological intervention? When do we pull the plug and force ourselves, as a society, to say "We've consumed enough technology for one day! Turn it off!"? I guess we'll simply have to ask our Facebook friends what they think, right after I update my calendar on iCal and finish this documentary I'm watching on my Whispersync app.

April showers...make for a great time to watch online videos!

by Nick Egner

How does this have over 5 million views?

With Youtube being as vast as it is, it can be hard to find good content. With social media being saturated with an overwhelming supply of content, how in the world are you going to find the good stuff? Lots of video sharing sites and social media channels are basically just user generated filters that allow people to update and share the videos they find most interesting. Are you yearning for more high quality, on-line video content? Well, I can’t promise you that, but here is a look at a few places on the net you might find yourself lost in a sea of cute cats, laughing babies, and Tupac’s ghost at Coachella.

Pinterest.com
I know Pinterest at first glance looks like every girl on Facebook’s place to pin their dream wedding dress, or those cute shoes she saw at Neiman's, oh and I know that purse Sally just pinned would look great with them too. Being a guy on Pinterest is like going to the department store with your girlfriend/wife every single time you log in. But there is hope. Pinterest has taken strides to be a player in the realm of video sharing. In fact they just added Vimeo to their pinning prowess. Pinterest has also added a hot link on their opening page to go directly to a page of recently pinned videos. With Pinterest becoming an on-line market place, is it gearing up for marketers to add more content? For now it is just a nice addition to an already addicting website. Take a look at a (very manly) video pinboard I created to get an idea: http://pinterest.com/nicholase/videos-to-show-you-are-cool/.

Chill.com
I was just introduced to this site. It has a very similar feel to Pinterest, but is strictly for videos. You are able to follow people (like Pinterest) whom you feel have similar tastes as you. Through creating “collections” of videos, users are able to group videos together. There is even a “chill” button you can add to your bookmark bar for easy sharing. Ok, no joke, this is Pinterest. It is exactly like Pinterest for video content. And really, that isn’t that bad of a thing. I could see falling into a time warp on this site. Nice big thumb nails on the home page, user comments are easy to access, and it seems to be quite a streamlined style even though there are a ton of little icons that I have no clue what they are for. I don’t know, I say give it a shot.

Reddit.com/r/videos
OH MAN! It’s the holy grail of time you will never get back! This is the Steven Hawking level of accelerated time. Honestly, if you haven’t heard of reddit, you might want to think twice about checking it out. The idea is that people post videos they like. The reddit community then up or down votes the content depending on if they like it or not. So all the best posts rise to the top while all the worst fall to the floor. Rebeca Black is hanging out in the basement of Reddit. This is a tried and true method of discovering really top notch content out there in the depths of the interwebs...and some cat videos.

With Youtube, Facebook, and Twitter being the crowned juggernauts of social media sharing, it is nice to step away and explore some alternatives. And when I say “step away” I mean sit in your chair and be as unproductive as possible! Enjoy your total waste of time!

Branded Entertainment Done Right With Denny's

by Mike Reiber

Branded entertainment -- particularly comedy -- can be a dart board experience. Sometimes it hits the bull's eye. Sometimes not.

One you should be sure to check out is Denny's "Always Open" webisode campaign produced by the digital content group owned by actors Will Arnett and Jason Bateman. The campaign is a series of provactive 3-4 minute interviews posted on Collegehumor.com. Saturday Night Live alumnus Dave Koecher interviews celebs while they share a booth at Denny's. Celebs included in the series include Jessica Biehl, Conan O'Brien's pal Andy Richter and others. Last year's interviews included Jason Bateman and Will Arnett and nabbed more than 6 million views. Links to the videos were tweeted by a variety of celebrities.

The interviews underscore the fact that Denny's is always open and represents a welcoming place. The webisodes remind me of a modern day Seinfeld for millenials.

Clearly, Denny's has hit the mark.

LinkedIn Targeted Updates

by Natalie Bell
@nebell90

LinkedIn has been available to professional individuals for nearly a decade.  Initially, the site began very small and grew slowly.  As other social media outlets gained popularity LinkedIn worked to improve.  The site opened up to students in addition to working professionals.  Companies are now able to have pages.  People and companies can post status updates.  One feature that Facebook and Google+ had over LinkedIn was the ability to  post updates to specific audiences.  Google+ has it's circles, Facebook has it's lists, and now LinkedIn has Targeted Updates.

So what are the benefits of Targeted Updates?  As a marketer overseeing our company page, I find this very exciting.  We are working to update our page and add new features -- perfect timing for a new feature to be introduced!  Targeted Updates allows you to send updates to specific subgroups of your followers.  The post will show on the news feeds of those you choose, but be visible to everyone who visits your page.  This means that the people who see the update are the ones most likely to be interested and engage with your company.

Targeted Updates gives you the availability to post to very specific groups based on their page information.  Followers can be broken down through five categories: industry, job function, company size, geography and including/excluding company employees.  Before posting you can sift through your followers to get a narrowed audience and create a higher chance of engagement.

The video below gives a quick explanation and tutorial for using LinkedIn Targeted Updates.

Facebook Buys Instagram: Smart Move